How to Dragoon per Second: A DPS Paradigm

[JackFross]

The first post outlines pretty much everything you need to know about cooldown management and how the rotation works.

The important basics of what's there is also in this abbreviated visual guide I made a while back.

The basic advice is:
Keep everything not named Geirskogul on cooldown 100% of the time.
Delay B4B casts until halfway through the gcd spin to get 9 gcds, rather than 8.
Make sure you're using 3 Geirskoguls every minute. You get 5 4th hits every minute, so:
-- 1st gsk between first and second 4th after a cast of BotD
-- 2nd gsk between third and fifth 4th after a cast of BotD - more than 2 gcds prior to the fifth
-- 3rd gsk after fifth, but before you hit the BotD - usually it goes 2nd>gsk+botd>3rd>4th (combo hits)

If you think you're doing all of this and still coming up short, my advice is to record a run and judge yourself. Check cooldowns and see if any hang for extended periods and such.

[aleph_null]

The first post outlines pretty much everything you need to know about cooldown management and how the rotation works.

The important basics of what's there is also in this abbreviated visual guide I made a while back.

Is that opener better than the one at the first post?

[JackFross]

Is that opener better than the one at the first post?

"Technically" - It wins by like 1 pps or less. I forget the exact numbers. The one without potion is definitely optimal when not using potions at all, unless you shift everything up a gcd (and be sure to PS>Leg after Disembowel so Leg Sweep gets the DE buff), but I prefer it the way it's written there, or, I guess

HT>[IR>BL]>ID>[PS>B4B]>DE>[BotD>LegS]>CT>[Jump]>4th>[DFD]>PH>[SSD]>TT>[GSK]>VT>[LifeS]>FT>4th

would also be nice.

As I say to anyone who asks this, the only things you want to do in the opener is have every buff catch every ogcd skill (including gsk and both of the first two combo finishers), ideally have IR not overlap the Life Surge skill, and make sure that, when your buffs fall off, everything is on cooldown. As long as you did all this, your opener will be +/- 1% on the optimal in any circumstances.

So, it really comes down to whatever is most comfortable for you, given these constraints.