Open world titles are at their best when they offer players ample opportunities forexploration and immersion. How these two things intersect will of course depend on the specific game and its setting, but typically, players should not only feel like their character has a place within the world, but that that place is unique to how their decisions have shaped their character. This can be as as simple as letting characters' classes have an effect on how they interact with the world.
Whether it’s a smaller, focused open world ora sprawling mapfilled with things to do, playing as an archetypal white mage character, one who wanders the world with curing magics and holy spells, can be an incredibly cathartic experience. These games might not expressly have a “white mage” class, but they all embody the principles of using holy, radiant spells for the power of goodness.
There are avariety of incantationsacross multiple schools that can be found all over the Lands Between. Often, these incantations won’t simply be available to the player immediately, and instead, they will have to find an instructor versed in incantations to teach them. Once players have one or more staple instructors they know they can reliably go to for incantations, and they have enough of the many prayer books found around the world, they can begin building up a stable reserve of incantations.
Incantations of the Golden Order, Erdtree, or Miquellan schools are particularly focused on healing or holy damage that suits a white mage playstyle. Not only do these spells have the mechanical links to a white mage style, but as they’re all associated with official religious institutions or icons within the Lands Between, they have an added narrative bonus of helping the player feel like they’re really an agent of this expansive religion, or one of its many sects.
Elder Scrolls Onlinegot off to a rocky start ten years ago, but since then it has flourished into an incredibly popular and multifaceted MMO, fit for players of any and all playstyles - including some that wouldn’t normally consider playing a massively multiplayer title. PvP experts will enjoy tweaking builds, managing sets and - the ultimate PvPer pastime - complaining about the ever shifting meta with an almost Orwellian level of information retention (we have always been at war with the Arcanists. High damage Nightblades have always been our allies).
For PvE players that might’ve migrated from single playerElder Scrollstitles, or even those mostly concerned with the lore of these titles, the Templar isan excellent wayto play, get through dungeons and overworld encounters with good survivability, and get to important narrative beats and quests. The Templar provides a white mage playstyle by combining holy damage on a broad AOE scale with burst heals and heals over time for both themselves and - more importantly in group dungeons - their allies
The vocation systeminDragon’s Dogma 2is an incredibly versatile way of building a unique combination of skills within a party of the Arisen, their main pawn, and their two supporting pawns. The game excels where its predecessor did not in making so called ‘beginner’ vocations have great utility even in late game. The Warrior might be a specialist branch of the Fighter - but the Fighter has unique utility with its shield that the Warriors do not have.
In a similar vein, the mages inDragon’s Dogma 2have access to a wide range of early healing spells that make them an excellent white mage. Mages often having a clerical aesthetic in this setting helps with this. Mages are an excellent support vocation in this title worthy of the white mage title.
Restoration is an incredibly versatile and powerful school of magic inMorrowind- and not just because restoration effects in alchemy are essentially the key to breaking the game. Fortifying attributes, resisting the often crippling diseases found on the continent, restoring damaged skills and, of course, lowered health, are all in the Restoration school’s wheelhouse. Beyond this, reliable offense, often found within white mage archetypes to give them some utility, can really be decided by the player. Augment Restoration magics with Mysticism, or focus on keeping yourself alive while conjured beasts do the work.
AmongMorrowind’smany joinable factions, the Imperial Cult and Tribunal Temple are two religious institutions that - despite their vast differences, make the perfect major faction for a white mage aligned character to focus on rising up in the ranks of.
There are avariety of jobsinFinal Fantasy 12- this game was ahead of its time purely through the modular job system and sprawling open-world that kept its scale without sacrificing detail to every corner of the setting.
The White Mage job has a wealth of defensive and support skills, and can even wield a few specialty weapons to further broaden their appeal. The white mage class and archetype is epitomized in Square Enix’s timeless open world title.
