RDM Playstyle

One of the reasons I rarely ever play RDM is because I have a difficult time figuring out the playstyle. As a hybrid job, RDM are expected to manage a wide range of buffs & debuffs as well as to provide damage output. I've seen RDMs top the DPS parse in Limbus regularly. But a lot of the spells that need to be constantly cast are optimized by weapons in the main, sub, and ammo slot. So changing them out from Naegling, Thibron, and Coiste or Hoxne seems cumbersome. I assume I'm just not doing it right, or that's just the way the cookie crumbles.

I wouldn't mind some advice.

toggles.

Changing weapons for some dumb ***like 15 seconds on your Haste duration is not worth it.

When I'm meleeing, I lock my weapons and never change them.

You can change your weapons every ~20 minutes for 5 more enspell damage or 1% more TA if you want. I can't be *** to do it.

It would help if you actually specified what problem you're encountering though, with exact spells and gear in question. There aren't many spells, especially in a setting like Limbus, where you're gonna need the potency from your main hand to make it effective.

Certain spells require a weapons change, and depending on the content, could be frequent (i.e., Dispelga). I don't worry too much about buffs because of composure, but Phalanx is applied a bit more frequently, and I like to put on Sakapata's Sword for the +5% on that. For enfeebles, I could keep with Naegling, but I'd rather swap to Daybreak. For cures, I like to switch to the appropriate club for 30% potency. So...it's a weird juggling act I'm trying to wrap my head around. Again, my assumption is that I'm just not managing it right...like I'm unnecessarily feeling like I have to swap.

You can either put the weapons in the relevant sets so that they always switch when you cast one of those spells and live with the constant TP loss or you can add the weapons to the sets and add a toggle (a dedicated button shortcut) that disables main, sub and possibly ranged and/or ammo slots so that you still have control over when to sacrifice TP for more spell potency/duration and when not to.

I thought switching ammo doesn't drop tp am I incorrect

ammo doesnt unless you swap something like regal gem to an arrow i think, could be mistaken.

Phalanx/Dispelga aside im not sure you need to swap anymore mid combat unless you want to squeeze every bit of macc/mnd/int/duration into a buff/debuff, which you can drop those before you engage initially if you arent worried about losing any potential carry-over TP from a previous fight or something

I think the concern for ammo swap on RDM is not so much the TP loss but losing Hoxne enchantment.

It's not the TP. I full-time Hoxne on multiple jobs. Every time it swaps out, I have to wait for the timer and re-activate the effect.

Maletaru's got you covered, just lock them if you're expected to melee.

You can prebuff at start and then lock and forget.

You should also phalanx 2 yourself because it's got a longer duration than phalanx 1 and with composure you're hardly ever casting it. The phalanx+ from sword doesn't work when cast on others so I'm not sure how a swap every 20 min is that annoying.

There's also plenty of gear to not need cure potency from weapon between bunzi, atrophy, kaykaus, accessories. Just create melee casting sets that don't depend on weapon swaps.

Dispelga... there's no other option but to swap but also I think I've cast it a few times a decade.

TBH, sometimes I lock my weapon because I'm lazy and forget to change weapons/Gem for potency. It never made any difference to me in 8/9boss Sortie, which is arguably where you would want the swaps for additional Magic Accuracy and potency on bosses (Distract and Gravity). Aita still moves slow enough to handle with Gravity II without swapping to regal Gem, and your magic accuracy should be high enough to land it. Also, most ilvl weapons have Magic Accuracy and high skill on it anyways, so it's not like you're lacking MACC to land anything.

Dia 3 does not require a swap. Neither does any upstairs boss Sortie Boss. Even still, disabling ammo and unlocking weapon still keeps your Hoxne Ampulla buff intact and only causes a TP loss (which is nothing with Hoxne+Temper II). Where else are you using RDM that requires a weapon swap? There is no high end magically evasive monster that requires such a standard. There is no buff (whether on yourself or others) that require the weapon or ammo swap. it's merely a duration/potency improvement that you will live without, I promise.


When do you Cure on RDM, and why can't you make a 50% build without the weapon slot? Unless you're main healing, I'm not seeing the reason for swapping weapons as RDM while curing in modern content (Limbus/Sortie). Even when Main Healing, I prefer R30 Sakpata's Sword+Sacro Bulwark locked for the tankiness/idle Refresh.

I think you're making things way too complicated. RDM is busy, but you don't need to impose arbitrary rules and gearing standards for every spell/action. That just makes it overwhelming and unfun. It's no wonder you're struggling to figure out RDM, you're overthinking basic mechanics.

You even answered your own problem at the end:

I don't use gearswap, so I have (somewhat) duplicate sets and different macro bars for whether I'm being a backline or expected to melee.

Yes, it is extra maintenance, but you're basically splitting the job in two and can feel useful in either scenario. Being able to switch weapon, sub, ranged and ammo lets you maximise certain things, like landing enfeebles quicker on harder content.

The second you're fighting anything where you can melee, usually this means the enemies aren't that resistant, so you can get away with sets that will always keep your TP.

However, if you ever find yourself in a hybrid situation where you need a mix of both, you could start the fight with your backline sets. Land your enfeebles, bring in the weapons you want to melee with, and then switch to the frontline sets.

I don't play RDM that often. It is probably the least used job I have geared. It takes some time to get used to it again whenever I jump on it. If you find yourself using this job often, you will get used to its versatility quicker.

I appreciate all the feedback. It's sounding like the only time I'd really need to swap is at the start of an event buffing. Regarding Phalanx, I thought that can wear early depending on damage taken.

No

You're probably thinking of Stoneskin. That will wear off if enough damage is done. Blink is like a Ninja's shadows and will wear upon being hit a few times. Aquaveil prevents x amount of spell interruptions until it wears.

Phalanx II is basically Phalanx, but longer, so there's no point using the original. It won't disappear upon being hit a bunch.