The Divine Protector: PLD Guide 2025

Thank you for the thoughtful and constructive feedback — I really appreciate this kind of engagement.

• Enmity Reduction – You’re absolutely right, and I’m glad someone appreciated that section. These days, holding hate against overbuffed, overgeared DDs spamming 100k WS every 3–5 seconds is honestly more stressful than tanking a swarm of 100 mobs or an enraged boss. At this point, optimizing enmity feels like tanking your party more than the enemy! ?

• Gearswap vs Vanilla – Good point here too. I personally play exclusively with Gearswap, so rewriting my logic in pure macro sets takes a completely different mindset — not impossible, just time-consuming. Still, I agree it’s important for “vanilla” players, and I’ll be thinking about how to incorporate more accessible examples without automation in future updates.

• Progression Curve & Extreme Sets – Totally fair. The goal of this guide is to support everyone, from fresh PLDs to hardcore endgame tanks. Some sets, like the 4k HP self-cure build, are clearly “pushed to the extreme” on purpose — but I do plan to add more practical alternatives for intermediate players. As for Odyssey sets, I’d argue that even at Rank 0, gear like Sakpata or Nyame offers better value than some Ambuscade pieces, which take longer to farm with less payoff. So while the gear might look “endgame,” unlocking it is often easier than it seems.

Thanks again for taking the time to share your thoughts — I’m keeping all of it in mind as I continue refining the guide!

To everyone who’s shared feedback recently:

Huge thanks for the compliments, suggestions, and constructive criticism!

I’ll be honest — this guide had a rough launch. I got hit by a Category 10 flamestorm on page one… and yeah, it stung. I seriously considered walking away, meditating in a remote temple, and starting a new life as a full-time Pokémon Trainer.

But I held on (bit my tongue two or three times), and chose to turn things around constructively. The internet isn’t always known for its kindness, but this latest wave of thoughtful, encouraging, and honest feedback really means a lot.

Thanks again to everyone who’s reading, contributing, and helping this guide evolve. It’s been a bumpy ride, but we’re on track now — and that’s thanks to all of you.

A small extra note on the guide itself:

This whole thing started from the simple idea of compiling answers I couldn’t easily find while building my own PLD. I'm not claiming to be an expert — there are plenty of PLDs out there with more testing, theorycrafting, and experience. This guide isn’t here to dictate builds, but to highlight how PLD works: its mechanics, structure, and potential.

Also — making it visually clean was a real objective from the start. But BBCode on FFXIAH made that way harder than expected.
Let’s just say: the final look took way more effort than it should have.

Thanks again for the support — it’s what pushed the guide forward.

To be frank, I'm giving a wide berth for benefit of the doubt here myself.. Some of the posts on the first page are fair criticisms of why make this guide when the Community Guide on BG already exists.

But, I can also understand as the author of said community guide, it was written partially because I got tired of skimming through the sticky here and seeing the response to questions being: "Just look up Martel's sets."

Either way, I wish you luck in this endeavor, regardless.

Hey, really appreciate your message — especially coming from someone who's worked on a solid community resource like that.

Just to be clear: this guide was never meant to replace or outshine what's already out there. I respect the work others have done and know how much effort it takes to keep those resources updated and useful.

This project started as something personal. My Paladin was already solid, and I wanted to create a reference I wished I’d had when I started. Over time, I gathered notes, tested things, made mistakes, and organized it all in a clean, structured way.

It wasn’t originally meant to be a “gear sets” guide, but more a deep dive into the job itself — enmity mechanics, HP pool logic, gearswap behavior, and so on. The gear sets came later as practical examples to back up the theory.

Even after posting the first version, I kept learning and improving. Some sets I thought were BiS weren’t, and that’s part of the process.

If the early feedback had been fair questions like “why make a new guide?”, I’d have gladly explained. But the first page was mostly flame, jokes, and mockery. Honestly, if someone reads that page now, they might just think, “This guide is trash — everyone says so.”

Now, I laugh it off. It doesn’t bother me anymore. But when you’re deep into building something — formatting, theorycrafting, trying not to mess up — those harsh comments really stick. Especially with that little voice inside saying, “Don’t screw this up. Who do you think you are?”

So yeah — messages like yours really help. They shift the tone, keep the energy positive, and most importantly, motivate me to keep going.

And I won’t lie — reading one or two kind words along the way feels really good.

I don't know ***about PLD so I won't judge the content itself, but as far as how the guide looks, the overall formating and presentation goes, I think you did a tremendous job.

I have to agree with the above statement: This is one of the most thought out and complete guides I have ever seen! Wonderful contribution to the community!

A few suggestions, mostly around making it more of a guide and less of an info dump.
* Needs a RNG sub entry and link the the Ullr PLD guide.
* Should swap the floating image to something other than Lilisette, because it doesn't make sense.
* It's worth having a section about enmity generation by healing with the formulas, but you should use the formulas to explain why it doesn't make sense to heal for enmity in 2025.
* Similarly, it may make sense to explain how/when swap weapons and shields vs. using TP for Atonement.
* Missing Aegis for Shield Bash enhancement.
* Engaged Sets Overview copies the Cure sets description

Wanted to respond to this here cause I’m pretty sure I’m the one that called that into question mostly to begin with. When this guide first appeared on the forum it was very much a long list of stuff that just looked straight copy pasted from bg-wiki, and the sets made no sense. Tetsouo explained he hadn’t intended to make the guide publicly viewable, and it wasn’t ready or complete.

Since the guide has been updated and completed I would change my opinion as I believe he has collected a good amount of information from the community and testing to have created a pretty well designed guide. Still can’t say I 100% agree with all the sets. Like I still have no idea why anyone would ever want to wear 5/5 empy as the absorb chance is just not worth it, but that’s also a set that’s pretty unimportant so, meh.

i need to see some PLD/RNG Flaming Arrow sets

edit: i've found this guide fairly useful, along with other resources, for helping to build my PLD up over the past month or so, so thanks for your time and effort

Basically just drop TP bonus earring.


ItemSet 399726

good man

still waiting for my friends to let me come PLD/RNG to sortie and show them what a real DD does. need to server transfer for some Raetic Arrows as I only have Chapuli available to me qq but here's my Empyreal Arrow set:

ItemSet 399314

woulda got Flametongue for this build had I realized it's immense power before picking Diamond Aspis but I guess fulltime Holy Circle is ok too......

Flametongue is a bold choice, sure you can hit something with your Empyreal Arrow? lol

Kustawi +1 is a lot of Racc that PLD doesn't have.

i can't hit ***either way let's be honest.

The good thing about Diamond Aspis is I get 15 additional seconds of Sharpshot. Immense power.

Sub-job RNG (Ullr)
Added a Ranger entry in the Sub-Job section with a link to “Ferris Ullr’s Day Off” — hadn’t realized its full potential until now.

Floating image
Lilisette removed; replaced with a gold-toned anime landscape, same palette, more neutral.

Enmity via healing
Inserted formulas + Cure IV table; shows healing is only a situational spike on 1–2 mobs.

Weapon/shield swaps vs. TP for Atonement
Dedicated section in the works; I’ll detail when it’s worth sacrificing (or not) your TP for Aegis & co.

Aegis for Shield Bash
Added in JA Sets: noted the +300 dmg bonus.

Engaged Sets Overview
Duplicate Cure-set text removed; new description focuses on mitigation, TP flow, and enmity.

Thanks again for all the sharp feedback — it really helps polish the guide and push it toward something actually useful.
If you spot anything else off or worth improving, don’t hesitate to let me know!

Blue Magic Set — Section Updated

The Blue Magic Set section has been fully revised for clarity and practical use.

Changes include:
• Streamlined introduction with clearer goals
• Accurate BMP costs added to all spells
• Clarified which spells are active vs passive
• Notes on adapting the set for 30 BMP setups
• Updated mentions of Head Butt, Healing Breeze, and Frightful Roar as situational picks

Frightful Roar was included mostly for its fast recast. Its DEF Down (-10%) effect can overwrite stronger debuffs like Angon, but that rarely causes issues unless those debuffs are guaranteed to land.
If I'm facing something where DEF Down really matters, I just skip it. Otherwise, it’s a decent filler in large pulls — especially when your DDs aren't trying to land debuffs on mobs that are going to die in one or two WS anyway.

As always, if you notice anything off or have your own take on how to optimize this setup, feel free to share. Always open to other perspectives.

Hello. just some feedback. i noticed it says that /DNC has no enmity generation. it gets animated flourish though (if you have finishing moves)

Thanks for the heads-up! I’ve patched the DNC entry—Animated Flourish and the rest are now reflected in Strengths, Weaknesses, and Usage. It’s tidier… but yeah, still not breaking into the A-list of subs. ?

SUB-JOB TABLE — UPDATE NOTICE

The sub-job section has been fully reviewed.

Main points

• Tiers reordered (Top ▸ Mid ▸ Low)
  

• All Strength / Weakness / Usage lines rewritten for clarity
  

• Descriptions now reflect each sub’s actual pros and cons

Questions or corrections? Let me know so the guide stays accurate.

Any chance can add a few luas tks

So what should I be wearing if tanking inside of ody c segment runs? The engaged set with crep body seems unrealistic to get atm so should i just rep that with the empy +3? Should I just be tanking in the idle set?

None of them?

Don't really agree with any of the sets as far as tanking in them, whether engaged or not.

I use this build for anything physical when pulling/kiting in Segs.
ItemSet 399814
Very high Def/Vit - 490+. with Cocoon and food I almost reach 4000def, swap in Prime shield and it's 4k+.
Augments on Cape is Vit and Def.
Swap in Shneddick ring while moving.
Very seldom do mobs line up nicely infront of you for shield blocks so Aeonic's Annuls dmg helps

Mine is 5/5 Sakpata, loricate torque, staunch, tuisto/odnowa, gel/apeile+1. Meva back and carrier's sash.

One of my favorite parts of this guide is the way you add gear slot alternatives for some of the sets, and the format used for it. It'd be nice to see this carried on down through the WS sections as well. For people pre-Odyssey or with R0, it can be helpful while ranking up.

Here's one.


ItemSet 383163

I like the reduced crit in Ody, personally feel like it helps a lot.

You don't need Crepuscular Mail in the Engaged.PDT set — it doesn’t bring anything defensive.

It’s just the best TP body overall due to solid general stats and high Store TP, slightly above Hjarrandi Breastplate, and that’s it.

There are plenty of solid alternatives. I haven’t finished publishing all the sets yet, but in the meantime, you can use:

• Flamma Korazin +2
• Adamantite Armor
• Sakpata's Plate
• Chev. Cuirass +3
• Or honestly, any decent body you have or are working on

The set is already capped defensively, so the body slot is flexible depending on your gear and situation.

I'm currently spamming Sheol C every night during the campaign with a static.
With the monsters I run with, mobs barely last — staying engaged more than a few seconds is rare.

These sets are absolutely operational for this context.
I'm completely self-sufficient: I handle both tanking and healing for the entire group.
And really… nothing happens. It's smooth and controlled from pull to cleanup.

Setup:
• PLD/BLU (me)
• SAM
• COR
• RDM
• BLU
• BRD

Outside of buffs, everyone's just full DPS.

I rush into the camp, establish aggro with AoE BLU spells + Rampart or Palisade, engage, and help clean up whatever's left.

If your group is strong and fast enough, you don't even need to engage — just stay in Idle.PDT and let it burn.

Better yet continue to pull. Nowadays we not tanking anything in C unless its Halos, Qutrubs, Rams, and Mandies if I don’t want DDs to counter themselves to death. Ameretats on 4th floor too so I take the vampiric instead of a DD. Once that Brd lullaby is on it’s off to the races to pull the next pack and bring everything to the DDs.

Will you still take a lot of damage if you have both palisade and rampart on cooldown? I dont have burtgang yet, your idle set shoulds brilliance being ranked higher than sakpatas, would I want to use sakpatas if im tanking in ody c over brilliance?

I dont have a ton of experience tanking yet but i have most of the gear funded through my bard. I entered into ody c before on my pld but i still took a f*** ton of damage, it was better when i had phalanx up and we had no bard to give me defense or haste so everything felt slow but i still dont really know what to do to just be able to stand there for every group of mobs like i have seen other paladins do lol

My experience (also don't have Burt yet) is that I take pretty heavy damage while I'm running around pulling things in Ody-C, even with a good phalanx and capped DT. Once I can turn and shield block, it's back to zeros incoming and I can brick wall as needed (but usually you'd be sleeping things at this point) - I need to be careful when training things back to the DDs, especially over a long distance. This is one place that PDT2 really makes a difference.

It's been like 6 months since I tried going in on PLD just to see but that is what i remember happening to me as well. Gettings absolutely destroyed unless i pulled with sentinel which obviously you cant have that on all the time. when you pull, do you try to drag them against the wall so you can block most? or just run to your squad, turn around and block what you can and have the brd sleep?