Jester? I'd say it'd just be an Expert with a load of Perform skills (especially comedy), no need for a class.
Or if the Gauntlet: Dark Legacy jester is your cup of tea, Alchemist does the trick.
Jester? I'd say it'd just be an Expert with a load of Perform skills (especially comedy), no need for a class.
Or if the Gauntlet: Dark Legacy jester is your cup of tea, Alchemist does the trick.
I'm pretty sure he means the 20 level base class that paizo published in one of it's Dragon magazine issues.
This podcast talks about it.
I guess the question is, and there may be answers, is why make a Jester, vs making a Bard that specializes in comedy?
Also, should Jester be a 20-level base class, a prestige class, or an archetype?
My thoughts are that, based on my Tarot inspiration noted on one of these threads, there is room for a Jester Class represented by the Fool card. I am thinking, however, something like the Comedian character from Watchman. My take for my own campaign is that the Fool and World cards are reserved for 21st Century classes, but whatever.
Archetypal jesters: the Joker; the Comedian;
But the question comes back, what do Jesters do that can't be done by existing classes?
My bad! I find the idea of a literal 20-level jester class a little silly (hardy har har), but that works!
When I played AD&D there is a Jester in the Bard Handbook.
I thought it was a great class!
One of his best benifits is a fools luck. Add a +1 bonus to most dice rolles.
A other great bard class is the Gallant. A romantic knight who has to live by his own codes.
Defend love, never marry, never retreat from combat until allies of opposite sex have done so first, never overstay welcome, speld at least half of your money on the innocent of romance and only own what you can carry.
I think the court bard is a fine way to be a great jester. Historically, jesters were able to lampoon the royalty in a way that was acceptable in the context of comedy, while other courtiers could lose their favored positions (or even their heads) for implying the same things about the ruling elite.
The court bard's abilities work very well in that regard. He's able to shape his bardic performances for best effect, gets a nice bonus to his most relevant knowlege checks, and the Glorious Epic and Scandal abilities let him subvert the standing order of things if he decides to.
Put ranks in some performance skills, wow them with clever cantrips, acrobatic feats and sleight-of-hand, and a court bard will be in demand just about anywhere.
And, of course, he's a bard, so he rocks now, anyway!