Final Fantasy 14 6.3 Paladin Rotation: Theory, Variations, and Tips

Final Fantasy 14 6.3 Paladin Rotation

Final Fantasy 14’s 6.3 update brought about a slew of new content, but it also introduced a much-needed rework for Paladin, one of the game’s Tank jobs. Before 6.3, Paladin (PLD) was a tank that had a fairly strict rotation and didn’t really have any burst windows like most other jobs. This generally made them deal less damage than other tanks as they couldn’t make use of 2-minute buffs such as Arcane Circle and Embolden. 

With the removal of DoTs from Blade of Valor and Goring Blade, the addition of Divine Might, and the Fight or Flight change, the PLD rotation looks completely different from what it did last patch. Here’s a rundown of what makes PLD rotation different as well as how to execute two variations of the rotation.

A small disclaimer for new players: the rotations discussed below are only relevant at level 90, though you may want to read up on the theory section if you’re still leveling up your Paladin to optimize your damage.

Final Fantasy 14 Paladin 6.3 Rotation (As of January 11, 2023)

Paladin Rotation Theory

6.3 Paladin revolves around dumping all your hard-hitting abilities while Fight or Flight is up, as it only accommodates 8 GCDs per minute (at 2.5 GCD). This means you’ll want to squeeze in all your oCGDs (Intervene, Expiacion, Circle of Scorn) as well as your Confiteor combo. You’ll also want to throw in your Goring Blade as it’s now a standalone GCD with a 60-second recast timer. That’s five GCDs for the Confiteor combo and Goring Blade.

But what about the other three GCDs? Your strongest GCDs outside of the Confiteor combo and Goring Blade are Royal Authority, Atonement, and Holy Spirit. Atonement and Royal Authority beat Holy Spirit by a decent amount, but if you have Divine Might, Holy Spirit is better. Either way, you’ll want to fit in these GCDs to maximize your damage output.

One neat thing about the new PLD rotation is that you can be a lot more flexible with your GCDs during the filler portions of the rotation. You can use Holy Spirit when you’re not in range of the target and drop Atonements if you lose uptime for a mechanic.

Currently, there are two ways to do the PLD rotation. The following rotations were taken from The Balance Discord server, a server dedicated to FFXIV raid-related information, so check it out if you’re interested in that sort of thing.

60s Rotation

(You can find the full image here)

The 60-second rotation is arguably the easier of the two rotations you can learn for Paladin. It’s fairly straightforward, with a looping 1-minute rotation after your first minute. Every Fight or Flight (FoF) you use after the pull will contain two buffed Holy Spirits, a Royal Authority, Goring Blade, and the Confiteor combo. You’ll be using your 1-2-3 combo between FoF, using Expiacion and Circle of Scorn off cooldown, and holding your Intervenes for FoF windows.

Here’s a video that showcases the full rotation:

Do note that you will need to drop one or two Atonements every minute. You’ll drop one before the 1-minute burst and two during every succeeding FoF window. You’ll also notice that we hold our Divine Might from a Royal Authority combo to use it within FoF. By using Riot Blade then Royal Authority, we get to use up our existing Divine Might and then gain another stack immediately after. This is how you’re able to use two buffed Holy Spirits within one FoF while also using the Confiteor combo and Goring Blade.

120s Rotation

(You can find the full image here)

The 120-second rotation does about the same amount of damage as the 60-second one, but it offers a bit more flexibility during your filler phase while also giving you a bit of extra healing. This is thanks to Holy Spirit; you’ll be using 2-3 Holy Spirits during downtime, some of them unbuffed, which will let you damage the target while it’s out of melee range. Holy Spirit also heals you a decent amount, so it’s good to use if you’re low on health. Note that you can use Holy Spirit in between your Royal Authority combo without resetting it.

Here’s what the 120s rotation looks like:

Unbuffed Holy Spirit does have a 1.5-second cast time, which means that you can’t move or double weave until the cast finishes. Casting Holy Spirit this way (also known as hardcasting) can feel slow or restricting, so feel free to choose whichever rotation feels more comfortable to you.


And that’s how to perform the Paladin rotations for 6.3! Do note that these rotations are tentative as of January 11, 2023, and depending on potency changes or further rotation optimizations, it can very well look different in the future. For now, though, enjoy the reworked Paladin, and good luck on your Raids and Trials!

Source: The Balance Discord Server

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