The problem with hybrid classes

Being a 75 Blue Mage, I know the power of the job. I've tanked, main healed, did lots of damage, debuffed the mob and even nuked at times. I know what the job can do, much more than an average DD, and the concentration that goes into playing the job well. When I formed parties, I would make do with the jobs available and fill in the role of whatever job we lacked. One of the best parties I put together in the 50s did not have a healer, and was reliant entirely on BLU for healing.

So, last Sunday night I was playing around on Dancer again. As always, I do a quick search to see if it is possible to put a party together using the people who were seeking... Let's see... a Paladin, lots of DDs, no White or Red Mages, but... what's this? A Blue Mage seeking! If I invite him, he can handle the initial cures while I stored enough TP to handle main healing!

Then... the hesitation set in. Would the BLU be able to handle it? Or would he spam all his MP into doing damage? How would he react to being asked to main heal initially? Would the party die on the first mob before I even got enough TP to cure? In the end, this hesitation stopped me from forming the party as I was not confident of another player's capability to play a complex job.


There are a number of hybrid classes in FFXI, and each one has developed into a specific role that people think that they are only capable of doing. This ends up feeding back onto itself until the players of those jobs end up believing it themselves, or worse, become afraid to invite someone to take on a role outside of the norm for fear of the player being unable to rise to the challenge.

The hybrids:
- Blue Mage - Perceived as DD, capable of tanking(at lower levels), main healing
- Dragoon - Perceived as DD, capable of backup healing with /WHM
- Corsair - Perceived as a support class like Bard, capable of DD with guns
- Puppetmaster - Perceived as... I'm actually not sure. I think it's capable of DD, nuking and healing

So, what do you think? Would you invite someone you've never met before on a hybrid job and trust them to do something that isn't typical? Would you have invited a Blue Mage to main heal?