The red mage in the FFXI Gil can also boast themselves as the jack of all trades. The FFXI Red Mage is a great starter class, because you get the feel of every other class in the jobs section as well. Your Mage is a decent melee fighter, and he will be able to cast white as well as black magic, so who can top that?
If you prefer to be a loner, and you would rather go solo than put up with annoying mates, then this vocation might be interesting to you. Even at high levels, or should I say, especially at high levels, the FFXI Red Mage can survive well as a solo character and hold his own doing that, in other words, they are in high demand.
Their combat skills match those of the thief, good but not great. They can use most of the weapons, unlike the White and Black Mages.
They can carry most of the armor in the game, and they boast both the defense options of shield and parry.
The mythic Red Mage of the Final Fantasy series has been a coveted class since the beginning. With the power of both black and white, everyone in the game would thumb up at the player as a red mage. In Final Fantasy XI, the Red Mage isn't quite so mythical, but it is a powerful class none the less. Red Mage is my personal favorite mage class to level, as you can wear scale armor, swords, shields; self heal, buff (self/weapon) and enfeeble mobs. As a Red, you can also be a very effective healer both as backup and main however your ability to nuke/magic burst is much weaker in comparison to that of a Black Mage. Versatility is the name of the game with the Red Mage and it becomes a very busy class when in a group scenario.