Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Arteyu 12-31-06, 07:15 PM	For a campaign i'm in, as it's more for fun I want to put more emphasis on bardic songs. The way i've been thinking is to go into the Seeker of the Song, the character i'm making is gonna arrive level 14, and the campaign will go as high as 25. My current idea is to be a bard10/seeker10/virtuouso(rest of levels) I have no real idea what to do for feats except for Skill Focus (Perform) which would be a prerequisite for the Seeker. How would I go around making a character like that?
X-Codes 12-31-06, 07:33 PM	You don't. Seeker of the Song is a terrible class, in all honesty. The direct damage abilities are out-classed by any like-level pure arcanist, the healing ability is terrible, and the rest just doesn't justify a 10-level class. Theres another bard build focus on the songs, and thats Bard 8/Virtuoso 2/Sublime Chord 2/Virtuoso +8. It easily does everything Seeker of the Song does, but calls it Spellcasting instead of Music. In addition, you have Inspire Courage at full power thanks to Virtuoso and a Vest of Legends. Using the ECS you can also drop your Suggestion ability for Song of the Heart from the same book. If you're fine with being a goody-goody, then Words of Creation will radically boost your Inspire Courage as well.
Khan the Destroyer 12-31-06, 11:23 PM	When you say you want to focus on your bardic music, what exactly do you mean? You want to make it stronger or have more options? Seeker will give you more options, but I think focusing on what you already have would be stronger, and more beneficial to your party in the end. As X-Codes pointed out, Song of the Heart (Eberron Campaign Setting) and Words of Creation (Book of Exalted Deeds) will increase your bardic music. Greater Harmonize is a 4th level spell (Races of Stone) that will allow you to maintain more than one bardic music effect at a time. Inspirational Boost (Spell Compendium) is a swift action 1st level spell that will boost your Inspire Courage ability by 1. Melodic Casting (Complete Mage) allows you to cast spells while maintaining your bardic music effects (something you can't normally do). Lingering Song (Complete Adventurer) keeps your bardic music effects going for 10 rounds after you stop performing. I'll go and reread Seeker of the Songs and see how it can be optimized. If I remember correctly though, I think it just gives you damage effects. But that's part of the fun of optimizing I suppose. (X-Codes... Vest of Legends? It sounds pretty cool. What and where is it?)
LogicNinja 01-01-07, 01:18 AM	Seeker of the Song gets the Hymn of Spelldeath at 6th, which is one of the best tools in the game for shutting down enemy spellcasters. With a perform-check item and a high charisma, they won't be able to make the opposed check, and you can pummel them with swift-action damage rays while you keep the Hymn up.
Arcanum_and_Obscura 01-01-07, 01:43 AM	Hymn of spelldeath is alright for an area effect but spells are better in almost all circumstances.
icedrake 01-01-07, 02:59 AM	Haunting Melody's another good bard feat from ECS and Complete Mage has a few more that are quite good.
FriendlyFrog 01-01-07, 05:19 AM	Seeker of the Song gets the Hymn of Spelldeath at 6th, which is one of the best tools in the game for shutting down enemy spellcasters. With a perform-check item and a high charisma, they won't be able to make the opposed check, and you can pummel them with swift-action damage rays while you keep the Hymn up. Virtuoso gets a similar song, too, though it has a pretty small range, and can only be kept up 10 rounds at a time.