Poor DPS - apparently. Need advise.

Lvl 50 Bard. Newly switched from KB/M to PC/Game Pad

Problem
A few times in Dungeons other players mentioned my DPS needs improvement.

Should I redistribute points (10,000 company seals), level up Lancer and Pugilist, or QUIT PLAYING. :eek:

Any ideas?

Points
Originally spread around anticipating "all-around" play. But 100% Dex is recommended.
184 Strength
244 Dexterity
204 Vitality
169 Intelligence
161 Mind
163 Piety

Rotation
Straight Shot -> Bloodletter -> Windbite -> Venomous B Bite -> Heavy Shot
with
Misery's End, Raging Strikes, Hawk's Eye, Internal Release, Feather Foot.


Gear

Weapon - Serpent's Sergeant's Bow L-44
Head - DarkLight Aim L-70
Body - same as above
Hands - same
Waist - same
Legs - Choral Tights - L-45
Feet - Darklight Aim L-70
Neck - Darklight Aim L-50
Ears - Darklight Aim L-70
Bracelet - same as above
Ring - Darkling Aim L-70
Ring - Aetherial Spinel Ring L-49

Upgrade your weapon. I don't know how you're mostly DL, but still have a 44 weapon.

Go do WP, Ifrit, buy a 50 crafted, or get the 50 from your GC.

Also, yes. You should be all in DEX.

While B4B is good, it only amounts to a 2.5% DPS increase. You should have Invigorate, though.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SoloOne

Lvl 50 Bard.
[...]
Weapon - Serpent's Sergeant's Bow L-44

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I'd think the issue is obvious, and I'm not playing bard.

Or did I just get trolled? Oh man...

The full dex will help some.

Bard DPS is more a priority then a rotation. There are a bunch of threads about it throughout the forums... dig around a bit.

ya, how can you be in full Darklight and still carrying a lvl 44 bow?
It boggles the mind.

You're weapon is your problem, just doing the dungeons alone you would have came across at least the Darklight Bow. Even if you started your Relic Quest you would have done AK/Ifrit/Garuda and there's a good chance of getting a much better weapon there.
I just hit 50 with my DRG and already had full DL and the Grand Company Lance waiting for me.

but like Horobi said, maybe we're just being trolled.

Your bows going to play a large factor in your output. No matter how much DL you have, if your low lvl bow is adjusting the equation lower you won't see the full benefits of increasing dex. Getting a GC lvl 55 weapon will increase your output noticeably and then you can start working on the relic quest line from there.

Bow is it. Trolled? Not sure cause I had a 50 in a group recently who had a LvL43 white/grey bow. 8000 seals for GC bow will put you on the road, or spend the gil and buy the enhanced relic precursor at the AH, you need that anyways, price depending on server, on mine its 40,000 gil.

It's almost as bad as seeing some of those fresh 50s rolling up right out of a Fate party still wearing lvl 30 accessories. Then they get upset when you tell them they need to upgrade their gear and it's the reason why their dps sucks.

upgrade your weapon (primal weapon or DL/GC lt. weapon recommended). and grab the toxotes ring from the HM dungeons.

macro in bloodletter, heavy shot and misery's end into one macro (simplifies things).

start you rotation with straight shot, then your DOTs, then bloodletter/heavy shot.

max out your GC rank first, then buy reset, then buy weapon if you haven't gotten a better one by then.

get lancer to level 34 for B4B.

lol. i feel like its a troll. but i've met people on my server that did not understand that weapon damage reigns.

weapon damage > everything.

Thanks everyone. Very helpful.

I researched getting a new weapon, guess I missed the obvious progression. Sorry.

Wanted to improve as much as possible BEFORE Ifrit. Thought that most respectful of other players - nothing worse than dying on your team.

I am working on Relic.

So off to get a new weapon. Yes!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Horobi

I'd think the issue is obvious, and I'm not playing bard.

Or did I just get trolled? Oh man...

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No need to be sarcastic. I asked the question looking for help. Why hassle people asking for help?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Azoryl

The full dex will help some.

Bard DPS is more a priority then a rotation. There are a bunch of threads about it throughout the forums... dig around a bit.

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Yes, I did a lot of research and study. I took the time to ask the question to get help and confirm my findings. Thanks for your post though.

I'm not the Troll - but some of YOU are!

Troll (Internet)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In Internet slang, a troll (/ˈtroʊl/, /ˈtrɒl/) is a person who sows discord on the Internet by starting arguments or upsetting people,[1] by posting inflammatory,[2] extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community (such as a forum, chat room, or blog), either accidentally[3][4] or with the deliberate intent of provoking readers into an emotional response[5] or of otherwise disrupting normal on-topic discussion.[6]

No offense to all the BRD posting in here, but if your'e going for the class to top the charts, you may want to rethink your choice. BRD is great early 50game, but as content progresses they do pander off on the DPS.

*begins reading post*

ok yea should be full dex but everything else looks ok

*continues reading post*

Weapon - Serpent's Sergeant's Bow L-44

........./shocked

You'll be A-Ok with that out the way.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Truefaith87

No offense to all the BRD posting in here, but if your'e going for the class to top the charts, you may want to rethink your choice. BRD is great early 50game, but as content progresses they do pander off on the DPS.

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I don't see anyone here saying we would be. >_>

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Viridiana

I don't see anyone here saying we would be. >_>

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False. Those crybaby classes think so. IYKWIM. http://i.imgur.com/1Vx8MXz.gif

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Truefaith87

No offense to all the BRD posting in here, but if your'e going for the class to top the charts, you may want to rethink your choice. BRD is great early 50game, but as content progresses they do pander off on the DPS.

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Bard will never hit as high as others but their dps is still quite high. A team of 4 bards that are well geared and know what they're doing is enough dps to take down anything.

Bard gearing is very simple: If it has crit, wear it. If it doesn't have crit, don't wear it. If it has more crit than what you've got on, go for it.

Now that Internal Release has been nerfed in 2.1, stacking crit on bard is even more important than before.

Use DL head, body, feet, waist, toxotes legs and hands, imperial operative choker HQ (put a savage might II materia in it if you want), DL earring, bracelet, ring, toxotes ring. Pick up a GC lieutenant bow and use that till you can get relic.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by LunarEmerald

Bard will never hit as high as others but their dps is still quite high. A team of 4 bards that are well geared and know what they're doing is enough dps to take down anything.

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That's funny. Bard is still one of the strongest DPS classes in the game if built properly. They're just not competing with DRG (and with MNK on fights with little/no movement) anymore.

It's just amusing how nobody seems to know how to gear their bard. I see far too many people using full DL, or that awful CT set, or bad pieces of Allagan that don't have crit. No wonder they don't think they can do very much DPS.

Another possible issue with the OPs problem, aside from a 44 weapon obviously, could simply be he/she/it is running with dicks, or elitests. Minmaxxers kinda ruin the game for the more relaxed and casual folks by simply throwing degrading terms everywhere they want. Spose thats the curse of all MMO though.

Not all min-maxers are like that. I really enjoy playing the endgame gear metagame, but I don't blow up on newbies. I try to help them. :)

If you're going for the Artemis Bow (Relic) you might not want to bother upgrading it to Zenith. Also, the Bow of Crags (Titan's dropped bow) is now superior to the standard Artemis Bow so it might be in your best interest to farm that up instead. Accuracy isn't really an issue outside of Bahamut's Coil so it's perfectly fine not to worry about it. Stack your crit and determination for best results for non Coil content.

Possibly even do a few SV runs until you get the shadow bow which from what I gather should be good until lvl50
Since you are lvl50 however for sure get a better weapon.
Your rotation seems fine to me

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SoloOne

snip

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Get the iLv 55 GC bow before you spend points on redistributing full DEX. Then redistribute to 30 DEX. The WPN DMG from wpns count for way more DPS than any single slot upgrade in armor will benefit from both DEX and the secondary stats even if you didn't count the additional DEX and secondary stats from the wpn (unless it's a MASSIVE upgrade in armor compared to a small upgrade in wpn). While BRD doesn't get as many bonus WPN DMG per wpn it's still somewhere around this formula:

+1 DMG = about +2.5% DPS, +15 DEX = about +2.5% DPS (and if I'm not wrong allocated attribute points seem to scale slightly higher than an equivalent number in geared attribute points aside form VIT and PIE, but it's hard to test extensively with the respec cost), and you need way more than +15 in secondary stats to see around +2.5% DPS.

After that you should aim for either and Ifrit or Garuda bow and then move on to Relic/Titan.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by OmegaNovaios

continued

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If you play BRD correctly you can hit high numbers w/o the best gear in the game. My first win on Turn 5 was with BRD with i80 wpn and full i70 gear (i71 avg) and I was parsing at about 90% of the DMG of near full i90 gear BRD, DRG, and BLM (while singing songs) in v2.0 and I prefer controller as BRD. In 2.1 even after nerf I'm still parsing #1 or #2 while singing at key intervals in every PUG I'm joining. BRD still has a great advantage in being able to have 100% max DPS (not just 100% uptime) while mobile if played correctly (which is way easier on controller given the number of actions needed to maximize DPS and I would never attempt to maximize DPS as SMN on controller unless I was willing to change my hotbar(s) for every fight).

This game is about 80% skill and 20% gear. Stats WILL not carry you through this game.

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Originally Posted by OmegaNovaios

continued 2

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I use 2 macros for DPS:

DPS macro:
/ac "Misery's End" <t>
/ac "Bloodletter" <t>
/ac "Heavy Shot" <t>
/ac "Blunt Arrow" <t>

Buff Macro:
/ac "Internal Release" <me>
/ac "Blood for Blood" <me>
/ac "Hawk's Eye" <me>
/ac "Barrage" <me>
/ac "Raging Strikes" <me>
/ac "Quelling Strikes" <me>

Controller Hotbar (only need 1 for single target max DPS and songs):
R2 Side: "Playstation Controller Reference"
X - "DPS Macro"
Circle - Straight Shot
Triangle - Windbite
Square - Venomous Bite
Down - Bloodletter
Right - Repelling Shot
Up - Buff Macro
Left - Flaming Arrow

L2 Side:
X - Invigorate
Circle - Mantra
Triangle - Second Wind
Square - Swiftsong
Down - Battle Voice
Right - Army's Paeon
Up - Foe Requiem
Left - Mage's Ballad

Quote:

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Originally Posted by synaesthetic

. I see far too many people using full DL, or that awful CT set, or bad pieces of Allagan that don't have crit. No wonder they don't think they can do very much DPS.

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The Ballad armor set isn't all horrible, the hands actually have a very good combination of stats. Not enough to beat Relic hands, but definitely enough to be the best option before i90 gear.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by OmegaNovaios

continued 3

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It takes skill/knowledge to use the macros at ABSOLUTE 100% effectiveness but massing them down as soon as soon as everything is available is still great DPS, but be sure to save all the CDs from the Buff Macro for DPS checks. I also use a 2nd controller hotbar just for AOE DPS, but it's not too hard to setup with the same template. And use a 2nd DPS macro w/o Blunt Arrow in it and place a Blunt Arrow macro in place of Repelling Shot and replace Swiftsong with Repelling Shot. You will also need a macro w/o Blood for Blood for certain fights so you don't kill yourself and place that somewhere on your hotbar. Bloodletter is also used outside the macro since you can still proc while using applying your DOTs.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by CyanDvai

ya, how can you be in full Darklight and still carrying a lvl 44 bow?
It boggles the mind.

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When I got MNK to 50 I had 7 pieces of i90, the rest i70, and an i50 weapon for the loooooongest time :P Why waste time on anything that isn't a relic? xD

Quote:

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Originally Posted by synaesthetic

Bard gearing is very simple: If it has crit, wear it. If it doesn't have crit, don't wear it. If it has more crit than what you've got on, go for it.
It's just amusing how nobody seems to know how to gear their bard. I see far too many people using full DL, or that awful CT set, or bad pieces of Allagan that don't have crit. No wonder they don't think they can do very much DPS.

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Now THIS is a troll.

Well.... either this person or all the people who have the nerve to run around in a sub ilevel90 set maxed out with crit. Either way it's horrible advice for somebody at your level.

You want the highest weapon damage possible, then you want dex, then you want crit over the rest of the stats until you hit Coil where you will have to hit the accuracy cap to ensure your silences. Eventually work on maxing your crit in order to get the most free bloodletters to pop.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by synaesthetic

Bard gearing is very simple: If it has crit, wear it. If it doesn't have crit, don't wear it. If it has more crit than what you've got on, go for it.

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Hah! Funny. You'll never get enough ACC if you focus only on crit gears.

Considering the person who started the topic doesn't have relic completed yet, it's pretty safe to say they haven't even step foot in coil. If they follow the natural gear progression in game and collect Darklight/CT (which I'm sure they will) they will meet and exceed accuracy cap without trying. It's only those of us who are replacing old gear with i90 only who are going to run into the accuracy issue that T5 snakes present.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by synaesthetic

Bard gearing is very simple: If it has crit, wear it. If it doesn't have crit, don't wear it. If it has more crit than what you've got on, go for it.

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Main stat > secondary stats. Going from a crit coated i70 to a no crit i90 is still a big upgrade, even with losing the crit.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Itseotle

When I got MNK to 50 I had 7 pieces of i90, the rest i70, and an i50 weapon for the loooooongest time :P Why waste time on anything that isn't a relic? xD

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i50 is fine while doing the primals during Relic, and if you get a primal drop, great.
Either way, at 50 you should either get the Grand Company weapon (seals are easy and you should probably be near max anyways at 50) or buy your relic precursor to use since you're going to need it anyways.

You should have one or the other of these the moment you turn 50 unless you picked up a Darklight weapon on another class. When my DRG turned 50 I had already farmed full Darklight and had my Grand Company weapon waiting and the very next day I had Garuda's Beak.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by OmegaNovaios

I use 2 macros for DPS:

DPS macro:
/ac "Misery's End" <t>
/ac "Bloodletter" <t>
/ac "Heavy Shot" <t>
/ac "Blunt Arrow" <t>

Buff Macro:
/ac "Internal Release" <me>
/ac "Blood for Blood" <me>
/ac "Hawk's Eye" <me>
/ac "Barrage" <me>
/ac "Raging Strikes" <me>
/ac "Quelling Strikes" <me>

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Personally I have BfB and QS on seperate macros. QS is rarely ever used if your tanks are half decent and there's a lot of fights where you have to be careful when to use BfB. I guess you can change the macro depending on the fight though, only takes 2 seconds.

Isn't spamming buffs like that (macro) waste of up time?

Although it's instant cast but there's animation involved and by the time you finish your last chain of buff you'd probably wasted a few seconds of the 1st buff's time and time to DPS.

Personally I play BRD without any macro, and I manually buff myself in between weaponskills since buffs are off GCD. Usually I start off like: Straight Shot > Blood Letter > BFB > Venomous Bite > Internal Release > Windbite > Hawkeye/Raging Strikes > so on and so forth.

Of course if blood letter gets refreshed in between I'll fire it off as OGCD immediately available.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Ooshima

Isn't spamming buffs like that (macro) waste of up time?

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The macro doesn't have a wait command. It doesn't use every ability in the macro at once. It uses the first ability available in the macro if it's available when you press the button, or in this case Internal Release. If internal Release is down and you press the button it will use Blood for Blood next. If you don't want to use Quelling Strikes then you just use every action before that and wait for the CDs of the rest to renew or you can make a second macro to swap out with, it's faster than editing the same one over and over. Personally I put an extra PC version hotbar over the controller hotbar with all the CDs on it to see all the timers. Sometimes the macro bugs out and uses them out of order but it's around 90% bug free atm. I use one buff/oGCD between each GCD when needed.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by OmegaNovaios

The macro doesn't have a wait command. It doesn't use every ability in the macro at once. It uses the first ability available in the macro if it's available when you press the button, or in this case Internal Release. If internal Release is down and you press the button it will use Blood for Blood next.

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What I mean is chaining all the OGCD buffs is kinda wasting uptime because:

eg:
/ac BFB -> toon does animation
=> by then your weaponskill CD is already done

instead of firing off a heavy shot now, the macro continues to chain other buffs

I would have fired off a heavy shot first and make use of the BFB's (or whatever buff that is up) rather than let it tick off without doing damage than chaining the next few buffs, which equally gets wasted because I'm not doing damage.

IDK if I've phrased it well >.<

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Ooshima

What I mean is chaining all the OGCD buffs is kinda wasting uptime because:

eg:
/ac BFB -> toon does animation
=> by then your weaponskill CD is already done

instead of firing off a heavy shot now, the macro continues to chain other buffs

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Not the way he's written it. A macro that behaves the way you describe would have /wait 2.5 or /wait 3 between each buff. His will just pick an ability (usually in order listed, taking into account CDs) and use it, then stop unless you push the macro again.