Beginner bard rotation?

[Recklessfun]

So I've been trying to read on as many threads as I can lately about rotations and since I've only been playing a bit over 3 months half of it doesn't make any sense to me. Plus I'm not that great with numbers...

I was mainly wondering if there was a rotation I could use that wasn't as intense as the end game raids ones I've been seeing. I haven't got a couple skills I need as well like blood for blood and I'm not quite sure of what all of my cooldowns take priority. I just really don't wanna like being bottom dps in all these lvl 50 dungeons. I'm probably not great but I wanna do everything I can to get better. Just still trying to learn....

[xNewbx]

Level 50?
For mobs of 4 or fewer I just straight shot, then Windbite and Venomous Bite all of the mobs and let the resets do the work. If the mobs are going to die without another full duration of DoT able to be applied then I would just Quick Nock/Wide Volley.
Groups of 4 or more I would pop Internal Release , straight shot, apply Windbite to 4-6 mobs, while buffing up in between each shot and using any oGCDs if you're already fully buffed.Then just Quick Nock/Wide Volley away.
Just make sure to spam Rain if Death whenever it procs

For rotations on Bosses/Single Target

Make sure your dots are always up, don't refresh them early.

Keep your Straight shot buff up

Heavy shot whenever both of these are up

Use your oGCDs whenever they're up

[Recklessfun]

So should I be using rain of death everytime it's up or only at certain times? I see it shares with BL so of course that always seems to be the priority shot so that's why I was asking. U said when rain procs...i didn't know it did without using it instead of BL. But yeah I was reading that there wasn't a huge difference between wide volley and quick nock.

[xNewbx]

Anytime you can hit 2+ enemies at a time, use Rain of Death. And pretty much if you ever see your BL/RoD proc, use one or the other (depending on the enemy count)

[magnanimousCynic]

I would avoid using Wide Volley since it cost more TP to do the same damage as Quick Nock. It's only good in situations where you can't get close enough to use Quick Nock, which rarely happen.

[Neela]

I would avoid using Wide Volley since it cost more TP to do the same damage as Quick Nock. It's only good in situations where you can't get close enough to use Quick Nock, which rarely happen.

you are right about the tp issue - but disagree on the "rarely happen" thingy... a lot of the new "tank" generation isnt even able to hold a big pack at all, not even talking about stacking them up to use Quick Nock effectively : /

But yeah try to use QN > WV.

[Recklessfun]

O OK cool... Sorry if I sound kind of dumb to these kinda things to the ppl that already know all of this lol. Like I said I'm still definitely in my learning process so trying to figure everything out... I just thought ppl wouldn't like that I spam aoe or anything like that. And as far as the rotation goes I'm finding it kinda hard to find a icon setup that is easy for me... PC wouldn't be a big deal but on PS4 it's definitely some work to find something that suits me. During big boss fights I get kinda flustered and hit the wrong button or clip shots.

[Maero]

Straight Shot> Windbite> Venemeous Bite> Barrage> Heavyshot, etc...
This would be for sub 60, really just try practicing with different rotations to see what fits you best.
And i too play on PS4, sometimes my 2nd bar tabs out and i press wrong buttons (mostly when healing) which is annoying, haha

[xNewbx]

Yeah if you can't hit all the mobs with Quick Nock then Wide Volley is better. Also when there's melee range enemy AoEs , running out and using Wide Volley is also good.

Invigorate from the Lancer is so good to have at least. +400 TP is huge

[spelley]

If you aren't looking at end-game rotations and want an "Eorzean's First Rotation" type of thing, your best bet is to think of everything as a "Priority System":

Questions you have to ask:

1) Does your Job have a "increase damage/critical/attack speed/etc for X duration" Global Cooldown (GCD)? Yes, Straight Shot
2) Does your Job have a Damage over Time (DoT) effect to apply? Yes, 3: Venomous Bite, Windbite and Flaming Arrow (Persistent AOE)
3) Does your job have specific combos? No
4) How many enemies are you fighting? (depends)
5) Do you have a filler skill/combo? Yes, Heavy Shot

This means that for your Global CDs, you should make sure Straight Shot buff is up. Then apply all your dots, figure out which order to use based on duration (room for improvement: apply them such that when they wear off, you can re-apply them all without any of them dropping). Then start filling in either your combo[s] (which you don't have) or using your filler attacks. Optimal rotations fiddle with the order of things but for starting out, this is fine.

Now, using your abilities that are off the Global Cooldown (oGCD) is a bit more tricky and varies from Job to Job. The super-simple "not following a rotation" bit basically boils down to "keep everything on cooldown" without interrupting your weapon skills (called clipping). More importantly, anything that buffs damage, you should try to line up as many of your highest damaging abilities while under the effects of Damage Buffs. 2 things to keep in mind:

1) DoT damage is "timestamped" when you initially use it. This means if you turn on a damage buff *before* using a DoT, the increased damage will continue on as long as the DoT is alive. However, this means if you apply a damage buff AFTER the DoT is applied, future ticks of damage will NOT include the increased damage. TL;DR: Apply your highest-damaging DoTs and damaging oGCDs while under the effects of any damage buffs you have.

2) While lining up your cooldowns is important for progression raiding and such, making sure all your cooldowns are being used is more important when you are starting out. Generally speaking, waiting longer than 5-10s for two cooldowns to line up is a waste of time/damage.

With all that said, you can see how a "real" starting rotation for a lvl 50 BRD (single target) comes about (NOTE: I don't really play BRD so this is all second-hand knowledge from Reddit and other sources. Please correct me if I'm wrong!)

1) Pre-Pull (just before and as the tank is walking up to the boss) Foe's Requiem, Quelling Strikes, Battle Voice, Hawk Eye, Blood for Blood, Raging Strikes,
2) Straight Shot (Internal Release + Bloodletter Proc if available)
3) Windbite (Flaming Arrow)
4) Venomous Bite (Barrage)
5) Heavy Shot (Bloodletter Proc or Repelling Strike)
6) Heavy Shot (Blunt Arrow)
6) <Full Priority System, reapply Straight Shot and DoTs as needed, use Bloodletter Procs, Heavy Shot as filler>

Before the pull, you blow most of your damage-buff cooldowns so they apply to all of your DoTs. Then they open up with a Straight Shot (plus more buffing oGCDs) so you are buffed to the gills. Then you apply 1 DoT after the other, throwing in your best damaging cooldowns along the way. Once all those are done, you fill in the gaps with Heavy Shot (your highest damaging attack) and whatever Bloodletter procs you get until you have to reapply your DoTs. From then on, you just use your oGCDs as they come up. Keeping them on cooldown will help you deal as much damage as you can.

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This is a ton of info, I admit but I find if I know *why* I'm supposed to be using the skills in X particular order, I can improvise when I forget the exact order so everything doesn't go down the drain. Hope it helps!

TL;DR Version: Throw on as many buffing abilities just before the boss is pulled, Straight Shot, apply DoT abilities, use Bloodletter Procs whenever they comes up. Always keep Straight Shot up and DoT's ticking.