My easy controller setup for WAR

[Freyyy]

Even without a wait command, there is an actual delay in every macro compared to un-macroed. I had a Berserk macro before saying that I will be pacified and asking for a dispell if possible, but I deleted it because most of the time I had to hit the macro multiple times to get my char using Berserk. If I hit it a bit too early during the last animation it didn't work because ability queueing is disabled with macros. Without macros, I just have to hit the button once, and even if it's early and my char is still doing another animation, it will always do Berserk right after finishing it. And it's even worse with GCD abilities. You might not see it but there is an inevitable delay when you macro your GCD abilities. You have to wait to have your GCD finished for the game to confirm the use of the ability via macro, without macro the game confirms it if you hit the ability at 75% of the GCD and will use it as soon as the GCD is finished, thus having absolutely zero delay. I experienced it also with SCH when I had my embrace mouse-over macro-ed with Adloquium. My Adlos didn't start casting asap, it felt clunky. I removed the macro and made just a seperate macro only for mouse-over embrace which I put on a keybind that I can spam while doing other things and it's just better. It's a well-known fact. Macros are bad in this game, there is delay, even if it's slight, and it's hindering your character's efficiency.

[karateorangutang]

Here's my setup:

Macros

Defiance:
/micon Defiance
/ac Defiance <me>
/chotbar change 1
/chotbar set "Inner Beast" 1 RD1
/chotbar set "Steel Cyclone" 1 RD3

Deliverance:
/micon Deliverance
/ac Defiance <me>
/chotbar change 1
/chotbar set "Fell Cleave" 1 RD1
/chotbar set "Decimate" 1 RD3

Vengeance + Foresight:
/micon Vengeance
/ac Vengeance <me>
/ac Foresight <me>

Internal Release + Bloodbath:
/micon "Internal Release"
/ac "Internal Release <me>
/ac Bloodbath <me>

Equilibrium + Second Wind:
/micon Equilibrium
/ac "Equilibrium" <me>
/ac "Second Wind" <me>

Raw Intuition + Awareness
/micon "Raw Intuition"
/ac "Raw Intuition" <me>
/ac Awareness <me>

Hotbars

Crossbar 1:

R2:
O: Heavy Swing
X: Skull Sunder
■: Butcher's Block
▲: Tomahawk
↑: Unchained
↓: Brutal Swing
→: Steel Cyclone/ Decimate ( due to macro hotbar swaps when changing stances)
←: Inner Beast/ Fell Cleave ( due to macro hotbar swaps when changing stances)

L2:
O: Convalescence
X: Mercy Stroke
■: Equilibrium + Second Wind Macro
▲: Provoke
↑: Berserk
↓: Internal Release + Bloodbath Macro
→: Raw Intuition + Awareness Macro
←: Vengeance + Foresight Macro

Crosshotbar 2:

R2:
↑: Defiance macro
↓: Deliverance macro

L2:
↑: Limit Break ( Someday... someday...)
▲: Sprint

R2 + L2 Quickhotbar:
O: Overpower
X: Maim
■: Storm's Path
▲: Storm's Eye
↑: Infuriate
↓: Thrill of battle
→: Fracture
←: Holmgang

This is the most condensed I could get it without sacrificing quick abilities for fast mitigation. With this setup I can still pull off 3x fell cleaves and decimates without any issue with all the proper cooldowns up. The swaps of deliverance and defiance allow the WAR job in particular to condense out 2 slots which allows for the minimal use of macro's.

snip

It's a lesser of two evils scenario with controllers is the problem. I don't have a desk setup in my living room to allow me to use a keyboard and mouse ( my wife would murder me in ways that make this game seem absolutely childish) so I have to use a controller.

My options are:
A: Using macros as intelligently as I can and keep hotbars minimal
B: Don't use macros and bloat the number of hotbars

On controller if you have multiple hotbars, the only way to track cooldowns on abilities off your hotbar is to bloat the screen with regular hotbars to see your cooldowns. Additionally the crosshotbar has to be tabbed with one button, so if you press it more than once... well time to tab back through again. Option B is arguably slower, especially in high pressure situations.

At least with A I have a natural and easy time finding the commands as I don't have to switch hotbars at all. Which, in turn, makes it faster and limits player error on my side. Until SE finds a way to condense skills or somehow make a better interface for controller players macro's are still the best option to limit player error.

[FolkenVanel]

Karate has helped me set up my Macros and I can say macro's are quite efficient for me and helped me become better for sure on the PS4.

[Kumori_Kumo]

it's hindering your character's efficiency.

And if I were working at some kind of financial firm trying to make it to my next raise rather than playing a video game, I'd probably care! I don't though. So I smash macros and have fun. What a concept.

Also I've done raid content this whole time so it's obvs not enough of a problem to matter.

[Sapphidia]

You can certainly macro off-gcd abilities if you arent too worried about losing a bit of dps from the pushback of GCDs. Certainly if you arent at the cutting edge of content it's fine to make a class easier to play.

However.. whilst some of those cooldowns can be macroed together for ease some of them really don't make sense to combo because they have totally different applications.

By all means combo Thrill of Battle and Convalescence for instance. "I'm low on health and need some health NOW". Same cooldown too, one press for each. That's fine. But Bloodbath too? That's something you should be using as either constant sustained healing on cooldown, or tied in with big DPS cooldowns to maximise it.

Likewise, Vengeance and Foresight are similar "reduce damage on me" but vengeance is something you generally want to save for big tankbusters whereas Foresight is something you want to pop liberally on trash or just to reduce minor damage.

By all means combo some skills together into one button press if they make sense, but be careful that you dont needlessly restrict the use of some of them and force yourself to not use things when you could because they come after a different skill in a macro.

[whiskeybravo]

"Toma-Stroke"
/micon "Tomahawk"
/ac "Mercy Stroke" <t>
/ac "Tomahawk" <t>

This one really confuses me lol

First off, and most obviously, Tomahawk is a ranged move and Mercy Stoke is melee range.. Why? Furthermore, if you tried to MS a dying mob, it could possibly trigger Tomahawk which is going to interrupt any combo you have going. If you're going to make an MS macro put it with Heavy Swing. Not related, but it's kinda funny I have room for Mercy Stroke on every other class but Warrior. Thought about making it a macro but I don't like macros on weaponskills because of the delay, so I just go without

[karateorangutang]

snip

That's why I tend to put the cool down that "matters most" as the first press on a macro button. I actually rarely use the same button together with the exception of raw intuition and awareness, and i generally just do that accross 2 GCD's as awareness's timer is shorter anyway. If you look at the macro's that i wrote the cool-down with the most impact is first, followed by something that augments it, or something that I use in conjunction with a different skill. I have noticed less lag if i put them accross separate buttons then on the same button.

I won't lie though, it's highly disappointing the macros are hampered in such a way in a game with such a skill bloat issue.

Also, I'm not doing cutting edge content. I play maybe 3-4 days a week and generally get into a raid on the latter half of it's life. I probably won't be starting savage Alexander for another couple weeks because of kids, wife, job, school ( thats right kids... it never ends), gym, etc.

But, like I said above until SE finds a way to make xhotbars more visible and able to be used for vast amounts of skills. It's still the best option available for controller users.

[SpecialKK]

Why would you use featherfoot? Why are you putting multiple skills into macros? And why are you setting R2+L2 and L2+R2 to be the same hotbar?

I have the same setup for my drk/war/drg. By copying the extended, I can easily transition regardless if I was on the main R or main L buttons. Works great

[whiskeybravo]

That's why I tend to put the cool down that "matters most" as the first press on a macro button.

But it doesn't always execute in order. The few macros I use (foresight/awareness on tanks, bloodbath/second wind/foresight/keen flurry on drg) have that problem occasionally.

Vengeance in particular is an interesting CD. I pop it most often with Bloodbath because of the return heals (great tanking mobs), but it's an incredibly strong cd when paired with IB for big tank busters. If you aren't raiding then you don't have to worry too much about that at this point, but part of all this is finding the synergy between CDs. Foresight/Vengeance don't really have any synergy.

[Freyyy]

snip

You sound salty. I wasn't attacking you or the people using macros. It's just a well-known fact in this game that macros are generally bad (only SCH gets a high benefit from having some macros). Playing in an optimal way doesn't prevent you from having fun at all. It's even the contrary for me. But hey, if you get your fun by smashing macros, fine for you. I don't, and I don't recommend people to do that either.

I play maybe 3-4 days a week and generally get into a raid on the latter half of it's life. I probably won't be starting savage Alexander for another couple weeks because of kids, wife, job, school ( thats right kids... it never ends), gym, etc.

I wanted to answer to this too, in this game you can easily get into raiding while only playing 3-4 days a week and having a real life with kids, wife, job etc... There is a lot of statics that are only raiding 3-4 days a weak in the evening and only 2-3 hours per day. Just gotta find the right people. I personally got lucky to have a GF who's into gaming and while she's not playing FFXIV, she enjoys watching me playing and raiding and she even sometimes plays a bit with my char (not in raids tho). But if your wife isn't like that, you should find a static with schedules that will fit your real life ^^