Red Mage - Everyone's Little Beyotch

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Delicious Red Magey Goodness

So as many of you have read in other Red Mage guides, there are reasons that we have the spells and abilities that we do. I'm sure many guides have weighed the pros and cons about sub-jobs and race specifics. Some may even help you with all that fantastic gear that you wish you could get to solo things that should have no purpose being soloed. In this guide, I will offer up an alternative that no one wants to touch base upon. In many parties, your job as a Red Mage is to be everyone's little beyotch.

Buffs: The Reason You're In A Party

Let's face it. You weren't invited to a merit party for your good looks. Put that sword away. Odds are, you're going to need to keep your party hasted. You think a Bard can do it all? Sure, they can march the party, but to a DD, that's never enough. Ready to start casting? Hold on, Cowboy. Forgetting something?

Always, always, always buff yourself first. Of course there are good ways and bad ways to approaching this, but I personally as a rule of thumb immediately bust out a Composure followed by Refresh. Because of this new ability, a spell that would drop after a minute now lasts for 3 or 4 (on yourself only), giving you a much needed respite from constantly worrying about your refresh and allowing you the chance to concentrate on cures and buffs for the rest of your party. That Refresh should quickly be followed by your own Haste because a downside of Composure is its horrific effect on casting cooldown timers.

Okay, so you're 'freshed, Hasted and ready to go. Time to start on your party members. First up: Protect and Shell. You could go the cheap way as far as MP is concerned and start off with a Protectra II (assuming you're /WHM), but the difference between II and IV is a lot, especially against TP moves like Pecking Flurry. Do your party a favor. Protect IV, please. There's more you can do for extra defense, but I'll touch upon that later.

Lists: Not Just For Grocery Shopping

If you've done a significant job leveling as a Red Mage, you should probably already know about buff lists. But, if you spent more time doing your nails in Exp yielding parties, you should probably review this article before picking a fight with Kirin. When done correctly, buff lists can SAVE YOU TIME AND MP! On top of all that, a list can also ensure that the same party members will always get the right buffs and will receive them in a timely fashion. It also has a chance to backfire in the most embarrassing ways. I can't tell you the amount of times I've given a DD Refresh. This of course leads me to my first point about lists.

Know your party members. If you're in a party with nothing but Black Mages, Haste should not be your first priority. The same goes in a party full of DDs. If I see anyone throwing a Refresh on a Samurai, I'm gonna slap you. Unless it was an accident. Then I might let it slide.

Next, know the casting time and cooldown time of all of your buff spells. You don't have to be accurate and be surrounded by stop watches, but after a while you just start to get a feel for your timers. This will come into play with your list, and help your efficiency a ton.

Remember when I told you about that extra defense for your DDs? Now, I'm not going to tell you how to use your merits, but I absolutely adore my Phalanx II spell. To those of you who don't see the point in getting the spell, I implore you to click on the following link: CLICK ME! Someone took the time to write down the benefits and even a nice formula which should hopefully change your mind. Go, take a look at it. I can wait.

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Hey, you're back. Hopefully, that changed your mind. If not, that's cool too. I'm sure you can keep your party alive without it. You'll need more cures, but c'est la vie.

Anyhoozlebees, you are now ready to start your list. For this example, the following made up names will have the following jobs: Pencilpusher - 75 PLD, Barbarastreisand - 75 THF, Sandiegozoosilverbackgorilla - 75 SAM, Heylookapenny - 75 DRG (ugh...), Givememoneynotrmtiswear - 75 DRK and yourself: Everyonesbeyotch - 75 RDM. What do you do? What DO you DO?! If it were me, it would look something like this:

Everyonesbeyotch RDM- Composure, Refresh 1, Haste 1

Pencilpusher PLD- Phalanx II 1, Refresh 2, Haste 2

Barbarastreisand THF- Phalanx II 2, Haste 3

Sandiegozoosilverbackgorilla SAM- Phalanx II 3, Haste 4

Heylookapenny DRG- Phalanx II 4, Haste 5

Givememoneynotrmtiswear DRK- Phalanx II 5, Haste 6, Occasionally Refresh 3

Of course, once you finish with yourself, you won't need to be hasted or refreshed as much of the rest of them, so after my initial buff, the list would continue without including myself on the next run through. Afterwards, a good way of knowing of when to start casting again is to wait one in-game hour from when you first cast on the PLD. Another way of telling is if you see in your chat log that it had worn out. Refresh will always be the first to drop, so that should be a good indication. After a while, you'll get a feel for it, and it'll become second nature to you.

Curing: Hey, White Mages! Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better!

Okay, so I'm sure you've gotten the point on that whole Buff thing. Next up, Curing! Now don't get me wrong. I may have pushed buffs a little in the beginning, but let it be known, Cures always must come first! Repeat that with me. Cures come first. Cures come first.

Good News/Bad News time. Let's do bad news first, because I'm a pessimist. Until they change the level cap, the best cure we can do is a Cure IV. It does the trick, but it takes more enmity and cures for less than a Cure V. That's the bad news. Now for the good news. With the right gear, (and even without), your Fast Casting abilities almost ensure that your cures will get the person that needs it first faster. So, while a White Mage is busy casting their one Cure V, you could have already gotten off a Cure IV and halfway through your Cure III. Because of this speedy recovery ability on top of an almost endless font of MP, 4 out of 5 times a Red Mage will be chosen over a White Mage in a party.

I should warn you now, however. Don't get cocky with this power. Don't think that you will have power to decide who lives and who dies. Oftentimes it's people who feel that their prowess gives them an advantage on the battlefield and feel that their company requires a little extra compensation that gives the rest of us hard working Red Mages a bad name. Use your power to your advantage and ALWAYS CURE FIRST!

To Enfeeble Or Not To Enfeeble: The World Of A Sexypants Red Mage

Your party is sufficiently healed and buffed. Excellent. You have some extra MP and it's just staring at you, saying "Use me... UUUUSSSEEE MEEEEEE..."

No? Maybe it's just me, then.

At any rate, we have more we can do, and it could very well save our party's butts in a pinch. I refer of course to the power of Enfeebling Magic. We happen to have the best stats for Enfeebling Magic in the game, and it is our one and only A+ skill. Don't be afraid to bust out a Paralyze or Slow when it's deemed necessary. By the way, to all you haters out there who love trash talking Paralyze, if you put enough Merits in your Paralyze II spell, it has a chance of canceling out a lot of the mob's abilities. Stun? Who needs it?

DoTs are nice, but in many parties, they're pretty unnecessary. There is one that I do love to use though, and it helps out the DDs just that much more. There are advocates for Bio II and it's good in some situations, but I say Phooey! Dia II is infinitely more useful in a party. The less defense a mob has, the easier it is for your DDs to blow them to smithereens. However, as many things within this game, everything is situational. The world of Vana'diel is all about trial and error, and don't be afraid to try things out. Or, you could always listen to any bossy person who writes a guide about playing a job.

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What do you mean, go look in a mirror?

By the way, what should always come first? Say it with me.ALWAYS CURE FIRST!

So, just kinda keep in that mind in the case of your enfeebs. Then as another thing, always try and keep a 15+ sec timer between your casts cause blind resisted or unresisted adds enmity as does dispel, para, poison, and slow, so just watch your casting to help with hate sharing.

That's all fine and dandy person who just edited my guide, but an enfeebled mob will help out immensely, regardless of TP gain from the mob. If it's sufficiently Paralyzed, there's a good chance that whatever TP move the mob will try to bust out will be blocked by the paralyzing effect of Paralyze. Also, point out to me a Tank or DD who doesn't like their mob sufficiently slowed.

Useful Gear That Won't Break The Bank

You want the best gear. Hey, me too. But, with great gear comes great deficit. Here's a couple of items that won't sap your hard earned gils but still make you a better Red Mage for your moneys.

This here's some of the sexiest gear for a Red Mage, and the best part is, IT'S FREE! As for the hands and the feet, once you get them, you can promptly toss them out (unless you need the 5 inventory spaces - Armor Storage). They're okay if you want to go around with your sword and smack some stuff, but even then there are better items. As for the rest, each one of these items are good for macro pieces, and no self respecting Red Mage would be caught dead without having their Tabard on them. The Chapeau is good for getting your cures out faster because of its Fast Casting capabilities, and those moments where your Nukes are necessary, I guess the Elemental Magic skill could help. As for the tights, they are a must for cures and honestly they're amazing for your Phalanx II setup.

These staves are an absolute must. Light makes your cures more potent, Dark help with your rest macros (+10 MP while healing is nothing to sneeze at]] and is also good for your sleeps and other Dark elemental Enfeebling magic setup. The rest are amazing for your enfeebles, and when you get a chance to upgrade to +1, do so ASAP. Some think I may be out of place by not recommending the Thunder or Fire staves, but I'm writing this for Red Mages on a budget, and they can always Catch 'em All at a later time. And yes, I know the Thunder Staff is great for stuns and eventually when you get your Dark Knight sub job, you'll probably have the chance to do a Chainspell Stun strategy, and a Thunder Staff will make that hugely effective. Moving on.

Oh, Errant gear. So reliable. So genius. So... CHEAP! You want bang for your buck? You can stretch your gils longer with this terrific set. The Houppelande is great for nuking and resting, the slops are amazing for enfeebles, and the cuffs and pigaches (pronounced PI-gash-es, not PIG-akes... although pigaches pronounced the latter way sound like an amazing breakfast food, hmm? Pancakes made from bacon... just saying) are stupendous for everything, and are a terrific replacement for those crappy AF hands and feet. By the way, did I mention that they're FRIGGIN' CHEAP?! I did the math for you. That whole set will set you back on average a meager 87,000 gil (based on Bismarck prices, prices may vary in other servers) You can't get better than that, plus you're helping out your fellow Clothcrafting pals. The rest is up to you, but I'm sure you're smart enough to figure it out.

Level 80 - Keep It Updated, Yo!

In order for this guide to seem less stale, I'm going to keep updating every time FFXI does. Well, not right away. More like when I feel comfortable enough to know the new perspective. And speaking of perspective, here's my impression the new Red Mage Beyotch:

Not a damn thing has changed. Sure, there's some slightly better gear and some less than impressive new spells, but the theory is the same.

Here are some very subtle changes to the lineup. Remember when I told you to use Protect IV? Yeah? Well now you have the option to cast Protect V.

Also, remember when I told you about your nukes and gears associated with nukes? Stone and Water IV have replaced Stone and Water III. So you should probably consider getting a Water Staff, if you care about your nukes. It's still nothing compared to Black Mage, but it's fun to pretend, right?

Finally, believe it or not the Teal crap isn't half bad. It's not great, but the accuracy is nice. Here's my suggestion for the pieces worth it:

Let's get this out of the way, first. That hat is crap compared to your Pimp Hat. The fast cast from your AF hat alone is better than the amount given via the whole Teal set. Other than that, if you have nothing better to enfeeble in, it could be worth it.

The feet... Here's my review: Ppppptttttthhhhhhhhhhh! If you're low on Mind it could be for you, but I prefer my Avocat Pigaches They're also easy to obtain, if you do ZNMs.

The rest are good for situations. Those Cuffs and Slops are good for your enfeebles, and the Saio will work for your nuking macros.

Level 85: The Spells May Have Changed, But the Game Stays the Same

As I leveled to 85, I pondered if I should keep this guide going. True, I've gained another five levels and got some pretty decent spells, but nothing's really changed, save the efficiency. But then I thought: the hell with it! I'm sitting here trying to get an Abyssea party for my Samurai, and so far no hits. So, I'm bored and here's your update, you naughty silly persons.

What can I say about the new AF that hasn't been said before? Honestly, it's got some amazing new stats, which will be perfect for the Red Mage who wants to remain efficient and keep the skills maxed. Really, you should check it all out. Even the +1 gear is beautiful: Estoqueur's Attire +1 Set. If you have the time and capabilities to go +2, friggin' do it! I on the other hand am rather anti-social, lazy and therefore haven't even begun the quest to work on this gear. But it's some really great stuff. Those feet alone are worth the time and effort put into them. Even more Enhancing skill? Hold on, I need to wipe the drool from my chin.

Yeah, that gear is super sexy for the Beyotch who loves their Phalanx II macro. Moving on.

We got Composure from what seems like an eternity ago now, and we praised Squeenix for it. Again, they have bestowed upon us a new ability, and again we give thanks. This time, it makes our enfeebles just that more potent. Saboteur is its name, and damn it is sweet. Nearly doubling the enfeeble of your choice's effect and strengthening the effectiveness of aforementioned spell, this new ability makes Byakko look like a cute little kitten. I haven't had a chance to experiment with it too much myself save a Gravity on Iriz Ima, but I can say that it's going to save us all a bunch of MP and time.

Also, we have been gifted with new spells. Now, I won't get into how they ganked us with Break, because I'm sure you're all as angry about it as I am. Okay fine, I will. First off, it's a glorified Sleep spell, and secondly, when you think of enfeebles, you usually think Red Mage, not Black Mage. You dropped the ball on that one, Squeenix.

Addle is good for those stubborn Mobs who just won't take a Silence. It ensures that you, the Red Mage are the king/queen of Enfeebles, and that stupid Worm can just wait before he tries to recast Rasp. Unfortunately, it only slows down the recast time and effectiveness of the target's Enfeebling magic, not the Elemental or Enhancing magics. I haven't really had the chance to experiment with this spell either (see above about me being anti-social), but I'm sure it'll save your hide at least once in this game.

Gain-Vit and Gain-MND are pretty self explanatory. You need more Mind for your light-based Enfeebles? Boom, now you have it. Feel like tanking but your Vitality is too low? Kablammy! There it is.

Okay, that should cover it. I don't think there's anything else really worth talking about from this most recent Update. Nope, nothing else really substantial or Game-Changing. I guess you'll have to wait for my next installment you lucky sons of window dressers.

HA! Did you really think I wouldn't touch base on the sweetest, most awesome-ist addition to Red Mage, did you?!

I want to shout it from the mountaintops. REFRESH II, BABY!!!!

Magnuss uses Composure.

Phew! I'm okay, now. Anyhoozlebees, let's talk about it.

Remember the days when I told you Refresh was all important? Three MP per tick, I said. Isn't it just so amazing? Well, you can take your simple Refresh spell, and shove it up where the sun don't shine! Refresh II is in town, and he's The Fonz. He came blazing into the Red Mage town with his swanky motorcycle and said, "F*** all ya'll. I'm here to stay, beyotches." And so he has.

Refresh II takes the measly 3 MP/tick, and ups the ante with an additional 3 MP. Now, it's 6 MP a tick. And it is so sexy. This gives you a greater MP pool to dip into. Remember where I said you need to conserve your MP? Not so much, now. I can easily throw a Cure IV on every member of my party, and still have enough for buffs and even Enfeebles without batting an eye. Trust me, this is one spell a Level 82 Red Mage shouldn't live without.

Okay, I think that covers it, now. Look for me to update this when Squeenix unleashes another update.

Buh Dee Buh Dee Buh Dee, That's All Folks!

I'm sure I can think of more, but for now this guide is about ready to burst. Thanks for reading, and if you remember anything from what you read here today, it's that you should ALWAYS CURE FIRST! Also, just play it smart. Try out combinations and macros in certain situations, and in no time you'll be one of the best Red Mages on your server. Know your place, but stay humble. For a party to work, sometimes you have to play the role of Everyone's Little Beyotch.