So I've been looking over the Attract Rats performance for the Animal Speaker. The ability leaves me with a couple unanswered questions.
Attract Rats: At 6th level, the animal speaker can use bardic performance to summon 1d3 rat swarms; they remain as long as he continues performing. At 11th level, he summons 2d3 swarms instead of 1d3 and the swarms have the advanced creature simple template. At 17th level, the number of swarms he summons increases to 3d3.
1. Since it doesn't say otherwise, should I assume this is the same as any other performance when it comes to actions, meaning that it can be maintained as a free and eventually be done as a swift action at 13?
2. What kind of control do I have over the rats? Am I supposed to use Handle Animal to control them?
Any thoughts?
1. I see nothing differentiating it from any other performance.
2. If it works like any other summons, they attack the nearest enemy to the best of their ability until you say otherwise. Which you can do with handle animal. If you've taken rats as one of your animal friend types, you will have +4 to those rolls and the ability to speak with them.
1. I see nothing differentiating it from any other performance.
2. If it works like any other summons, they attack the nearest enemy to the best of their ability until you say otherwise. Which you can do with handle animal. If you've taken rats as one of your animal friend types, you will have +4 to those rolls and the ability to speak with them.
It should be noted that the spell summon swarm specifically does not allow you the kind of control you get with a normal summon. I'm not sure if that is relevant, as this performance isn't written terribly clearly.
I'm familiar with Summon Swarm and the few spells like it. The norm there seems to be you have no control and have to maintain it as a standard action, which led me to wonder if that precedent was meant for Attract Rats. Well it certainly is much better if it doesn't work like Summon Swarm.
Now all I need to do is see if my DM is interested in allowing a feat from 101 Bard Feats that allows Attract Rats to summon a swarm of any CR 1-4 animal or Magical Beast... even better yet if I can talk him into letting me use it for Vermin :D