Final Fantasy 14 Patch 6.3 makes divisive Monk change, buffs Machinist

The full list of job changes is out.

By Jess Lee

10 Jan 2023

Final Fantasy XIV has rolled out Patch 6.3, and with it comes a large number of job changes.

Paladin received the biggest rework as previously detailed, with significant changes to its skills, abilities, and rotation, but several other jobs also saw notable tweaks.

Perhaps the most divisive change right now is with Monk and its Riddle of Earth ability, which reduces damage taken by 20% for a short period of time.

Previously, it had three charges with a 30-second recast time, and was excellent regular mitigation.

Square Enix

Riddle of Earth has now been watered down, with no charges at all and a considerably longer cooldown of 120 seconds. Somewhat compensating for this is an additional Earth's Reply effect that provides some regen healing (a cure potency of 100).

While some players argue that Riddle of Earth in its previous form was too powerful, many Monk fans online are feeling underwhelmed by this balance attempt.

However, Machinist fans will no doubt be delighted with the changes to their job. Aside from various potency minor increases, the job has two huge improvements.

The first is that Hypercharge now gives five stacks of Overheated to be used over ten seconds.

Square Enix

This improvement looks to address one of the biggest issues with Machinist. Given the amount of weaving required, it previously did not play well with latency issues when trying to play at the most optimal level. With this change, Heat Blast can be used a set number of times within a slightly more comfortable window.

The other big change is that Machinist has party utility again with the reintroduction of Dismantle, which now lowers the target's damage by 10% for ten seconds.

The other ranged physical DPS jobs have also seen tweaks. For Bard, Nature's Minne now affects all party members and not just one individual, although the recast time has been increased to 120 seconds.

Meanwhile, Dancer's Curing Waltz and Shield Samba can both be executed while dancing.

Square Enix

Sage got a couple of nice improvements. Phlegma, the job's source of burst damage, now has a cooldown of 40 seconds (down from 45), while there is now an additional way to gain Addersting for Toxicon casts – by having a self-applied Eukrasian Prognosis barrier fully absorbed.

Elsewhere, White Mage and Dragoon have had the recast time of Assize and Life's Surge respectively reduced to 40 seconds (from 45), and Warrior's Shake It Off not only has double the barrier effect duration but also comes with a regen healing effect (a cure potency of 100).

The full details for the job changes can be found in the patch notes for 6.3 here.