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With the arrival of Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail, one of the least represented roles in the game, the caster DPS, received a new addition called the Pictomancer. First appearing in Final Fantasy 6, the Pictomancer is an artistic caster DPS that can use their imagination and magic paintbrush to conjure different attacks and support their allies from afar.

In contrast to the Viper, which needs to be within melee range to do the most damage, the Pictomancer can stay far away from the action in most battles. However, some spells require the Pictomancer to stand still while casting them, so careful planning and spatial awareness are crucial to success. When movement is needed to stay alive, the Pictomancer can prepare and render some instant-cast spells without worry. But, before Final Fantasy 14 players can take up a magical paintbrush and palette, there are some prerequisites to consider.

The Deep Dungeon Eureka Orthos from Endwalker, and Dawntrail poster in Final Fantasy 14
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Final Fantasy 14: 7 Best Ways To Level For Dawntrail

With Dawntrail on the way as the next Final Fantasy 14 expansion, players can prep by leveling up efficiently using the following methods.

What Steps Are There To Unlock The Pictomancer Job in FF14?

First, Final Fantasy 14 players must be subscribed to the game, as the Pictomancer is not part of the Free Trial. Since the Pictomancer is new to Dawntrail, players must purchase the expansion on their platform of choice to accept the Job's starting quest. Windows, Mac, and Steam players must check that the registration codes for both the base version of Final Fantasy 14 and for Dawntrail have been added to their accounts.

PlayStation and Xbox players will have their accounts automatically flagged for Dawntrail after purchasing the expansion directly from their console's storefront. After that, players must progress through the story of Final Fantasy 14 and play another Job that has reached level 80, the Pictomancer's starting level.

Where Is The First Pictomancer Job Quest?

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After reaching level 80 with any combat Job, players that want to master the art of pictomancy must travel to Old Gridania, located in the boughs of the Black Shroud. Among the trees of the woodland city, the quest "The Joy of Pictomancy" can be accepted by an NPC called the Cheerless Hearer located near Nophica's Altar.

The Cheerless Hearer is located just north of an aethernet shard that players can quickly travel to. With a heavy flow of players expected to log into Final Fantasy 14 during early access, players should consider using a new option to hide player characters surrounding certain NPCs. This can be accessed in the Character Configuration menu under Control Settings. After going through the dialogue prompts and cutscenes, players will be awarded the Soul of the Pictomancer job crystal, a paintbrush, and some Casting gear to get started.

Brushing Up On The Art Of A Pictomancer

A Hyur Midlander as a Pictomancer, from Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail.

The Pictomancer draws inspiration from the Final Fantasy 6 character Relm Arrowny, who used her artistry to turn monsters' attacks against them. The Pictomancer shares Casting armor and accessories with other magical DPS like the Black Mage, and its Job gauges are the Palette Gauge and the Canvas Gauge.

Both gauges can be moved and resized in the HUD Display Settings. Though the Pictomancer lacks a resurrection spell, it has a buff that can bolster the team's damage output once every two minutes.

Upon taking up the Pictomancer's palette, players should take time to read through each spell's tooltip and place their spells on buttons that are easy to remember. Fresh-faced artists who are unsure of where to place certain spells and cooldowns should locate a Striking Dummy throughout Final Fantasy 14 and see what works.