Bard songs in relation to blu.

[Fether]

So yesterday i ran into a little bit of a problem, and i was wondering what songs the general population of blu wanted.

I was in a pt which consisted of two blu, a nin and a thf. The blue's were incredibly cocky mind you, which didn't make the matter that they wanted me to ballad the enitre melee party so A: they wouldn't have to setup each time and B: they were the most important party members, any easier. Setup wouln't have been too much of an issue is either the nin tank was a pld tank, or the thf was anything else. After a while of talking through positioning, it all got sorted out. the Blu's got their acc/ballad and everyone else got what they needed to.

So to make a long story short, do what you blu's want generaly is acc/ballad or is there a better combination for you? ^^

[Genesite]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

As a BRD75 I've dealth with melee who want MP and to hell with everyone else. Here's what I always did, and if they didn't like it, they could bring juice.

There's 2 groups, the melee where the monster is, and the mages on the backlines. The melees ALWAYS got melee songs only. (Madrigal, Minuet, and maybe March or Mambo) Then I'd run back to the mages and sing Ballad and Etude as necessary. I always timed myself so that at the end of battle, I'd be singing ballad, so that any PLD or DRK could go back for it and rest or just stand until the next pull comes. Sometimes I would aim a Ballad II at the PLD and hit him with a VIT etude, but if battles are fast enough, you won't have time. With their small MP pools, they could get away with only having it for a short time as opposed to mages who need it constantly.
If the Blue Mage doesn't like that, like I said, he can bring juice or stand on the back lines.

[Fether]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

Well they way i had it set up i was able to hit the blu and the back line with ballad, sure it was a pain but once running smooth it went fine. My biggest concern/question is if ballad/acc is what all blu's are going to want. ^^

edit: keep in mind it was only a pain with the nin and the thf combo

[Genesite]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

Probably, since their DoT with the actual weapon they're wielding is going to be next to nil, since sword has one of the lower damage ratios. I'm assuming they're just building TP to use physical blue magic, so the attack song wouldn't help much.

That is, if physical blue magic isn't affected by ATT and STR?

If it is, then the opposite would be true.

[samarium]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

As a BRD75 I've dealth with melee who want MP and to hell with everyone else. Here's what I always did, and if they didn't like it, they could bring juice.

There's 2 groups, the melee where the monster is, and the mages on the backlines. The melees ALWAYS got melee songs only. (Madrigal, Minuet, and maybe March or Mambo) Then I'd run back to the mages and sing Ballad and Etude as necessary. I always timed myself so that at the end of battle, I'd be singing ballad, so that any PLD or DRK could go back for it and rest or just stand until the next pull comes. Sometimes I would aim a Ballad II at the PLD and hit him with a VIT etude, but if battles are fast enough, you won't have time. With their small MP pools, they could get away with only having it for a short time as opposed to mages who need it constantly.
If the Blue Mage doesn't like that, like I said, he can bring juice or stand on the back lines.

The only problem with this is that most BLU spells have point-blank range. It's either stand up there and do damage or sit in the back and be a support character, which it doesn't do very well anyway.

Why don't you try working with your party members? Just ask him to reposition himself as needed. If he doesn't do that, then he didn't want refresh in the first place. But you gotta work with them, you don't get to run life because you're a bard.

Once again, I'm not saying you should cater to everyone, but try to work something out.

-sam

[Fether]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

Still doesn't answer my what does a blu generaly want question ^^ =)

Is acc/ballad going to be the blu song requirments generaly sought after or is there a better combo?

[LadyPeorth]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

To me...it's set into the 3 circles:

Melee, Paladin, Mage

Blue Mage falls into the Paladin circle for me.

Myself however? I prefer to get Madrigal (spell accuracy) and Minuet (butt kicking power), then I run over after the mob is dead and get ballad.

Blue Mage to me requires a lot more intelligence on the player's part than the party member. You should adjust your playing style almost every party you get into (so your BLU magic doesn't conflict with anothers and you aren't a hinderance). BLU is perhaps the most flexible job ever. Those who set it in stone are just weakening its power.

[Icemage]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

From what I've seen, most BLU fall into the same general category as PLD: Ballads work best, but Madrigal + Ballad is acceptable too.

For this, if you're using Minuet + Madrigal as your melee songs, your routine should probably be:

- Sing Minuet for melees
- Sing Madrigal for melees. Try and avoid hitting the PLD, but don't sweat the BLU too much.
- Sing Ballad for the PLD, BLU, and mages. If you're level 55+ don't worry too much about hitting the BLU or PLD, because you're going to...
- Sing Ballad II for the PLD, BLU, and mages. Make sure you get everyone on this list with this song.

EDIT: Note that if you're using double Minuet, make sure to sing a +STR or other appropriate Etude with a +2 instrument for the BLU before starting to sing Ballad, otherwise you leave Minuet on them, which is bad since they get no benefit to their offensive magic from +ATK. Pick the correct Etude based on what spells they are using; it's best to consult with the BLU about what they prefer for specific spells, as each spell seems to trigger off of different stats.


Icemage

[Fether]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

Good to know, means what ive been doing has been atleast acceptable and right for my lvl range. Thanks a lot =))

[Gathzel]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

Well honestly, we ARE in fact the most important members in the party ^^

But yeah, agreeing with previous posters, Evoker's/Ballad + Hunter's/Madrigal helps alot. Which is usually too annoying for positioning the other melees put up with it.

[AngryUndead]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

I'd go with ballad when I could get it.

From being Solo and drinking Yag Drinks, I found that I was almost unstopable as long as I had MP. Being galka, its a big deal to keep that MP pool full.

[Hyrist]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

My policy with Bard's is twofold.

If my mp pool isnt suffering any, and I want a little extra Umph, I will run to the opposite end of the paladin (if there is one) and simply take the physical buffs.

If I want ballads I'll run over to the mage corner or the paladin's circle when I see the bard change position to assist them then stay in a position besides the paladin untill my MP pool recovers.

Between this and my hMP gear, I rest rarely, yet still keep my MP pool stable at around half, which is more than enough for any party fight.

[AngryUndead]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

But you're cognizant of what BRDS can do, and a lot of players aren't. I am not well versed in it as I play as knuckle dragging melee 90% of the time. I just grunt "me likey songs".

I'm aware that there is a radius, but I have no idea how songs really work. I should probably play bard and find out. Thats how I found out how frustrating THF and NIN are.

I still think ballad is more important for BLU's because the ones I know tend to want to burn through their MP pool.

[Fether]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

Yea see i've noticed that some blu's know exactly whats going to happen when theres a brd in their group and move around accordingly, where as some dont which is fine too it just requires talking out. I make it a point at the start of a pt to talk to the blu's now to see what they want now. So all and all its working out.

Thank you all for your imput =) definetly helped me sort stuff out when i have to sing for you blue mages =)

[Karinya]

Re: Bard songs in relation to blu.

I had a situation like this come up today when I was playing BRD. Party was PLD/WAR, BLU/WHM, DRG(/WAR I think), THF/NIN, BLM (I don't know what sub, but I never saw a cure or a poisona from them all party long) and BRD/WHM; formed at 35-37 but it was 37-38 by the time we broke up. Altepa, near the zone across from Rabao, so the position was fairly open (at least compared to someplace like CN or Garlaige). Spiders initially, later more dhalmels (such a pain without erase) and anticans (a bard's nightmare and apparently a BLU's as well - neither one can stay out of Jamming Wave range and still do their job effectively.)

I started by casting Ballad on everyone (unless the THF happened to be out of camp pulling - if so, who cares). Then Etudes. VIT for the PLD, STR for the DRG and DEX for the THF. Then once the fight starts, Minuet (this was at a low enough level that Madrigal wasn't particularly useful or necessary). This overwrites Ballad on the people with Etudes, since their Etudes are newer than the Ballad.

The net result: BLU and I have Ballad + Minuet, BLM has Ballad (if I had time I could throw them INT etude too, but since I was also doing 1/3 of the healing along with the PLD and BLU...), THF and DRG have Minuet + Etude. PLD has Minuet + Etude during fights and Ballad between them, plus his native Auto-Refresh.

So I guess the short answer is: Etudes are a way to avoid those tricky positioning problems where everyone wants a different set of songs. At high levels you might want to replace the Minuet with Madrigal (or not, if everyone has already eaten their sushi).