Eldritch Knights can't even compete. It's probably because blades get ninth level spells, Magical Secrets, Expertise, and if they hit an attack action, they get extra movement. Why don't people talk about these?
Eldritch Knights can't even compete. It's probably because blades get ninth level spells, Magical Secrets, Expertise, and if they hit an attack action, they get extra movement. Why don't people talk about these?
The major rivals are the bard "College of Valor" (which lacks the Fighting Style or Flourishes, but gets the ability to "cast & slash" on the same turn at mid-high levels)...
...the Hexblade Warlock, which benefits from being both a full caster and a considerably offensive-oriented warrior with spells and invocations...
...a paladin, while not a full caster, has the potent smites to add hefty bonus damage, and sturdy armor...
...the Arcane Trickster rogue, gaining wizard spells to bolster their already-considerable talents as a rogue, with Cunning Action and Expertise to boot...
...and the Bladesinger Wizard, who seems most similar to the Sword Bard, gaining similar features to mobility and defense, but geared more towards bolstering their durability as a spellcaster and occassionally dancing into melee for a good few whacks before retreating.
...personally, while I like the Sword Bard as a skill machine, I like the Bladesinger more for their style and elegance, and easy-access to the spells I enjoy most.
A two level multiclass into Rogue nets them permanent boosts to Expertise, mobility and added defense, as well...this will be my next character, I think.
I'm currently multi-classed rogue (swashbuckler) 5/ wizard (bladesinger) 6. All I have to say is that being able to dash in, attack adding sneak attack, bonus dash out with no attack of opportunity, and also have an absolutely broken AC while able to chuck spells is broken. I love it. My DM hates it.
I think it should be in the conversation, but there are some ways to improve it. Starting with a level of Fighter or Hexblade improves this subclass quite a bit. Blade Flourish is somewhere between ok and awful. Competing with Inspiration means the effect had better be good, if not better than Inspiration. Defensive Flourish is overall good, but what if you roll a 1? On average this is a weaker effect than the Shield spell until level 10. Slashing Flourish, how is that better than casting Thunderclap? As for Mobile Flourish, it's best to assume you won't get more than 5 feet of pushing until later in your career, but there's some utility for it. Extra Attack and Master's Flourish are great, and Swords is probably the best of the martial bards, but there may be stronger options out there. If I was rating College of Swords I'd give it a grade of C overall.
The Eldritch Knight doesn't get full spellcasting, so if that's a deal-breaker for you ok but I think it's a great gish; if I were grading it, it's a high B. Bladesinging is pretty great, tough to beat, and I'd rate it up in the S-class range. Even the Hexblade is in the high A's, though it can run out of gas as a spell caster.
By taking a level of Hexblade, any bard subclass can be a martial subclass since that gets you all the amour and weapon proficiencies, plus the ability to use Charisma as your attacking stat for one-handed weapons They don't get Extra Attack but by making one of your Warlock cantrips Green-Flame Blade (or Booming Blade, I guess), you can keep the damage competitive (if split) whilst retaining all your subclass benefits
There's not really a subclass that synergises well with this, so College of Valour and College of Swords still do somewhat better, but any bard can be a martial bard by going Hexblade, which takes the wind out of the two designated martial subclasses, as they devoted subclass features to this build
That said, Bards don't really get a dud level, except perhaps 20th-level so this multiclass is more expensive than it may at first appear
I think you should really contemplate whether you want to dip into another class first. While fighter lvls give you some good proficiencies and abilities, and hexblade cures your MADness (multiple ability dependant), delaying levels will also delay your features, like waiting to 7th lvl (or higher) for multiattack.
Of the classes available martial casters that might be better are hexblades and bladesingers. Personally I think the clear winner of the three is bladesinger, their high AC makes them deceptively tanky, and they have the spell slots and spell list to fulfill both the caster and melee role. Damage wise this is probably the strongest of the three (not considering multiclassing).
Hexblade cures a lot of the MADness as previously mentioned, and gains both shield and armor proficiency (along with martial weapons of course). They can even smite at later levels. Using the correct spells they can fulfill several roles within the party: frontline, damage, burst, summoner. What withholds them in power is the fact they are warlocks, lacking spellslots to use in combat.
Swords bards have some of the same challenges as bladesongs, having to rely on several ability scores. They get medium armor, but not shields, neither do they get any good reactive defensive spells, but defensive flourish somewhat makes up for this. And I think that’s what is really holding them back, they lack the kind of spells you want for this type of build.
Swords Bard can be solid but it has to put in a lot of effort and resources to melee reliably. The problem is twofold; the Bard list isn't well suited for the role and nor does the Bard class chassis, which is oriented towards utility, give you the tools to survive in melee.
Tasha's massively improved the Bard spell list for a melee caster with Mirror Image and Aid but it still is far from optimal. You don't have Shadow Blade or Spirit Shroud, which are standard issue for a melee gish that wants to stay relevant in combat. Shield, Blink, Armor of Agathys, Darkness/Devil's Sight and Protection from Good/Evil are also key survival options if you're going to wade into the fight as a full caster. The Paladin/Cleric standbys of Spirit Guardians and Holy Weapon, or just smites and auras, are another lack you struggle to make up for. Heck, you don't even gain access to Misty Step unless you take the right feat or race. As a Bard, you can spend your Magical Secrets on them... after 10th level. I'm sure you'll agree this is rather late. Doing so means a certain opportunity cost too because you're not taking other great choices.
All of the above means that as a melee caster, the Swords Bard has to dip into another class or be very, very careful about what fights they pick.
If you go 3 levels of Hexblade, you can round out your spell arsenal quite nicely. Sorcerer is another option. Paladin can give you quite a bit too. Again, though, there is an opportunity cost. You will experience a delay in spellcasting, Inspiration and Magical Secrets. Whether the dip makes up for the loss can greatly depend on your playstyle and preferences.
At later levels? Swords Bard does improve but it can still be a little precarious in full melee. Defensive Flourish is good but it means you have to be proactive about using it and when you run out that can hurt. Of course, when you get Simulacrum and Greater Steed... well we all know how awesome that is. Sadly, that's not a Swords Bards exclusive.
Honestly, I think Hexblade and Bladesinger do the whole melee gish thing easier.
Hmm... honestly, in terms of flexibility, Swords Bard is definitely near the top, especially if you're willing to dip. You have a nice selection of options to choose from, such as (not a complete list, just my favourites):
Swashbuckler Rogue: 3 levels gives you a small damage increase and a nice defensive edge, being able to turn off enemies' OAs will be a significant boon to your mobility. This is especially useful if you use some or all of your spells to support your allies, since you can use it to approach them that much more safely. Simple, yet effective; there's not much to say about it, especially compared to the others, but that's because it speaks for itself. This is my personal favourite, for flavour reasons; Swordsbucklers just feel "complete" in a way that neither Swords nor Swash alone can match.
Eldritch Knight Fighter: It seems really bad, you'd be crazy to be so MAD, but a 3-level dip gives you a good defensive boost, a hyper-limited strong option, and a subtle but surprisingly power "ribbon" ability; you'll be iron-clad. Smallest boon is another fighting style (probably Defense, though there are a few other options) and shields, plus a bit more survivability from Second Wind. You also get Action Surge, which is possibly the best feature in the game to give a caster if you can spare the levels, and not bad for a martial either. There are a few good Wizard spells you'll be able to choose from that don't need Int investment, like Shield , Absorb Elements, or Protection From Evil and Good, which synergise very nicely with melee. And least noticeably but perhaps most interestingly, you will never lose your casting focus; getting to use weapons as foci meshes very nicely with Weapon Bond.
Hexblade Warlock: I don't like this option, I really don't. It's cliché and hideously overrepresented, and honestly it's too strong for just a dip. But it's the most common dip for martial Cha-sters for a reason. Cha-to-attack and Cha-to-damage are extremely hard to say "no" to, especially since you only need one Warlock level to get them. Going for another level isn't flashy, but there are a lof of invocations you could work with. And a third level after that gives you Blade Pact, which is slightly worse than Weapon Bond... but also gives you a free +1 weapon if you're willing to grab Improved Pact Weapon as your invocation. Overall, it's similar to EK, just IMO very slightly worse (and then, only because Warlock doesn't get to cast two one-action spells a turn once per rest... and honestly, the Cha thing probably outweighs this in the long run).
If you're not necessarily differentiating between RAW vs Homebrew; in the wake of some of the Tashas additional variant reactions I've been watching on youtube, I've been toying with the idea of merging College of Swords and College of Valor into a single College of Valorous Swords.
Combat inspiration has I think been standardized to all bards, no? Scimitars are already a martial weapon and both colleges get extra attack. 3e bards had shield proficiency standard, so I see no reason to keep it from the martial archetype of bard.
So it's just a question of whether or not it is too much to stack Masters Flourish and Battle Magic.
Atm, a bard of under 14thlevel or from another college can shoot a hand crossbow, or cast a cantrip, etc. then use a 1 round spell as a bonus action.
As I understand it, Battle Magic, would let one cast a normal spell of any kind first, and then take a shot with a hand crossbow etc. other weapon?
Masters Flourish let's you do Blade Flourish without having to spend bardic inspiration on it - leaving you with more uses of combat inspiration.
If I had to pick one, I'd keep Master's flourish; but the 14th level slot could perhaps give you a choice between the two the way 3rd level lets you pick one fighting style from a choice of two.
I wouldn't mind having both in all honestly but don't know how to judge if that would be too overpowered.
It's also been suggested that instead of just dueling or two weapon fighting, a 3rd choice be created that is unique to this subclass and to bards that focuses on the use of acrobatics & tumbling in combat as a fighting-style.
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Eldritch knight gets a bit of a bad reputation, but with specific spell, race, and feat selections it can be a powerhouse. A dexterity based elf/half elf that makes use of elven accuracy and shadowblade can deal wonderful damage somewhat consistently, and the same scales up quite well. The dexterity allows for a longbow to be made use off effectively if ranged combat pops up.
the build can deal up to and sometimes even more damage than greatweapon master/sharpshooter builds. Three rolls with advantage, shadows blades 2d8 with additional d8s when upcast, the fighters additional extra attacks, action surge, and perhaps even the dueling fighting style all add up quite a bit.
the builds spell selections need to be chosen in ways that emphasize bonus action casting, reaction casting, or longer durations. Anything you can do to try and preserve your action for your extra attack.
this also allows for a bit more freedom for utility cantrips to be chosen since the Eldritch knight won’t need to make use of blade cantrips for long.
yea a straight classes Eldritch knight usually won’t ever be casting high level spells unless scrolls are involved, but out of all the “gish” builds, it’s probably the least effected by some anti magic fields that are likely to pop up eventually.
also, are you even a “gish” anymore if your spells eventually get so effective you don’t use your attack action?
Artificer (specifically Battle Smith or Armorer) can be a pretty good gish. At 5th level those 2 subclasses get extra attack. You're a half caster so you'll never completely stop using your weapons in favor of spells. At 2nd level you can use one of your infusions as your casting focus, which could be a +1 weapon or +1 shield you infused yourself, so no need to keep a hand free for a spell focus. BTW that +1 weapon and +1 shield don't require attunement, and at 10th level automatically become +2. You have advantage on constitution saving throws to help you not drop concentration in battle.
Battle smith: Martial weapons, medium armor, shields. When you use a magic weapon to attack you get to use Int instead of str or dex for your attack and damage. You get a Defender pet that can heal itself 3 times a day, can be healed by the Mending cantrip, and is functionally immortal because you can just put it back together as a part of a long rest. It is medium size so if you are small size you can ride it. "The defender imposes disadvantage on the attack roll of one creature it can see that is within 5 feet of it, provided the attack roll is against a creature other than the defender" which is cool for you or any other melee front liner standing next to it.
Armorer: Simple weapons, Heavy armor, shields. You get a super cool set of magical armor that you can keep making better and better. You don't get martial weapons, but the armor has it's own magic weapons built in. Either gauntlets that let you punch 1d8 thunder damage, or a long range weapon that shoots 1d6 lightning damage depending on the model you choose. Oh and the armor can't be removed against your will, which means you can't be disarmed. The infiltrator model also gives you advantage on stealth checks, which lets you be a super sneak in medium armor, or cancel the stealth disadvantage in heavy armor. That's all at 3rd level. Artificers have proficiency with thief's tools so you want to be mage/thief without multiclassing you can take the armor model that gives you advantage on stealth checks and imbue yourself some Boots of Elvenkind and Gloves of Thievery at level 6. At 9th level you can put up to 4 infusions on your armor which can include things like Helm of Awareness that gives advantage on initiative rolls, Mind Sharpener that lets you succeed on concentration saving throws you failed 4 times a day, and some options that will give better AC.
Or you could take the subclass of your choice at 3rd level, and then multiclass into wizard for all the spells. Artificers are a half caster that rounds up, so 3 levels of Artificer only costs you 1 caster level. If you go to 5th level for Extra Attack you lose just 2 caster levels vs. a pure wizard, but you'll never get 9th level spells. You take your proficiency in constitution saving throws, shields and medium armor (heavy armor if armorer, martial weapons if battle smith), and 2 infusions for common magic items of your choice. Be a wizard with an AC of 21.
If you don't like the mad scientist steampunk aesthetic, that isn't actually required at all (except maybe in Eberron). Artificers can choose any artisan's tools, including artistic ones like the painting kit and calligraphy kit. Your stuff is all magic, not science, so putting gears in it won't make it work better.
My issue with swords bard is that you can hardly call it a gish. It's pretty much a straight caster without much incentive to melee! You're not proficient in shields, and you only get medium armor. So, they're on the squishier side. Only scimitar as a bonus proficiency? That's pretty lame.
When you look at the bladesinger, hoo boy, their AC is insane. mage armor, blade song, shield spell? Forget about it. You can use a rapier as a weapon. You can use a blade cantrip, and attack with your extra attack. Their damage will never be terrible, it's foolproof. In some cases, you can even make their damage pretty darn good with some planning, like using telekinetic to shove after using booming blade to raise the chance of proccing the secondary damage. This isn't even touching upon the fact that they're a wizard, arguably the best spell list in the game.
Hexblade is SAD. You get shield proficiency. If you want, you can use a GWM/PAM build, and they have access to EB+AB. at lvl 5, they can have their extra attack, a whole level earlier than swords bard. I could build a hexblade that uses elven accuracy and GWM. By 8th level, I can have both feats, and you know what else I could have access to? shadow of moil. use that baby, now you're attacking with super advantage while things attack you at disadvantage. Pair it with your hexblade's curse, and now you'll be critting like crazy against the BBEG. Pick up your eldritch smite invocation, now your crits hurt like crazy. And it still has full spellcaster progression.
Swords bard doesn't come close to either of these subclasses's melee capabilities. Instead, what it is, it's a bard that can do some damage in between concentration spells, and when VM isn't a smart choice. Bard is good. Bard with a bit more damage on the side, is not bad! But bard gish great? No!
But, I think swords bard is excellent when you multiclass it. Start with two levels of paladin, you get all their armor and weapon proficiencies. Now your flourishes make you incredibly tanky! Now you can access powerful weapons and the option to use a GWM build is available now. Now you can smite. That's powerful.
But, I think swords bard is excellent when you multiclass it. Start with two levels of paladin, you get all their armor and weapon proficiencies. Now your flourishes make you incredibly tanky! Now you can access powerful weapons and the option to use a GWM build is available now. Now you can smite. That's powerful.
I would generally prefer a bardadin in the party to be a Lore Bard over a Swords Bard if they want to tank. Cutting Words is significantly more versatile tanking than Blade Flourish.
But, I think swords bard is excellent when you multiclass it. Start with two levels of paladin, you get all their armor and weapon proficiencies. Now your flourishes make you incredibly tanky! Now you can access powerful weapons and the option to use a GWM build is available now. Now you can smite. That's powerful.
I would generally prefer a bardadin in the party to be a Lore Bard over a Swords Bard if they want to tank. Cutting Words is significantly more versatile tanking than Blade Flourish.
This isn't bad, but it's not as good a gish because it either asks for 5 levels of paladin (and by then you might as well get 6) or you're limiting yourself to one attack per action.
Swords bard gives you extra attack. You can invest two levels into paladin, and you get access to a good portion of the martial package. Plus, having your weapon act as your focus makes spellcasting more seamless with meeting components.
I'm also a big fan of fighter 2 dips for swords bard. Imagine action surging as a bard. Imagine picking up simulacrum as a magical secret. Imagine having both the bard and simmy using action surge! That's wild. Also gives CON saving throw proficiency.
Nobody thinks a War Cleric is a caster/fighter? I thought this would be a worthwhile option. Spiritual Weapon and Spirit Guardians have always been good spells in our group.
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Eldritch Knights can't even compete. It's probably because blades get ninth level spells, Magical Secrets, Expertise, and if they hit an attack action, they get extra movement. Why don't people talk about these?
The major rivals are the bard "College of Valor" (which lacks the Fighting Style or Flourishes, but gets the ability to "cast & slash" on the same turn at mid-high levels)...
...the Hexblade Warlock, which benefits from being both a full caster and a considerably offensive-oriented warrior with spells and invocations...
...a paladin, while not a full caster, has the potent smites to add hefty bonus damage, and sturdy armor...
...the Arcane Trickster rogue, gaining wizard spells to bolster their already-considerable talents as a rogue, with Cunning Action and Expertise to boot...
...and the Bladesinger Wizard, who seems most similar to the Sword Bard, gaining similar features to mobility and defense, but geared more towards bolstering their durability as a spellcaster and occassionally dancing into melee for a good few whacks before retreating.
...personally, while I like the Sword Bard as a skill machine, I like the Bladesinger more for their style and elegance, and easy-access to the spells I enjoy most.
A two level multiclass into Rogue nets them permanent boosts to Expertise, mobility and added defense, as well...this will be my next character, I think.
I'm currently multi-classed rogue (swashbuckler) 5/ wizard (bladesinger) 6. All I have to say is that being able to dash in, attack adding sneak attack, bonus dash out with no attack of opportunity, and also have an absolutely broken AC while able to chuck spells is broken. I love it. My DM hates it.
I think it should be in the conversation, but there are some ways to improve it. Starting with a level of Fighter or Hexblade improves this subclass quite a bit. Blade Flourish is somewhere between ok and awful. Competing with Inspiration means the effect had better be good, if not better than Inspiration. Defensive Flourish is overall good, but what if you roll a 1? On average this is a weaker effect than the Shield spell until level 10. Slashing Flourish, how is that better than casting Thunderclap? As for Mobile Flourish, it's best to assume you won't get more than 5 feet of pushing until later in your career, but there's some utility for it. Extra Attack and Master's Flourish are great, and Swords is probably the best of the martial bards, but there may be stronger options out there. If I was rating College of Swords I'd give it a grade of C overall.
The Eldritch Knight doesn't get full spellcasting, so if that's a deal-breaker for you ok but I think it's a great gish; if I were grading it, it's a high B. Bladesinging is pretty great, tough to beat, and I'd rate it up in the S-class range. Even the Hexblade is in the high A's, though it can run out of gas as a spell caster.
J
By taking a level of Hexblade, any bard subclass can be a martial subclass since that gets you all the amour and weapon proficiencies, plus the ability to use Charisma as your attacking stat for one-handed weapons
They don't get Extra Attack but by making one of your Warlock cantrips Green-Flame Blade (or Booming Blade, I guess), you can keep the damage competitive (if split) whilst retaining all your subclass benefits
There's not really a subclass that synergises well with this, so College of Valour and College of Swords still do somewhat better, but any bard can be a martial bard by going Hexblade, which takes the wind out of the two designated martial subclasses, as they devoted subclass features to this build
That said, Bards don't really get a dud level, except perhaps 20th-level so this multiclass is more expensive than it may at first appear
I think you should really contemplate whether you want to dip into another class first. While fighter lvls give you some good proficiencies and abilities, and hexblade cures your MADness (multiple ability dependant), delaying levels will also delay your features, like waiting to 7th lvl (or higher) for multiattack.
Of the classes available martial casters that might be better are hexblades and bladesingers. Personally I think the clear winner of the three is bladesinger, their high AC makes them deceptively tanky, and they have the spell slots and spell list to fulfill both the caster and melee role. Damage wise this is probably the strongest of the three (not considering multiclassing).
Hexblade cures a lot of the MADness as previously mentioned, and gains both shield and armor proficiency (along with martial weapons of course). They can even smite at later levels. Using the correct spells they can fulfill several roles within the party: frontline, damage, burst, summoner. What withholds them in power is the fact they are warlocks, lacking spellslots to use in combat.
Swords bards have some of the same challenges as bladesongs, having to rely on several ability scores. They get medium armor, but not shields, neither do they get any good reactive defensive spells, but defensive flourish somewhat makes up for this. And I think that’s what is really holding them back, they lack the kind of spells you want for this type of build.
Swords Bard can be solid but it has to put in a lot of effort and resources to melee reliably. The problem is twofold; the Bard list isn't well suited for the role and nor does the Bard class chassis, which is oriented towards utility, give you the tools to survive in melee.
Tasha's massively improved the Bard spell list for a melee caster with Mirror Image and Aid but it still is far from optimal. You don't have Shadow Blade or Spirit Shroud, which are standard issue for a melee gish that wants to stay relevant in combat. Shield, Blink, Armor of Agathys, Darkness/Devil's Sight and Protection from Good/Evil are also key survival options if you're going to wade into the fight as a full caster. The Paladin/Cleric standbys of Spirit Guardians and Holy Weapon, or just smites and auras, are another lack you struggle to make up for. Heck, you don't even gain access to Misty Step unless you take the right feat or race. As a Bard, you can spend your Magical Secrets on them... after 10th level. I'm sure you'll agree this is rather late. Doing so means a certain opportunity cost too because you're not taking other great choices.
All of the above means that as a melee caster, the Swords Bard has to dip into another class or be very, very careful about what fights they pick.
If you go 3 levels of Hexblade, you can round out your spell arsenal quite nicely. Sorcerer is another option. Paladin can give you quite a bit too. Again, though, there is an opportunity cost. You will experience a delay in spellcasting, Inspiration and Magical Secrets. Whether the dip makes up for the loss can greatly depend on your playstyle and preferences.
At later levels? Swords Bard does improve but it can still be a little precarious in full melee. Defensive Flourish is good but it means you have to be proactive about using it and when you run out that can hurt. Of course, when you get Simulacrum and Greater Steed... well we all know how awesome that is. Sadly, that's not a Swords Bards exclusive.
Honestly, I think Hexblade and Bladesinger do the whole melee gish thing easier.
Hmm... honestly, in terms of flexibility, Swords Bard is definitely near the top, especially if you're willing to dip. You have a nice selection of options to choose from, such as (not a complete list, just my favourites):
If you're not necessarily differentiating between RAW vs Homebrew; in the wake of some of the Tashas additional variant reactions I've been watching on youtube, I've been toying with the idea of merging College of Swords and College of Valor into a single College of Valorous Swords.
Combat inspiration has I think been standardized to all bards, no? Scimitars are already a martial weapon and both colleges get extra attack. 3e bards had shield proficiency standard, so I see no reason to keep it from the martial archetype of bard.
So it's just a question of whether or not it is too much to stack Masters Flourish and Battle Magic.
Atm, a bard of under 14thlevel or from another college can shoot a hand crossbow, or cast a cantrip, etc. then use a 1 round spell as a bonus action.
As I understand it, Battle Magic, would let one cast a normal spell of any kind first, and then take a shot with a hand crossbow etc. other weapon?
Masters Flourish let's you do Blade Flourish without having to spend bardic inspiration on it - leaving you with more uses of combat inspiration.
If I had to pick one, I'd keep Master's flourish; but the 14th level slot could perhaps give you a choice between the two the way 3rd level lets you pick one fighting style from a choice of two.
I wouldn't mind having both in all honestly but don't know how to judge if that would be too overpowered.
It's also been suggested that instead of just dueling or two weapon fighting, a 3rd choice be created that is unique to this subclass and to bards that focuses on the use of acrobatics & tumbling in combat as a fighting-style.
Thank you for your time and please have a very pleasant day.
Eldritch knight gets a bit of a bad reputation, but with specific spell, race, and feat selections it can be a powerhouse. A dexterity based elf/half elf that makes use of elven accuracy and shadowblade can deal wonderful damage somewhat consistently, and the same scales up quite well. The dexterity allows for a longbow to be made use off effectively if ranged combat pops up.
the build can deal up to and sometimes even more damage than greatweapon master/sharpshooter builds. Three rolls with advantage, shadows blades 2d8 with additional d8s when upcast, the fighters additional extra attacks, action surge, and perhaps even the dueling fighting style all add up quite a bit.
the builds spell selections need to be chosen in ways that emphasize bonus action casting, reaction casting, or longer durations. Anything you can do to try and preserve your action for your extra attack.
this also allows for a bit more freedom for utility cantrips to be chosen since the Eldritch knight won’t need to make use of blade cantrips for long.
yea a straight classes Eldritch knight usually won’t ever be casting high level spells unless scrolls are involved, but out of all the “gish” builds, it’s probably the least effected by some anti magic fields that are likely to pop up eventually.
also, are you even a “gish” anymore if your spells eventually get so effective you don’t use your attack action?
I would say no. Which is why when I built my gish character, I purposely stopped my spell progression at third level spells.
https://ddb.ac/characters/2725951/DQPFdM
Canto alla vita
alla sua bellezza
ad ogni sua ferita
ogni sua carezza!
I sing to life and to its tragic beauty
To pain and to strife, but all that dances through me
The rise and the fall, I've lived through it all!
Artificer (specifically Battle Smith or Armorer) can be a pretty good gish. At 5th level those 2 subclasses get extra attack. You're a half caster so you'll never completely stop using your weapons in favor of spells. At 2nd level you can use one of your infusions as your casting focus, which could be a +1 weapon or +1 shield you infused yourself, so no need to keep a hand free for a spell focus. BTW that +1 weapon and +1 shield don't require attunement, and at 10th level automatically become +2. You have advantage on constitution saving throws to help you not drop concentration in battle.
Battle smith: Martial weapons, medium armor, shields. When you use a magic weapon to attack you get to use Int instead of str or dex for your attack and damage. You get a Defender pet that can heal itself 3 times a day, can be healed by the Mending cantrip, and is functionally immortal because you can just put it back together as a part of a long rest. It is medium size so if you are small size you can ride it. "The defender imposes disadvantage on the attack roll of one creature it can see that is within 5 feet of it, provided the attack roll is against a creature other than the defender" which is cool for you or any other melee front liner standing next to it.
Armorer: Simple weapons, Heavy armor, shields. You get a super cool set of magical armor that you can keep making better and better. You don't get martial weapons, but the armor has it's own magic weapons built in. Either gauntlets that let you punch 1d8 thunder damage, or a long range weapon that shoots 1d6 lightning damage depending on the model you choose. Oh and the armor can't be removed against your will, which means you can't be disarmed. The infiltrator model also gives you advantage on stealth checks, which lets you be a super sneak in medium armor, or cancel the stealth disadvantage in heavy armor. That's all at 3rd level. Artificers have proficiency with thief's tools so you want to be mage/thief without multiclassing you can take the armor model that gives you advantage on stealth checks and imbue yourself some Boots of Elvenkind and Gloves of Thievery at level 6. At 9th level you can put up to 4 infusions on your armor which can include things like Helm of Awareness that gives advantage on initiative rolls, Mind Sharpener that lets you succeed on concentration saving throws you failed 4 times a day, and some options that will give better AC.
Or you could take the subclass of your choice at 3rd level, and then multiclass into wizard for all the spells. Artificers are a half caster that rounds up, so 3 levels of Artificer only costs you 1 caster level. If you go to 5th level for Extra Attack you lose just 2 caster levels vs. a pure wizard, but you'll never get 9th level spells. You take your proficiency in constitution saving throws, shields and medium armor (heavy armor if armorer, martial weapons if battle smith), and 2 infusions for common magic items of your choice. Be a wizard with an AC of 21.
If you don't like the mad scientist steampunk aesthetic, that isn't actually required at all (except maybe in Eberron). Artificers can choose any artisan's tools, including artistic ones like the painting kit and calligraphy kit. Your stuff is all magic, not science, so putting gears in it won't make it work better.
My issue with swords bard is that you can hardly call it a gish. It's pretty much a straight caster without much incentive to melee! You're not proficient in shields, and you only get medium armor. So, they're on the squishier side. Only scimitar as a bonus proficiency? That's pretty lame.
When you look at the bladesinger, hoo boy, their AC is insane. mage armor, blade song, shield spell? Forget about it. You can use a rapier as a weapon. You can use a blade cantrip, and attack with your extra attack. Their damage will never be terrible, it's foolproof. In some cases, you can even make their damage pretty darn good with some planning, like using telekinetic to shove after using booming blade to raise the chance of proccing the secondary damage. This isn't even touching upon the fact that they're a wizard, arguably the best spell list in the game.
Hexblade is SAD. You get shield proficiency. If you want, you can use a GWM/PAM build, and they have access to EB+AB. at lvl 5, they can have their extra attack, a whole level earlier than swords bard. I could build a hexblade that uses elven accuracy and GWM. By 8th level, I can have both feats, and you know what else I could have access to? shadow of moil. use that baby, now you're attacking with super advantage while things attack you at disadvantage. Pair it with your hexblade's curse, and now you'll be critting like crazy against the BBEG. Pick up your eldritch smite invocation, now your crits hurt like crazy. And it still has full spellcaster progression.
Swords bard doesn't come close to either of these subclasses's melee capabilities. Instead, what it is, it's a bard that can do some damage in between concentration spells, and when VM isn't a smart choice. Bard is good. Bard with a bit more damage on the side, is not bad! But bard gish great? No!
But, I think swords bard is excellent when you multiclass it. Start with two levels of paladin, you get all their armor and weapon proficiencies. Now your flourishes make you incredibly tanky! Now you can access powerful weapons and the option to use a GWM build is available now. Now you can smite. That's powerful.
I would generally prefer a bardadin in the party to be a Lore Bard over a Swords Bard if they want to tank. Cutting Words is significantly more versatile tanking than Blade Flourish.
This isn't bad, but it's not as good a gish because it either asks for 5 levels of paladin (and by then you might as well get 6) or you're limiting yourself to one attack per action.
Swords bard gives you extra attack. You can invest two levels into paladin, and you get access to a good portion of the martial package. Plus, having your weapon act as your focus makes spellcasting more seamless with meeting components.
I'm also a big fan of fighter 2 dips for swords bard. Imagine action surging as a bard. Imagine picking up simulacrum as a magical secret. Imagine having both the bard and simmy using action surge! That's wild. Also gives CON saving throw proficiency.
Nobody thinks a War Cleric is a caster/fighter? I thought this would be a worthwhile option. Spiritual Weapon and Spirit Guardians have always been good spells in our group.
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