Ever since rank 8 content came out, I’ve got the same impression regarding the balancing of classes: it’s not always the class mechanics which aren’t well thought out, it’s just the game doesn’t really provide many opportunities for those mechanics to shine.
PvE is basically about killing things (mobs, bosses, structures) as fast as possible. We have DPS checks with every “new” content added, it’s usually just increased target difficulty differentiating these dps checks.
Whatever you want to achieve in terms of gear progression, it’s all about killing as fast as possible. Manahas set is the only one which works differently, it was an interesting idea, making certain classes relevant for that. It could’ve been a start, but instead it was just a trial (failed one it seems, since new stuff is all about killing as many mobs as you can once more).
In this type of environment, classes which require more finesse and preparation to do “their thing”, no matter how elaborate and well thought out they might be, are simply labeled as useless. They are in a way, if it can be done with less investment (so more efficiently) in an average situation with other classes instead.
Gender locking for Miko, in a way, was also an interesting idea, given there was a very specific skill which could counter that. This also hasn’t been used again.
I’m still waiting for content where we’ll actually be required to use certain skills or meet conditions different than killing x mobs in y seconds in order to advance.
(Some classes are useless because IMC had no clue what they were doing with them as well, it’s just not always the case imo lol)
