This is a guide that I have put together a long time ago. But i've updated it many times, so it's fairly up-to-date. This will guide you through paladin in a very detailed way.
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Table of Contents
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I. A Paladin's Role
a. A comparison between Paladins and other tanks
b. Which is the "best" tank?
c. Your attitude as a Paladin
II. How to maintain consistent hate
a. Hate related terms and their application
b. Hate management in a party
c. Should Paladins ever lose hate?
d. A note on +Enmity equipment
III. How to take as little damage as possible
a. Def and Vit
b. General calculation for damage recieved
c. Def or Vit, which should you focus on?
d. Primary Paladin stats
e. Secondary Paladin stats
f. A guideline for choosing equipment
g. A few recommended pieces of equipment
h. Should Paladins use Greatswords?
i. Should Paladins use Staves?
IV. Paladin Traits, Job Abilities, Spells, and Weaponskills
a. A general Macro suggestion: /recast
b. Cover
c. Defender
d. Shield Bash
e. Flash
f. Spirits Within
V. Paladin Subjob choices
a. Warrior
VI. Paladin Racial choices
a. Paladin stats according to race at level 59
VII. Paladin Tips and Tricks
a. Avoid the Vit loss from wearing +MP rings
b. Avoid AOE Paralysis/Petrify
c. Target mobs the easy way
VIII. Useful Paladin Links to Quests and General Information
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I. A Paladin's Role
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A Paladin's job is to maintain consistent hate while taking as little damage as possible, and you should hold your priorities in that order. Your primary concern as a Paladin is to keep the mob securely focused on you so that it does not directly attack the other members of your party. All the best +Def, +Vit, +Agi, +HP, and -DMG% gear in the game will not matter if you are not the one getting hit. Once you can comfortably maintain consistent hate, you can begin focusing on taking as little damage as possible.
a. A comparison between Paladins and other tanks
Paladins are not the only tanks in this game. However, of the three most viable tanking classes, War/Nin, Nin/War, and Pal/War, they are capable of generating and managing the most hate. War/Nin specializes in damage output through Dual Wield and equipment geared toward damage dealing, Nin/War specializes in taking little (or in many cases no) damage through the use of +Evasion equipment and the Utsusemi line of Ninjutsu, and a Paladin specializes in hate through Spells and Job Abilities that generate hate, and emergency Job Abilities like Cover and Shield Bash that allow a Paladin to manage hate and protect the other members of the party.
Paladins specialization in hate management is evident from the fact that they have the tools at their disposal to generate and manage hate as the only tank in the party from levels 10-75, whereas other tanking classes will most likely struggle with hate management until the later levels. Here are some quotes I gathered while browsing through the Nin/War and War/Nin forums that highlight that unique specialization:
"I made lv32 yesterday, I am holding hate ok unless the blm went nuts spaming firaga and other spell OR a ranger doing the barrage thing. Its true that pass 30 is kinda harder to hold hate, I am looking for other way too."
"You really don't have a lot of options when it comes to holding hate at that level. My best advice is to find a good backup tank and split the aggro."
"As you go up the levels you'll realize that it's pretty tough to hold hate well all on your own without the help of a thief."
"However, without Utsusemi: 2, I wouldn't really try to be the one-and-only- tank. That's the strategy for levels 40 and above. Things go much smoother if your party has a backup tank or alternating tank for the time when you lose hate."
"Remember, every time you get hit, you lose hate. And you will get hit at level 30 because you don't have Utsusemi: 2."
"NIN is better at reducing downtime, PLD is better at building hate so your dmg dealers can do more. A good NIN never has downtime and rarely looses hate. A good PLD never looses hate and rarely has downtime. "
"ninjas cant tank by themselves before lvl 37. they need a backup provoker."
"you won't be an effective main tank, so you need at least another voker in your party "
"fact: ninja is a very efficient tank. fact: paladin is by far the best overall tank. paladin is a tank for any situations where ninja is slightly more of a situational tank." -67 Nin
While any tank requires the cooperation of the other members of the party, Nin/War requires a specific party makeup including a backup or secondary tank before level 37 when Utsusemi: Ni becomes available, and both Nin/War and War/Nin require the damage dealers to hold back a little more without a level 30+ Thief in the party for Sneak Attack + Trick Attack.
b. Which is the "best" tank?
I am not arguing that Nin/War and War/Nin are not as good at tanking as Paladins. I am simply attempting to highlight the fact that Paladins specialize in hate management, but this is only one aspect of tanking. In many situations Nin/War and War/Nin will actually allow the party to gain far more exp/hour than a Paladin given the drastic reduction in downtime that results from Utsusemi tanks taking little to no damage. However, there are certain situations and mobs that prevent the successful use of Utsusemi. Mobs that double attack or use AOE spells/abilities frequently will usually eat through too many shadows too quickly, preventing successful blink tanking. In these situations against these mobs a Paladin tank is a more reliable choice, though again, there are many mobs that can be successfully blink tanked, and parties that fight these mobs with a Nin/War or War/Nin tank will generally gain more exp/hour on average than if the same party fought these mobs with a Pal/War tank, and for this reason many players prefer blink tanks.
In summary, of the 3 most viable tanking classes, War/Nin, Nin/War, and Pal/War, each benefits the party in different ways, be it through increased damage dealt, decreased damage recieved, or heightened hate management, each is more suitable in specific circumstances at certain levels against certain mobs, and each requires a different playstyle.
To argue about which one is "better" than the others is a waste of time. All 3 have their purpose, all 3 have their place, and given the drastic lack of viable tanks in this game, all 3 will get frequent party invites.
c. Your attitude as a Paladin
Given your role, as a Paladin you should be prepared to protect the other members of the party, even at the expense of your own life. In other words you should be prepared to be the first member of your party to die. While there is no reason to kill yourself if you can avoid death, you should be the last member of your party to zone, and sometimes you will be required to hold the mob while the other members of your party escape to safety. This means that you will end up spending a lot of time, especially in the earliest and latest levels, lying face down (or face up if you are Elvaan). As a Paladin what you do when you are dead is almost as important as what you do when you are alive. If you take your deaths in stride, realizing it is an unfortunate part of the job, you will develop a good reputation, and how many invites you get when playing this job in the later levels depends almost entirely on your reputation.
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II. How to maintain consistent hate
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As a Paladin you maintain hate through damage dealt, and the use of hate generating Job Abilities and Spells.
a. Hate related terms and their application
Square-Enix has not provided detailed information regarding the nature of hate and exactly how it works, but many Paladins have reached a kind of general consensus given their own experience and that of other Paladins.
First of all, in order to generate mob hate, you must first be on that mob's Hate List. Each mob keeps a Hate list, or a record of every player that has done something the mob hates. There are several ways to get onto a mob's Hate List:
-Negatively affecting the mob. This includes damaging the mob through physical attacks, spells, or job abilities, hindering or debuffing the mob through spells like Slow that decrease its performance, and "bothering" the mob by walking where it can see or hear you or by healing or sitting near it.
-Positively affecting someone the mob hates. This includes healing or buffing someone on the mob's hate list.
Each mob seems to have a Hate Meter that measures the level of hate generated by each individual on their Hate List. It is important to note the effect of Hate Decay: the hate you generate decays, wears off, or decreases in intensity over time. Hate decays even more frequently as the mob hits you for damage as this allows the mob to release some of the hate you have built up.
Once you have made it onto the mob's Hate List and have been assigned a Hate Meter, you can begin to generate hate. The experience of most Paladins seems to indicate that there are two types of hate: Instantaneous or Spiked Hate, and Constant or Gradual Hate.
Instantaneous/Spiked Hate is generated suddenly by certain job abilities like Provoke or Shield Bash. While these job abilities seem to create a high amount of hate which is usually powerful enough to immediately grab the mob's attention, the intensity of this type of hate seems to decay or wear off more quickly than that of Contant or Gradual Hate.
Constant or Gradual Hate is generated by damage dealt, and by Spells like Cure and Flash. While Constant/Gradual Hate will not usually generate as much instant aggro as Instantaneous/Spiked Hate, it appears to decay or wear off at a much slower rate, and is therefore considered more reliable. However, the increased reliablity of Constant/Gradual hate comes at a high cost as it requires you to use your MP, which is a valuable and limited resource, to generate it.
Given the two different types of hate, most Paladins attempt to keep both Instantaneous/Spiked Hate and Constant/Gradual Hate as high as possible at all times in spite of the set timers on Job Abilities and their limited MP. This is accomplished by developing a Hate Routine that alternates between abilities that generate Instantaneous/Spiked Hate and Constant/Gradual hate. An example of a common Hate Routine is:
Flash -> wait -> Provoke -> wait -> Cure II/III -> wait -> Provoke -> wait -> Sentinel -> wait -> etc
Using a Hate Routine like this allows you to generate significant amounts of both Instantaneous/Spiked Hate and Constant/Gradual Hate, and keep this hate at a high or consant level, and the fact that you alternate between the two and space them out saves you MP and does not force you to wait exclusively on any of the recast timers for your job abilities.
Using this kind of Hate Routine allows you to set a high Hate Threshold, which is the total amount of hate you have generated up to a certain point on a given mob. The amount of damage the members of your party can successfully deal without grabbing aggro depends on how high you have set the Hate Threshold.
b. Hate management in a party
Hate management is not merely the responsibility of the Paladin, but depends on the cooperation of the entire party, especially in the lower levels before you have access to all your hate tools and especially pre-Refresh.
If the damage dealers or mages in your party want hate from you, they can pretty much get it at any level. It takes skilled party members to not only recognize where you have set the Hate Threshold, but know how not to cross it. You should have the mindset of generating as much hate as possible without burning up too much of your MP or job abilities and slowing down the exp/hour, and your party members should have the mindset of dealing as much damage as possible without drawing hate, taking too much damage, and slowing down the exp/hour.
Unfortunately you may have a hard time finding a full party of members with this mindset in the lower levels, but things do get better. Eventually the Rangers or Blackmages in your party will realize it is actually more beneficial in terms of exp/hour for them to hold back a little than to go all out and soak up the Whitemage's MP. Until then, if you are having hate managament problems, hang in there, you will likely gain access to new hate tools in a few levels, and your fellow party members will become more successful at controlling their own hate output.
c. Should Paladins ever lose hate?
There are certain circumstances in which it is actually beneficial for the Paladin to yield hate to another member of the party. These include:
-Partying with a Ninja: Pre-37 A Ninja tank relies on a backup or secondary voke (be it another Nin/War, a War/xxx, or a Pal/War) due to the long recast timer of Utsusemi: Ichi and the unavailability of Utsusemi: Ni at this level. A Ninja can cast Utsusemi for 3 shadows before the pull, then once the puller returns and the fight starts the Ninja will Provoke and then absorb 2 hits before recasting Utsusemi: Ichi, so that as the 3rd shadow disappears the Ninja gets 3 more shadows. This will allow the Ninja to avoid 6 attacks, possibly more if the mob is blinded or the Ninja has good +Evasion gear and eats +Evasion/+Agi food. However, once the shadows disappear, the Ninja needs the secondary voker to Provoke and tank until the recast timer on Utsusemi is up again, or if it is up already, until the Ninja can recast it without being interrupted by a mob attack. If the Ninja attempts to tank during this time, or the backup tank is too late with the Provke, he will take significantly more damage than a Paladin, negating the damage absorbed by the first 6 shadows. A single Provoke from the secondary tank should turn the mob away from the Ninja. Usually the mob will die before Utsusemi is up, if not, the Ninja will Provoke once the shadows are in place and absorb 3 more hits.
Post-37 a Ninja can solo tank once they obtain Utsusemi: Ni because they can alternate casting the Ichi and Ni versions of Utsusemi, and chances are you will never party with a Ninja after this point (I never have).
Basically Pre-37 if you are willing to work together and co-tank with a Ninja, you will be rewarded with far more exp/hour than you could ever get tanking alone due to the reduced downtime. Learn how to work with a Ninja in your party, and be glad when you have one.
Post-37 dont worry about it, a Paladin/Ninja party past this level is so inefficiant that you will likely never find yourself in one.
-Setting up Sneak Attack + Trick Attack: Post level 30 Thieves have the unique ability to stack Sneak Attack (which guarantees a critical hit) and Trick Attack (which "tricks" the mob into assigning hate to another member of the party). If performed correctly this strong attack can transfer a significant amount of hate onto you, allowing you to maintain hate with less MP and fewer job abilities for faster chains, or allowing you to set the Hate Threshold significantly higher, allowing the damage dealers in your party to deal more damage for faster mob kills.
Usually the Thief pulls a mob, and on the way back to camp readies Sneak Attack + Trick Attack (also known as Fuidama or SATA). The "trick partner" (any member of the party except the Paladin who has access to Provoke) Provokes the mob. The Paladin lines up with the Trick Partner but stands directly behind the mob, and when everyone is in position the Thief moves directly behind the Paladin, unsheathes his daggers, and uses SATA on the mob through the Paladin, tricking the mob into assigning all the hate from the attack to the Paladin, not the Thief.
When viewed from above using a Mnk/War as a trick partner, it looks like this:
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....>..............................................................
.>...........><<<...
..........>........................................................
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-Using Sneak Attack + Trick Attack + Weaponskill in the Skillchain: Another application of SATA is incorporating it into a skillchain. For example, in a party with a Rng and Thf Skillchaining Slugshot + SATA + Viperbite, the players assume the same position mentioned above (Rng in place of Mnk), except the Paladin begins the fight with Provoke and possibly follows with a Flash a few seconds later but does not use any additional job abilities or spells in order to set a low hate threshold. The Ranger opens the Skillchain with Slugshot, and hopefully grabs aggro. The mob turns its back on the Paladin to face the Ranger just in time for the Theif to land SATA + Viperbite, dealing massive damage as it completes the skillchain and securing massive hate on the Paladin. Ideally the Ranger will have a Ninja sub for Utsusemi so that he takes no damage in between the weaponskills. The Paladin will have so much hate at this point that he will most likely be able to "coast" through the rest of the fight using very few hate resources, and by the time the mob falls the Ranger and Thief should have enough TP to skillchain again at the beginning of the next fight. With a Blackmage to burst this is one of the most efficient standard party formations.
There are several other instances in which a Paladin should yield aggro, but they are far less common. Chances are if another member of your party asks you to let them gain hate, they are doing it for a reason. As long as they are not merely attempting to raise their Evasion Skill, you will most likely benefit the party by cooperating.
d. A note on +Enmity equipment
Many Paladins describe +Enmity as a "hate multiplier", which means that all actions that generate hate such as damage you deal, spells you cast, and job abilities you use are awarded a hate bonus with +Enmity gear equipped, allowing these actions to generate significantly more hate than they would without it.
It is a common misconception that +Enmity gear is for Paladins with hate management problems. I personally never wore any +Enmity gear until Paladin AF. I have found however, that the good damage dealers in this game have the mindset of dealing as much damage as possible without grabbing hate and taking damage, and they will usually use the first few fights to determine exactly how much damage they can deal given the Hate Threshold.
What this means is that in a skilled party, the increased hate you could generate with +Enmity gear will allow the damage dealers to do more damage since you can set the hate threshold higher. So +Enmity gear is less about correcting your inablity to hold hate, and more about generating as much hate as possible, allowing the damage dealers in your party to do more damage for faster kills and more exp/hour.
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III. How to take as little damage as possible
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As a Paladin you take as little damage as possible by wearing equipment, eating food, and using Job Abilities that increase your Defense, Vitality, and Agility.
a. Def and Vit
Def and Vit: Defense determines the mobs chance of hitting you at the low end of your damage curve, while Vit lowers the curve itself. So Vit determines your minimum potential damage recieved each hit, Defense determines how often you reach that potential.
b. General calculation for damage recieved
How much damage you take with each hit is determined by comparing the mob's Str vs your Vit, and the mob's Attack modifier vs your Defense modifier. There are other variables involved, so this is a simplified version of the damage recieved equation, but it will still tell you what you need to know.
c. Def or Vit, which should you focus on?
Generally, you should focus on Vit until 50, when you will briefly switch over and focus on +Def until level 55 or 56. After 55 or 56 you will want to start focusing on +Vit again.
Pre 50 even though Def and Vit are both important in the equation, you will get a lot more out of adding +Vit, especially since Defense increasing job abilities and food like Fish Mithkabobs are available (Fish Mithkabob: DEX: 1 VIT: 2 MND: -1 Base Defense: 25%, lasts 30 minutes). The basic reason why 1 or 2 points of Vit will almost always be more beneficial than a few points of Def is that adding Vit almost always results in a larger percent increase than adding Def, and so results in a greater improvement to your character. You can see this by looking at the number totals themselves. While you should have hundreds of points of Defense thanks to your passive Defense Boosts, your other gear, and your job abilities that boost Defense, you will have less than a hundred Vit given the fact that you recieve no passive Vit boosts or Vit boosting job abilities. Just looking at the percentage increases, a boost of 10 Def to say 300 Def total is less significant (only a 3% increase) than a boost of 6 Vit to 60 Vit total (a 10% increase), so that adding Vit represents a more significant boost to your character in terms of reducing damage recieved.
After 50 the mobs just seem to hit a lot harder due to a higher Attack Modifier. You will notice this in the Boyahda Tree fighting Barking Spiders and later Robber Crabs. Since the mob's Attack Modifier is compared with your Defense when determining damage recieved, most Paladins try to counteract this higher Attack Modifier by increasing their own Defense Modifier with Phalanx Rings (+10 Def each) and by continuing to eat Fish Mithkabobs. Even though the percentage increase from the +20 Def provided by the Phalanx Rings is slightly less than the percentage increase provided by the +3 Vit rings, you will most likely benefit more from focusing on +Def in your ring slots at this level based on the mobs you will face in exp parties.
Post 55 or 56 your high natural Defense plus food neutralizes the mob's high Attack Modifier a little, and since the mob will already have a very high chance of hitting the low end of your damage recieved curve, adding additional defense beyond this point wont do as much to reduce overall damage, and so results in a diminishing return. At this point you should focus on reducing that potential minimum itself by adding Vit again. So after 55 or 56 most Paladins go with Chrysoberyl Rings (+3 Vit each) or, if they shelled out the extra gil for Verve Rings early on, put those on again. The other option at this point is Vigor Rings for +4 Vit each, but they are extremely rare and expensive: my Vigor Rings cost me 469k each on Shiva, and very few have ever sold, so its not an option for everyone. As far as food goes post 55 or 56 most Paladins switch over to Boiled Crab (lasts for 30 minutes), which has a slightly smaller Defense bonus (+22%) than Fish Mithkabobs, but adds 4 Vit, or buy Steamed Crab, which adds 5 Vit and the same 25% Defense increase as Fish Mithkabob and lasts for 60 minutes. Steamed Crab is generally regarded as the best/most practical food for Paladins in the game.
Aside from this general guideline, if you take a consistent amount of medium damage from a specific exp mob, then you are most likely hitting the low end of your damage curve frequently, which means you should most likely focus on lowering that damage recieved curve itself by adding Vit. If you take inconsistant damage from an exp mob, occasionally getting hit for high damage, occasionally for low, then you are not reaching your potential minimum damage recieved very often, and should focus on hitting the low end of your potential damage recieved curve more often by adding Defense. However, given the innacurate nature of casual observation in game, you should parse the log results of an exp session in order to get the most accurate information.
d. Primary Paladin stats
The primary stats for Paladin are Vit, HP, and Agi. These are important stats for Paladin because they directly determine our ability to take damage, which is one of the two key aspects of this job.
-Vit: The primary Paladin stat. Except for a few rare circumstances, boosting Vit is more directly beneficial than boosting any other Paladin stat, and Vit will therefore be the top priority in selecting gear for the majority of the game. Adding Vit directly reduces damage recieved by
lowering our overall potential damage recieved curve.
-HP: Another very important stat for Paladins as it determines the maximum amount of damage we can sustain. A dead tank is of little use to a party, and adding HP directly improves our survivability, especially end game when facing HNM or doing Dynamis runs, at which point this becomes the primary Paladin stat, with Vit remaining a close second.
-Agi: Another stat that reduces overall damage recieved. However, unlike Vit, Agi reduces damage recieved indirectly. Adding Agi increases our chance to block/parry/evade and attack, which also increases our chance to raise these skills, while lowering the mob's chance of scoring a critical hit.
e. Secondary Paladin stats
These stats determine the effectiveness of many aspects of each character, but they are not considered as important for Paladins as Vit, HP, or Agi because they do not directly improve our ability to take damage.
-Mnd: Perhaps the most overrated stat for Paladin in the game. While Mnd determines our resistence to enemy status ailments, Paladins should not focus on boosting Mnd above Vit, HP, or Agi because doing so would be of little benefit in terms of actual play. Anytime you are hit by a status altering spell, your Whm will remove it in a matter of seconds, long before it would wear off naturally due to your high Mnd. Also, the chance of actually resisting a spell from an I.T. mob, regardless of how much Mnd you have, is virtually zero. Mnd also determines how much our Cure spells heal for, but only in the lowest levels before the soft cap comes into effect. By the time you reach level 20 your Healing Skill will play a far greater role, and your Cures should heal for the soft cap limits anyway. Mnd is simply not important or beneficial enough to be focused on above Vit, HP, or Agi for Paladins. Believe me, I am an Elvaan Paladin, I have the highest Mnd in the game, and I'm telling you Mnd is virtually worthless for Paladins.
-Str: Plays an important role in calculating damage dealt. However, Paladins will simply never have the same damage output of any other melee class given our specialization in 1 handed swords, which are inherantly low DMG weapons, and weapon DMG plays a far greater role in determining damage output than Str and Attack. In other words, don't expect adding Str or Attack to dramatically improve your damage output as long as you wield a 1 handed sword. When you are invited to a party they will be far more concerned with the damage you take than the damage you deal, and since Paladins were not intended to be damage dealers, you will be better off focusing on fulfilling your role as a tank by boosting Vit, HP, and Agi.
-Dex: While Dex is important for increasing accuracy, +Dex and +Accuracy equipment usually offer nothing in terms of +Vit, +Def, +HP, or +Agi, and so Paladins are unable to wear as much of this type of equipment as other melee who do not need to worry about getting hit frequently. However, if you are really concerned about your accuracy as a Paladin you will be far better off boosting it directly through +Accuracy equipment than attempting to raise it by adding Dex.
-Int: Does very little for Paladins given our specialization in White Magic. Some have speculated that increased Int can decrease the damage recieved from enemy Black Magic, but whatever benefits would result from adding +Int gear if this is even true would pale in comparison to the direct benefits resulting from adding +Vit, +HP, or +Agi.
-Chr: The effects of Chr are still debatable. According to an interview with "someone" from SE, "The Charisma attribute score does not affect hate or enmity(aggro). It does, however, affect how a bard's songs and a beastmaster's charm ability are not only used but also resisted. There are also weapon skills that are greatly affected by Charisma."
source:
http://ffxi.crgaming.com/interviews/vie ... asp?Id=272 second to last question.
Some discount this interview since it does not provide the specific name or job title of the person allegedly representing SE, and cite the enormous Chr boost from Koenig gear and personal experiences as evidence that Chr does in fact effect hate.
While the actual role of Chr is still somewhat uncertain, it is perfectly clear that Paladins would be better off focusing on their primary stats than on one that is still so misunderstood. In other words, if you are faced with an equipment decision between +Vit and +Chr, go with +Vit.
f. A guideline for choosing equipment
Generally as a Paladin you should purchase the pieces of equipment that offer the most Vit, HP, and Agi available for your level. You should not buy a piece of equipment that boosts your secondary stats unless it also boosts a primary stat, or unless no gear that boosts a primary stat is available in that slot.
The only real exception to this general guideline of focusing exclusively on equipment that reduces your damage recieved is equipment that increases your hate potential. This includes +Enmity, +MP, and after a certain level, +Accuracy equipment. Some specific examples of this type of equipment are the Mermaid Ring (level 43, +2 Enmity), Astral Rings/Electrum Rings (level 10/40, +25/+20 MP each) or RSE gloves (which usually provide a significant MP boost), and the Lifebelt (level 48, +10 Accuracy).
g. A few recommended pieces of equipment
I generally do not like providing specific equipment paths from 1-75 because they discourage individuality and experimentation, and also because one of the best parts of this job is scouring the Auction House for the latest piece of tanking gear while you are standing around Looking For Party in Lower Jeuno. If you are interested in one of these comprehensive equipment guides there are many available in various faqs and on the Paladin boards (see Links section).
There are however, a few great pieces of Paladin gear that you should be sure not to miss:
-Warrior's Belt +1, level 15 (Def: 2 HP: 4 VIT: 3)
This is a fantastic belt, and can be seen on Paladins as high as level 75 in certain circumstances, which is remarkable considering you can equip it at level 15. This piece is definately worth picking up as early as possible.
-Power Sandals, level 18 (Def: 3 VIT: 3 Vs. Fire: 7)
These are the basic equivalent of Leaping Boots for Paladins, except you don't have to pay 300k or wait for a heavily overcamped NM to spawn. You can obtain them by completing the "Test My Mettle" quest (see Link section), and given the fact that some Paladins wear these until AF (while some upgrade to Kampfschuhs at level 29 for the same +Vit but 3 additional Def), they are definately worth the effort.
-Drone Earring, level 35 (AGI: 3 Vs. Wind: 6)
With +6 total Agi they are a great purchase for Elvaan and Galka Paladins, and will make a dramatic difference in shield blocks/parries/evades and will help you raise these skills significantly. Equip them as early as possible.
-Verve Ring, level 36 (VIT: 3 Vs. Earth: 6)
They may be expensive for their level, but you have to wait until level 54 for Vigor Rings (+4 Vit each) before you will be able to get more +Vit out of this slot, and Vigor Rings cost 450k+ each, assuming you can even find them. These are the best Paladin rings for BCNM 40, which is the main source of income for many mid level players.
-Life Belt, level 48 (Accuracy: 10)
A great belt that can drastically improve hate management. At 55 you get the weapon skill Spirits Within, which hits for 1/2 your current HP at 300 TP. The ability to deal out 500-600 points of instant damage and the aggro it generates becomes a major hate tool, but without the +10 Accuracy from the Lifebelt you will miss far too often to use Spirits Within frequently. In addition, as you continue to collect your AF pieces with +Enmity bonuses, connecting frequently with the mob can generate significant hate given the effect of the "hate multiplier", even if you are not hitting for high damage. But without a Lifebelt, you will miss far too frequently to take full advantage of your AF.
-Gluttony Sword, level 57 (Dmg: 44 Dly: 295 STR: -1 DEX: -1
VIT: 7 AGI: -1 INT: -1 MND: -1 CHR: -1)
I cannot stress how huge +7 Vit is for Paladins. This weapon is the single largest source of Vit in the game until level 73 (at which point you can equip the Koenig gear, which is notoriously difficult to obtain). The ring slot is the bread and butter Vit slot for Paladins, but this single sword offers more Vit than both ring slots combined until level 54, at which point you can equip Vigor Rings, but again, you will have to camp the Auction House for weeks and spend 450k+ x2 and use two slots combined in order to get more Vit than the Gluttony Sword offers in a single slot.
The lifespan of the Gluttony sword is just as impressive as the +7 Vit. Most Paladins use the Gluttony sword for 9 full levels (57-66), which is a long life span for a single weapon, especially considering this 9 level span occurs in the 60s. The experience required to level from 60-65 is greater than the experience required to level a job 1-40. Even if you only use the sword 57-66, that is a very long time in terms of actual play, and many Paladins use it all the way until level 75. If you consider that level 63 is the half way point in terms of Exp, some Paladins end up wielding this sword for almost half the game.
There is only one reason not to buy this sword: you don't have enough gil, and you just don't want to farm/mine/craft/quest for it. And if that is the case, I can assure you that given its huge increase to the primary Paladin stat, as well as its long lifespan, the Gluttony Sword is definately worth the effort.
-Paladin AF
The other equipment that you need to pick up is your Artifact Armor, which offers dramatic boosts to Vit, HP, Agi, and Shield Skill, and will greatly improve your tanking ability. If you take the time to obtain each piece as soon as it is available, you will have a much more enjoyable leveling experience 50-60. Paladin AF, like the Gluttony Sword, has an extremely long lifespan, and there are many circumstances in which Paladins will wear several pieces of AF until level 75. There have already been several helpful posts detailing the requirements for obtaining this armor (see the Links section) so I won't go into that in this guide.
h. Should Paladins use Greatswords?
Greatswords are viable weapons in exp parties, even for tanking Paladins. However, the drawbacks of using a Greatsword in an exp party outweigh the benefits. Specifically:
Pros:
-Increased damage output
-Increased style/individuality points
Cons:
-Increased damage recieved due to loss of +Def bonus from Shield
-Increased damage recieved due to inability to block attacks with your shield
-Reduces chance of raising Shield Skill to 0. This skill is hard enough to raise as it is, and should you ever decide to switch back to shield your skill will be severely underleveled.
-Loss of +stats from Shield
-Loss of +stats from Sword (significant from 57-66 when using a Greatsword will cost you 7 Vit due to your inability to use a Gluttony Sword)
-Loss of Shield Bash, which generates a significant amount of instant hate should you lose aggro and need to reclaim it immediately. Technically you could macro a change to shield for Shield Bash, but switching weapons eliminates all accumulated TP, and less weaponskills further reduces the benefit of using a Greatsword.
-Inability to use Spirits Within at level 55, which hits for 1/2 your current HP at 300 TP and becomes a major hate tool.
-Decreased accuracy resulting from Paladin's "B" skill in Greatsword vs their "A+" in 1 handed sword combined with the long delay of Greatswords will result in frequent misses.
Fact: You will miss more often using a Greatsword than if you use a 1 handed sword given Paladins "B" rating in Greatsword and "A+" rating in 1 handed sword. These increased misses will offset the increased damage per hit slightly.
Fact: You will end up taking more damage long term while tanking with a Greatsword due to the fact that you only have 2 means/chances of completely avoiding damage (Parry, Evade), compared with a 1 handed sword and shield Paladin who has 3 means/chances of completely avoiding damage (Shield Block, Parry, Evade). Given Paladins "A+" rating in shield compared with the "C" ratings in Parry/Evade, the loss of the ability to block attacks with your shield is significant as it eliminates your most likely means of completely avoiding damage.
Greatswords are fun for solo, farming, or helping others with quests or missions. For exp parties, if you are concerned about being the most efficient and effective Paladin possible, stick with a 1 handed sword.
i. Should Paladins use Staves?
In my opinion tanking with a staff in an exp party is highly situational, and is only truly viable from levels 51-55, and post 63.
Pre-50:
No staff justifies the loss of the ability to block an attack with your shield, and the resulting inability to raise your shield skill. This skill raises painfully slowly even with a shield equipped from levels 1-75, so missing out on the chance to raise it on these early to mid level mobs is simply not worth whatever benefit might result from using a staff.
Levels 51-55:
At level 51 you are able to equip the Earth Staff, which reduces physical damage recieved by -20%.
I personally tanked with an Earth Staff for a few levels in the early 50s while partying in the Boyahda Tree. The -20% damage reduction makes a significant difference against the Robber Crabs and Knight Crawlers, which will most likely hit you for significantly more damage than you are used to.
However, while you gain a -20% damage reduction with the Earth Staff, you miss out on the chance to block an attack with your shield, which is essentially a damage reduction of -100%. Technically you would need to block 1 out of every 5 attacks with your shield in order to achieve the same damage reduction offered by the Earth Staff, and while you will not be able to block this often, since your chance to block is based on your Shield Skill, should you ever opt for the sword and shield combo later in the game, your Shield Skill will be lower than it would had you never used a staff, which will result in fewer blocks and more damage recieved in the long run, diminishing the total return of using a staff.
Basically by using the Earth Staff in the early 50s I reduced the total damage I recieved during that time. But now I take slightly more damage than I would had I never used the Earth Staff due to my lower Shield Skill level, which results in fewer blocks. So in the long run it is not clear if using the Earth Staff during this time will actually reduce the total amount of damage you recieve when you consider things in the long term.
Levels 55-63:
By the mid 50s the damage you take from exp mobs will even out a little, reducing your need for the Earth Staff. And at level 55 you gain access to Spirit's Within, which in my experience is simply too good to pass up, even for the -20% in damage reduction offered by the Earth Staff. In addition, using the Earth Staff, which offers 4 Vit, prevents you from wielding a Gluttony Sword post 57, which offers 7 Vit.
Post 63:
At level 63 you gain access to the staff weaponskill Spirit Taker, which recovers a certain amount of MP based on how much TP you have when you use the weaponskill and how much damage it deals. Recovering over 100 MP provides you with a significant amount of hate potential as it allows you to cast Flash and Cure II/III more often than you would be able to relying exclusively on juice/Refresh/Ballad.
However, wielding a staff post 63 also reduces your hate potential a little given the loss of Spirits Within, Paladin's lower natural accuracy with staff resulting from our lower grade rating in staff than 1 handed sword, and the lower DMG/DLY ratio of staves compared with swords of the same level. So here again the benefits and drawbacks in terms of hate potential may even out in the long run.
Staves are a viable alternative to a sword and shield in exp parties, but only at certain levels of the game and with a maxed Staff Skill, and even then there are specific drawbacks resulting from wielding a staff that might ultimately outweigh the benefits. It is also important to note that 1 handed swords are excellent weapons in terms of opening and closing skillchains, and for this reason many parties may need you to use a 1 handed sword instead of a staff in order to participate in the skillchain.
For these reasons many Paladins recommend using staves exclusively in end game
scenarios such as Dynamis runs or while facing HNM.
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IV. Paladin Traits, Job Abilities, Spells, and Weaponskills
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While comprehensive lists of Traits, Job Abilities, Spells, and Weaponskills are available on many websites (see the Links section), a few are the subject of frequent discussion and debate.
a. A general Macro suggestion: /recast
Paladins have so many great Spells and job abilities at their disposal that it can be tempting to make a /party chat line for all of them. However, there are two serious problems with this: First, all that party spam can greatly irritate the other members of your party, and secondly, it can cause them to miss important information such as TP%, status ailment removal requests, skillchain notices, etc. In my opinion, for every job ability and spell you would be better off inserting a /recast "job ability/spell name" as the second line of the macro instead of a /party line. This not only keeps the party spam to a minimum, but if, for example, you set your Provoke Macro to Line1: /ja "Provoke" Line2: /recast "Provoke", you can hit the macro every few seconds and it will either fire off Provoke, or tell you exactly how long you must wait until you can use it again, without flooding the party chat.
Of the many Paladin job abilities/spells, In my opinion Cover, Provoke, and Invincible are the only two for which a /party line is justified, and in many cases a party line for Provoke is not needed.
b. Cover
What Cover does:
When you activate Cover (you must select a target to use it on), the mob will attempt to hit the target, but you will "Cover" them, and take the damage in their place, provided you are directly in between the mob, and the person the mob is trying to hit. Covering a Ranger looks like this when viewed directly from above:
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When to use Cover:
You should activate Cover only when 1) another party member gains aggro and 2) you are directly in between that party member and the mob. Activating Cover before you are in position wastes valuable Cover time provided you are unable to regain aggro before Cover wears off, at which point the mob would resume beating the Blm/Rng to death. Activating Cover before the member has aggro wastes Cover time as well, and could be unnecessary if they do not end up drawing hate. Up to the mid September patch, Cover had a 5 min recast timer, which means Paladins had to save it for when we really needed it. Since the patch Cover only has a 3 minute recast timer, which means you don't have to wait as long for it to come back up, and can use it less sparingly.
How to know when Cover is working:
Check the damage log, you will see:
"Cover! The Robber Crab hits (Your name) for xx points of damage."
Instead of:
"The Robber Crab hits Legolassz12 for xxx points of damage.
Legolassz12 was defeated by the Robber Crab."
Most experienced Blm/Rng will know when they are about to need Cover, and will get in position behind you before casting Freeze or unloading Barrage. If they don't get behind you, then unfortunately you are responsible for running up in front of them and positioning yourself in between them and the mob.
Cover Macros:
/ja "Cover"
/party {Cover}
Hitting this macro brings up an arrow by the party list, allowing you to select which party member to use Cover on by pressing the F keys and Enter.
/ja "Cover"
/party {Cover}
This is the second way to macro cover. This will automatically Cover the first person in your party list besides yourself (you are , your party members are ). I tried both methods and greatly prefer this way of macroing Cover as it activates immediatly and you dont have to fumble with the F keys and Enter while trying to position yourself. But if you set up the macro like this, you will have to edit the
number for either the Blm or Rng at the beginning of each new party since they will move slots (takes about 5 seconds).
You will most likely not need to use Cover until sometime in the 50s when the Blm get Ancient Magic and the Rng start to do serious damage.
c. Defender
Defender increases your Defense at the expensive of your Attack. Many Paladins wonder if they should always, sometimes, or never use Defender.
In reality it's entirely situational. A tank's job is to consistently maintain hate while taking as little damage as possible. Some Paladins decide to focus strictly on taking as little damage as possible, and use Defender constantly, while some decide to focus more on generating hate, and never use Defender since it can result in your hits landing for 0 damage, which results in 0 TP gain for Spirits Within, and negates the +Enmity bonuses from your AF.
Which strategy is most beneficial given the situation and which aspect of tanking you decide to focus on is entirely up to you.
d. Shield Bash
Since Shield Bash not only deals a minor amount of damage to the mob, but also has a small chance to stun, many Paladins attempt to interrupt mob enemy special attacks like Bomb Toss by Shield Bashing. However, the stun effect does not process every time, and as you get begin fighting higher level mobs it rarely takes effect. Shield Bash always generates a large hate spike, however, so most Paladins "save" it for those rare moments in which they temporarily lose aggro and need to regain it immediately. Since the stun effect is random, leave it to the Blm or Drk to stun the mob by casting their Stun spell, and leave it to the Whm to make sure Barfire is up when fighting gobs to reduce the damage if a Bomb Toss does go off.
e. Flash
This spell becomes your second best means of grabbing hate after Provoke. Not only does it generate hate, it blinds the enemy, resulting in up to 3+ missed attacks, which does not allow the mob to release any of its hate for you by inflicting damage, and saves the Whm additional MP by not having to Cure you as frequently. In the later levels you will cast this spell every time its 45 second recast timer is up given the fact that, in my experience, it generates as much hate as a Cure III but costs 20 MP less.
f. Spirits Within
Those 55 levels of hitting for less than 50 damage are about to pay off. At level 55 you are granted access to Spirits Within, which hits for about 1/2 your current HP at 300 TP (the actual percentage is 45%HP). The ability to deal out 500-600 points of instant damage and the aggro it generates becomes a major hate tool. With Haste from a Whm you will swing frequently, and with a Lifebelt for +10 Accuracy those swings will connect for TP, allowing you to utilize this weaponskill every 2 to 3 fights. Spirits Within does not interrupt skillchains, never misses, cannot be resisted, and the damage is calculated independant of mob type/defense/resistence/evasion etc. It is important to note that Spirits Within is not worth using at 100 TP.
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V. Paladin subjob choices
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There are many viable subjob choices for Paladins in terms of Quests, Missions, and helping other players. However, for experience parties, the only truly viable subjob for Paladins is Warrior.
a. Warrior
If you compare the 3 viable tanking classes, War/Nin, Nin/War, Pal/War, and even some of the less conventional options such as War/Mnk, you will notice that every single one of them has access to the job ability Provoke. And there is a reason for this: Provoke is simply the most effecient and effective means of generating and maintaining hate in terms of exp parties in the game. If you are going to be an efficient tank, Provoke is mandatory. I have personally tanked as a War/Mnk, War/Nin, Nin/War, and Pal/War using Provoke, and even at the lowest levels it is quite apparant that hate management would be extremely difficult without it.
You can successfully act as the main tank without Provoke in an exp party, but you will have more hate management issues, and your party will not be capable of dealing as much damage, killing mobs as quickly, chaining as efficiently, and getting as much exp/hour, and in the later levels of this game it is all about the exp/hour. In terms of actual play, whatever theoretical benefits you could get from the spells or job abilities provided by other subjobs will contribute less to your efficiency as a tank than Provoke, which unlike spells, is an unlimited resource.
If you are somewhat resentful of the fact that /War is mandatory for Paladins in exp party settings, keep in mind that /War also provides us with excellent Vit and HP boosts, a Passive Attack boost, Double Attack, and many helpful job abilities such as Defender and Warcry. Chances are, even if Provoke was not mandatory, which it is, many Paladins would still choose a War sub for these reasons.
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VI. Paladin racial choices
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This is a very sensitive subject on the boards. The first and most important thing to realize when looking at the different racial choices is:
PLAYER SKILL + EQUIPMENT > RACE
Any race can play any job at any level given enough skill and the right gear, and Paladin is no exception.
That being said, certain races such as Galka or Elvaan have natural advantages in terms of the primary Paladin stats Vit and HP. However, these races also have natural disadvantages in terms of total MP for generating hate, and total Agi for damage avoidance through blocked/parried/evaded attacks and reduced critical hits. Taru, Mithra, and Hume Paladins on the other hand, have natural advantages in MP and Agi, but natural disadvantages in HP and Vit.
Each race should take note of their natural disadvantages, and purchase equipment that compensates for them. Again, every race is viable for Paladin, even if they each require different gear choices and a different playstyle.
a. Paladin stats according to race at level 59
For general reference, here are the base stats of the 5 races for a level 59 Paladin/29 Warrior. I am currently working on collecting the stats for each race at level 75, but the stat calculator becomes innacurate post 60. Here are the 59 stats in the meantime:
Galka
HP: 1249 MP: 97 Str: 66 Dex: 50 Vit: 74 Agi: 40 Int: 37 Mnd: 54 Chr: 48
Elvaan
HP: 1130 MP: 188 Str: 69 Dex: 47 Vit: 67 Agi: 36 Int: 33 Mnd: 61 Chr: 55
Hume
HP: 1041 MP: 248 Str: 62 Dex: 50 Vit: 63 Agi: 43 Int: 40 Mnd: 54 Chr: 55
Mithra
HP: 1041 MP: 248 Str: 59 Dex: 61 Vit: 60 Agi: 50 Int: 40 Mnd: 51 Chr: 48
Taru
HP: 863 MP: 428 Str: 55 Dex: 50 Vit: 60 Agi: 47 Int: 51 Mnd: 51 Chr: 55
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VII. Paladin Tips and Tricks
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Here are a few of the tips and tricks I've picked up from my own experiences and that of other Paladins.
a. Avoid the Vit loss from wearing +MP rings
If you are a Galka or Elvaan Paladin you may struggle a little with MP before level 41, at which point Redmages get Refresh and MP conservation becomes a little less stressful. If this is the case, I recommend picking up your RSE gloves and a pair of Astral/Electrum Rings depending on gil/level. However, many Paladins are afraid to do so due to the Vit loss that results from wearing +MP instead of +Vit rings. Fortunately there is a way to bypass this problem.
You can equip your +MP gear via a macro and rest to full MP in between pulls. Once the fight starts, cast Flash or Cure II/III as normal until you have used the additional MP provided by your +MP gear, then switch back to +Vit Rings via another macro. If you have used the 40/50 additional MP from Electrum/Astral Rings, your maximum MP will go down after the gear switch but now your MP bar will be full, and you can wear your +Vit rings for the remainder of the fight.
If you ever have any questions regarding the specific commands for this kind of equipment change macro, use the general formula:
/equip LOCATION "ITEM NAME"
and type: "/? equip" while in game for the list of locations. The macro for switching rings would look like:
/equip R.ring "Astral Ring"
/equip L.ring "Astral Ring"
and vice versa for the change back to +Vit rings. Please note that the item name in quotes in your macro must be identical to how that item name appears in your inventory.
b. Avoid AOE Paralysis/Petrify
Certain mobs have AOE paralyze or Petrify abilities that can throw off your hate routine. However, for some reason these AOE attacks do not effect you when you are not facing the mob. When you see Lizards ready their Gaze attack, for example, simply press the * button to unlock, tap down once to turn around, and wait for the Lizard to use its ability. Once it has, tap up and hit * again to resume target lock. If you time things correctly, you can avoid getting Paralyzed or Petrified.
c. Target mobs the easy way
One of the most irritating things low level Paladins do is frantically tab through all the enemies in range attempting to target the mob the puller just brought back to camp. Once they have the correct mob targeted they then wait to pull their sword out before Provoking while the mob smacks the other party members around.
Instead of doing this, make a macro for "/target " and press it once the puller is within sight to quickly target the mob your party is fighting. This allows you to lock on and draw your sword long before the mob reaches camp. This is especially important fighting in crowded areas with mobs that link, but are generally never attacked. In the Crawlers Nest, for example, many parties in close proximity fight Crawlers, but avoid fighting the Lizards because they link and tend to stand close to each other. The same is true of Moss Eaters in the Boyahda Tree, which are usually avoided in favor of Robber Crabs or Knight Crawlers. Without /target , it is possible to Provoke or Flash the wrong mob type, linking the entire area, and killing not only your entire party, but the entire room. This happens to almost everyone at some point in time. Don't learn the imporatance of /target the hard way.
Hope you liked it
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