Is Bow's Weapon Damage getting fixed?

[Lecreuset]

It's a support class that happens to do respectable enough damage. We could always go back to the FFXI days where you just run around casting songs on people, never unsheathing that Kard. (or Monster Signa I guess)

There's no room for that in a 4/8 man Party. Forcing it like that will need the songs to be really good and that would probably be the real issue because people will want bard even more. Right now you can finish everything without a bard but it's still easier to have one. Some people like a challenge though

[Mcshiggs]

Right now you can finish everything without a bard but it's still easier to have one. Some people like a challenge though

This is how it is meant to be, you can complete any of the 8 man content with any combination as long as you have the standard 2 tank, 2 healer, 4 dps setup. Of course you can deviate from that to suite your group's makeup, but they always wanted to be able to use any class/job for any content, and not favor job stacking, so right now people prefer paladins, so they are giving warriors more tools, bards and casters are highly sought after for Coil groups, so they are increasing the usefulness of dragoon and monk.This will continue through the life of the game, it happens with all MMO's, new content is released, they try to balance classes with it, then end up tweaking after to try get it right, once they feel they are at a stable point, it's time for new content and the cycle starts again. You can see this in other games, most classes in WoW now are completely different than they were at release, in XI ninja was meant to be a debuff/dps class, but the players saw it and invented the evasion tank, and SE rolled with it, adding a dynamic to the job they didn't even imagine when they designed it.

[Naryoril]

This is how it is meant to be, you can complete any of the 8 man content with any combination as long as you have the standard 2 tank, 2 healer, 4 dps setup.

Well, 4 bards doing Ifrit HM will have a very very hard time, probably impossible if they are not decked out with gear where they shouldn't do ifrit anymore anyway.

Otherwise i agree with you, it's sad enough that you all too often end up with 3 bards in an ifrit group if you use duty finder.

On the topic: if bards really already were that bad as many make them out to be, they wouldn't be everywhere you go. There is a reason to that, and it's not because people like their mechanics THAT much.

[Exstal]

Well, 4 bards doing Ifrit HM will have a very very hard time, probably impossible if they are not decked out with gear where they shouldn't do ifrit anymore anyway.

Otherwise i agree with you, it's sad enough that you all too often end up with 3 bards in an ifrit group if you use duty finder.

On the topic: if bards really already were that bad as many make them out to be, they wouldn't be everywhere you go. There is a reason to that, and it's not because people like their mechanics THAT much.

Very, very hard time is not comparable to impossible.

[Naryoril]

Very, very hard time is not comparable to impossible.

well, i don't have a bard, so i can't try it out. Is there a party with 4 bards and with ifrit weapons (or less) and partial darklight equipment who was able to do it? Because that's the gear the fight is balanced to. Honestly i really doubt it, but i'd be interesting to see a video of it.

I think this is an extreme case where it's fine when it doesn't work with any party setup.

[Celebcarca]

well, i don't have a bard, so i can't try it out. Is there a party with 4 bards and with ifrit weapons (or less) and partial darklight equipment who was able to do it? Because that's the gear the fight is balanced to. Honestly i really doubt it, but i'd be interesting to see a video of it.

I think this is an extreme case where it's fine when it doesn't work with any party setup.

4 BRD may struggle on Ifrit, but not nearly as much as 4 MNK or 4 DRG on Titan.....BRD can spread out and avoid stacked plumes...

Easiest wins I've had in Titan were with 4 BRD or 4 BLM

[mythicrose]

4 BRD may struggle on Ifrit, but not nearly as much as 4 MNK or 4 DRG on Titan.....BRD can spread out and avoid stacked plumes...

Easiest wins I've had in Titan were with 4 BRD or 4 BLM

It's not hard with all melee dps. As plumes are predictable, you have them all stand in one spot and then move.

[Allyrion]

4 BRD may struggle on Ifrit, but not nearly as much as 4 MNK or 4 DRG on Titan.....BRD can spread out and avoid stacked plumes...

Easiest wins I've had in Titan were with 4 BRD or 4 BLM

Wait, what? There should be no problem with 4 MNK or 4 DRG on Titan. One of the smoothest kills I've had 3 MNKS and 1 DRG (and a BRD as well).

There is like no mechanic I can think of that favors range on that. Plumes? It hits everyone and a lot of people stack or form a line for it anyway, so everyone is equally affected. Even if you just wing it, melee should be fine.
You just ran into bad melee. There is no reason range is better.

4 BRD on Ifrit with appropriate gear though. I'm going to call that impossible until I see otherwise. That's not a struggle, that's just a ridiculous demand. Each bard has to kill a nail each in AF1 gear? No LB at all?
How could you even compare that to an all melee titan?

[mythicrose]

Well, 4 bards doing Ifrit HM will have a very very hard time, probably impossible if they are not decked out with gear where they shouldn't do ifrit anymore anyway.

Focus fire each nail. Use tank LB if they don't go down. You'll all be hurting, but should survive and can continue the fight just like before.

[Bardo]

Focus fire each nail. Use tank LB if they don't go down. You'll all be hurting, but should survive and can continue the fight just like before.

Nope. (Unless all your bards are overgeared)
iLvL~55 Bards don't put down enough single target to solo a nail in time unless they get a huge string of crits and bloodletter procs (RNG).
Tank limit break PLUS Sacred Soil won't save you from more than 1 nail at iLvL~55 vit values.

It can definitely be done if most are overgeared, but that's irrelevant to a conversation about balance.

Either the DF just needs to stop making all Bard DD groups, or Foe needs to be modified to affect physical damage as well as magic (but still not stack).
Then it would be MUCH easier to tune Bard for Light party play vs Full party play.