Hmmm...something to ponder.
I've never tried it, but most people choose Feoh Storm Screamer because of higher INT. DE natural magic attributes is wind and dark. If that person uses a DW with fire, earth, water, etc., maybe it is true that they are not truly maximizing damage.
But what if they rolled a Feoh Elf or Human? The Elf gets water element skills, the human gets fire, iirc. While their base INT and matk is lower than DE, doesn't this mean that they would do more damage with a DW that matches their respective elements than a DE using a +21 - +23 Limited with Wind or Dark element?
If I gave a Feoh Elf a Farfurion Retributor (500 Water Element) and matched it against a Feoh DE that had a Limited +24 Retrib (450 Wind), which would do the greatest damage?
Also, don't Elf get more WIT naturally than a DE? Does that factor into equation? More WIT mean more magic skill crits, right? I realize that there are other skills that distinguish the two, but want to keep this simple, if possible.