I was interested in making a Bardbarian. Primary a barbarian with a little bard in. Concept is a viking skald. I will be using the point buy and phb and xanathar's only. The MAD is maddening but trying the see if it can work or if I am wasting my time. We will be starting at lvl 8. Unsure of class breakdown, maybe 2 or 3 bard and rest barbarian. Human variant or half orc or dragonborn or even half elf. I do want to have GWM as a feat though.
Go Valor bard. Get proficiency in horn and drums, flute maybe? For race, dragonborn seems good, that or variant human. Put plus one into strength and charisma. Half elf means you can put your charisma lower and be ok as you have plus two.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
'The Cleverness of mushrooms always surprises me!' - Ivern Bramblefoot.
It could work. I’d suggest keeping cha on the lower end and focusing more on buffing spells so you don’t have to worry about spell attack rolls or save DCs being low. There’s tons of good bard utility spells.
I created a level 3 Gnishiho-gnome Wild Magic barbarian for our homebrew campaign (Vault's Remastered channel on Youtube has details on this race) and I will dualclass 3 levels as Bard eventually and will choose College of Glamour subclass. My background is Feylost so it fits perfectly (My chosen instrument from this background is ocarina-flute). I also asked our DM if I can be just barely medium size but have speed 25f. I explained that when I was taken to the Feywild and spending time there, it changed my growth for some weird reason. Remember, we are playing a fantasy game 🤪
I think this works if you pick up spells that won't need consentration, like Longstrider gives you 10f more movement speed and lasts 1 hour. Feather fall (R) , healing word (BA) for saving lives and well, pick anything you like or suits your character depending on who you have in your adventuring party. We have a half-ogre tanking for us! My cantrips will be Vicious Mockery and Prestidigitation.
Eventually, Glamour subclass gives 2 spells for me, Charm Person and Mirror Images and these are always prepared because of Beguiling Magic. It can also charm or frighten(your choice) an enemy in 30feet range when you cast illusion spell. Glamour college also gives Mantle of Inspiration, more hit points and no opportunity attack for your target inspirated. I've maybe forgotten something.. But I'm not sure... Well yeah, you never know what wild magic surge brings to the table. Wish me luck. ❤️
The only combination I've found to work well is Dance Bard + Wild Magic Barbarian. Hear me out.
Dance Bard is one of the few Bard Subclasses that can directly turn it's Bardic Inspiration into Damage and it's the ONLY Bard that can do this while not losing the benefit you give to Allies by granting Inspiration.
Level 3: Dazzling Footwork
"Agile Strikes. When you expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration as part of an action, a Bonus Action, or a Reaction, you can make one Unarmed Strike as part of that action, Bonus Action, or Reaction."
Granting Bardic Inspiration is NOT A SPELL. You can do it while Rage is active. At Bard Level 5 you can turn your Spell Slots into more Bardic Inspiration ammunition.
Level 5: Font of Inspiration
"You now regain all your expended uses of Bardic Inspiration when you finish a Short or Long Rest. In addition, you can expend a spell slot (no action required) to regain one expended use of Bardic Inspiration."
This means that even though you can't cast spells your Spell Slots can still be turned into Damage.
With 5 Levels in Bard that's 1d8 +STR + Rage as a Bonus Action while also giving your Allies Inspiration AND also having some Healing Spells in case of emergencies. Dropping out of Rage to use Cure Wounds on a downed Ally is worth it and landing a Hold Person on the Bandit Leader is going to much more helpful than activating Rage.
Wild Magic Barbarian gives you the ability to restore spell slots to yourself or your allies. That means more Bardic Inspiration or party support.
Custom Background. Origin Feat: Tough (makes up for the lack of CON)
Go 6 Levels in Barbarian to get Extra Attack and Bolstering Magic. You'll have 4 uses of Rage, which is plenty at most tables. At Barbarian Level 4 you take an ASI for +1 to STR and CHR, giving you more Damage and more Bardic Inspiration.
Then put 7 Levels in Bard for the Dance subclass, Inspiring Movement, Tandem Footwork, and Countercharm. You'll want Countercharm in Tier 3 with such low INT and WIS scores. Grab Great Weapon Master at Bard Level 4 for damage. (Zug Zug)
You should have 18 Strength and 18 Charisma by Level 10
NOTE: You will need to be Unarmored to get the benefit from Dazzling Footwork. So you'll only have 16 AC unless your DM helps you out with some Magic Items. This is the big weakness of the build and the reason Tough is a mandatory Origin Feat, expect to get hit a lot.
Does this build do as much DAMAGE as a pure Berserker Barbarian or a Valor Bard? No. But you're able to do the jobs of both a Barbarian AND a Bard without needing to compromise either role because you can hit things really hard and still give out Inspiration at the same time.
Well hopefully someone finds my short Dancing Barbarian build helpful.
I do. Love the dance bard, and this idea is really cool!
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
I'm just your everyday dungeon master. Ignore that jar full of souls. And those bones in the corner are just props, don't worry. I'm definitely NOT a lich. Definitely.
Yes, I like beholders. Yes, I curated an exquisite personality for commoner #2864. Yes, my catchphrase is "are you sure?"
If you are able to use older content, I would suggest you look at College of Swords. The blade flourishes are an awesome way to get some extra damage on your attacks with extra effects, plus they get a fighting style so you could make a pretty hard-hitting Dual Wielder build with this. I would probably flavor him as a viking that goes into battle singing battle chants. You could also take minimal charisma on this build since the only spells you would be using are buffing spells before combat.
For stats, I would probably start 15+2/10/15+1/8/10/13 with the Tough or Musician origin feats. Grab Dual Wielder at level 4, then either bump your Strength to 20 or take a couple more feats for whatever flavor you like. Sentinel, Mage Slayer, and Charger are all worth a look.
Minimum charisma means less Bardic Inspiration which means less using of Blade Flourish.
Plus, unlike with Dance bard, when you use your Bardic Inspiration on Blade Flourish you are not benefiting your party. which means that not only are you giving up your ability to concentrate or cast spells IN COMBAT, you're also giving up the most important buff that Bard brings.
Also, not having any DEX hurts you a lot. Unlike Dance Bard you either need to wear Medium Armor (which you want 14 DEX for) or rely in Unarmored Defense which with your CON you'll only have an AC of 13. And you're dual wielding so you can't even grab a Shield to make it 15. Not to mention that your Initiative Rolls and DEX Saving Throws are just worse off now.
Think about WHY you have 16 CON. Is it for AC? You don't need it for AC, wear armor. Is it for Concentration? You can't concentrate on spells. Is it for Health? You'll have Barbarian levels and possibly the Tough Origin Feat.
So no group support, no spells in combat, very low AC, and barely any uses of Blade Flourish. All for about 1d6 or 1d8 extra damage which is an average of 3.5 or 4.5. Would you give up all of that for 3.5 more damage? And with your Ability Scores you get that 3.5 extra damage once before you either need to rest or convert a spell slot.
Instead try this for Swords Bard:
Str - 17 / Dex - 14 / Con - 10 / Int - 8 / Wis - 8 / Chr - 16
5 Level in Barbarian (any subclass)
Grab Dual Wielder at Level 4 to get Str to 18.
5 Levels in Bard (Swords)
Grab +2 Str from your ASI at Level 4 to cap it.
You're just a singing Barbarian who is very Charismatic for 5 level until you go to school to learn how to be a Bard later on.
Alternatively you go 6 Levels in Bard first and then take just 4 Levels in Barbarian. You're just a really really strong Bard who learns to channel their Rage later on. This is way better if your campaign starts at earlier levels. You stop at 4 Level in Barbarian b/c you don't need Extra attack and it would be better to go back to Bard for Countercharm, Expertise, more spells for utility, and a higher Bardic Inspiration die. Plus this allows you to get your Third ASI at Character Level 12 alongside everyone else in the party (use it for more Charisma or Sentinel).
Agree with Jaymezz149. Honestly I see no synergy of any DnD24 Bard subclass. It seems you‘d like to go into melee which will be a challenge for your character.
Start level1 with Barbarian for medium armor, weapon proficiencies and CON saving throw proficiency for casting.
Take CollegeOfSwords for Duelling. Option (i) shield + PAM with sap to protect you. Option (ii) is 4attacks from DualWielder+Nick which makes more damage than TWF. PAM with 2h, heavy makes more damage than both but is incompatible with that class.
Spells: BladeWard if you go into melee. Rest of the spells, I have no opinion.
I literally talk about a Synergy with Dance bard, a good one. That's a 2024 Bard Subclass.
But let's talk about Swords Bard:
Going into Melee with Damage resistance from Rage, 17 AC from Medium Armor, and the Tough origin feat for more HP is absolutely NOT a challenge.
You need a free hand to cast a lot of spells without Warcaster, so a shield is a problem there, but otherwise it's fine. Especially if you only cast spells out of combat. But do you actually need it? No. The Shield will increase your AC to 19, which is nice, but other than allowing you to use Shield Master, it isn't doing anything else for you. And Sap? On a Barbarian? The Class with Reckless Attack? Idk about that lol.
Dual Wielding is pointless if you don't take TWF. You see, with Nick + the Dual Wielder Feat and Extra attack that does equal 4 attacks. But without TWF 2 of those attacks will be doing a flat 1d6 damage because you can't add STR or DEX to it. It helps to be a Barbarian so it's 1d6 + 2 for those attacks, but TWF costs you nothing with Swords Bard so just take it.
PAM + Heavy Weapon + Great Weapon Master is the best you can do in terms of damage, and it is NOT Incompatible with Swords Bard lol. Sure you don't get to take advantage of of the Fighting Styles you get, but the damage is wroth is and you will usually have nothing better to do with your Bonus Action after activating Rage because you're using Bardic Inspiration on your Attacks with Blade Flourish, not with a Bonus Action.
Bladeward? On a Barbarian? A Concentration spell. On a Barbarian? It's got a cool Anime name sure, but its useless for a Barbarian + Swords Bard character.
As for the rest of the spells, have an Opinion: Charm Person, Feather Fall, Healing Word, Speak with Animals, Unseen Servant, AID, Invisibility, Lesser Restoration, Locate Object, Mirror Image, Hypnotic Pattern, Tiny Hut, Sending, Polymorph. All of these spells are either amazing out-of-combat utility the build would still have, or power emergency or pre-combat options. Hypnotic Pattern is worth not even using Rage if you can land it, and Polymorph can turn you into a Giant Ape or T-Rex, which is also better than Rage.
I literally talk about a Synergy with Dance bard, a good one. That's a 2024 Bard Subclass.
But let's talk about Swords Bard:
Why so salty and „lol“ so often? A bit unprofessional I‘d say. Just disagree or proove wrong without laughing at people.
„Going into Melee with Damage resistance from Rage, 17 AC from Medium Armor, and the Tough origin feat for more HP is absolutely NOT a challenge.“
“The Shield will increase your AC to 19, which is nice, but other than allowing you to use Shield Master, it isn't doing anything else for you. And Sap? On a Barbarian? The Class with Reckless Attack? Idk about that lol.“
Sap gives disadvantage on being attacked. That is protection. Better protection than average low AC17+tough gives AC19 shield + sap + tough but you cannot cast in combat. Both are not over the top but as you wrote possible. Fine to have a different opinion. People should play what they like. Yes and warcaster would be too expensive.
„Dual Wielding is pointless if you don't take TWF. ...“
Assuming 60% to hit for STR18 and three attacks plus one with advantage, DW + Nick + Duelling yields the same damage per round than DW + Nick + TWF that is 33.28 for both. STR20 prooves you right because of 36.46 vs. 38.22. Not so obviously better right? But you have a point. :-)
“PAM + Heavy Weapon + Great Weapon Master is the best you can do in terms of damage, and it is NOT Incompatible with Swords Bard lol. Sure you don't get to take advantage of of the Fighting Styles you get, but the damage is wroth is and you will usually have nothing better to do with your Bonus Action after activating Rage because you're using Bardic Inspiration on your Attacks with Blade Flourish, not with a Bonus Action.“
As you wrote, PAM+GWM is a waste of a class feature for CollegeOfSwords fighting style options. Doable but almost „incompatibly“ costly. Good damage yes but no protection. If I went your way, I’d use DefensiveFlourish to get an AC buff. SlashingFlourish is strong against hordes but the damage increase is not very high. All Bard options are not outstanding and multiclassing scales down the BardicInspDie. Bard „flourishes“ in an attack action so I would use my BA for PAM extra attack. Why do you write there is nothing to do with the BA?
„I literally talk about a Synergy with Dance bard, a good one.“
CollegeOfDance DazzlingFootwork does not work with armor and shield. Pretty MAD for for a good AC UnarmoredDefense or hitting well with STR. Bad synergy. If you think the few BardicInspDie have a big impact on damage per round and are worth going some levels in Bard rather than Barb or something else or single class Bard, I am fine with that. People should play what they like.
„Bladeward? A Concentration spell. On a Barbarian? ... its useless for a Barbarian + Swords Bard character. “
If your Barbarian is surprised or runs out of rages, then BladeWard is your cheap friend. Wouldn‘t last long but better than nothing.
How do you get a 16 STR and 17 CHA in point buy? The highest you can go is 15. To get Tough, you need to be a farmer and they give an ability score bump to STR but no bump to CHA.
I assume he means with his racial bonuses, although he's two points over standard point buy.
15, 14, 10, 8, 8, 15 is possible. Add in +1/+2 to Str and Cha and you're there.
To OP - just dump Charisma to 13. Enough to multiclass into Bard. You're going to be too MAD to focus on it and then take spells that don't require a DC check to function.
How do you get a 16 STR and 17 CHA in point buy? The highest you can go is 15. To get Tough, you need to be a farmer and they give an ability score bump to STR but no bump to CHA.
Hi Character.
You can customize your background and get Tough as well as other increases you like. See this link:
I was interested in making a Bardbarian. Primary a barbarian with a little bard in. Concept is a viking skald. I will be using the point buy and phb and xanathar's only. The MAD is maddening but trying the see if it can work or if I am wasting my time. We will be starting at lvl 8. Unsure of class breakdown, maybe 2 or 3 bard and rest barbarian. Human variant or half orc or dragonborn or even half elf. I do want to have GWM as a feat though.
Any suggestions? Thanks
Go Valor bard. Get proficiency in horn and drums, flute maybe? For race, dragonborn seems good, that or variant human. Put plus one into strength and charisma. Half elf means you can put your charisma lower and be ok as you have plus two.
'The Cleverness of mushrooms always surprises me!' - Ivern Bramblefoot.
I'll worldbuild for your DnD games!
Just a D&D enjoyer, check out my fiverr page if you need any worldbuilding done for ya!
It could work. I’d suggest keeping cha on the lower end and focusing more on buffing spells so you don’t have to worry about spell attack rolls or save DCs being low. There’s tons of good bard utility spells.
I created a level 3 Gnishiho-gnome Wild Magic barbarian for our homebrew campaign (Vault's Remastered channel on Youtube has details on this race) and I will dualclass 3 levels as Bard eventually and will choose College of Glamour subclass. My background is Feylost so it fits perfectly (My chosen instrument from this background is ocarina-flute). I also asked our DM if I can be just barely medium size but have speed 25f. I explained that when I was taken to the Feywild and spending time there, it changed my growth for some weird reason. Remember, we are playing a fantasy game 🤪
I think this works if you pick up spells that won't need consentration, like Longstrider gives you 10f more movement speed and lasts 1 hour. Feather fall (R) , healing word (BA) for saving lives and well, pick anything you like or suits your character depending on who you have in your adventuring party. We have a half-ogre tanking for us! My cantrips will be Vicious Mockery and Prestidigitation.
Eventually, Glamour subclass gives 2 spells for me, Charm Person and Mirror Images and these are always prepared because of Beguiling Magic. It can also charm or frighten(your choice) an enemy in 30feet range when you cast illusion spell. Glamour college also gives Mantle of Inspiration, more hit points and no opportunity attack for your target inspirated. I've maybe forgotten something.. But I'm not sure... Well yeah, you never know what wild magic surge brings to the table. Wish me luck. ❤️
The only combination I've found to work well is Dance Bard + Wild Magic Barbarian. Hear me out.
Dance Bard is one of the few Bard Subclasses that can directly turn it's Bardic Inspiration into Damage and it's the ONLY Bard that can do this while not losing the benefit you give to Allies by granting Inspiration.
Level 3: Dazzling Footwork
"Agile Strikes. When you expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration as part of an action, a Bonus Action, or a Reaction, you can make one Unarmed Strike as part of that action, Bonus Action, or Reaction."
Granting Bardic Inspiration is NOT A SPELL. You can do it while Rage is active. At Bard Level 5 you can turn your Spell Slots into more Bardic Inspiration ammunition.
Level 5: Font of Inspiration
"You now regain all your expended uses of Bardic Inspiration when you finish a Short or Long Rest. In addition, you can expend a spell slot (no action required) to regain one expended use of Bardic Inspiration."
This means that even though you can't cast spells your Spell Slots can still be turned into Damage.
With 5 Levels in Bard that's 1d8 +STR + Rage as a Bonus Action while also giving your Allies Inspiration AND also having some Healing Spells in case of emergencies. Dropping out of Rage to use Cure Wounds on a downed Ally is worth it and landing a Hold Person on the Bandit Leader is going to much more helpful than activating Rage.
Wild Magic Barbarian gives you the ability to restore spell slots to yourself or your allies. That means more Bardic Inspiration or party support.
This is what I suggest:
(Using Point-buy) 16 Strength / 14 Dexterity / 10 Constitution / 8 Intelligence / 10 Wisdom / 17 Charisma
NOTE: You will need to be Unarmored to get the benefit from Dazzling Footwork. So you'll only have 16 AC unless your DM helps you out with some Magic Items. This is the big weakness of the build and the reason Tough is a mandatory Origin Feat, expect to get hit a lot.
Does this build do as much DAMAGE as a pure Berserker Barbarian or a Valor Bard? No. But you're able to do the jobs of both a Barbarian AND a Bard without needing to compromise either role because you can hit things really hard and still give out Inspiration at the same time.
Just noticed how old the post was lol.
Well hopefully someone finds my short Dancing Barbarian build helpful.
I do. Love the dance bard, and this idea is really cool!
I'm just your everyday dungeon master. Ignore that jar full of souls. And those bones in the corner are just props, don't worry. I'm definitely NOT a lich. Definitely.
Yes, I like beholders. Yes, I curated an exquisite personality for commoner #2864. Yes, my catchphrase is "are you sure?"
.-. .- -. -.. --- -- / -- --- .-. ... . / -.-. --- -.. . .-.-.-
It is, but don't expect it to be insanely powerful lol.
If you are able to use older content, I would suggest you look at College of Swords. The blade flourishes are an awesome way to get some extra damage on your attacks with extra effects, plus they get a fighting style so you could make a pretty hard-hitting Dual Wielder build with this. I would probably flavor him as a viking that goes into battle singing battle chants. You could also take minimal charisma on this build since the only spells you would be using are buffing spells before combat.
For stats, I would probably start 15+2/10/15+1/8/10/13 with the Tough or Musician origin feats. Grab Dual Wielder at level 4, then either bump your Strength to 20 or take a couple more feats for whatever flavor you like. Sentinel, Mage Slayer, and Charger are all worth a look.
Minimum charisma means less Bardic Inspiration which means less using of Blade Flourish.
Plus, unlike with Dance bard, when you use your Bardic Inspiration on Blade Flourish you are not benefiting your party. which means that not only are you giving up your ability to concentrate or cast spells IN COMBAT, you're also giving up the most important buff that Bard brings.
Also, not having any DEX hurts you a lot. Unlike Dance Bard you either need to wear Medium Armor (which you want 14 DEX for) or rely in Unarmored Defense which with your CON you'll only have an AC of 13. And you're dual wielding so you can't even grab a Shield to make it 15. Not to mention that your Initiative Rolls and DEX Saving Throws are just worse off now.
Think about WHY you have 16 CON. Is it for AC? You don't need it for AC, wear armor. Is it for Concentration? You can't concentrate on spells. Is it for Health? You'll have Barbarian levels and possibly the Tough Origin Feat.
So no group support, no spells in combat, very low AC, and barely any uses of Blade Flourish. All for about 1d6 or 1d8 extra damage which is an average of 3.5 or 4.5. Would you give up all of that for 3.5 more damage? And with your Ability Scores you get that 3.5 extra damage once before you either need to rest or convert a spell slot.
Instead try this for Swords Bard:
Str - 17 / Dex - 14 / Con - 10 / Int - 8 / Wis - 8 / Chr - 16
You're just a singing Barbarian who is very Charismatic for 5 level until you go to school to learn how to be a Bard later on.
Alternatively you go 6 Levels in Bard first and then take just 4 Levels in Barbarian. You're just a really really strong Bard who learns to channel their Rage later on. This is way better if your campaign starts at earlier levels. You stop at 4 Level in Barbarian b/c you don't need Extra attack and it would be better to go back to Bard for Countercharm, Expertise, more spells for utility, and a higher Bardic Inspiration die. Plus this allows you to get your Third ASI at Character Level 12 alongside everyone else in the party (use it for more Charisma or Sentinel).
Hi there.
Agree with Jaymezz149. Honestly I see no synergy of any DnD24 Bard subclass. It seems you‘d like to go into melee which will be a challenge for your character.
Start level1 with Barbarian for medium armor, weapon proficiencies and CON saving throw proficiency for casting.
Take CollegeOfSwords for Duelling. Option (i) shield + PAM with sap to protect you. Option (ii) is 4attacks from DualWielder+Nick which makes more damage than TWF. PAM with 2h, heavy makes more damage than both but is incompatible with that class.
Spells: BladeWard if you go into melee. Rest of the spells, I have no opinion.
How is that an agreement? lol
I literally talk about a Synergy with Dance bard, a good one. That's a 2024 Bard Subclass.
But let's talk about Swords Bard:
Going into Melee with Damage resistance from Rage, 17 AC from Medium Armor, and the Tough origin feat for more HP is absolutely NOT a challenge.
You need a free hand to cast a lot of spells without Warcaster, so a shield is a problem there, but otherwise it's fine. Especially if you only cast spells out of combat. But do you actually need it? No. The Shield will increase your AC to 19, which is nice, but other than allowing you to use Shield Master, it isn't doing anything else for you. And Sap? On a Barbarian? The Class with Reckless Attack? Idk about that lol.
Dual Wielding is pointless if you don't take TWF. You see, with Nick + the Dual Wielder Feat and Extra attack that does equal 4 attacks. But without TWF 2 of those attacks will be doing a flat 1d6 damage because you can't add STR or DEX to it. It helps to be a Barbarian so it's 1d6 + 2 for those attacks, but TWF costs you nothing with Swords Bard so just take it.
PAM + Heavy Weapon + Great Weapon Master is the best you can do in terms of damage, and it is NOT Incompatible with Swords Bard lol. Sure you don't get to take advantage of of the Fighting Styles you get, but the damage is wroth is and you will usually have nothing better to do with your Bonus Action after activating Rage because you're using Bardic Inspiration on your Attacks with Blade Flourish, not with a Bonus Action.
Bladeward? On a Barbarian? A Concentration spell. On a Barbarian? It's got a cool Anime name sure, but its useless for a Barbarian + Swords Bard character.
As for the rest of the spells, have an Opinion: Charm Person, Feather Fall, Healing Word, Speak with Animals, Unseen Servant, AID, Invisibility, Lesser Restoration, Locate Object, Mirror Image, Hypnotic Pattern, Tiny Hut, Sending, Polymorph. All of these spells are either amazing out-of-combat utility the build would still have, or power emergency or pre-combat options. Hypnotic Pattern is worth not even using Rage if you can land it, and Polymorph can turn you into a Giant Ape or T-Rex, which is also better than Rage.
I literally talk about a Synergy with Dance bard, a good one. That's a 2024 Bard Subclass.
But let's talk about Swords Bard:
Why so salty and „lol“ so often? A bit unprofessional I‘d say. Just disagree or proove wrong without laughing at people.
„Going into Melee with Damage resistance from Rage, 17 AC from Medium Armor, and the Tough origin feat for more HP is absolutely NOT a challenge.“
“The Shield will increase your AC to 19, which is nice, but other than allowing you to use Shield Master, it isn't doing anything else for you. And Sap? On a Barbarian? The Class with Reckless Attack? Idk about that lol.“
Sap gives disadvantage on being attacked. That is protection. Better protection than average low AC17+tough gives AC19 shield + sap + tough but you cannot cast in combat. Both are not over the top but as you wrote possible. Fine to have a different opinion. People should play what they like. Yes and warcaster would be too expensive.
„Dual Wielding is pointless if you don't take TWF. ...“
Assuming 60% to hit for STR18 and three attacks plus one with advantage, DW + Nick + Duelling yields the same damage per round than DW + Nick + TWF that is 33.28 for both. STR20 prooves you right because of 36.46 vs. 38.22. Not so obviously better right? But you have a point. :-)
“PAM + Heavy Weapon + Great Weapon Master is the best you can do in terms of damage, and it is NOT Incompatible with Swords Bard lol. Sure you don't get to take advantage of of the Fighting Styles you get, but the damage is wroth is and you will usually have nothing better to do with your Bonus Action after activating Rage because you're using Bardic Inspiration on your Attacks with Blade Flourish, not with a Bonus Action.“
As you wrote, PAM+GWM is a waste of a class feature for CollegeOfSwords fighting style options. Doable but almost „incompatibly“ costly. Good damage yes but no protection. If I went your way, I’d use DefensiveFlourish to get an AC buff. SlashingFlourish is strong against hordes but the damage increase is not very high. All Bard options are not outstanding and multiclassing scales down the BardicInspDie. Bard „flourishes“ in an attack action so I would use my BA for PAM extra attack. Why do you write there is nothing to do with the BA?
„I literally talk about a Synergy with Dance bard, a good one.“
CollegeOfDance DazzlingFootwork does not work with armor and shield. Pretty MAD for for a good AC UnarmoredDefense or hitting well with STR. Bad synergy. If you think the few BardicInspDie have a big impact on damage per round and are worth going some levels in Bard rather than Barb or something else or single class Bard, I am fine with that. People should play what they like.
„Bladeward? A Concentration spell. On a Barbarian? ... its useless for a Barbarian + Swords Bard character. “
If your Barbarian is surprised or runs out of rages, then BladeWard is your cheap friend. Wouldn‘t last long but better than nothing.
How do you get a 16 STR and 17 CHA in point buy? The highest you can go is 15. To get Tough, you need to be a farmer and they give an ability score bump to STR but no bump to CHA.
I assume he means with his racial bonuses, although he's two points over standard point buy.
15, 14, 10, 8, 8, 15 is possible. Add in +1/+2 to Str and Cha and you're there.
To OP - just dump Charisma to 13. Enough to multiclass into Bard. You're going to be too MAD to focus on it and then take spells that don't require a DC check to function.
Hi Character.
You can customize your background and get Tough as well as other increases you like. See this link:
https://www.belloflostsouls.net/2024/11/dd-the-dungeon-masters-guide-has-rules-for-building-your-own-custom-background.html
Cheers