Red Mage DPS Gear and Best in Slot — Dawntrail 7.5

At this point in the patch cycle, it is best to use a combination of an appropriate item level Extreme Trial weapon, pentamelded crafted, and as many tome or alliance raid pieces as you can that avoid SPS (which for this patch are the Vana'dielian head, chest, and feet). For rotational alignment, 2.49 is preferred. The set here from 7.4 is still usable if starting fresh, though it is advised to get at least one alliance raid piece and the newer Foil of Naught weapon if possible.

For this tier's Savage raids and upcoming Ultimate, we can use a similar set at 2.48, 2.49, or 2.50 GCDs with a few meld swaps. The actual damage difference between them is negligible and mostly comes down to comfort. The default set shown below is 2.48, which has the most compatibility with other casters (both Summoner and Pictomancer).

For 2.49 BiS: Swap 1x SPS meld on tome ring to DH.

For 2.50 BiS: Swap both SPS melds on tome ring to 2x DH.

For Futures Rewritten (Ultimate), as of patch 7.3, there are theoretically multiple sets we can use for progression due to the availability of iLevel 735 dungeon gear. For a combination of general accessibility and high damage output, use the following set.

Upon clearing the fight, you can upgrade your set further with the Ultimate Edenmorn Rapier and minor meld swaps.

As far as gearing is concerned, The Omega Protocol, Dragonsong's Reprise, The Epic of Alexander, The Weapon's Refrain, and The Unending Coil of Bahamut can be approached similarly. Gear choices make minimal difference to how much damage we do due to how gear syncs, melds are removed, and substats get capped. All we have to do is pick gear pieces with Crit and either Det or DH, while avoiding gear with built-in Spell Speed. Ideally we balance the amount of gear pieces that have Det or DH, but the difference is insignificant and the stats do not have to be perfectly balanced.

• The Omega Protocol (TOP): All gear iLevel 755 or above (available as of patch 7.2).
• Dragonsong's Reprise (DSR): All gear iLevel 725 or above.
• The Epic of Alexander (TEA): All gear iLevel 595 or above.
• The Weapon's Refrain (UWU): All gear iLevel 500 or above.
• The Unending Coil of Bahamut (UCOB): All gear iLevel 470 or above.

For weapons, it is advisable to use Relic Weapons due to substats being directly on the weapon and not melded. Endwalker Relic Weapons are a DPS gain for TOP and DSR, and can also be used for TEA, UWU, and UCOB (in all cases, prioritize Crit + either Det or DH). The Shadowbringers Relic Weapon can also be used for TEA, UWU, and UCOB with even more precision, though optimal substat distribution will be subject to other gear you have.