The game absolutely does lend to its own unique PVP combat style. It's very party based, whereas in WoW it's practically every man for himself, even in the battlegrounds- there's no coordnation or anything.

Have you ever had a good ballista match? Usually it's with the JPs, but a nice 12v12 Ballista in Pashhow was really exciting. Full of strategy and tactics- you couldn't just run up to people and kill them. Jobs in FFXI have a narrower scope than classes in WoW, where every class is designed to be able to stand on its own in PvP. Bards aren't powerful combatants in Ballista (Though that's not to say they can't fight at all, I've met a few mean BRDs ), but when you have team mates taking advantage of his presence, it can change the tide in your favor. Good WHMs not only keep their team alive, they're extremely hard to take down, making them and PLDs some of the best Petra scorers.

I really wished they made the ballista royale an annual event.