Bard does not make sense as a job

[Cassandaria]

You know, this type of thread keeps popping up and popping up and it's time someone takes a hammer to the concept that bards in XIV are not bards because they don't ONLY sing songs.
There are a few problems with this, first, there is no such thing in XIV as a pure support class, so every support class needs to be able to deal dps as well. Secondly, look at history, the first bards on the battlefield WERE archers, that's what this is based off of, rousing your comrades IN battle, not during little breaks, not during just the marching, Bards were used IN battle, to sing songs and raise the spirits, to spur the troops and what is it WE do as bards in XIV? the exact same thing. If you are going to judge based on a preconceived notion, learn the history behind it first please.
Also, stop hating on the cast time when you're lower level, wait until you're high level with the rest of your skills to understand what it's about, you learn to hop in and out of minuet, that's the intention.

[Shirobi]

Bards? There are bards in this game?

I know we have singing Rangers, but where are these "bards" you speak of?

[Shirobi]

You know, this type of thread keeps popping up and popping up and it's time someone takes a hammer to the concept that bards in XIV are not bards because they don't ONLY sing songs.
There are a few problems with this, first, there is no such thing in XIV as a pure support class, so every support class needs to be able to deal dps as well. Secondly, look at history, the first bards on the battlefield WERE archers, that's what this is based off of, rousing your comrades IN battle, not during little breaks, not during just the marching, Bards were used IN battle, to sing songs and raise the spirits, to spur the troops and what is it WE do as bards in XIV? the exact same thing. If you are going to judge based on a preconceived notion, learn the history behind it first please.

The traditional fantasy bard has never been an archer. Nor were historical bards archers. What on Earth are you talking about?

[MentheusDreyar]

The traditional fantasy bard has never been an archer. Nor were historical bards archers. What on Earth are you talking about?

Clearly you haven't done or didn't bother to read the Bard quest line. "The first bards on the battlefield WERE archers, that's what this is based off of, rousing your comrades IN battle, not during little breaks, not during just the marching, Bards were used IN battle, to sing songs and raise the spirits, to spur the troops" pretty much sums it up, in THIS game that's the history of the Bard and that's what Cassandaria is on about.

The "traditional" versions of classes/job can be more though of as a base product to build off of at this point. If EVERY Bard (insert class here) was exactly the same in EVERY game ever it would be incredibly boring and generic.

[Aiselia]

If you are going to judge based on a preconceived notion, learn the history behind it first please.

Here's the problem: History is irrelevant. This is Final Fantasy. It's completely reasonable and logical to expect Bards to have a big focus on songs, since Bards in previous games have pretty much been all about the songs and NOT archers going "tra-la-la" in battle.

Historically, "black magic" had little to do with throwing fireballs from your fingertips and creating massive explosions with your mind. But that doesn't matter, because that's how it's established in Final Fantasy.

Historically, dragoons were mounted infantry and had absolutely nothing to do with jumping over skyscrapers to stab dragons in the face. But that doesn't matter, because that's how it's established in Final Fantasy.

[Umbreon_skystorm]

I generally don't post this kind of stuff on the forum but... I'm tired of these Bards e.e so... you need to
to became a better brd if you want to and stop whinning

[Xanikk999]

snip

This. So much this.

Final fantasy has a history of taking names of real world things and making them mean something completely different. Dragoon is a perfect example of this. Dragoons were mounted soldiers armed with flintlock pistols that were used mainly in the 17th-18th century in mainland europe. In final fantasy dragoons are lance wielding fighters who are known for their spear diving jumps. Bards are also different in FFXIV compared to the real world.

[Aiselia]

I generally don't post this kind of stuff on the forum

Is it possibly because "git gud" is completely irrelevant to what the thread is about because "gittin' gud" won't magically make Bards have more songs?

[Duelle]

Here's the problem: History is irrelevant. This is Final Fantasy. It's completely reasonable and logical to expect Bards to have a big focus on songs, since Bards in previous games have pretty much been all about the songs and NOT archers going "tra-la-la" in battle.

This is a rather limited way of thinking. When they told me ARC was going to become BRD, I found it odd until I remembered the bards from D&D and Leliana from Dragon Age.

What you're not realizing is that certain concepts are malleable while others are not. Yes, DRGs are known for jumping on things, WHMs are known for healing things, and BLMs are known for setting things on fire. These things are hard-coded because the concepts themselves are not malleable by any stretch of the imagination. There's not much you can do to the DRG without messing up the concept (which, incidentally, is what FFXI ended up doing when they turned it into a pet job). Likewise you're not gonna have a BLM that uses the power of the void to heal or something like that.

Certain jobs are more malleable in concept. Unlike BLM or DRG, Bards and Knights can be pretty flexible. We saw knights as hardy melee powerhouses in FF Tactics, and here our Bard is more akin to the bards that predate Final Fantasy rather than a guy with nothing but a lute. There's nothing set in stone to say BRDs have to be guys that do nothing but spam songs. Songs and lore are just part of the concept of the job and there is some leeway.

Just like Blue Mage could be a guy wearing a brown potato sack and use a rubber chicken as its weapon, but will remain a blue mage so long as they use monster magic. Certain jobs don't have this leeway.

[Lucke]

I still think Vanguard made the best BRD class. As you leveled up, you got pieces and parts of songs that had various effects. You would create your own songs by mixing the various effects. You could have a song that had a very good MP regen but nothing else, or you could make a song that gave a little MP regen, a boost to dmg, and like song haste.



The more powerful the effects you added, the more it would cost to sustain though, so there was a cost.