Buff Bard - The Invisible Nerf

[Lux_Rayna]

Buffing songs would just make Bards more overpowered. I dont think you thought this through enough. Its almost as if you thought that by buffing songs, bards would sing more, and therefore do less dmg. This assumption isnt remotely close to being true, and it does not remove the capacity for Bards to do so many things at such a high level with relative ease. Increasing a class's potential is not an invisible nerf.

The dmg by itself is not the issue. My mnk can easily outdmg a bard on a tank and spank. Its the dmg+mobility+boss mechanics that make bard a bit too strong for its own good. You have 100% mobility+100% dmg upkeep (except for occasional song)+no positional requirements. On top of all of this, you can buff the party too. This means on a fight like Titan or Coil, bards will outdps melees on the whole *while* providing capacity for buff support. The only reason to take a melee over a bard then is for the LB. Other than that Bard is *clearly* superior. Its common sense.

[Aramyth]

I dont think you thought this through enough. Its almost as if you thought that by buffing songs, bards would sing more, and therefore do less dmg. This assumption isnt remotely close to being true, and it does not remove the capacity for Bards to do so many things at such a high level with relative ease. Increasing a class's potential is not an invisible nerf.

I don't think nerfing BRD mobility is the answer nor is straight out nerfing BRD damage because currently a SMN, MNK, DRG or BLM of EQUAL skill and gear will ALWAYS out DPS a BRD. Always. Even in Titan. The reason you don't see this frequently is because the skill required to play a BRD is lower but that doesn't mean it needs to be out right nerfed. Make it more complicated and just throwing casts on our skills is just going to make up BLMs (who hit for less) with TP instead of MP.

If you give BRDs a reason to keep up songs and make it more easily accessible to do so (by lowering the MP cost on them) then you are effectively buffing the support role of the BRD and effectively nerfing their damage by 20%. You need to give them a reason to have songs up. If they have songs up they will be playing the class the way it is meant to be played; a DPS/Support.