We all have our ways -- here are some of mine.
(look at the bottom of this post for a quick tip list)
Ok, we all have our methods, and the real deal with a bard is finding what works best for you. So the best tip is to get a hold of as much information you possibly can, try out various methods and find out what sticks with you the best.
To the charm kiters out there, you can also use another method at a higher level to make the finishing blow easier and it's all doable while still running.
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Charm without invisi? yes, that's also possible, most charm songs only last for a certain duration, charm the mob, wait 10 seconds and then attack, run while waiting or if you singlepulled the charmed mob, just wait before you engage. this will in most cases if you time it right break the charm without any invisi at around 10% hp or less when you get the hang of it.
How to finish off something that is chasing you, well, if you break with invisi, you can throw up a dot before you charm the mob, this will provide you with a ticking damage while you own it, but once it breaks, voila tagged. for the higher level bards you have Anglstich assonance, slows the attackspeed and deals damage over time, gotta love it, cause it lasts for --> 2 minutes <--.
Now if this is too complicated, make yourself a hotbutton, cast your snare song, and line two, pet attack, when the mob charm breaks, hit the hotbutton, snare the damaged mob, target another mob, CHARM, look for the slowpoke, target him and hit HB again, very easy and not complicated, now you tow the train around while the pet kills off the damaged mob. rince / repeat.
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dot kiting:
for higher levels i recommend using Anglstich assonance here aswell, slow what ever you're not focusing your chants on and they will slowly go down while you single dot one.
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speacial treats:
Charm a mob, throw up your haste song, damage shield song, and if you got a clicky ds item, buff your charmed little buddy, recharm if he breaks, he will still be buffed. THEN look for a crowd of hooligans, send in your little hellion and watch the entire gang loose hp, when the pet dies/breaks charm, recharm, or look for another mob. if you do this long enough they will all loose hp, and you can end the entire process AoE style with your Direct Damage aoe - Denon's Desperate Dirge (level 43), about 367-395 dmg, 800 mana cost. if you do it right, you will see about 4-7 yellow lines saying "you gain experience". and find yourself smiling :D
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Duo kiting with a caster - special treat:
"all you need is a sweet lullaby" - Sleep song, mez song, snare song.
mez, snare / split what ever. Get a single pull :D
Sleep the bugger when he's close. break song when he has stopped. make sure you have a signal with your mage in advance. signal, mage nukes. you start casting your sleep song 2 seconds after he begins to cast. aka. nuke, sleep, nuke, sleep. if your mob deal damage to any of you.. then you had a resist or your doing it wrong. this is fun and easy. rince / repeat.
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quick tips:
Fading memories AA - drop combat at expence of mana, makes your pulling, kiting and survival go up by about 500%- bard must.
Single target dotting, melee targets - pull infinite amount :D
- NOTE - if you find yourself lagging, this is NOT recommended.
Pull your train - circle around until you got em all rounded up, this is the tricky part, hold up-arrow key, press enter - let go of arrow key, you are still running forward. now tap your left / right arrow key, depending on which way you prefer to run (yes this matters), tap the key until you eventually can hold it in, run in a tight circle and the mobs chasing you. then press enter again to lock the running pattern, when you get a hold of this you can do it simultaniously. but, if you lag you're DEAD xD -- now press F9 until you have an overview look of the circle, you can target with mouse, dot as you please, focus on song and go eat dinner (don't forget to leave sow on..).
There's more... if you have your previously mentioned Denon's Desperate Dirge DDAoE - toss that a couple of times, maybe even group with a necro to feed you mana (necro version not tested, i just had an idea as i wrote this, will test it in about 40 seconds)
i hope people enjoyed my post, and yeah. happy whirlpooling!
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Wandee -- Antonius Bayle.