Patch 7.4 is now live, and alongside its headline quality-of-life updates—lifted glamour restrictions, bulk repairs, and the new strategy planner—it also delivers a substantial set of job changes. While some of these are simple numerical adjustments, others meaningfully alter how certain jobs play. Recently, Rinon walked through the major job changes in Patch 7.4 on his YouTube channel, highlighted where buffs and nerfs landed (including a few stealthy ones), and discussed how these changes affect gameplay and the overall health of the job landscape. Let’s dive in.
Tank Changes
Dark Knight: A Small Fix with a Big Impact
Dark Knight received a single, subtle change: Living Shadow’s duration has been extended from 20 to 22 seconds. This isn’t a balance adjustment or potency buff—it’s a long-overdue quality-of-life fix addressing an issue that dates back to Stormblood-era pet behavior.
Esteem performs a fixed number of attacks during its duration, ending with Disesteem, a high-potency finisher. However, excessive boss movement could cause Esteem to pause its attack animations, delaying Disesteem long enough that it simply never goes off before despawning. The two-second extension helps ensure that the final hit actually lands.
Most players likely never noticed this issue, but it’s an annoying and obscure problem nonetheless. Fixing it without altering overall damage is a clean win.
Gunbreaker: Easier, Faster, and Slightly Weaker
Gunbreaker received the most significant tank changes in 7.4. The maximum cartridge capacity has doubled from three to six, and Bloodfest’s cooldown has been reduced to 60 seconds. Together, these changes dramatically smooth out cartridge economy and reduce the job’s sensitivity to downtime.
Another long-standing complaint—difficulty repositioning bosses during burst windows—has also been addressed. Gnashing Fang now uses a charge system, giving Gunbreakers much more control over when they commit to burst sequences. This makes boss movement during burst far less awkward and opens up small optimization opportunities.
To compensate for the increased uptime and flexibility, damage values were adjusted. Double Down once again costs two cartridges, and potencies across the kit were slightly reduced, resulting in roughly a 1% single-target damage nerf.
Overall, Gunbreaker is easier and more comfortable to play. Players who disliked its Dawntrail iteration will likely welcome these changes, while those who enjoyed its sharper edges may feel that some of its identity has been smoothed away.
Melee DPS Adjustments
Ninja: A Targeted AoE Buff
Ninja received a small but impactful change: Goka Mekkyaku (its fire-based AoE Mudra) was buffed. This makes it a DPS gain over Hyosho Ranryu in two-target scenarios.
The timing strongly suggests this was done with M10S in mind, which features extended two-target phases where both enemies remain attackable. Square Enix appears to be proactively adjusting AoE balance ahead of Savage release.
Viper: AoE Reined In
Viper, by contrast, received a significant AoE nerf. Single-target damage remains unchanged, but AoE output has been reduced by roughly 7–8%, depending on target count.
Viper was exceptionally strong in multi-target phases during the cruiserweight tier, particularly in M6S. Now that the tier has passed, the developers appear to be course-correcting to bring it more in line with other melee jobs. The timing feels deliberate, avoiding disruption mid-tier while still addressing long-term balance concerns.
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Physical Ranged DPS: Small Buffs, Big Questions
All physical ranged jobs received modest damage buffs:
- Machinist gains roughly 520 potency every two minutes
- Bard gains around 500, depending on execution
- Dancer gains about 300
The uneven distribution makes sense. Dancer already provides enormous value in coordinated groups thanks to raid buffs, whereas Machinist in particular benefits more directly from raw damage increases.
While these buffs are welcome, they don’t meaningfully address the role’s core issues. Physical ranged DPS remain a “5% role”—often brought for party bonuses rather than perceived impact. The difficulty of filling these slots in cruiserweight Party Finder made that reality painfully clear.
Until Square Enix reexamines the role’s identity rather than just its numbers, these changes feel like a temporary bandage at best.
Caster DPS: Red Mage Redefined
Red Mage was the only caster to receive changes in 7.4, and they’re substantial.
After using Manafication, Red Mage can now execute its next melee combo from ranged distance for 30 seconds. The previous 5% damage buff tied to Manafication has been removed, and the Verfire/Verstone proc system has been simplified so it can be used immediately.
To compensate—and then some—Embolden’s personal damage bonus was increased from 5% to 10%. Overall, Red Mage comes out with just under a 1% damage buff.
This change fundamentally alters Red Mage’s identity during burst windows. Previously, it was the only caster required to engage in partial melee during raid buffs, which could be punishing under certain fight constraints. Some players will see this as a huge quality-of-life improvement.
Others found that friction to be an interesting and rewarding challenge. Working around positioning constraints and pulling off tight burst timings was uniquely satisfying. For those players, this change may feel like unnecessary simplification.
Healer Changes
Shield Healers: Minor Adjustments
Sage and Scholar both received small buffs to their damage-over-time effects, seemingly to counterbalance Astrologian’s dominant raid DPS contribution.
Astrologian also received a buff to Collective Unconscious, increasing its mitigation duration from 5 to 10 seconds, making it more forgiving and more effective against multi-hit mechanics.
White Mage: Power Up, Identity Trade-Off
White Mage received the most extensive healer changes in 7.4. Glare and Afflatus Misery both received potency adjustments to keep overall DPS neutral, while Plenary Indulgence now grants 10% damage mitigation for 10 seconds.
This is a major survivability buff and brings White Mage closer to its competitors in raid utility. However, attaching mitigation to Plenary Indulgence removes its former unique use case, effectively turning it into a mirror of Astrologian’s Collective Unconscious. The ability is stronger, but also less interesting.
The largest change is to White Mage’s gauge. You now begin encounters with three Lily charges and access to Misery pre-pull. This removes ramp-up entirely and significantly simplifies Lily management.
While this opens up some niche optimization in downtime or multi-target scenarios, it also removes a layer of decision-making that many players enjoyed. In single-target play, any attempt to leverage a double-Misery opener is almost certainly not worth the trade-offs.
A Bigger Picture Problem
All of these changes lead to a broader concern. According to Rinon, Patch 7.4’s job updates don’t inspire confidence in the long-term direction of job design. FFXIV’s baseline simplicity is fine, but interesting avenues for expression are steadily disappearing. Over time, jobs begin to feel overly uniform and solved. And FFXIV has been a solved game for a while now. Making it even easier to solve—by removing friction rather than creating new depth—risks long-term stagnation.
Dawntrail’s endgame has been carried hard by excellent fight design, but if jobs themselves felt more engaging, that burden wouldn’t be so heavy. We’ve heard Yoshida mention that 8.0 will bring some kind of shift to job design, but the direction remains unclear.
If the current trend continues, we’ll see more long-term players quietly drift away. Preventing potential stress is understandable, but when it consistently comes at the cost of identity and meaningful choice, it starts to feel bad—especially when it happens patch after patch.
