Best solo caster/healer?

[Terra Blade]

I just started as a Conjurer, and so far am loving how sturdy being a caster is. I know I will be focusing on the casters at high level, it's just my thing and the bonus of being able to heal isn't hurting either.

So i'm wondering for later though, what is the best solo caster and/or healer for groups? I do plan to group up when possible, I just seem to spend the majority of the time on my own. From what I understand from a few rants I have read White Mage isn't in a good place now, and scholor is better? Any advice would be appreciated.

[Gabby]

You're mostly going to get responses that will create an argument over what's best based on all sorts of complex figuring, theorycrafting and sillimitude.

Play what you enjoy playing. They can all handle just fine at endgame, it's really more your personal skill and whether or not you play smart that really makes the difference. I personally WHM main, get plenty of commends on any run and know my class. We're touted as "not being as good" because we "lack utility", but that's a very fancy way of also saying the other two classes don't heal as well or as efficiently.

As for casters, you really just have Summoner and Black Mage, Summoner is all about sustained damage, debuffs, and managing your minion to output heavier damage, whereas Black Mage is raw burst damage. They're both entirely viable and despite some people claiming one or the other is better, I've noticed performance is really based on the nuance and skill of the player. "Better" classes don't automatically mean you'll succeed. Nor do the "bad" classes mean you will fail. People rely way too much on what others think of their class to cover how well they actually do.

[Chibi-Moogle]

I agree with Seraphia, just go with the class you that you enjoy playing the most on. ^-^

I know some won't agree with me, but I don't think it's fun if you're forced into a class just because of the debate of which 'job' is optimal for raids and such.

I mean, I'm no hardcore OP Summoner, but I manage just fine in 24-man raids, some primal extremes and expert roulettes just fine. ^-^

[Gabby]

Only going to note the benefits of Astrologian are actually random, so claiming that a damage increase makes them an absolute must for speed kills is kind of like saying your ability to clear an encounter is heavily based on how many times you've rubbed the lucky rabbits foot today... and kind of pushes into the boundaries of DPS blaming healers for their inadequacies.

[Chibi-Moogle]

I would also recommend getting swfitcast via cross-skills if you plan to use a caster, especially Summoner or a Healer, Terra Blade. ^-^

To a caster, swiftcast is a must have. ^-^ It can save your team in a pinch if you do the Swiftcast+Raise/Resurrection combo.

You'll have to level a thurmaturge to...level 26 I think for swiftcast? ^^

[Kiana]

If we're talking about soloing exclusively, scholar is pretty solid. You can cross-class cleric stance to deal decent damage and have Eos/Selene cover healing you. Though that's just my preference; every class is viable solo.

[Lazychocobo]

Tbh they are all good, as far as mmorpgs go, this one is very relaxed and casual so its not as *hardcore* as others.

[Oberon]

Originally posted by Seraphna:

YAs for casters, you really just have Summoner and Black Mage, Summoner is all about sustained damage, debuffs, and managing your minion to output heavier damage, whereas Black Mage is raw burst damage.

I'd add to that that, at level 60, both classes require a lot of juggling. Black Mage has less stuff it needs to juggle, but Summoner has a lot more leeway. One is like juggling three tennis balls, the other is like juggling five scarves. Black Mage typically hits harder, though.

Originally posted by Shirayuki474:

But OP is asking about best healer and caster, there is nothing related to fun in that description.

It's a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ game. Fun is the most important aspect. No one wants to play a class they find boring and tedious.

[Neiker]

First thing is, you dont need to solo heal. Any class can heal just fine on 4 man dungeons, and in 8 man there are 2 of you to get the job done, white mage is kind aout of meta, but that only matter son realy, realy high end game content.

In my oppinion though, if you want to solo heal everything even 8 man content, then astro is the best. But if you want to help more with the dps while healing Scholar is the best.

[Gabby]

Originally posted by Shirayuki474:

Originally posted by The Mayor of Murder Town:

It's a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ game. Fun is the most important aspect. No one wants to play a class they find boring and tedious.

Maybe he is not casual like you? His entire post is about BEST absolute 0 words related to ''fun'' or ''difficulty'' + every job can be fun in its own way. He clearly asked a clear question, who is the best/strongest and you already decided for him that he doesn't need to think about that, nobody, including OP, cares about your opinion because it is not what OP was asking about.

It is like he would ask who is the best tank and people including you would be telling him to play PLD because he is easy and ''fun''. Seriously, s,t,o,p.

Dude, your elitism is just stinking lately.

[Oberon]

Originally posted by Shirayuki474:

Originally posted by Seraphna:

Dude, your elitism is just stinking lately.

Casual who thinks all jobs are equal won't be answering anything in this topic. I'm talking about Mayor of course.

And an elitist tryhard who thinks "fun" doesn't belong in a game[tvtropes.org] and thinks FFlogs is holy gospel is just an annoying prick. I'm talking about you, of course. Stop trying to ruin the game for people by demanding that they only play what you want them to. It's a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ game.

[SkullMonkey86]

The safest choice would likely be arcanist/summoner/scholar, you will need things to reset your stats if you plan on playing summoner and scholar though, since one is int and one is mind.

[Gabby]

Originally posted by SkullMonkey86:

The safest choice would likely be arcanist/summoner/scholar, you will need things to reset your stats if you plan on playing summoner and scholar though, since one is int and one is mind.

This really is a good way for newbie casters to get a feel for what they want. If you find the healing too indirect, go for WHM, if you like it but want more, go Astrologian. If you like it, stick with it. As for Arcanist --> Summoner, if you like it, stick with it. If you hate it and want more explosions, go Black Mage. If you feel you want a more hands on approach, wait for Red Mage.

[Neiker]

I argue with some of you guys on some threads and we are unable to reach a common ground, yeah, soo i might not be the best person to say this...But god, you guys argue on every thread XD.

[Terra Blade]

Originally posted by Shirayuki474:

Originally posted by The Mayor of Murder Town:

It's a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ game. Fun is the most important aspect. No one wants to play a class they find boring and tedious.

Maybe he is not casual like you? His entire post is about BEST absolute 0 words related to ''fun'' or ''difficulty'' + every job can be fun in its own way. He clearly asked a clear question, who is the best/strongest and you already decided for him that he doesn't need to think about that, nobody, including OP, cares about your opinion because it is not what OP was asking about.

It is like he would ask who is the best tank and people including you would be telling him to play PLD because he is easy and ''fun''. Seriously, s,t,o,p.

Well I would like fun in there too. I want the best so I can be useful, but I also want fun because if I spend hours in a game I want to enjoy my time. In fact I plan to level all the casters, even the eventual red mage.

I appreciate everyone taking the time to help me out. That is always a good sign for a game's community. From what I understand so far of the game I can use the same armor/stats to run any of the healers as necissary. So long as I can get them up to the level needed for the content. This means I can always tailor myself for a groups needs if necissary. Otherwise, I can just run with whatever class I enjoy the most since all are viable?

So far this seems like a good game to have picked up. Wish I had done it sooner. :)

[Ancarius]

If you just stick to Healer then yes you can easily switch around, since Armor and Accessories stay the same. Just your weapon changes, since that defines a Class and also makes up around 50% of your total equipment. You can get a basic Weapon for all 3 Healers, so after a long time you should decide which Healer is your primary. That goes more into your choice which Relic Weapon and/or Tomestone Weapon you will pick up.

All Tanks/Healers/DD's are useful in the game. While yes if you go for Speedkills or the absolut best Group Composition, then there is no choice, but that is to be expected in every game. Player Skill is so brutally important here that a DPS in full Best in Slot gear, currently iLvL 270 (With Sub-Stat Optimization), loses to someone from the same Class who has ~250, just because the weaker geared playes better.