Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Big Nate 06-24-06, 01:02 PM	hey all i am playing a bard in an upcoming game and i am trying to plan out what spells i will take as higher level. i am trying to pick 4 of each level sine that is all you have until 16th. i plan on taking the cure spell for each level because the group will need a backup healer nad betond that i am liking the swift/immidiate action casts since i plan on doing a god deal of melee. here are some things i was thinking about: 1st cure light wounds invisibility, swift ironthunder horn improvisation 2nd cure mod wounds bladeweave what other suggestions would you guys have?
psetzer 06-24-06, 04:21 PM	Some generally useful spells include: 0th Level Light Detect Magic Mage Hand Read Magic Presdigitation Summon Instrument 1st Level Cure Light Wounds Charm Person Grease Unseen Servant 2nd Level Detect Thoughts Cure Moderate Wounds Suggestion Invisibility Silence 3rd Level Dispel Magic Haste Cure Serious Wounds 4th Level Freedom of Movement Break Enchantment Dimension Door 5th Level Dispel Magic, Greater
Nom 06-24-06, 06:52 PM	(1) Bards choosing cure spells is generally a waste of picks. Especially more than one variant. Having them on your list is nice, but the main benefit is that you can use wands of cure light wounds. (2) How exactly were you planning on casting as a free action (or equivalent) as a bard? Except for the one or two spells that explicitly have a free action casting time, the most common way of getting free action magic (Quicken Spell) is explicitly excluded from spontaneous casters.
Big Nate 06-26-06, 01:08 AM	thanks for the help, (2) How exactly were you planning on casting as a free action (or equivalent) as a bard? Except for the one or two spells that explicitly have a free action casting time, the most common way of getting free action magic (Quicken Spell) is explicitly excluded from spontaneous casters. i believe i mentioned that i planned on taking spells with built in immediate and swift action casts. they tend to be stronger than a quickened spell of the same effective level. for instance i plan on taking invisibility, swift: 1st level swift action cast bladeweave: 2nd level swift action cast improved mirror image: 4th leve immediate action cast
Roxlimn 06-26-06, 11:11 AM	Basically, you should not take Cure spells at every level. Your Spells Known is a precious commodity. You can always opt to heal slightly less if you're really that gimped on spell slots, but there's no option to know another spell in the thick of battle. Pay very close attention to spells that Bards get earlier or that that they get get exclusively. Those tend to be very good. 1 Cure Light Wounds - basic lifesaver. Stop negative hp death with the least of your resources. Inspirational Boost - from Complete Adventurer. Increase your Inspire Courage by +1!! Godly with the feat Song of the Heart from ECS Tasha's Hideous Laughter/Lesser Confusion - not good if you're planning on relatively middling Cha, but extremely potent otherwise Master's Touch - for using particular tactics in specific battles. Carry polearms, tower shields, spiked chains, and all manner of exotic weaponry and defenses. Best when combined with the new exotic weaponry from various sources. 2 Bladeweave - excellent choice for melee Bard. Suggest getting middling to high Cha to boost the save DC Swift Fly - absolutely excellent. Get to difficult to reach archers or save your hide. Swift Invisbility - you already know this, but it's level 2, not level 1 Sonic Weapon - +1d6 damage never hurt anyone. Sonic means it penetrates most energy resistances. 1 min/level limits reactive uses, however. Tactical Precision - against particular enemies, if your allies know tactics, this spell is an absolute killer. Bard only. Heroism - whether you cast it on yourself or an ally, it's great stuff. Don't be put off by the morale naming of the bonus. It lasts 10 min/level, which means you can put it on prior to many conflicts and challenges. It won't stack with your Inspire Courage, but you'll still enjoy +2 to saves and +2 to skill checks. And you won't always have time for Inspire Courage, after all. Tongues - good for your Charm effects and Fascinate and Suggestion. These are language dependent effects, so having a shared language is a good thing. Or you can just dump a ton of SPs on languages and forget all about this spell. Both routes are acceptable. Shatter - only the same spell level as the Sorc/Wiz counterpart, but potentially good for melee bards. Take THAT! dratted shield. Mirror Image - if you're a melee bard, you have to consider this spell. Bails you out of difficult situations and greatly increases tank capability. You can always switch it out once you acquire Improved Mirror Image. 3 Allegro - great for running battles, whether offensively or defensively Harmonic Chorus - much, MUCH better than Cooperative Spell. +2 CL and +2 DC are unbelievably great. Charm Monster, Confusion, excellent general target spells. Needs middling to high Cha Displacement - see Mirror Image Fear - cone effect Will save mook dispersal spell. Very nice. Even if the save succeeds, the targets are still shaken for the round, which means they get -2 to attacks, saving throws, skill checks, and ability checks. The save and attack penalties alone for the round are worth the price of admission, even for a low Cha bard. See Invisibility - if no one's yet getting Invisibility Purge or See Invisibility, you may have to. It helps that you also have the attack power to make this count. Sonic Shield - 1d8 sonic damage to anyone who successfully attacks you in melee, plus bull rush effect. Also +4 deflection AC. Good against many small attackers. Don't use it againt Large opponents. Alter Fortune - normally reserved for other arcanists, this spell is so good you just can't ignore it. It costs a lot, but when you're failing an insta-kill spell, it's a bargain. Alternatively, can be used to kill enemies if they've just succeeded your arcane's best instakill effect.
Big Nate 06-29-06, 11:29 PM	i want to have at least one swift spell for each level. i know that it seems like taking all of the cure spells are a waste but we have a somewhat hack and slash heavy group and i feel we will need the extra healing. once i get about 10th i plan on getting healing scrolls and ditching most of the cure spells but i will take them initially. here is what i am thinking about taking for now. please review and criticise but also please explain your reasoning. 1st cure light wounds invisibility, swift (bard 1 in the spell compendium) ironthunder horn improvisation (bard 1 in spell compendium) 2nd cure moderate wounds(later switched for mirror image) bladeweave whirling blade invisibility 3rd cure serious wounds allegro sonic shield 4th cure critical wounds improved mirror image please review and add spells. i would like to have list of 4 spells each level