Originally Posted by
FpicEail
Rapid Fire is not what's locking MM into a single builds. Go look at the MM talents. The only one out of all of them that is remotely hurt by the existence of Rapid Fire is Steady Focus, which is frankly a dreadfully-designed talent in its current incarnation and nothing like what it used to be (it could actually be decent if it were like the old version). Every other tier is dominated by 1 talent due to poor talent design or tuning. Careful Aim, for example, is a formerly-baseline talent that's critical to how the spec works. This rules out Explosive Shot and Volley as valid options. Same goes for Master Marksman to an extent: it's different to the old Master MM but it's necessary for the function of the spec so Murder of Crows and Serpent Sting are ruled out as valid options. Some of this will get better next expansion. Some will stay the same or get worse (capping Barrage targets will forever end that ability's usefulness in all situations, further cementing Double Tap as the best option). Not having spare GCDs is not MM's problem. The existence of Arcane Shot is precisely for filling the spare GCDs the spec has. In fact, the focus Rapid Fire gives adds flexibility to MM. The problem is lazy, rushed talent design.
It is very hard to come up with unique and compelling abilities for a spec based on physical damage. Rapid Fire is fun to use and feels impactful, especially after following an Aimed Shot. I'll be damned if we lose this ability because some forum warrior doesn't like its animation and makes up 100 fake excuses as to why it's a terrible thing that undermines the spec.