With the launch of FF14 Dawtrail expansion, we once again have the opportunity to enjoy the Pictomancer Job. Being a magical ranged DPS job, FFXIV Pictomancer has incredible burst damage and brings unique mechanics with their aether and magical brush to the gameplay. In this guide we will tell you about their playstyle, mechanics, gauges, how to level up Pictomancer and their gear.
4.9Pictomancer Gameplay
Pictomancer is a top tier DPS job in patch 7.05. What sets Pictomancer apart from other FF14 casters is their unique mechanics — Motifs — that allow them to output huge burst damage. Motifs are one of the primary bases for creating combos. The second is Palettes. Both of them serve as the foundation for dealing damage. The “Palette” foundation consists of actions that generate Palette Gauge and Paint Charges. While Motifs allow you to generate Muses by painting a specific Motif on the Canvas.
Pictomancer Strengths and Weaknesses
| Strengths | Weaknesses |
|---|---|
| ✅ Huge burst damage | ⛔️ Not easy to master |
| ✅ Indispensable in raids with raid buff and access to a 90s AoE shield | ⛔️ Long cast times, requires careful planning in fights |
| ✅ Perfect for dungeons due to strong AoE damage | ⛔️ Not really suitable for beginners not familiar with the mechanics of fights |
How to Unlock Pictomancer
To unlock Pictomancer you have to own the Dawntrail expansion and reach at least Level 80 on one Disciple of Magic or War job. Then you need to pick up the quest “The Joy of Pictomancy” in Old Gridania (X: 8.0, Y: 10.3) from the NPC Cheerless Hearer. Once you successfully complete the quest you will receive the Pictomancer soulstone and unlocked 80 lvl character.
As a bonus you will get a coffer with starting gear for your Pictomancer. And you can also make it easy on yourself and start exploring the Dawntrail expansion with 3 fully prepared jobs with our Dawtrail Starter Bundle.
Pictomancer’s Motifs
Pictomancer’s Motive System includes three types of mechanics that change as the rotation progresses. Creature, Weapon, and Landscape, each of which serves a specific purpose. They allow you to unleash powerful creature attacks by painting them on the canvas, while at the same time use a powerful hammer.
Each Motive is essentially a hardcast spell with a long cast period, that does no damage itself. It takes you 3 seconds to cast and 4 seconds to recast, for which you get a strong effect — Muse. Damage, on the other hand, is dealt by special Gauges that become available to the Pictomancer after their casted Motive appears on the Canvas.
Creature motifs
Creature motifs, acquired through the Creature Motif ability, enable the player to unleash potent spells that deal significant damage quickly. These motifs include Moogles and Madeens, and unlock the use of Pom Muse, Winged Muse, Clawed Muse, and Fanged Muse. These Muses further grant access to the Portrait skill, a more potent ability once two Muses are used for Mog of the Ages, and even stronger when all four are used for Retribution of the Madeen.
Weapon Motifs
Weapon Motifs you get by using a Weapon Motif ability, enabling the Hammer Motif. Through this, a quick three-step cast combo can be executed, providing versatility in movement and ensuring critical hits at each stage. This allows you to deal a significant amount of damage during each Hammer window, with Hammer Stamp, Hammer Brush, and Polishing Hammer comprising the rotation.
Landscape Motif
In Landscape Motif, you can cast Starry Muse which is Pictomancer’s raid buff. It provides bonuses to the caster and a damage boost to the party. Benefits include quicker spell casts for the next five spells, free use of Subtractive Palette, and access to Star Prism. Once five stacks of Hyperphantasia are used, a free instant cast of Rainbow Drip is available. Overall, Starry Muse is a powerful buff for both the party and the Pictomancer. But if you don’t feel confident, but still want to close the Arcadion Savage Raid, then use our service.
Pictomancer’s Palette Gauge
As we already know Pictomancer has access to two job gauges — the Canvas and the Palette Gauge. The Canvas shows which Motifs are ready to use with their corresponding Muse action. The first Canvas shows Clawed Muse, the second shows Hammer Motif, and the third shows Landscape Motif. After using a Muse, the image will disappear from its Canvas. This means you must use the associated Motif again to use the next charge of that Muse.
The Palette Gauge monitors the levels of White Paint and Black Paint available to the Pictomancer. The basic combo is Fire in Red – Aero in Green – Water in Blue. It generates 25 Palette Gauges and a White Paint Charge. It enables the use of Holy in White and Comet in Black respectively. Holy White is the main source for movement.
The Palette Gauge can hold 100 Gauge and five Charges of White Paint at once.
When you use Water in Blue, as it adds 25 additional gauge, it allows you to use a Subtractive Palette once the gauge reaches 50. This transformation turns the following three spells into their Subtractive counterparts: Blizzard in Cyan, Stone in Yellow, and Thunder in Magenta. Additionally, it changes an existing White Paint charge into Black Paint. Or ensures the next White Paint acquired is instantly converted to Black Paint. Keep in mind that the Comet in Black, which you get through the Black Paint, is much more stronger than Holy White. But it still is a great source for movement.
Pictomancer Gear
As a Magical Ranged DPS job, Pictomancer shares gear with Black Mage, Summoner and Red Mage. To start the Dawntrail expansion and make the process of leveling smoother we have prepared as an example different set designed for Red Mage, as Etro does not yet support Pictomancer sets. But you can always get Level 100 Gear with our help.
Some items of the Level 80 set are Savage gear, which are undoubtedly good, but if you can’t get them, go straight to the table with No Savage Leveling Set. This set is a good choice for launch if you have leftover pieces from another casting job. And of course, replace the Red Mage weapon with the equivalent Pictomancer weapon, or a weapon close in item level if you don’t have the right coffer. Missing some stat tiers for leveling isn’t a big deal.
Level 80 Leveling Set
This set is a good choice for the content you’ll be engaging in from the beginning. Keep in mind that this set may change, and it should be replaced around level 85. It’s a minor advantage to obtain this set if you don’t already have it, so don’t spend too much time on it if you’re not prepared.
Level 90 Leveling Set
In this set you should try to obtain the best 90-level weapon you can get or use an extra ultimate totem from TOP. Don’t forget to replace this set at level 95.
No Savage Leveling Set
This old Pre-Savage set is easier to get if you don’t have access to Savage gear yet.
Level 100 Pre-Savage Set
This set is perfect for Extreme Trials and will be a good option before you can get the normal and Savage raid tier. If you want to get the best gear possible just use our FFXIV Best in Slot Gear Set service.
Pictomancer Leveling
Now, that you know how to gear up your Pictomancer, let’s dive into leveling. We will divide single-target leveling rotation and AoE leveling rotation. Or you can use our Pictomancer Power Leveling service to skip the boring grind and also get some gear.
Single-Target Leveling Rotation
| Level | Rotation |
|---|---|
| Sub-Level 30 | Use Fire In Red – Water In Blue – Aero in Green. Use Smudge for movement and use the second of free time after your casts to move. Use Tempera Coat to reduce incoming damage during fights. |
| Level 30-50 | Use creature Muses for damage. They are more potent in AoE situations than in boss fights, but do not let them overcap to save them for AoE situations. If bosses have downtime, cast your Motifs during that time. |
| Level 50-60 | Use Hammer Motif/Striking Muse on cooldown for damage at this level. You have a 30 seconds window to use it once it is pressed. This will also cover movement. |
| Level 60-70 | Use Blizzard in Cyan – Stone in Yellow – Thunder in Magenta when you have time to stand still for their longer casts. |
| Level 70-80 | Use Starry Muse during your opener while on cooldown. Prepare a Muse before buffs, hardcast another Muse inside of buff windows to get a Moogle inside of Starry Muse. Use hammer inside of buff window to get the maximum damage or use it for movement. |
| Level 80-90 | Use Holy in White for extra movement. Put extras into your Starry Muse over Red/Green casts. |
| Level 90-92 | Use Comet In Black after Subtractive Palette. |
| Level 92-96 | Use Rainbow Drip pre-pull at around four seconds. Use it before downtime. |
| Level 96-100 | Use two new Motifs to create Madeen after Moogle. Madeen has higher potency than Mog of the Ages. Try to use Madeen inside of Starry Muse after you unlock it. |
AoE Leveling Rotation
| Level | Rotation |
|---|---|
| Sub-Level 30 | One/Two Target: Fire In Red – Aero in Green – Water In Blue. Three Targets: Fire II In Red – Aero In Green – Water In Blue. Four Targets and more: Fire II In Red spam. |
| Level 30-50 | Use Creature Muses and Moogle, as they have more potency than the general AoE combo. Use downtime between pulls to prepare Muses. |
| Level 50-54 | Use Hammer charges, as it guarantees direct crit on everything it hits. |
| Level 54-60 | One/Two Targets: Fire in Red – Aero In Green – Water In Blue. Three Targets: Fire in Red – Aero In Green – Water In Blue/Water II In Blue. Four Targets and more: Fire II In Red – Aero II In Green – Water II In Blue. |
| Level 60-70 | Use basic spells as previously. For Subtractive Palette: One/Two Targets: Blizzard In Cyan – Stone in Yellow – Thunder in Magenta. Three Targets and more: Blizzard II in Cyan – Stone II In Yellow – Thunder II In Magenta. |
| Level 70-80 | Use raid buffs for damage in dungeons when possible. Follow the Level 54-60 rotation for basic spells and Subtractive Palette. |
| Level 80-90 | Use Holy in White after consuming Muses. Holy in White is better for two or more targets and is always better than Fire/Aero/Water AoE combos. |
| Level 90-94 | Use Comet in Black after Creature and Weapon Muses if Subtractive Palette is available. |
| Level 94-100 | Now you gain Fire II In Red, Aero II in Green, Water II in Blue, Blizzard In Cyan, Stone in Yellow, and Thunder in Magenta at four or more targets. |
| Level 100 | Use Star Prism after using your raid buff for dungeons AoE, then use previous priority system. |
Other Leveling Skills
During leveling process you will gain access to additional spells and abilities, that might be useful.
At level 10, you get Tempera Coat, a shield for 20% of your max HP. If the shield is used up, the cooldown is reduced by 30 seconds, from 90s to 60s. At level 88, you unlock Tempera Grassa, which turns the shield into an AoE shield for 10% of each person’s max HP. The cooldown for this is also reduced by 30s if fully consumed, from 120s to 90s. This utility is highly effective and you should use it during high damage outputs.
At level 20, you unlock the Smudge ability, which enables you to dash in the direction you face. This ability has a 20-second cooldown. Upon reaching level 84, you get a trait that boosts movement speed for 5 seconds. Use this skill for movement. It’s crucial to avoid overadjusting into mechanics or falling off platforms.
The level 100 capstone spell, Star Prism, contains a 400 potency AoE heal. You can use it to adjust the sequence of buff window skills to utilize it after AoE damage for healing support to your healers, as long as it doesn’t lead to losing any important skills from the buff rotation.
Pictomancer Stat Priority
The Pictomancer’s stat priority is similar to other caster jobs like Red Mage and Summoner.
- Weapon Damage
- Intelligence/Vitality
- Critical Hit
- Determination ≥ Direct Hit
- Spell Speed
Pictomancer Consumables
Food and Potions to use with Pictomancer are similar to other casters in Final Fantasy XIV. And as the Intelligence stat is the main for casters, you need the highest grade of Intelligence potion — Grade 1 Gemdraught of Intelligence.
The best food for Pictomancer is Vegetable Soup. It will increase Vitality and Determination by 8% each.
4.9In this guide, we tried to cover everything you need to know about FFXIV Dawtrail Pictomancer. Although mastering the Pictomancer job is not the easiest for inexperienced players, it will be useful in single-player and AoE scenarios, as well as a very powerful job for Savage raids, and will allow you to feel confident in any situation.
