Hardships for the WHM/BLM

Pheonixhawk · Post by **Pheonixhawk** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 4:45 am

Well im not a expert on WHM or BLM but those are the two job I exceled at the most before my char was deleted. And I thought Id like to give a little advice.

Firstly with WHM because it was way harder (in lvling up) than BLM.

From lvl 1 - 10 its a given and im pretty sure most ppl will agree, that it will be gruelingly long. And yes you will die (unless your getting PL) the only thing i can say is use dia at the beginning of every fight nomatter what. ALWAYS use protect even if it doesnt seem to help, because it does.

From lvl 10 - 20 You should be in Valkurm dunes cause thats where most ppl go. Aquaviel is a great spell and you should get it along with blink, and shell. The bar spells are good to have as well. My only advice (since its much easier to pt in the dunes than solo) is you DO NOT have to keep your party members health full to the max. Its a waste of MP. Just try to keep it in the yellow or close to it. Everything else is self explainatory. Oh and I know you learn cure II, but dont just start spamming it. Keep using cure. CureII takes more mp and you get weaker rusults than if you had used cure twice. Dont use Diaga cause its pretty useless.

From lvl 20 - 25 Quifim Island is your best bet. Use sneak to travel past the orc's and ghouls at night. Yes they aggro on sound not sight. Sneak will also get past the Evil weapons. As for spells, the same as above, Raise and invisible is great but dont use them in battle, its really pointless and burns mp. Always cast regen on your tanks and NOT the mages (no duh right)

Lvl 25 - 32 Kazham the EASIEST way to get exp points and fast. Now your loaded with protect II, Protectra II, Banish II and Stoneskin <3 Of course use Stoneskin and Blink because they do stack. Go Yutunga from 25-27 and then Yhoater Jungles from 27 - 32. Also Banish II is a much more powerful spell, but it burn MP like a Bad rash so be warned.

I cant give you more infor for WHM because I have not gone past lvl 32 whm. The same with BLM. So here we go

Lvl 1 - 9 (blm) The same as whm. Long and grueling execpt you dont get the chance to heal yourself. Nukes are pretty weak, but worry not they will get better. Like whm your just nuking and meleeing. Always cast poison first and then nuke away.

Lvl 10 - 20 Finally you get fire, Bio, sleep and they all will be useless if not very little helpful. But keep at it. use Elemental seal as much as possible and youll be doing enough damage to make the tanks envy you. Remember get your INT as high as possible is seriously helps.

20 - 25 not bad not bad. Quifim Island once again and it gets faster. MB will be crucial here but you should be used to the timing of your spells by now. You learn more elemental spells and you should have pies, yag drinks etc. There really aint much to say, but electricity should be your goal here. And yes you learn thunder here i believe

25 - 32 Kazham again yay! Finnaly if you get your Int to AT LEAST + 12 when you hit lvl 29 and you have seer's gear the tanks will be envious of your damage dealing. Firaga and Aeroga are great spells here but like all GA, dont used then unless you Know and see the coast is clear. Its best to not use them at all unless you like Deathga and so does your party. Youll be fighting gobs and madrogora's so use fire to its fullest, aero is great and i use thunder just to be mean. Tractor and escape are great spells, but you really cant use them here. Apart from that ive done 169 dmg with thunder in Kazham and that my friends aint no lie

lvl whm and blm beyond

I know my tips really arent THAT helpful, but at least it will give noobs who want to become a white or black mage an idea. Well thats all i got. Hope it proves some help.

Keavy · Post by **Keavy** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 6:44 am

For WHM if you use Dia and Meat jerky you'll find you're a fairly effective Damage Dealer at those early levels with a club and shield. Staff is best for BLM and SMN.

As for healing in the Dunes, ONLY heal the tank in-battle unless a DD pulls hate and is taking a beating. After the fight if you got MP then heal the DD's if they're yellow or below. Remember: Your MP is low unless you got an Astral Ring and Rolanberry pie. If you go that route bring juice ingredients and make it on the go.

Overall Mage isn't that hard to level or solo. If you have subs open go with WAR as your sub. It will help.

Kahvi · Post by **Kahvi** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 12:56 pm

Good tips to keep in mind:
Always have the best Protectra and shellra available
Always get the best Cure\ga spell but dont use it immediatly, your weaker spell will be just as good for a few levels and cost less mp. You learn it because there may be an emergency that would call for it.
Its not necessary, but getting a Holy Breastplate/Divine Breastplate at level 40 helps provide the best defence against those harder hitting monsters.

WHM 32-36
(Garlage Citidel)
Many Brave (or stupid) people go to garlage citidel. As a WHM, your Raise spell will be valuable. Arm yourself with Reraise (lvl 33) as soon as possible, for you never know when the puller will accidentally bring something other than the one solitary bat you are hunting. Stoneskin also works wonders if your party suddenly has to flee due to a chain of bats and beetles invading your camp.

(Eastern Altepa Desert)
Less often, people will have a party that goes to Zepwell island to hunt Beetles in Eastern Altepa Desert. These parties are generally lower risk than "Garbage sit-in-hell". Unfortuantly, you don't have teleport: altep until level 38, everyone would need an Altep crystal, and your party would have to hire a higher level white mage to take them there.

(General Note)
Take the time to get Erase (lvl 32) spell now or at least start saving up for it. In later levels it means the difference between getting a party, or getting snubbed for a RDM of the same level. Also, now is a good time to start getting the Teleport: whatever spells. Teleport Dem, Holla, and Mea you can learn at lv 36. Yhoat and Altep at level 38 and Vahzl at level 41. Viruna (lvl 34) will be useful later on.

WHM 36-52
(Crawler's Nest)
Crawlers nest: worker crawlers/ lizards 36-40, Beetles 39-42, Soldier crawlers 40-44, Flies 43-47, Exoray 45-49, Helm Beetles 47-52. Your Mileage May Vary.

The infamous Crawler's Nest. This place is most likely where you will level from 36-52. You will get so sick of crawlers, beetles, flys, and shrooms that you will wish you never need to come here again. But as a WHM here, your skills are in demand.. but not as much as they were in earlier levels. At level 38, those redmages learn Raise. That broadens the door slightly of who plays main healer and could put less stress on you.

You will need Shellra 2 (lvl 37) and Stona (lvl 39) almost as soon as you get them. In the Sack room, sometimes a party decides to fight lizards if there are no crawlers around. Get Haste before reaching level 40, and when you reach lvl 40 start casting it on your main tank. It will help him hold hate. At 41 you learn Cure 4, but at this time Red mages learn Refresh which helps them greatly in being main healers. So the invites, while still may be many, will start to drop off about now until you learn Raise 2(lvl 56). If you end up in a party with a red mage or a bard, thats even better. The redmage's Refresh will make healing the party less taxing on your MP reserve.

Garlage Citidel (50-54)
Back in hell again. Only this time you want to fall down the crack near the bat campers so you can reach the beetles below. Nothing too special.

((and thats about as far as i can go with it. my WHM is only 45, but the rest of the knowledge is from when i was RDM.))

Pheonixhawk · Post by **Pheonixhawk** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 10:24 pm

Also about how Keavy said that its best to use Staffs for BLM. Well IMO its best to use wands until lvl 32. Once you get too high to use the Rose wand anymore then it would be PREFERRED to use a Staff. At the lower lvls it seems that INT is what really counts. But once again, thats only my opinion.

Kintrra · Post by **Kintrra** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 11:52 pm

Keavy's mentioning of staffs for BLM and SMN is a reliance upon weapon ratings in accordance with melee capability while soloing. WHM has I believe a B+ in {Club} while they have only B- or C I think in {Staff}. While BLM and SMN are the other way around, their melee capabilities are better with the {Staff} instead of the {Club}. Higher possible weapon level gives you better accuracy and better weapon damage. ^^;

Lolata · Post by **Lolata** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 3:20 am

When is a good time for a whm or blm to use a staff then? Ive seen them both with staffs at lvl 50 I think.

Post by **sakono** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 4:04 am

past lvl 10 after you solo and are ready for partying the damge of you staff or club don't matter. use a club that gives +int and mnd or a staff that gives pluse mp.
as a lvl 45 blm i've been useing my dusky staff snece lvl 40^^ i like the effects it has better

Post by **JediKitsune** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 5:02 am

Lolata wrote:When is a good time for a whm or blm to use a staff then? Ive seen them both with staffs at lvl 50 I think.

At 51, mages should be getting their elemental staves, I believe. Those are just... super useful.

Lolata · Post by **Lolata** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 6:28 am

Way cool ^.^ BTW what is D2? I thinks its warp 2 but im not sure. And If you cast it, will you teleport along with them like tele-holla etc. ?

Pheonixhawk · Post by **Pheonixhawk** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 6:47 am

D2 is indeed Warp 2. When you cast it, only that person is teleported while you stay there. (correct me if im wrong) Also I think the only spell that teleports yourself and other players other than warp II, would be Escape.

MittensValefor · Post by **MittensValefor** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 8:34 am

WHM: White Mage: Useful Links and Posts

BLM: The Arcane Tome of DOOM (BLM Link Compilation)

Lots of good advice in there.

My own personal 2 cents:

WHM: When the fight's over and it's time to rest back MP, for the love of God don't interrupt your resting back MP unless absolutely necessary! I've seen veteran (lvl 70+) WHMs do this, and it STILL rubbs me the wrong way. If some whiney tank is complaining about being poisoned, IGNORE HIM unless he's about to die... (Exceptions to this rule being a PLD low on MP who can't rest unless you remove the poison or the like.) Interrupting a WHM's resting back MP is one of the surest way to kill XP chains and make a party painfully slow...

BLM: Same advice as for WHM, but along those lines, (and this is mentioned in at least one BLM guide I've read), if the WHM is running outta MP and you've got plenty to spare, throw in some cures! A dead tank with a full MP'd BLM is a crime! Yes, you SHOULD have your best cure spells macrod as a BLM! /ma "Cure III" <st> in case you're wondering. I've saved the day innumerable times with well timed Cures when the WHM was dead/disconnected/out of MP/noobish/whatever.

An elemental seal > sleepga macro is also a very good idea.

On a slightly more advanced level: First, Learn to Magic Burst ASAP. Secondly, Bio is the best way to level dark magic skill. Dia the best way to keep your enfeebling magic skill leveled. Both are very crutial when you fight Maat (enfeebling more so). Unfortunately Bio(lowers enemy atk) cancels Dia(lowers enemy def). I've tested this myself. This is STILL true (as of this post) despite rumors to the contrary. In most cases it's best to let the RDM do the enfeebling. Politely ask the RDM if he/she minds you casting Bio and/or Dia to level your dark and enfeebling magic skill.

My routine - Shock (lowers enemie's resistance to your nukes) > Frost (lower's resistance to the THF's blade) > Bio (if dark isn't capped, I have plenty of MP to spare, AND RDM doesn't mind.) > Dia (same as for Bio but for enfeebling magic skill) > Nuke till I'm under 734MP > Switch from MP gear (I'm still wearing Mithra RSE leg gear at lvl 73) to INT / Elemental Magic Skill+ gear > Nuke some more > When enemy is within 10 seconds of dieing, REST and switch to MP gear. It's generally a waste of time for the BLM to be the one who's finishing off the enemy.

Ok... so that was more than 2 cents, but don't you feel richer?

Keavy · Post by **Keavy** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 10:18 am

For the mage on a budget Dark and Ice staves will serve you just fine. Light is also nice because of the "Cure potency+" effect. As for the others, unless you're a SMN there isn't any immediate need for them (They lower Avatar perpetuation costs) but a complete set is nice to have.

As for the +1's a complete set is not needed. If you have a rich uncle that made you his sole beneficiary when he died, go for it. I know that Ice will be the first one that when a BLM can they will want to replace. Also a +1 Light will help you in the Fenrir and WHM AF fights. I know this sounds crazy, but eat a Jack-O-Lantern and wear as much +Dark stuff as you can and any Dark based attacks will be lessened (Dimensional death, Fenrir's 2 hour) and I proved this on my level 20 avatar fight runs. My damage on the avatar's 2 hours went from 230 to 160 with +10 Avatar's elemental. I know "You're not supposed to get hit by the 2 hour" but I had the bad habit of resummoning Carby when they decided to do it. "Oh, kitty's calling the atomic squirrel. I think i'll go ahead and use my 2 hour (Insert maniacal laugh here.)"

Also I cannot stress this enough: FIGHT ON THE WEAK DAY! Don't fight Fenrir of the WHM AF mobs on any day but Lightsday. It weakens them and lessens Dark elemental damage. Combined with your +Dark you'll con "Impossible to gauge" to the giant puppy and those undead Elvaan.

Post by **Shirai** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 2:57 pm

Keavy wrote:For the mage on a budget Dark and Ice staves will serve you just fine. Light is also nice because of the "Cure potency+" effect. As for the others, unless you're a SMN there isn't any immediate need for them (They lower Avatar perpetuation costs) but a complete set is nice to have.

All the whm needs is a light and a dark staff,
If you indeed have gil to burn you can complete the set.
I have a complete set due to my smn job but I use the staves on whm also.
I don't know if it does anything but I do it anyway to boost bar- spells and spells to the corresponding elements.
Earth staff for stoneskin, Wind for Blink/sneak/invis, water for Aquaveil, etc.

As for the +1's a complete set is not needed. If you have a rich uncle that made you his sole beneficiary when he died, go for it. I know that Ice will be the first one that when a BLM can they will want to replace. Also a +1 Light will help you in the Fenrir and WHM AF fights. I know this sounds crazy, but eat a Jack-O-Lantern and wear as much +Dark stuff as you can and any Dark based attacks will be lessened (Dimensional death, Fenrir's 2 hour) and I proved this on my level 20 avatar fight runs. My damage on the avatar's 2 hours went from 230 to 160 with +10 Avatar's elemental. I know "You're not supposed to get hit by the 2 hour" but I had the bad habit of resummoning Carby when they decided to do it. "Oh, kitty's calling the atomic squirrel. I think i'll go ahead and use my 2 hour (Insert maniacal laugh here.)"

Not really,
at higher levels BLM might want to replace the thunder staff with a HQ version because they like to burst Thundaga III on a light skillchain.
Ice HQ might indeed be a close second to burst Blizzaga III on Darkness.

As for the lvl 20 fights, I gave up on them as newbie smn and went to do the primes, I found another good reason to skip those.
Later when my smn reaches 72/73 I can solo those and by not having done the lvl20 battles it can save me a walk through dangerous places to get to the protocrystals and just warp there with the minifork.

Also I cannot stress this enough: FIGHT ON THE WEAK DAY! Don't fight Fenrir of the WHM AF mobs on any day but Lightsday. It weakens them and lessens Dark elemental damage. Combined with your +Dark you'll con "Impossible to gauge" to the giant puppy and those undead Elvaan.

I partially agree but also disagree,
I agree for 200% that fenrir should absolutely not be fought on darksday or full/new moon.
He will massacre your party.
Any other day moon and fenrir can be beat without too much trouble if your party is competent.
Same goes for Diabolos Prime, on Darksday he is about 10x as strong.
We tried on lightsday and died because of Nightmare not being stunned on time.
After that it was Darksday and we thought wth let's try.
He surprised us with major Nightmare and DispelGA spam which wasn't funny at all.
I ended up HPing and running to the shrouded maw again to give everyone a Raise III because the bastard dispelled my reraise III

WHM AF mobs and dimensional death attacks are easily blinkable and with enough people it doesn't matter which day you fight it on.
Just have your blm or drk stun on time for when the AF body mob decides to spam a nasty -ga spell.
The AF1 mob is easily defeated by a party of 50+ or soloed by a 70+, his Dimensional death doesn't hurt all that bad.

Post by **Alya Mizar (Tsybil)** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 5:31 pm

On soloing to 10.

Food; Low level melee food. Roast Rabbit is ideal. Bring Selbina Milk if you can get it at a Regonal Vendor. Orange juice and other low level juices are often available at Resturants and Inns. All drinks help, none are necessary. Taru BLMs may want Boiled Crayfish instead of Roast Rabbit.

Armor; The ugly L 1 Robe gives you 1 more Def than your L1 RSE. WHMs get to use a shield, BLMs don't. Circlet or Hairpin, your choice. Blood stone, surrre. 5 HPs is a lot at level 1. The L1 INT rings are worth more to a BLM than the L1 MND rings are worth to a WHM. New armor for mages at levels 8 and 10.

Weapons; The L1 wand +1 gives WHMs the most bang till L 5, then its Bronze HAMMER time. BLMs can use either Wands or Staves, neither is worth writing home about till L 10ish when the BLM will not be meeleing anyway.

Tactics; WHM; What you gona do? Conserve MPs to get through this period as quick as you can? Spend them and level magic skills as well?
Conserve; pull by throwing things, darts or pebbles, or just go up and whomp things right off. Cure yourself with your MPs, save them for this.
Spend; Pull with Dia untill you get Paralyze, then pull with that. If you use both, fire Paralyze first, it takes a LOT longer to cast than Dia. Banish every fight.
BLM; Posion is cheap and efficent at these levels, but nukes get the job done. As soon as you get it, Bind is your Best Friend. Bind > Posion > Blind > Nuke till done or its coming at you. Worms come pre bound. As soon as you get Aero, find DC worms and practice nuking them. If you learn how to do this, you can solo 10 - 20 in a day on T or better worms. As soon as you stop meleeing and start soloing worms, its Pie for you and all the INT you can wear too.

Personally I think it is way easier to level RDM with no subjob than either WHM or BLM. But I have done all three.

Post by **Shirai** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 6:37 pm

I'll give a little pointer on how I lvled whm and blm from 1-10.
lvling it can be hell but it can also be very easy.

I started on the regular lvl 1 mobs till I was about lvl 3.
from there I went up until lvl 5 killing mobs like any other job until I had to rest every Decent challenge I fought, not funny.
This is why most people stop lvling mage jobs after a few levels.
Easiest way to lvlup, if you have the chance go to Selbina and stock up on Selbina milk.
These are very cheap and give HP regen for a good period of time.

After that I went up against Easy prays and started killing them non-stop until lvl 10.
They die quick and give more exp over time then Decent challenge or Even match monsters.
After that I hit the dunes.

Lolata · Post by **Lolata** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 12:43 am

I thought Selbina milk only cures Poison. Or am I thinking of soemthing else?

ScarlettPheonix · Post by **ScarlettPheonix** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 1:30 am

Milk and milk like drinks (anything ending in au lait) will regen your HP. Juices refresh MP.

Antidotes will remove poison only, which might be what your thinking of. Its a very low lvl alchemy synth and very very very handy if you're too low on HP to survive crawler poison when lvling a baby job in Saruta.

Selby Milk is great for lvling low lvl jobs. Its cheap, comes in stacks and cuts down on healing time. Which reminds me, I need to grab some this weekend when I go to lvl ninja as a sub for rdm.

Keavy · Post by **Keavy** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 9:26 am

I use Milk when poisoned at the low levels because it cancels out poison and is cheaper.

If you know someone with cooking skill close to the Insect Paste range ask them to make you some Baked Popotos. Ideally these should be used by Paladin's until about level 25 (Poor man's Tacos I call them) but they will take a level 1 to level 3-4 status and pre exp rings offered the same effect. Basically they give +20 HP and +2 VIT for 30 mins (Pipin' Hot Popoto's are the +1 and last an hour.)

I used these while leveling my mule and after I got her an XP ring I used it to level her Monk also and my xp bonus wore before the Popoto did!

Lolata · Post by **Lolata** » Mon Feb 13, 2006 1:20 am

Wow thats great info. Suddenly I feel like a noob for a whm XD oh oh one more question. If i synth something and im poisoned will it ruin the synth. And secondly where is the best place to buy selbina milk? Im guessing Selbina?

Katina · Post by **Katina** » Mon Feb 13, 2006 2:39 am

blm has got to be the easiest job to lvl

whm one of the hardest due to stress

whm is cheaper

blm is costly if u dont quest spells

Whm is a no brainer imo. Just make your own routine to healing ppl like moi and how u handle various cases. Experiencing the act is better than hear say. Save for erase and raise2 and tele vhalz only really hard spells on whm.'

Blm spells r so random in price so u know AM spells r overrated and not needed. Thus dont kill yourself over not having them b/c u will see AoE lvl2 nukes r just as good. Save for em if u want but quest warp2 and sleepga2.

As for playing blm just learn how to control your hate. B/c as a blm your ability to DD is far beyond any other and how fast u can do it. Also dont be COCKY AND THINK U CANT TOSS A D$m CURE TO HELP THE WHM.

The life of a mage is like 3x the work of melee beside tanks so help thou fellow mage.

Post by **Alya Mizar (Tsybil)** » Mon Feb 13, 2006 3:40 am

Lolata wrote:Wow thats great info. Suddenly I feel like a noob for a whm XD oh oh one more question. If i synth something and im poisoned will it ruin the synth. And secondly where is the best place to buy selbina milk? Im guessing Selbina?

If your nation controls the Dunes, from the regonial vendor. IIRC, the Mithra wearing Leather Armor by the Mog house in Woods is the Regonial Vendor for Windurst. For Bastok the RV is in the line of tent Vendors in Port, and in San d'Oria the RV is in one of the stalls East of the Auction House in Southern San d'Oria.

Keavy · Post by **Keavy** » Mon Feb 13, 2006 12:53 pm

There are two mages in FFXI no one has mentioned that need to be mentioned: Bard and Ninja.

Let's start with Bard. Sure, we can only cast 2 spells at a time on people and without an instrument's bonus they only last 2 minutes (Each +1 is 20 seconds which helps immensely) but when you think about it, we are the uber mage. We get Regen, Protectra, Barpoisonra, AND the ability to boost attacks before we even hit the Dunes! Then at level 25 we get a basic Refresh.

A few tips: When soloing as a Bard use WAR as your sub and equip a sword. For levels 1-10 use a Bronze sword and then at level 10 get a Royal Archer's Sword. This can be purchased for 1,000 conquest points in San D'Oria at Rank 1. If you need to, have a mule there earn that for you. 1K CP can easily be earned in a few hours at lower levels. If your nation is in first in Conquest, then go to San D'Oria and you can purchase it yourself as long as your Rank is above 3 in your nation for 2,000 CP.

At level 11, if you wish, its off to the Dunes. Why 11? Here's why. First off, there's a Bunny NM named Sharp Eared Roipi Spawn info here who has a ribbon every BST and Bard should own. The droprate is 100%, he spawns every 1-3 hours and it is best to kill everything in the area because SomePage made a mistake: He spawns from anything in that area. For me he spawned from a Goblin! Also, at level 11 you get the Doublet set which every mage going to the Dunes should own. The NPC's sell it for about 3K for the whole set and it is the best Dunes armor out there.

Okay, so you got your sword, ribbon, and Doublet set. Few more stops before you head off to the Dunes. Next on the list is a Ceremonial Dagger. On Phoenix's Jeuno AH they sell for 30K and are so worth it. Level 1 dagger that does 1 DMG but gives +10MP! Next up is +CHR rings. 2 Hope Rings will give you +2 CHR and can be bought in Bastok from the AH for under 10K for the set. While in Bastok get a pair of Onyx Earrings from the guild if available. Cheap and give +4MP for the set. Also, swing by the music shop for any songs you need and an instrument. You should always have a wind and stringed on you even if they offer no bonus to songs. Best to keep both skilled.

Last stop is San D'Oria if you haven't already been. Get your sword if needed and do Undying Flames if you haven't already. Now change your sub to WHM and you're all set for the Dunes!

One optional piece is the Mist Silk Cape. The NM Spawns north of Roipi and you will need a job around level 12 to improve your chance at the drop (SE nerfed this.) and it was no problem for me as a level 10 Summoner with just Carby. Had to sacrifice Carby and finish it off on my own (Barely) but I won! As for the cape, I tried it and didn't feel it was worth it so I sold it during the christmas holiday for 400K (:D) and never looked back. The +1Mind is nice, but unless you're leveling a WHM from 10-32 there's no need for it.

Now for Ninja. Yes, Ninja is a mage. Only difference is no one in their right mind asks a Bard, WHM, or BLM to tank. RDM's can tank, but only past level 41 and in extreme circumstances.

Ninja spells are gained through Norg quests, BCNM and normal monster drops, and from Tenshodo vendors. Tools are made or bought from Tenshodo vendors.

Okay, so as a Ninja your most important spells are Utsusemi: Ichi and Utsusemi: Ni. These allow you to tank so make sure to keep at least 2 Shihei toolbags on you. You'll also notice that there are a lot of other spells you can learn. These are various enfeebles that are vital for building enmity as a tank so use them! If you're a Ninja tank Post level 20 that only uses Utsusemi don't expect a lot of invites once word gets around unless people are desperate.

This is because with a Ninja tank (Especially at lower levels) it can be easy for a mage (Especially those PL'd nuke-happy BLM's we all loathe) to tank. As we said earlier, RDM and Ninja are the only two mages who can tank. Paladin's don't have this issue because their Cure spells build Enmity which is why a Ninja needs to enfeeble.

Also, as a Ninja you have access to spells that lower an enemy's resistance to certain elements. Combine these with a Skillchain for added damage. Bards can also do this and if one is in the party, ask them to do it for you if the mobs prove to be difficult. Someone told me that with a BLM sub that a Ninja can MB with some of their spells. I'm pretty sure that these Ninjas are meant to be DD's and after work today I will look into this further and offer any info I find.

One last thing: Spell interruption. For Ninjas this is a problem. Wear +1 Obi's whenever you can and remember: Activate your spell macro right after the mob attacks. This will greatly increase the chances of an uninterrupted cast. For Bards, songs cannot be stopped so load up on +CHR and +MP stuff instead.

All in all, this is a basic guide. Feel free to offer more detailed info.

Kintrra · Post by **Kintrra** » Mon Feb 13, 2006 4:52 pm

Yep, NIN can be DDs. I've been told that a NIN in the higher level subbing BLM with full INT+ gear and maybe a couple pieces of {Magic Atk. Bonus} gear can use {Ninjutsu} elementals for upwards of 100 damage a shot. Ni versions I'm fairly sure, but still nothing to scoff at to be honest.

Post by **Alya Mizar (Tsybil)** » Mon Feb 13, 2006 5:28 pm

Kintrra wrote:Yep, NIN can be DDs. I've been told that a NIN in the higher level subbing BLM with full INT+ gear and maybe a couple pieces of {Magic Atk. Bonus} gear can use {Ninjutsu} elementals for upwards of 100 damage a shot. Ni versions I'm fairly sure, but still nothing to scoff at to be honest.

I have seen NINs in Blink Tanking gear MB for three figure damage as soon as they have Ni available. Occasionaly they do more MB damage than I do.

A super NIN will use a tool to weaken a mob to the upcoming MB element as soon as the TP reports get to 100% TP.

ScarlettPheonix · Post by **ScarlettPheonix** » Mon Feb 13, 2006 7:41 pm

Not just with a blm sub. One of my very good friends in game leveled his nin to 72 using red mage as a sub. He was hitting for well into the 3 digits in damage on his elemental attacks with Ni.

When we took on Diablos in CoP 3-5 he was the one doing the most consistent damage to the boss and one of the reasons why we had an easy time with that fight.

Kintrra · Post by **Kintrra** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 2:17 am

Keavy wrote:One last thing: Spell interruption. For Ninjas this is a problem. Wear +1 Obi's whenever you can and remember: Activate your spell macro right after the mob attacks. This will greatly increase the chances of an uninterrupted cast. For Bards, songs cannot be stopped so load up on +CHR and +MP stuff instead.

Sorry, just now caught this from last time. >_<

NIN do NOT wait till after the mob attack to time spells (at least not the Ichi's, they take more time to cast than the mob does to attack). Casting the Ichi's is tricky, especially if you're coming from timing them right after attacks like I do with Cures on PLD. You have to start your casting just a moment before the mob attacks with Ichi spells. This way, even if you take a hit right after that spell is cast, you (should) be under the 25% mark on casting and be uninterrupted, and you'll finish casting just before the mob attacks again. ^^;

Pheonixhawk · Post by **Pheonixhawk** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 4:12 am

heh. well im not much of a Nin nor rdm but i do have plenty of expereince with BLM. but i have a question. Can any other job deal as much raw damage as a BLM. I mean yes a Nin can hurt a mob, but just as much as blm or is blm the only non advanced job that can make a mob scream mommy?

Lolata · Post by **Lolata** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 4:51 am

thankies for all the help. And as for your question Pheonixhawk, I think BLm is the most damaging classes near lvl 54 and higher. And Keavy if your gonna get on the subject of mages. what about drknight and Pld. Dont they count as mages too? Rdm, Nin, Brd, and Pld / drk can all melee. ^.^ and ppl say you cant mix magic and melee.

Keavy · Post by **Keavy** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 3:25 pm

Pheonixhawk: When it comes to damage, you want to restrain yourself until the Tank has built enough enmity to hold the monster which becomes easier as you level. Flash and higher tier cures for PLD's and Ni spells for Ninja along with +Enmity equipment and +Enmity on AF all help not to mention you gain -Enmity from AF as a Mage.

Basically don't start nuking until the Tank has voked at least. If you have a THF once they've SATA'd on the tank then the mob should be glued to them if the Tank is doing their job. Anyone who has partied with Grannycat on Phoenix knows what I'm talking about.

For those of you who don't know, She's a PLD who got confused by SATA and I (WHM at the time) was able to steal hate with a Cure 2.

As for Paladin and Dark Knight anyone wishing to level those jobs needs experience as a White Mage and Red Mage, respectively along with Warrior.

White Mage will give you some experience with the cast times on healing magic and while soloing will teach you how to cast while being attacked. You would be amazed at the number of PLD's who in the 40's STILL don't have this down! Warrior serves as a Subjob and for tanking experience. Learn how to hold hate with only Weapon Skills and Provoke and you should have no problem holding hate with Paladin.

Most Dark Knights have two huge problems that annoy me to no end: They forget to shut off Souleater after a Skillchain and cannot restrain themselves when it comes to damage. As a WHM these two situations are especially bad for me because not only do I have to expend MP that I could use to prolong our Exp. Chain but I also run the risk of pulling the hate they pulled if they went overboard with the damage. This is where experience as a mage comes in handy. As White Mage they see why we bitch so much when they try desperately to keep the DRK alive to keep them from dying and end up either dying, exhausting their MP, or some combination of the two. Red Mage teaches you about enfeebles and which to use. DRK's have Drain and Aspir and if you keep Dark Magic skilled You can feed off the monster and be amazed at the "No downtime" for you.

As you advance you'll find invites get fewer and fewer as a DRK and when you get invites you'll be asked to Stun Mob WS's and AoE spells. The fewer invites is the bane of every DD's existence. There are so many choices out there and since some DD's work better for one type of mob than others you'll find yourself sitting in Jeuno for hours with your flag up. Do something constructive: Farm with a search comment explaining that your HP is in Jeuno (Make sure it is) and carry a Warp Cudgel. Crafting is also an option. While LFG you could craft enough profits to take your gear from "Acceptable" to "OMGWTFBBQ." Ballista is another option. Hone your battle skills, try out new equipment options and best of all, earn exp! Not as good as party exp but more than you earn sitting on your ass LFG in Jeuno.

As for the "Sniper's Ring" I see it as a luxury item at lower levels. Sniper's are nice but not worth 4mil a piece at level 40 especially considering that Accuracy has a cap for each level. When you get into the 60's is when Sniper's should replace Sushi. You'll notice the difference then.

Kintrra · Post by **Kintrra** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 5:27 pm

Ehhh.....disagree on the needing to levela mage part...I never touched BLM or WHM until my PLD was beyond the 40s, and my RDM still is only at 4...If you've got a brain and you're willing to pay attention to hate control (and link control as well, trust me, I was playing link control for a popped NM fight the other day so the other PLD in my pt could concentrate on the NM

) then leveling PLD without the prior knowledge of leveling WHM is easy. You just have to remember that all actions cause hate. If you deal damage, you cause hate, if you provoke, you cause a massive hate spike. Shield Bash is a good hate spike as well, and handy for turning mobs back toward you as well as stunning mobs at lower levels. It hardly ever stuns oddly enough above 60....

And most of all remember that your cures will cause hate as well. If you've got a WHM who wants to cure you constantly, by all means, let them, but if they start pulling hate, ask them to back off with the cures till you've used at least one or two of your own. I have a WHM who pts with me constantly now. She hardly pulls hate anymore, but that's in part due to her Enmity- gear, and the fact that I have Enmity+12 on all my gear (AF, belt, and my sword, in case you're wondering. ^^; ) so for the most part, I let her take care of my healing. The other day in our pt, I had enough MP usually to spare that I actually started using Banish II in the middle of fights. Waste of MP? Possibly, when Banish III does craploads more, but alas, PLD is robbed of this lovely level of the spell. Banish II still outdoes my melee strikes by about 4x the damage tho, so I'm decently happy with it at times. ^^

It's all about hate. I can't speak for DRK really since I haven't leveled it, but Keavy is right on one thing. Shut off Souleater ASAP, and watch your hate level. Hate is vital no matter what job you're playing really. ^^