Rajas/Tamas?

[Starcrossed]

I finished CoP last night... for blue mage which ring do you think offers the most?

I've found you can blue mage as either a magical or physical job with nearly equal power in both based on the gear you choose. All the elemental staff switching doesn't leave much time for melee or TP if you go the magical route... but on the other hand, not swinging our A rank sword seems like a waste.

Rajas: +2-5 str, +2-5 dex, +store tp, +subtle blow
Tamas: +2-5 int, +2-5 mnd, +mp, -emnity

Thoughts?

[Spazz]

Re: Rajas/Tamas?

I would go Rajas . . . STR effects your Physical Spells more than anything else. INT and MND is decent but BLU can deal some awesome damage. IMO Rajas ring would be best.

[LadyPeorth]

Re: Rajas/Tamas?

Rajas hands down. The Store TP + Subtle Blow is perfect for Blue Mage, because you will be meleeing a lot. The STR will add some damage and the DEX will add some accuracy as well as some critical hit chance.

[Araius]

Re: Rajas/Tamas?

Rajas ; ; Everyone told me I'd regret getting Tamas for my RDM, and sure enough, soon as BLU comes out I realize I shoulda got Rajas

[Jei]

Re: Rajas/Tamas?

INT MND -enmity = can get from tons other rings. And there's no spell in this game that use both INT and MND at the same time.

STR DEX Store TP all in 1 ring = you'll never get it anywhere else.

I picked up Rajas ring without any second thoughts. And the only job I played at that time was Rdm.

[Suichi]

Re: Rajas/Tamas?

Rajas is incredibly unique, there is no other ring like it at all.


Unless you were someone who knew for sure they'd never level a melee, Rajas should be the pick for EVERY person.

[Icemage]

Re: Rajas/Tamas?

Let me disagree and say that, while Rajas is superior for EXP parties Tamas Ring is going to be your winner in end-game situations.

Chances are, your physical attacks aren't going to be nearly as impressive at end-game (compared to standard melees like Samurai), while your magical abilities like Diamondhide and Healing Breeze could potentially see a lot of use, not to mention the -Enmity will be handy for those times. I foresee BLU/WHM being very powerful as an end-game option, and much more powerful and flexible than BLU/THF will be.

EDIT: And while I like the Rajas Ring, for a dedicated mage, you'd have to peel my Tamas Ring off of my stone cold dead fingers.


Icemage

[TenchiHawkwing]

Re: Rajas/Tamas?

EDIT: And while I like the Rajas Ring, for a dedicated mage, you'd have to peel my Tamas Ring off of my stone cold dead fingers.
Icemage

Honestly you being a dedicated mage is probably the only reason you prefer the Tamas Ring.

Rajas ring can be used from 30-75 on any job that ever hits anything in an EXP PT(Which is over 1/2 the jobs out there), and even endgame you'd want it equipped.

I don't see how anyone could prefer a ring that is marginally better than other rings for XP and shines only in endgame(and even then, only for few jobs) over the Rajas Ring unless they were a dedicated mage(which most people aren't).

[Rodin]

Re: Rajas/Tamas?

I don't see how anyone could prefer a ring that is marginally better than other rings for XP and shines only in endgame(and even then, only for few jobs) over the Rajas Ring unless they were a dedicated mage(which most people aren't).

I don't know if you're at the endgame or not. But the endgame is HUGE. I've probably spent more time fighting gods and camping HNMs, doing triggers, dynamis, limbus, etc. Than I have done XPing. Stuff like Hecatomb and Koenig are crap for XPing, but people still drop millions of gil on the stuff for endgame purposes. Endgame is the reason you're XPing. If the endgame is not a factor, then you'd have no reason to XP.

[TenchiHawkwing]

Re: Rajas/Tamas?

You have, but ask those people out there with Maat's cap if they have as well, I bet they'll say no. Not everyone plays the game this way.
I like leveling alot more than fighting the big boys, it's just more fun to me(I don't level because of endgame, I level because leveling is fun.)

[Icemage]

Re: Rajas/Tamas?

Rajas Ring is only marginally better than a Flame Ring. The Store TP is nice, but honestly, it adds fractions of a TP point per hit depending on the weapon you use (believe me, I thought it was more until I was told quite bluntly by the melees in my HNMLS about how little it affected their TP gain), and the extra DEX marginally increases your chance of a critical hit; I have nothing against it, but it looks a lot prettier on the surface than it actually is in practice, particularly considering the limited roles melees tend to play in a lot of HNM situations.

I still hold that the Tamas Ring is superior for a dedicated mage than a Rajas Ring is for a dedicated melee. It provides more MP than anything except an Ether, Serket, or Vivian Ring, does so without a cost in HP, and no other ring comes close to it in terms of -enmity.

Furthermore, unless something unusual is discovered about the lesser-known level 70+ blue magic spells, I don't see BLUs outperforming melees in the same party slots at end-game, due to their extreme dependence on MP recovery and Sneak Attack to be functional attackers.

Much like RDMs, they appear to be stronger support mages than attackers overall - not that they aren't extremely competent attackers when they're /THF, but since when do melees Sneak Attack most HNMs anyway? Quite a lot of HNMs these days have nasty things they do to people who annoy them out of their immediate visual range (Wyrms, Fafnir/Nidhogg, Cerberus, etc.), or are kited (Vrtra, Kirin, King Behemoth, etc.) so the you end up having more people who can use a Tamas Ring at end-game fights than Rajas Ring.

I concede the point that the Rajas is obviously better for XP grinding, but for blue mages I still think the Tamas Ring is preferable in the long term if you're doing end-game activities.


Icemage

[TenchiHawkwing]

Re: Rajas/Tamas?

I don't disagree with you at all there.

That's not what I was getting at, nevermind, it's no use.

[Jei]

Re: Rajas/Tamas?

The only thing is that, Tamas rings you're using 1 stat at a time regardless of it giving you 2 stats. I'm not sure about BLU but as Rdm, my spells will either use MND, or INT, only 1. So it's very viable to swap 2 rings to archive the same result. The -enmity, VS HNM you'll build up hate eventually so I don't really give it much weight.

I enjoy Rajas ring because there are many things out there that uses both STR and DEX at the same time. Which is impossible to get with any other rings at all. Store TP is just a little touch, not a big factor.

[Armando]

Re: Rajas/Tamas?

Regarding the Store TP: It's a VERY VERY VERY situational thing. It's impossible to say "Rajas Ring will improve your TP gain." It depends on your weapon's Delay, and even the WS you're using. The thing to remember is: the time it takes you to reach 100 TP doesn't decrease gradually. It decreases in steps - you have to raise your TP per hit to a certain level so that you can get 100 TP in one hit less. If you don't get to that level, there'll be no change; once you get to that level, the time required will drop by the time it takes you to perform a swing.

However, Rajas Ring's Store TP is unique. There are very few non-SAM pieces of equipment in the game with Store TP, and all of them only have +1. Rajas Ring is practically the only piece of equipment that'll directly shave off an entire hit on your way to 100 TP, which usually means saving 4-8 seconds; and if it isn't enough to shave off a hit on its own, it's usually close enough for Brutal Earring and/or Chivalrous Chain to finish the job. The faster the weapon, the more likely it is that Store TP +5 will shave off a hit.

Oh, and Subtle Blow is practically totally worthless.

I'm not going to argue for either ring, but I thought I'd throw it out there for the sake of discussion.