A well played bard is not support only
Our static we have dpswise like monk->bard->drg->bard on DPS output its all up to playstyle and statsetting (crit>det; minimizing skillspeed is common).
Besides that if you look for a non magical ranged DPS... with Heavensward machinist will be added. Go with archer/bard and try machinist in Expansion
I cannot speak for Shiva as I been on Cerby from start and dont intend to swap
On Cerberus we have a lot of new players all the time and a stable base of social focussed FCs (helping each other is the most important point) which helps a lot with starting a new char.