Summary
Final Fantasy 14will soon have a new melee DPS job for players to enjoy, as the Viper looks to add a new flavor to the role. Like the Reaper before it inEndwalker, the Viper is an original Job forFinal Fantasy 14and it was made specifically for Dawntrail. The Viper is not based on any other Jobs from other entries in theFinal Fantasyseries.
Though it was initially teased during the 2023 Las Vegas Fan Fest as the melee DPS ofDawntrail,the new Viper Jobwas officially revealed at the London Fan Fest just a few months later. Before the London Fan Fest,Final Fantasyfans speculated that the swashbuckling melee DPS would be a Corsair. However, Square Enix subverted expectations by revealing that the Job had a snake-like identity rather than a pirate. While details remained light after both Fan Fests, the Viper was confirmed to have the following bits of lore:
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The Viper Job’s Roots In the New World
The continent of Tural, also known as the New World, is far to the west of Eorzea. Home to both the Blue Mage job and various races such as the Mamool Ja, the Pelupelu, and the Moblins, this strange land is surrounded by jungles, mountains, and dangerous monsters that can claim the life of a novice adventurer in an instant. The Viper’s name comes from the style in which it stalks and hunts in Tural’s jungles, with its two swords looking similar to the fangs of the venomous serpent it is named for.Final Fantasy 14roleplayerswho want to add a bite to their character’s backstory should take note of the Turalian origins of the Viper upon unlocking the Job in Ul’dah, starting at level 80.
The Viper Is the Poster Job Of Dawntrail
As a Job specifically designed for Dawntrail, the Viper isthe poster Job of the expansion. In various promotional materials to date, the Warrior of Light has donned the hood and blades of the new melee DPS. This marks the first time since the Stormblood expansion introduced the Samurai that a new Job has been shown off in this manner. Two fan-favorite characters, Thancred and Alphinaud, were respectively given the roles of Gunbreaker and Sage when those Jobs were added in Shadowbringers and Endwalker. With an additional caster DPS still to come, it remains to be seen if another character such as Krile, or someone new altogether, will take up that mantle in Dawntrail.
The New Job Will Share Armor With an Old One
Just as the Reaper shared gear with the Dragoon in Endwalker, the Viper will also end the Ninja’s monopoly over a certain armor type. In this case, Scouting armor will be shared between the Viper and the Ninja once Dawntrail is released. A gameplay teaser from Square Enix showed that the Viper can strike quickly with its basic combo, and it is capable of calling upon the knowledge of past Vipers to temporarily enhance itself. It remains to be seen how the Viper will fare compared toFinal Fantasy 14’s other melee DPS inFF14group content such as raidsand Extreme Trials.
The Viper’s Two Blades Can Be Combined
As part of their burst combo, the Viper’s two blades can combine into a single, two-handed weapon. WhileFinal Fantasy 14players speculated over how and when the blades would combine during normal gameplay, some immediately compared the new weapons to those ofanotherFinal Fantasyprotagonist. That hero isFinal Fantasy 9’s Zidane Tribal, who used both twin blades and double-edged polearms in combat. While Zidane’s Tantalus armor is already inFinal Fantasy 14as a glamour, it remains to be seen how many players will use it with the Viper.
