Shots Fired: A Machinist Guide

[VitalSuit]

Can any tell me if mch gets better at higher lvl? cause right now at around 36 i'm having a hard time enjoying the class ( visuals are kinda lack luster ) and the rng on your 1-2-3 combo is kinda a pain lol xd

Your 1-2-3 combo is your main combo aside from using oGCDs so... if you're not enjoying that I'd say play something else.

[RyuujinZERO]

The only means to mitigate the RNG component of the 1-2-3 combo you get early. So if that's a problem you arn't going to like it in future either.

What you will get as you level up is tonnes of off-GCD attacks, combined with excellent access to damage buffs you'll almost always be weaving skills together for maximum effect, a playstyle very reminiscent of 2.5 DRG (I personally describe them as Bardgoons for people asking 'how does a MCH play?'). But if this isn't your thing, then you'll probably never have cause to warm up to the class.

[Ryaz]

You'll also find very quickly that you'll be heavily reliant on DRG to do max dps. If I get a dungeon with a Drg and we have equal gear, I can keep up with them. If I get a monk or ninja, I'll be 100 dps or so behind. It kind of sucks that we have no way to apply piercing debuff ourselves.

[Livaille]

Hey there people I am leveling up machinist, I just got mine lvl 52 and unlocked Gauss Barrel and I have a question. When under Gauss Barrel and using split shot, should I stop and check if I have a slug shot proc and use it if I have one, or should I keep spaming split shot and then use my slug shot, like lvl 50 black mages do with their firestarter procs ? I'm not sure if you'll get what I mean as my english isn't perfect. And sorry if the question has been asked already.

[Kolsykol]

How does the dps of MCH compare to BRD and the other jobs?
While the RNG is actually a lot of fun ( imo ), it kinda worries me a bit.

[Ferrasper]

How does the dps of MCH compare to BRD and the other jobs?
While the RNG is actually a lot of fun ( imo ), it kinda worries me a bit.

I think it is even with Bard. MCH is more burst then low then burst again while bard is more constantly sustained damage with crappy burst.

[VitalSuit]

How does the dps of MCH compare to BRD and the other jobs?
While the RNG is actually a lot of fun ( imo ), it kinda worries me a bit.

Rapid fire burst is hilarious in pvp to people that don't expect it. Had a NIN run up to me to try and kill me.
Needless to say he got bursted down so fast when he tried to run away I snared him with foot graze and then used between the eyes to crit him for 6k :s

[Odowla]

MCH seems to sustain and burst a bit higher, just saying~

[Myon88]

When under Gauss Barrel and using split shot, should I stop and check if I have a slug shot proc and use it if I have one, or should I keep spaming split shot and then use my slug shot

Ideally, you would notice and react in time to switch to Slug Shot as soon as the gcd wears off. The window for reacting can be pretty small depending on your latency.

You don't want to be in a situation where you cast Split Shot and then do nothing for a split second while you check if Slug Shot has procced or not. Remember the golden rule for DPS, ABC (Always Be Casting), you want to always be attacking something/casting something at all times if possible.

If you're not confident of being able to react in time, I guesstimate that it's better to just keep spamming Split Shot. It's better to occasionally make the mistake of doing an extra Split Shot when Slug Shot has already procced, than to have downtime where you're not casting anything at all because you're reacting too slowly.

I'd be interested to see the math for this though. If you go the spam Split Shot route, you'll lose DPS from occasionally getting duplicate procs (your second Split Shot procced Slug Shot again, which gets wasted because you already have a proc). If you go the route of not wasting procs at all and taking your time to think, you lose DPS from doing nothing every time you react too slowly.

[Myon88]

To add on, you can help yourself here by taking advantage of every situation that gives you a longer than normal window to react to procs.

Tacking an ogcd attack on after Split Shot for example will give you a more generous window to react to a Slug Shot proc.

If something important like Hot Shot/Lead Shot is falling off soon (~3 seconds, for example). You have time to cast Split Shot once, and then because refreshing Hot Shot/Lead Shot has priority at this point, you can leisurely check if your Split Shot procced a Slug Shot while refreshing Hot Shot/Lead Shot.

In cases where your reaction to procs is not 100% perfect, it's little things like this that will give you marginal DPS increases, by reducing your opportunities to make a mistake.