Bards? Thats Something Fun

[Pestilence]

The Uniqueness of the Bard:
The Bard, to some people a very hard class to play but the rewards of it? RP goodness. Bards are a very fun class to play and it saddens me to not see many around.

To many, Bards just seem like jolly fellows and friendly folk but some, tend not to be. There have been many different people who used the Bard class in a more unique and special way. (One example being Nilrighar Do'narret a half-drow) Even an average bard can be fun to play.

Some people do not notice how Bards are not just goodie two-shoes people. Bards are also available to evil alignments but people do not find those interesting to them.

Why play a Bard?
The bard is very special in combat and in role playing.
Combat:
They have many beneficial things about them such as bard song, and lesser spells. They have many useful skills like use magic device, and can take the feats such as craft wand and brew potion.
Role Playing:
The Bard is almost always wanted somewhere. They can be hired for events to play music, interact with crowds, tell jokes, and play songs. One of the thing that some players find hard to do is create songs for their bard.

What I am trying to say is that the Bard along with being a great class also needs great players to play them.

Reply if you have anything you want to add should it be advice, pointing out errors, or just forum trolling, make post here.

[Dr Dragon]

Also bards are great for multi classing ftr/brd for ranks in taunt and being able to use all arcane scrolls/wands. So you can be a badass fighter as well as a hero that people look up to!

[Elytherin Dragonius]

Also bards are great for multi classing ftr/brd for ranks in taunt and being able to use all arcane scrolls/wands. So you can be a badass fighter as well as a hero that people look up to!

or a bad ass that everyone rememberws because you knocked some guy down, used some magial device and dropped a witty one liner,

in that respect you an be the hero, villian or even just the guy that doesnt take shit but does it with a sence of humor,


it is very true bards are a great class to play, the possibilities are near endless whith these guys,

a big tip if you want it to be the traditional bard that makes songs, trawl through lyris that already exist for songs, you might just find that gem your after and only need to change a few words of the chorus to make it fit the setting well.

another option is shy away from songs, a bard is a master of lore, so break out the poetry (for the love of god not reworked nursary rhymes lol although i once played a bard in PnP that wooed his dwarven bride by getting her to lower her flaming beard ;)

heck another way to pplay the bard very well is simply to recount interesting things that have occured in the bards life (be that the latest quest or part of a book ypou loved and can get away with changing names and places to make it fit your story.

one of my favorite types of bards are the ones that rack jokes in ombat, the best part is all those racist jokes everyone knows can be used,

 " a goblin, an elf and a dwarf are all on a sinking ship when the elf says "quick thro what ever you have lots of at home overboard", the elf throws hundreds of plants overboard exclaiming "we have millions of plants at home" the goblin throws tonnes of rocks overboard exclaiming "we have mountains of rocks at home" the dwarf picks up the goblin and throws it overboard saying "what'? we have billions of them at home"

lets not forget the sexist jokes

"why do trolls drag their women around by the hair? well it would be pretty painful to mate with a woman when she is filled with rocks"

dead baby jokes?

"how many kobolds does it take to paint a wall? depends how hard you throw them"

or

"whats more funny than a barrel full of dead trogs? a live one at the bottom trying to get out"

the possibilities are endless

you could play a barbarian/bard that only knows how to hit things and hit drums

really guys get out there and take a few miniutes to think about what you can bring in game that you already know

[Gnome on the Strange]

Bards are awesome. But... only if RPed well. IMO the class comes with responsibility to be cool with it in the same way as divine classes. Make a 4 fighter/3 bard who only emotes *hums a battlecry, gaining 1 AB and dmg* occasionally and you'll look like a powergamer. Make someone who gains a rep for being a wiseass, singing over the sending systems, shouting dirty limerics mid-battle or being a relentless emo like Nilraghar and people'll notice.

Multiclassing bard though is a great way to get around the problem of races with -CHA like Dwarves and Halforcs. Since you're unlikely to get the high level spells, take another class to support it. I played a dwarf Bard/rogue in the Union, with the rogue levels being the secondary class.

Bards can be classic entertainers, or scholars with ridiculous Lore. They can be combat medics with healing spells, making their own wands, or scouts. They can be basic buffbots or greataxe swinging northern skalds. Also, I want one so Danny has something to do at the pub :P.

-Egon
EfU's Resident Bard Snob

[Egon the Monkey]

Bards are awesome. That;s why I play a lot of them. But... only if RPed well. IMO the class comes with responsibility to be cool with it in the same way as divine classes. Make a 4 fighter/3 bard who only emotes *hums a battlecry, gaining 1 AB and dmg* occasionally and you'll look like a powergamer. Make someone who gains a rep for being a wiseass, singing over the sending systems, shouting dirty limerics mid-battle or being a relentless emo like Nilraghar and people'll notice.

Multiclassing bard though is a great way to get around the problem of races with -CHA like Dwarves and Halforcs. Since you're unlikely to get the high level spells, take another class to support it. I played a dwarf Bard/rogue in the Union, with the rogue levels being the secondary class.

Bards can be classic entertainers, or scholars with ridiculous Lore. They can be combat medics with healing spells, making their own wands, or scouts. They can be basic buffbots or greataxe swinging northern skalds. Also, I want one so Danny has something to do at the pub :P.

-Egon
EfU's Resident Bard Snob

[TheImpossibleDream]

Yes, bards are an amazing class. From a mechanical perspective you can understand why they are played less these days.

Unfortunately a lot of their benefits are taken away by the abundance of healing charges and buffing charms in efu:a as opposed to efu.

They're still decent but they don't have any fall backs in the same way as a cleric has his progressive divine favor buff and divine power later. I wish I had something to suggest to give them an edge!

[Egon the Monkey]

Holy crap. Even Naga is complaining there are too many consumables. Something Must Be Done. As for what the Something is, allow me to suggest Lots More Spellslot Gear. Specifically on the Level 2 and Level 3 spells. I know that does sound rediculously powerful, but although bards get a good selection of spells per spell level, the number of spells per day they can cast is extremely limited. Adding that kind of thing would reward pure bards, who are rare, without making things easier for multiclasses who could use lower level spellslot gear to get a good number of L1 slots.

Also, a slightly off topic and contentious idea, but how about reducing drastically the amount of buff items available that will increase your AB and dmg, while keeping defensive buffs at the same level. Then someone who can cast Bull's Strength on himself, like a bard, is more powerful, but it's still possible to defend against that kind of thing. The idea came to me after playing LiS's current, very low magic campaign where I'm having to be much, much more careful with supplies.

Bard song is indeed an awesome skill, but someone with 3 bard levels and Extra music can still get 7 shots a day of the +1AB and dng variety.

[Letsplayforfun]

I wish I had something to suggest to give them an edge!

Decrease trinkets that are available to everyone. Makes more use for UMD and arcane and divine proficiencies.

[Porkolt]

As someone who recently played a rebel bard with uber DM loot, I can guarantee that bards do not have to be street performers with little to no personal agenda or effeminate wine sippers that say thou instead of you.

Rather realize that, as actors, bards can be brilliant conmen, support combattants, spies, diplomats, rioters, whatever.

I like to think of bards as being equally versatile to rogues, they just cast spells, make music, and don't know shit about locks and traps.

[Joe Desu]

Hmm, I don't know any great bards of EFU or EFUA.
 
After the fact, meaning their death, I have heard that they were bards in OOC forums, but am not sure how they were known for their bardism IG.
 
I have always thought of the rogue as the class that was the jack of all trades and could be just about anything, not bards.  Bards would be minstrels, actors, poets and story tellers.  Oh, I have seen bards RP singing and story telling this is true.  But what I suppose I am saying, that would be writing, is that if you took the bard class to get buffing skills that is fine, but if you wanted to be "Bardic", then I hope you work to promote that IG and on the forums.
 
Of course there are many things I have missed as I was never on for hours every day and this comment should be taken with a grain of salt, and perhaps a slice of lime.

[Gippy]

Porkolt played a great bard, but you had to hang with him to hear his stories. Not all bards need to be rabid self promoters.

[derfo]

use a horn to convey you're a bard

[Joe Desu]

Gippy, as most of the forum notes today are about mechanics on how to make a bard better mechanically, I thought to join in by promoting general bardness.  Sorry to have offended your visions of greatness as it was not my intention to say that no bards on this server have not been great.

[shadowsong]

A base class is a class, a collection of abilities, it requires nothing specific of it unless otherwise specified.
 
All that is required of a bard is that they are non-lawful. By PnP rule it doesn't even require them to have any skill points spent ranks in perform. Although not doing so cripples one of their main class abilities. Nor are they required to have a charisma greater than 10 by rule in PnP, NWN requires them to for some mechanical reason I cannot remember. Again such a bard would lose access to one of their primary class abilities but it is not required in PnP.
 
A thief is not required to steal nor is a bard required to perform in taverns or crack wise. Those can be entertaining examples of bards, but they are not the only kind.
 
I have played a bard that was those things, I have played a bard that sung holy elven songs or elven battle songs to inspire his elven warband (akin to where possibly my current elven character is going). I have seen a dwarven chanter who emoted one to three word phrases while his 'bard song' was in effect. I had the priveldged of watching a gypsy bard/shadowdancer who claimed they could not sing that inspired others by 'dancing' through combat and using the various bells and fetishes on their body along with their movements, claps and humming to inspire.
 
None were any one thing and none of them would have considered themself a bard or minstrel. Asking the dwarven chanter to 'perform' for a crowd not headed into battle would have gotten you punched in the face. The gypsy would have cut you, thinking that performance meant something else :).
 
For a class as possibly diverse as a bard I would most definitely not pigeonhole their RP into one or two little boxes.

[Pestilence]

Nice replies from everybody. I would love to see more bards on EFU:A.

For a class as possibly diverse as a bard I would most definitely not pigeonhole their RP into one or two little boxes.

This is a great example to see. thanks shadowsong