black mage manifesto

The Black Mage Manifesto
To the Developers of Final Fantasy XIV and the Wider Community,

For years, Black Mage has stood as 'the hardest job' in Final Fantasy XIV — a job that demands precise execution and mastery to pull off. It's always been horribly punishing, and people enjoyed it because of it. It is a job that embodies the spirit of risk and reward, where those who dedicate themselves to its nuances are met with the satisfaction of dealing the most damage, as well as the simple joy of proving one's mastery.

With the upcoming changes shown in the latest Live Letter, this identity is at risk of being erased.

Black Mage has never been a job for everyone, nor should it be. It stands as a challenge to those that enjoy surmounting its complexities in exchange for massive damage. The joy of playing Black Mage lies in the precision required, the tight windows of opportunity to find, and the profound satisfaction of seeing your efforts rewarded.

These proposed changes, however, threaten to undo everything that makes Black Mage unique. By simplifying its mechanics and removing the consequences for mistakes, the job risks becoming unrecognizable. As it stands, it is looking like a worse version of Pictomancer (which is where BLM sat throughout most of 7.x so far). No Astral Fire/Umbral Ice timers make the job bland. There is no risk to making mistakes. There is no adapting to your situation in different mechanics. You can just stop casting and barely be punished. To the average casual player, this probably doesn't matter... but if that's the case, why change it so that the casual player can play without punishment? BLM has never been a 'casual' job, but now it is looking to be in a similar spot as Summoner as the 'easy' caster. Why such a stark change? Most high-end BLM players hate these changes, and the more casual players don't really have a reason to even want this change in the first place as perfect play is not needed to complete casual content.

What We Stand to Lose

1. Depth and Identity: The complexity of Black Mage is its essence. Removing that complexity is stripping away its very soul. Managing the Enochian timer was a core part of the job, and without it, it just feels like applying a DoT and never having to reapply it. Its new casts not being full casts makes it so you have no reason to use Triplecast or Swiftcast outside of movement.
2. Player Agency: Every decision a Black Mage makes is crucial. Taking that away reduces the job to little more than pressing buttons on cooldown. Every Black Mage player chooses to play in a way deeply personal to them, choosing the spell speed they favour and picking the best moments to use each tool. With these changes, there's no depth to the job, and everyone will have to play in the exact same way. There is no identity nor skill present.
3. Sense of Achievement: There is no greater feeling than executing a perfect rotation while avoiding mechanics. These changes risk robbing us of that triumph. Robbing us of the fact of making a perfect plan to surpass every mechanic, robbing us of being able to show our mastery through skilled gameplay.

A Plea for Reconsideration

We, the dedicated Black Mage players, those who have reached the highest heights that the job has to offer, urge you to reconsider these changes. The beauty of Final Fantasy XIV is its diversity of playstyles. Not every job needs to be accessible to everyone. Black Mage has always been a job for those who relish the challenge, and it should remain as such.

If accessibility is the goal, there are already other casters that can fulfil the role of an 'easier Black Mage'. But please, do not flatten the depth of Black Mage in pursuit of homogenization. Not everyone needs to be able to expertly play every job, and that is okay.

Closing Words

For some people, jobs in this game are part of their identity. We relish in the challenges that we pick, and we strive to become better players to master what we love. Taking such a drastic measure to infantilize Black Mage is bound to (and already has) upset many people globally. I just want our voice to be heard, and it is with my whole heart that I ask you to reconsider. You've already taken away the identities of countless other jobs. We ask that you preserve this identity.

Sincerely,

A Black Mage.