I agree with the spec bard conclusion but I’m pretty sure Igniter is way more popular than reflux at least based on book demand.
It’s just a more rewarding and fun spec from the sorcs I’ve talked to. Big number is enticing and pulling off the big number is fun and intuitive apparently compared to piano reflux.
I’m unga bunga scrapper main tho so my opinion on sorc is pretty non existent
What’s this break point thing you are talking about?
I swapped spec and has been much more enjoyable
“Breakpoint” is the theorycrafting term that’s used for like a minimum line point where you can swap from that specific stat or it starts to give diminishing returns (you get less value getting more of it).
In this case, if you were using level 7 cooldown gems on your requisite Bard skills and had 1600 swiftness and played properly (you didn’t overlap your cooldowns), you would effectively have 100% uptime on your abilities meaning if you got more Swiftness, it wouldn’t provide a benefit other than a buffer or for comfort (running faster or whatever).
So if you used level 7 cooldown gems and hit 1600 swiftness, you could start swapping over to get more Spec while maintaining that 1600 Swiftness so that while having 100% uptime, you’d get stronger shields/heals.
That’s what breakpoint means in this instance.
You might also see it in discussions for using like Keen Blunt Weapon engraving. I think the breakpoint is ~60% crit (I haven’t kept up with it, so someone can correct me on it) where it starts becoming most effective meaning you’d want to have at least 60% crit before you go all in on Keen Blunt.
Ah ok, I thought you were talking about some kind of CDR softcap. Though according to my math, at 1500 swift (32.21% CDR) and lv10 CDR gem (20% CDR), you still wouldn’t get 100% regular atk buff up time.
Between Heavenly Tune with Quick Prep and Sonic Vibration, you’d have the attack buff with full up time.
The biggest barrier to getting 100% uptime is actually getting people to actually stand in Sonic Vibration for the buff rather than running around like headless chickens
In farm content(When everyone knows boss mechanics, normal pattern, and is overgeared) + with an organized group (Voice comms) Spec Bard is very good you sync your buffs with DPS to burst down the boss even faster.
In Progression and Pugging I prefer swiftness with one spec ring, easier to rotate shields, 1 bubble heals, keep up dmg buffs etc.
I know this topic is about Spec Bard and Swiftness Bard but anecdotal experience had a spec Paladin in my group for Argos we were super over-geared, (Farm content) paladin was 1500, never seen such high numbers, and P2 mini boss died after 1 skill
This is where Paladin is superior to Bard as their dmg and heals are combined they don’t have to choose requires no communications and sync
Assuming 1500 swift 32.2% CDR and lv10 gem 20% CDR.
Heavenly Tune with maxed quick prep is (18-4) * 0.8 * 0.678 = 7.6s CD with 6 sec up time.
Sonic Vibration is 24 * 0.8* 0.678 = 13s with 1 + 3 + 2 = 6s up time.
Heavenly Tune into Sonic Vibration into Heavenly tune, and then you are stuck with a 1 second gap before your next Sonic Vibration comes off CD.
I’m not sure where you’re getting your Heavenly Tune values from?
It’s a base 30s cooldown, with max quick prep -6 seconds. Since CDR goes priority with tripod first, then calculates stat redux, then gem redux, using your values we end up with something like:
30s goes to 24s goes to 16.27s goes to 13.01s. Heavenly Tune has an 8s duration.
The result is that you have 5 seconds of to cover where you cast the Sonic Vibration and when Sonic Vibration is up. Heavenly Tunes is ready to cast again. Rinse and repeat
Imagine it looking like this:
1480 full spec bard.
Main difference is that you can heal more, shields are alightly stronger, damage buff is stronger.
Slightly less spam of your regular skills
Biggest reason to go spec, a Lot cheaper
Biggest reason not to, you are slower than everyone
Just play what ever the f you want. Focus on Mechs, try to Courage in good Windows and Heal if realy needed. Its fine how ever you like it.
If you want to be the best overall Support in the Game, swap to Pala but may get some extra Coffee to not fall asleep while playing it.
ReinvigorateTV have both pala and bard. Pala is easy because he goes FUlLL swiftness but bard is different
Oh oops, looked at the wrong column and was reading wind of music stats for heavenly tune, haha. with 8 second duration then with the proposed scenario does indeed have 100% uptime time with almost 2 seconds to spare.
You will want to read this:
I play a hybrid bard but I still get to have 140% speed from eng + gear(see below). Around 900 spec (neck plus 2 rings) and 1100-1200 swift.
To me it feels like the best of both worlds.
4x3 +2:
With the yearning set (+15% ms) and spirit abso at 2 (8% ms), I land at exactly at 140% ms. This means i got stronger buffs and heals for a tiny bit less CD (8-10% less, but still at 25%) but still fast af.
Spec gets bar a lil faster. Bout 10-15%.
I’m full spec! (having only swiftness on neck)
Animations are a little slower it will be a while to get used to it, but it’s been nice
High ilvl bard alt here, Swiftness bards are the best(if you minmax) but me as an alt will go with spec WAY more cheaper than swiftness and a little loss in overall.
From the bard bible itself, the only time spec bards are better in buffs is when the fight is like 2 mins long. Where there’s only 1 burst and you call it a day.
Or any fight longer than that the consistency and uptime of buffs becomes more important.
So anyone that tells you spec is better, the only way it is better is if
The KR builds thing:
They mostly stop building swift after a certain point because it makes no sense to stack swift into the moon. Keep in mind they gave bracelets as well. From what I’ve seen, the general ballpark for swift is like 1400 1500 ish. Technically you can stop swift at a out 1250 or so because you’d be “close enough” to movement cap. But for comfy people stack 1 more swift piece. So with the next set of accessories, it is very common to get 1 spec piece. Because at this point you have movement cap, you have good cds, you have good animations, a tad more spec just builds your bar faster which is nice.
Despite the description of spec generating more meter. Swiftness and spec build identify at about the same rate because Swiftness has lower cool downs. Spec can generate meter significantly faster if you drop the shield on your wind music and go with super speed or bwang bwang.
Imo spec is only really worth for hell mode with super speed, a gunlancer to help with the lack of shields and really good players.
At the end of the day it doesn’t really matter for normal/hard mode content.