Marduk's Jubbah Set

Expensive Salvage gear. It's also (mostly) good for bard.

The stats in full:
(Image credit staronion.com)



Rough Costs
Head ~3.5million
Body ~10million
Hands ~1million
Legs ~150K
Feet ~170K
*Varies on each server.

Conclusion: Most bang for your buck is the Shalwar. They're a great debuff piece. However, the Marduk's Tiara is the best -- overall -- that you can wear. The Jubbah is nothing to sneeze at, but if you only want it for the Refresh? Dalmatica is 9million cheaper on my server -- to say nothing of V.Cloak. The introduction of Einherjar has made Dalmatica a possibility for many players without needing to camp HNMs. Granted, the abjuration only drops from Odin.

Fast Cast Facts
FFXIclopedia lists the Fast Cast effect of the body as ~5% and the Fast Cast effect of the set as ~10%. Many people add these numbers together and assume that the full set gives you ~15%. This is incorrect. Wearing full Marduk's will net you ~8% actual Fast Cast effect (source: BG). Wearing only a manteel (~11% real song casting) will give you a similar effect for songs only, but will not reduce the casting or recast times of spells like Cure, Stoneskin, and Utsusemi. FFXI calculates Fast Cast and Haste as approximately 1% slower than the effects are labeled. So in order to reach the 50% Haste from gear cap, you'd have to wear a listed 51%-53%, assuming you lose 1% haste from every piece of gear you're wearing.

Conclusion:
Full Marduk's set is a personal choice. It is not the fastest possible way to cast songs. It has useful regen and refresh effects. The MP bonus is good. The CHR bonus on the body is excellent. Nothing beats the Marduk's Tiara. Whether or not you want to invest the time and the money in the gear is your choice. On the bright side! If you are lotting Marduk's at this point in time you will probably be the only one who wants the gear. My group often floored Marduk pieces before I joined. Take heart: if you plan to join an experienced Salvage group as a bard, the field is usually wide open.