Returners class balance
Quick overview of classes, what they can do, and why they're overpowered (or not)
S tier
Chemist
Can do everything. Light armor lets them wear better armor than casters, but they have W-water gems instead of double watera, which is the basis of overpowered red mages. Mid-game they're slightly better, since they can W-comet for some pretty nasty shiz. Obviously they are hella gil dependent. Rifles are the best 2h weapon in the game too. Distribute gives the whole party a huge boost if it uses any sort of in-battle healing. Auto-potion makes them impossible to kill without exhausting their huge supply of items. Endgame they're monsters. Midgame they're beasts. Early game they are highly useful and save the party on tons of gil. As long as the GM isn't a total douche on item availability they are pretty much the best.
Summoner
They range widely from best class to horrible, but even the median of 9-12 summons puts them in god tier. With 12 summons of relative choice they are basically the best class in the game, and even with 9 they are extremely dominant. They can do everything - heal, attack, tank, nuke. They have choices of different attack types and most of their attacks are extremely powerful. They don't require any expensive skills, and the only thing they really need is MP restoration items, status cures, and a decent GM. If they are grandfathered in any way, they are absolutely absurd.
Bard
This class is not right. I didn't think there was a fourth S tier class. I WAS WRONG. Mass party buffs of all good kinds, great group statuses. As you level this class just gets better. AND BETTER. AND BETTER. This class is so overpowered it is sick. On top of that - MAG based weapon damage on a caster class - that doesn't use MP - and has light armor. I will spoil a bit for you - at level 55, they can cut their party's MP costs to 25%. Not by, to. This ability is a normal CT inducing ability, doesn't cost MP, etc etc. Did I mention they get party Agility Up... at level 1?! And party Haste (at the endgame)?
Fighter
The best physical fighter in the game, he can do really absurd things no one else can. With Rifles (!) and Quick Hit he can get EI without haste. YEAH I KNOW. Yes, Rifles does take up quite a few advantage points but it is one of the most powerful fighter advantage selections, lol. Self Power Up and Agility Up at level 15? Even without rifles and fast ammo, EI is a distant possibility without haste using quick hit and Power Up ensures that he's gonna be doing lots of damage no matter what he does. The special attacks like double cut and slash-all are really secondary to just spamming Quick Hit and Mighty Strike with a rifle and ammo of choice. The real kicker here is the support abilities too with First Strike to get an early shot in, Bonecrusher to counter, and Final Attack to never die (use a phoenix down) or deliver a nasty parting shot (like a double cut - with shotgun ammo). Obviously fighters top that off with loads of HP and heavy armor. GG baby.
A tier
Samurai
You're gonna get bored of me saying this. Samurai is pretty awesome, one of the best fighters. Ha! Heavy armor and katanas. One of the best candidates for dual wielding to make the most of the special Katana skills. There are several different Samurai builds, ranging from physical attacker to draw-outer with a fair number of intermediate builds. As early as level 1 the Samurai can bring 2 DS to a group. Wow. The penalty for drawing out is not so bad, as even a self-curse allows the Samurai to go at it with single or dual katanas. Their early skills also carry a wide array of status effects. It gets better and better as the Samurai progresses, bestowing beneficial conditions and even party healing. The non-drawout action abilities range from decent to meh, although the ability to force-curse yourself in order to act with no CT is incredibly good (if late game). Obviously getting Level added to evasion is good, although wearing a shield is pretty much a no-no in the Samurai code, so maybe they need it. Lastly, if you build for high HP they've got an ability for you - Meatbone Slash lets you counter for your max HP (yeah, most likely capped) anytime you're hit physically. Nice.
Monk
Where to begin? They've got dual wielding as a class skill - sort of. They can't do dual status effects like a real dual wielder but they can at least pick a nice nasty status effect to tear people up with. They also are restricted to d8 weapons which kind of bites. They have lots of HP, but only light armor, still decent overall. Their huge HP and VIT maximum let Spiraller work as a very powerful party heal if you have a backup healer like a mage or chemist. They get meteor strike, a confuse skill - and multiple party mag-based damage skills. The necessity of MAG makes building a monk pretty tricky but even if you forego the uber Earth Slash you can still get by with double-punching and Spiraller hax healing. As a final note, Bum Rush gives them a cap-breaking attack. Very leet, but with brawler and EI it may be not needed.
Mediator
Man, I underestimate this class constantly. It's one of the best. First off, it has Rifles, which is nice, but as we'll see, attacking is low on Mediator's priority list. Tame allows the Mediator to grab a couple free one-off attacks, which is nice too, but unless the Mediator really needs the power it's better to give up his time to others. By that, I mean Entrust. A party member who has already acted will be gifted with a second turn in favor of the Mediator's before EI ever comes about. Need faster healing? Need another dose of big damage? Need some doubled potions? If they are in his party, the Mediator can give them a faster or extra turn - a tremendous advantage in a fight. He also comes with Charm in his pocket (for no MP) and free Critical Up. Invite gives him an extra party member in the form of a monster who fights alongside him! Yes, really! To round it all out, the Mediator's ultimate skill lets him give up to four allies an attack on an enemy of their choice - for no CT. Overpowered much?
Dark Knight
I had to debate on a lot of things about this class - about the relative value of Darkside, about the value of burning MP versus CT, and many other things. The DK is pretty much the cream of the crop of adepts. Decent group damage is backed by statuses and it all is fueled by the DK's MP total - and the DK has Dark Sword to refill it mid-game. Even Darkside, with its' HP defecit, is not really a problem when Night Sword is in the house. The result is that you have a fast, explosive damage dealer unloading big nasty damage numbers every turn. The DK can wear heavy armor and pack heavy d12 greatswords too. The statline (not enough STR) is not so stellar but it is reasonable. Early game the DK will need support, but that need soon melts away along with the DK's enemies.
Engineer
Determining the tier of this class involves raw numbers. A lot of them. Engineer is clearly better than a lot of other classes in raw potential - the ability to deal fairly high scale Group damage at early levels and that potential doesn't ever go away - Engineers continue to scale up in group damage as their level and part availability increases. Group damage isn't the only thing they carry - a variety of status effects of every shape and size in both positive and negative flavors are at their disposal. There are 2 major downsides to the Engie. The first is that they can only carry one tool of each tier, which limits what they can do at any one time. This is a fairly big issue for Engies but most will develop the tool set that works 'best' for them. The second is that in order to keep dealing comparable damage, they have to take worse and worse defects to do so - paying 10+ CT for their high DS group attacks. In stark contrast is attacks like Cherry Blossom that continue to be fast and deal good group damage with just a weapon upgrade.
Red Mage
One of the better mages. Considering that they are B tier, this should tell one what I think of mages, haha. Red Mages are really the cream of the crop of mages. They are one of the few classes really balanced by their statline, and by that I mean it is unusually good for mages. Good STR and better than normal VIT make red mages not totally horrible, and being able to wear any armor type (!) helps out a ton. Add swords to the mix and you've got yourself the workings of a decent class. Their magic is really the most essential stuff - Hastega, Osmose, healing, and group damage are all available. A lot of the really leet tools of the other mages aren't, but practicality is the name of the game and Red Mages are all about being practical. Doublecast comes at a CT6 price in addition to the MP cost, but for double Waterga (21 DS each) it's a choice price.
White Caller
Odd that the mages are balanced together, but it is worth noting that I think Red Mage is much stronger than White Caller or Dragoon. But White Caller is very strong. He has bad gears and statline but makes up for it with virtually all good support skills, other than Haste. Reraise, even. So instead of the highest tier White magic, you gain Calls, the best nukes in the game. I dunno - I don't think it's a good enough tradeoff. I'm lying. Heh. Still, Red Mage carries a lot of power + the ability to refill his MP bar by himself. And doublecast. I think I need to emphasize that point.
Dragoon
Heavy armor, big HP, spears and swords. Spears are goooood. Custom spears are even better. At level 8 they get a 75% group attack, very nice. Wrecking dragons for free is nice, and party Regen is really nice. The real thing that makes Dragoons A tier is White Draw (and Reis' Wind) - White Draw gives MP to the team for free, even if it is CT 14. Dragon Breath is also decent although EI double swings will probably be more common at that level, it's always nice to get a free cap damage attack in tough fights and it saves on caster MP having to haste the dragoon. Dragoon brings a lot of unique talents to the table and can use powerful d12 spears - meaning they'll never have to fight over gear (although they'll probably have to fight over craft points). All the jump abilities pretty much suck. With EI so common and heavy armor, you are sort of wasting your turn not hitting things. It is worth noting that power jump is pretty much inferior to cherry blossom spam, lol.
B Tier
Mime
The power of Mime is directly proportionate to the power of the entire party's action abilities. If backed up by a Mediator, Engineer, or one of the various top tier fighter jobs, Mime is quite powerful. The issue lies with weapon selection (of which Bow/Xbow are the best, boo) and a high reliance on many different stats in order to be useful. The next issue lies with the lack of mirroring Reaction and Support Abilities that make most classes the overpowered twinks that they are. Without these, Mime is really sort of second-class. If the team really works to make the Mime powerful by getting classes that make it powerful, with a good mix of mages, strong action abilities, and other valuable resources, the Mime can be an A tier class. The fact that an optimized party can only make the Mime really qualify for A tier is kind of sad, considering how dependent it is on party composition. Compared to a Mediator (who can shoot to S tier with the right party) or other team-reliant classes (Bard, Chemist), Mime feels sort of lackluster. Even still, they are very solid due to command/job mirroring and general stupidity that mirroring commands generates. Mime is very much a 'long haul' class and really doesn't come into its own until Memory Mimic at level 25 - keep that in mind before you roll one.
White Mage
I asked myself upon looking at White Magic, if white mages had any sort of flaw. Certainly they required MP to sustain themselves, and their statline is kind of suck (especially compared to big brother Red Mage). But White Mage is really without flaw, in terms of utility. The only lacking is Haste, keeping White Mage from rivalling the power of Red Mage, but White Mage has many other tools like Reraise, elemental weaknesses, and many more beneficial things. White Mage can even deal damage which is the cause of much dilemma for game balancers. It is almost as though the only reason Black Mage even exists is to have Osmose, but Red Mage has that and can deal more damage, so I am confused. White Mage can nuke very hard, like Black Mage. It is a very odd state of affairs (yes, BM does deal lots more nukage than WM, but this difference is only noted late game).
Archer
A rifle with fast ammo isn't required, but since we're doing single hit damage, rifles are recommended. Where to start? Take Aim gives +30% COS to status effect ammo, which is pretty much overpowered and a good reason to use non-rifle weapons. Crossbows have some really awesome status effects in the 60% availability range, making Take Aim a great skill. Charge is mediocre at later levels but fairly good early on - it's dispatch, which is alright. Arm Aim is brutal for inflicting Disable with a high chance but single target with 8 CT and no damage make it so-so. It's still alright too. Tableturner is great for GMs who make BS armor ratings on mobs, but the CT is kind of high so it's more of a limited use skill. Barrage is pretty nasty because it allows you to use ammo, but really Fighters can do this with slash-all too. Still it's good. Triple Foul's CT is high, but anything that does Disable and Confuse and Silence has to be good! Lastly Unlimited Shot, which usually pays for itself pretty well despite a CT of 20 but it's gambly. Still very good. Overall not as good as Fighter but strong nonetheless.
Thief
The tiering on this class is hard, and highly subjective. The bottom line - it is totally based on the GM's willingness to give mobs good items, and present stealing opportunities to the thief. GMs can make a lot of different things in the campaign go the Thief's way without really realizing it. This tiering assumes that the GM is slightly douchier than me about giving away phat lewtz. The thief is a source of gil for other characters, plain and simple. While gil is an 'assumed' resource, it really boils down to the fact that it's gotta come from somewhere. The Thief is that somewhere. He can walk away with lewtz that the other characters might only see in a tiny chance with regularity - and good parties will disable foes and let the Thief have his way with them. But really if that was all there was to the Thief, he would be C tier except in the most Monty Haul of campaigns. Instead, he's got badass stuff like Distract (unaware on a stick!) and answers to all types of physical damage (both melee and ranged, via Catch and Counter Steal). Steal Heart gives him a Charm effect (CT 14) which is totally bad ass, and Mug lets him Steal while he's busting out some okay damage. What's the real reason they're good? Footwork gives the Thief a massive +20 Initiative! Endgame Thief will be swinging 3 times a round - probably dual wielding, given their propensity for high AGI. Individually these advantages would really tier the Thief around C. He's got solid game due to the combination of factors, though.
Time Mage
Even if they were rated high, would someone actually roll one? Really, time mages are quite cool, because they have teleporting, flying, and other very cool and fun effects. But... unfortunately cool and fun does not equal strong and the Time Mage is pretty much entirely eclipsed by the Bard in support and status effects. This is very sad of course, but the good news comes in the form of Hastega, which is very very good and available quite early in the game. Haste is also available early too. But the same can be said of Red Mage who can do all of these things, Osmose his MP and deal good damage too. Time Mage cannot really do good damage, which is sad. The party utility of Time Mage is hard to quantify, but it is hardly broken. It could be uncomfortable for some GMs to have one in the party. It would be good to have a Time Mage in the party for such situations. Unfortunately, being a Time Mage really is about being a Haste and Quicken bot.
Paladin
Like White Mage, Paladin is a powerful healer and damage dealer. He can tank, too. He can use Sentinel and Cover to guard his party from physical damage and of course, he can heal too. With no way to restore MP, the Paladin is team or item reliant, which sucks. His damage is also highly dependant on his MP total. It is absolutely essential that a Paladin be geared to tank, as it is their prime job. If properly equipped, a Paladin is quire solid and will keep squishy teammates from harm. Really good damage, good healing, and good VIT for an adept (although d10 for HP, unlike warriors).
Black Caller
Calls are powerful, especially Sylph (even though she was slightly rebalanced). That being said, Black Magic and Calls make for strange bedfellows, since both are pretty offensive in nature. This leads to an overall lack of synergy between the two. However, I must make one point very clear - CALLS ARE POWERFUL. MP costs notwithstanding, Calls are some of the best burst magic damage in the game. If the GM gives the Caller spells like Sylph to cover the Black Mage's natural weaknesses, Black Caller is pretty solid. Also, it's worth noting that unlike the White Caller, the Black Caller gets Osmose to back up the high MP costs of Calling.
C Tier
Gambler
Oh how the mighty have fallen. Element Reels used to allow the Gambler to make Group dual wielding attacks, but no more. Now Gamblers are stuck single wielding their weapon of choice - and their weapon choices are pretty bad.The good news is that Element Reels gives a nice Group option for some gil, and retains weapon effects (!) other than element strike. Still really good, especially late game. Gambler also gets some great free dice skills, although Phantom Dice is only available in the late game. Combined with a Scanning teammate, the Gambler can ensure a Bribe gets a fine Very Rare item as well as reducing the amount of cash the Gambler would need to throw down. The Reels skills are as a whole pretty interesting, but dangerous oftentimes. The problem with many of the Reels skills is a dependence on MAG to determine damage, which is not a prime stat for most classes. Gambler is interesting and very cool - at high levels the high Group damage + status effects are quite powerful, especially when hasted.
Black Mage
The not team playing mage goes here. Instant, high damage spike is the nature of all mages, but most of all the Black Mage who can empty an MP bar faster than anyone else. Callers and Summoners have charge time, but not the Black Mage - he'll burst through mana like it was lemonade on a summer day. Fortunately, Osmose is available for qualified buyers. Without GM reliance on high value Calls, the Black Mage is free to do as he pleases. Unfortunately, the Black Magic available is often pretty poor in single target damage compared to dual wielding d10 sword slashers and his group damage is honestly comparable to high tier Engineers and other characters capable of avoiding Charge Time in creative ways. Also, classes with attacks like Element Reels, Fated Circle and Cherry Blossom can deal more sustained Group damage (15+DS per turn, every turn, with only very mild CT), although the Black Mage, with a good supply of mana potions and Osmose, can really keep pace.
Magic Knight
Originally I thought this class was the worst. Considering that, Magic Knight has taken quite a few steps up. The ability to select from a fairly good variety of statuses is what makes this class in the early game. That is pretty much better than the other fighters, which often carry only mediocre damage to the table (unfortunately, Archers and Take Aim are still better). Higher levels get better and better, offering more and more good statuses, many of which are very crippling. Unfortunately, there is no level 8 Disable Strike which keeps this class out of the truly good classes. Osmose Strike comes in ASAP at level 22 to give the MK some much-needed self-sustenance, and without it this class would be slumming in bottom tier. Finally in the ultimate section, Ultima Strike gives 250MP for 200% damage to group, ignoring ARM and the damage cap - that's 30-40 DS for 250 MP, which is pretty bad - but here's the kicker - it can crit. It gets better if Ultima Weapon, Signature Weapon, and/or Critical+ abilities are involved. 40 crittable DS (yeah, that's 2000+ damage) is a lot of damage, period.
Ninja
If you asked me a year or more ago if I'd be tiering Magic Knight above NInja now, I'd have called you crazy. I was wrong! I admit it now. Ninja has some good stuff, mostly in the way of Reaction Abilities like Sunken State and cool stuff like inherent dual wielding. MK does a lot of things better, most of all damage in single hit varieties. Ninja is a fair bit better early on but as time passes the dual wielding becomes more of a novelty in favor of big magical sword swings with d12 meat cleavers. Katon is Ninja's best magic tool, but the MK gets Confuse Strike at the same level (and you will pick Confuse Strike). So... what's the Ninja have over MK? Elan for group magic (CT10, boo), some fun stuff like Image and Vanish, and of course, throwing and dual wielding. Is this better than Flare Strike? Is it better than a wide range of cool statuses, big damage and better gear? Probably not...
Blue Mage
Unlike other mages who have guaranteed spells, Blue Mage is reliant on the GM. But good GMs (not just stingy ones) will be careful to restrict the Blue Mage from things that are too powerful. It is really a balancing thing but Blue Mage has a poor statline overall as well, sacrificing MAG and SPR for STR (boo) and VIT (yay). The higher STR means that a Blue Mage is going to have to tough it out with their weapon but... the good news is that they can wear all armor types and have swords and crossbows available. In the endgame, Blue Mages are probably better - early and midgame they are likely to be outshined by other characters and even in the best of endgame scenarios, Blue Mages are not top tier.
Sage
Look up - waaay up, at A tier, where the Red Mage sits. Look at his lofty platform! He is gifted with a good statline, a very powerful action ability, and all the useful spells. He has access to all the armor in the game, and can wield swords and other good melee weapons. See Red Mage? He is powerful. Sage, you are not. Sage is versatile instead. Sage can select many different spells, and since he is using Red Magic he has selections of many different shapes and sizes. He can even pick powerful high level destructive magic to rival Black Mage or valuable curative magic to rival White Mage. But Sage's horrible statline hampers his growth - where others will see 25-28 MAG, Sage will only see 20-23. His other stats are low too - unlike Red Mage he has not evolved from only +5 VIT. Is that so bad? Maybe not, but Sage is hardly a titan in a world where Red Mage exists. Sage, however, gains access to everything Red Mage does - and then some- only it will be cast less often and with less potency. Would Sage be best for a team? No, but he is still quite useful, I think.
Rune Knight
Total magic lockdown. RKs do it. If the opponent uses Magic, the RK shuts it down, and hard. Unfortunately, the RK can also mess up his teammates' spells, so caution may be required. The RK has a variety of ways to ruin spellcasters, mostly from wrecking their MP, but the powerful Runic to absorb enemy magic harmlessly is pretty darn useful. If the RK fights a spellcaster he's pretty much set, but enemies without MP will really just laugh it off.
Geomancer
One of the bad things about putting things in C tier is that people assume they are bad. Geomancer is one of those classes that is secretly awesome, but has a lot of problems. It has good damage for free but it is really fricking random (not Dancer random, but still random) and often dependent on where you are fighting. Trancing is an option but hard to pull off. This class is overall good but the randomness keeps it from pushing up into the higher tiers. Even though higher tier classes like Samurai have some random, their effects always resolve the way they want them to - even if detrimental things happen afterward. And really, if Samurai were not random, they would be fricking absurd, haha.
Sword Master
The early skills are always the most class-defining. For Swordmaster, it's Delay Attack. This move is a terror to any big enemy with a slow attack - good Swordmasters should delay (ha!) their attacks in order to cancel enemies with known Charge Times. Provoke is big and bad, forcing an opponent to attack the Sword Master. The rest of the entire set is meh. Really. Level 15 Fated Circle is alright, but Dragoons get Cherry Blossom at level 8 which is the same thing. The Strikeback skill has a lot of restrictions but a flat 30% to dodge melee in addition to EVA should not be overlooked. Yes, I realize Cross Slash inflicts Disable. It is alright, if a bit late to the party - like everything else this class does. Delay Attack, Provoke, and Strikeback make for an overall good class though with good HP, armor, and good weapon choices.
Knight
Heavy armor, greatswords or swords. Lots of HP. Noticing a pattern here? Armor/Mental break at level 8. WTF. These abilities are pretty busted, especially considering they are fast actions. Armor break at level 8? Really? These skills trivialize hard fights unless the GM is a dick that makes all his foes I: Weak. You can even pick the damage type most suited to your party. Everything else is pretty downhill until Stock Break in the end game. Still having the ability to completely ruin damage resistances make them well-suited to a good party. I: Weak screws them - good GMs will use it very sparingly as it is all the Knight has.
D Tier
Dancer
How can I say this and be nice? They have a lot of interesting skills, and they aren't horrible - in fact, a lot of their abilities are downright dirty for the level you get them. Unfortunately, the dances are totally random - and that's not so good for strategy. There are a few quality dances, but nothing that breaks the game. Unfortunate, really. The upside is that Dances are fast actions, making Dancers decent Haste targets - except half the time, the dances do really trashy things. Flirt is kind of nice except that it doesn't really do anything except making it more likely that other characters get hit. It's alright in certain party compositions (chemists) but most of the time you really want to have damage spread around, and excluding the Dancer generally doesn't help.
Fencer
Virtually nothing good to say about them. They're light armor fighters. They use AGI and their damage isn't weapon dependent, which is kind of good. Reflex is alright, but none of their abilities stand out. They're okay, but there are much better classes.
S tier
Chemist
Can do everything. Light armor lets them wear better armor than casters, but they have W-water gems instead of double watera, which is the basis of overpowered red mages. Mid-game they're slightly better, since they can W-comet for some pretty nasty shiz. Obviously they are hella gil dependent. Rifles are the best 2h weapon in the game too. Distribute gives the whole party a huge boost if it uses any sort of in-battle healing. Auto-potion makes them impossible to kill without exhausting their huge supply of items. Endgame they're monsters. Midgame they're beasts. Early game they are highly useful and save the party on tons of gil. As long as the GM isn't a total douche on item availability they are pretty much the best.
Summoner
They range widely from best class to horrible, but even the median of 9-12 summons puts them in god tier. With 12 summons of relative choice they are basically the best class in the game, and even with 9 they are extremely dominant. They can do everything - heal, attack, tank, nuke. They have choices of different attack types and most of their attacks are extremely powerful. They don't require any expensive skills, and the only thing they really need is MP restoration items, status cures, and a decent GM. If they are grandfathered in any way, they are absolutely absurd.
Bard
This class is not right. I didn't think there was a fourth S tier class. I WAS WRONG. Mass party buffs of all good kinds, great group statuses. As you level this class just gets better. AND BETTER. AND BETTER. This class is so overpowered it is sick. On top of that - MAG based weapon damage on a caster class - that doesn't use MP - and has light armor. I will spoil a bit for you - at level 55, they can cut their party's MP costs to 25%. Not by, to. This ability is a normal CT inducing ability, doesn't cost MP, etc etc. Did I mention they get party Agility Up... at level 1?! And party Haste (at the endgame)?
Fighter
The best physical fighter in the game, he can do really absurd things no one else can. With Rifles (!) and Quick Hit he can get EI without haste. YEAH I KNOW. Yes, Rifles does take up quite a few advantage points but it is one of the most powerful fighter advantage selections, lol. Self Power Up and Agility Up at level 15? Even without rifles and fast ammo, EI is a distant possibility without haste using quick hit and Power Up ensures that he's gonna be doing lots of damage no matter what he does. The special attacks like double cut and slash-all are really secondary to just spamming Quick Hit and Mighty Strike with a rifle and ammo of choice. The real kicker here is the support abilities too with First Strike to get an early shot in, Bonecrusher to counter, and Final Attack to never die (use a phoenix down) or deliver a nasty parting shot (like a double cut - with shotgun ammo). Obviously fighters top that off with loads of HP and heavy armor. GG baby.
A tier
Samurai
You're gonna get bored of me saying this. Samurai is pretty awesome, one of the best fighters. Ha! Heavy armor and katanas. One of the best candidates for dual wielding to make the most of the special Katana skills. There are several different Samurai builds, ranging from physical attacker to draw-outer with a fair number of intermediate builds. As early as level 1 the Samurai can bring 2 DS to a group. Wow. The penalty for drawing out is not so bad, as even a self-curse allows the Samurai to go at it with single or dual katanas. Their early skills also carry a wide array of status effects. It gets better and better as the Samurai progresses, bestowing beneficial conditions and even party healing. The non-drawout action abilities range from decent to meh, although the ability to force-curse yourself in order to act with no CT is incredibly good (if late game). Obviously getting Level added to evasion is good, although wearing a shield is pretty much a no-no in the Samurai code, so maybe they need it. Lastly, if you build for high HP they've got an ability for you - Meatbone Slash lets you counter for your max HP (yeah, most likely capped) anytime you're hit physically. Nice.
Monk
Where to begin? They've got dual wielding as a class skill - sort of. They can't do dual status effects like a real dual wielder but they can at least pick a nice nasty status effect to tear people up with. They also are restricted to d8 weapons which kind of bites. They have lots of HP, but only light armor, still decent overall. Their huge HP and VIT maximum let Spiraller work as a very powerful party heal if you have a backup healer like a mage or chemist. They get meteor strike, a confuse skill - and multiple party mag-based damage skills. The necessity of MAG makes building a monk pretty tricky but even if you forego the uber Earth Slash you can still get by with double-punching and Spiraller hax healing. As a final note, Bum Rush gives them a cap-breaking attack. Very leet, but with brawler and EI it may be not needed.
Mediator
Man, I underestimate this class constantly. It's one of the best. First off, it has Rifles, which is nice, but as we'll see, attacking is low on Mediator's priority list. Tame allows the Mediator to grab a couple free one-off attacks, which is nice too, but unless the Mediator really needs the power it's better to give up his time to others. By that, I mean Entrust. A party member who has already acted will be gifted with a second turn in favor of the Mediator's before EI ever comes about. Need faster healing? Need another dose of big damage? Need some doubled potions? If they are in his party, the Mediator can give them a faster or extra turn - a tremendous advantage in a fight. He also comes with Charm in his pocket (for no MP) and free Critical Up. Invite gives him an extra party member in the form of a monster who fights alongside him! Yes, really! To round it all out, the Mediator's ultimate skill lets him give up to four allies an attack on an enemy of their choice - for no CT. Overpowered much?
Dark Knight
I had to debate on a lot of things about this class - about the relative value of Darkside, about the value of burning MP versus CT, and many other things. The DK is pretty much the cream of the crop of adepts. Decent group damage is backed by statuses and it all is fueled by the DK's MP total - and the DK has Dark Sword to refill it mid-game. Even Darkside, with its' HP defecit, is not really a problem when Night Sword is in the house. The result is that you have a fast, explosive damage dealer unloading big nasty damage numbers every turn. The DK can wear heavy armor and pack heavy d12 greatswords too. The statline (not enough STR) is not so stellar but it is reasonable. Early game the DK will need support, but that need soon melts away along with the DK's enemies.
Engineer
Determining the tier of this class involves raw numbers. A lot of them. Engineer is clearly better than a lot of other classes in raw potential - the ability to deal fairly high scale Group damage at early levels and that potential doesn't ever go away - Engineers continue to scale up in group damage as their level and part availability increases. Group damage isn't the only thing they carry - a variety of status effects of every shape and size in both positive and negative flavors are at their disposal. There are 2 major downsides to the Engie. The first is that they can only carry one tool of each tier, which limits what they can do at any one time. This is a fairly big issue for Engies but most will develop the tool set that works 'best' for them. The second is that in order to keep dealing comparable damage, they have to take worse and worse defects to do so - paying 10+ CT for their high DS group attacks. In stark contrast is attacks like Cherry Blossom that continue to be fast and deal good group damage with just a weapon upgrade.
Red Mage
One of the better mages. Considering that they are B tier, this should tell one what I think of mages, haha. Red Mages are really the cream of the crop of mages. They are one of the few classes really balanced by their statline, and by that I mean it is unusually good for mages. Good STR and better than normal VIT make red mages not totally horrible, and being able to wear any armor type (!) helps out a ton. Add swords to the mix and you've got yourself the workings of a decent class. Their magic is really the most essential stuff - Hastega, Osmose, healing, and group damage are all available. A lot of the really leet tools of the other mages aren't, but practicality is the name of the game and Red Mages are all about being practical. Doublecast comes at a CT6 price in addition to the MP cost, but for double Waterga (21 DS each) it's a choice price.
White Caller
Odd that the mages are balanced together, but it is worth noting that I think Red Mage is much stronger than White Caller or Dragoon. But White Caller is very strong. He has bad gears and statline but makes up for it with virtually all good support skills, other than Haste. Reraise, even. So instead of the highest tier White magic, you gain Calls, the best nukes in the game. I dunno - I don't think it's a good enough tradeoff. I'm lying. Heh. Still, Red Mage carries a lot of power + the ability to refill his MP bar by himself. And doublecast. I think I need to emphasize that point.
Dragoon
Heavy armor, big HP, spears and swords. Spears are goooood. Custom spears are even better. At level 8 they get a 75% group attack, very nice. Wrecking dragons for free is nice, and party Regen is really nice. The real thing that makes Dragoons A tier is White Draw (and Reis' Wind) - White Draw gives MP to the team for free, even if it is CT 14. Dragon Breath is also decent although EI double swings will probably be more common at that level, it's always nice to get a free cap damage attack in tough fights and it saves on caster MP having to haste the dragoon. Dragoon brings a lot of unique talents to the table and can use powerful d12 spears - meaning they'll never have to fight over gear (although they'll probably have to fight over craft points). All the jump abilities pretty much suck. With EI so common and heavy armor, you are sort of wasting your turn not hitting things. It is worth noting that power jump is pretty much inferior to cherry blossom spam, lol.
B Tier
Mime
The power of Mime is directly proportionate to the power of the entire party's action abilities. If backed up by a Mediator, Engineer, or one of the various top tier fighter jobs, Mime is quite powerful. The issue lies with weapon selection (of which Bow/Xbow are the best, boo) and a high reliance on many different stats in order to be useful. The next issue lies with the lack of mirroring Reaction and Support Abilities that make most classes the overpowered twinks that they are. Without these, Mime is really sort of second-class. If the team really works to make the Mime powerful by getting classes that make it powerful, with a good mix of mages, strong action abilities, and other valuable resources, the Mime can be an A tier class. The fact that an optimized party can only make the Mime really qualify for A tier is kind of sad, considering how dependent it is on party composition. Compared to a Mediator (who can shoot to S tier with the right party) or other team-reliant classes (Bard, Chemist), Mime feels sort of lackluster. Even still, they are very solid due to command/job mirroring and general stupidity that mirroring commands generates. Mime is very much a 'long haul' class and really doesn't come into its own until Memory Mimic at level 25 - keep that in mind before you roll one.
White Mage
I asked myself upon looking at White Magic, if white mages had any sort of flaw. Certainly they required MP to sustain themselves, and their statline is kind of suck (especially compared to big brother Red Mage). But White Mage is really without flaw, in terms of utility. The only lacking is Haste, keeping White Mage from rivalling the power of Red Mage, but White Mage has many other tools like Reraise, elemental weaknesses, and many more beneficial things. White Mage can even deal damage which is the cause of much dilemma for game balancers. It is almost as though the only reason Black Mage even exists is to have Osmose, but Red Mage has that and can deal more damage, so I am confused. White Mage can nuke very hard, like Black Mage. It is a very odd state of affairs (yes, BM does deal lots more nukage than WM, but this difference is only noted late game).
Archer
A rifle with fast ammo isn't required, but since we're doing single hit damage, rifles are recommended. Where to start? Take Aim gives +30% COS to status effect ammo, which is pretty much overpowered and a good reason to use non-rifle weapons. Crossbows have some really awesome status effects in the 60% availability range, making Take Aim a great skill. Charge is mediocre at later levels but fairly good early on - it's dispatch, which is alright. Arm Aim is brutal for inflicting Disable with a high chance but single target with 8 CT and no damage make it so-so. It's still alright too. Tableturner is great for GMs who make BS armor ratings on mobs, but the CT is kind of high so it's more of a limited use skill. Barrage is pretty nasty because it allows you to use ammo, but really Fighters can do this with slash-all too. Still it's good. Triple Foul's CT is high, but anything that does Disable and Confuse and Silence has to be good! Lastly Unlimited Shot, which usually pays for itself pretty well despite a CT of 20 but it's gambly. Still very good. Overall not as good as Fighter but strong nonetheless.
Thief
The tiering on this class is hard, and highly subjective. The bottom line - it is totally based on the GM's willingness to give mobs good items, and present stealing opportunities to the thief. GMs can make a lot of different things in the campaign go the Thief's way without really realizing it. This tiering assumes that the GM is slightly douchier than me about giving away phat lewtz. The thief is a source of gil for other characters, plain and simple. While gil is an 'assumed' resource, it really boils down to the fact that it's gotta come from somewhere. The Thief is that somewhere. He can walk away with lewtz that the other characters might only see in a tiny chance with regularity - and good parties will disable foes and let the Thief have his way with them. But really if that was all there was to the Thief, he would be C tier except in the most Monty Haul of campaigns. Instead, he's got badass stuff like Distract (unaware on a stick!) and answers to all types of physical damage (both melee and ranged, via Catch and Counter Steal). Steal Heart gives him a Charm effect (CT 14) which is totally bad ass, and Mug lets him Steal while he's busting out some okay damage. What's the real reason they're good? Footwork gives the Thief a massive +20 Initiative! Endgame Thief will be swinging 3 times a round - probably dual wielding, given their propensity for high AGI. Individually these advantages would really tier the Thief around C. He's got solid game due to the combination of factors, though.
Time Mage
Even if they were rated high, would someone actually roll one? Really, time mages are quite cool, because they have teleporting, flying, and other very cool and fun effects. But... unfortunately cool and fun does not equal strong and the Time Mage is pretty much entirely eclipsed by the Bard in support and status effects. This is very sad of course, but the good news comes in the form of Hastega, which is very very good and available quite early in the game. Haste is also available early too. But the same can be said of Red Mage who can do all of these things, Osmose his MP and deal good damage too. Time Mage cannot really do good damage, which is sad. The party utility of Time Mage is hard to quantify, but it is hardly broken. It could be uncomfortable for some GMs to have one in the party. It would be good to have a Time Mage in the party for such situations. Unfortunately, being a Time Mage really is about being a Haste and Quicken bot.
Paladin
Like White Mage, Paladin is a powerful healer and damage dealer. He can tank, too. He can use Sentinel and Cover to guard his party from physical damage and of course, he can heal too. With no way to restore MP, the Paladin is team or item reliant, which sucks. His damage is also highly dependant on his MP total. It is absolutely essential that a Paladin be geared to tank, as it is their prime job. If properly equipped, a Paladin is quire solid and will keep squishy teammates from harm. Really good damage, good healing, and good VIT for an adept (although d10 for HP, unlike warriors).
Black Caller
Calls are powerful, especially Sylph (even though she was slightly rebalanced). That being said, Black Magic and Calls make for strange bedfellows, since both are pretty offensive in nature. This leads to an overall lack of synergy between the two. However, I must make one point very clear - CALLS ARE POWERFUL. MP costs notwithstanding, Calls are some of the best burst magic damage in the game. If the GM gives the Caller spells like Sylph to cover the Black Mage's natural weaknesses, Black Caller is pretty solid. Also, it's worth noting that unlike the White Caller, the Black Caller gets Osmose to back up the high MP costs of Calling.
C Tier
Gambler
Oh how the mighty have fallen. Element Reels used to allow the Gambler to make Group dual wielding attacks, but no more. Now Gamblers are stuck single wielding their weapon of choice - and their weapon choices are pretty bad.The good news is that Element Reels gives a nice Group option for some gil, and retains weapon effects (!) other than element strike. Still really good, especially late game. Gambler also gets some great free dice skills, although Phantom Dice is only available in the late game. Combined with a Scanning teammate, the Gambler can ensure a Bribe gets a fine Very Rare item as well as reducing the amount of cash the Gambler would need to throw down. The Reels skills are as a whole pretty interesting, but dangerous oftentimes. The problem with many of the Reels skills is a dependence on MAG to determine damage, which is not a prime stat for most classes. Gambler is interesting and very cool - at high levels the high Group damage + status effects are quite powerful, especially when hasted.
Black Mage
The not team playing mage goes here. Instant, high damage spike is the nature of all mages, but most of all the Black Mage who can empty an MP bar faster than anyone else. Callers and Summoners have charge time, but not the Black Mage - he'll burst through mana like it was lemonade on a summer day. Fortunately, Osmose is available for qualified buyers. Without GM reliance on high value Calls, the Black Mage is free to do as he pleases. Unfortunately, the Black Magic available is often pretty poor in single target damage compared to dual wielding d10 sword slashers and his group damage is honestly comparable to high tier Engineers and other characters capable of avoiding Charge Time in creative ways. Also, classes with attacks like Element Reels, Fated Circle and Cherry Blossom can deal more sustained Group damage (15+DS per turn, every turn, with only very mild CT), although the Black Mage, with a good supply of mana potions and Osmose, can really keep pace.
Magic Knight
Originally I thought this class was the worst. Considering that, Magic Knight has taken quite a few steps up. The ability to select from a fairly good variety of statuses is what makes this class in the early game. That is pretty much better than the other fighters, which often carry only mediocre damage to the table (unfortunately, Archers and Take Aim are still better). Higher levels get better and better, offering more and more good statuses, many of which are very crippling. Unfortunately, there is no level 8 Disable Strike which keeps this class out of the truly good classes. Osmose Strike comes in ASAP at level 22 to give the MK some much-needed self-sustenance, and without it this class would be slumming in bottom tier. Finally in the ultimate section, Ultima Strike gives 250MP for 200% damage to group, ignoring ARM and the damage cap - that's 30-40 DS for 250 MP, which is pretty bad - but here's the kicker - it can crit. It gets better if Ultima Weapon, Signature Weapon, and/or Critical+ abilities are involved. 40 crittable DS (yeah, that's 2000+ damage) is a lot of damage, period.
Ninja
If you asked me a year or more ago if I'd be tiering Magic Knight above NInja now, I'd have called you crazy. I was wrong! I admit it now. Ninja has some good stuff, mostly in the way of Reaction Abilities like Sunken State and cool stuff like inherent dual wielding. MK does a lot of things better, most of all damage in single hit varieties. Ninja is a fair bit better early on but as time passes the dual wielding becomes more of a novelty in favor of big magical sword swings with d12 meat cleavers. Katon is Ninja's best magic tool, but the MK gets Confuse Strike at the same level (and you will pick Confuse Strike). So... what's the Ninja have over MK? Elan for group magic (CT10, boo), some fun stuff like Image and Vanish, and of course, throwing and dual wielding. Is this better than Flare Strike? Is it better than a wide range of cool statuses, big damage and better gear? Probably not...
Blue Mage
Unlike other mages who have guaranteed spells, Blue Mage is reliant on the GM. But good GMs (not just stingy ones) will be careful to restrict the Blue Mage from things that are too powerful. It is really a balancing thing but Blue Mage has a poor statline overall as well, sacrificing MAG and SPR for STR (boo) and VIT (yay). The higher STR means that a Blue Mage is going to have to tough it out with their weapon but... the good news is that they can wear all armor types and have swords and crossbows available. In the endgame, Blue Mages are probably better - early and midgame they are likely to be outshined by other characters and even in the best of endgame scenarios, Blue Mages are not top tier.
Sage
Look up - waaay up, at A tier, where the Red Mage sits. Look at his lofty platform! He is gifted with a good statline, a very powerful action ability, and all the useful spells. He has access to all the armor in the game, and can wield swords and other good melee weapons. See Red Mage? He is powerful. Sage, you are not. Sage is versatile instead. Sage can select many different spells, and since he is using Red Magic he has selections of many different shapes and sizes. He can even pick powerful high level destructive magic to rival Black Mage or valuable curative magic to rival White Mage. But Sage's horrible statline hampers his growth - where others will see 25-28 MAG, Sage will only see 20-23. His other stats are low too - unlike Red Mage he has not evolved from only +5 VIT. Is that so bad? Maybe not, but Sage is hardly a titan in a world where Red Mage exists. Sage, however, gains access to everything Red Mage does - and then some- only it will be cast less often and with less potency. Would Sage be best for a team? No, but he is still quite useful, I think.
Rune Knight
Total magic lockdown. RKs do it. If the opponent uses Magic, the RK shuts it down, and hard. Unfortunately, the RK can also mess up his teammates' spells, so caution may be required. The RK has a variety of ways to ruin spellcasters, mostly from wrecking their MP, but the powerful Runic to absorb enemy magic harmlessly is pretty darn useful. If the RK fights a spellcaster he's pretty much set, but enemies without MP will really just laugh it off.
Geomancer
One of the bad things about putting things in C tier is that people assume they are bad. Geomancer is one of those classes that is secretly awesome, but has a lot of problems. It has good damage for free but it is really fricking random (not Dancer random, but still random) and often dependent on where you are fighting. Trancing is an option but hard to pull off. This class is overall good but the randomness keeps it from pushing up into the higher tiers. Even though higher tier classes like Samurai have some random, their effects always resolve the way they want them to - even if detrimental things happen afterward. And really, if Samurai were not random, they would be fricking absurd, haha.
Sword Master
The early skills are always the most class-defining. For Swordmaster, it's Delay Attack. This move is a terror to any big enemy with a slow attack - good Swordmasters should delay (ha!) their attacks in order to cancel enemies with known Charge Times. Provoke is big and bad, forcing an opponent to attack the Sword Master. The rest of the entire set is meh. Really. Level 15 Fated Circle is alright, but Dragoons get Cherry Blossom at level 8 which is the same thing. The Strikeback skill has a lot of restrictions but a flat 30% to dodge melee in addition to EVA should not be overlooked. Yes, I realize Cross Slash inflicts Disable. It is alright, if a bit late to the party - like everything else this class does. Delay Attack, Provoke, and Strikeback make for an overall good class though with good HP, armor, and good weapon choices.
Knight
Heavy armor, greatswords or swords. Lots of HP. Noticing a pattern here? Armor/Mental break at level 8. WTF. These abilities are pretty busted, especially considering they are fast actions. Armor break at level 8? Really? These skills trivialize hard fights unless the GM is a dick that makes all his foes I: Weak. You can even pick the damage type most suited to your party. Everything else is pretty downhill until Stock Break in the end game. Still having the ability to completely ruin damage resistances make them well-suited to a good party. I: Weak screws them - good GMs will use it very sparingly as it is all the Knight has.
D Tier
Dancer
How can I say this and be nice? They have a lot of interesting skills, and they aren't horrible - in fact, a lot of their abilities are downright dirty for the level you get them. Unfortunately, the dances are totally random - and that's not so good for strategy. There are a few quality dances, but nothing that breaks the game. Unfortunate, really. The upside is that Dances are fast actions, making Dancers decent Haste targets - except half the time, the dances do really trashy things. Flirt is kind of nice except that it doesn't really do anything except making it more likely that other characters get hit. It's alright in certain party compositions (chemists) but most of the time you really want to have damage spread around, and excluding the Dancer generally doesn't help.
Fencer
Virtually nothing good to say about them. They're light armor fighters. They use AGI and their damage isn't weapon dependent, which is kind of good. Reflex is alright, but none of their abilities stand out. They're okay, but there are much better classes.