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The Astrologian, The Machinist, and Patch 2.5

Victor Barreiro Jr. Posted:
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There’s a lot of fun stuff to talk about today, so I’ll dispense with the usual preamble and just say I’m stoked for the other new jobs coming to FFXIV that aren’t the Dark Knight: the Astrologian and the Machinist. At the same time, the new year brought a special treat in the form of the date for the release of Patch 2.5: Before the Fall.

Let’s get to it, shall we?

The Globe and Tarot Healer

The Astrologian is a healer that uses a Star Globe and a set of tarot cards to deal damage and, more importantly, to keep other players alive in battle.

What’s been described online is that the Astrologian has something called a Divining Deck – its tarot cards – meant to make it stand out as a healer. No word yet on whether the divining deck is simply an effect or a secondary weapon thingy for the Astrologian, but some are speculating that it serves as the buffing component.

My take on this is that a combination of star globe spell and tarot deck interaction might be able to cause a healing +buff combo to allies or a damage + debuff combo to enemies. Would this be true, this may appear as a cooldown-specific effect that the Astrologian can throw in order to turn the tide of a fight.

The Gun and Turret DPS

Apparently, Yoshi-P hinted at this nearly 6 months ago in an interview!  When asked about what his favorite classes that aren’t in FFXIV, he mentioned the Dark Knight and the Machinist. If you’ll check the related links below, I’ve made it the first link you can view.

Anyway, simply put, the Machinist is a gun-toting DPS class that also takes advantage of turrets or robots (please give me a mini-mech) to deal damage and control positioning on the battlefield. Some have speculated that Machinist turrets might be damage or debuff/buff machines, and I’m certainly hoping that’s the case too.

Maybe we’ll be able to see Cid become a machinist as well, who knows?

Before the Fall

Also a part of our discussion today is Patch 2.5, Before the Fall. According to information online, Patch 2.5 is scheduled to release on January 20, and with it comes around two-thirds of the final main scenario quests, along with “three new dungeons, and the conclusion of the Crystal Tower questline and the World of Darkness.”

There will also be more Hildebrand goodness, as well as new recipes and items to pick up and build. Patch 2.5 also introduces “a new battle against Odin, the Dark Divinity of legend, in Urth’s Fount.”

Of course, what I’m waiting for is patch 2.51, with the arrival of the Manderville Gold Saucer, as well as a host of minigames, such as chocobo racing, chocobo breeding, and… TRIPLE TRIAD! Yeah, Triple Triad alone makes Patch 2.51 worth the wait.

In any case, feel free to let me know what you’re looking forward to in patch 2.5 and beyond! As for me, I’ll be looking to practice Triple Triad with some Final Fantasy VIII on the PC. Cheers!


LINKS:

Yoshi-P quietly teasing the Machinist on MMORPG.com

Shooting for Longevity

An Escape into a Virtual World of Adventure


victorbjr

Victor Barreiro Jr.

Victor Barreiro Jr. / Victor Barreiro Jr. maintains The Devil’s Advocate and The Secret World columns for MMORPG.com. He also writes for news website Rappler as a technology reporter. You can find more of his writings on Games and Geekery and on Twitter at @vbarreirojr.