Do you HAVE to tank as ninja?

[Hereaux]

It seems like now whenever someone see's a ninja they instantly think Blink tank. Do nin's always have to tank? Can they ever just be a puller or DD? I really want to play the NIN class, but I don't think I would be able to keep up with the funding for all the blink tanking.

[Omni]

play thf/nin.

sorry, this topic has been beat to death. if youre lvling nin and you dont tank...all i have to say is, good luck.

[neighbortaru]

/agree Omni

only other way to play NIN without tanking requires even more money (and no I'm not talking about NIN/thf).

[Gryff]

nin/war can be a DD, but you also still have to tank.
^^

[Dtec]

The answer is no, you don't have to tank. But, you have to understand that katana damage is weak compared to other weapons that damage dealers have access to. Also, ninjas lack a powerful weapon skill. So if you don't want to tank, you have to exploit the ninjas other skills, such as range attacks and ninjutsu spells. Either way, you will spend money to be a ninja.

[Caspian]

Aye, he's right. And you'll probably have to blink tank to 24 I think, when you can use bullets, thereby needing even more money per lvl to buy all the bullets. So, yes, you dont have to blink tank the whole time...you can sub /rng and shoot the whole time, but then again, that does defeat the purpose of you trying to save money.

[Kibogaoka]

If it's gil you need. Sorry, but take up crafing. Once you get high enough, try to make as much HQ, popular stuff as you can. Then gather a fw mil for your NIN's Shiei for most/all of the game.

Or, just level anoter job up and farm :D

You should always try to get a bank for supplies, level, bank again.

[Caspian]

I really think SE knew what they were doing when they made these jobs only available after getting to 30 in a basic job. You can play the basic 6 rather cheaply (comparatively) if you have to and still will get pretty much the same use. Truth is you really cant play ninja or ranger cheaply, well you could, you could never use shihei, or never shoot anything, but then you'd just be a weak ass melee that noone would ever invite. And it goes for more than just money, you need to have some comprehension of weapon skills and sc's before getting into sam, you need to get the avatars before pt'ing with smn, need party experience before soloing with bst, list goes on and on and im starting to ramble. Please dont think I mean that all basic jobs are cheap (especially after the first few lvls) but they can be done with less expense at the beginning w/o really gimping yourself. I guess I said all that to say this. Dont play a job (basic and advanced included) unless you are willing to play them to the best of your abilites and willing to put in the effort to make them good. (also not a flame at you directly but a blanket statement to those in such a race to get to 75 that they forget about trying to be beneficial to their party)

[standog]

I guess my first question would be why you want to play a NIN in the first place. Don't get me wrong, what I mean is are you attracted to the look or armor or spells? If it's only dual wield, which it is for a number of players, then I would suggest going WAR/NIN. You'll have access to the same spells if you would like to use them, dual wield and many more offensive abilities than just as a NIN. In addition, the WAR class will allow you to use a great deal more weapons than just katanas.

This is a less costly avenue for you to go as well, especially if you want to excel in dealing damage.

[Jei]

Nin is loved because they blink tank. Nin refusing to tank is like Whm refusing to heal.

[Macht]

Yeah, if you are trying to use NIN as a damage dealer and not a tank it obviously doesn't come from the katana's. The NINs are superior in throwing abilities, the use of shurikens and chakrams gives them all the power to deal damage.

Unfortunatly the shurikens which gives you damage equal or even above that of a ranger still costs a lot of money, since those shurikens are high damage and low delay they'll go right through your hands like water.

Either way you can use NIN as Tank or not, but still you'll spend a lot of money either way.

[Kilgraw]

War/Nin seems to be the class your looking for.

[standog]

Having levelled DRK to 75 I can tell you that, if you compare the damage that NIN puts out over time, versus that of what a DRK does I would have to say that NINs are a pretty good damage dealer in their own right.

Currently, my Ninjitsu is hitting for 60-90 and my normal melee attacks are around 40-60, then when you include the Chakram which averages about 35, you're talking about some really nice damage.

Shurikens cost a ton, so I won't consider using them until later when the skill is capped and I get my AF gear. But the damage on them is high as well. When you consider that you are using Melee, Ninjitsu and Throwing NIN more than holds it's own for damage. The two handed weapons and Bows have such a high delay that it's frustrating. For myself, I really enjoy looking at a mobs life and being able to unload some Ninjitsu and a couple katana strikes on butt and the DRK is still sitting there waiting for his scythe to hit. Overall I'd say give it a try and see if it fits the bill. There is more to NIN that meets the eye.

In addition at later levels, /RNG and /BLM are a possibility that can do awesome damage. Still being fairly new to NIN, I'm just amazed that I can evade so much and still put a good deal of damage out.

[Mikeb]

To compare to other damage dealing classes as a Ninja, you'll need to spend even more money than you'd spend as a blink tank...

[Alauna]

Originally posted by Jei
Nin is loved because they blink tank. Nin refusing to tank is like Whm refusing to heal.

I'd have to say more "like a RDM refusing the heal". A whm doesnt realy have any other role, than healing, where as a rdm has a few different roles.

Yes, a nin can get my without tanking. It wont be easy. You'd spend more time hanging out with the DRK's and DRG's in lower jeuno (ouch.. burn.. sorry guys...) than you would in the field. Unless you took the route that (i think) S-E had originaly designed for you, as a Solo Artist. (again, a long, painfull road).