#NerfBRD

[HyoMinPark]

Raging Strikes is not +20% anymore - it's +10% and has been since Stormblood launched when they lowered its cooldown from 120s to 80s. So your potency calculations are incorrect.

BRD is so strong because the developers continue to balance it (and MCH) without a DRG in mind (for piercing), in addition to Crit scaling being far higher than any other substat this tier - just as its been the last two expansions. From what I understand, no job is balanced with any sort of party or buff synergy in mind, which just adds to the problem.

Nerfing BRD won't fix jobs that are struggling (like MCH).

[Kabooa]

Nerfing BRD won't fix jobs that are struggling (like MCH).

Sometimes you have to nerf things.

Buffing things tends to just lead to other things requiring buffs. It's called circle buffing. Why buff 1 job, then 10 other jobs, when you can just nerf 1 to bring it back in line?

[HyoMinPark]

Sometimes you have to nerf things.

Buffing things tends to just lead to other things requiring buffs. It's called circle buffing. Why buff 1 job, then 10 other jobs, when you can just nerf 1 to bring it back in line?

Nerfing BRD’s potencies on the two skills that Hyperius (incorrectly) listed won’t suddenly make MCH desireable. It’s not the answer to fixing the job, no matter how much people want it to be. The only thing that will fix MCH will be the developers seriously considering its gameplay and design, and taking steps to actually rectify them when 5.0 comes along. Along with actually balancing jobs with party buffs in mind, something I doubt they do now.

I also think substat scaling should be looked at when each raid tier is released, so that the issue with critical hit always scaling to be the best can be addressed.

[Bourne_Endeavor]

I also think substat scaling should be looked at when each raid tier is released, so that the issue with critical hit always scaling to be the best can be addressed.

This is an important factor I think too many people underestimate. If Bard were straight nerfed damage wise, it will struggled far more noticeably out the gate next expansion since back in Deltascape, Bards were dead last in DPS despite Crit still being the best stat. Their power spite comes only because Crit goes from being good to utterly dominate. And no other job benefits so much from a secondary stat like Bard does.

[Kabooa]

Nerfing BRD’s potencies on the two skills that Hyperius (incorrectly) listed won’t suddenly make MCH desireable. It’s not the answer to fixing the job, no matter how much people want it to be. The only thing that will fix MCH will be the developers seriously considering its gameplay and design, and taking steps to actually rectify them when 5.0 comes along. Along with actually balancing jobs with party buffs in mind, something I doubt they do now.

I also think substat scaling should be looked at when each raid tier is released, so that the issue with critical hit always scaling to be the best can be addressed.

Sure, which is something they can do next expansion.

If we want to wring our hands and say "But the poor Machinists" then you solve this quickly, efficiently, and -without disrupting everything else- by just nerfing the Bard.

[HyoMinPark]

Sure, which is something they can do next expansion.

If we want to wring our hands and say "But the poor Machinists" then you solve this quickly, efficiently, and -without disrupting everything else- by just nerfing the Bard.

Nerfing the potencies of Pitch Perfect and Refulgent Arrow—two skills that do not even have that high of a potency compared to the combo potencies of skills from other jobs that are used far more frequently—will not help MCH. Assuming there are no other changes to either job, BRD will still bring all the same utilities that MCH does and will still do it better, and they will not get screwed over by things like clunky gameplay affected by both latency and server ticks. If you want MCH to be fixed, ask for the core issues of the job to be seriously looked at: Wildfire, Overheating, Flamethrower, etc.. Demanding an arbitrary nerf is just throwing a temper tantrum and asking for a band-aid solution that won’t even stick.

But if thinking that arbitrarily nerfing two skills of the opposing job will fix MCH and make it a great job... well, whatever helps you sleep at night.

[Kabooa]

But if thinking that arbitrarily nerfing two skills of the opposing job will fix MCH and make it a great job... well, whatever helps you sleep at night.

No, but you can justify Machinist by saying "Well you'll kill the boss faster with a Machinist than with a Bard."

And then get -much more meaningful changes later-.

Unless they've been working on Machinist this entire time up until now, we can basically not expect any sort of large rework before the expansion. Band aid fixes that make it less clunky won't matter, because Bard will still perform just as well if not better without the head ache.

Band aid Buffing Machinist only pushes out the casters again.

So where does that leave us? You hit Bard's damage by about 5% and call it good. Machinist has an appreciable edge over Bard in one area, Bard is still great, and the Mages don't have to fear for their spot again.

[Bourne_Endeavor]

No, but you can justify Machinist by saying "Well you'll kill the boss faster with a Machinist than with a Bard."

And then get -much more meaningful changes later-.

Unless they've been working on Machinist this entire time up until now, we can basically not expect any sort of large rework before the expansion. Band aid fixes that make it less clunky won't matter, because Bard will still perform just as well if not better without the head ache.

Band aid Buffing Machinist only pushes out the casters again.

So where does that leave us? You hit Bard's damage by about 5% and call it good. Machinist has an appreciable edge over Bard in one area, Bard is still great, and the Mages don't have to fear for their spot again.

The issue becomes next tier where BRD is now decidedly dead last in pDPS by a wide margin because Crit scaling. The devs have to address this first or we're looking at BRD needing a buff less an a year from now. Another factor is 5% would make BRD noticeably weaker than every other job, especially without a DRG. Bear in mind, a 5% nerf to their potencies is a 10% nerf without a DRG. Therefore, you just made DRG 100% mandatory for BRD as the lack of piercing and a direct 5% nerf brings their rDPS totals well below 7,000. No other job is even remotely close to being that low.

[Neela]

Why buff 1 job, then 10 other jobs, when you can just nerf 1 to bring it back in line?

because thats just flat theory and not possible in the current core of ff14s cls-syngery-structure?

[Lastelli]

because thats just flat theory and not possible in the current core of ff14s cls-syngery-structure?

Oh please, of course it's possible.

Nerf heavy shot to 130-140 potency. There, you just made MCH competitive again.