In Final Fantasy XIV, there are a multitude of jobs to choose from, and each one slots into a category that houses playstyles that are similar. There are tanks, healers, and three different kinds of DPS.
Out of the three categories of DPS jobs, the magic category houses some of the fan favorites. Ranged and melee DPS jobs have some favorites in their ranks, but since two out of the three jobs in the magic category house jobs that players can start with at the very beginning of the game, many of them end up sticking with them.
Magic DPS jobs don’t have the same freedom melee or ranged jobs have in terms of the ability to move out of danger. They’re much like the healer category, who need to use slide casting and learn how to adjust to each individual fight to make the most of their casting ability.
Although there may be jobs that are more popular than others, all of the magic DPS jobs are viable choices in current content. There might be more of one job that players will see over others, but all three jobs are an excellent choice for any content in the game, granted they know how to play it.
S Tier magic DPS
Summoner
Red Mage
B Tier magic DPS
Black Mage
S Tier magic DPS: Summoner
A lot of veterans who introduce people to Final Fantasy XIV suggest to players that they start with Summoner. After the overhaul to the job in Endwalker, the rotation is really simple, and it offers the ability to move out of AoE’s or perform mechanics better than any of the other magic DPS classes. Players can even tailor their rotations to a quick cast summon if they know they’re going to be moving around a lot, so knowing the fight is still essential, but it’s far easier to cast and move than other magic DPS jobs.
Because of its simple rotation, the Summoner is regarded by players as one of the easiest DPS jobs in the game to play. It also is the easiest one to master. Once players understand the order of which they need to summon, it’s just a matter of hitting all of your oGCDs while making sure they’re weaved in with GCDs before the next summon.
This allows for a massive amount of DPS without having to think too much on your feet. Good Summoners often top the DPS list for damage done, and still have the ability to move as well, making the job incredibly fun to play. It doesn’t hurt that it’s got a resurrection skill to help out when the healers are struggling to pick up bodies. To get the full details on what a Summoner is capable of, check out our Summoner Job Guide.
S Tier magic DPS: Red Mage
This job is a blend of casting and melee skills. It’s got a similar playstyle to Summoner because the ability to move around is also pretty abundant. The job relies on its Dual Cast trait which grants an instant cast after using any skill with a cast time. While there will always been some form of cast time when Dual Cast isn’t active, it’s usually no longer than two seconds, allowing Red Mages to slide cast their way out of danger.
Not only that, but Red Mages also have the ability to heal other party members and also have Verraise, making it a great choice for higher end content where rezzing fellow party members drains a ton of mana from healers and makes it harder to pick up people if they’re constantly dying to mechanics.
Red Mages tend to have a lot of mobility, but can sometimes miss out on busts because of the melee part of the job. If their burst happens to come up right when an AoE prevents them from being close to the boss, they may lose massive DPS, so planning bursts and knowing when to greed and when to move out of the way is essential. If this job sounds like a fit for you, you can learn more in our Red Mage Job Guide.
B Tier magic DPS: Black Mage
Black Mage is the black sheep of magic DPS. They have very little to no movement aside from an ability that allows them to instantly move to the selected player, or one that zaps back to your Leylines. Speaking of Leylines, if you set yours down and then a bunch of mechanics pull you out of them, you’re already losing precious DPS. A good Black Mage can do very potent damage to enemies, but the job isn’t easy to learn and it’s hard to master.
This is due to the confusing nature of the skills. There are multiple fire and ice skills that require players to switch between them to manage their mana. There are some that fill all three stacks of either Astral Fire or Umbral Ice, there are some that just do straight damage, and there are a variety of AoE spells versus single-target. Knowing which one to press at any given time takes practice and brain power that some players just don’t care for.
The many spells to choose from depending on the scenario as well as the long cast times that make it hard to move make Black Mage one of the least liked jobs in the magic DPS category. There are certainly a good amount of excellent Black Mage players that can deal massive amounts of damage, but most players that pick it up, especially early on in their time with the game, don’t enjoy it. Take a look at our Black Mage Guide for more details of the job.
