I have to be honest, I haven’t explored this too much but I wanted to write about this, especially since it’s such a big theme in not just the end-game community, the overall playerbase and a running gag on the show as well.
But let’s face it; it’s not a gag when it’s making Sooraya lose interest in the game 
I don’t want to have to change the domain to asktamandnaj.com. (Although I wouldn’t mind Najelith hosting the show with me sometime >.>!)
I’ve used Ninja as a subjob on several instances; Very mininal as Warrior solo (Blue Mage and Dancer were so much better) and in Promyvions (dual tanking the bosses), Black Mage solo and party (2x Yew Wand +1 is uber for my INT!) and White Mage during skill-up parties.
Let’s start with White Mage. I’ve talked to Sooraya about Whinja so many times in the past and I know it’s a very viable option for DD… provided I have the right gear for it. I’m not at the level where I can equip the pirate cudgels, so really, I’ll gladly sacrifice the extra hit for overall efficiency from other jobs.
I was in a skillup party last night, and was *barely* getting skill-ups. Things did change when I swapped in a Spike Necklace and Attack+ earring. Things went faster when I re-equipped my Strike Shield in my off-hand slot for an additional amount of Attack. I understand that in order to skill-up, you need to be able to do damage. I was hitting the target monsters just fine. Between whiffs, I did alright damage, but apparently not enough to get skillups? I’ll test it one more time with dual-wield and just have the spike necklace/earring equipped, then compare it to without those, then with and without my attack shield. (I want a Viking Shield, btw ; 
. Again, I was subbing Ninja purely under the impression that I might improve a skill-up rate. We had tanks so I wouldn’t need shadows. But as it is, /NIN at my current level didn’t do anything for me at all. Not impressed. I’ll probably sub Warrior next time. I’ll have access to Beserk, and Warcry at level 70. So as much as I was all for Whinja in my early days, I have better options for now. I’ll try again if people are kind enough to help me farm the pirate cudgels, or when I get a set of Darksteel Mauls. (I should actually invest in one for when I hit 65).
Warrior didn’t benefit much from subbing ninja so far. The only events I’ve taken my Warrior into are Promyvions, where I was either duo-tanking the boss, or just support DDing with a Great Axe. I always did carry two axes with me, but I wasn’t too fond of it either. Perhaps Centurion Swords might have been a better option at the time, but subbing ninja didn’t do much for my damage at all. When I put together a jungle party for a new linkshell member two nights ago, I thought I’d give /NIN a shot, seeing as she had just hit 24. I’ve heard on multiple acounts that the Jungle is a hell for Ninjas. Party members actually advised against it, but I had no other “viable” subjob for that low a level, besides Blue Mage. Being the puller, I ended up opting for Blue Mage for Metallic Body and Cocoon, and as one of the two WAR tanks, I figured I could generate enmity with Pollen as well (and we were synced down to 24 anyway). However; Dancer in small-parties above 30 was a much better option in terms of survivability compared to /NIN. Sorry guys.
Black Mage actually did benefit from subbing Ninja. I thoroughly enjoyed being able to increase my INT to a total of +29 on top of what my stats were. This increased the numbers of my nukes, to where I could actually see a difference between subbing White Mage for maybe a few points in INT, over the extra Yew Wand for extra 4. Ninja also gives a better native INT boost than WHM does. Keep in mind that I only subbed Ninja in parties when there were enough healers. Otherwise, I would’ve been one of the back-up healers. It worked wonders in solo situations too.
(For the record: Yew Wand+1 x2 = 8, Seer’s Slacks + Seer’s Crown+1 = 4, Custom M Boots = 3, Black Silk Neckerchief = 3, Eremite’s Ring x2 = 4, Cunning Earring x2 = 2, Shaman’s Belt = 1, Black Cape+1 = 3 and Mycophile Cuffs = 1)
I have not subbed Ninja on my other jobs other than Thief and Ranger, mainly for dual wielding (Ranged) Accuracy daggers, get a better damage over time on THF and absorbing various Stone spells and enfeebles by worms on RNG.
This is not to discredit Ninja in its entirety, because it does have its merits in certain situations or certain monsters. I don’t share Sooraya’s opinion on Ninja, but I do have to say that for the most part, it has not warranted any positives on my end. Endgamers and solists will prove otherwise and that’s fine. But as it is, I acknowledge the job, but not where I currently am. I don’t feel it’s a cop-out either, because the ability to negate damage through shadows *does* exist, so why ignore it? I just haven’t met any instances where Sooraya really needed shadows either to the point I was unable or overwhelmed to support her (and the party).
With the recent WHM updates, I am now able to support her even better against magic spells or damage. For DDs subbing ninja that don’t know: Afflatus Solace grants WHM cures an extra Stoneskin effect that’s dependant on how much they cure you for. It’s an extra damage buffer. Esuna will remove debuffs, multiple ones if Afflatus Misery is active. And then there are always the individual debuff-heals. White Mages that are really on the ball with things can take care of non-NINsub DDs. So while I did mention before on the show that subbing ninja would make my job easier, it just means I can’t afford to be lazy. It’ll keep me focused on what’s going on, learn to assess the situation and how to act, and determine if I’m a good healer or not.
And even if I’m not in the game at the moment, Sooraya can take care of herself anyway. I’ve explored Ninja on Warrior and learned that there really aren’t that many merits in subbing it just yet. Who knows, maybe further down the line, I’ll have Warrior up and ready for high-tier events and I’ll experience Ninja sub in a different way. I’ve met people on both sides of the fences and respect their views on it. I’m not necessarily siding with my baby Sooraya here, but now that I understand her position better, people should stop giving her so much flack about it, especially since it doesn’t warrant anything incredibly advantageous right now, anyway. Or joke about it. It’s getting old :3 And if she gets tired of the jokes and preaching to the point she doesn’t want to log in, the game is going to become less fun for me, and there will be less He Says, She Says.
And we don’t want that now, do we?
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