Shiloh
11-07-2005, 08:44 PM
<DIV><SPAN class=postbody>From before EQ ONE I wanted to be a bard. Yeah, playing songs, being individual. Cool. And as far as the game went, bards were always sort of selfless, happy fools that buffed everyone else up, even if they were not very good fighters, or rezzers or anything else, themselves. <BR><BR>EQ2 started by letting us buff groups with stacked songs that we no longer had to "twist" the way we did in EQ1. If you don't know what twisting is, count your blessings. It was a LOT of typing and twitching to keep 3 songs - or good effects - going at once. <BR><BR>No longer. You know what a Troubador - the ultimate bard - is? He's a mean, back-stabbing, cowardly, sneaky son of a [expletive haxx0red by Raijinn]. Here's what a level 51 Troubador does to fight solo: (adjust your spells based on your level, the concept is the same) <BR><BR>1) LOOP: <BR><BR>2) Walk Lightly to go invis, and check all your other spells are up; <BR><BR>3) Cast Startling Shriek, or whatever your backstabbing spell is; <BR><BR>4) Cast Lore's Maliloquent Roust to reduce target's defense; <BR><BR>5) If you've got it, cast Breathtaking Bellow, because it costs no . . . well, it costs nothing and if you have procs, maybe it will do something. Hope springs eternal, yes? <BR><BR>6) Cast Lucky Break to start a Heroic Opportunity. It's quick, and might help! <BR><BR>7) Now cast Guviena's Slothful chant or anything to cause the enemy to be weakened to the following MIND attacks; <BR><BR><IMG alt=Cool src="http://www.thescoutssanctuary.com/images/smiles/icon_cool.gif" border=0> Exquisite Shrill! A mind attack that does well after all the other setup. <BR><BR>9) Sandra's Befuddling Incursion, or whatever attack you have here, at your level. A mind attack that can benefit from step 7; <BR><BR>10) Elegant Blade. It might miss, it might not. But it's fast, unlike many of the other things you might ponder; <BR><BR>11) Purloin Essence. No, it doesn't give you back the power it costs to use it, and many enemies couldn't give a [expletive haxx0red by Raijinn], but again, it's FAST. <IMG alt=Smile src="http://www.thescoutssanctuary.com/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif" border=0> <BR><BR>12) If you aren't dead - because you are fighting a blue or POSSIBLY a weak white enemy - here's the trick: Hit Q to stop attacking and then hit LULLABY to mesmerize your target, i.e., cause it to snooze and not attack for 40 seconds, if you're lucky. <BR><BR>13) GO TO LOOP. <BR><BR>All the while, you've probably got Daelis's Dance of Blades up - which is self only- and the aria proc song up and a couple of group buffs that DO increase your group's STR and STA or DEF or magic, or whatever. <BR><BR>Truth? If you're soloing, you're fighting like a sneaky [Removed for Content]. If you're grouped, you might hit a Taflo's Dazzling Ditty - or whatever your backstab is - once or twice. <BR><BR>You know what you didn't do? You may not have hit Oppressive Discant cause it takes two seconds. (And I swear it's longer than that.) You won't want to hit your nice GROUP Area of Effect Spell, like Alin's Coruscating Concord, cause it takes THREE seconds and seems to do far less harm that it says it will. And if you are in a group? By the time those 3 seconds are up, the darned enemy is dead and you wasted 3 seconds. <BR><BR>The DOT - Damage Over Time spell, like Kian's Devestating Anthem? Yes, in attacking a group of bad guys, it *is* helpful, but it ALSO takes 2 seconds to cast. And is USUALLY at the low end of its reported damage. <BR><BR>You're thinking 2 seconds isn't bad? Put your cursor over that spell, cast it and watch what happens during that time. AND, all those spells, except Sandra's Incursion and Purloin Essence have long recast times, which means, you can't use them quickly enough. <BR><BR>You know what I've found? At level 51 I keep Daelis' Dance of Blades up, which just helps me. Raxxyl's, Swan Song, and Graceful Avoidance help the group, but they don't notice the numbers OR the effects helping as they did when we could stack. And my last concentration slot is for the song that procs. It does not proc 30% of the time on spells, though it is close. <BR><BR>The ultimate effect? If I fight the best I can solo, I should be a cheap, backstabbing mesmerizing Dirge, without the poison. If I am in a group, my proc song helps, as does my group defense song, and my ability to hit from behind. But you will NEVER hear the group-leader say, "Thank goodness for that bard!" or, "Wow, I LOVE those bard buffs!" <BR><BR>Sour grapes? Before the changes last February which took off our stacking buffs, I heard those comments almost EVERY time I grouped. <BR><BR>Maybe we're all getting older and more mechnically proficient. But nobody seems to invite a Troubador anymore for what they personally can bring to the group.</SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN class=postbody></SPAN> </DIV> <DIV><SPAN class=postbody>And NO troubador is singing.</SPAN></DIV>