Hello there fellow singers, dancers and bellydrummers! I'd say sword swallowers, but... My mind cannot say it with a straight face.
I am preparing a Level 3 Half-Elf Bard of the Drow bloodline, although I am not taking the Drow Magic feature. She simply will be looking like a drow halfbreed, not an elf one. And I have encountered a few issues, that I am here to ask more experienced bard players about. But first of all, a presentation of what I already have set in stone.
Ability Scores: 12 - 16 - 14 - 9 - 10 - 18 rolled and with race bonuses as follows, Dex +1, Wis +1, Cha +2 to even out the odd numbers.
Background: Criminal/Spy due to backstory I have written down.
Proficiencies: Acrobatics, Deception, Intimidation, Performance, Persuasion, Sleight of Hand and Stealth with Expertise in Deception and Performance, both picked due to background resons.
College of Whispers: because it fits the character the most, although I have been considering College of Swords due to my love for tactics and the Flourish mechanics.
Weapon of choice: Rapier
That is all, that remains set in stone for now. Spells I have picked are mostly to provide assistance during fight to her teammates. So... What I picked so far is:
Cantrips: Prestidigitation, Vicious Mockery
Level 1: Bane, Cure Wounds, Detect Magic, Feather Fall (she is meant to be a thief and spy, jumping off of a tower in a castle is a likely event), Heroism
Level 2: Calm Emotions (mostly due to the RP potential it has)
My qestions to you fine Lades and Gentlemen are as follows:
Do you see any of the Bard Spells as a must have, that I have missed?
Since we start at level 3, the next level introduces Feats and ASI. Just go for 20 Charisma or is there any feat worth using?
Stage name! I am totally bamboozled about that... The obvious ones include Nightingale or Starling, but I am not quite sure about either... Character is wearing a starcrested robe and has silver white hair, pearl white eyes and skin the shade of dark slate blue. What would be a fitting name to perform under?
1: I really like the silence spell it helps with stealth and generally noisy stuff you are trying to steal, passing a message/killing someone in a crowded place, or keep someone quiet like a prisoner while moving them. Also it can shut down some casting enemies. But it's only 10 min and someone must be able to hear you to receive bardic inspiration.
2: If your planning on using vicious mockery as your main attack I would max Cha first. if you are planning on using the rapier as your main attack i would look at Resistance for Con or war caster. Resistance Con. is good for maintaining concentration on your spells and dealing with poisons.
3: I don't know your backstory but your criminal background could have it's own name or combine them for a long drawn out name with a nickname like "Midnight the Sterling Nightingale of Mystery"
1: I really like the silence spell it helps with stealth and generally noisy stuff you are trying to steal, passing a message/killing someone in a crowded place, or keep someone quiet like a prisoner while moving them. Also it can shut down some casting enemies. But it's only 10 min and someone must be able to hear you to receive bardic inspiration.
2: If your planning on using vicious mockery as your main attack I would max Cha first. if you are planning on using the rapier as your main attack i would look at Resistance for Con or war caster. Resistance Con. is good for maintaining concentration on your spells and dealing with poisons.
3: I don't know your backstory but your criminal background could have it's own name or combine them for a long drawn out name with a nickname like "Midnight the Sterling Nightingale of Mystery"
1. I would love the Silence spell, if it was targeting a creature, not an area. 20ft. Sphere rarely hinders a caster for longer than one turn. Killing someone in a public area sounds like a good use to prevent him from screaming, yeah.
2. I plan to be the face of the party, I think... We will have bullies to slash things and nerds to burn things... So I think buffing up the DC of saves against Bane or Calm Emotions my best bet. I can see most Bard spells require DCs rather than attack rolls. I couldn't find any Spell Focus, that would buff the DC for Bards, like the Rod of the Pact Keeper does for Warlocks.
A boost to Charisma at Level 4 is always a great idea for a bard. But there are a few feats that are worth considering:
Since you're using a rapier as a main weapon, "Defensive Duelist" will boost your survivability chances. "War Caster" will allow you to keep casting spells even when fighting, and you get advantage on maintaining concentration. "Alert" and "Lucky" are both great all-purpose feats for someone with a shifty criminal background.
As far as the name is concerned... You may need more than one. After all, someone with a criminal background will often use aliases. So you'll certainly have a real name, probably something like a standard drow elven name. Then you'll have the pseudonym that you use most often when traveling - again, something like a usual elven name, but a tad less Drow-y. This will be the name that the rest of the party currently knows you by. Then there's probably another pseudonym (or two) that you only use in specific places or around certain kinds of people. These may be configured to sound like the local demographic majority, to fit in more easily. Then there's the nickname that you're known by. This may be a reference to something you've done, or a descriptive name used by those who never got close enough to learn one of your names.
The key is to keep the mystery alive. Make even your closest friends doubt everything they think they know about you. You might play this character for the next five years and only when you reach Level 20 do you whisper your one true name in the ear of the only other party member to survive the Final Battle. And of course you follow it with the subtle threat, "... but if you ever tell anyone...."
Tayn of Darkwood. Lvl 10 human Life Cleric of Lathander. Retired.
Ikram Sahir ibn Malik al-Sayyid Ra'ad, Second Son of the House of Ra'ad, Defender of the Burning Sands. Lvl 9 Brass Dragonborn Sorcerer + Greater Fire Elemental Devil.
Viktor Gavriil. Lvl 20 White Dragonborn Grave Cleric, of Kurgan the God of Death.
Hello there fellow singers, dancers and bellydrummers! I'd say sword swallowers, but... My mind cannot say it with a straight face.
I am preparing a Level 3 Half-Elf Bard of the Drow bloodline, although I am not taking the Drow Magic feature. She simply will be looking like a drow halfbreed, not an elf one. And I have encountered a few issues, that I am here to ask more experienced bard players about. But first of all, a presentation of what I already have set in stone.
That is all, that remains set in stone for now. Spells I have picked are mostly to provide assistance during fight to her teammates. So... What I picked so far is:
My qestions to you fine Lades and Gentlemen are as follows:
1: I really like the silence spell it helps with stealth and generally noisy stuff you are trying to steal, passing a message/killing someone in a crowded place, or keep someone quiet like a prisoner while moving them. Also it can shut down some casting enemies. But it's only 10 min and someone must be able to hear you to receive bardic inspiration.
2: If your planning on using vicious mockery as your main attack I would max Cha first. if you are planning on using the rapier as your main attack i would look at Resistance for Con or war caster. Resistance Con. is good for maintaining concentration on your spells and dealing with poisons.
3: I don't know your backstory but your criminal background could have it's own name or combine them for a long drawn out name with a nickname like "Midnight the Sterling Nightingale of Mystery"
1. I would love the Silence spell, if it was targeting a creature, not an area. 20ft. Sphere rarely hinders a caster for longer than one turn. Killing someone in a public area sounds like a good use to prevent him from screaming, yeah.
2. I plan to be the face of the party, I think... We will have bullies to slash things and nerds to burn things... So I think buffing up the DC of saves against Bane or Calm Emotions my best bet. I can see most Bard spells require DCs rather than attack rolls. I couldn't find any Spell Focus, that would buff the DC for Bards, like the Rod of the Pact Keeper does for Warlocks.
3. Thanks for the input :D
A boost to Charisma at Level 4 is always a great idea for a bard. But there are a few feats that are worth considering:
Since you're using a rapier as a main weapon, "Defensive Duelist" will boost your survivability chances. "War Caster" will allow you to keep casting spells even when fighting, and you get advantage on maintaining concentration. "Alert" and "Lucky" are both great all-purpose feats for someone with a shifty criminal background.
As far as the name is concerned... You may need more than one. After all, someone with a criminal background will often use aliases. So you'll certainly have a real name, probably something like a standard drow elven name. Then you'll have the pseudonym that you use most often when traveling - again, something like a usual elven name, but a tad less Drow-y. This will be the name that the rest of the party currently knows you by. Then there's probably another pseudonym (or two) that you only use in specific places or around certain kinds of people. These may be configured to sound like the local demographic majority, to fit in more easily. Then there's the nickname that you're known by. This may be a reference to something you've done, or a descriptive name used by those who never got close enough to learn one of your names.
The key is to keep the mystery alive. Make even your closest friends doubt everything they think they know about you. You might play this character for the next five years and only when you reach Level 20 do you whisper your one true name in the ear of the only other party member to survive the Final Battle. And of course you follow it with the subtle threat, "... but if you ever tell anyone...."
Tayn of Darkwood. Lvl 10 human Life Cleric of Lathander. Retired.
Ikram Sahir ibn Malik al-Sayyid Ra'ad, Second Son of the House of Ra'ad, Defender of the Burning Sands. Lvl 9 Brass Dragonborn Sorcerer + Greater Fire Elemental Devil.
Viktor Gavriil. Lvl 20 White Dragonborn Grave Cleric, of Kurgan the God of Death.
Anzio Faro. Lvl 5 Prot. Aasimar Light Cleric.
Spells:
"Dissonant Whispers" is a favorite of mine.
"Disguise Self" is very useful for a bard, particularly a spy, as is "Invisibility".
Names:
Moondancer
Stargazer
Nightsky
Starfall
Nocturna
I'm late to the party, but here are some names:
Estas
Zelerith Del'Aeris
Wraith Lorindon
Aluandil
Aamis
Inanies
Selisak
Quarion/Quadrion
Hope I could be of service!