BST Subjobs

WHM and NIN; these subjobs should be staples for any endgame BST. Now I know what some of you are thinking: what about BLU, WAR, COR, and RDM? While other subjobs might be useful, I have always ranked a subjob's usefulness based on its capability to heal damage, prevent damage, or deal damage. With this in mind, WHM and NIN are the best of the selection, and here is why:


/WHM (healing and preventing damage)
















What it is used for:
The WHM subjob is used primarily for soloing exp, surviving fatal attacks, and being able to recover HP quickly via MP. Ideally, you want to use /WHM for long term battles or fighting high-tier enemies, such as NMs, where you know you will be swapping pets a lot. In addition, /WHM allows a BST to soak AoE damage via "Stoneskin" and provides BSTs with a cost-free way of traversing areas with agro.

a) Cure I/II/III
These are your healing spells. Generally, I prefer to heal damage after a battle, especially if I plan to use "Cure" with "Divine Seal." If you do need to heal in battle, be forewarned that "Divine Seal" generates a lot of enmity and can cause a troublesome situation if your pet fails to deal enough damage to maintain enmity. As such, you might wish to run away from battle by hitting the asterisk key (*) first, and cure yourself at a safe distance to lessen your enmity. Once this is done, you can freely return to battle with lower enmity.

b) Bar[element]/Bar[status] spells
These spells are nice for preventing annoying effects that your enemy might throw at you, such as "Paralyze" (use "Barblizzara" and/or "Barparalyzra" here), and for fighting enemies that use high-damage AoE moves, such as "Bomb Toss."

c) Sneak/Invisible/Deodorize
I don't use "Deodorize" too much, but the ability to maneuver between deadly monsters for free is one advantage /WHM has over /NIN.

d) Stoneskin/Blink
"Stoneskin" helps counter nasty AoEs your prey might throw at you, and if you are a melee BST, "Blink" provides you with two shadow images that activate now and then. These two spells are fairly useful to have between pet swaps because you never know when "Charm" might fail or when you need to take a few hits yourself.

e) Reraise/Raise
Dying without "Reraise" can be painful if no one happens to be around, and at higher levels, you will be losing several thousand exp to return to your Home Point. "Raise" on the other hand is best for when you are partying with other BSTs or for when you need to go rescue someone yourself.

f) Teleport - Mea/Holla/Dem
For quick access to the Tavnazian Safehold, Sea, and the Promvyions. Alternatively, many areas can be traversed quickly by using one of these spells and then renting a Chocobo from the nearby NPCs.

g) Erase/[Status] - na
We all hate status effects that prevent us from healing, moving, or attacking, so use these spells to negate everything short of petrification.

h) Dia I/II
These spells help both you and your pet deal more damage. However, I tend to avoid these spells to conserve MP.

Battle Strategy:

• Apply "Reraise," "Stoneskin," and "Blink."
• Send your pet to attack your foe.
• Engage your foe, cast Dia I/II.
• Attack your foe until it dies; if it gives you trouble:
• Turn around using the asterisk (*) key, and use "Cure," "Erase," and etc., or...
• Teleport away, or...
• Log out.
• Rinse and repeat.

/NIN (preventing and dealing damage)
















What it is used for:
The NIN subjob is used primarily for party purposes although it can be applied to solo situations where the foe does not spam AoE moves. This subjob is also good for keeping you safe in BCNMs and for when you need to bounce hate with your pet.

a) Utsusemi: Ichi/Ni
Half the reason why you would ever use /NIN. Although you only get three shadow images for using NIN as a subjob, each shadow always absorbs and nullifies a normal hit, and overall, shadows can reduce your downtime completely when used correctly.

b) Dual Wield
There is a two-part bonus to this job trait; the first bonus is that you get to equip a second Axe that can provide additional stats to your character. The second bonus is that you receive a delay reduction for both weapons, but the downside is you will gain slightly less TP per swing.

c) Tonko: Ichi/Ni
Although we have to rely on Sneak Oils for sound-detecting enemies, "Tonko" provides an effect just like "Invisible"; however, the effect remains active for a constant amount of time unlike its WHM counterpart. In addition, this NIN spell does not count as a magic-based spell, so you can use it right next to magic-detecting enemies without fear.

d) Monomi: Ichi (new)
With the March 2008 update, the NIN subjob grants you the ability to use a "Sneak"-like spell that is similar to "Tonko: Ichi" in reliability. Furthermore, the powder required for this spell seems relatively cheap as well.

Battle Strategy:

• Use "Utsusemi: Ichi/Ni" prior to a battle and recast shadows accordingly.
• Send your pet to attack your foe.
• Let your pet build enmity before engaging your foe, or...
• Engage your foe at the same time, bouncing hate between you and your pet.
• Attack your foe until it dies; if it gives you trouble: 
• Log out, or...
• Heal, if possible.
• Rinse and repeat.

Now then, where is my cake, Ari?



Notes:
a) "To spam" refers to repeating an action numerously, although it can also refer to a brand of U.S. luncheon meat.
b) "AoE" stands for "Area of Effect." An AoE ability will affect anything within a given radius of its target.
c) Chocobos are large, yellow, chicken-like birds that players can mount in FFXI. Chocobos can run twice as fast as normal players, so they are a convenient way to get around.