Post/Author/DateTime	Post
JulesCARV 04-07-06, 07:37 AM	I'm just wondering -- if you want to be a bard who's a decent healer, how many bard spells known do you think are necessary? For example, would just knowing cure light wounds and cure critical wounds, while skipping cure moderate wounds and cure serious wounds suffice? Or is does it really make you a significantly more effective healer to know every healing healing spell available?
Nom 04-07-06, 08:43 AM	Short answer: a bard is never going to inherently be a decent healer. A the level the bard can cast cure critical wounds even 1/day (10th), a cleric can cast it at least 3-4 times per day and is 1 level from getting heal. There are two situations where you'd use a cure spell - in combat or after combat. In combat, if it's worth burning an action to cure then you want the spell to be as powerful (and thus time-efficient) as possible. After combat you probably should be using the ubiquitous wand of cure light wounds rather than more valuable spell slots.
Pandaemoni 04-07-06, 08:51 AM	I'm just wondering -- if you want to be a bard who's a decent healer, how many bard spells known do you think are necessary? For example, would just knowing cure light wounds and cure critical wounds, while skipping cure moderate wounds and cure serious wounds suffice? Or is does it really make you a significantly more effective healer to know every healing healing spell available? In my experience it depends on a few things. If your party has a cleric and you are really serving as "back up", *and* if you are starting at low levels the your system should work. The more they call on your healing, though, the more useful cure serious wounds might be. If you are starting at higher levels and don't expect to be called on often for healing, then I'd probably not take cure light wounds (especially if wands of it are available). (Though you can always take CLW, then "swap it out" for a better spell at 5th level, or swap either CLW or Cure Moderate Wounds at 8th level, and so on.) In short your notion that they might not all be required is correct, but the question is really: "how much of a "back-up" healer will be?" The more you are called upon to do it, the more the Cure spells will be helpful...that said there are too many 2nd and 3rd level spells that are too good to pass up, so I almost always skip Cure Moderate and Cure Serious Wounds.
Shadowfax7 04-07-06, 08:56 AM	I would take the current level "Cure" spell each time I received a known spell for a new spell level and then drop the lowest level "Cure" spell from previous levels by using the spell swapping ability. eg. at 2nd level take Cure Light Wounds as a spell known, at 4th level take Cure Moderate Wounds as a spell known and at 8th level swap Cure Light Wounds for another 1st level spell. Rinse, repeat. This always leaves you with 2 "Cure" spells known in your repetoire after 4th level, one stronger, one weaker, and gets rid of useless lower level "Cure" spells.
redarius 04-07-06, 01:03 PM	I'm with Shadowfax on this one -- swap out your lowest level bard cure spell, and replace it with the next highest as it becomes available. Two cure spells should be enough, and you should of course have the ever-present wand of cure light wounds for out of combat heals between fights. Of course, only go this route if you're expecting to be needed as a backup healer. If you're in a stable party with a cleric and a druid, for example, then you can likely be more flexible and keep a mid level cure spell for total emergencies and focus more on those specifically unique bard spells like Glibness.
tarkin 04-07-06, 01:31 PM	Note, if available, I strongly suggest you take the 3rd level Bard spell Insignia of Healing. It basically is a Mass Cure Light Wounds that can not be used to hurt undead types.
solbergb 04-07-06, 01:48 PM	I concur. A bard with insignia of healing can do some useful incombat healing, especially if he has lyric spell for extra castings or augment healing to boost it up a bit. Not as good as a favored soul or cleric. But good enough to be worth a standard action to do from time to time. I feel CLW is a waste of a spell known, unless your campaign is somehow devoid of wands/potions of clw. The higher tier cure spells come too late to do much good. But insignia can come as early as level 7, and it's especially valuable in the level 7-12 range, when area spells can still be mostly mitigated by one use, and also to save "stabilization" actions from characters who could be trying to end the battle instead.
Pandaemoni 04-07-06, 01:53 PM	To each his own, but there are too many very good second- and third-level spells for me to easily part with one, even for only a few levels. If your party really *needs* the extra healing (and assuming you are willing to serve as healer), then that is different.
Wind of Darkness 04-07-06, 03:43 PM	You certainly don't need to take them all. At most, a Bard is a backup healer. Not a terrible one, mind, as healing goes, but nothing like a Cleric or Druid can do. I agree with those who suggest you swap out. I am also going to throw in another vote for the wand of CLW. Our party's Bard has one, and it's awesome for downtime healing. Not so great in combat, though it saved our Druid's ass once... Anyway, get a wand, whatever you do with spells known. Note, if available, I strongly suggest you take the 3rd level Bard spell Insignia of Healing. It basically is a Mass Cure Light Wounds that can not be used to hurt undead types. Err... I'm not familiar with this spell. What book is it in?
tarkin 04-07-06, 04:07 PM	The Insignia series of spells are in Races of Destiny. Insignia of Healing is pg 166 I believe. All Insignia spells work only on legal targets that are wearing the right Insignia. So you need to prep your buddies, and you can't affect your enemies.
Wind of Darkness 04-07-06, 04:56 PM	Noted. Even if you do need special preparation, it's not a bad deal, especially for a 3rd level spell.
aelryinth 04-07-06, 07:20 PM	Insignia of Healing also has a HUGE range...and can affect everyone with the right insignia in that range. You can effectively CMW a whole army with the spell (level base is higher then CLW). SO especially if you have followers and the like, its a great support spell. Keep in mind it's a Cleric spell as well as a Bard spell, and a Healing spell, too! Great spell for a henchman to swap into. ==Aelryinth
Osedox 04-07-06, 08:14 PM	Although it is rather innefective, I really like the flavor of Summon Elysian Thrush. It is a sort of indirect healing spell for a bard i suppose.