I'm designing a bard to take as a cohort at 7th level. He'll be using Performance (Strings) as his main musical ability.
While looking at the pathfinder rules, I realized that in order to cast any spells, he has to end his bardic performance. Is there a pathfinder feat that lets me "interweave" spells into my performance, so that I don't have to end the bardic music?
Regarding bardic performance I think you are mistaken.
Starting a bardic performance is a standard action, but it can be maintained each round as a free action. Changing a bardic performance from one effect to another requires the bard to stop the previous performance and start a new one as a standard action. A bardic performance cannot be disrupted, but it ends immediately if the bard is killed, paralyzed, stunned, knocked unconscious, or otherwise prevented from taking a free action to maintain it each round. A bard cannot have more than one bardic performance in effect at one time.
Thus, you can cast spells while maintaining a Bardic Performance.
- Gauss
Oh.... I thought you were adding a bayonet to your mandolin and enchanting it to +1 shocking.
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Yeah, as Gauss showed, you maintain it as a free action and can perform any normal action while maintaining. There is a spell that you might like though, in the Inner Sea World Guide: Harmonic Spell. Lets you spread your rounds out and switch performances as swift actions too.
Also, little known fact bards don't really even need any ranks in perform (though Versatile performance makes you want to). There are only two (core) BP that require perform checks. Countersong and Distraction and perform can be done untrained so you don't need to be trained. :)
Nice feat, I will have to remember that one.
- Gauss
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There's also Spellsong from Ultimate Magic that lets you conceal your spellcasting as part of your performance and lets you maintain a bard spell needing concentration (normally a standard action) as a move while you're performing.
Oh, the +1 Shocking Mandolin was just sort of a flavor item I wanted him to have. Was going for a halfling bard that was a bit of an eccentric rockstar, who played epics in the style of Iron Maiden.
Here is my reasoning:
All bard spells have verbal components.
Most bard spells have somatic components as well.
If my hands are busy strumming a mandolin, **even as a free action**, they cannot also be busy weaving the intricate designs (somatic components) required to channel arcane energies.
If my bard was a singer, or could switch to singing his bardic music abilities, his voice cannot simultaneously sing epic odes to inspire courage while chanting the words of arcane magic.
That's just my take on it. I'm trying to find a way around it, while making sure the character remains legit. I like to build within the rule limits.
Oh, the +1 Shocking Mandolin was just sort of a flavor item I wanted him to have. Was going for a halfling bard that was a bit of an eccentric rockstar, who played epics in the style of Iron Maiden.
Here is my reasoning:
All bard spells have verbal components.Most bard spells have somatic components as well.
If my hands are busy strumming a mandolin, **even as a free action**, they cannot also be busy weaving the intricate designs (somatic components) required to channel arcane energies.
If my bard was a singer, or could switch to singing his bardic music abilities, his voice cannot simultaneously sing epic odes to inspire courage while chanting the words of arcane magic.
That's just my take on it. I'm trying to find a way around it, while making sure the character remains legit. I like to build within the rule limits.
Good news! A character who momentarily takes his hands off his mandolin to cast a spell while still maintaining the performance, or who weaves the verbal components of a spell into the song he is currently singing is well "within the rule limits". This has been stated many times by the developers and there are at least a few forum topics on this already, as a quick forum search will reveal. Your take on the rules is actually a houserule, so if that's how you want to play, then you'll have to houserule yourself a solution to your own houserule. :P
Well, how the heck can I argue with BARDIC Dave? Sounds good. I'll be sure to let my DM know. Thanks guys! Keep gaming, and may all your hits be crits!
You're most welcome! Also, one reason you and/or your DM might have thought that you couldn't maintain a performance while casting a spell is because that's how it worked in D&D 3.5. Pathfinder explicitly changed this.
Actually, he's just a jerk.
<a href="http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd/ultimateMagic/ultimateMagicFeats.h tml">There is a feat that lets you extend your performance when casting a spell as well.</a> It pretty much demonstrates that the normal pathfinder rules are that one can cast while performing, since it doesn't say in its rules, "You can cast spells while performing" which it would have to say if you normally couldn't. It is not quite as useful as lingering performance, but if your DM is being annoying about it, show him that feat, and if he insists that you need to take it to be able to continue doing it, it isn't a bad feat to have especially if you're doing lots of spellcasting. Lingering performance offers a way to get around his houserule as well, which would let you end a performance and have its effects last 2 more rounds. That's only if he insists on nerfing the bard's primary ability.