DAWNTRAIL HYPE! Initial guide updates...
See: Viper STARTER Guide / Rotation | Pictomancer Starter Guide / Rotation
How to Unlock Pictomancer & Viper
Welcome to my very basic FFXIV Pictomancer (PCT) Starter Guide! Here I aim to teach you the basics of the Pictomancer Rotation, what’s the best gear for Pictomancers starting out, plus other basic setup and tips!
The most important part of this guide is:
The basic Pictomancer rotation at 80 – with notes up until 100.
This guide is meant for those just about to, or just unlocked the Pictomancer Job, and needs some help making sense of it all! Let’s go!
“The part on Starry Muse is exactly 269 words. It’s one skill.”
Mahiko “-dak” San
Pictomancer Starter Guide – Scroll to: Top (Basics, Unlock, Gear)
Rotation summary | Palette + Paint | Motif + Muse | Utility Skills
Prefer to discuss / give feedback on reddit? See: /r/MahikoSan/ Pictomancer Starter Guide thread.
Starting out with Pictomancer: Basic Info
Pictomancer Rotation
First, some assumptions, this part speaks about an L80 Pictomancer (the level you unlock at), and I have notes leading up to L100 as well. Let’s start the party with a summary (outline, draft?) of the Picto rotation you can refer to.
“Do Paint / Palette if you don’t have any Motif / Muse goin’ on”
- “One Button Basic Combo” Fire – Aero – Water. +Palette Gauge, +White Paint.
- Subtractive Palette uses the gauge, allows use of “powerful combo”.
- “One Button Powerful Combo” Blizzard – Stone – Thunder. +White Paint.
- Holy in White to use White Paint Stacks
This is it for L80. Future evolutions:
- Subtractive also converts 1 White Paint into 1 Black Paint.
- Comet in Black to use Black Paint Stacks.
Picto AoE Rotation? Use Fire II in Red, and Blizzard II in Cyan instead, but is pretty much identical to single target either way.
Creature cycles between Pom, Wing (L80), Fang, and Claw (96)
- Creature Motif 1 – Pom – use Pom Muse.
- Creature Motif 2 – Wing – use Winged Muse.
- After Pom and Wing, you can use nuke Mog of the Ages.
This is it for L80. Future evolutions:
- Creature Motif 3 – Claw – use Clawed Muse.
- Creature Motif 4 – Maw – use Fanged Muse.
- After all four, slam Retribution of the Madeen (L96).
- The cycle repeats again at “Creature Motif 1 – Pom”.
- Hammer Motif activates Striking Muse which in turn sets up…
- Hammer Stamp. Instant cast nukes.
This is it for L80. Future evolutions:
- combo extends into Hammer Brush > Polishing Hammer.
- ALL HAMMER ACTIONS ARE IN ONE BUTTON!
These hammer skills are auto CRITICAL DIRECT HITS.
There’s alot to unpack here… Basically, it’s youre ultra two minute cooldown. And I MEAN ULTRA.
- Starry Sky Motif activates Starry Muse.
- Leylines-like area buff to party damage.
- Subtractive Spectrum, basically 1 free Subtractive Palette.
This is it for L80. Future evolutions:
- 5 Hyperphantasia stacks (L82 trait), reduces cast time on many skills. Use these up to gain…
- Rainbow Bright (L92). Makes Rainbow Drip (L92) instant. +White Paint.
- Note: Rainbow Drip should only be used here (Swiftcast in niche scenario).
- On initial use, grants Starstruck, allows use of Star Prism (L100).
Tempera Coat – Self shield, refreshes if shield used up.
Smudge – Forward dash
Tempera Grassa – Spreads your self shield to all friends. Your personal shield must be up to use it.
Role Actions: Magical / Caster DPS.
In an attempt to summarize: Picto’s rotation has two halves. The paint / palette (infinite cycle), and the motif / muse (cooldown based). These two are for the most part independent of each other. Within the motif / muses, they three too are all “isolated” from each other.
For a more detailed explanation, read below.
The Palette / Paint half of PCT Rotation
This is your basic bulk actions. Your broad strokes, so to speak. Do this if you don’t have any motifs going on (more on this later).
The Muse / Motif half of PCT Rotation
Oh boy. This one is hard to get a grasp on when reading / writing / explaining, but I’ll try my best. This does not really interact with the whole Pallete / Paint system above.
You have three canvases – Animal, Weapon, and Landscape. These are essentially separate from each other, just knowing they don’t interact with each other kind of gives you peace right?
In an attempt so summarize and simplify it:
using a MOTIF “paints” on the “canvas”, allowing you to use the corresponding MUSE spell.
- Painting Creature Motif (paintings cycle) allows the use of Living Muse. (more on this later…)
- Painting Weapon Motif (always hammer) allows the use of Steel Muse. (Hammers)
- Painting Landscape Motif (always Starry Sky) allows the use of Starry Muse (huge cooldown)
Annoyingly, these Motif Skills in the skill book change name once placed onto the hotbar. And in the case of Creature Motif, changes further.
Here, I explain each pair:
Creature Motif (Pom, Wing, Claw, Maw) and Living Muse
Each time you do Creature Motif (L30), you will get a corresponding painting that cycles through Pom, Wing, Fang, and Claw. Then, your Living Muse (L30) transforms its corresponding skill depending on which painting you have (and some special cases). At L80, this cycle stops at Wing.
Placing Creature Motif into your Hotbar turns it into Pom Motif (initially).
- Creature Motif 1 – Pom – Living Muse becomes Pom Muse.
- Creature Motif 2 – Wing – Living Muse becomes Winged Muse.
- After Pom and Wing, you gain a special buff “Moogle Portrait”.
- Moogle Portrait allows you to use Mog of the Ages (can save a few charges)
It stops here at L80, but just to illustrate the higher levels…
- Creature Motif 3 – Claw – Living Muse becomes Clawed Muse (L96).
- Creature Motif 4 – Maw – Living Muse becomes Fanged Muse (L96).
- After all 4 cycle, they all get wiped off and you get “Retribution of the Madeen”.
- this allows you to cast Retribution of the Madeen (L96).
- The cycle begins anew at “Creature Motif 1 – Pom”.
Makes more sense when you lay it out like this ey…
Weapon / Hammer Motif and Steel Muse
Thankfully much simpler than the Creature one. Placing Weapon Motif (L50) into your Hotbar turns it into Hammer Motif.
- Hammer Motif (L50) turns Steel Muse into Striking Muse (L50). Grants “Hammer Time”
- Hammer Stamp (L50) can now be used, always a critical direct hit.
This is it al L80, but to give you a preview of higher levels…
- Hammer Brush (L86) is the next combo step from Hammer Stamp.
- Polishing Hemmer (L86) is the combo finisher.
- All of these are Critical Direct Hits! and are ALL IN ONE BUTTON!
Basically, press Hammer Motif and “Go Ham”, more.
THIS IS JUST A VERY ROUNDABOUT WAY OF SAYING:
“This is my 2 minute ultra giga cooldown!”
(It’s impractical, but admittedly pretty cool)
Landscape / Starry Sky Motif and Scenic Muse
Placing Landscape Motif (L70) into your hotbar turns it into Starry Sky Motif (L70).
- Using Starry Sky Motif turns Scenic Muse (L70) into Starry Muse (L70).
- Starry Muse has many effects… I’m not joking either. *inhales*
- In a large area, the party deals increased damage for a moderate duration.
- Gives Subtractive Spectrum, which is basically 1 free Subtractive Palette.
This is it until L80. But wait, theres more…
- Grants Inspiration, and 5 Stacks Hyperphantasia… (L82 addition effect)
- Inspiration reduces cast time of “various” spells as long as you’re in the Starry Muse area. Each time you use this reduction, it’s -1 stack. Using all 5 stacks removes Inspiration. (WHY HAVE 2 STACK TYPES? Why not 5x Inspiration!?)
- Once you lose Inspiration, gain Rainbow Bright (L92 additional effect)
- Rainbow Bright – allows the use of Rainbow Drip (L92) with much shorter cast time. This also gives white paint. Rainbow Drip shouldn’t be cast without this or Swiftcast…
Thought we were done? Just like Ardbert said,
“If you had the strength to take another step… could you do it?”
- Grants Starstruck upon use (L100 additional effect)
- Starstruck allows the use of Star Prism (L100). A giga nuke with AoE healing.
Let me remind you. This is ONE skill. My friend and FC mate Tiffany Faye sent me an example of another skill from the same game, FFXIV:
Bloodspiller (DRK L62): Delivers an attack with potency of 580.
It might seem like a lot, but trust me it makes a lot of sense in-game, haha.
Pictomancer Utility Skills
Finally, the odds and ends – Pictomancer Utility, Defensive, and Mobility skills.
Tempera Coat (L10) is a self-shield which you can use again if the shield gets completely used up. (I thought it was Tempura Coat. Like the breading on a Tempura – you can’t unthink it now, ey?).
Smudge (L20) is a short forward dash.
Temperra Grassa (L88) – Spreads your Tempera Coat (the above shielding skill) to all your friends. You MUST have Tempera Coat on yourself active to use it. (Wait a second… Tempura Oil? Hmm)
Mahiko San Note: Tempera is actually a method of painting in the old days.
As for the other utility skills, Pictomancer uses Magical / Caster DPS Role Actions.
Pictomancer Starter Guide – Scroll to: Top (Basics, Unlock, Gear)
Rotation summary | Palette + Paint | Motif + Muse | Utility Skills
Summary, Closing, Other Info
Is it Pallette? Pallete? Palette? Pal, it’s whatever…
Mahiko “nfused” San
Man are my fingers tired. I wanna put links here or other things, but Starry Must got me shook. In any case, I hope you found my Pictomancer Starter Guide helpful, hopefully the rotation won’t be so abstract to you anymore!
Im honestly super impressed with Picto as a whole – both Dawntrail classes are very cool. If you’re here, check out Viper Starter Guide / Rotation.
Prefer to discuss / give feedback on reddit? See: /r/MahikoSan/ Pictomancer Starter Guide thread.
Thank you for the write-up! Very handy :)
Oh this was super helpful, thanks! Though not quite sure when to use the OGCD and not lol… I guess start with OGCD, then circle through motifs and in between use OGCD again??? Gahhhhhh
I’ll add to this since I rushed Picto to 90 to use during the DT MSQ. I’ll update this tongiht. Yes, while there’s lots of instants it’s not exactly clear which is OGCD or not.