When to refresh Living Bomb?

[Ruak]

Hey, guys.

My question is specifically for Living Bomb (I know that Nether Tempest is refreshed just before it expires).
Some sources say that it should be refreshed in the same manner as Nether Tempest (right before it expires - before the last tick hits). Other sources say that you should let it explode first and always refresh it right AFTER it explodes.

Which one is true? I believe the "after-explosion" mantra should've been valid back when Living Bomb had miserable ticks and huge explosion, but right now the explosion hits for twice lower amount than a regular tick. But still this controversial info I find makes me wonder.

Soooo...?

[Salystra]

If you refresh just before its due to fall off you still get the explosion.

[pangya]

To add to the question, should you refresh it earlier if you get good procs?

[Deleted]

To add to the question, should you refresh it earlier if you get good procs?

Snapshotting is a DPS increase, depending on when you do it and which procs are up. Generally speaking the less time left the lower the DPS loss from refreshing early so the bigger the relative DPS gain from procs. Of course when all your trinkets suddenly proc it might be worthwhile to refresh earlier. It's mostly a judgement call really, I'm sure somebody has maths ready for this, but those might be overly complicated.

[Arctroni]

To add to the question, should you refresh it earlier if you get good procs?

Refreshing earlier if you GET good procs shouldn't be an issue; the procs should still be up when you need to refresh anyway. Refreshing earlier if you're snapshotting a stacking trinket such as black blood or wushoolay's, or because a proc is about to fall off is worth it (probably not for smaller int procs, like jade spirit or lightweave embroidery). The explosion at the end of living bomb does almost exactly half of what a regular tick does assuming it doesn't hit any other mobs, so missing out on the explosion by refreshing between the third last and second last ticks is absolutely worth it, given the procs are strong enough.

Sometimes it's also worth holding off refreshing it after it expires if your stacking trinket is about to max, also.

[Ruak]

My question was regarding the normal situation, not with/without procs.

Think about a situation where you have NO procs - just static stats that are a constant, on a Patchwerk-like fight. When do you refresh Living Bomb for maximum damage output then?

[aoz]

My question was regarding the normal situation, not with/without procs.

Think about a situation where you have NO procs - just static stats that are a constant, on a Patchwerk-like fight. When do you refresh Living Bomb for maximum damage output then?

During the last tick - the explosion will still go off and you won't lose uptime.

The whole thing about "after the explosion" is old advice from before they changed the way it worked. Now there is no reason to wait until after the explosion.

[lolbubble]

During the last tick - the explosion will still go off and you won't lose uptime.

The whole thing about "after the explosion" is old advice from before they changed the way it worked. Now there is no reason to wait until after the explosion.

Numbers wise are we talking like 2 seconds left? 1 second? anywhere in between?

[LocNess]

Numbers wise are we talking like 2 seconds left? 1 second? anywhere in between?

I believe you can refresh LB at 1.5 seconds and under and still get the explosion.

[DeathDefier]

Numbers wise are we talking like 2 seconds left? 1 second? anywhere in between?

Download a mod that shows you the tick marks (I use ForteXorcist).

[aoz]

Numbers wise are we talking like 2 seconds left? 1 second? anywhere in between?

Any time from the instant your 2nd to last tick hits and the explosion - how long this window is depends on how much haste you have. The formula to figure it out is 3 / (1 + %haste on character sheet) seconds

At 0 haste with no buffs, it's 3 seconds per tick, so refreshing at any time with <3sec on bomb is fine.

At 9522 haste with frost armor + raid haste, you have 37.5% haste on your character sheet, so the window to refresh is (3 / 1.375) = 2.18 seconds. If you're refreshing a LB that was applied with meta + lust up, you'll have a window of maybe 1.2 seconds.

[Winkleslob]

And if you get huge trinket procs like 10 stacks on Wushoolay and other good stuff, feel free to re-apply even though the explosion hasn't hit yet. That may result in a DPS increase due to the temporary sp increases.

[Deleted]

It's good to refresh the bomb on like 4-5 sec to go if you know you won't be able to refresh it correctly -> it's better to lose the "last tick" than to lose more ticks on not refreshing it at all! ( no range etc )

[Saegno]

Numbers wise are we talking like 2 seconds left? 1 second? anywhere in between?

I run the 9762 haste build and if I refresh under 2.5 seconds left(I usually go around 2.3-2.0) I still get the explosion.

[Henzington]

Depends on your haste but yes if you do it after the 2nd to last tick and the explosion u get the explosion and it extends the duration of the bomb. Best bet just test it on a target dummy.

[Deleted]

If you have any trinket procs/enchant procs/gear procs (you get the deal), then refresh before the procs runs out. Even though your living bomb is only halfway to expire, refresh it anyways to get a stronger living bomb.

If you have no procs, just wait until it expires/just before it expires.

[Deleted]

I refresh with 2 seconds left with the lower haste cap and still get the explosion.

[Vouxility]

Afaik the haste cap doesnt matter that much, since the chance (around HoF around released) important is the last tick ( > 2 left of Bomb) and you still get the Explosion. If youre not sure about it or want to optimise try it out on the dummy with elemental buff

[Abraxis]

To refresh living bomb u have a big timeframe.

From last tick BEFORE the explosion 'til pyromaniac is going to fall off. So i would track the pyromaniac debuff as well. Just do it inbetween these ~4sec as long as it fits in your "flow".

e.g. if u have 2secs or less left on living bomb but HS/HU up u can easily do FB->Pyro! before refreshing bomb due to pyromaniac is still on the target. But if u have no proccs u can refresh it before the explosion.

[mrgreenthump]

To refresh living bomb u have a big timeframe.

From last tick BEFORE the explosion 'til pyromaniac is going to fall off. So i would track the pyromaniac debuff as well. Just do it inbetween these ~4sec as long as it fits in your "flow".

e.g. if u have 2secs or less left on living bomb but HS/HU up u can easily do FB->Pyro! before refreshing bomb due to pyromaniac is still on the target. But if u have no proccs u can refresh it before the explosion.

Only applies to Fire though. And bomb damage as fire is on secondary status anyways.