Playing bard in group

[Wallicker]

Sounds like you are a B+ in the bard category

[Quizlop]

Only reason Bards should melee past their 30s is if they're trying to proc something, have a Primary-slot instrument, or you have Epic.

If you need to DPS at higher levels, you'll probably be better off using chants with a drum.

[Meiva]

This has been most helpful. I thought I knew bards a bit, but I truly didn't. I rolled one a couple of days ago for fun, and I am really enjoying it. I think I would prefer the no melee 34+. Swapping between weapons and instruments is a lot of work. I'm getting a hang of it though. Only need to pull out the instrument just before the song ticks. Now to get to a 4-5 song twist. Probably won't quite get there until I can give up melee.

[Josa]

I made a macro so push Auto inventory and forage, then used a UI that allowed. Me to juggle without the inventory open. That way you only pick stuff up, you never put away.

[Kanuvan]

if you are in a tough camp and get multiple adds and pops just support your team with instruments and mezes/charms, if everything is safe and you are just fighting 1 or 2 mobs you can pull out the melee to get the mob down faster

[Savok]

Originally Posted by Jauna [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Look, Saturday nights is when I normally get drunk and watch Toonami and tonight is no exception and it really really pisses me off when I see someone playing a class and not living up to its full potential.

I hate seeing bards just sing mana song in non-raid/downtime situations
I hate seeing bards who are one hit wonders.
I hate seeing bards who refuse to pull or tank when the group needs them to be either

Since P99 is mostly people in their 30s reliving what they thought they remember there are many "first timers" who remember what they thought they remembered and bring back what they thought they thought.

Warriors sub level 50 with proc weapons piss me off
Bards who refuse to accept they are a jack of all and a master of what is currently needed in a 6man group situation
Monks who stay in camp to fight and not chain pull when needed (also applicable to rangers and bards)
Enchanters/Necros/Druids who do not charm

Since this is a bard thread, you really need hp/ac/stam gear in that order to literally be that Jack of All hero that a group needs. Why?

For mezzing and charming your CHA does not matter much. Your level + Mobs MR > Your fucking Charisma. Once a Mez lands IT WILL ALWAYS BE FULL DURATION (4 ticks) NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS. And your singing/instrument skill > DEX at all fucking times will determine if your song does not miss a note.
I do not know how to explain these further without GM intervention and since they did not want to chime in in the past 9 years since this server was a thing, you really need to take my word that CHA/DEX is not anywhere as nearly as important as these Old Wives Tales posters make them out to be.

You are a tank
You are a puller
You are a downtime reducer
You are a mezzer
You are whatever the group NEEDS you to be and you need to adapt to what they want.

If you refuse or cannot accept this fact, make something else.
Warriors/Knights tank better than you
Monks (and kinda rangers) pull better than you
A cleric/chanter combo is better than you
A chanter is better than you

Stop thinking that end game raiding (mana battery) is your leveling up duty
Stop thinking that only knight/wars are tanks, believe me when your level 20 aoe slow is one of the biggest agro generators is a thing
Stop thinking that your Lull song is useless
Stop thinking y

i lost my train of thought, be a hero that most groups need or move on to another class.

I disagree with a lot of what you said but specifically that monks and rangers are better pullers than a bard. In a group I will be lining up pulls non stop, charming, mez/snare splitting and basically keeping the exp flowing far better than and monk or ranger could.

[Talon]

Wow, Juana. You went on a lengthy two post rant after misreading my post. Impressive?

The original question is about when, or if ever, there is a time a bard should be meleeing. You say they should be. I say that it is very dependent on various factors, and that it is probably not worth it.

If you are the puller, and the group is mowing down mobs, it’s irrelevant because you should be chain pulling. If the group doesn’t have an enchanter, then you may be ccing as well if there are multiple mobs (which should be avoided if you are lulling properly, but there can be mistakes, repops, etc). No enchanter means no clarity so the boys in the back need some mana as well. Is it better to sing the chorus and whack on the mobs? Or should you bust the lute out and hit them with both the chorus and the cantana before rushing out to pull again? That all depends, but my money is on the latter.

If someone else is pulling then maybe you are strictly there for cc. If there are multiple mobs coming then you are probably going to be cycling through and mezzing them. Not much time for attacking here. If they are single pulls and mana is fine, then what the heck, go tickle the mob a bit. Is it more effective than providing more mana and slightly better bonuses to the dps? I don’t know. It probably won’t make that much of a difference either way.

You find yourself tanking? Well, holy fucking shit get ready to take a beating while you tickle them mobs from the front.

Is there enchanter in the group? YIPPEE! No one gives a fuck what you do! Why are you even here? Oh wait, you can slow the mobs too, right? But we already have a shaman actually. What’s that? Tank? Dude there is literally a warrior standing right next to you. Holy shit why are you not pulling? No, stop, stop hitting the mob. Go pull another one. Jesus.

My point is that, in my experience, the limited times in which I have had the opportunity to use my weapons I have wondered at their efficacy. It’s pretty much only when you are acting as the main CCer and the pulls are coming in smoothly. As stated elsewhere, this can change if you have an epic or primary slot instrument.

[Troxx]

Jauna is a trash poster.

Always has been.

Always will be.

Jauna is what happens when you combine drugs, crippling depression, borderline personally disorder, and marginal intelligence with a dash of self-destructive narcissism.

[Troxx]

Bards in a group?

After level 45 it’s really simple. Know your song book. Understand your group. Balance the songs you sing to match the needs of your group. You can tank, pull, heal, cc and support very well if needed. You can often do more than one of these jobs effectively at the same time.

Most importantly? Put your fucking weapons away. Unless you have epic, having weapons equipped is pointless 99% of the time. You add exponentially more umph to your group with instruments. I’ve got a 60 bard. Melee dps even with goodnworn haste is garbage unless you have epic + high end raid gear. Even with epic + raid weapon your personal dps is bad, but at least with epic you have a killer proc and 1.8 mod to singing and all other instruments rolled into one.

Time spent pretending you can melee dps is better spent on situational awareness ... or literally anything else.

[astuce999]

Originally Posted by Savok [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

I disagree with a lot of what you said but specifically that monks and rangers are better pullers than a bard. In a group I will be lining up pulls non stop, charming, mez/snare splitting and basically keeping the exp flowing far better than and monk or ranger could.

I agree with everything Savok said. But then again, he always speaks the truth!

cheers,

Astuce