Today were going to go over gladiator abilities as well as some important support class abilities that I feel every gladiator should have or be working towards.
First though let's have a quick comparison of light slash and stab. The primary difference between the two is the their types of damage, Slashing and Piercing respectively. The second difference is that Light Stab has slightly less stamina cost at the price of reduced damage and TP generation (in most cases). Some monsters have a resistance to say slashing damage, making piercing the best option for every reason and vice versa.
Typically Stab is better to use because of the reduced stamina cost, Gladiator abilities all require 40%ish of the stamina bar so every little bit counts.
Gladiator:
2: Red Lots Blade- this ability uses MP and is fine for early ranks but complete crap after you get Spinstroke.
4: Rampart- Large increase in DEF and MDEF. It simply is a must have on your bar for any Glad.
6: Circle Slash- Mixed feelings on this ability, I keep it on bar 2 in case the group I am tanking for has pulled links or has aggro from multiple mobs. Adequate damage and great for AoE threat, Caution when using though.
8: Phalanx- 250tp, hardly any stamina, large amount of damage and enmity created. Phalanx is an amazing ability and the key, in my opinion, to keeping threat without spamming Provoke.
10: Provoke- ONLY USE WHEN MOB HAS A RED NAME OR ON A LINK. This ability has been given some sort of negative stigma, but the fact of the matter is it is the largest enmity boost for the stamina cost I have found in the game. The reason it has such a bad rap is that people tend to use its range in order to pull a yellow named mob and this just wastes the enmity and stamina for a claim on the mob.
12: Spinstroke- High damage ability, especially good to start a fight with followed by provoke because if the mob is not focused on you it does additional damage. Also good to use if provoke is down and a DPS or Healer has pulled the mob off you and you do not have a Phalanx proc up.
14: Still Precision- Accuracy UP, Evasion DOWN. Truly the definition of a double-edged sword; HOWEVER, when combined with Aegis Boon you negate the majority of the time you evasion is down. Better accuracy means more attacks connect means better hate on the mob.
16: Howling Vortex- Same damage and stamina as Spinstroke, personally i use this ability and Spinstroke quite often because if I'm getting more than 400 TP per hit on a mob I gain excess TP before either CD is reset. Prioritize this ability on Imps or Elementals (Casters in General)
18: Obsess- A noticeable decrease in damage taken when used on one target. Situational ability and best for when large exp groups are killing 1 strong mob at a time.
20: Onion Cut- Fun ability and name, crap for damage and stamina cost.
22: Cover- I don't actually see a place for this ability in the current meta of the game. I have never seen a DPS or Healer pull so much hate that 1 voke or WS would not pull it back. Therefore, this ability is sutational for protecting your partner on guildleve AoE moves from mobs. Will likely play a huge roll later when HNM type scenarios come about and multiple tanks are on a mob.
24: Luminous Spire- Caution: ability causes and AOE Blind on nearby mobs. The MDEF DOWN is nice, my duoing partner Akara Lyna says he gets about 10-20% more damage when the debuff is on the mob. I love the animation and the ability. Also nice for AoE tanking.
26: Cadence- Currently, having tried extensive tests with the BR system, I find it very clunky and therefore this ability is lackluster. Will likely be amazing for DPS on HNM scenarios.
---Gladiator is at 27, will update this once I have more experience with new abilities. Looking forward to Rage of Halone.
Shield:
10: Aegis Boon- This ability is simply game-breaking. It is 15 seconds of possibly 0 damage on top of getting heals and Phalanx Procs. Use it constantly or save for emergencies, both ideas have their merits. Will touch on this later below.
14: Shield bash- Lackluster damage, can give serious shield skill ups, interrupts and silences for 5 seconds. If, for example, fighting Imps with their OMG1SHOTAOE move, this move is invaluable. On regular mobs it is really up to personal preference.
Marks Abilities:
Self-Preservation-- Buy this first, it is amazing. 15sec Guard+additional 7.5sec means you are guarding once less per minute, even more when considering a 5minute fight. Saves you stamina and allows you to do other things.
Heavy Slash/Stab-- Some swear by these abilities, I personally use them sparsely. Fact of the matter is I simply keep hate with my LPAS opener and using Light Slash/Stab. Yes, heavy versions do about 50% more damage but cost almost double the stamina, so it is up to the individual. At least buy one of the abilities and keep it on bar 2 for standby.
OK, I am not going to analyze all abilities individually or in as great detail from the support classes. Everything can have a situational purpose; however, I am looking for general use, soloing, grouping, and for guildleves. Typically, unless the WS has a bonus effect, I am not going to list it.
Archer:
4: Raging Strike- an OK ability, good for solo, doesn't really come into effect in large group play.
That's really almost it for archer, Hawk's Eye is diminished in value due to Still Precision.
Lancer:
4: Ferocity- See Raging Strike, does not stack with.
8: Moonrise- Possibly a good weapon skill when soloing mobs a bit tough for you or when there is no LNC in group.
14: Invigorate- If you are using Phalanx I doubt this is really necessary.
18: Comrade in Arms- Such a good buff you would think some other person, say a DPS, would have this, if not a LNC.
Marauder:
6: Bloodbath- Good for solo, not really necessary in party environment.
10: Defender- Defense boost for some time, a nice ability especially if rotated with Rampart and Aegis Boon, you could create quite a bit of time to take reduced damage so your healers can catch up or restore MP.
12: Foresight- An OK ability but not great, pass.
18: Disorient- Increased enmity on this ability makes it an OK WS to equip. Evasion down also a bonus. If you've gotten MRD this high I suggest equipping this if you have hate issues and using it over SS/HV/LumS.
Pugilist:
*Pugilist have a large amount of tanking abilities and are a good choice for second main class for gladiators.
2: Concussive Blow- I suggest getting this ability for early soloing, decent damage and helps survivability with the stacking blind.
6: Second Wind- A simply must-have ability for every class. 250TP for a decent heal is nice even for caster types. Not as useful in parties, but solo or small groups, this ability is worth its weight in gold.
10: Taunt- An extra Provoke, large stamina cost. OK to use if you expect multiple adds per fight, but single target, you really should not have hate issues while using Provoke on CD.
12: Featherfoot- See Foresight.
14: Jarring Strike- Shield Bash with extra enmity. A nice ability but not a must-have IMO.
20: Presence of Mind- Nice only IF you are not the main tank.
Conjurer:
4: Cure- Early levels and later soloing, this ability is nice and a good reason to not use abilities like Red Lotus Blade. Learn it. Use Guard and Cure, then Phalanx after Cure is over, Repeat haha. Great combo for killing strong monsters.
6: Stoneskin- Situational really and not worth it while subbed as a melee class.
8: Shock Spikes- For soloing this is a great tool in your arsenal, if groups you are not going to need to cast this on yourself.
16: Protect and Shell- you should really have a CNJ if group but solo, these abilities arent bad to have for yourself.
20: Cure II- See Cure, this is a great ability if ur CNJ is that high.
Thaumaturge:
4: Sacrifice- Some people prefer this to Cure because of the HOT, I do not. Up to you which you use, but I would consult a career Disciple of Magic for an in-depth comparision.
8: Slow- Decent solo ability; however, slows skill ups. Up to the individual, pick your poison so to speak.
10: Punishing Barbs- I can not tell you how many leve quest failures this ability has prevent on those pesky Imps, Get it. Huge damage when Fighting high level mobs, although it caps out. Great for solo, groups it is up to u if you can afford the MP.
16: Stygian Spikes- IMO a must-have for gladiators since we have no natural MP restore. You don't need it right now probably, but this ability will play a big roll in later grinding I am positive.
20: Sacrifice II- See Cure and Sacrifice.
Well, There are the abilities up to 20 for every class guys, yes I left out most damage spells and things like poison or dia. You should be able to see that a Gladiator WS is better than a non-Gladiator WS unless that WS has a nice effect.
The amount of character customization in this game is sheerly amazing, you should do what seems fun for you.
Sometimes I equip Cure, Dia and Banish to pretend that I am back in 11 being the Paladin I once was lol.
If you have any questions or suggestions for future entries please add a comment or shoot me an email if you're embarassed.
Truly Yours,
Ventus Invictus, a Saronian Gladiator.
P.S. Linkshell Plug #2, I forgot to add our address. www.premogaming.com. Come check us out, apply or just look at our public section to see posts like these with helpful hints in game and out for optimizing your FFXIV experience.
P.P.S. Thanks to some of you for sharing my blog on websites and generating a lot of hits in such a short period. If you find an entry particularly good I ask that you continue to do this. I feel my entry on Optimal Rank for weapons could be particularly good for starting a lot of research and discussion.
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