I feel like Ranged DPS don’t get enough love in FFXIV. But that might just be me. Regardless, we’re almost done! With the Ranged DPS covered all that’s left is the Magical DPS and this series will be squared away, for now at least. I dunno about all of you but I’m very curious to see what kind of Jobs/Abilities we may or may not see in the future. Cheers everyone!
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Ranger resolution- crossbows
Great video as always, Scribe.
While my Not-WoL isn't officially making use of a Bard's abilities—due to actually not being one himself—I've instead written it in my canon that his bow is what allows him feats beyond what might be possible with your run-of-the-mill archer, hunter or ranger.
For one, the bow he's using—which I've decided is officially called 'Shattered Song'—is constructed as a longbow. To be specific, an Ishgardian war-bow that was made as something of an experiment for a potentially new breed of warfare against the Dravanians. Particularly, one that could replicate the stopping power of a Dragoon without needing to have trained as one, or even fight the way that they do.
As we know, the Order of the Knights-Dragoon is an elite fighting force, and Ishgard feels it whenever even one Dragoon dies in battle. So being able to replicate that acumen for hurting dragons without the logistics of training a knight for years—only to lose them during a failed committed jump—might be appealing.
After the peace, you can imagine how a weapon like that would be in poor taste to have, let alone produce more of.
Regarding its construction, I've written that its frame was made with ironwood, reinforced with fittings along the length of the limbs—both decorative and reinforcing—made of Ishgardian steel. The 'end-caps' on either side could be used as a weapon of last resort, while the fittings give more rigidity and resistance to the already stiff ironwood bow-limbs.
Plainly said, the poundage of the bow would be theoretically so heavy that no archer could draw it without at least training in the ability to use aether during the pull. It's not unlike how martial jobs use aether internally to enhance themselves in the moment, on top of the potential wielder training their body in preparation to do all of that in the first place.
But perhaps the one feature that sets it apart from the rest is the fact that the bow-string is made from a dragon's heartstring. Given how unique dragons are with regard to how they interact with aether given physiology and whatnot, I imagine the same properties may apply to the bow-string itself. Pouring aether into it would—in theory—allow the wielder to enchant their arrow during the nock if not the draw, on top of the limbs' natural poundage alone allowing the arrow to travel at terminal velocity.
In essence, Shattered Song is a weapon in poor taste at best, and a war crime against Dravanians at worst. Especially considering the fact that pouring aether into the bow-string actually lets it resonate with a broken dragonsong which its living kin can hear—if they happen to be in the immediate vicinity. It goes without saying my Not-WoL would be a fool to use that feature in Dravanian territory.
So, in summary: my Not-WoL's main weapon allows him to make use of Bard-adjacent abilties involving the bow and arrow—even if he's not technically the one doing the singing
Wonder what a crossbow based ranged class would be like
I mained DNC throughout all of SB and SHB; it's a lot of fun!
My story is that my WOL begun as a BLM due to him discovering he has immense magical potential following the Calamity. However, he learned after besting Nidhogg again and saving Estinien that the way of the Black Mage is too chaotic and destructive for him to handle and needed to rein himself in. So he chose to become a Dancer; using the movements of his body to refine his control of aether while helping those around him during the liberation of Doma and Ala Mhigo; and needed to continue refining it as he absorbed more and more Light in the First. After bringing down Elidibus and returning home, Ryuji believes his control over aether has been perfected, and now wants to use his magical prowess as a Summoner to stop the incoming Final Days from coming to fruition. (just beat Paglth'an)
now only blu remains
Crossbow, sling, not to mention actual rifle since machinist uses more of a pistol, there are many options.
Not gonna lie, a class using greek style sling using different stones that either penetrate target, poison it, paralyze it, explode on impact etc. would be nice, basically an offensive status ranged dps would be nice but since we have 4 tanks, 4 healers, 5 melee dps and 3+3 non-melee dps with 3 ranged dps and 3 casters if next expansion woud provide new jobs it would more likely introduce a melee dps for equal amount to non-melees, maybe a tank+healer combo but a new ranged dps seems to be kinda copium.
I think you could do ranger as “Hunter” using a crossbow
I could see them branching Ranger off of the Archer line the way Summoner and Scholar both branch off Arcanist – it might actually not be a bad idea in the future for them to go back to older starter jobs and add branching paths like that rather than making all new jobs and weapon sets with every expansion. Like Gladiator could branch off into Paladin and, say, Rune Knight? People have been clamoring for Necromancer, have that be a branch added to the Thaumaterge line. Maybe Geomancer added as an alternative to White Mage. There would be less focus on grind since they level up together, and more on gear optimization, which they seem to be leaning more into anyway now that level cap has reached the 90s.
Spoilers for EW
One thing I've not heard anyone pick up on is the huge lore implications of the DNC job quests… Dancers were formed in Thavnair to deal with the Totemtanz, a manifestation of negative emotional energy overwhelming and transforming people… which is the exact same thing as the Final Days, and Thavnair is the thinnest point of Celestial aether. It shows definitively that even if the Ascians had succeeded, Zodiark was only ever a temporary solution, as Meteion's power was slowly but steadily pushing its way through the barrier.
I can't wait for the Blitzballer job. 🙂
Regarding machinest, you forgot to mention their aetherotransmitter also creates the bullets their firearm uses, meaning they never have to reload
I tried dancer for the first time on my non-wol(my main) and i immediately fell in love w it. So i made it that dancing is a hobby that my non-wol loves to partake in.
my actual wol(secondary) though is a weird mix of a machinist and paladin. i couldve gone for gunbreaker but i like this idea more hehe. instead of a sword and shield, she wields a sword and gun. She was a paladin at first but picks up machinist in HW! now shes both.
So that’s why bard was a caster in Heavensward
The traditional D&D Ranger has a bonus to archery, but I'd say the #1 public image of the job is probably Aragorn from the LotR films. Armed with a single sword, some offhand attacks and nature magic, like a high fantasy aesthetic cross between Samurai and Ninja. I'd like that.
One day my DNC will make that brooding DRK have a smile on their face. That or Pop shield samba.
Bard should have been a healer, and ranger should have been the job for Archer
I main BRD. I like the (psychologically) faster GCD. The addition of the Radiant Finale and the changes they made to the job was very brilliant! Seeing the buffs is so satisfying. Also, I play music, albeit terribly. If you spot someone playing a half arsed rendition of Moongazing in a conspicuous corner, it’s probably me stuffing myself on copium for a few months.
R I P Ranger and Thief jobs
Is that….
is that actual kind words for Bards.😢
holds kind words gently 🥺😭
As a Bard main, thank you. The thought of them being something more like arcane archers makes Bards sound even cooler!🥹
i main machinist because i love guns
I mean, rangers could still go for crossbows.
I like all Range Dps they play all very good .
I hope we get a Cannoneer class where we haul around a literal artillery cannon on two wheels.
DNC main here. It is very flowy and fun to play. While I cannot deal as much damage per hit compared to other DPS classes, if you set up the hot bar right, you can basically attack nonstop before taking a quick break to buff your allies. And setting up your materia correctly cannot be understated.
I main a Femroe Bard and it's always funny seeing her longbow be bigger than most NPC. She's basically firing javelins
I often wonder who'd get boned in a Earth/Aetherys conflict. My pronostic:
Aetherys would body Earth at first, then be overwhelmed by our 8 billions, or simply get nuked. Even Ultima can't compare to that.
Although if the remaining ascians got involved they'd trick Earth leaders into "Primal-ing" themselves because god-like powers is the only thing they can't get their hands on.
I love how at some point the WoL just starts inventing machinist techniques on their own with no instruction. Hey, I modified the auto-crossbow to fire spinning sawblades… because why not! I invented a flamethrower cartrige for my gun because… why not!? I TURNED MY AUTOTURRET INTO A MECHA.
I love to imagine the typical Garlean soldier's reaction to a Machinist is just *abject panic*, because firstly they're not expecting you to even have tech like this in the first place and secondly THE WOL HAS A SHOTGUN, RUN FOR YOUR LIFE.
I both like and dislike how dancer is played honestly.
as for Mch I just wish they would settle on an identity for them.
Bard is perfect though.
aside from the fact you can't play proper with other bards in fights.
I main a bard! My WoL's story is that he began as an archer from childhood since he's a (nearly) native Gridanian but was denied admision to the Archer Guild due to being too young and not having discipline. He was a good archer but needed shaping up. He returned home after years as a mercenary and tried to fit in the Archers Guild again, but was obviously struggling with shell shock from the Calamity. He encountered Jehantel by chance in the Black Shroud and found that singing helped him ease his tension and that he could weave aether through the songs — just like the ancient master bards, so he became Jehantel's apprentice. He found his footing in the job, using his voice to externalise everything that he would otherwise bottle up and turn his troubled emotions into a force he could use to defend what mattered and fight his personal demons in the process. He's still a crack shot and almost impossible to pin down in a fight– and if someone thinks closing the distance will help, he's still got a sword bigger than he is tall to deal with them.
We went to Thavnair and got barely any dancer lore.
One thing I really like about machinist is that since you are basically the first one it is the only job that is truly yours. Every other job is already established but your wol sets the standard for machinists.
Man, I hate those "hurr hurr gun better than magic" meme people. Its shows such little imagination. If technology could develop to the point of firearms, then why wouldnt magic develop as well? Especially in a franchise like Final Fantasy where magi-tek is a recurring concept. In Guild Wars 2, guns aren't the be all and end all because, guess what, they invented reflecting magic. Any decent armed faction in Guild Wars 2 will employ both warmachines and mages. Guns have become just another fighting style and there are reasons to prefer a bow over guns. And seeing a group of warriors charging with swords, hammers, staves, bows AND guns is so much cooler than seeing everyone run in with an AK-47.