When Final Fantasy 14 arrived for gamers, Square Enix managed to transform its hit fantasy RPG franchise into a spectacular MMO experience. Within the game, Final Fantasy fans can take on iconic Jobs and embark on an adventure with their friends. Moreover, its roster of 20 Classes that transition into one of 10 Jobs provides a ton of flexibility in terms of gameplay. In fact, some beginners might express confusion on the matter.
After all, transitioning into FF 14 from other MMOs might be tough. Thanks to the game’s fast-paced nature and conventional party roles with their respective twists, all characters are expected to know just when to move, cast spells, use their skills, and even retreat. For beginners who want to take it slow and get familiar with the game, just which Classes should they try first?
Updated December 2nd, 2020 by Tanner Kinney: In every expansion, the FFXIV team has worked hard to add interesting new jobs to keep the game fresh. Although only one new healer has been added (sorry, healers), the rest of the roles have received exciting new jobs that vary in difficulty. Some are incredibly easy to adapt to, while others take a little bit of practice to really get working optimally. Fortunately, the jobs are balanced enough that casual players won’t have to worry about which ones deal the highest DPS, instead focusing on which ones feel good to play. Here are some jobs that are great for newer players as they go into the game past A Realm Reborn, along with two that aren’t exactly easy to get a handle on.
15 Perfect For Beginners: Samurai
To fit with the eastern flair of Stormblood, Samurai was added into the expansion as a new and improved combat job. Available upon reaching level 50, the Samurai boasts very high DPS… but not much else. After all, what sort of DPS needs situational buffs and debuffs when the best way to dispatch enemies is to overkill them? In this way, Samurai is best compared to a melee Black Mage in its usefulness in party compositions.
Unlike Black Mage, however, Samurai has a very low skill floor. The job is easy to pick up and the rotations are pretty self-explanatory. It’s a fairly forgiving melee DPS as well, since positional attacks are not entirely necessary for those unconcerned with maxing out DPS. Just keep in mind the job has a high skill ceiling, with a lot of room for optimization. With enough practice, the job can put out serious numbers. It’s a safe job to pick up and one that looks cool as well.
14 Don’t Get For Now: Gunbreaker
In Shadowbringers, the FFXIV team gave the people what they wanted in a Gunblade wielder. However, to the surprise of many fans, the job is a tank. It still deals solid damage and operates functionally similar to a DPS, but also has damage mitigation to help it tank hits in heated battles. The job has a ton of different skills to use, both when it’s obtained at level 60 and especially at max level. It can be argued that the job might have too many abilities.
Gunbreaker, like other tanks, requires a lot of situational abilities and off-global cooldowns to use effectively. The hotbar of the Gunbreaker is one that can get a little ugly, especially on PC. Without good management of buttons or and MMO-mouse, having these situational abilities at-hand can be a literal reach. The rotations aren’t nearly as easy as jobs like Paladin or Warrior, either. It’s arguably the hardest tank to learn, but one that can be rewarding if given time.
13 Perfect For Beginners: Dancer
The other Shadowbringers job, Dancer, is another one long-anticipated by fans. Many expected it to be added in Stormblood, based on wrong theories about Lyse in the reveal trailer, but it did finally arrive. And, to the surprise of the community, it was a DPS instead of a Healer. Healers are too hard to design in a way that’s unique and balanced, apparently.
Regardless, Dancer is a pretty ideal job for those who like ranged physical DPS and have hit level 60. If maintaining multiple buffs and DoTs on Bard is too annoying and Machinist is too arcane, Dancer is perfect. The job is based around RNG activations of powerful abilities, revolving around a very simple damage rotation. Its utility is easy to use as well, and there’s nowhere near the button bloat other jobs have at max level. Dancer is perfect for players looking to be effective at all levels without a lot of effort.
12 Don’t Get For Now: Machinist
Machinist has always been a bit of a nightmare of a job that the development team doesn’t really know how to handle. It often gets abilities taken away while new gimmicks are added. Stylistically, the job is cool, and controlling machines is a great concept for a job. In practice, it’s just incredibly hard to optimize to the level of Bard and Dancer.
The reason Machinist is challenging, aside from having to optimize gear to a sweet spot of stats since bigger numbers aren’t always better, is in the rotation. The opener is fairly complex, and screwing up is punishing. Even in earlier levels, machinist is just a lot to manage. For plays who have just made it to Ishgard and want to try a new class, Dark Knight or Astrologian are much better, easier options to experiment with.
11 Perfect For Beginners: Red Mage
Added in Stormblood and available upon reaching level 50, the Red Mage job is a ranged magic DPS that mixes white and black magic. The translation from the classic Red Mage to the FFXIV version is arguably not true to form, but it’s a great compromise that’s easy to pick up and understand. On top of all that, what other job has the pure style of the Red Mage?
Compared to other spellcasters, Red Mage is very forgiving in its rotations, allowing players to easily get back into the rhythm of casting. Dualcast also allows them to be slightly more mobile than Black Mage, for instance. As long as you take care not to backflip off a ledge or dualcast jolt, the Red Mage can get a lot done. It even serves a supportive role, as it’s very effective at doing massive resurrection chains. The hardest part of Red Mage is making sure your glamour is up to snuff, as poor style leads to a great DPS loss (not really).
10 Perfect For Beginners: Conjurer
Players who want to practice the Healer Role will find the Conjurer an easy healing Class to get into. In fact, Conjurers have the best healing abilities in the early-game. Despite their lack of damage-over-time spells, they have a ton of buffs and healing to go around that Conjurers can easily solo their way into the White Mage Job. They also have a surprising amount of damage at higher levels, which is why they’re sometimes called a “green DPS.”
Conjurers rely on Cure 2 and Medica 2 for their primary healing abilities, with Stone and Aero serving as their main offensive attacks. Moreover, Conjurers have spells that give regeneration buffs with longer sustains, which enables Conjurers to avoid micromanaging the Healer role. Thanks to the easy-to-master nature of the Conjurer, players can ease into the Healer role in no time.
9 Don’t Get For Now: Archer
Archers serve as one of the primary physical damage-dealers in the game. Thanks to their skill with ranged weaponry, Archers easily add much-needed firepower in early-game raids. Moreover, this Class gives players early access to skills that stack high-DPS and high-critical attacks, enabling them to pressure bosses and mobs. For instance, Quick Nock, Venomous Bite, and Straight Shot easily become a reliable combo.
Archers become Bards once they reach Level 30, offering more support abilities. MMO players who are used to going for a straight DPS route might not appreciate this shift towards support. After all, the Bard will eventually focus on buffing the party more than dealing damage. Players who want to strictly go for a DPS class should avoid the Archer for now.
8 Perfect For Beginners: Gladiator
Gladiators serve as great Tanks early in the game, in preparation for the more heavy-duty Paladin Job later down the line. Thankfully, the Gladiator’s skill set provides newcomers to the game with decent crowd control abilities and retain aggro. As such, the Gladiator offers a relatively-easy way for beginners to practice tanking.
Unlike the Marauder, Gladiators enjoy higher defense in place for lower HP. Moreover, despite dealing moderate damage unlike other DPS classes, the Gladiator has a great array of tanking skills that their Paladin Job also relies on upon the late-game. While the Paladin offers some healing capabilities, the Gladiator should hopefully offer players with enough opportunities to practice mowing down bosses without having to rely on emergency heals.
7 Don’t Get For Now: Marauder
Marauders rely on their ferocious strength and massive weapons to wreak havoc on the battlefield. As they head towards the Warrior Job, they rely on dealing maximum damage. Abilities such as Storm’s Path, Storm’s Eye, Maim, and Heavy Swing offer decent combo opportunities, with massive damage reaping when timed and aimed correctly.
In addition, since the Marauder (and eventually the Warrior) focus on damage-dealing, they easily become great Off-Tankers. Unfortunately, those new to FF 14 may find it tricky to master Off-Tanking and Tanking rotations early on. As such, despite the notion of simplicity, a Marauder might not be a great option for a first player Class.
6 Perfect For Beginners: Lancer
Lancers specialize in wielding polearms and attacking with vicious speed. As they soon evolve into the flashier Dragoon Job, Lancers position themselves as one of the best in terms of melee DPS. Lancers can pick off single-targets much easily. Moreover, as Lancers also wear plate armor, they have the same defensive advantage as other Tank Classes.
Thanks to the distance and attack speed offering of their polearms, Lancers can easily take on damage roles without worrying about their health. Interestingly, the Lancer prepares players for the more technical aspects of the Dragoon Job. A lot of the Lancer’s skills rely on great positioning, meaning players need to learn to either position themselves on the rear or sides of enemies to deal maximum damage.
5 Don’t Get For Now: Pugilist
Pugilists specialize in dealing close-combat damage with their martial arts. As they soon become the faster Monk Job, Pugilists get oriented early on in the importance of their Stances to deal damage and generate debuffs. Moreover, the Pugilist has to focus on switching Stances mid-battle to maximize their combos.
Players looking for a more technical Class should opt for a Pugilist, as their skills offer a ton of combo opportunities. Perfect Balance, Internal Release, and Snap Punch synergize great when it comes to maximizing combos. Fighting game fans will have a blast maximizing their Pugilists with their Stances. Unfortunately, the technical nature of the Pugilist may make it a bit overwhelming to handle as a first Class.
4 Perfect For Beginners: Thaumaturge
Players with a penchant for the dark arts should tap into the Thaumaturge for their first Class. Thaumaturges possess Astral Fire and Umbral Ice, states which adjust their gameplay depending on their favored element. Astral Fire increases MP consumption but beefs up Fire spells. Meanwhile, Umbral Ice helps Blizzard spells regenerate MP. When Thaumaturges master switching between these states, they can dish out huge numbers easily.
Moreover, unlike other spellcasters and most DPS classes, Thaumaturges have the potential to deal the most damage in early-level raids – indicative of the massive DPS spike of their Black Mage evolution. Unfortunately, Thaumaturges also need to focus on positioning, as AOEs and enemy abilities can interrupt their casts.
3 Don’t Get For Now: Rogue
Rogues rely on using their daggers to attack when enemies least expect them. They’re extremely mobile and agile fighters well-versed in the assassination. They eventually become the Ninja Job, and the Rogue is the best way for them to get acquainted with their necessary tools.
Thanks to their mastery of stealth and subterfuge, Rogues also rely on quick-battle abilities such as Hide, Trick Attack, and Death Blossom. Similar to the Pugilist and Lancer, they deal more damage in certain positions. Moreover, they rely on various status ailments to debilitate enemy forces. Despite the utility potential of the Rogue as a DPS class, they do tend to become complicated for first-time players.
2 Perfect For Beginners: Arcanist (Summoner)
Arcanists study the arcane arts, gaining enough mastery to either hex enemies with curses or even summon allies to their aid. Interestingly, the Arcanist is the only Class to branch out into two Jobs. This factor makes this Class perhaps the most recommended for spellcasters who want to maximize their experience.
For instance, Arcanists can enjoy the solo route with the Summoner Job since their pets can serve as tanks. Arcanists enjoy the benefits of a DPS-oriented pet with Summon and a tanking pet with Summon 2. Thanks to the relative ease of access to buffing spells, the Arcanist-Summoner will get early training on buffing and supporting their allies. Moreover, their minions can easily get them through difficult dungeons.
1 Don’t Get For Now: Arcanist (Scholar)
Arcanists don’t just study to summon minions, though. A lot of Arcanists also master the healing arts to provide support from the sidelines. These Arcanists choose to become Scholars, which focus more on buffing allies and providing support in raids. Unfortunately, unlike the Arcanist-Summoner, the Arcanist-Scholar tends to become a bit more technical when it comes to the Class’s healing combos and abilities.
For first-timers, this caveat means knowing which spells work best to generate the least aggro, and which spells synergize with the White Mage’s to avoid unnecessary overlaps.
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