All the World’s a Stage, and You the Stage Director
A Guide to the Pathfinder Bard
[UPDATES: 3/6/15- Added spells from ACG; 3/20/15- updated Archetypes w/ weird words FAQ, added ACG Archetypes and added source tags for Archetypes]
The Bard is one of the core classes from the Pathfinder RPG. Although considered a Jack-of-All-Trades, in reality the Bard is fairly good at what he does. A Bard is a partial spellcaster that focuses on enchantment and illusions. Additionally they are skill monkeys and knowledge characters. This guide is designed to help you to make the best decisions on making your Bard the most effective at what he can do. I will be considering option found only the “Core” materials, i.e.: CRB, APG, ARG and the two Ultimate books. The Golarion specific stuff is really nice and have some great options, but I want this to be usable by the most amount of people, and frankly there is just too much stuff out there and this Guide would go on forever. If you have any additions, thoughts or comments, please feel free to visit the forum discussion threat at the Paizo messageboards found HERE.
For some preliminary matters, I want to lay out the rating system. This system was first used by Treantmonk in his Wizard, Druid, and Bard guides. The ratings are as follows:
RED(*): A very poor option. Should be avoided in nearly all cases.
ORANGE(**): A mediocre, or uncommonly useful option. Generally not worth it.
GREEN(***): A solid option. Good in most instances.
BLUE(****): An excellent option. Should be taken in nearly all cases.
I would like to start out before getting into the meat of the guide to say that this is my opinion, and mine alone. Although I usually base my opinion on math, statistics, and the general consensus (as I see it) from the larger Paizo community from the Paizo Message boards. Again this is a guide for Optimisation, I would strongly suggest that you only take this guide as advice on what ability to select if you aren’t sure. Select a character concept that fits both your play style and the specific needs of your campaign and party. Additionally, I do not review level 20 abilities: 1) they’re all fantastic, 2) many groups will never get that high, so it would be a waste of space to review them.
First things first: what exactly is a bard and what is his role in a party? Although some of the archetypes have helped to shift this, the Bard in general is a support character. Now this might sound boring at first. “Why would I want to give everyone else the glory? I want to be the hero, that’s why I’m playing a fantasy role playing game in the first place!” But if you try and think of it from a fluff position this make a lot of sense.
The Bard is taken from the (pseudo) historic idea of the travelling minstrels. These performers would travel the countryside spinning tales of the heroic actions of some great knight of the realm. So from a mechanics standpoint, you are the one that helps make the knight heroic in the first place. You bolster his courage, you inspire his quest and guide his steel true. Just as a wizard who chooses to cast haste instead of fireball or the cleric with prayer instead of flame strike, you help to make the whole party better at what they do.
Bards are also the spokesperson for the party. Charisma, being their casting stat, helps to make them the face. Additionally, many of their class features help to augment or bolster their skills of persuasion.
Finally, the Bard is a knowledge class. This again plays into the historical archetypes. Bardic Knowledge, Lore Master and having all knowledge as class skills will make you the king of knowledge rolls. You will have as many skill points per level as a Wizard with an Intelligence 8 points higher.
The Basics
Ability Scores
The Bard has a similar problem as the Druid or Cleric, in that you are treading on some serious MAD territory. Meaning a Bard is Multiple Ability Dependant. Unlike a Fighter, who really just pumps up Str and can dump all his mental stats or a Wizard that puts every available point into Int, a Bard is a spellcaster that will be expected to wade into combat (either with blade or bow) at least once in awhile. This exacerbates the jack-of-all trades image that a bard tends to suffer from, but it is unavoidable. With half the spells per day of a Sorcerer, you will quickly run out of things to do if you don’t at least consider your combat role.
There are three tracks that you can take with your Bard build. Do you want to be more of a spellcaster/debuffer or more combat oriented, both a Str and Dex build. This choice will significantly affect the way you build your Bard from step 1.
For the Spellcaster/debuffer Bard, Charisma is your main stat. It should be your highest stat at character creation and all of your ability bonuses should go into it. After Charisma, you really must make a choice. Are you more of a melee fighter or a ranged attacker? Ranged may be easier to pull off, but you can be fairly effective melee combatant as well. Whichever you choose that should be your second stat. The array below assumes a Dex build, same numbers for Str build just transposed.
Constitution should come next. Intelligence needs to be a 10 at a minimum, I know 6 skill points a level sounds like a lot, but they will go quicker than you would think. A 12 would be best. Followed closely by whichever stat you didn’t put second (Dex or Str).Wisdom is the only real dump stat. Thankfully, your Will save is one of your good saves, so it shouldn’t hurt too much.
CHA>DEX/STR>CON>INT>STR/DEX>WIS
15 point buy: Str 11, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 12, Wis 8, Cha 15,
20 point buy: Str 12, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 12, Wis 9, Cha 16,
25 point buy: Str 12, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 13, Wis 10, Cha 16,
A combat Bard, while still concerned with charisma, as the name suggests, is a combatant. Because of this, you will be placing more of an emphasis on combat statistics. A Strength build is for a Melee combatant and will obviously put Str first. Next comes Cha, which can’t be too low since you still need it for casting and Perform checks. Followed closely by Con. Int still needs to be decent. Dex can be low unless you want to take the Dodge feats or something else that requires 13 Dex, but it doesn’t have to be any higher than that. Your AC will come from Armor and Shield. As always Wis is the only viable dump stat.
STR>CHA>CON>INT>DEX>WIS
15 point buy: Str 14, Dex 10, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 8, Cha 14,
20 point buy: Str 16, Dex 10, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 8, Cha 14,
25 point buy: Str 16, Dex 13, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 14,
The Dex build can go in two directions, either a finesse or TWF build or Ranged. Either is a viable option, though Ranged will likely be a bit stronger and Str will out class finesse in most cases. For either finesse or Ranged, the build is the same. Dex first, followed by Cha. Con is less of a priority for ranged since you’ll be farther back from combat, but Str is more important than Dex is for the Str build since it still determines damage. Int and Wis bring up the rear.
DEX>CHA>CON=STR>INT>WIS
15 point buy: Str 12, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 12, Wis 8, Cha 14,
20 point buy: Str 13, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 12, Wis 8, Cha 14,
25 point buy: Str 14, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 13, Wis 10, Cha 14,
Races
Selecting a race for your character can go a long way toward defining who this person is. It is a great way to really jump-start your Role Play and character development. It also can make a big difference on how you build your character. From an Optimization standpoint, you want a race with a bonus to Charisma. After that, it’s fairly wide open. Check the racial traits for ones that will increase your versatility or synergize well with your existing class features. For more racial options check out the Featured Races section.
Dwarf(*): Really a poor choice for the Bard. You take a penalty to Charisma while gaining a bonus to your only real dump stat. Darkvision is nice to have, but there are other ways to get it. Most of the Alternate Racial Traits don’t make them much better.
Elf(**): Int and Con bonuses cancel each other out, and the Dex bonus is nice for a ranged build, but no Cha bonus. You don’t benefit as much from Weapon Familiarity as other spellcasters, since all of these other than the longbow are on your list already. Bonuses to perception and spell penetration are nice, but not enough to overcome the lack of Cha bonus. Only the Arcane Focus alt racial trait is worth thinking about. Favored Class option is crappy.
Gnome(****): A great choice for a Bard. So good, in fact, in 3.5 Bard was their favored class. The Cha bonus is great, Con is a nice bonus, and the hit to Str doesn’t hurt as much. Racial traits are nice, and the Alt ones can really augment your Bard abilities, especially Academician, Darkvision, and Magical Linguist. Favored Class option grants extra performance per day, a great boost. Gnomes also have a decent Racial Archetype.
Half-elf(***): Floating bonus drops into Cha or your combat stat. Free skill focus is nice, but but the human alt trait Focused Study puts it to shame. The alt traits leave something to be desired, but the alt favored class is the same as gnomes.
Halfling(****): An even stronger choice than the Gnome. Bonus to Cha, and Dex/Str even out. A bonus to all saves and Perception. Fleet of Foot, Ingratiating and Low blow are great options for alternate traits. Favored class option is ok, but I might stick with the +1 hp/skill point.
Half-orc(****): Again, the floating bonus goes to Cha or combat stat. Weapon Familiarity is really strong, and can be great for some Archetypes. Orc Ferocity is nice (and you get more mileage than other classes b/c you can use the standard action to cast a cure spell), but I would suggest switching it out for Acute Darkvision, Beastial, or Sacred Tattoo; Scavenger merits a close look too. Extra performance rounds per day is great.
Human(****): Can humans be anything but blue for any class? Floating bonus, extra skill point a level and the extra feat is always nice, even for a class like bard that is less feat dependant. The alt racial traits just make them even better. You can take 2 ability score bonuses instead of one, turn your 1 feat into several with weapon familiarity or Focused Study. Even the “Heart of the...” traits are very flavorful. You already know more spells than you can cast, but the favored class option just gives you even more.
Class Features
Weapon and Armor Proficiencies(***/****): Simple Weapons stink, but the enumerated weapons will cover most of the common Martial choices anyways. If you plan on going into melee a longsword should do fine, or rapier if you are using Weapon Finesse. You’re the only arcane spellcaster that can cast spells while wielding a shield and one of only three in light armor (Summoner and Magus). You will likely have better AC than even the Magus since the cost of a +3 Full Plate is the same as a +2 Chain Shirt and +2 heavy shield, and has one less AC.
Spells(***): Although you don’t get 9th level spells and you have few if any early entry spells compared to the Wizard, don’t think of yourself as a secondary spell caster. Unlike the Ranger or Paladin, you have a full caster level. Meaning that your damaging spells will have the same number of damage dice and the same save DCs as a Sorcerer with the same Charisma. You will know more spells per level than you can cast per day, meaning you can be more flexible with your spell selection. For a breakdown of individual spells refer to the Spells section.
Bard Spells as a whole are more subtle than their Wizard counterparts. The spell list is focused strongly on Enchantment and Illusion spells. This can be both good and bad. The good is that you don’t have to think too hard when selecting your spell focus schools. The downside is that there are whole classes of monsters that are immune to mind-affecting effects or the spells are language dependant.
Although your main spell casting stat is Charisma, this is not as much of a detriment as other classes, even sorcerers. This is because Cha feeds into most of your other class features. It helps with Enchantment spells, Bardic Performance, perform (__) and social skills.
Bardic Knowledge(****): being able to roll on knowledge untrained is nice, but since they are all class skills, it is worth it to put at least one point in most, if just for the +3 class skill bonus. Adding half your level to checks is really nice, since it allows you to effectively double your number of skill points in knowledge. If you alternate between two skills each level, you will have a the equivalent of max points in each.
Versatile Performance(****): Another way to maximise your skill points, see the Skills section for specifics.
Well-Versed(**): Bonuses vs. bardic performance is very situational. I mean, how many times have you fought a Bard? Language Dependant Effects and Sonic damage is better, but still a rare thing to encounter.
Lore Master(***): This is pretty good. Taking ten means that (assuming you have a 14 int), you will always be able to ID a monster with every roll. Take 20 is nice, but only once per day, and the numbers go up slowly.
Jack of All Trades(**): Really, between your expansive class skills list and Versatile Performance, you will have few skills that are untrained that you need anyways. Taking 10 on every check is nice, but it’s really late in the game, and how many characters make it much past level 15 anyways?
Bardic Performance
This is where much of the flavor for the Bard class comes in. It is also the iconic Bard class feature that many players in your group will consider to be what a Bard does. Although starting at level 1 you will only have about 6 or 7 rounds per day of performance time and it should be used sparingly for greatest effect. By the time you are level 5, your rounds per day will be above 15 and can be used for most of your encounters for the day.
From a mechanics standpoint, you will likely want to do this as your first action in each combat. It will likely be more helpful to your party if you put it out earlier rather than later and the effect will likely be greater than any spell you might cast.
Remember, +1 to five party members is better than +3 to one. Because keeping it up is a free action and it stays in effect as long as the party member can see and/or hear you, you can still drop the buffing/debuffing spells in round 2 and even fire your bow or step into melee in later rounds, all the while keeping your performance going.
Another thing that is nice is that, after level 7, you can start the song and get that first spell off. At 13th, you can move in too. And don’t forget, you can change the type of song each round without additional actions. Versatility is maybe the best ability you can have in Pathfinder.
Countersong(**): This performance requires an audible performance type (for obvious reasons). Although of limited usefulness, when you need it it is incredibly helpful. First, your bonus to Perform is going to easily beat anyone’s save bonus. Yours is 5+ plus your level as opposed to 2 +1/2 level if it’s your good save. Secondly, you get to decide to use the perform check after you know it will be better. Being able to take someone else’s roll or a second roll is not uncommon in Pathfinder, but being able to choose which roll to take after you’ve seen which is better almost never happens. Downside is the limited usefulness. Handful of spells and abilities that I can think of that are language-dependent or sonic and non-instantaneous include command, suggestion, the “litany” spells, a sphinx’s roar ability and harpy’s song. Again rare but helpful otherwise.
Distraction(**): Second verse, same as the first. Just this time for Illusions, but only figment and pattern sub-schools, mostly limited to the “image” spells (minor image etc), color spray, and “pattern” spells (scintillating pattern). Again, great if you need it, but limited in use. On a side note this is the ONLY bard ability that every archetype has, every.
Fascinate(**): This is the first proactive of the Bard songs. It allows you to fascinate one or more creatures. Think the harp distracting Fluffy in Harry Potter 1. Great to let the party slip past a dangerous foe. Bad news? If anyone draws a sword or casts a spell, the effect ends. Also the term “potential threat” is very vague and may further reduce the usefulness with an unforgiving DM.
Inspire Courage(****): this will likely be your bread and butter as performances go. Every other party member will love the +1 to attack and damage, and bonuses to your Fighter against charm effects can be a lifesaver. Other nice part? It can be non-verbal, so you can start without giving away the ambush. The scaling is slow, but still pretty nice.
Inspire Competence(***): “Sneek Sneek Sneek, away from the scary dragon.” “Climb Climb the rope, or you will fall to your death.” “Disarm Disarm that trap, before the wall makes us go SPLAT!” You get the idea. It seems stupid and is dependent on verbal components. However, your wizard will remember that you’re the only reason he didn’t drown when crossing that river. Has it’s moments.
Suggestion(***): This definitely bumps Fascinate up a few notches. Suggestion can be a very effective spell in the hands of a creative player. This is better than the spell because the spell DC is 12+cha, but this scales with level. Bad news? The creature gets two saves to resist. Still much better.
Dirge of Doom(***): Much better way to give the shaken condition instead of Intimidate. Can’t cause the person to become frightened/panicked if already shaken, but it doesn’t say it doesn’t work the other way around. Start this up, then drop a spell on them to bump it up a level and you have an instant win!
Inspire Greatness(****): Seriously pumps up your party Fighter. He’ll love you for this. Probably the best effect is that you increase your max HD, which can have a serious impact on the effectiveness of spells.
Soothing Performance(****): This is the equivalent of a free 7th level spell. By level 12 you will have 28+ rounds of performance, so you can do this 7+ times a day. As a comparison, a Cleric heals an average of 21 per channel at level 12, you heal 25 and remove debuffs and you don’t have to take a feat to exclude enemies.
Frightening Tune(****): Frightened is one of the strongest debuffs in the game, and as with others the DC scales.
Inspire Heroics(***): +4 to saves and AC is nice, but I think I would rather Inspire Greatness.
Mass Suggestion(***): send the whole army home w/o firing a shot. Not bad.