I'm working on creating a character for Serpent's Skull, and I think that I like the concept of a bushman-style bard. I envision him playing drums and being an orater/storyteller. I wouldn't have him wear any armor, except perhaps a buckler (a darkwood buckler would be sweet but I don't think I'll be able to start with one). Spears and shortspears are simple weapons, and they fit the theme, so I'll probably have him use a regular spear for melee, and some shortspears for throwing.
Skill-wise, I'd like him to be good at athletics, swimming, survival, etc.
What I'm looking for help with are feats, traits, and options that would make this character mechanically sound, while strengthening the theme. I don't have the Sargava player's companion, so I'm at a bit of a disadvantage.
Maybe there's a better class to choose to play this type of character, but the jungle bard is the one that popped in my head and I'm a big fan of skills.
I kind of picture him like the main character from The Gods Must be Crazy. He would be at home in the wilderness, but pretty much a fish out of water anywhere else.
Your suggestions are appreciated!
thanks
P.S. - The way I statted him up so far is
12 STR, 13 DEX, 10 CON, 16 INT, 11 WIS, 16 CHA
Please make a note if any of your suggestions would be hurt by the way I did the stats, or make a recommendation as to how I can better arrange my stats.
|
My first thought would be to multiclass, with at least 1 level, (preferably two) in Ranger. It will help a lot with the skills you need.
For combat, do you want him to be melee or ranged focus?
For melee, with the stats you listed:
16 STR, 13 DEX, 12 CON, 11 INT, 10 WIS, 16 CHA
Go Human, I'm not sure if you have already, so I won't modify your stats, you'll just need it for the extra skill point every level. Put your 4th level point in INT or DEX, and the 8th in the other. 1st level is Bard, as that's where you will be going long term, and you'll want the favored class bonus. Put it in HP, every time.
Get two levels of Ranger, pick Two Handed Weapon Combat Style (spear), and put the focus of skills on Acrobatics, Survival, etc. He would be a skirmisher, not a real front line fighter. Use the Spear for reach and buff the party. Every combat would be you taking 5 ft steps and poking at your opponent.
On the Bard side, start off with the disruptive spells (Sleep, Silent Image). I would recommend two Bardic Performances (Percussion and Sing) for Versatile Performance. Max out Perception and UMD.
Good feats: Power Attack, Toughness, Weapon Focus
For ranged:
12 STR, 16 DEX, 11 CON, 13 INT, 10 WIS, 16 CHA
Still Human, same progression (1 Bard, two Ranger, the rest Bard), but put the favored class bonuses in Skill Points. I think this build is slightly more effective, but will eat up your feats. Points in INT for more skills, CON for more HP.
Ranger: Archery Style, Rapid Shot. Skill points are still in Acrobatics and Survival and Stealth. You want to avoid combat as much as possible.
Bard: More controlling and avoidance spells. Cause Fear is good when someone wants to close in melee. Grease can make them drop their weapon, it requires a save every round. Low levels, you HAVE to avoid being in melee.
Lots of feats: The whole archery tree. Point Blank, Precise, Manyshot, Deadly Aim, etc.
This is how I would do it, but I love to multiclass Bards.
Ask your DM if you can trade light armor for adding mage armor to the class list.
Consider a level or two of barbarian as well. That might be better, or worse, than ranger, depending.
Grab leadership as soon as possible. It's a great feat for a bard, and having a bunch of followers to carry you around on a pole, or just agree with whatever the chief says is good RP.
I would go with a throwing build for flavor, probably javelins (yes, archery is mechanically better, I know). With deadly aim, arcane strike, and inspire courage, you can do alright.
A 16 INT is too high if you want decent charisma AND the ability to fight well. Something has to give. What's most important to you?
thanks for the tips. i'll do some more searching through the books too.
I'm working on creating a character for Serpent's Skull, and I think that I like the concept of a bushman-style bard. I envision him playing drums and being an orater/storyteller.
I kind of picture him like the main character from The Gods Must be Crazy. He would be at home in the wilderness, but pretty much a fish out of water anywhere else.
Australian Aborigini? Instruments(LINK) The first thing I thought of from your description was an aborigini, specifically from Crocodile Dundee, but the X-Men had a support character at one point as well named Gateway who used a Bullroarer(and mutant powers) to teleport them places.
EDIT: If he's leaning more towards wise old sage, Bolas could be an interesting weapon choice. Ask the DM if you could swap out the whip, so you wouldn't have to soak the feat. :)
The bolas are an awesome idea. I never even noticed that weapon before!
BTW, here is the google image search for the X-Men's somewhat brief ally... Gateway (LINK).
If you're looking for a mini you might want to try Malapango Savages (click for pic)
I have these minis and like them so much I'm considering ordering another set. If you cut the mask off the stick it fits pretty well on a mini's face, and this is great for that "witch doctor" look.
As for game mechanics, the Arcane Duelist archetype for Bards would allow you to cast with a weapon in your hand. In the past I've had a bard drummer use his drumsticks as wands. If you'd prefer to play the drums barehanded and leap around in combat kicking and headbutting people capoeria style then an oddball class combo might be Monk/Bard, which is possible in PF since Bards no longer have a restriction against lawful alignments.
If you put one of your higher scores in Wis instead of Int the Monk class might even help with your plan to wear no armor. A level in Wizard or Sorcerer could help via Mage Armor and Shield, but with Use Magic Device you can probably get those as wands later or maybe take Craft Wondrous Items to craft some bracers and get Shield as a wand. In this case the extra Wis AC from Monk would still help out for a higher overall AC.
If the capoeria drummer idea really amuses you for some reason you could consider crafting a Monk's Robe and buying a wand of Strong Jaw. Assuming there's no game designer edict to stop Strong Jaw from working on a Monk's unarmed strikes this should boost your base unarmed strike damage to at least 3d6. Throw a couple of +1d6 effects on an Amulet of Mighty Fists and that's decent damage. Granted, this is a pretty heavy investment of feats and gold, but it could be a fun change from a run of the mill Bard.