Question about Astrologian and buffing in 8-man raid.

[mosaicex]

Except in very exceptional cases, you'll want to give it to the whole group. Consider the following distribution, top-DPS of 2000, 2 DPS at 1000, 1 DPS at 800, 2 tanks at 700, 1 healer at 300.
Imgur hates me so you just get numbers.
Even for this lopsided distribution, the total dps is 6500, 10% would then be 650, but adding 30% to the top dps would only be 600. And that gap only widens as you have a more even dps distribution.

You seemed to ignore the fact that cards buff do not last the whole duty duration. So no, an AoE Balance wouldn't suddenly buff the party damage by 10%. Your example is really flawed.

[Johaandr]

I hate to break it. I dislike some ast that keeps drawing cards to get the balance. Like they r wasting their cards.
Drawing 3-6 turns trying to get a balance cuse its the new thing to do and only "good card" they think it is annoys me and tell them that theyr a bad ast. thats my opinion.

Back to OP.
Depends. Somtetimes i use enchanced on a guy that does the most dps. Or enchanced + bole on a tank or those whi got brink of death + time.
Also its random so it might be aoe balance/arrow/spear to all and keep my ewer for myself or to brd

[Blood-Aki]

I hate to break it. I dislike some ast that keeps drawing cards to get the balance. Like they r wasting their cards.
Drawing 3-6 turns trying to get a balance cuse its the new thing to do and only "good card" they think it is annoys me and tell them that theyr a bad ast. thats my opinion

as a somewhat AST main, i also dislike it, People do not seem to realize how much you are not helping by wasting 10 minutes just to get 1 card. it's silly and pointless. it got to the point that i find a use for all cards if i am backed into a corner, even spear, throw that on your self or a brd/mch, they do help. even spire, as for some reason warriors eat up tp like a fat dude at a buffet. and on long fights it even helps them. but i would suggest you give a nice little slap to any AST you see only going for one card.

[Paladinleeds]

snip

So would you say Spire would also be helpful for PLD? Especially since they don't have any TP regeneration moves (whereas WAR can swap to Deliverance, pop an Equilibrium, and swap back to Defiance once the cooldown finishes if they're MTing). And DRK as well? I will say that I am an atrocious Astrologian. Though I'd be intrigued to learn more. So far through the game experience and tips given in game, I've learned that a Spear can be very helpful for BRD/MCH as you mention, and I use Ewers on healers if their cooldowns are down and they need a mana boost. I know Arrow on a NIN directly is a no-no, but elsewhere is good. Anything else I should know about AST?

[Blood-Aki]

So would you say Spire would also be helpful for PLD?

Sometimes, they don't eat as much TP as a war, but with long drawn out fights, it can be. i watch tp bars constantly and rarely do i see PLD with tp issues, i usually stick them with bole or in rare cases spear if i know they are about to use a lot of CDs, and i have stuck with one. Situational, etc.

Especially since they don't have any TP regeneration moves (whereas WAR can swap to Deliverance, pop an Equilibrium, and swap back to Defiance once the cooldown finishes if they're MTing). And DRK as well?

The problem is, these are skills good wars and drks have, but you can't always hope to find, unless you're in a static with them. i go by random people i will meet up with. Have to think of the majority. as an AST i personally think you should just watch your teammates and see how they play if you're going to stick with them for a while, to get a good idea of who gets what.

I will say that I am an atrocious Astrologian. Though I'd be intrigued to learn more. So far through the game experience and tips given in game, I've learned that a Spear can be very helpful for BRD/MCH as you mention,

Bard and MCH entire arsenal relies on their cool downs, they depend on many CDs to do damage, so spear does help them more then anyone else. i will use it on my self if i am about to use aether or CO, as it cuts them down drastically, especially enhanced, again, situational card. but i woudl prioritize them if you simply have no other choice, like only getting spear and nothing else, Brd/MCH will of course still benefit better from balance and arrow (but blms love arrow the most, just so you know)

and I use Ewers on healers if their cooldowns are down and they need a mana boost.

The problem with ewer and spire in fact as that they NEED to be boosted to make a big difference, enchanced or extended, using them alone is imo, a waste cause they don't last long enough, the best time to use it is during a WHMs Shroud or your aether, they work well together.

I know Arrow on a NIN directly is a no-no, but elsewhere is good. Anything else I should know about AST?

yea, i had a few complaints from nins back when i started AST, they don't like it, for some reason, so i usually only give them balance, and very rare cases, even spear.

[Kaurie]

Is it better to AOE balance/arrow and buff the whole group, or is it better to use enhanced balance/arrow on the top DD in the group?

I did some math for this back in I think 3.2. Assuming you have 1 DPS well ahead of the group that you want to buff (not double, but say ~20% better or so IIRC), there is not a huge difference between extending for that player, enhancing for that player or expanding.

That said, tests showed expanding to be the most impactful by a small margin in 8 man parties.

Possible issues with this was it assumed constant DPS throughout the fight, and did not take into account high burst openers etc. I cannot imagine it would make a huge difference, unless one party member has a specifically strong opener and everyone elses is quite weak.


I want to add that the math may have changed with changes to various classes (specifically to cards) over the past couple of patches.

I also want to add, that as a Summoner, I love Ewers \o/ My AST in my party now throws me all the ewers she gets, and I can basically non stop Ruin III.

[FeliAiko]

I hate to break it. I dislike some ast that keeps drawing cards to get the balance. Like they r wasting their cards.

Nothing wrong with that option though (same for those wanting to be more "frugal"). Balance of all cards certainly didn't need a buff, but the 3.4 changes to AST means it makes more logical and mathematical sense for players to build their Card optimisation around Balance, using the others as entirely situational (Ewer/Spire) or consolation (Arrow) prizes. Balance (and to a lesser extent, Arrow) are the only cards that, as long as the target is available to hit, is always useful no matter when it's drawn. Bole meanwhile means more windows for Cleric, and Spear is still useless.

even spire, as for some reason warriors eat up tp like a fat dude at a buffet. and on long fights it even helps them.

The only way WAR runs into TP issues is by overuse of Overpower. It's PLDs that end up hurting for TP over long fights.

[Xiao_]

and Spear is still useless.

as a bard, reading this caused me actual, physical pain. you may have outright killed any mch reading it, too

[Blood-Aki]

as a bard, reading this caused me actual, physical pain. you may have outright killed any mch reading it, too

How do you think i feel.... but you responded to it. AST is hard, bro.