Standard EXP Party Guide - Black Mage

CAUTION!

This article is only a guide. Information expressed in a guide is usually more opinion than fact and should be taken as such. Guides are written by players, based upon their experiences, successes and mistakes, and are meant to aid other players. However, there may be differing opinions than those expressed in a guide. Strategies and information in guides may not work for everyone.

Black Mages are far more flexible than many players realize. They bring destruction, debuffing, crowd control, and even light healing to standard parties. As the job advances into the mid and later levels, BLM becomes more technical and requires a working knowledge of several mechanics to perform well: preferred melee weapon skills, skillchain properties, and understanding the party lineup you’re supporting.

Partying in a standard group as a BLM will test your communication, awareness, macro management, and timing. You’ll need to watch the frontline’s TP gain closely, coordinate magic bursts, and balance nuking with support. Because of these moving parts, the skill ceiling for BLM is noticeably higher compared to many other jobs in a standard EXP party.

Fortunately, this guide is here to help. Its goal is to teach Black Mages how to shine in standard parties from the mid to late levels—and to encourage BLMs to start their own groups to show others what the job can really do.

This guide is also for party leaders. A BLM offers a unique backline option: instead of buffing allies, they amplify the party’s damage by bringing powerful bursts that capitalize on melee coordination. With a tank, healer, and puller already present, you can often begin leveling much faster by inviting a BLM rather than waiting (sometimes for hours) for a support job to appear.

TL;DR: Black Mages perform extremely well in standard parties from the mid to late levels when they:

• handle backup healing/cleansing

• debuff consistently

• and have at least one reliable skillchain to burst off of (plus free nuking)

This can be achieved easily with a THF puller and a traditional 4 frontline / 2 backline setup.

BLMs also excel in tankless XP setups (3× Melee/NIN, THF or BRD puller, Healer, BLM), serving as a debuffer/support who delivers strong bursts and still contributes solid DPS.

Additionally, BLMs should make full use of Drain to boost their DPS whenever possible (avoid using it on bats and undead—just use low-tier nukes instead).

Bottom line: You don’t always need a dedicated support job if you have a BLM. Get to EXPing faster—bring someone who can throw out bursts and keep the party alive in a pinch.

Please note: This guide does not argue that standard groups are better or worse than other group styles. Only that standard leveling groups are absolutely viable for Black Mage and can be a fun and effective way to play with friends. Play how you like—and enjoy the journey.

Party Preparation

Spells, Spells, Spells. Unlike melee who rely on weapons and armor, Black Mages rely almost entirely on their spell list. To perform well in an EXP party, you must keep every spell up to date—single-target nukes (Tier I–IV), -ga spells, Drain, and Aspir. Yes, -ga spells are just as important as single-target nukes. Higher-level spells have higher base damage, and -ga spells become key tools for burst damage.

Many scrolls can be purchased from NPCs, while others come from quests, monster drops, or the Auction House. Expect spell prices to rise as you level. For example, you’ll need roughly 50,000 gil to purchase all NPC spells up to level 30 with zero fame (not counting Drain, Warp, Tractor, or Aspir).

As costs increase, plan to take short breaks from leveling to make gil—farming low-level mobs, selling crystals/clusters, crafting, HELM activities, or fishing are common methods. This guide won’t cover gil-making in detail, but you will need some income to stay current.

The only spells you can safely skip in a standard leveling party are the Ancient Magic scrolls (e.g., Flare). More on that later.

Equipment

Your primary goal is INT, which boosts both your magic attack and accuracy for black magic. The higher your INT compared to the enemy’s INT, the more damage you’ll deal and the fewer resists you’ll see.

You should also build a MND set for white magic debuffs (Paralyze, Slow, Silence). Higher MND increases both potency and accuracy for these spells.

Starting at level 51, elemental staves become game-changing. They add significant damage and accuracy to your nukes, and the Dark Staff dramatically improves MP recovery and strengthens Drain and Sleep.

Recommended purchase order:

Dark Staff – Resting MP and stronger Sleep/Drain

Ice Staff – Big boost to Paralyze and Blizzard spells

Wind Staff – Helps with Silence and Aero spells

Earth Staff – Helps land Slow and Stone spells

Light Staff – Lower priority for BLM (more useful for WHM/RDM/SMN)

Don’t stress about HQ staves. NQ versions are strong enough for standard parties; HQs are luxury upgrades. If you do aim for HQs, follow the same purchase order.

Food

Like melee, BLMs perform better with food. Look for foods that give +INT, such as fruit pies and rice cakes.

If you want convenience and cheap MP regen, consider leveling Cooking:

Lv 30: Pineapple juice (great for low downtime at early levels)

Lv 40: Melon juice

Lv 50: Grape juice

Lv 60: Yagudo drinks (excellent for mid-late levels if no refresher is present)

Skill Levels

Keeping your Elemental, Dark, and Enfeebling magic skills capped is crucial. Under-skilled magic will get resisted frequently, hurting both your DPS and your ability to land debuffs.

If your skills fall behind (usually due to frequent level sync), take time to skill up—worm-type enemies are ideal targets. Silence them, then spam spells until your skills cap. Worm locations: https://horizonffxi.wiki/Category:Worms

Helpful Addons

Several addons vastly improve performance in a standard EXP party:

Recast / TTimers Shows recast timers so you always know when Drain, Elemental Seal, Divine Seal, and other key abilities are available.

Chains Displays incoming skillchains and tells you which elements you can magic burst with—extremely helpful for timing your nukes.

TParty or HXUI Arguably the most important: these addons let you see your melee’s TP. Knowing when they’re about to WS allows you to time your bursts, manage aggro, and sync your casts more effectively.

On Subjobs

Ideally you want to level both WHM and RDM for your subjobs.

White mage subjob is recommended if your group does not have a support role or tank in it. This will be the majority of your standard leveling parties: 4 frontline melee, 2 mages (you and healer). Expect to lean more as a support/debuffer/off healer to fit in your party. You still should be able to get MBs in. If your group is facing mobs that have damaging AoE abilities (for curaga) or lots of status ailments (courels) it's probably better to go /WHM to support the main healer as well.

Don't expect to be topping the DPS charts if there is no support in your party at higher levels. That's OK! Leave most of the DPS to the 4 frontline so you can maintain mp. You should at least be 2 or 3rd place if you like DPS numbers. Your role is still important by supporting the healer, debuffing, stunning, and magic bursting. Consider limiting free nuking.

Melee are encouraged to sub /NIN in this setup in favor of damage mitigation. But there are ways around this if your party has a Tank + THF in it for hate control for example.

Red Mage subjob is recommended if your party has a support role + tank in it. This party will have a 3 mage backline, 3 melee frontline. Or a BRD + healer + BLM situation. Expect to still backup heal in a pinch. But you'll be free-nuking a lot more. Fast cast will help you be able to double magic burst. You'll also get a bit more INT for your spells' damage and accuracy with RDM sub. The 3 melee frontline should be encouraged to sub /WAR /SAM or /THF for more DPS as there will be at least 3 people that can heal or 2 with a refresh.

Whether you are subbing WHM or RDM, expect to backup heal!

Macros

Standard party or not, you want to be able to quickly access your spells. All spells are important and you want to be able to access any spell on the fly along with the proper equipment swap. You're going to need to access lower level nukes when you need to quickly kill a monster before it may kill you/when you need to chain nuke something down. Here are some examples of how to set up your macros for easy/quick access so you don't have to waste time searching through your menus (So you don't miss a magic burst or back up heal opportunity). Each macro set will have your single target and -GA nukes in the same position for each tier (1-4). With this macro set up, you can quickly scroll through your tiers of single target spells and -GAs. You will also have access to resting, drain, and stun on each page, also in the same position. Could also swap in Aspir as needed. Each macro will have the spell as well as appropriate gear swap for each spell (staves, skill+, etc) Ex: /equipset 10. The macros labeled "DOTS" and "CURES" at the end of each set will jump your macros to the appropriate macro set via "/macro set x" "NUKES" will jump your macros to the appropriate tier of nukes/-agas Again, these are all just some examples in how to set up your macros for accessing spells on the fly. Your preferences may differ!

Tier 1 Nukes and -AGAs Tier 2 Nukes and -AGAs Tier 3 Nukes and -AGAs DoTs Debuffs/Enfeebs Crowd Control Spells Cures/Support Example script to jump to cures macro set Example spell macro script

Leveling Party Composition

And now a lesson on exp party composition...

The most common leveling party that includes a BLM looks like this:

4 Frontline (1 puller, 1 optional tank) + 2 Backline (Main Healer + BLM).

Examples:

• PLD, THF, SAM, WAR, RDM, BLM
• NIN, THF, DRG, DRK, WHM, BLM
• PLD, BRD, WAR/SAM, MNK/WAR, WHM, BLM
• THF/NIN, MNK/NIN, WAR/NIN, DRK/NIN, RDM, BLM
• NIN, DRG/SAM, SAM/WAR, SMN, WHM, BLM

Why Standard Parties Don’t Need a Support Job
A traditional EXP party doesn’t always require BRD/RDM/SMN if you already have a tank and healer — especially if one of the backline jobs is BLM.

A good BLM can:

• Back-up heal and cleanse

• Debuff

• Provide crowd control

• Magic burst

• Add burst DPS to speed kills

Without a support, your party trades steady DPS + low downtime for burst DPS + occasional downtime between chains. Both styles work — but a BLM makes the “burst” version very strong.

THF Synergy: The Secret Weapon for BLM Standard Parties

If your party includes a BLM, you will need a frontline puller (often THF or BRD).

But THF is extremely good with BLM:

• THF is a consistent puller (so you don’t sit in Jeuno for hours waiting for a BRD).
• THF guarantees at least one consistent skillchain, giving BLM reliable burst windows.
• THF naturally manages enmity, making BLM nuking safer.

In short: Your party does not need BRD if you already have a THF. You can run both, but you don’t need BRD for your party to be good.

The “Tricky Part” of BLM in Standard Parties

At higher levels, a BLM in a regular party requires:

• A reliable puller
• Some back-up healing and debuffing
• At least one coordinated skillchain to burst on

This is all solved with:

✔ Four frontline

✔ A healer

✔ A THF puller (or BRD)

That’s it. Very easy to form and highly consistent.

Why Some “Old-School” Parties Struggle

Some leaders build the classic old-FFXI style party: Tank + Healer + Support + (only) 2–3 DPS

Problems:

• Not enough DPS to reach chain 5+
• Melee may sub /NIN and lose damage
• Support jobs + tanks + healers are always in demand → very long waiting times
• You are stuck waiting for the “ideal” lineup instead of playing
• Adding a BLM instead of a support gives you an immediate party that kills fast.

Waiting for meta jobs = lost EXP/hour.

Optimal DPS Flow Without a Support

Dropping the support job opens a slot for:

✔ 3 dedicated DPS

✔ + the puller

✔ + tank + healer + BLM

This drastically increases your party’s ability to spike down mobs quickly.

“But… what about Refresh?”

Refresh is useful — but not required on Horizon due to several era+ improvements:

BLM Tools

Conserve MP (Lv25): Reduces spell cost ~25% of the time

Drain/Aspir: Sustain your MP while dealing damage

WHM Tools

Devotion (45): Big MP restore every 10 minutes

Divine Veil + Regen: Long-lasting enhanced potency regen reduces healing load

PLD Tools

Chivalry (45): Converts TP into MP

Starlight WS: Extra MP while using hammers

DRG Tools

DRG/WHM or DRG/RDM (60+): Effective co-healer + DPS

Server-wide Enhancements

Boosted resting MP formula

Boosted Clear Mind traits

These all significantly reduce the need for Refresh.

How a BLM Changes the Flow of Battle

With a THF pulling and setting up SCs, every other mob can die extremely quickly due to a clean SC + MB.

The other 2 frontline may also set up another chain for the BLM. Doing so will accelerate the party's kill speed. It takes a bit of job/skillchain knowledge to build the right setup to pull this off however to ensure the other 2 melee can chain together.

The healer rests longer between spikes

Even without a support job, uptime is surprisingly high

Your party may have slightly more downtime between chains waiting on respawns — but your kill speed makes up for it.

Summary

You can absolutely run a strong EXP party with:

• 4 frontline (including THF puller)
• 1 healer
• 1 BLM

No support needed. Faster to form. More DPS. More burst potential. More skillchains. And the BLM can cover debuffs + backup healing + crowd control.

BLM's Role and Utility in a Leveling Party

The “Offensive Support Tactician”

A common misconception is that Black Mage is pure DPS with no utility. While this may be true in a manaburn, it is not true in a normal EXP party. BLM plays an offensive support role — a tactician who reads the flow of battle and acts where the party needs it most.

A skillful BLM:

• Enhances skillchain damage (MB / double MB)
• Supports melee coordination
• Debuffs & controls crowds
• Contributes backup healing
• Helps manage enmity & puller safety
• Enables the party to take on higher-level mobs
• Reduces stress on the healer

This makes the job more active and complex than people expect — and gives it a fairly high skill ceiling to master.

BLM as an Offensive Support

A good BLM with updated spells — who knows how to double magic burst — can replace the need for a BRD/RDM/SMN in many party setups. Your bursts are comparable to the overall party-wide benefit that a support job brings.

Damage That Ignores Defensive Buffs

BLM also solves a common problem: Some mobs use defense up or evasion up abilities (like Cocoon or Shell Guard), making physical DPS struggle. Magic bursts ignore this entirely.

Crowd Control & Safety Tools

If the puller brings links or aggro, or a party member gets jumped on the way to camp, BLM provides reliable CC:

• Sleep
• Sleep II
• Sleepga
• Sleepga II
• Bind

Using Elemental Seal ensures these land on even the highest-level targets.

Some camps practically require a BLM or BRD because of dense linking mobs.

Enabling Higher-Level Targeting (More EXP)

From the mid to late levels a BLM in the party allows targeting mobs 9–10+ levels higher than the party — even without a refresher job. Why?

• Level 50+ melee get far stronger WS
• BLM gets elemental staves
• AF gloves provide +15 elemental skill
• Skillchain → Magic Burst → Double MB deletes mobs
• Damage jumps dramatically

The higher the enemy, the more EXP chains reward you — and the party outlevels the camp much more slowly.

Freeing Melee From /NIN (More DPS for the Party)

With a tank, a THF, and SC+MB burst damage, melee don’t need to sub /NIN in most standard parties. Subjobs like /WAR, /SAM, or /THF offer significantly more DPS.

Why /NIN becomes unnecessary:

• A tank + THF controls enmity
• Skillchain + MB kills the mob before hate becomes a problem
• BLM can Stun (Lv45+) to protect melee taking aggro
• BLM off-healing reduces emergency healing spikes

Melee without shadows simply need to avoid opening a fight with a WS and should watch their threat. Two-handers especially benefit from being able to sub /SAM again.

BLM Reduces Stress on the Healer

BLM is a self-sufficient DPS:

• Drain
• Blink
• Stoneskin
• Regen
• Stun
• Off-cures

Unlike melee DPS, BLM rarely needs:

• Haste
• Constant healing
• Extra attention

This frees the main healer to rest more often, preserving MP during long chains.

BLM Improves Melee Coordination

Melee love skillchaining—but coordinating SCs can be messy without structure.

BLM naturally:

• Establishes the SC order
• Prevents DPS from stepping on each other
• Gives melee satisfying teamwork moments
• Increases the party kill speed without the need of a support

Melee want to SC; BLM gives them a reason and a rhythm.

Enfeebling: The Underrated Strength

BLM has C+ enfeebling, which is:

• Higher than WHM’s enfeebling
• Boosted by elemental staves (for extra accuracy)
• You can reliably land: Paralyze, Slow, Blind

These dramatically reduce the mob’s effectiveness and MP strain on the healer.

Utility Spells (The Extra Bonuses) BLM’s toolkit gives your party comfort, safety, and efficiency:

• Lv25 – Tractor: Pull bodies from dangerous spots
• Lv29 – Escape: Safely warp out of dungeons
• Lv45 – Stun: Save shadows, protect melee, interrupt abilities
• Lv50 – Warp II: Instant travel convenience (everyone loves this)

Subjob Utility

/WHM

• Cures, Curaga, -na spells
• Regen
• Divine Seal (major cure/curaga)
• Raise & Reraise (Lv50)
• Sneak 40 / Invis 50

/RDM

• Cures, Regen
• Sneak 40 / Invis 50
• Dispel at 64
  • Incredibly valuable if no RDM/BRD/SMN is present

When to Sub /WHM vs /RDM

If the party does not have a support job (very common), /WHM is preferred for:

• Backup cures / clean-up
• Divine Seal
• Regen support
• Raise/Reraise insurance

You become more of an enfeebler + off-healer, while still focusing on MBs for DPS. Avoid heavy AoE camps without Aspir unless your group is skilled.

A Word on the Early levels

As started earlier, the early levels (12-25ish) involve mostly free-nuking (casting a damaging spell that will not burst/is not after a skillchain).

Consider soloing from 1-12 in the starter zones. Groups are much easier to get into from level 12+. Make use of poison when soloing. It has been boosted on horizon and does great DOT.

You may luck out with geared and coordinated melee that chain in low level parties but generally melee accuracy is pretty low for consistent chaining and TP gains.

The best things you can do in the early level parties are:

• Cast drain on cooldown, and free nuke your highest spells (uncluding -agas, they deal a lot more damage than single target nukes, just watch for any close by mobs). Blizzard is probably the best high damage spell you can use in the early levels once you get it. Many mobs do not have resistance or are weak to ice. Don't shy away from chain nuking down a mob if you think you can kill it before it gets too angry, turns to you, and tries to eat you.

• Be mindful of mob resistances (you probably don't want to cast water on crabs and pugs...), and watch your hate.
• If you pull aggro, hold off free nuking for a moment, unless you think you can kill the mob before it kills you.
• Be on the lookout for any links the puller brings to the party. Elemental seal + bind/sleep will save your party. Have those spells and ES macroed up for quick reaction.
• Back up the main healer. Especially if there are only 2 mages in the party (Will be the majority of your exp parties). Keeping the frontline alive is a priority. /WHM sub is probably best at the low levels, getting through the dunes, for poisona to support the healer.
• Refrain from being "sleepy" in your parties and resting too much. BLM MP management is unlike a healer's where it's fine to use up a lot of mp quickly if it's going to push the enemy to death and get exp faster. Casting a free nuke to deal a chunk of damage, finish a mob off, catch an magic burst, or save someone from dying is worth missing out on resting to full mp.
  • Consistently resting to full mp = holding your party back on exp gains.

Coordinating with the Melee

As a Black Mage, your primary contribution (though not your only one) is magic bursting after melee create a skillchain. BLM damage will be mediocre without at least one consistent skillchain to burst off of.

THF Is Your Best Friend
If your party has a THF, they will almost always want to skillchain. THF damage relies on creating chains (Distortion and Detonation at lower levels), and THF typically serves as the puller with excellent hate-control tools—making it safe for you to burst aggressively.

Melee 3 and 5 have TP to skillchain (HXUI addon). Be ready to magic burst.

When Melee Already Know Their Chains In mid- to late-level parties, many melee will already know which weapon skills chain together, or they’ll be using addons that tell them. In these groups, your job is simple: watch TP → watch for the closer → burst immediately. Once melee see big burst numbers regularly, they will naturally keep chaining because it speeds up kills dramatically.

When You Need to Coordinate the Chain
If melee are not chaining, you may need to help coordinate. This requires only basic knowledge of common WS combinations and their properties. The payoff in party DPS is well worth it.

Almost any two melee jobs can form a skillchain as long as you know which weapons they’re using.

Example coordination:

“WAR, are you on Great Axe or Axe?”

“DRK, Scythe or Great Sword?”

“Great—DRK can you open for WAR?”

“Vorpal Scythe → Sturmwind = Reverberation. I’ll burst Waterga II on it.”

Do Not Over-Control the Melee
Avoid dictating exact skillchain setups unless the group asks for help. Sometimes a chain that is easier for the melee is better than one that is optimal for you.

A consistent chain is always better than the “perfect” chain that stresses the party. Once melee see the HP drop from your bursts, they will usually keep chaining naturally.

Avoid “TP Ready” / “SC Ready” Macros

That style belonged to old-school FFXI. Today it slows down kills because it creates hesitation.

Most players use addons that show everyone’s TP. Just advise the opener: “Use WS as soon as both of you hit 100% TP.”

Low-Level Considerations (Sub-30)
Before ~25–30 melee accuracy is poor and TP gain is inconsistent. Newer players are still learning how chaining works. At these levels you may want to mostly free-nuke and drain unless your melee naturally start chaining.

In 4-melee / 2-mage parties it can still happen; just watch TP and react.

On Weaponskills and Skillchains

Melee do have their preferred heavy hitting weapon skills. But usually they are happy to open or close a chain as long as they get to use their heavy hitting weapon skills. It's more fun to have a buddy to skillchain with rather than spamming weapon skills as well! If partying with a THF or melee that uses /THF, they probably want to close a chain.

• THFs using Daggers want to close Distortion or Scission with Wasp Sting or Viper Bite. Tip: become familiar with how dagger weapon skills chain with other weapon skills. You most likely will be working with THFs/Daggers in your groups. At lower levels you may need to nudge THFs to close Detonation with Gust Slash though if the other melee can't open Distortion. For example, your party has a Great Axe WAR or DRK using Sturmwind and no other melee to work with the THF (Maybe there is a BRD in the party taking up that melee spot). Luckily Gust Slash has been era+ to hybrid damage so it actually does some decent damage with sneak/trick attack. Starting at 60 THFs are really happy to close Detonation Scission and Distortion with Dancing Edge.

• Starting at 23 WARs like to use Sturmwind with Great Axe. This goes all the way till level 60 when they get Raging Rush. Sturmwind can open Reverberation, Detonation, Impaction or Induration. Sturmwind closes Reverberation and Fragmentation. Once WARs Hit 60 they want to start using Raging Rush which can open or close Fragmentation, and closes Induration and Reverberation. Raging Rush also opens Impaction. Some DRKs roll with Great Axe at lower levels too.

• Axe wielding WARs and BSTS have a few options before they get Rampage at 55. Raging Axe closes Detonation, Impaction, and Fusion. Raging Axe opens Detonation Liquefaction and Gravitation. At 33 Avalanche Axe opens Fragmentation and Impaction. Avalanche Axe also closes Induration. At 49 Spinning Axe opens Fusion and Liquefaction, and can close Distortion or Liquefaction. Once WARs and BSTs get Rampage they can close Distortion, or open Detonation Reverberation and Liquefaction.

• DRKs who use Scythe tend to like Shadow of Death starting at level 23. Shadow of Death closes Fragmentation, Induration, and Reverberation. Shadow of Death opens Impaction and Induration. Starting at 49 Scythe DRKS really want to use Vorpal Scythe. Vorpal Scythe opens Distortion, Detonation, Scission, Reverberation, and Liquefaction. Vopral Scythe can close Scission. Starting at 60 DRKs REALLY want to use Guillotine on scythe. Guillotine opens Fragmentation and Impaction, and closes Induration.

• Great Sword wielding DRKs are versatile. They can open or close nearly any chain. They could close Distortion with Hardslash. They do tend to like using Frost Bite at 23 and Freezebite at 33 though. Both open Fragmentation and close Induration. Freezebite will also close Detonation and open Scission. However at level 55 they really want to use Crescent Moon which closes Distortion and opens Reverberation, Liquefaction, and Detonation. At 60 Great Sword wielding DRKs prefer to use Sickle Moon which shares the same properties as Crescent moon and also closes Fusion and Impaction.

• Similar to Great Sword DRKs SAMs with Great Katanas are versatile. However they tend to like Tachi: Enpi. Which opens and closes Distortion and Scission (THFs and SAMs will like working together). Enpi opens Reverberation, Scission, Detonation, and Liquefaction. At 49 SAMs like to use Tachi:Jinpu, which opens Reverberation, Liquefaction, Detonation, and Gravitation. Jinpu will close Distortion, Scission, and Detonation. When SAMs hit 60 they prefer to use Yukikaze, which opens Fragmentation/Impaction, and closes Detonation.

• MNKs using Hand-to-Hand like to use Combo and starting at 41 Raging Fists. Both are good to close Fusion and Impaction, or open Detonation. At 24 Monks get One Inch Punch. It opens Detonation and closes Gravitation. At 33 Monks get Backhand Blow, which is also pretty strong and closes Detonation. Backhand Blow opens Scission and Gravitation as well. Starting at 60 Monks like to use Howling Fist. Howling Fists opens Distortion, Reverberation, Liquefaction, and Detonation. Howling Fists closes Fusion and Impaction.

• DRGs with Polearms are usually happy to open Distortion or Reverberation with Double Thrust until they hit 49. Then they REALLY want to use Penta Thrust. Penta Thrust opens Detonation and closes Gravitation. At 55 DRGs get Vorpal Thrust which opens Distortion and Induration. At 60 DRGs get Skewer (era+ adjustments) which opens Distortion, Fragmentation amd Reverberation. See if you can coax DRGs to open Distortion or Fragmentation. It's great if you have a War THF or Rng to close. But at 60 they could go back to opening Detonation again with penta if you're also partying with a THF that can close with Dancing Edge.

• RNGs using Guns or Bows shouldn't have any issues opening Distortion, Reverberation, Induration, or Fusion until 55 when they get Sidewinder/Slug Shot. Then they want to only use those WS. Sidewinder/Slug Shot will open Impaction and Gravitation...but you probably want RNGs to be a closer for Fragmentation Reverberation or Detonation with Sidewinder/Slug Shot. Reason being it does A LOT of damage and will pretty much pull hate from any tank and can mess up the next melee's weapon skill, "Too far away".
• If you are partying with a Summoner you can consider including avatars in skillchains. They can open/close pretty much any chain with their avatars. They could chain with the tank when they get TP or can do a 3 step after the melee do their chain. Or pick 1 melee and just chain with them. If you have a PLD tank, Red Lotus Blad > Burning Strike makes Fusion. Avatars also make decent Magic Bursts so that's fun too if your SMN prefers the bursting to the chaining.

• Sword-wielding PLDs are versatile and can open nearly any chain; notably Fusion, Gravitation, and Distortion. NINs can open quite a few chains with katanas as well; notably Induration, Distortion, Gravitation, and Fragmentation. Both jobs aren't bad at closing chains either. At higher levels PLDs can gain TP almost as fast as the front line. It is a good idea to coordinate another chain for your tanks. Thf has a partner that is opening for them. Pld is opening for their partner. Ideally your party wants to aim for chains where a melee DD or summoner can close with a strong WS/BP for extra skillchain damage. Make sure your tanks are eating accuracy tank food (sushi, ikra gunkan) so they don't delay a chain too much.

Ideally you want to find a chain that you can burst your highest level spell off of, but your damage output shouldn't suffer too much if you are able to double burst something lower tier. Some mobs have certain elemental resistances as well so your highest nukes may not be the best choice as well. Some versatile weapon-wielding melee will say, "I can use either weapon" when you ask about what they can use for SCing. Use that to your advantage to figure out a chain that you can burst the best nuke off of for the camp.

The most popular skillchain in leveling parties is Distortion followed by Detonation. (Water, Blizzard and Aero spells are the most important spells to be updated on as BLM.)

Check out these charts to see how certain weapons skills chain with each other.

Skillchain Chart

Level 2-3 Skillchains Chart

Higher level party lineup/skillchaining tips:

• Starting around levels 65-66 skillchaining gets much easier. Melee learn powerful weapon skills that chain together easier to make level 2 and 3 skillchains. Level 3 chains are awesome! They do tons of damage (basically doubles the damage of the WS that closes a level 3 chain) and BLM can burst up to 4 elements off of those. It will become even more easier to create chains when melee unlock their final weaponskill.
• At higher levels (67+) THF+BLM+(any other 2 melee DPS) continues to synergize pretty well. All you'll need is a healer and a tank (unless all the melee want to sub ninja) and you're party is set. Some meta exp parties/players start to leave out THFs (unfortunately) at around that level so you will often find a few THFs seeking to invite. The same goes for PLDs. You can probably find a lot of PLDs seeking. PLD+THF+(any 2 melee DPS)+BLM can be strong as PLDs are versatile in opening/closing chains with sword. A THF closing light/fragmentation or opening Distortion with a trick attack Shark Bite on a tank followed by a BLM MBing can be on par with other party set ups for consistent exp chain 5+ against monsters 10+ levels higher than the party. Trick attack will also solidify threat on the tank. Bonus points if the THF has Evisceration; they can then open/close Darkness or open Fragmentation for more options in creating chains.
  • If partying with THF and MNK melee DDs at higher levels, and MNK does not have Asuran Fists, the THF will most likely need to close Distortion with Dancing Edge; MNK opening with Howling Fist. Consider having a 4 front line party lineup (no bard) if partying with THF+MNK at higher levels so they have another melee to work with if the MNK doesn't have Asuran Fists.
    • THF could also close Fragmentation (Shark Bite) with the PLD (Swift Blade) or NIN (Blade: Ten/Ku) tank opening for them.
    • PLD or NIN could also close darkness after THF and MNk make Distortion if they have TP for multiple bursting opportunities every other mob or so.
    • PLD and MNK could make Fusion (Red Lotus Blade > Howling Fist), and THF close Light (Shark Bite) when all have TP as well.

The Magic Burst

When 2 compatible weapon skills occur in succession, a skillchain is formed. Skillchains have elemental properties. And if you cast a spell that matches an elemental property property of the skillchain within approximately 10 seconds, that spell will "BURST", meaning it will have a lot more accuracy and cause a lot more damage. Magic bursting is boosted on Horizon for extra accuracy and damage as well.

Note: The window for magic bursting is closed if another weapon skill is used after a skillchain is created. Communicate with the other melee to please hold off using weaponskills during the SC+ (double)MB combo.

A review of each skillchain and their magic burst properties:

De­to­na­tion = Burst Aero
Im­pac­tion = Burst Thunder
Scis­sion = Burst Earth
Rever­be­ra­tion = Burst Water
Li­que­fac­tion = Burst Fire
In­du­ra­tion = Burst Blizzard
Trans­fixion = Burst Light
Com­pres­sion = Burst Dark
Fu­sion = Burst Fire and Light
Frag­men­ta­tion = Burst Thunder and Aero
Dis­tor­tion = Burst Water and Blizzard
Gra­vi­ta­tion = Burst Earth and Dark
Light = Burst Light, Fire, Thunder, Aero
Dark­ness = Burst Dark, Water, Earth, and Blizzard

Review the skillchain chart in the above section to see how your melee can skillchain. Luckily powerful weapon skills do chain with eachother so melee are usually happy to chain as they can still use their favored weapon skills.

...So you've got your party together, figured out a skillchain to burst off of, and you're at camp now and the front line are hitting the mob. While the healer is looking at HP bars making sure the party is healthy, you, the black mage, are looking at the TP bars and making sure you're ready for magic bursting....

You now see that the two melee (most likely going to be a THF and their partner) who are chaining are getting close to 1000+ TP. Get ready. Stand up if you are resting.

Melee 3 and 5 have TP to SC (HXUI addon. Be ready to Magic Burst.)

Magic Bursting is tactical. Do NOT ask the melee to wait for your spells. Be aware of what's happening on the front line. Follow the melee in their chain. Every second that delays the melee in their chain, delays mob being defeated/exp.

When you see the first melee weapon skill, start casting your hardest hitting nuke that will burst off of the incoming skill chain (Distortion, Detonation, and Reverberation are the most common chains especially at the lower levels).

If you are using the chains addon it will show you what you can burst with.

-GA AoE nukes are highly recommended for magic bursting! Your party should not be camping by close mobs that will aggro/link/get caught in the -GA so you should be safe to -AGA. -AGA nukes generally do a lot more damage than the single target nukes of the same tier (Prioritize Aeroga over Aero for a Detonation chain).

You should be finishing your nuke soon after the 2nd melee uses a weaponskill and the skillchain goes off for a magic burst. It may take some practice with your party mates to get the timing right. Observe and acclimate to the "rhythm" of the melee after a few fights.

Reminder: The window for magic bursting is closed if another weaponskill is used after a skillchain is created. Communicate with the other melee to hold off using WS during the SC+ (double)MB combo if you notice they are doing so.

More tips on Magic Burst Timing:

• The First EXP Mob
  • It's not uncommon for the first mob pulled to be the "TP builder." Depending on how geared your melee are, they may not have TP until the first exp mob is below 50%. You can think of it as the DPS machine needing a minute to get the engine started. Consider free nuking a lot more on the first exp mob to help melee kill it before they have TP for a chain. It's OK to blow a lot of MP on the first mob to kill it before the melee have TP to chain. Just make sure you have have enough mp to burst on the following mob when the chain is incoming. Advanced Tactic Alert: Consider using Manafont on the first mob to save a lot of MP. It will set you up with a big chunk of MP to work with after melee have the TP. After that first mob, opportunities for chains and bursts open up for the following mobs to have higher than 50-60% HP.

• If you are partying with a THF or a melee that is /THF closing the chain, consider giving an extra second or two before casting for SATA setup.

• Some melee will "buff" themselves before using a weaponskill (berserk, soul eater, aggressor, etc.). This will delay the skillchain a bit as well. Keep a close eye on the melee to make sure you are timing your casting appropriately.

• At lower levels you may need to delay your Magic Burst a bit as well due to the shorter spell casting time of lower tier spells.

Note: The window for magic bursting opens as soon as the 2nd melee uses their weaponskill. You do not need to wait for the skillchain animation to finish before you can burst. You can burst while the animation is occurring. Ideally you actually WANT to be bursting during the skillchain animation. More on that in the next section.

Congratulations! You should see a "Magic Burst!" in your log. Enjoy watching the mob's HP drop during the skillchain magic burst combo.

If you have a RDM or SMN in your party they may be joining you in bursting. WHM can burst too if the chain is Fusion or Light.

Note: Again, skillchaining/Magic Bursting opportunities are a bit limited until around level 25-30, when melee have access to more accuracy gear. This guide is more geared towards partying during the middle-later levels as a black mage. During the lower levels, it may be more efficient to focus on free nuking, casting drain, backup healing, and debuffing in your party (all while watching your aggro of course). But it is entierly possible to be bursting at the early levels, especially if you have 4 frontline and 2 mages in your party.

See: https://horizonffxi.wiki/Magic_Burst for additional information on Magic Bursts.

The Double Magic Burst

So you've got magic bursting down... but if you really want to rival the melee DPS from the mid to upper levels, and shock your group in how much damage you can do, you want to look at double magic bursting.

There is about a 10 second window for magic bursting. It begins right after the 2nd melee uses their weapon skill. Before the skillchain animation finishes. This means you can pull off a 2nd burst. As soon as you are finishing your first bursting nuke, immediately start casting another bursting nuke for the skillchain.

Usually the combo is a single target nuke followed by an -AGA or vice versa (ex: Water 2 <-> Blizzaga after a Distortion chain), whatever is stronger at your level.

This is why being up to date on all your spells is important. You want access to both single target and -aga nukes to do as much damage as possible for double bursting.

You can certainly double MB subbing WHM in your parties. It may take a little practice with how early you need to start casting. Subbing Red Mage gives you fast cast which will nearly guarantee you being able to burst a 2nd nuke however. If you are using HXUI you can press the macro to start casting your 2nd burst at around 80-90% cast bar of your first bursting nuke. It will take some practice to get the timing right when to press the macro of your 2nd bursting spell. Some spell animations take longer to complete which will delay when you press the 2nd burst macro.

Note: The example double magic burst pictures are against an incredibly tough enemy at level 55 using a water staff and moldavite earring (Ifrit's Cauldron Camp). DRG (Vorpal Thrust) and DRK (Crecent Moon) melee making Distortion chain. BLM/RDM is watching the TP of the melee, starting Waterga II right after DRG opens for DRK, and casting Water III right after Waterga II to double burst.

Enjoy watching even more of the mob's HP drop. Double MBing most likely will finish a mob off or at least bring it to near death. It will take some more practice to time everything but it's very satisfying to pull off, and will skyrocket your DPS.

At higher levels, if melee have full TP at the beginning of a battle your party can take out an IT mob within seconds with a Skillchain + double magic burst combo. Very fun/satisfying to pull off. The healer can keep resting mp through the whole mob fight because it isn't going to be alive long enough to hit the tank much, if at all.

It's possible to start double magic bursting as early as level 17 with blizzard + water on a Distortion chain. At level 19 double magic bursting grows in power with Waterga + blizzard. Blm can easily out DPS any melee with this strategy if you luck out with melee that can chain consistently in the early levels.

Starting at level 44 (Waterga II + Blizzard II), black mages can start double bursting for ~1K damage after a distortion chain. Boom!

• Note: Starting at around level 57, the higher tier spells (blizzaga II) start taking more time to cast. It may be harder to pull off a double magic burst with consecutive high tier nukes. To deal with this try using a lower tier spell to be able keep the double bursting up. EX: Blizzaga II > Blizzard or Blizzaga. Blizzaga II > Blizzard II may be trickier with the timing but it's possible.

Melee should be starting a chain before 50-60% of the mob's HP. The SC double MB combo should finish the mob off or at least make it close to being dead.

If melee are consistently getting 1000 TP below 30-40% of a mob's health, then that most likely means you are not free nuking enough.

• If melee are starting a fight with 0/low TP, they most likely will be getting to 1000 for WS when the mob has lower than 50% HP. Really consider free nuking a bit more in these instances to push mobs to death before/when melee get the TP so they can start a SC at the beginning of the next mobs for a quick kill. Free nuking can take big chunks of HP off the mob. Consider what your highest level single target nuke is and what the mob's resistances are.

If the melee start a chain and double burst combo at the start of a fight, and you don't have a THF, the tank may lose hate. Your party might want to wait a bit for the tank to get some hate.

Or, have blink (and later stoneskin) up before the combo and you can act like a mini tank for a few seconds while the real tank works to get hate back or until the mob dies. You can even start casting blink while you are taking hate to put on more shadows after the first blink ends. With shadows and stoneskin up you will have a window to free nuke some more to finish off the mob while it is trying to attack you after (double) bursting.

At 45 you get stun which you can cast while you are taking threat and the mob is almost dead. Stun will give you a bit more time to free nuke and/or cast drain to finish off the mob. If you are partying with a THF you should not have to worry about getting too much threat as they have a lot of tools for for controlling threat.

The most popular skillchains are Distortion, followed by Detonation and Fragmentation in low/mid-level exp parties. If you are low on gil, make sure to at least be up to date on all water, ice, and wind spells for bursting options.

Double bursting is more viable with a support in your party at the higher levels and you subbing RDM. 1 less melee means you're gonna need to make up for it in double bursting and free nuking. Your personal DPS should be pretty high/tops in these kind of parties.

If there is no support in the party (4 frontline, Healer, BLM setup), /WHM sub may be the better choice to support the main healer. You still should be able to at least single magic burst but your role may lean more into support in this setup as an off-healer, cleanser, and debuffer. At levels 60+ melee gain more power with strong WSs. You can let the melee start to do more of the DPS work with 4 frontlines. Mobs most likely won't have enough HP for double magic bursting with 4 frontline anyway at the higher levels.

Paralyze, slow, frost/choke, and dia II will go a long way to support the party and make it easier for the main healer. Your personal DPS will drop a bit. But the trade off is parties will start defeating mob much faster with the frontline doing more DPS and you leaning more as a support that does huge MBs. It's still possible to dish out the double MBs every so often. Just be mindful of your and the main healer's MP, and the frontline HP. Adjust to your party as needed to keep the exp flow decent.

The 3-Step Magic Burst

This is a more advanced strategy but tanks or the 3rd melee can participate in a 3 step chain with the THF and their partner if they are up for it. The BLM can then burst off of two chains with high tier nukes! BLM DPS will significantly spike. This will take some practice but it's very fun/satisfying for everyone to pull off.

You now have 3 melee's TP to watch. Melee #1 and melee #2 make a level 1 chain. You burst off that chain. As soon as you finish casting the first MB, immediately start casting your 2nd MB. Melee #3 then creates another chain. You burst off of that 2nd chain.

You may only have enough MP to double MB and rest as the double burst will be 2 high level nukes (usually a single target followed immediately by an -aga). There may be limited bandwidth for debuffing/backup healing. But the trade off is that mobs are getting defeated rapidly enough to where the healer should have enough room to rest entirely through some fights.

Note that you cannot create a level 1 chain after you've made a level 2. You can however create a level 1 chain after another level 1 chain.

• Ex: DRK uses Vorpal Scyth, WAR closes with Sturmwind to make Reverberation. You burst Waterga 2 off that. PLD then uses Flat Blade to make Impaction. You then burst Thunder 2 and potentially double burst Thundaga off Impaction.
• Ex2: PLD uses Circle Blade (Or NIN uses Blade: Teki), MNK closes with Raging Fists to make Impaction. You Burst Thunder 2 off that. THF then SA/TA Dancing Edge to make Detonation. You then Burst Aeroga II.
• Ex3: BST uses Raging Axe. THF SA/TA Viper Bite to make Scission. You burst Stone 3. MNK uses Backhand Blow to make Detonation. You burst Aeroga II.

3-Stepping with a PLD tank may be easier to pull off, as the PLD may be using a club for Star Light MP. 2x partner skillchains with a NIN tank may be easier to pull off as they will be using damaging WSs.

Party Leader Tactics and Strategies with BLM

This section provides guidance for party leaders including a Black Mage (BLM) in standard EXP parties, or Black Mages leading their own parties. It covers optimal party setups, coordination, and tactical strategies to maximize DPS, skillchains, and party efficiency.

1. The Party Lineup:
A traditional party with a BLM typically consists of:

• 1 Main Tank (PLD or NIN)
• 2 Melee DPS
• 1 THF / Puller
• 1 Black Mage (BLM) with /WHM or /RDM subjob
• 1 Main Healer (WHM or RDM)

This lineup usually allows the party leader to avoid extended recruitment for a bard or additional support.

For parties targeting mobs with AoEs or status effects: the BLM should consider subbing /WHM to function as a support/debuffer/stunner/drainer, assisting the main healer in MP management.

The THF generally handles pulling, threat management, acid bolt debuffs, and skillchain creation.

The BLM magic bursts as well as acts as backup healer and debuffer to conserve the healer’s MP.

Main healer focuses on cures, regen, refresh/devotion, and haste buffs.

MP Management Tips:
If the main healer is WHM, limit the number of party members using MP, as Devotion can only target one member every 10 minutes. (1 PLD or DRK + BLM is ideal with WHM). Prioritize the frontline MP user instead of the BLM to maintain melee frontline uptime.

BLM subjobs (/WHM or /RDM) can reduce MP strain but bringing MP drinks is recommended.

2. Skillchain Coordination

Typical Scenario:

• At least one skillchain involves the THF and one frontline member.
• Advanced coordination may include two skillchains:
  • Chain A: THF + Melee or THF + Tank
  • Chain B: Melee + Melee or Tank + Melee or Tank + THF
• The BLM should double Magic Burst (MB) off each chain.
• Coordinating 2 skillchains betweeen the 4 melee is ideal/will 100% accelerate the party's kill speed
• Coordination of a 3 step chain may be considered with PLD tank using a Club for MP recovery.

Priority Chain Assignment:

• If multiple chains are ready simultaneously, assign a “priority chain” (typically THF + partner first).
• Aim to start every other mob with THF + partner at full TP for maximum burst potential.
  • Pattern: Mob 1 → Chain A + MB → Mob 2 → Chain B + MB → repeat.

Advanced Tips:

• If melee TP is low, BLM may free nuke to adjust mob HP for the next chain.
• At higher levels, coordinate one light or dark chain; secondary chains can be level 1 as long as WS damage is sufficient.
• Non-chaining melee should avoid WS during MB windows to prevent closing chains prematurely.

3. Partying with a Support

Including a support (BRD, SMN, RDM) is viable but may be difficult to put together as tanks, healers, and supports are always in demand.

In support-inclusive parties:

• Frontline melee should avoid /NIN subjobs for maximum DPS.
• BLM should consider subbing /RDM, free nuking frequently, and double bursting in coordination with the support.

Support Party Variants:
Summoner Setup: Tank, THF/puller, 2nd Melee, BLM, SMN, Healer

• SMN can chain with melee, summon pacts for DPS, or provide buffs/refresh at higher levels.

Red Mage Setup: Tank, THF/puller, 2nd Melee, BLM, RDM, WHM

• RDM sub BLM to boost DPS, Drain, and Magic Bursts.

Bard Setup: Tank, Bard/puller, 2 melee, Healer, BLM

• Bard provides refresh, buffs, debuffs, and pulls; frontline weapons must chain effectively as there are only 3 frontline.

4. Partying without a Tank

If no PLD or NIN is available, a melee-centric party can compensate:

• Frontline: 3 Melee/NIN (e.g., WAR/NIN, SAM/WAR, DRK/NIN) for provoke/stun hate control.
  • If you have a SAM ask them to use /WAR subjob and use Seigan with Third Eye for mitigation and first aggro with provoke.
  • DRK/NIN can be an effective first aggro using Stun/Last Resort/Weapon Bash/Soul Eater. All these abilities generate a high amount of hate.
• Puller: THF/NIN, BRD/NIN, or other melee capable of pulling.
• Healer: WHM or RDM (SMN/WHM optional at level 42+)
• Black Mage: BLM/WHM
  • If SMN is the other backline, then BLM will lean a bit more in supporting off healing as SMN can hastega, refresh, and warcry.

BLM Priorities:

• Debuffing and off-healing: Paralyze, Blind, Slow, Choke, Frost, Divine Seal cures.
• Free nuking/Drain: Increase DPS while monitoring threat.
• Survivability: Use Blink, Stoneskin, Stun, and coordinate with THF for hate management.

Additional Notes: Non-main-tank setups require careful attention to enmity. THFs may have limited ability to SA/TA with this setup. Make use of Hide before SA/TA.

WHM main healer:

• limit MP-using frontliners due to Devotion cooldown.
• Favor Regen over Cures for MP conservation. Use all Regens available, and keep Regens rolling.

Black Mage Battle Tactics (In a standard EXP party)

BLM in standard EXP parties do NOT “Magic Burst and sit.” In these groups, a BLM functions as a hybrid DPS–support, contributing massive damage while helping the party manage mobs efficiently.

1. Role and Subjob Choice

Your subjob determines how active you are as a support or DPS:

/WHM Subjob (Support-Focused)

• Ideal if the party lacks a support (BRD, RDM, SMN) or main tank (4x melee/NIN frontline).
• Provides off-healing, cures/curagas, regen, raise, reraise, and minor debuff coverage.
• Helps the healer conserve MP while you maintain DPS and debuffs.

/RDM Subjob (DPS-Focused)

• Ideal if the party already has a main tank, healer, and support.
• Adds Gravity, debuffs, and Fast Cast for more efficient nuking and double Magic Bursts.
• Allows more aggressive free nuking

2. Macro Speed & Awareness

Quick and accessible macros are essential for effective Magic Bursts (MB) and free nukes. Stay aware of melee TP, skillchains, and mob behavior; do not idle while resting MP.

Key Mindset: You are as active as the frontline; your DPS windows are bursty and situational.

3. Drain Usage

Drain is your bread-and-butter spell. Aim to cast once per fight to sustain MP and add DPS. Drain scales well with Dark Magic skill and costs very little MP (21 MP).

Timing options:

• Start of fight (after tank provokes)
• After (double) MB
• Whenever MP and opportunity allow

Drain is excellent even when subbing (/WHM), but avoid it against bats or undead. Treat Drain as your “weapon swing/TPing”: consistent, efficient damage.

4. Free Nuking
Free nukes fill downtime outside skillchains and MB windows.

• Early fight: use lower-tier nukes to avoid pulling aggro.
• Late fight: heavy nukes can finish mobs, especially when tanks/melee have aggro.

Balance free nuking with threat; use Blink/Stoneskin if needed. In support-focused setups (/WHM), free nuking should be used more conservatively. Always consider elemental weakness, weather/day buffs, and Elemental Seal (ES) for optimal damage.

5. Debuffing

BLM excels at enfeebling magic. Effective debuffs help both melee and healers.

• Priority Spells: Paralyze, Slow, Blind, Dia(II), Poison(II), Gravity (/RDM)

Cast early in fights, especially in parties without a main tank or support. Enfeelbing magic has MUCH lower enmity compared to nukes; safe to cast at the start of fights.

Reduce debuffing when mobs die quickly or if the party is already well-geared and supported. This typically happens when your party has 2 skillchains set up and you are defeating mobs quickly with SC+MB each pull.

6. Backup Healing

Keep an eye on the main healer’s MP. Use Cure/Curaga/Regen when needed, particularly if:

• The party lacks a support
• Facing high AoE/status mobs
• Healer is resting MP

With /WHM sub, BLM gains Raise/Reraise (50+), Sneak (40), and Invisible (50) to provide extra safety and mobility.

7. Skillchain & TP Awareness

Monitor melee TP with addons (e.g., HXUI, TParty, Chains).

First mob of the party:

• TP is low; consider using debuffs or Drain to reduce mob HP before melee chain.

Subsequent mobs:

• coordinate MBs with skillchains for optimal damage.

Adjust MB spells based on melee TP and mob HP to avoid overkilling and wasting MP.

8. MP Management & Resting

Do NOT rest to full MP unnecessarily. Every second spent idle reduces party EXP/hr. Missing MP ticks is acceptable if it allows more damage via MB or free nuking.

Monitor MP and adapt:

• Skip low-tier nukes or DoTs if MP is low.
• Consider Manafont for skillchain windows if MP is insufficient.

9. Hate & Survival Management

BLM has survival tools: Drain, Stun, Cures (sub), Blink (sub), Stoneskin (sub). Monitor aggro, especially as a Tarutaru or while free nuking. Adjust nuking intensity based on tank threat and melee status. Use Elemental Seal to guarantee sleep success or maximize nuke damage.

10. Addons for Standard Parties

• TP monitoring: TParty, HXUI
• Skillchain tracking: Chains
• DPS analysis: Deeps, Metrics
• Mob weaknesses: MobDB
• EXP chain timers: Points, Metrics

Familiarize yourself with these to react quickly to melee skillchains and MB opportunities.

11. Advanced Tactics

• First pulled mob control: Debuff and free nuke early to synchronize melee TP for following mobs. Try to defeat the mob before melee can SC!
• Double MB / -GA bursts: Use cautiously when BRD/THF pre-pulls two mobs. Blink/Stoneskin recommended.
• TP/HP Rebalancing: Anticipate melee TP and mob HP to time free nukes efficiently.

Standard-party BLM is a high-skill, high-reward playstyle. Your contribution can match or exceed melee DPS while also providing utility, debuffs, and off-healing—making you indispensable in leveling parties.

Caveat

Some parties you join/put together may have a really strong line up and be killing enemies quickly... especially if your group is facing enemies that are not reaching higher than 6-7 levels than the group. If that is the case you may be better off focusing entirely on free nuking and draining on cooldown with an occasional magic burst. If you recognize this, don't hold the party back asking them to chain for you, just go all out like the melee/frontline are, while watching your hate and resting when needed (Don't rest to full mp. Get up when you have the mp to do a few free nukes.) Enemies are too low in level/have too low HP for a chain and burst combo to be effective. Exp gains per mob defeated will be smaller in this type of party, but the rate of exp is comparable to fighting higher level enemies that take a little longer to defeat with chain+burst combo. Parties like this most likely will have the 4 frontline + 2 mages lineup (or 3 frontline + bard + healer + blm lineup) and most likely will not have a main tank and/or a THF to work with. Don't expect to be top DPS with this type of party as there won't be a consistent chain for you to burst off of. You're role is important though as the DPS/stuns you provide is comparable to the buffs a more supportive role would be doing for the party for defeating enemies quickly.

A Word on Ancient Magic

It is the opinion of this guide's author that magic bursting ancient magic is not worth the MP cost and asking your melee to wait on you. Ancient Magic MB damage numbers are pretty but DPS/exp will be more consistent if the black mage follows the melee in their skillchains and double bursts with single target and -GAs nukes.

The same idea applies for magic bursting with non-ancient magic. Never tell the melee to wait on you. Always watch the TP and follow the melee. Every second that delays the melee to chain costs the party's total DPS output.

That being said...being able to pull off an ancient magic MB without having the frontline wait on you does feel pretty good and will WOW your party mates with your damage and skill with timing. Just try not to sacrifice too much MP for the shiny DPS numbers.

Challenging the Old Meta

On retail/in ToaU era Black Mages had a tougher time in regular parties. (...thanks Colibri...) However, on Horizon, Black Mages have been era+ to fit better in a standard party. More specifically Magic Bursting has been substantially boosted in damage and accuracy against non-NM mobs. At higher levels a skill chain + MB combo will literally do thousands of damage, and can take out an IT mob with 100% HP in seconds. This is why your party can target higher level mobs without needing a bard if you have a Black Mage that is coordinating with the melee for consistent chain 5+.

Additionally, gone are the days of having to use macros for reporting TP and Skillchain ready. Everyone can now see each others' TP with addons (hxui, tparty, etc.) and can SC+MB as soon as possible. That means a faster exp rate.

The magic burst window has been adjusted from era times to be longer. The window is now about 10 seconds and opens as soon as a closing WS is used. Back in the day the window was only about 3-4 seconds making it much more difficult for BLMs to land MBs.

Black mages that want to EXP/merit with a regular party should be encouraged to be a party leader and invite folks instead of waiting for hours for an invite. At the end of the day, everyone seeking wants to EXP and most likely will accept your invite. The ratio of party seekers to party leaders is unbalanced, leaning toward the seekers. Some players however may be skeptical of having a black mage in their exp parties due to their experience on retail or other private servers or for whatever reason. And some may outright refuse unfortunately.

Luckily there are tons of folks usually seeking, and you can just as easily find somebody else to fill the spot in your standard party with a black mage. Party leaders that have a black mage in their group/black mages that are party leaders just stick to the basics of coordinating a skillchain (or two) (which usually happens anyway, with or without a black mage in the group) and you'll do fine!

Here are some ideas about BLM in standard parties debunked:

It's faster DPS if melee just spam Weapon Skills Skillchaining is still something melee do despite there being a BLM in the party or not. The DPS from the damage caused by the skillchain and the (double) magic burst coming from the Black mage will more than make up the personal DPS loss of a melee who waits a few seconds for their skillchain buddy to get TP. Typically it's the THF that holds TP waiting for their opener. SA/TA + creating a SC extra damage makes up for holding TP as THF. Skillchain damage has also been era+ to not be resisted. However! If a melee is SAM or /SAM, they can free weapon skill while their skillchain buddy is still building TP because of meditate. There may be a gear/food issue if 1 melee is consistently not gaining TP as fast as the other melee and delaying chains.

Black mages spells/Magic Bursting get resisted too much for it to be worthwhile Horizon has made era+ adjustments to magic bursting with increased accuracy and magic attack bonus as well as reducing enmity from magic bursting. A decently geared standard party that has a SC MB combo with a BLM bursting can get consistent high value exp chain 5s on mobs up to 10+ levels higher than the party with little issue. Resists do happen but not often. Especially once you get AF gloves (+15 elemental skill).

Black mages can't sky party

Not true. Black Mages can absolutely hold their own in sky parties. A decently geared standard party that eats food and uses a SC + MB setup can begin leveling in sky around **63**, maintaining consistent EXP chains. Flamingos are relatively weak mobs overall, and a BLM can burst **1,000–1,100 damage** with **Thundaga II / Blizzaga II** off Impaction, Distortion, or Fragmentation chains (more with double bursts).

The ideal level sync for a sky party with a BLM is **63–66**. Any higher and melee begin bringing birds low too fast before 1000 TP, shifting the BLM into more of a support role with supplemental DPS.

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Deeps results for a 2.5-hour sky party. SAM/THF + WAR/SAM chaining Fragmentation; BLM bursting Thundaga II/Aero III + double bursts. Skillchain damage not included.

Same sky party with skillchain damage included: 1) SAM 2) BLM 3) WAR

Conclusion

Black mages can certainly solo and manaburn to gain levels. However, partying in a traditional/standard lineup is a lot more interesting and active. Especially if they have friends that play other jobs.

Black mages require a bit more knowledge of game mechanics and planning compared to the other melee dps jobs to be effective in a standard/traditional exp party. They need an exp party lineup that will support skillchaining (Best with 4 frontline and 2 backline). They also should expect to do some off healing and debuffing in normal parties. Only MBing and resting to full mp will slow your parties down 100%. i.e.: the main healer runs out of MP while you are almost full...or a mob has 10% HP left, the melee are out of TP and you have MP to finish the mob but you are resting...or your party is on exp chain 4 and you have MP to nuke down a mob to get chain 5 but you are resting and the party does not make chain 5...

BLM can be quite busy if they are paying attention and reading the battlefield correctly to help their party out. This is what makes Black Mages interesting. Once they get the hang of it black mages fit well into a regular exp party on horizon and can certainly be top DPS + support healer + utility with experience and good gear!

Black mages that want to standard party, but are not getting invites, should not shy away from being a party leader and start sending /tells to invite. People will most likely accept. Ex (Using Auto Translate): /tell (Party?) (Level Sync) (X)? (Area)?

Consider targeting higher level mobs (Aim for mobs that cap least 9-10 levels higher than the party), and ABCD (Always be casting drain). Don't forget to pepper in some free nukes. The DPS black mages provide along with their utility/support brings them to the table along the other backline choices for your party with a main healer.

The benefit of having a BLM in your party is not needing a BRD or support job if you already have a healer, puller/THF, 2 melee dps, and a main tank. No need to yell for a bard/support for hours!

• Note: There was a mob evasion fix on horizon where mobs level 60+ are now more evasive. Unless they are super-geared, melee pretty much have to eat sushi(accuracy+ food) and forgo eating meat (attack+ food) now a days when fighting against IT mobs. This change makes black mages even more competitive with the melee DPS in leveling parties.

Chain 5 level 55 standard party with a BLM, no EXP ring

Chain 35+ merit party in Ro'Maeve: BLM WAR WAR MNK WHM BRD. WARs and MNK create Darkness & Fragmentation for the BLM to burst.

Metrics on BLM performance in a higher-level standard party, including healing/regen, stunning, and nuking support.

EXP/hr metrics and kill rate of a high-level standard party.

Wow. Did you just read all of that? If you've made it to the end of this guide, congrats! You can now advertise "Black Mage that knows what they are doing, looking for party!" when LFG =) Please be encouraged to start your own party with the information from this guide. You got this!

This guide was created by Grayson on Horizon while leveling/meriting black mage via standard parties and gets updated every so often. If you're bored of manaburning and soloing (like I was) try out a standard group. It's quite fun, and way more active.

Please be advised: This guide in no way states that standard groups are better/worse than other types of groups. Only that a standard group of play is absolutely viable in leveling your black mage with your friends. Play how you like! Have fun!