As Final Fantasy 14: Endwalker comes to a close, the Job balance within the game remains in a decent spot for most levels of content, from the casual side of things to the final Savage raids of the expansion. In every major patch in Final Fantasy 14, the development team takes a look at the feedback provided by players and, unlike other MMORPGs, avoids nerfing Jobs that are performing well. For the most part, Final Fantasy 14 prefers to buff Jobs that are underperforming to provide competitive parity within a given role and to avoid punishing players that prefer certain Jobs.
With the 2023 North American FanFest right around the corner and talk of the next expansion reaching a fever pitch, a new Job being announced for Final Fantasy 14 is almost guaranteed. Though the next expansion is still some time away, looking at how Jobs performed throughout Endwalker can provide an indication of where things are headed. The tier list was created during Final Fantasy 14 Patch 6.4, with a focus on relevant PvE content. The list included combat Jobs that could reach level 90 at the time of writing, so Blue Mage was not listed.
S Tier
- Warrior (WAR): As an axe-wielding tank with strong self-healing capabilities in its kit such as Bloodwhetting and Thrill of Battle, the Warrior has remained a consistent choice for high-end content. In Patch 6.3, the ability Shake it Off received a heal-over-time effect in addition to its shield, though Shake it Off was marred by an exploit that was quickly patched out. Patch 6.4 further buffed Warrior's offensive firepower with abilities such as Fell Cleave and Primal Rend receiving a boost. With its hard-hitting and simple play style and the tools to weather an enemy onslaught, the Warrior is a solid pick for new players to learn the Tank role with.
- Paladin (PLD): Despite being the poster Job for Endwalker, the sword-and-board Paladin did not fare too well early on in the expansion. Patch 6.3 granted the Paladin a much-needed rework that changed up its rotation, with reworks of both the Confiteor spell and the subsequent Blade of Faith combo. The patch also made its Divine Veil ability much easier to use in raid content, as its previous incarnation was more cumbersome to manage. With plenty of defensive cooldowns such as Passage of Arms and Hallowed Ground, and a magic-based rotation that is unique to the Job, the Paladin now shines brighter than it did before and compliments the Warrior's play style well.
- White Mage (WHM): The White Mage continued to serve as the traditional example of what the Healer role is in the Final Fantasy series. But, the Job received some tweaks throughout the expansion to improve its robust healing kit. In Patch 6.1, the White Mage saw a slew of buffs that improved spells such as Liturgy of the Bell and Cure 3 and changed the speed of the Lily Gauge to generate one Lily every 20 seconds. With the best raw healing in the game, the White Mage remains the go-to Healer in most situations in Final Fantasy 14 and is the easiest Job for new Healers to learn and level up.
- Sage (SGE): The Sage is the newest Healer in Final Fantasy 14, despite the Job itself dating as far back as Final Fantasy 3. With a focus on shielding the party from harm, and using offensive spells such as Dosis and Toxikon to heal a party member via the Kardia spell, the gameplay style of the Sage may remind World of Warcraft players of the Discipline Priest to an extent. With tools such as Panhaima and Kerachole to mitigate damage and a unique aesthetic that Gundam fans may appreciate, the Sage is a fresh take on Final Fantasy Jobs that could serve as the foundation for what could come down the line.
- Machinist (MCH): The gun-toting Machinist is a prime example of going "from worst to first" within Endwalker. For half of the expansion, the Machinist was excluded from most forms of high-end content until Patch 6.3 addressed some major issues. The January 2023 update heralded the return of the Dismantle ability, which was removed in Shadowbringers, to mitigate incoming group damage. The update also reworked Hypercharge to be a consistent, charge-based cooldown. With high-powered tools such as Chain Saw and Drill, freedom of movement, and utility via abilities such as Tactician and Dismantle, the Machinist proved its mettle during The Omega Protocol (Ultimate) raid and earned its place as a reliable, ranged physical DPS.
A Tier
- Dark Knight (DRK): As the poster Job of the previous Shadowbringers expansion, the Dark Knight retained its niche as a brooding Tank with strong magic defense in Endwalker. While it maintains a degree of MP management in order to use The Blackest Night, the Job received some changes in Patch 6.1 to improve the use of its Blood Weapon and Living Dead cooldowns. It requires support from a Healer, but the Dark Knight remains a formidable Tank in magic-focused fights, such as the Pandaemonium: Abyssos raids.
- Gunbreaker (GNB): Introduced in Shadowbringers, the Gunbreaker retained its spot as the newest Final Fantasy 14 Tank. With a high-octane offense and abilities such as Double Down and the Gnashing Fang combo that can rival a melee DPS in terms of complexity and pace, the Gunbreaker is a nice alternative for melee DPS players that want to try their hand at being a Tank. Compared to the other Tanks, the Gunbreaker received fewer adjustments through the span of Endwalker, but still kept true to its identity as a Job directly taken from Final Fantasy 8.
- Scholar (SCH): Despite the arrival of the Sage, the bookish Scholar retained its identity as Final Fantasy 14's original shield healer, and received some tuning over the course of Endwalker to improve its MP costs and cut down the response time of its Faerie minion. Though the Faerie can be cumbersome for players to micromanage in some encounters, spells such as Expedient and Sacred Soil give both the Scholar and its allies some extra defense that can turn the tide of a battle.
- Monk (MNK): Though it can be a tricky melee DPS for some players to truly master, the punchy and deceptively fast Monk remained one of the most mobile and versatile Jobs in Final Fantasy 14. In Endwalker, the Monk gained a new Beast Chakra system and saw some changes to some abilities such as Riddle of Earth throughout the expansion. While it can be overlooked by other DPS Jobs, the Monk continued to serve as the "dark horse" of the melee DPS role.
- Reaper (RPR): The Reaper joined the Sage as one of the new Jobs to arrive with Endwalker. As a scythe-wielding melee DPS, the Reaper brought a surprising amount of mobility and utility to the role with cooldowns such as Arcane Circle and Arcane Crest. With a burst phase inspired by Machinist that grants the player the power of a Voidsent Avatar, the Reaper is an unstoppable force that Final Fantasy 14 players cannot underestimate.
- Dancer (DNC): In Shadowbringers, the Dancer proved to be an indispensable support DPS in high-end content. While this trend continued in Endwalker for some raid groups, the rise of the Machinist provided the ranged physical DPS role with some much-needed competitive parity. With the ability to make another raid member their Dance Partner, and useful cooldowns such as Shield Samba and Improvisation, the Dancer's mobility and utility make up for its lower damage output in most situations.
B Tier
- Samurai (SAM): As the most "selfish" of the melee DPS Jobs since its introduction in the Stormblood expansion, the katana-wielding Samurai retained its spot as one of Final Fantasy 14's heavy hitters. However, the loss of the damage-augmenting ability Hissatsu: Kaiten in Patch 6.1 was a point of contention among Final Fantasy 14 players and developers. At the time of writing, arguments both for and against the removal of Hissatsu: Kaiten from Samurai's kit can still be seen online.
- Ninja (NIN): While the Mudra system remained a hindrance for Final Fantasy 14 players with latency problems, the swift and deadly Ninja received some changes that altered some of its kit in Endwalker's patch cycle. The most notable changes were granting Mug the vulnerability buff that Trick Attack formerly provided, along with changes to improve the use of Forked Raiju and Fleeting Raiju in certain situations.
- Black Mage (BLM): As an endearing force of destruction throughout the Final Fantasy series, the Black Mage saw little changes to its core play style in Endwalker. Even with additional buffs in Patch 6.4 to Xenoglossy, it's hardest hitting single-target spell, the Black Mage's notorious lack of mobility made it a liability in some Extreme Trials, such as Storm's Crown and The Voidcast Dais. However, with enough practice and patience, a skilled Black Mage can output some serious damage while remaining mostly in one piece.
- Summoner (SMN): The Summoner received a significant amount of changes in Endwalker. Between the removal of damage-over-time spells and an emphasis on summoning miniaturized versions of Ifrit, Titan, and Garuda to deal damage, the current version of the Summoner is much easier for new players to pick up and learn. Its lack of spell diversity pales in comparison to other spell casters, but nevertheless, the Summoner retains a lot of potential for the Final Fantasy 14 developers to work with in the future.
C Tier
- Dragoon (DRG): Despite recent improvements to its Jump and High Jump in Patch 6.4, the Dragoon remained in a weird spot for most of Endwalker. However, the high-flying Dragoon was confirmed to receive a rework in the next FF14 expansion. The confirmation remained a point of contention with Dragoon players, with some remaining cautiously optimistic about the rework and others fearing the worst. Only time will tell what Final Fantasy 14 will do.
- Astrologian (AST): With the arrival of the Sage, the Astrologian lost abilities that could enhance its shielding capability in favor of more raw healing potency. The changes remained a point of contention throughout Endwalker, despite the addition of useful spells such as Macrocosmos. The Astrologian will join Dragoon as a Job that will get reworked in the next expansion. Whether the Job's card drawing mechanic makes the cut or not remains to be seen.
- Bard (BRD): As a supportive DPS by nature, the Bard has traditionally been in a weird spot compared to the other DPS Jobs. But, with Dancer and Machinist getting more attention throughout Endwalker, Bard has sadly been left to collect dust in most forms of content. While it boasts songs and cooldowns to bolster itself and other party members, a little more tuning would give Bard the means to compete.
- Red Mage (RDM): Even though the utility of the Red Mage is seldom matched, the Job's Dualcast mechanic and lower damage output put it in the same league as Bard. Though it can quickly turn a raid-ending wipe into a clear with spells such as Verraise and Magick Barrier, the Red Mage's damage remained lackluster throughout Endwalker. But like the Summoner, the Red Mage has the potential to change as time goes on.
Final Fantasy 14 is available now for PC, PS4, and PS5.
