Optimal BRD rotation?

[SlyRoyale]

Why would you open with both your DoTs not fully buffed?

The reason why I use this opener is because starting with Straight Shot wastes a potential Bloodletter reset. By opening with Windbite, I've already set myself up to receive the boon of River of Blood's effect. With the Straight Shot opener, you need to get a Straighter Shot proc within 3-4 GCDs. If you don't you are faced with the following options:

1) Reapply it early, wasting potency and TP over a more potent and cost-effective Heavy Shot.
2) Clipping the two DoTs early, which is also a waste of potency and TP.
3) Reapply DoTs without Straight Shot up, which defeats the purpose of the opener in the first place.

On top of that, with the opener I provided you have all of your buffs up when you have to reapply your DoTs. With the traditional Straight Shot opener, to stack your buffs and get the most out of your DoTs, you would have to hold them all for long enough that you'd end up losing your DPS. From another angle, if you were weaving in your cooldowns as soon as possible, you would only have some buffs up for the first set of DoTs, and some buffs up for your second set. It's not as good as having all of your buffs up for the second set and none for the first.

That is why I open with Windbite instead of Straight Shot. I used to use that opener, but after changing it to the one I use now I've seen greater improvement in my numbers. Most of all, it feels a lot more fluid to me since everything in that opener just synchronizes well. I can crit up to 800+ with Heavy Shot and Bloodletter during the opener, but my DPS is far more sustained throughout the whole fight.

I haven't missed a hit on Kaliya or anytime during T11 as I usually hit the rear on the boss and nodes. It could be higher, but it works and I'm still putting out good numbers.

500+ DPS on opener isn't too good, though. I assume that number is in a party (a.k.a fully buffed). Also, I don't see why you wouldn't use potions on that opener, it's a really big part of your damage on opener.
Just an advice, read the link Krietor posted. I do over 800+ openings unbuffed, and usually do much more with Disembowel/Trick Attack/PT Buff/Food.

As Ooshima said, it depends on how long time has transpired in the parse. The static I help out says I sustain some of the best DPS they've seen out of any other BRD before me, and that 500+ DPS number they provided was from at least a minute or two in the fight if my memory serves me correctly. Any longer, it's usually 400+ or a little lower should I make a fumble, had to sing frequently, or got KO'd. As for leaving out the HQ X-DEX pot, that was intentional for those who don't raid or are struggling with gil or materials to get them. If you do have one, it's best to use it after Internal Release and before Barrage in the opener I provided.

[Ooshima]

Snip

Try out the other way. In theory you have valid points there but the opportunity cost exchanged with opening with unbuffed DoTs isn't justified. You are betting on a chance to receive 1 or at most, 2 BL procs with your opener VS guaranteed, more potent DoTs ticking with the chance of more crit ticks form IR.

I'm on PC and I run ACT all the time during raids, and the difference is easily seen. Sometimes after a wipe, one or 2 of my CDs aren't up. For example, after wipe, say my Raging Strikes aren't ready and we decided to go ahead - the burst DPS clearly suffers quite a dent there.

You should definitely try out a rotation where you apply your DoTs buffed.

And nope I don't happen to have the 3 problems you have written there. If you are talking about re-applying a Straight Shot buff without it being a proc, then my point to you is you don't always get to re-apply it proc'd. It's something you eventually have to deal with, and in the opener, the potency/cost suffered without being a proc is rather insignificant compared to a properly opening buff burst with buffed DoTs and the CDs end in tandem with your X-Pot.