The Arcanist is the only pet class in Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn, and the only class that has two different jobs it can transition to at level 30. When you first begin as an Arcanist, Ruin is the only spell available to you. It’s a basic mage damage spell that will allow you to kill enemies until you reach level 2 and acquire Bio. This is your first of many damage over time (DoT) spells. You should begin each battle by casting Bio, then continuously cast Ruin until the enemy is defeated.
Once you hit level 4, you get your first pet, Emerald Carbuncle, as well as the healing spell, Physick. Physick is essentially the same spell as a Conjurer’s Cure. However, unlike a Conjurer, healing is secondary for an Arcanist. They are classified as a damage dealing (DPS) class, despite the healing spell. Once you have Emerald Carbuncle, you don’t need to do much with it. When you start a fight it will automatically being attacking as well. There are specific commands you can issue to Carbuncle, but at this low level it’s more efficient to simply let the pet attack on its own.
As you make your way to level 15 and your first dungeon run, you learn Aetherflow (level 6), Energy Drain (level 8), Miasma (level 10), and Virus (level 12). Aetherflow is one of the most important abilities for an Arcanist. It restores 20 percent of your maximum MP, and grants the effect of Aetherflow, which controls several abilities. You should always have Aetherflow up during a fight, although it’s not super important until higher levels.
Energy Drain is an ability that can only be used when you’re under the effect of Aetherflow. It inflicts damage to an enemy while simultaneously converting 50 percent of the damage into HP and MP for the Arcanist. If you’re taking hits or your MP is low, Energy Drain should be your go-to ability and the reason why you always want to have Aetherflow up. Once used it takes one stack of Aetherflow (at this level you only have one stack), however in most cases when you need to Energy Drain, the 60 second recast time will be up and you can simply use Aetherflow again immediately after Energy Drain. Since Aetherflow replenishes 20 percent of your MP, the two abilities are great if you’re MP is low.
Miasma is your second DoT spell, and causes Disease in addition to the damage over time. Disease reduces the amount of HP an enemy can restore through healing by 50 percent. That doesn’t come in handy very often, but it still causes damage over time, which is the main purpose of the spell. When stacked with Bio the damage begins to add up.
Virus reduces an enemy’s strength and dexterity by 15 percent for 10 seconds. It has a recast time of 90 seconds, so it’s not something you can generally use every fight. You always want it available for boss battles to reduce the damage output of the enemy. Beyond that, use it about every other battle, or whenever the recast is up at the start of a battle.
Once you reach level 15 and can start partying in dungeons, you also gain the ability to summon Topaz Carbuncle. You can only have one pet out at a time, but while Emerald Carbuncle is a DPS mage class, Topaz is a tanking class. This means it inflicts far less damage compared to Emerald, but it can serve as a tank if you need one. This is very helpful when soloing, but also comes in handy during the first few dungeons (and even later on in some cases).
Use the Sic command to send Topaz Carbuncle after an enemy that’s either attacking you, or another party member. It won’t take long for Topaz to take the hate and start tanking the enemy. In most cases it should be used to assist the tank if they lose hate. However, you can also send Topaz after a secondary enemy and fight it yourself. Most tanks don’t like this, but if the tank is struggling it can help the party considerably if the Arcanist takes an enemy on its own. It’s common to fight three enemies at a time during dungeon runs. The party would take the first two enemies while Topaz Carbuncle and the Arcanist finish off the third. Using Topaz alongside Bio, Miasma, and repeated casts of Ruin should allow you to finish off the third enemy by the time the first two go down.
As you make your way to level 30, you gain Sustain (level 18), Resurrection (level 22), and Bio II (level 26). While you can heal your pet with Physick at any time, Sustain is basically a Regen spell for your pet. It takes 10 percent of your health and gradually restores 8 percent of your pet’s health over a 10 second period. When Topaz is tanking an enemy, it’s a good habit to cast Sustain at the beginning of the fight and keep it up throughout the battle.
Resurrection is similar to the Conjurer spell, Raise. It brings a dead ally back to life. This should be used whenever a party member goes down. While the Conjurer or White Mage in the group can also perform this task, their primary job is to heal. Casting Raise or Resurrection takes time that could be spent healing. However, if the Arcanist handles this task, the primary healer can continue keeping the rest of the party alive while you resurrect the fallen comrade.
Bio II is your third DoT spell and stacks with both Bio and Miasma. It should be used when you first engage each enemy to create a rotation that looks something like this: Bio II > Miasma > Bio > Ruin repeatedly until the enemy dies. You want to cast in that order because Bio II lasts 30 seconds, while Miasma lasts 24 seconds and Bio lasts 18 seconds. This specific order makes sure that the DoTs are used to their full potential.
At level 30 you can transition to a Summoner or Scholar. While it’s possible to unlock both jobs, you should focus on one more so than the other because the attribute points you can distribute as you level up are the same across both jobs. If you want to be a Summoner, you should put all of your points into intelligence. If you want to be a Scholar, you should put all of your points into mind. Splitting the points will only make you a weaker version of both jobs, so it’s best to just pick one of the two jobs as your primary focus. Check out our Scholar and Summoner articles for a detailed look at both jobs.
Published: Apr 3, 2014 06:45 pm