insanogeddon's page

In my experience bards are played in 3 scenarios:

1. Someone dies and comes back as a female bard with a blowgun as a reactionary measure untill they get a grip and make something they want.

2. A player rorts the bardic music thru the roof and empowers everyone massively but inevitably unsatisfyingly.

3. A player is a tactically and strategically superior optimiser and takes the challenge to play to the bards breadth and out class all others who for all reasons under the gods SHOULD be better at any specific thing done. These characters tend to avoid fool prestige classes that make you more 'fighty' or 'casty' etc and with things like craft arms and armour (bards get armour/shields/swords... sun blades = free exotic proficiency), spell pen, craft contingent spell etc out class.

Such a bard is a wonder: one buff (mirror image or greater invis) with sunblade and shield makes for a match for warriors in hard combats (ac + miss chance + medium damage and escape = better than big damage), spell pen and perfect spell choice makes for a match for casters (like the metamagic rort DC necromancer whos parties bard outclasses him with a simple focus on spell pen. and well timed and positioned glitter dust or eventual irresistable dance, and buffing and well chosen spontaneously needed fixes making the cleric feel like an acolyte and the party consider the bard a more effective disability remover, never mind being able to investigate and hide far better than the rogue using sculpt sound and greater invis. with the HPs, two saves and D.Door to get home safe if things go bad.

Your no reliant parasite. Its just all mind power to florish.

Jack of all trades... hard to design past the linear power temptations, harder to constantly be on the ball, but amazingly satisfying when pulled off. Never mind the knowlege, and ability to suggest things to enemies rooms away with loud oratory pre-combat as they await in ambush.

To be honest in my group that has been running for other twenty five years

no one ever plays the bard.

even thou the new rules give it a bit more it just has never worked as the jack of all trades.

I think it still is way off in terms of effectiveness and what it can do.

Can anyone please tell me if you would play one why?

Is anyone else out there having issues with this, seeing issues with this?

I love the grittyness and general lack of broken paizo has over some other editions. Exitement comes from the gaming table for all to share instead of from the individual loopholes and rorts of a character for just one to enjoy at all others expense and inevitably at the expense of even their own cheap thrills. However some areas create issues. i.e.

At 6th level any druid can become a small elemental and basically negate most environmental impediments to investigations or exploration. Specifically earth that allows a character to glide thru a dungeon and get a pre-made map and troop allocation.

Overreaction or Suggested fixes/stories anyone?