Final Fantasy XII aka FFXII is back in store shelves again. This time by way of the Switch port of the international edition of the classic game. It was pretty divisive then, and it still is now, but now those that weren’t a fan of features like the gambit system them can give it another try with some modern conveniences. What will make your time in Ivalice easier is knowing what the best FFXII jobs are so that way you can ensure your party has the best combo of jobs possible.
Let’s break down the best FFXII jobs starting with the last entry on our list.
12. Bushi
As cool as samurai classes usually are, the Bushi job feels surprisingly underwhelming in Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age. It’s not that it’s awful, mind you, it’s just a class that doesn’t seem to bring anything particularly useful to the table, especially when compared to the other melee classes in the game, and thus why it ranks last on our list of the best FFXII jobs.
Having access to the Genji licenses is nice, but ultimately, the Bushi job is meant to be paired with other jobs for utility, and it isn’t all that impressive on its own. That said, while you’ll never see insane damage numbers from Bushi as compared to some other jobs, it is good at chaining combos.
11. Time Battlemage
In theory, the Time Battlemage should be one of the most impressive classes in Final Fantasy XII.
Early on in the game, it can prove to be rather useful, as spells like Slow and Immobilize can help to debilitate tougher monsters and hunt marks like Nidhogg. However, it ceases to be quite as useful once you start filling out your party and get a White Mage on your side which ranks higher on our list of the best FFXII jobs.
Not to mention the fact that the Time Battlemage has very low survivability and damage output. Once your other characters and jobs are decently leveled, the Time Battlemage will start to feel less useful.
10. Red Battlemage
Again, the Red Battlemage isn’t a bad class by any stretch of the imagination; it just doesn’t bring a lot to the table either.
For a magic-based class, though, the Red Battlemage is probably the toughest mage job you’ll find in Final Fantasy XII, thanks to their ability to use shields and block or parry attacks. This makes them a little more useful in battle, especially once you gain access to both healing and offensive spells.
The Red Battlemage is a nice varied class that will fit in most party compositions in FFXII; it just doesn’t excel at anything in particular.
9. Knight
It doesn’t get any more classic than the Knight job. If you want a straightforward FFXII job with nothing more than a sword and shield, the Knight is the way to go.
If you put enough time and investment into the Knight’s license board, you can get a really good damage-dealing class that’s capable of putting out some serious damage numbers especially once you hit the late-game phases.
They’re also good at complementing other classes in your party composition, and their minimal access to healing magic also gives them a fair bit of utility for you to work with.
8. Foebreaker
The Foebreaker is another extremely useful class in Final Fantasy XII, and can definitely push out good damage numbers, just like the Knight.
The main difference is that the Foebreaker has access to incredible break spells like Addle, Expose, and Shear, which are very powerful against most enemies, and can come in handy even in the game’s toughest fights and encounters, making it one of the best FFXII jobs.
The Foebreaker’s damage output might not be as consistent as the Knight, but its utility can’t be overstated.
7. Machinist
The Machinist is probably the most iconic job in Final Fantasy XII, thanks to Balthier’s gun-toting swagger.
In terms of DPS, though, it’s not exactly the most impressive job around. The main reason for this is that the gun-type weapons do not scale with your stats, so your damage output is largely dependent on the type of weapon you have equipped. However, the Machinist also gets access to support spells like Slowga and Hastega, and lots of good Item Lore nodes on the License Board.
It’s also one of the more enjoyable jobs to play, and it can form a very powerful combination with the White Mage job to increase your healer’s damage output a little.
6. Archer
The Archer is another great utility job that ranks this highly thanks to its long-range damage, and access to good break spells like Addle and Shear.
With good arrow quivers at your disposal, you can inflict status effects on your enemies from a good range, and can even double up as an emergency healer once you’ve invested enough into the license board.
The only downside to the Archer is that you’ll probably need to invest into the Bazaar to get some better weapons for the job, worth though for one of the best ranged damage jobs in FFXII.
5. Monk
The Monk uses polearms as its primary weapon, and is a pretty nice melee class to play around with.
The nice thing about the Monk job in Final Fantasy XII is that it has access to three Swiftness nodes on the license board, making it a good job to pair with some of the slower ones in the game. Not only that, the Monk is a job where you don’t really have to invest all that much into for it to be decent.
It’s one of the better ‘safe’ jobs to go with for melee characters, and you can’t really go wrong with it. Invest Espers into it, and you’ll have a pretty scary damage dealer on your hands.
4. Uhlan
If we’re talking about the best ‘heavy’ melee job in Final Fantasy XII, the Uhlan is arguably the best in the game.
Whereas Knights require a fair bit of investment and Espers to be powerful damage dealers, the Uhlan gives you better strength stats and can hit flying enemies at range with no issue. Not only that, Uhlan also has access to some pretty decent black magic spells to help your party hit key weaknesses when needed.
3. Shikari
The Shikari is easily the best melee job in Final Fantasy XII for two reasons: access to the three Swiftness nodes on the license board, and access to Genji equipment.
Shikari is an extremely fast job, and is also one of the most versatile ones in the game. Paired with the Foebreaker, and you’ll get a fast character with access to all the useful break spells, or you could pair it with the White Mage, and become a really tanky healer with shields and good HP.
It certainly doesn’t hurt that the Shikari’s more than capable of doing good damage numbers, too. Definitely consider having one in your party.
2. Black Mage
Out of all the jobs available in Final Fantasy XII, the Black Mage is probably the first one in your party that will actually break the damage limit, making it the best FFXII job for dealing damage.
With the right Gambit setups, and if you’re conscientious of targeting weaknesses, your Black Mage can deal an insane amount of damage to enemies once you’ve got the proper equipment. It’s also got access to Swiftness and Ether Lore nodes, along with useful green magic spells.
With all these things at your disposal, the Black Mage will wipe out mobs very easily and quickly. Just remember to protect them.
1. White Mage
Every party composition needs a White Mage, which places this job firmly at the top of our list.
This job’s main role is to keep your party alive, which is pretty much the most important and fundamental thing you need to succeed in any situation. Besides, the White Mage is actually a pretty flexible job that can be paired well with most other jobs as well.
As mentioned before, it’ll do well with Shikari and Machinist, depending on what you want your White Mage’s focus to be.
That’s it for our choices for the best FFXII jobs. Whether you’re playing for the first time or
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