A "new" perspective about these BRD changes

[Kamote]

So, now that we have had a few months to play around and get acquainted to all the changes S-E did to Bards....any fresh thoughts from fellow BRDs?
personally, having mained BRD since FFXIV launched in the PS4, i have "grown" to love it again recently. i gave up on it initially, and moved to DRG due to it having bigger numbers and that cool HW trailer. i found 3.x BRD too cumbersome to play after spending so much time as a mobile support dps.
looking back at it, i realized that mobility was rarely really needed that much as long as you spend time to know the fights (raids specifically). like on T5, that mobility will not help you get through DBs any more than a BLM (but can dps on Twister casts though), or on T13 add phase, since you all will be grouped up in the center of the arena anyway. T12, BRDs mobility really shines though with mechanics dictating movement without sacrificing your dps.
3.x BRD seems to demand that you get to know the fight more and the skill needed to become better at the job now is raised higher than it was and is not as casual-friendly as it was with 2.x BRD. some might not enjoy it as much, some will do.
Don't get me wrong, i love my 2.x BRD and i still pay as 1 (for nostalgia), and it still needs a tweak or 2, but overall, i am more inclined to pew pew with my bow now than to poke things with my lance.

[Rusheel]

Eh I'm still not a fan of it. With the occassional latency issues when I raid and the rubberbanding of skills driving me up the wall(before if i had this issue I'd could just keep spamming my buttons not so much now since there is a cast cancel delay). Still issues with moving into a cast or repelling shot into a cast causing interrupts hurts on dps check especially if your working on progression. Another issue for me is that my analog stick is kinda janky so I auto walk from time to time and since casts cant happen with ghost walking you get the idea. Though I love iron jaws its just nice to not worry bout tp as much as before, I thinks that the only positive thing I can say bout 3.x BRD oh wait love the rain of death change multidoting is much more fun with it. Though targeting is still garbage in this game so missing a chance to iron jaws a mob over and over and over is infuriating but, thats an issue all classes share.

[Linadae]

To say it like Dr. Seuss would: I do not like it, Yoshi-p. I do not like the new bard. I do not like it in heavensward, I do not like it in a dungeon, I do not like it in a raid. I do not like the new bard.

[Odin_hunter]

So, now that we have had a few months to play around and get acquainted to all the changes S-E did to Bards....any fresh thoughts from fellow BRDs?
personally, having mained BRD since FFXIV launched in the PS4, i have "grown" to love it again recently. i gave up on it initially, and moved to DRG due to it having bigger numbers and that cool HW trailer. i found 3.x BRD too cumbersome to play after spending so much time as a mobile support dps.

The class is still awesome. Movement was never an issue for me. Only thing I would like to see in the future is a combo move to HS along with SS.

[AskaRay]

Never had a problem. I thought WM was fine, even at the very beginning I was all "this will probably get a damage raise" and then what happened?
Damage raise.

I mean. If it HAD been a full GCD of casting that wouldn't have been okay but there is plenty to do with a second of time. Even with latency/lag.

[vp_cmc]

Though I love iron jaws its just nice to not worry bout tp as much as before

I disagree! Because bards have Empyreal Arrow - oGCD skill, that consumes TP, so each 15 seconds they use 60 tp more. If it is used after other cast, it makes gcd 3 seconds, and it makes situation with tp a bit better, but if you have proc-ed straight shot+empyreal arrow combo, while it is great for your dps, it means, that you've used 130 tp during one gcd, and it just kills tp. Do it several times, and you have to do a tp song after 2:40 of fight without downtimes (invigorate included).

[Rusheel]

is it considered an oGCD its a weapon skill and I don't think there is any oGCD in the game that cost resources. But, then again the skills doesn't play by the general GCD rules having its own timer. Regardless to clarify what I mean with the iron jaws making tp less an issue is the 60 tp refresh vs the 160 tp refresh from wind and ven.

[Kamote]

i agree with the TP point. i actually do not run out of TP as much as before, apart from spamming Quick Nock on those Expert Roulettes, plus Iron Jaws for quick DoT refreshes and 1 less GCD to do something else. then we have the RoD change for a free AoE attack oGCD. BRD seems to be in a better place now than it was when 3.0 dropped.

[dielray]

is it considered an oGCD its a weapon skill and I don't think there is any oGCD in the game that cost resources. But, then again the skills doesn't play by the general GCD rules having its own timer. Regardless to clarify what I mean with the iron jaws making tp less an issue is the 60 tp refresh vs the 160 tp refresh from wind and ven.

It is off-GCD because it isn't on-GCD, though I'll agree it is a weird skill.

Wind Bite and Venomous Jaws take 2 GCDs to apply or refresh, so to compare savings we really need to compare to Iron Jaws + Heavy Shot(in most cases). Before we were using 160tp total over 2 GCDs, we're now using 120tp, for a savings of 40tp(not 100tp is the point). We gain 90 potency of damage with IJ + HS(iron jaws is 60 potency less than WB + VB, due to less initial damage).

EA is 60tp every 15secs, though it does slightly push the GCD when not used with a proc'd straight shot. EA more or less negates IJ's savings.

The majority of TP savings is just due to clipped GCDs. Skill affects this to a degree, but so does skill speed. It is interesting to note that skill speed not only increases TP usage due to more skills used, but increases the number of off-GCD windows which in turn decreases the amount of clipping(basically the opposite of no-WM). Given how much our gear seems to be loaded with SkS at higher iLVLs, my TP drainage is only getting worse.

[Geardagas]

So OP basically followed the standard HW bard routine.

1) hate bard changes
2) complain heavily
3) switch mains
4) go back to bard
5) realize that all the mobility you 'lost' was always completely unnecessary
6) love bard again