Is Flame Lieutenant's bow worth it?

Just wondering if I should hold out for ifrit's bow or if this one is considered better.

It's a lot better than Ifrit's bow even without the set bonus.

Interesting.

And what about the Maelstrom's Bow?- The stats are different from the Flame Lieutenant's and no matter how I look @ it, Ifrit's Bow seems better unless I can get the stat bonus on Limsa's GC bow...

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Originally Posted by Cidel

Interesting.

And what about the Maelstrom's Bow?- The stats are different from the Flame Lieutenant's and no matter how I look @ it, Ifrit's Bow seems better unless I can get the stat bonus on Limsa's GC bow...

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Although the damage is slightly lower, the delay is quite a bit shorter and it makes up for it in dps as apposed to single hit damage. Even without the set bonus the dps of the Maelstrom's bow is still better than Ifrit's damage wise. Plus you get accuracy which is nice so you don't have to worry about missing as much.

Amy is correct on both accounts. The DPS increase on the company bows just increase your damage by a large amount compared to Ifrit's just on the raw DPS rating.

Just to confirm, is using the Storm Bow without the set bonus truly better than Ifrit's Bow? I've been unlucky with the drop on Ifrit's and I'm saving up the seals to get the Storm Bow, but since Storm Sergeant's Gear has more strength on it then anything it is doesn't seem like a good choice to go for the set bonus and sacrifice melded pieces.

Is the DPS increase substantial enough for the 25k seal pricetag?

DPS value is what you are looking at. Ignore the Raw damage number. Higher DPS means harder hitting Weapon skills and your LS if spammed on queue will equate to the listed DPS value (in a lag free world). Here is the top 3 bows right now

Artemis Bow > Garuda's Spine > Serpent Lieutenant's Bow ~ Storm Lieutenant's Bow ~ Flame Lieutenant's Bow

*Note the last 3 are all company bows and are respectively close enough to each other to call them equal IMO.



Ifrits Bow is yesterdays pick and hey if you got one laying around an none of the listed above sure use it. But Company bow is a better choice if you want to grind out the seals why you wait for a Garuda Spine.

Just look at the numbers too. Flame Lieutenant's bow is just outright better than Ifrit's bow on all fronts. The ~3-4 DPS increase is substantial, the damage and delay are both better on F.L. Bow, and the F.L. Bow has the same attack boost as Ifrit's bow, it's no contest. You don't have to worry about not getting the Acc bonus from the set, either. ARC/BRD has pretty good accuracy and if you get some DEX melded on gloves you shouldn't ever be missing. If you are, you can just eat food or wear acc rings.

Also, FYI, you can get the bow "for free". Finishing the rank up quest for Lieutenant gives you a Commemorative Coin which can be traded into any of the black market Qiqirn NPCs for 25,000 seals. Since you will most likely want to get the rank up anyway, there's no reason not to go after the F.L. Bow.

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Originally Posted by Estellios

Also, FYI, you can get the bow "for free". Finishing the rank up quest for Lieutenant gives you a Commemorative Coin which can be traded into any of the black market Qiqirn NPCs for 25,000 seals.

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I was going to save up 25k seals... thanks for saving my time :)

Higher base damage correlates to higher damage Light Shots. I would rate Flame Lt.'s higher than Garuda's Spine due to Light Shot's damage synergy with Barrage and charged Raging Strike.

So, since I'm too lazy to do testing I'm going to trust you guys that the Lieutenant's Bow (Malestrom) is better than Ifrit's. But here's another question: would getting the other 4 pieces (to get the +30 Attack) be worth it?

I'm thinking no, but wondering if anyone has done it.

^^^ I don't think it is because most of the storm pieces are STR and take up slots that can be used for DEX/PIE. The 30 Attack is not worth it and because you're losing out DEX/PIE you would most likely be weaker going for the bonus.

It's still much better than Ifrit's bow. ~4 DPS is a significant increase.

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Originally Posted by Estellios

^^^ I don't think it is because most of the storm pieces are STR and take up slots that can be used for DEX/PIE. The 30 Attack is not worth it and because you're losing out DEX/PIE you would most likely be weaker going for the bonus.

It's still much better than Ifrit's bow. ~4 DPS is a significant increase.

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Taught so. Now, from Carraway's Guide thread I got that with Ifrit's Bow you cap DEX at 300 and PIE at 350. Might be asking for too much, but are the caps for the GC bows known? Or should I get testing?

I don't know if they are known but they are higher than Ifrit's bow since they are based on DPS I believe. I think I heard mention of a calculator somewhere.