I'm looking at rolling a bard for a Campaign I'm in and we are doing Out of the Abyss . Currently lvl 3 and its quite encounter heavy so far.
My Party consists of:
Sorcerer - Pure damage
Ranger - with a Bow !
Monk - DPS, little crazy!
As such i will be the only source of Healing, I would prefer to stick to out of combat healing but our crazy monk will be half dead before the rest of us start round 1, so in combat healing is important.
So here's what I'm thinking,
Drow Lore Bard, max Dex and Cha then Con and leave the rest at 8's ( point buy system). Duel wield Scimitars in medium Armor, I would like Sword Bard but i don't think the Dex to Dam outweighs Secret Magic at lvl6 where i will likely take Revivify and Aura of Vitality.Also looking at either Warcaster or Healer Feats at lvl 4, again, both would be nice but that's a serious loss of stats.
I can see the benefits of Life Cleric 1 but I'm not sure Multi-classing at all is worth the slow down in spell levels.
I'm kinda hoping i can do enough melee damage to be fun and make a difference then leave the spell slots for Healing and a few buffs.
The DM has said we can use a Cleric NPC if we want but that kinda feels like cheating to me so i am trying to find a way to cover the heals myself.
Lore Bards don't get medium armor proficiency, scimitar proficiency, nor their offhand damage bonus, nor extra attack. You're much better off with a crossbow and flinging spells as Lore. To accomplish what you're talking about you'll want Swords - yes, you give up magical secrets at 6, but you can't have everything. Defensive Flurry is really helpful at staying alive in close combat too. You'll also want a mix of battlefield control spells - the best healer is the one that prevents the party from taking damage in the first place!
Also consider War Cleric or Paladin - something a bit tanky and melee-focused, but with enough healing to get the party out of tough spots.
Lore bard is a good option, as you could use your inspiration for cutting word to prevent some hits from connecting, almost like preemptive healing. Sadly though, lore bard doesn't gain medium armor proficiency, and sword is the only bard college that gains two weapon fighting without taking a feat tax. If you want to wade into the thick with med. armor and dual scimitars, sword college would be your only option.
If you're raring for melee, valor college is a good option as well. You'd trade some magic secrets, iirc, but be semi on par with martial classes w/ weapon use. And valor college inspiration dice can be spent reducing damage taken, which provides more survivability, though not quite as effective as cutting word.
Also, while multi-classing into cleric would slow you down in terms of learning your bard spells (and other bardic ability progression), it will not however slow down your spell slot growth. Multi-classing casters, rules as written, if you're one level deep in two different full on caster classes (so say level 2 with 1 in cleric & bard for example), you still count as a second level caster, and have the spell slots as such. The only multi-class options that hurt you on gaining slots are non-casters, half/third-casters (eg. any paladin or eldritch knight fighter), and warlock, because warlock spell slots are weird.
And of course, if you really wanna double down on the heals, the healer feat would be your best bet. Ten charges of 1D6+4 heal, once per character per short rest, is quite strong. And healer kits, in your average campaign aren't super expensive or difficult to find.
((Edit: didn't see the other one already post the info about lore bards. Sorry for being a tad redundant.
"The DM has said we can use a Cleric NPC if we want but that kinda feels like cheating to me so i am trying to find a way to cover the heals myself."
As long as the encounters are tailored for the extra character then I don't see what the problem is - it would be no different than having an extra body at the table (Virtual or otherwise.)
Your DM sounds like a top person - you should value their input and generosity of spirit.
Lore Bards don't look to hot in a fight until they reach lvl. 14. Then you can pick up Tenser's Transformation. In the mean time, use your high persuasion skill to bargain for healing potions.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Roll CHA to see if you can persuade your friend to roll CHA for you.
I would really consider going Aasimar, to dump dex (you probably have two dex-monsters in the party anyway), go life cleric in level one, put enough points into str to start out with 15, wear the heaviest armor available plus shield and then either go Glamour Bard, as Mantle of Inspiration is great control plus temp HP or think about a Sorcerer Divine Soul instead of Bard if nobody minds a second sorcerer. You have a great choice of spells, decent healing, control and - with Booming or Green Flame Blade - are even able to deal damage in CC.
Hey guys,
I'm looking at rolling a bard for a Campaign I'm in and we are doing Out of the Abyss . Currently lvl 3 and its quite encounter heavy so far.
My Party consists of:
Sorcerer - Pure damage
Ranger - with a Bow !
Monk - DPS, little crazy!
As such i will be the only source of Healing, I would prefer to stick to out of combat healing but our crazy monk will be half dead before the rest of us start round 1, so in combat healing is important.
So here's what I'm thinking,
Drow Lore Bard, max Dex and Cha then Con and leave the rest at 8's ( point buy system). Duel wield Scimitars in medium Armor, I would like Sword Bard but i don't think the Dex to Dam outweighs Secret Magic at lvl6 where i will likely take Revivify and Aura of Vitality.Also looking at either Warcaster or Healer Feats at lvl 4, again, both would be nice but that's a serious loss of stats.
I can see the benefits of Life Cleric 1 but I'm not sure Multi-classing at all is worth the slow down in spell levels.
I'm kinda hoping i can do enough melee damage to be fun and make a difference then leave the spell slots for Healing and a few buffs.
The DM has said we can use a Cleric NPC if we want but that kinda feels like cheating to me so i am trying to find a way to cover the heals myself.
Any thoughts and opinions are most welcome!
Lore Bards don't get medium armor proficiency, scimitar proficiency, nor their offhand damage bonus, nor extra attack. You're much better off with a crossbow and flinging spells as Lore. To accomplish what you're talking about you'll want Swords - yes, you give up magical secrets at 6, but you can't have everything. Defensive Flurry is really helpful at staying alive in close combat too. You'll also want a mix of battlefield control spells - the best healer is the one that prevents the party from taking damage in the first place!
Also consider War Cleric or Paladin - something a bit tanky and melee-focused, but with enough healing to get the party out of tough spots.
Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in awhile.
Lore bard is a good option, as you could use your inspiration for cutting word to prevent some hits from connecting, almost like preemptive healing. Sadly though, lore bard doesn't gain medium armor proficiency, and sword is the only bard college that gains two weapon fighting without taking a feat tax. If you want to wade into the thick with med. armor and dual scimitars, sword college would be your only option.
If you're raring for melee, valor college is a good option as well. You'd trade some magic secrets, iirc, but be semi on par with martial classes w/ weapon use. And valor college inspiration dice can be spent reducing damage taken, which provides more survivability, though not quite as effective as cutting word.
Also, while multi-classing into cleric would slow you down in terms of learning your bard spells (and other bardic ability progression), it will not however slow down your spell slot growth. Multi-classing casters, rules as written, if you're one level deep in two different full on caster classes (so say level 2 with 1 in cleric & bard for example), you still count as a second level caster, and have the spell slots as such. The only multi-class options that hurt you on gaining slots are non-casters, half/third-casters (eg. any paladin or eldritch knight fighter), and warlock, because warlock spell slots are weird.
And of course, if you really wanna double down on the heals, the healer feat would be your best bet. Ten charges of 1D6+4 heal, once per character per short rest, is quite strong. And healer kits, in your average campaign aren't super expensive or difficult to find.
((Edit: didn't see the other one already post the info about lore bards. Sorry for being a tad redundant.
"The DM has said we can use a Cleric NPC if we want but that kinda feels like cheating to me so i am trying to find a way to cover the heals myself."
As long as the encounters are tailored for the extra character then I don't see what the problem is - it would be no different than having an extra body at the table (Virtual or otherwise.)
Your DM sounds like a top person - you should value their input and generosity of spirit.
Roleplaying since Runequest.
Lore Bards don't look to hot in a fight until they reach lvl. 14. Then you can pick up Tenser's Transformation. In the mean time, use your high persuasion skill to bargain for healing potions.
Roll CHA to see if you can persuade your friend to roll CHA for you.
Carcywin Nuluck, Beyond this Earthly Realm - PbPIf you want to multi into cleric you'd need 13 Wis as well which I don't believe you have.
I would really consider going Aasimar, to dump dex (you probably have two dex-monsters in the party anyway), go life cleric in level one, put enough points into str to start out with 15, wear the heaviest armor available plus shield and then either go Glamour Bard, as Mantle of Inspiration is great control plus temp HP or think about a Sorcerer Divine Soul instead of Bard if nobody minds a second sorcerer. You have a great choice of spells, decent healing, control and - with Booming or Green Flame Blade - are even able to deal damage in CC.
Or variant human if you want medium armour proficiency via level 1 feat.