Playing as Bard, how necessary are additional skills?

[Conquers]

So i am a lvl 50 bard, and i love playing as one. i read up and saw that blood for blood and invigorate are two skills to aim for. how important to my overall dps is it to attain these skills? i honestly just don't enjoy pugulist and lancer that much which is why im procrastinating it until there is absolutely nothing else i can do other than lvl more jobs. i already use Second wind, the +15% dodge move, and the +10% crit move, so i do have the other 2 additional open...just too lazy to fate farm up to lvl 32 or whatever on lancer

[PArcher]

You *need* Invigorate for sure. You will have TP issues, and no, singing Paeon isn't going to be ideal in most situations (so don't start relying on it; you will need to sing Ballad and Foe's most of the time when you sing)

Blood for Blood is also very important. 10% damage boost with pretty good uptime is very helpful, especially in burst situations and during DPS checks.

So yes, start leveling LNC.

[Maero]

agreed with PArcher. Also i use Internal Release from Pugilist

[JetBrooks]

The burst you get from BFB, along with the TP sustainability from Invigorate, is really nice! Do a few levels a day, and it's not too painful.

[SlyRoyale]

Invigorate will help with your TP management.
Blood for Blood is great for burst DPS.
Internal Release can help with resetting Bloodletter's refresh timer if you apply VB+WB DoTs while it is up.
Mantra helps out your healers a little bit.
Second Wind is good if your healers are focused on their tanks in a clutch situation.

Those are my top five CDs for BRD to use.

[Ooshima]

Invigorate, BfB and IR are the 3 compulsory crossclass skills for a BRD, FYI.

[KaerisKlyne]

I main BRD and you 100% need Invigorate and Internal Release above all else. I find that Second Wind never makes a huge difference, but it's kept me alive in situations where healers were otherwise occupied with more integral party members to finish fights. I use B4B situationally, as in some end-game content it's unwise to pop if you're not confident with the fight, or if the enemy's damage output is just so high and so frequent that using it leaves you near-dead most times and a hassle to the party.

So...yes, level LNC. I waited a long time to do it and had no real problems, but I've definitely noticed the change now that I DO have B4B, and it's a wonderful addition. Pick up Internal Release, Invigorate, Blood For Blood, and Second Wind ASAP. I...can't seem to remember the 5th skill I crossed over hahaha.

[Tharian]

The burst you get from BFB, along with the TP sustainability from Invigorate, is really nice! Do a few levels a day, and it's not too painful.

While the DPS boost from Blood for Blood is indeed really nice, the problem is that it gives you just a 10% boost to damage on Bard, while at the same time increasing the damage you yourself take (incoming damage) by 25%. This trade off is problematic in fights such as Titan (Hard) and (Extreme) where you are constantly bombarded with AoE's, many of which are unavoidable. So while it is useful to have an increase in damage, it is not essential.

[SeraviEdalborez]

While the DPS boost from Blood for Blood is indeed really nice, the problem is that it gives you just a 10% boost to damage on Bard, while at the same time increasing the damage you yourself take (incoming damage) by 25%. This trade off is problematic in fights such as Titan (Hard) and (Extreme) where you are constantly bombarded with AoE's, many of which are unavoidable. So while it is useful to have an increase in damage, it is not essential.

The downsides of BfB are negated by using them at the correct time. Which is usually immediately after stomps. Or you have a good enough healer(s) to be able to just use it on cooldown.

[Tharian]

If Titan is using 4 to 5 of the mini jumps in a row (I believe they are called Geocrush or something like that) right after one of his Stomps, then using Blood for Blood is kind of pointless. Point is, there is so much AoE in Titan Hard and Extreme Mode that increasing incoming damage by 25% can be downright Fatal.

Look, I am not trying to say it is a useless skill. Just that it needs to be used carefully.