Now that the new PvP mode, Seize, has been out for a couple of days, here is the general impression I’ve gathered on the performance of the different classes. Primarily, this is an evaluation of how the classes fare at level 60, moreso than their direct impact to success in the new mode which relies mostly on human factors than class compositions in DF.Then let’s tall something about Healder

White Mage
The addition of more accessible instant-cast heals, tetragrammaton (60s) and assize (90s), provided the white mage with a lot of utility and healing power in PvP. Additionally, asylum provides another ground AoE HoT in addition to sacred prism, both of which provide a strategic advantage to your group when fighting over a contested node. The clumped fights that occur in the new mode also allow for cure III to shine in certain environments as well, while the strong HoTs of regen and medica II boosted by divine seal lets the white mage to “heal” their party even when being focused. White mage also has access to repose, blizzard 2’s AoE root, stone I’s heavy, fluid aura’s knockback and root, and holy’s AoE stun, making up a plethora of crowd control abilities and utility that can be used to assist your party, or as tools for self-peel when you’re being targeted. Despite this, white mages fare the most poorly without a co-healer in their party, simply due to the lack of spammable instant healing tools outside of HoTs. A white mage is extremely easy to lock down compared to the other two healers, and even if they don’t die, their party is no longer receiving any healing as long as the white mage is being pursued.

Scholars
Scholars did not change much post-50, however they remain extremely strong as PvP healers, and a skilled scholar is still impossible to kill without coordination. Lustrate remains as the strongest healing skill in the game, being able to instantly burst heal anyone back to full on an oGCD instant cast. The presence of a fairy serves as a consistent non-stop healing factory, and allows for scholars to provide healing to teammates or themselves, in addition to lustrate, even when they’re being focused down by melee or interrupted by ranged. Adloquium is an extremely strong skill that prevents cast interruptions as long as it’s up, and can be used on melee LB targets to prevent OHKOs, following which lustrate can then be used to top them back to healthy levels of HP. Deployment tactics is extremely powerful for spreading eye for eye or crit adlo to your entire party, providing an extremely powerful effective HP advantage in combat. Scholar has also access to blizzard 2 for an AoE root, aura blast for AoE knockback, and traited virus to reduce incoming burst. I strongly considered scholars the best healer (compared to white mages) back in 2.0 PvP, and this opinion hasn’t changed in the new seize mode.

Astrologian
Despite the controversy of their viability as a healer in PvE content, astrologians are extremely powerful healers in PvP. This is due to the fact that they have access to “high” potency heals in both benefic II and helios, while still having access to shields via nocturnal stance, and a spammable instant cast heal in aspected benefic. Additionally, it’s possible to pre-shield parties right before battle, and switching to diurnal stance to stack the regen as well (or vice versa). Aspected benefic in nocturnal stance essentially serves as a 260 potency instant-cast adloquium, while essential dignity is an instant-cast heal that reaches upwards of 1000 potency on a 40s cooldown. The recent buff to lightspeed has made this skill the most powerful healer-cooldown in PvP, allowing for all heals to become instant over 10s, whilst also reducing their mp cost by 25% with no potency loss (150s cooldown). Stella provides a ranged 40% heavy, celestial opposition provides a 2s AoE stun, while retrogradation is a completely overloaded skill that heals and esuna’s party members, while damaging and dispelling enemy buffs. In addition to this, the main feature of the astrologian, their cards, has a significant impact in PvP as well. Balance or arrow used on a fever / high DPS during their burst rotation is simply insane, while bole serves as a great buff for tanks or dps charging into the frontlines, and spear is really strong due to the long cooldowns of PvP abilities. Ewer and spire are less powerful cards to draw, but can be useful as well in drawn out fights.