Condensing Bard with Morphing Buttons

[HyoMinPark]

IMO; Button bloat for all jobs could be cleaned up by:

1. Creating AoE versions of all Single Target abilities
2. Create Single Target versions of all AoE abilities
3. Add an "AoE stance"; Having it on means that you are using the AoE version of the abilities, having it off means that you're using the single target version. (or, just have everything cleave and make it even simpler)

I have to disagree—with all of this, but especially with point 1 and 2. I don’t believe either would clean up any button bloat, but rather add to it.

It would be far simpler to just make potent abilities that are usable in both AOE and single-target scenarios. Like DNC’s Saber Dance and their Finishes; or, in BRD’s case, Apex Arrow and Blast Arrow. There really isn’t a need to clone a skill and make one AOE and one single-target. AOE has so few uses outside of dungeons, so combat focus tends to be more against a single target.

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with jobs having one or two standard AOEs—like BRD’s Quick Nock/Ladonbite or DNC’s AOE combo. But I don’t see the need to create skills like SAM’s Guren and Senei or Shoha and Shoha II (I guess the BRD equivalent in this system would be “Apex Arrow II” and “Blast Arrow II”). Because combat tends to be against one target (outside of dungeon trash pulls, or the rare opportunity in a trial or raid where you might be able to cleave multiple targets), adding single-target exclusive clones of existing abilities that could already be used in either single-target or AOE just adds to the bloat. And it makes the AOE one irrelevant in a lot of different content that it would have otherwise been useable in. SAM is one of the jobs right now that has a lot of buttons that could be reasonably trimmed down; and in SB, Guren was used in both AOE and single-target situations. Now? You use Senei over it when you’re in a trial or raid. Guren is forgotten unless it happens to line up with an add phase, and you can safely blow it on a cleave without losing a use of Senei when the boss returns (since the two share a cooldown).

Adding in an “Apex Arrow II” and a “Blast Arrow II” adds two unnecessary buttons. And even if you try to cut down on the bloat with adding in a stance toggle, I don’t think adding in stance dancing will really add much to gameplay—especially at a high-end level where you are almost always using single-target rotations over AOE ones. I don’t think add phases really add much reason to include this system: they’re far too short to really make it meaningful, in my opinion. So you dip into “AOE stance” for 30 seconds? Well, you’re still spending 6~9 minutes in “single-target stance”, so what did this really add to gameplay?