Looking into starting RIFT, but have a few ? first

[Aythir]

I played Rift back in beta on a friends account to try and see if I liked the game. It kept my interest but when it came out I was currently in a progression guild in WoW so I decided not to change over. I am looking at maybe trying it out again and really enjoyed the Bard soul. My question is, I heard that most guilds like to have bards for end game progression for their supporting role. Is there any other souls that also have similar styles of play. I would play the Bard, but none of the other souls in the rogue class interest me. The cleric and mage class however, have several souls that seem very interesting. So I am split on if I should just play Bard but not have interest in trying new souls in the rogue tree. Or not playing the pure support role the Bard gives and go with a the cleric or mage class for the several souls that look interesting to me.

[Edge-]

Archon (mage soul) is another super useful support soul to bring for raids last I remember. I'll let those that are actively raiding now confirm that, but I don't think that's changed.

I don't know how much it's used in raiding at all, but I've been a huge fan of the cleric Defiler soul for support in 5 mans. It's not the kind of group buffing/debuffing of a bard/archon (Defiler is more dmg reduction/healing oriented), but it's an absolute blast to play.

[Lathais]

Archon (mage soul) is another super useful support soul to bring for raids last I remember. I'll let those that are actively raiding now confirm that, but I don't think that's changed.

I don't know how much it's used in raiding at all, but I've been a huge fan of the cleric Defiler soul for support in 5 mans. It's not the kind of group buffing/debuffing of a bard/archon (Defiler is more dmg reduction/healing oriented), but it's an absolute blast to play.

Bard is a kind of DPS Support, not healing as much anymore. It does put out some heals, but when I play bard I buff and do DPS. My DPS has been as high as 7k though normally closer to 6k as Bard. For reference, most guilds want you pulling min 10k as a DPS in 20m.

Bard also has Tact, which when pure tact or combined with Bard offers better healing and pretty good AoE DPS.

The thing about Bard and Tact is that you only want to have 1 in any given raid. most guilds either have a perma-Bard or have the least geared rogue go Bard, so you will likely have a tough time finding a raid spot as Bard exclusively. That actually really goes for any class, do not expect to pick on spec and always be that spec. You have up to 6 specs to switch between, so get comfortable with multiple specs and be ready to change if your raid needs you too.

For other Support roles you have Archon(Mage). Most raids will also bring 1 Archon, though not always in 10m. In 10m you bring a Bard -or- an Archon usually, though some fights require both, so there's that being flexible again. As Archon in 10m, you may be required to go DPS for some fights.

The last support role is Beastmaster(War). All BM buffs/debuffs do not stack with Archon so in 20m it is one or the other. Also, BM has the restraint of having to be in melee range which Archon does not. I have never seen anyone use BM in place of an Archon, so this is hardly worth mentioning, though it is a possibility and they may make it more viable in the future.

Clerics also have quite a few options for "support," though they are mostly just a gimped healer that does some DPS basically. Not what I think of really when I think of support and I think of support as a buff/debuff class that just happens to do some DPS and Heals as well, the focus however is not the Heals/DPS. Defiler I think is listed as support, but is actually capable of being a full on healer.

All in all, if the other rogue souls do not appeal to you but you want to play support, go mage. That way you have the versatility that you need in raids without having to play something you do not seem interested in. Though finding a spot as a guilds Archon can be almost as difficult as finding a spot as an exclusive Bard.

[Deleted]

I love to Archon, Raids always have one, but i pvp with my mage, the buffs you give to your raid are crazy good and the damage isn't too shabby either, a cleric whispered me in a WF today, and said "thanks for the buffing literally made our team better than theirs" You have the ability to debuff someone and make yourself stronger, but also making your team stronger. You debuff yourself to start with and it gives buffs to your raid, you get the amount you sacrificed for your raid back with a little bit more, When you debuff an enemy or use a cast time.

You have a nice mass dispell, and things like a ground AE that increases the damage of people standing inside the ring, it's really fun to play imo.