Bravely bold sir Robin, rode forth from Camelot... He was not afraid to die, oh brave sir Robin. He was not in the least bit scared to be smashed into a pulp. Brave, brave, brave brave sir Robin...
That bard of Sir Robin's would have been a great satirical bard, weaving tales of giants using orcs to steal goods from humans, all for to earn the favor of the giants' leader to further their desires.
I think you missed one: the bastard. This is the bard who uses his skills to deceive everyone he meets, who remembers every secret, and who is basically a particularly nasty rogue with a lute. It is an awesome character to play.
That's basically my bard in the new campaign. I can walk into a room and make a performance and charm everyone including the barkeep, inkeep, and any NPC in the room. I once gained 30 go just by playing an impromptu set, and then rolled out
So College of Whispers. I tried to go this route with my current bard but I'm... not currently good enough at being that character to make it really work. That aside from the fact that the whole infiltrator theme does not always pair well with... you know... being a member of a party. I don't want to turn into the stereotypical rogue who just leaves the party in a ditch to go sneak around somewhere. Also we already have a rogue... So he went off to infiltrate something on his own somewhere and will show up again in the future as a DMPC to feed the party information that they will need to act on.
I played a bard as a reporter before. Usually said, “extra extra! Read all about it!” Before proceeding to cast a spell or insult the enemy with viscous mockery. The headlines I came up with was pretty funny.
My favorite bard was "Sarge" Dayb, my half-orc sergeant. He had charisma from his leadership experience, and his songs were all battle and march songs, I used his army experience as a reason for his bardic knowledge and jack-of-all-trades skills. "Thats Mountain Dwarf script, Lads, I ran across some a' that in our second siege of Taypool, lemme see if I can make it out.". Great character.
@@hansoeij539 It worked out great, I still can recall many of them to this day. I recommend plagarizing well known songs and rewriting the lyrics to suit the events of your game, or do some limericks. Really play with it, switch up the style and have fun. Surprise your fellow gamers. Our bard would then read his poem at the start of the next session as a form of recap and it was definitely a highlight for everyone involved and helped everyone fall into character straight away. We even did a follow up campaign which was set years after the events of the original and the poems he wrote were canon in the world - NPCs knew about the party and what they did through "The collected works of Beadle Hollowfern". He literally sold them and made himself and the other famous for future storylines. Just some long term ideas for you, good luck and hope it goes well :)
A good played bard, in a good story, is a great character. Not a warrior or mage super hero, or a cleric destined to become a god. A bard is an itellectual, knowledgeble in local history and old legends. The person you want to have in the party to solve riddles or discuss with a very angry evil lord. Miss playing!!
I mean, even if the Evil Lord hypothetically 'were' the Bard's ex, there's probably a dozen other good reasons for them to murder the party, so the point is really moot, isn't it?
JangboFett Yeah, we're doing ToA as well. Not very far in, but lots of fun so far. We're only level 2 as well. What subclasses are you thinking of taking? She's planning on swashbuckler/college of swords for that sweet sweet mobility
1217 BC First subclass for me is Scout. I’m a sucker for skill and expertise. Therefore I think I will go for Lorebard, if I ever dare to change career. I have never done multiclassing and still not sure wether it is a good idea or not. But when I thought of my character I saw rogue/Bard, versatile and full of knowledge
1217 BC I even thought of a level or 2 of Knowledgecleric (if the opportunity comes, I like to roleplay my advances. So I need an intervention from a temple of some sort for that :))
I played a "singing" Bard in a one shot. (I can't sing at all) He carried around a bucket with him with "a tune" carved into the bottom... it was great.
I've rather enjoyed playing the "singing bards" horribly... I usually never voluntarily played a bard (nor did I often get the choice...because lolz)... BUT when I was the bard, the songs were obscure in source, and worse than off tune or out of rhythm... The ballads were almost inspiring though... until of course that last line... (and here I always thought it was a personal problem)... ;o)
How about the "Jester" bard. They tell stories through staire and jokes and are equally focused on demoralizing their opponents as they are inspiring their own team.
The Jester / Fool is the only person who can speak "truth to power" ... the King needs to know what the people think about him w/out kowtowing. A proper fool can be all the places regular folk aren't allowed.
Might I suggest another kind of Bard? I've been working on an idea for a sort of drill instructor or skald bard. Using 5e with the Valor Bard, this is the character keeping everyone calm in combat and buffing their teammates. They focus more on seeing the party through thick and thin. Their shouts causing friends to regain health or inspiration. Outside of battle, maybe they know old stories of chivalry. Perhaps they can recall poems of battle. Or could they use their booming voice to give a rallying speech.
I am playing a Bard for the first time tonight. I've watched about a half dozen "How to play a Bard" videos prior to watching this one. All of them were really just Class Feature run-downs and offered no real insights into how to actually RP the Bard. Thank you for your video. The insights you provided were much needed. I had intended on making my character something in between Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen, and Bob Dylan, because I'm a 50 y/o dude and that's about where my voice lands. I was thinking about chronicling our adventures, which you mentioned and now I'm excited. Stay well
One of my favorite characters actually touches on this and your video of evil characters. I treated him like a struggling merchant and fell into the ambassador type of bard you described. He focused only on supporting and augmenting his players. He had minimal damaging spells, but rather concentrated on making sure his caravan guards (the other PCs) were extremely effective in every aspect of their adventures. The good intentions that they had, always allowed my character the opportunity to fill the void that their actions created. Like Lord Vetinari's (of Discworld) philosophy on the necessity of evil being the only way to plan for the long term. He wouldn't betray his own group, just as you wouldn't betray your own sword arm, or wouldn't betray the armor you wear. That is just hurting yourself and your investments. But by establishing the next thieves guild in the town after they destroyed the previous one, allowed the adventure to continue and created a library of downtime interaction.
You forgot to list my favorite two types of bard. The trickster and the harlequin. I played a harlequin trickster style bard. My party hated me for it, but I had a LOT of fun. It's all about performance and clever use of magic. Being a jester, playing tricks, performing acts...
A while back I played a pirate Bard who actually filled the role of both singer and ambassador in the party. She was a half elf/half orc that resembles the former more strongly (until she flashed a grin with those pearly white tusks) that had been raised by her elf noble father (who was very drunkenly traveling the land so his family didn't have to deal with him or publicly disown) to learn the ways of nobility and social prowess as well as a bit of bar hopping. Eventually, she was swept off with her mother's pirate crew when she was old enough to serve as a member of it. In the party she was the most eloquent and knowledgeable about the higher class and managed to win quite a few second looks from benefactors for the party just by knowing her shit and had an automatic +7 to intimidate should things go south! She was loads of fun to play because she had an odd balance between two very different worlds and no one was sure how to approach her because she dressed so common but held herself so well in the fancy pants clubhouse. The campaign didn't last as long as I would have hoped but I really loved playing her as this intelligent and witty person who could also get down to business. She pretty much became the singing rouge in a way 😂
Sounds really fun! Pity that the adventure didn’t last that long. Singing ambassador bards are the best. Even if my bard probably couldn’t intimidate anyone if her life depended on it.
MysticaFaery Honestly Dolma (my Bard) was something of an unusual take on the class with having the back ground that she did haha 😂 she learned how to play, flirt, and socialize from her father and then how to fight, command, and inspire fear from her mother and that made for great tension from what people expected versus what they actually got in the end. If I could find another campaign to play her in it would be loads of fun because I miss player her!!
"...I want to sing and dance! I want to sing and dance! I want to be a pirate in the Pirates of Penzanse... Wear me silver buckled slippers and me' tight shiny pants... I want to sing and dance!" ;o)
I'm leeading a Shadowrun Party with someone very similar to a (Ambassador) Bard. He plays an actor and charms his way into situations where the others van't infiltrate and is very happy with it. One time they played a mission very save (over a long time). While everyone else was preparing climbing gear, hacking Matrix-Nodes etc., he was EMPLOYED by the Mega-Con they wanted to rob. While the others where preparing, he had only to talk, which was for all of us the most exciting part of the Run. It actualy got a bit boring, when they startet the heist and got into action, because he was talking himself from the fryingpan into the Vice-Junior-Executive-Position into the fire and back. Hilariouse! Best of all was the name he introduced himself with: Max Power!!!!
That sounds a lot like the bard I'm currently playing in DnD. One who would rather infiltrate and manipulate than tell stories, and takes over the establishment from the inside.
One of my favorite PCs I have ever played was an "Emo bard." RPed it so that I was bumming out my opponents and weakening them rather than bolstering my allies.
I have played the Ambassador Bard. I loved the character, but I found the GM neglected the narrative for combat and their story to longer the game endured, until I ended up quitting. I have found over a couple characters that this type of Bard is extremely useful for the party, though the GM must be able to keep up socially or at least improvise on a similar level. Being the normal group GM with about 10 years experience on them, I kinda just roled their NPCs in all social situations and they hated giving me plot early, so they just removed more and more narrative, or stone walled my character from having conversations. Also the GM resorted to very meta-game tactics, including NPCs knowing spells I had even when I never even had a chance to cast them since the level up the session prior. It ended with a combative GM scenario, so I exited after not making progress over a month or two. It was a great learning opportunity for me. Thanks for the great video content btw.
I find that all bards play each of these roles in different vignettes. Each does however have that role that is their primary method of expression. One of my players voiced a preference for the way bards were handled back in first edition. He reasoned that by spending time as a variety of classes, by the time he took the mantle of Bard the character was already a competent badass. In respect to his viewpoint, it did give the player the opportunity to find his or her footing. Excellent video.
Bards can be very powerful, even when they seem like a simple comic relief. Take Scanlan Shorthalt for example. But I would consider them full magic users if they take the college of lore.
Like how he assaulted a manor home, defeated a dozen guards, escaped to the roof just to set the house on fire, and then single-handedly defeated the commander by throwing him off the side of the house!
I know not this Scanlon of whom you speak. But I agree that bards can be both formidable warriors and full casters. Perhaps I mis-played by valor bard egregiously by not sticking strictly to a support role, but even as he doled out inspirations he managed to achieve major battlefield control with spells like Tasha's laughter, Suggestion, Dispel Magic and Hypnotic Pattern. He also managed to deal damage reasonably well, with Heat Metal or Animate Objects, combined with decent-high Dex sharpshooter attacks(2). Of course, they're also awesome at support roles! Making other characters invisible, polymorphing them into giant beasts (better than healing the near-dead or depleted, just make them into a whole new ally!), or tiny hut-ing them up for the night while healing them with a song of rest, they've got the utility spells of a full caster as well. Plus, they're better than anyone else except rogues at the skill-monkey thing, and they're high-Cha faces to boot (Friends and Charm Person for the auto-persuade). Seriously, what's not to like? They're decent in melee, powerful casters (except for non-concentration blasting, but nobody's perfect. Oh wait...magical secrets at 10th level...yeah, they can blast eventually too, if that's what you want), support-flexible skill monkey faces. They rock!
I currently have a Lvl 18 college of whispers bard, and I chose my spells to fit thematically instead of being good in combat. All my spells are saving throws and I don't have any spell attacks other than booming blade. But shillelagh, booming blade, and psychic blades can all be used to do some very powerful melee hits, and the amount of crowd control I have can be very useful.
I consider my bard (ranger/bard) Solitaire as a collector of emotions. A perpetually masked fallen aasimar, who delights in traveling the land in search of the extremities of mortal emotion. Solitaire spends much of his spare time privately repainting his otherwise expressionless masks into visages of emotions he has collected from his subjects abroad. Solitaire never stays anywhere long and never leaves anything behind, save memories in the minds of those whom he has affected. Solitaire has found that the extremes of despair, fear, and remorse tend to please his palette more than the extremes of joy, love, and honor and as such I roleplay him more on the evil side. This is not to say that he does not relish in captivating a tavern full of patrons with his words and music, for these are the situations that Solitaire most often finds himself. The more maliciously acquired flavors of emotion are not quite so easy to come by... P.s to Guy: I just discovered your channel yesterday and I will summarize my admiration by simply saying: you, sir, inspire me. In writing the above, your voice and manner of speaking were at the forefront of my mind. Excellent content and keep up the good work!
My friends convinced me to look at the Bard for our Curse of Strahd campaign coming up and admittedly, I wasn't totally thrilled. But you've *inspired* me to really get into the class and be a great story teller! Your channel is awesome
The ambassador bard aligns quite well with my current bard which is the admiral of the fleet. I do also play music and entertain but i often end up playing the mob boss, the politician, leader. Its actually suprisingly easy and very enjoyable. The hardest part is remembering to do it at the time. You're the face of the party. The drill instructer is also a fun character to play as an acting bard.
wow im surprised by this video. I've tried to diversify my playstyle with different mixes, so I'm utterly perplexed as to how you draw such positive light on the bard yet brush away the monk. I Would argue that with the level of imagination you applied to a bard you would have just as great effect on a stories narrative and combat with any class including the monk.
Thanks to the misadventures of Dante in your Kharos Stones Save or Dice campaign, I have been inspired to create a half orc bard character who writes and sings operas. His mother was a stout comely human lass who loved the opera and wanted a child more than anything. Sadly none of the men of her village would have her so she grabbed a hapless runt orc and took advantage of him during a raid of her village and nine months later Braumbauer was born. He tried to appease his loving but domineering mother by joining the opera but they would not have a half orc in their troupe. Operas can be so picky, you know. He took his father's great axe that his mother kept as a souvenir of the most 'romantic' night of her life and set out on the road to adventure... He's only ugly on the outside! Thank you for being such an inspiration, Guy! Braumbauer is sure to be a lot of fun!
I started playing my first bard at the beginning of the summer. Tiefling Bard to be precise. And it's been a blast. I feel, from your descriptions of the different kinds of bards, that mine takes elements from several of the ones you mentioned. He loves to read and learn, particularly about historical events and ancient stories of gods and magic creatures, also enjoys a good romance novel from time to time. He's helped settle two potentially dangerous situations by playing ambassador on behalf of not only his guild but also the city it's based in. Helped to prevent a misunderstanding that could've led to a full on assault on the city and help settle a property dispute between a green hag and the city. He has used his skills of performing and deception to infiltrate the base of a cult that worships a god of secrets. Managed to not only get some information without killing a single cultist but also managed to procure the only known copy of a banned book (said book is of a lewd nature that was deemed a health hazard to the general public) upon escaping after a confrontation with the cult leader after the party was captured. He also enjoys drinking, reveling and playing his lute or flute to help celebrate victory or just for the hell of it. Lives to bring a smile and a song to his friends and acquaintances alike. Or for coin if he can get it. So it seems unknowingly I've taken a bit from several columns. And it's been the most fun I've had with a character yet playing d&d
The bard is a helper. He can help anyone with anything, especially the GM. Bardic knowledge is useful for the GM to convey any information he wants with the party.
As the parties Bard I post stories and songs after most of our sessions in our forums. Other member add to them and we clear up a lot of micro management out of game so that we don't have to waste in game time. Since I tend to embellish the stories the songs and the GM enjoys players input I've shifted the in game narrative several time. The fact that the GM declared that Bards do not lie makes altering the true events even more fun.
I have played a xenopologist Bard, a propagandist Bard, Cantor Bard, Scourge Bard, Dread Bard, and a Spy Bard. It's the most versatile class around. My Xenopologist is new. He studies the culture and society of the lesser intelligent creatures (currently working on learning Goblin culture). My propagandist destabilized an entire kingdom by spreading hatred against the crown. My cantor, Cleric Bard multiclass, summoned angels and then boosted them with songs and spells. My scourge came out before the Marshal class came out in 3.5, and functioned very similarly. And my Spy Bard, functioned at a much higher level than the actual spy class in 3.5
I love these videos! They’re great inspiration for my D&D group when getting back to the roots of their characters! I do hope you do one on Artificers!!!
Honestly, I love bards. Some of my favorite characters have been bards in the past. Like the healer in a previous party was a bard who used to be a preacher. In a vikings game, I had a skald who played a guitar that was also an axe. In an Asian-themed game, I had a bard who came from a monastery of monks who was looking for enlightenment and gave inspiration by firing chinese bottle rockets at people in the party for them to use. In the future, I plan on playing a bard who is a chef traveling the world looking to literally cut through crime while searching for the perfect ingredient for a souffle. I love them. They are so versatile.
Bards can also be good for distracting large groups while the party sneaks, or the glamour bard I have tends to focus on manipulating people into doing what he wants. He was raised in a moon elf town split between the Feywild and the Prime Material. He keeps “faerie dust” (glitter) with him, to throw in people’s faces, cast minor illusion to give them wings, and convince them that they can fly. It’s really useful when you’re near the edge of a cliff or a high window and have already convinced this person to make you the heir of some item or title they have.
Found your channel after I was invited to a D&D game and wanted to say thank you for all of the information! I'm actually playing a bard myself, and I think it would fall under that 'scoundrel' classification; He's a storyteller, technically... but more of a liar, embellishing his own feats and convincing people that he's more famous and more skilled than he actually is. (I came up with the idea when I thought about a character who has the REPUTATION of being the world's greatest knife fighter, but no actual skill in it.) He travels a lot and has a lot of local knowledge, but mostly he tries to talk his way out of situations he got himself into.
My bard is actually the Indiana Jones -type! (I am an archaeologist myself, so that explains some of it.) On top of this she is also the diplomat type - well at least one of her split personalities is! Yes. I play a half-orc bard, who thus far has two split personalities. And it is a blast! :D
I play a bard called Ardell. He plays the lute and sings had he has a history of being a playwright but in effect he is the Ambassador. He's now successfully ingratiated himself with many different towns and I have to say it's definitely fun to do. He also doesn't jump on tables since he gave up the drink which has helped a lot. Chaotic Neutral can be fun when done correctly.
i didn't even care much about bard, and i'm afraid i wouldnt know how to play him. i still dont know how to play one, but this did *inspire* me to play one and delve more into the idea of one, thank you!
Great video!!!! I know the Mystic is not an official class but I was wondering if you could make a video about them similar to this one. Thank you for all the great content!!!
Playing as a College of Swords/Swashbuckler Kobold. Performances include spinning knives and daggers, balancing them on his limbs and snout while singing and/or playing instruments. Works for the Harpers on the side and uses his performance skills in his own signature Blade-Dancing fighting style when he has to. I love it so much, best character I've ever played.
I'm playing a bard who is interested in the afterlife. He sings songs to people that are dying or have recently passed, playing melodies to give them assurance as their spirits are sent off. Of course I ask a lot of other people in the world where they believe they are going to end up and It's a tough question on my GM but keen to see where this character goes.
Bard was a class in 1e except that you had to earn your Bard title and there were restrictions. Needed to be something like level 4 and have four stats 15+, could only be a human or half-elf, etc.
1e, Unearthed Arcana. Had to be a Fighter 3/Thief 3. I was aiming to, but only made it to 3/1 when our group folded, so was delighted to revive him straight into class for 5e. He started out a good hearted scoundrel, but after the deaths of several friends, the fate of his home town and a spot of time travelling, he’s now the heart/moral compass of his party and the Indiana Jones description is actually pretty close.
The last game I ran the entire party other than one player were bards and that was a fascinating game. They ran a traveling show and would play music and perform plays outside of cities for money. They would always find a beautiful and twisted way of getting out of trouble when a situation arose. I really enjoyed running that game.
My DM wants to do an all Bard group at some point and while i have my.... reservations about it, you've definitely given me a lot to think about should this ever come to pass.
My Bard was literally Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart from the movie Amadeus. Even his name was Amadeus. He was more of a composer style bard rather than a singer style. In between sessions I would write musical pieces (typically only a minute to a minute and a half long) that encompassed the feel of that session. He also, much like you mentioned, constantly was gossiping and learning from all the NPCs in the world. Honestly when I played Amadeus I didn't feel like I was playing a character, it felt more like I was actually in the setting the DM made. (Quick note: I've been playing guitar for roughly 15 years, can play bass, can play drums, and took several music theory and music understanding classes in college, which is probably why Amadeus felt more like playing myself rather than a character.)
I've been playing a bard in my current campaign. A glamour bard who can be a tad manipulative and possibly narcissistic who is largely interested in attaining power, but political / socioeconomic power rather than magic or strength, though magical power can be used as a means to the primary objective. She is slowly coming to better play the support role and actually put trust in her teammates and I've been having a blast playing as her. From the descriptions you gave, I'd probably pin her as somewhere between an Ambassador-type and Scoundrel-type bard. The most recent session was a single boss floor of a tower dungeon against 2 hydras who kept not-quite-one-shotting one of our party members who was only able to survive from chugging from a giant keg filled with healing potion along with a Beacon of Hope I set up. A little later and a demon lord we summoned was one-shot by a hasted 22-headed hydra leaving a circle of hell with no king. Our summoner happened to be the right race to have a chance at claiming the throne, but we found my deception and persuasion were high enough that I could conceivable convince him into giving me the throne. TLDR: How a glamour bard managed to bullshit her way into potentially becoming a princess of hell. Before that she just messed with another party member who turned invisible to avoid being caught be the authorities, and I just turned and stared at him while smiling thanks to See Invisibility. Didn't say or do anything, just smiled at him while he was invisible.
I made a tabaxi bard who's literally an ambassador, and was looking forward to playing her - but the GM sort of chickened out. Among her personal effects, she had a pounce pot - a jar of chalk dust to help ink bind to low quality paper. *There's a lot you can do with a jar of chalk dust.*
The bard is so versatile, that you can make all kinds of other types. I wanted to make a bard who uses a non-musical medium to inspire and beguile others. Painter, dancer, acrobat, whatever. A bard is a kind of artist, and their charisma is a bit like their "creativity." I'm sure that with the right DM and party, you could have ton's of strange bard varieties, and just make sure to keep the gameplay consistent and logical. Imagine a talented painter/illusionist type bard with a magic paintbrush...He would be epic as hell to fill the bard role. :)
it has been years since i took part in am rpg session. your channel is a really cool thing to prepare for the next session in a few weeks. back in the day i usually played played a rogue character. since ive been a street and pub musician for almost ten years and also use some cheap magic tricks to draw people in, i think ill give it a go and play a bard in the next session. im a little bit conerned that im not playing role but only act like i would act in real life.. O_o
I had a bard and i wrote the gaming sessions as stories that the character then told in the local inn. One character then started bribing my character to amp up his achievements on the stories and of course some adjustments and corrections could be made to the old and new stories. :) The character was a complete waste of space in combat, but he managed to become recognized by other players and characters trough the way i played him.
At the moment I'm playing a mix between the Scoundrel and the Ambassador. It's a mixture of getting into mischief and then pulling the group out of said mischief if possible with little to no repercussion.
I have a character concept that I'm eager to try out which is a bard who uses a floating orb to record his adventures like a documentary, then re-plays them for a paying public like an old school victorian explorer might take slides and relatively modern explorers would take a film crew. I'm pl,anning on playing him as a steve irwin style explorer which ~I can use to explain the 5e mechanic of inspiration (which I love WAY more than the old "performance" rules which made the class sound too much like a minstrel)
My favourite Bard I have ever played was a Teifling Lawyer, whose aim in life was to be a psychopomp for the Lawful Evil faction in D&D 5e. He was SOOOOooooo dapper. Was tonnes of fun.
The bard I am currently playing as in the curse of struad has been strucken with immense fear from being left in the death house(I wasn't at the last few sessions and my DM punished me for it) that I have no longer the flair or drive he once had. Now he is a shadow of his former self.
Just recently I have developed a bard who is both a little bit of a scoundrel (in public and when he is having a good time) but is also adept as acting as ambassador due to his noble history. So far, since he has just come to the story, he hasn't had too much interaction, but since his ranger partner is shite at social stuff, he has become the party's saving grace when it comes to negotiations and swaying important figures and their opinions
My bard was a weird case of a musical mixed in with the historian, he couldn't really be much else due to being a mute character. It has led to a lot of fun moments where i had to think outside the box to get things done.
I am currently playing a bard whose background is that he is a spy for his kingdom. Before the campaign started he would be sent off to perform at some other prince/duke/king/etc's palace where he would make friends, chat people up, and of course sneak around looking for any interesting information to bring home. This has lessened as he has now joined an adventuring party, but he still manages to send messages back home to his Lord and Lady when he can.
I've never played before but am really interested in doing so. I've been building a charater and backstory that follows the living style of my favorite tv character Raymond Reddington from the tv show Blacklist. He is a criminal mastermind and fence. It seems like the coolest to play in persuading people to get your way and fencing stolen gems and artifacts to people in power and wealth to sway power in a world and the bard makes a perfect fit. A smooth talking overconfident "concierge of crime"
My favourite bard I played was named Dorlm. He was a battle poet. He was incredible to play but usually ended up inspiring the party charging into the fray, and realising no one had followed him.
I will more often than not play as the ambassador bard when given the opportunity. I enjoy being the mouthpiece of the group and getting into verbal tussles with a good gm! I will usually play as an older character and the backstory is that he has retired from public service as an adviser/diplomat for several monarchies and is returning to his roots of hijinks and mayhem for one last bit of adventure before he meets his maker. It gives the character an air of worldly knowledge and also provides a reason as to why this amazing fellow is plucking out tunes on a lute in a dive bar on the outskirts of civilization.
Just in case someone reads this and is interested (which probably won't happen but who cares): I 've got an extra type of bard, which is how a player who played the bard for the first time interpreted it, and I found it to be quite an enjoyable character to play alongside. The Treasure hunter. The player I just mensioned is a human bard, who rather then looking for stories, songs, poems, ect. looks for great artifacts. He or she looks is on this journey to find the increadible Warhammer of lightning or whatever and show it to the party, and continue to look for new and exiting magical items. He might also already have an artifact, with writings of an unkown script, and now seeks to find a translation of the script, so he may decipher the great spell of "Screw you, I'm the GM now" This bard can be exeptionally fun in later levels when magical items are found more frequantly, and any utility based item that noone can find a proper use for, goes immideatly to this kind of bard. this character has already been explored with rogues and combat characters, but bards are an increadible class for this type of character, for they may tell a great story about how they found Zuni's torch of spirits, or the horned helmet of the northern tribes, or the great belt of dwarvenkind, ect. ect. anyone who is now inspired to make a character: you're welcome
Started thinking of the quartermaster/first mate bard. I mean they have to be pretty persuasive to keep things running on a ship, especially when captain and crew don’t agree
I am playing an ambassador bard right now in Kingmaker (pathfinder) and I am surprised to hear that it’s not more popular. Her skills as a diplomat (and lots of really cheesy pick up lines between myself and the man playing the King, haha) has lead to the point to her becoming Queen. 👑 On the ambassador front I try to keep the peace in the party (a right nightmare at times!), talking to a lot of our citizens peasants, soldier and noble alike. And I have rarely felt useless in a fight - high level bardic preformances are amazing. I actually (both in and out of character) helped two of the players to mend their IRL friendship after lots of game related drama. And also wrote two (hopefully) funny little plays about the groups victories. 😊
I'm a notorious bard main, playing many bard and bard-like characters in games. This mostly comes from my own background in the performing arts, including dance, instruments, and singing. And no two have been completely alike. I've had one who came from a family of traveling performers, who secretly had drow lineage and followed Eilistrae, but wasn't aware of it until it was told to her by the goddess and her older sister. Another is a selkie, who grew up in a seal colony with her mother, and developed a strong love for the Arts, as well as a protective duty to all seals, knowing that there are many who wish harm upon them, hunting them for sport. Being a selkie also made her learn to be careful, because there are people out there who would seek those like her out for their own ill intentions. As a selkie, she has a lot of natural charm, so making her a bard was a given. I also have a bard-like character who is a magical girl, and she's a dancer at an art college, and is also the team shield and healer, based on her water powers.
I've played a college of swords bard that documented the fighting styles of the party. It became like a combat manual and strategy document. My party were mostly war gamers so they seemed to like it. Lol
Shadowrun -- at least 5th edition --'s Face characters come pretty close to your ambassador bard and are a standard, common character type in that setting. Faces usually have something to them other than social skills, doing a face with magic lands you pretty close to the traditional arcane bards, and you can mix them partway with most other things in the system too.
Presently playing a Gnome Archaeologist Bard (College of Lore) in my fiance's campaign. Backstory of my family being blown up in an expedition and hence why I have an obsession to find a secret door. The only time I don't do this is when I'm in polite company and it is clearly somebody's home, for example. Luckily, this obsession has yielded a few sparse treasures and said doors. The reason why I survived my family was due to me training in the College of Lore to further our expedition. I focus on being super excited when I'm in a dungeon or ruins when there is a prospect of artifacts to be discovered. My one friend was really grumpy that I was "pouncing" on all the treasure, however, I worked it in that I was so darn curious to understand the value of the objects and learn the history of the particular dungeon/ruin. Often, it is not to gain the item, but to understand the history and value that brings my passion out. My other friend who is a Human Warlock (Merchant) is role-playing as we know each other from past work together (naturally, he being the employer trying to funnel my gnomish energy into treasure finding) So far, it has been quite amazing and incredibly fun. I got myself a Mantle of Mists as a result of finding a secret door and use the pocket dimension as a means to examine ruins uninterrupted or even procure magical artifacts from wrongdoers and I need to hide away for several hours. I'm planning on embroidering my character further with interacting with my chosen deity (Tymora) in that I felt that she had failed my family in their tinkering demise. Hopefully, my fiance can get to change my mind on this completely. It's tough, as often Tymora brings the gnome to amazing artifacts to discover. I'm trying to iron out the details... I often when in a sticky situation, I pluck out my bagpipes and stir up a ditty to assist my party to victory, especially handy when you are dealing out Bardic Inspiration to individual party members and it opens up the rolep-playing nicely :)
I played a bard that was more of a courtesan. It was super fun focusing on lore, conversation, and and dance. This made interaction with nobels easier.
Currently playing a half-orc bard, who's mostly a story teller, but also composes limericks (usually regarding the local pantheon). He joined the party after leaving a traveling group of mummers, as being the only guy among a group of master thespians, was getting... quite awkward.
I'm playing the last "Indianna Jones" type currently. Well, it bit more Nathan Drake, but in kobold form. He's less than a decade old and escaped his warren, and is out exploring the world, learning myths and aiming to explore them. He's not the most Wise or Intelligent, but he's charming and plucky and is always the first to dive in to an adventure and poke at the curious thingamy. He's happy to play a song or two, but his ultimate aim to to explore the world, have many an adventure and make all sorts of friends along the way.
Hey man love your vids; i use alot of the tips you give to try and make my character more real keep up ^_^ PS: i think that this vid is a little to bright
I’m a little late to the party, but might I suggest the Skald or warrior poet Bard? They’re bards focused on winning glory in battle, and writing the tales down to preserve the legend.
I have a character I'm working on who starts out as an emotionally repressed wizard and slowly breaks out of their shell, accepting that theyre actually ALLOWED to enjoy music and changing to (or multiclassing to somehow) a bard. I plan on having them take an ambassador bard-esque role earlier on- along with some weird workarounds to the issue of charisma in such an unconfident character like "kinda endearingly awkward" or "so verbose people just tune out and assume they're right" or "moderate doormattery translates to being very good at deescalating situations by making concessions one may or may not plan to stand by" (intelligence-based casting wouldn't work for them since they don't let themselves put in the work to bring together a system of magic like that when they could be cultivating their Acceptable Wizard Magic™). Not to mention I'm a complete newbie at D&D at any rate and, having no in-game experience, have resorted to building characters for story with no thoughts about playability. What fun.
I guess you could call my last bard an ambassador, but I classed her more as a spy than as an ambassador. It was a character who used a combination of stealth, deception, charm and magic to acquire information, undermine the enemy, and to get out of trouble. It probably blurred the line between bard and rogue, but that's what I was going for, it was a bit of a Dragon Age: Origins approach to a bard with D&D mechanics.
I actually played an "Indiana jones" style bard, and I have a player in my own campaign that's taking a dual role as both the scoundrel and the ambassador. For my own bard; were treasure hunters and I searched for lost spells and wrote stories of our adventures. It was incredibly fun, unfortunately she died relatively early due to an infatuation with a "hand of vecna"-style magic item. The bard in the campaign I'm running has been using his charm to get to places he normally wouldn't, and, like you said, has given me a lot of chances to have the npcs talk about lore and history without having to plug in an npc lore dump.
What about the "actor","dancer",or"tumblers"? Once in a pathfinder game I had DM'd, I made an NPC that was a dancer bard/assassin and it was quite fun. I ended up making him into the antagonist and hunting the party down.
Not sure if its another type of bard to add to the list but a million years ago I had a 2nd Edition bard who I was playing as a bit of a coward in a party of four players who was the only magic user (after second level) only for the party to end up with the cowardly bard and a halfling thief so I had to play him as 'the muscle', it worked out alright, I ended up going for more combat orientated spells and added a big sword to his weapons skills. He ended up at 13th level which is the highest I've got a character to. If I recall he kind of worked out as roughly a 7th level fighter/mage who could do a bit of other stuff, handy for a small party.
I’m actually playing a tiefling bard who is filling the ambassador role. He knows almost every law and every cultural and speaks several languages. He is a negotiator who always seeks to talk his way out of situations.
One of my favorite experiences in a D&D game involved all the casters having to come up with the verbal components of their various spells. And during game play, the caster had to use the words to cast the spell. If you didn't, then the spell failed.
Made a teifling bard that was basically a battle rapper and dissed the enemy to attack them. He spits pretty good bars every now and then
Bravely bold sir Robin, rode forth from Camelot... He was not afraid to die, oh brave sir Robin. He was not in the least bit scared to be smashed into a pulp. Brave, brave, brave brave sir Robin...
Nils Vos we have the same profile pic haha
That bard of Sir Robin's would have been a great satirical bard, weaving tales of giants using orcs to steal goods from humans, all for to earn the favor of the giants' leader to further their desires.
In the winter they were forced to eat sir Robins Mistrals.....And there was much Rejoicing.
D
... _yay_ ...
I think you missed one: the bastard. This is the bard who uses his skills to deceive everyone he meets, who remembers every secret, and who is basically a particularly nasty rogue with a lute. It is an awesome character to play.
That's basically my bard in the new campaign. I can walk into a room and make a performance and charm everyone including the barkeep, inkeep, and any NPC in the room. I once gained 30 go just by playing an impromptu set, and then rolled out
I would say that's a scoundrel still.
So College of Whispers.
I tried to go this route with my current bard but I'm... not currently good enough at being that character to make it really work. That aside from the fact that the whole infiltrator theme does not always pair well with... you know... being a member of a party. I don't want to turn into the stereotypical rogue who just leaves the party in a ditch to go sneak around somewhere. Also we already have a rogue...
So he went off to infiltrate something on his own somewhere and will show up again in the future as a DMPC to feed the party information that they will need to act on.
ayyy this is essentially the bard im creating
I played a bard as a reporter before. Usually said, “extra extra! Read all about it!” Before proceeding to cast a spell or insult the enemy with viscous mockery. The headlines I came up with was pretty funny.
My favorite bard was "Sarge" Dayb, my half-orc sergeant. He had charisma from his leadership experience, and his songs were all battle and march songs, I used his army experience as a reason for his bardic knowledge and jack-of-all-trades skills. "Thats Mountain Dwarf script, Lads, I ran across some a' that in our second siege of Taypool, lemme see if I can make it out.". Great character.
The bard in my game summarises the events of each session with poetry. It's great
I'm about to play a bard and this is an amazing idea
@@hansoeij539 It worked out great, I still can recall many of them to this day. I recommend plagarizing well known songs and rewriting the lyrics to suit the events of your game, or do some limericks. Really play with it, switch up the style and have fun. Surprise your fellow gamers.
Our bard would then read his poem at the start of the next session as a form of recap and it was definitely a highlight for everyone involved and helped everyone fall into character straight away.
We even did a follow up campaign which was set years after the events of the original and the poems he wrote were canon in the world - NPCs knew about the party and what they did through "The collected works of Beadle Hollowfern". He literally sold them and made himself and the other famous for future storylines.
Just some long term ideas for you, good luck and hope it goes well :)
"QUICK HIDE BEHIND THE MOUNTAIN OF DEAD BARDS."
One of the greatest movies of all time! 20 ranks in seduction to you.
"How many of those have you got?"
"50!"
Oh thank god I was afraid no one would know it! And yay, I'M GONNA SEDUCE THE PRINCESS
This movie is glorious. I am in your debt for pointing me in its direction.
Lightbearer you are welcome!
A good played bard, in a good story, is a great character. Not a warrior or mage super hero, or a cleric destined to become a god. A bard is an itellectual, knowledgeble in local history and old legends. The person you want to have in the party to solve riddles or discuss with a very angry evil lord. Miss playing!!
Is the very angry evil lord one of the Bard's exes?
I mean... this HAS to be asked. xD
I mean, even if the Evil Lord hypothetically 'were' the Bard's ex, there's probably a dozen other good reasons for them to murder the party, so the point is really moot, isn't it?
My wife is currently playing a tabaxi rogue/bard with the archeologist background and a distinguishing hat. So, Indiana Jones crossed with a kender
sounds like a fun lady . . . I envy you
That’s my character for Tomb of Annihilation! Well, only lvl 2 for now, so no levels of Bard yet.
JangboFett Yeah, we're doing ToA as well. Not very far in, but lots of fun so far. We're only level 2 as well. What subclasses are you thinking of taking? She's planning on swashbuckler/college of swords for that sweet sweet mobility
1217 BC First subclass for me is Scout. I’m a sucker for skill and expertise. Therefore I think I will go for Lorebard, if I ever dare to change career. I have never done multiclassing and still not sure wether it is a good idea or not. But when I thought of my character I saw rogue/Bard, versatile and full of knowledge
1217 BC I even thought of a level or 2 of Knowledgecleric (if the opportunity comes, I like to roleplay my advances. So I need an intervention from a temple of some sort for that :))
I played a "singing" Bard in a one shot. (I can't sing at all) He carried around a bucket with him with "a tune" carved into the bottom... it was great.
I've rather enjoyed playing the "singing bards" horribly... I usually never voluntarily played a bard (nor did I often get the choice...because lolz)... BUT when I was the bard, the songs were obscure in source, and worse than off tune or out of rhythm... The ballads were almost inspiring though... until of course that last line... (and here I always thought it was a personal problem)... ;o)
How about the "Jester" bard. They tell stories through staire and jokes and are equally focused on demoralizing their opponents as they are inspiring their own team.
We honestly still need the collage of comedy.
just roast your enemies into submission!
The Jester / Fool is the only person who can speak "truth to power" ... the King needs to know what the people think about him w/out kowtowing. A proper fool can be all the places regular folk aren't allowed.
Honestly, in 5e a bard really can be a full/true healer. I had a bard that was the only healer for a group of 7, and that went fine.
Might I suggest another kind of Bard? I've been working on an idea for a sort of drill instructor or skald bard. Using 5e with the Valor Bard, this is the character keeping everyone calm in combat and buffing their teammates. They focus more on seeing the party through thick and thin. Their shouts causing friends to regain health or inspiration. Outside of battle, maybe they know old stories of chivalry. Perhaps they can recall poems of battle. Or could they use their booming voice to give a rallying speech.
I actually made a bard that uses his music and his magic to steal, manipulate and control both friends, and enemies.
I called him Morron.
I am playing a Bard for the first time tonight. I've watched about a half dozen "How to play a Bard" videos prior to watching this one. All of them were really just Class Feature run-downs and offered no real insights into how to actually RP the Bard.
Thank you for your video. The insights you provided were much needed. I had intended on making my character something in between Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen, and Bob Dylan, because I'm a 50 y/o dude and that's about where my voice lands. I was thinking about chronicling our adventures, which you mentioned and now I'm excited.
Stay well
One of my favorite characters actually touches on this and your video of evil characters. I treated him like a struggling merchant and fell into the ambassador type of bard you described. He focused only on supporting and augmenting his players. He had minimal damaging spells, but rather concentrated on making sure his caravan guards (the other PCs) were extremely effective in every aspect of their adventures. The good intentions that they had, always allowed my character the opportunity to fill the void that their actions created. Like Lord Vetinari's (of Discworld) philosophy on the necessity of evil being the only way to plan for the long term. He wouldn't betray his own group, just as you wouldn't betray your own sword arm, or wouldn't betray the armor you wear. That is just hurting yourself and your investments. But by establishing the next thieves guild in the town after they destroyed the previous one, allowed the adventure to continue and created a library of downtime interaction.
You forgot to list my favorite two types of bard. The trickster and the harlequin. I played a harlequin trickster style bard. My party hated me for it, but I had a LOT of fun. It's all about performance and clever use of magic. Being a jester, playing tricks, performing acts...
A while back I played a pirate Bard who actually filled the role of both singer and ambassador in the party. She was a half elf/half orc that resembles the former more strongly (until she flashed a grin with those pearly white tusks) that had been raised by her elf noble father (who was very drunkenly traveling the land so his family didn't have to deal with him or publicly disown) to learn the ways of nobility and social prowess as well as a bit of bar hopping. Eventually, she was swept off with her mother's pirate crew when she was old enough to serve as a member of it.
In the party she was the most eloquent and knowledgeable about the higher class and managed to win quite a few second looks from benefactors for the party just by knowing her shit and had an automatic +7 to intimidate should things go south! She was loads of fun to play because she had an odd balance between two very different worlds and no one was sure how to approach her because she dressed so common but held herself so well in the fancy pants clubhouse. The campaign didn't last as long as I would have hoped but I really loved playing her as this intelligent and witty person who could also get down to business. She pretty much became the singing rouge in a way 😂
Sounds really fun! Pity that the adventure didn’t last that long. Singing ambassador bards are the best. Even if my bard probably couldn’t intimidate anyone if her life depended on it.
MysticaFaery Honestly Dolma (my Bard) was something of an unusual take on the class with having the back ground that she did haha 😂 she learned how to play, flirt, and socialize from her father and then how to fight, command, and inspire fear from her mother and that made for great tension from what people expected versus what they actually got in the end.
If I could find another campaign to play her in it would be loads of fun because I miss player her!!
"...I want to sing and dance!
I want to sing and dance!
I want to be a pirate in the Pirates of Penzanse...
Wear me silver buckled slippers and me' tight shiny pants...
I want to sing and dance!"
;o)
I'm leeading a Shadowrun Party with someone very similar to a (Ambassador) Bard. He plays an actor and charms his way into situations where the others van't infiltrate and is very happy with it. One time they played a mission very save (over a long time). While everyone else was preparing climbing gear, hacking Matrix-Nodes etc., he was EMPLOYED by the Mega-Con they wanted to rob. While the others where preparing, he had only to talk, which was for all of us the most exciting part of the Run. It actualy got a bit boring, when they startet the heist and got into action, because he was talking himself from the fryingpan into the Vice-Junior-Executive-Position into the fire and back. Hilariouse! Best of all was the name he introduced himself with: Max Power!!!!
That sounds a lot like the bard I'm currently playing in DnD. One who would rather infiltrate and manipulate than tell stories, and takes over the establishment from the inside.
One of my favorite PCs I have ever played was an "Emo bard." RPed it so that I was bumming out my opponents and weakening them rather than bolstering my allies.
I have played the Ambassador Bard. I loved the character, but I found the GM neglected the narrative for combat and their story to longer the game endured, until I ended up quitting.
I have found over a couple characters that this type of Bard is extremely useful for the party, though the GM must be able to keep up socially or at least improvise on a similar level. Being the normal group GM with about 10 years experience on them, I kinda just roled their NPCs in all social situations and they hated giving me plot early, so they just removed more and more narrative, or stone walled my character from having conversations. Also the GM resorted to very meta-game tactics, including NPCs knowing spells I had even when I never even had a chance to cast them since the level up the session prior.
It ended with a combative GM scenario, so I exited after not making progress over a month or two. It was a great learning opportunity for me. Thanks for the great video content btw.
I find that all bards play each of these roles in different vignettes. Each does however have that role that is their primary method of expression. One of my players voiced a preference for the way bards were handled back in first edition. He reasoned that by spending time as a variety of classes, by the time he took the mantle of Bard the character was already a competent badass. In respect to his viewpoint, it did give the player the opportunity to find his or her footing. Excellent video.
Bards can be very powerful, even when they seem like a simple comic relief. Take Scanlan Shorthalt for example. But I would consider them full magic users if they take the college of lore.
Like how he assaulted a manor home, defeated a dozen guards, escaped to the roof just to set the house on fire, and then single-handedly defeated the commander by throwing him off the side of the house!
Snuck up to a god and counterspelled his attempt to run away.
I know not this Scanlon of whom you speak. But I agree that bards can be both formidable warriors and full casters. Perhaps I mis-played by valor bard egregiously by not sticking strictly to a support role, but even as he doled out inspirations he managed to achieve major battlefield control with spells like Tasha's laughter, Suggestion, Dispel Magic and Hypnotic Pattern. He also managed to deal damage reasonably well, with Heat Metal or Animate Objects, combined with decent-high Dex sharpshooter attacks(2).
Of course, they're also awesome at support roles! Making other characters invisible, polymorphing them into giant beasts (better than healing the near-dead or depleted, just make them into a whole new ally!), or tiny hut-ing them up for the night while healing them with a song of rest, they've got the utility spells of a full caster as well.
Plus, they're better than anyone else except rogues at the skill-monkey thing, and they're high-Cha faces to boot (Friends and Charm Person for the auto-persuade).
Seriously, what's not to like? They're decent in melee, powerful casters (except for non-concentration blasting, but nobody's perfect. Oh wait...magical secrets at 10th level...yeah, they can blast eventually too, if that's what you want), support-flexible skill monkey faces. They rock!
I currently have a Lvl 18 college of whispers bard, and I chose my spells to fit thematically instead of being good in combat. All my spells are saving throws and I don't have any spell attacks other than booming blade. But shillelagh, booming blade, and psychic blades can all be used to do some very powerful melee hits, and the amount of crowd control I have can be very useful.
Hold Person into Psychic Blades if the HP lasts long enough can be nuts damage for a bard.
I consider my bard (ranger/bard) Solitaire as a collector of emotions. A perpetually masked fallen aasimar, who delights in traveling the land in search of the extremities of mortal emotion. Solitaire spends much of his spare time privately repainting his otherwise expressionless masks into visages of emotions he has collected from his subjects abroad. Solitaire never stays anywhere long and never leaves anything behind, save memories in the minds of those whom he has affected. Solitaire has found that the extremes of despair, fear, and remorse tend to please his palette more than the extremes of joy, love, and honor and as such I roleplay him more on the evil side. This is not to say that he does not relish in captivating a tavern full of patrons with his words and music, for these are the situations that Solitaire most often finds himself. The more maliciously acquired flavors of emotion are not quite so easy to come by...
P.s to Guy: I just discovered your channel yesterday and I will summarize my admiration by simply saying: you, sir, inspire me. In writing the above, your voice and manner of speaking were at the forefront of my mind. Excellent content and keep up the good work!
My friends convinced me to look at the Bard for our Curse of Strahd campaign coming up and admittedly, I wasn't totally thrilled. But you've *inspired* me to really get into the class and be a great story teller! Your channel is awesome
Your voice and infliction are incredible! It reminds me of the guy who read the Harry Potter series
The ambassador bard aligns quite well with my current bard which is the admiral of the fleet. I do also play music and entertain but i often end up playing the mob boss, the politician, leader. Its actually suprisingly easy and very enjoyable. The hardest part is remembering to do it at the time. You're the face of the party.
The drill instructer is also a fun character to play as an acting bard.
wow im surprised by this video. I've tried to diversify my playstyle with different mixes, so I'm utterly perplexed as to how you draw such positive light on the bard yet brush away the monk. I Would argue that with the level of imagination you applied to a bard you would have just as great effect on a stories narrative and combat with any class including the monk.
Thanks to the misadventures of Dante in your Kharos Stones Save or Dice campaign, I have been inspired to create a half orc bard character who writes and sings operas. His mother was a stout comely human lass who loved the opera and wanted a child more than anything. Sadly none of the men of her village would have her so she grabbed a hapless runt orc and took advantage of him during a raid of her village and nine months later Braumbauer was born. He tried to appease his loving but domineering mother by joining the opera but they would not have a half orc in their troupe. Operas can be so picky, you know. He took his father's great axe that his mother kept as a souvenir of the most 'romantic' night of her life and set out on the road to adventure... He's only ugly on the outside! Thank you for being such an inspiration, Guy! Braumbauer is sure to be a lot of fun!
I started playing my first bard at the beginning of the summer. Tiefling Bard to be precise. And it's been a blast. I feel, from your descriptions of the different kinds of bards, that mine takes elements from several of the ones you mentioned.
He loves to read and learn, particularly about historical events and ancient stories of gods and magic creatures, also enjoys a good romance novel from time to time.
He's helped settle two potentially dangerous situations by playing ambassador on behalf of not only his guild but also the city it's based in. Helped to prevent a misunderstanding that could've led to a full on assault on the city and help settle a property dispute between a green hag and the city.
He has used his skills of performing and deception to infiltrate the base of a cult that worships a god of secrets. Managed to not only get some information without killing a single cultist but also managed to procure the only known copy of a banned book (said book is of a lewd nature that was deemed a health hazard to the general public) upon escaping after a confrontation with the cult leader after the party was captured.
He also enjoys drinking, reveling and playing his lute or flute to help celebrate victory or just for the hell of it. Lives to bring a smile and a song to his friends and acquaintances alike. Or for coin if he can get it.
So it seems unknowingly I've taken a bit from several columns. And it's been the most fun I've had with a character yet playing d&d
The bard is a helper. He can help anyone with anything, especially the GM. Bardic knowledge is useful for the GM to convey any information he wants with the party.
As the parties Bard I post stories and songs after most of our sessions in our forums. Other member add to them and we clear up a lot of micro management out of game so that we don't have to waste in game time. Since I tend to embellish the stories the songs and the GM enjoys players input I've shifted the in game narrative several time. The fact that the GM declared that Bards do not lie makes altering the true events even more fun.
I have played a xenopologist Bard, a propagandist Bard, Cantor Bard, Scourge Bard, Dread Bard, and a Spy Bard.
It's the most versatile class around.
My Xenopologist is new. He studies the culture and society of the lesser intelligent creatures (currently working on learning Goblin culture).
My propagandist destabilized an entire kingdom by spreading hatred against the crown.
My cantor, Cleric Bard multiclass, summoned angels and then boosted them with songs and spells.
My scourge came out before the Marshal class came out in 3.5, and functioned very similarly.
And my Spy Bard, functioned at a much higher level than the actual spy class in 3.5
I love playing my bard. Always have a blast with him, by far my favourite class
I love these videos! They’re great inspiration for my D&D group when getting back to the roots of their characters! I do hope you do one on Artificers!!!
Honestly, I love bards. Some of my favorite characters have been bards in the past. Like the healer in a previous party was a bard who used to be a preacher. In a vikings game, I had a skald who played a guitar that was also an axe. In an Asian-themed game, I had a bard who came from a monastery of monks who was looking for enlightenment and gave inspiration by firing chinese bottle rockets at people in the party for them to use. In the future, I plan on playing a bard who is a chef traveling the world looking to literally cut through crime while searching for the perfect ingredient for a souffle. I love them. They are so versatile.
Bards can also be good for distracting large groups while the party sneaks, or the glamour bard I have tends to focus on manipulating people into doing what he wants. He was raised in a moon elf town split between the Feywild and the Prime Material. He keeps “faerie dust” (glitter) with him, to throw in people’s faces, cast minor illusion to give them wings, and convince them that they can fly. It’s really useful when you’re near the edge of a cliff or a high window and have already convinced this person to make you the heir of some item or title they have.
I can't wait for you to make a video on my favorite class the warlock!
This was fantastic! I now know what my friends need! Joziah Curr's Epic Tales of Adventure!
Found your channel after I was invited to a D&D game and wanted to say thank you for all of the information! I'm actually playing a bard myself, and I think it would fall under that 'scoundrel' classification; He's a storyteller, technically... but more of a liar, embellishing his own feats and convincing people that he's more famous and more skilled than he actually is. (I came up with the idea when I thought about a character who has the REPUTATION of being the world's greatest knife fighter, but no actual skill in it.) He travels a lot and has a lot of local knowledge, but mostly he tries to talk his way out of situations he got himself into.
My bard is actually the Indiana Jones -type!
(I am an archaeologist myself, so that explains some of it.)
On top of this she is also the diplomat type - well at least one of her split personalities is!
Yes. I play a half-orc bard, who thus far has two split personalities. And it is a blast! :D
I play a bard called Ardell. He plays the lute and sings had he has a history of being a playwright but in effect he is the Ambassador. He's now successfully ingratiated himself with many different towns and I have to say it's definitely fun to do. He also doesn't jump on tables since he gave up the drink which has helped a lot. Chaotic Neutral can be fun when done correctly.
i didn't even care much about bard, and i'm afraid i wouldnt know how to play him. i still dont know how to play one, but this did *inspire* me to play one and delve more into the idea of one, thank you!
Great video!!!! I know the Mystic is not an official class but I was wondering if you could make a video about them similar to this one. Thank you for all the great content!!!
Playing as a College of Swords/Swashbuckler Kobold. Performances include spinning knives and daggers, balancing them on his limbs and snout while singing and/or playing instruments. Works for the Harpers on the side and uses his performance skills in his own signature Blade-Dancing fighting style when he has to. I love it so much, best character I've ever played.
As a lvl 1 bard Im having fun, much different than my typical warriors. this was great insight.
I crossed into bard for the first time three weeks ago and have had a blast!!
I'm playing a bard who is interested in the afterlife. He sings songs to people that are dying or have recently passed, playing melodies to give them assurance as their spirits are sent off. Of course I ask a lot of other people in the world where they believe they are going to end up and It's a tough question on my GM but keen to see where this character goes.
I thought there have been bards since 2e
does "have been around for quite a long time" mean first ed only?
Bard was a class in 1e except that you had to earn your Bard title and there were restrictions. Needed to be something like level 4 and have four stats 15+, could only be a human or half-elf, etc.
They were a class in 1e, not sure what he meant by it.
In 1st and 2nd ed, you have to Juno through a million hoops to qualify. It is often said that bards were the first prestige class.
First ed yes, 2nd no the only prerequisites were Dex 12, Int 13 and Cha 15 becoming a Paladin was harder with Cha 17
1e, Unearthed Arcana. Had to be a Fighter 3/Thief 3. I was aiming to, but only made it to 3/1 when our group folded, so was delighted to revive him straight into class for 5e.
He started out a good hearted scoundrel, but after the deaths of several friends, the fate of his home town and a spot of time travelling, he’s now the heart/moral compass of his party and the Indiana Jones description is actually pretty close.
The last game I ran the entire party other than one player were bards and that was a fascinating game. They ran a traveling show and would play music and perform plays outside of cities for money. They would always find a beautiful and twisted way of getting out of trouble when a situation arose. I really enjoyed running that game.
My DM wants to do an all Bard group at some point and while i have my.... reservations about it, you've definitely given me a lot to think about should this ever come to pass.
My Bard was literally Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart from the movie Amadeus.
Even his name was Amadeus.
He was more of a composer style bard rather than a singer style. In between sessions I would write musical pieces (typically only a minute to a minute and a half long) that encompassed the feel of that session.
He also, much like you mentioned, constantly was gossiping and learning from all the NPCs in the world.
Honestly when I played Amadeus I didn't feel like I was playing a character, it felt more like I was actually in the setting the DM made.
(Quick note: I've been playing guitar for roughly 15 years, can play bass, can play drums, and took several music theory and music understanding classes in college, which is probably why Amadeus felt more like playing myself rather than a character.)
I've been playing a bard in my current campaign. A glamour bard who can be a tad manipulative and possibly narcissistic who is largely interested in attaining power, but political / socioeconomic power rather than magic or strength, though magical power can be used as a means to the primary objective. She is slowly coming to better play the support role and actually put trust in her teammates and I've been having a blast playing as her. From the descriptions you gave, I'd probably pin her as somewhere between an Ambassador-type and Scoundrel-type bard.
The most recent session was a single boss floor of a tower dungeon against 2 hydras who kept not-quite-one-shotting one of our party members who was only able to survive from chugging from a giant keg filled with healing potion along with a Beacon of Hope I set up. A little later and a demon lord we summoned was one-shot by a hasted 22-headed hydra leaving a circle of hell with no king. Our summoner happened to be the right race to have a chance at claiming the throne, but we found my deception and persuasion were high enough that I could conceivable convince him into giving me the throne.
TLDR: How a glamour bard managed to bullshit her way into potentially becoming a princess of hell.
Before that she just messed with another party member who turned invisible to avoid being caught be the authorities, and I just turned and stared at him while smiling thanks to See Invisibility. Didn't say or do anything, just smiled at him while he was invisible.
I made a tabaxi bard who's literally an ambassador, and was looking forward to playing her - but the GM sort of chickened out. Among her personal effects, she had a pounce pot - a jar of chalk dust to help ink bind to low quality paper. *There's a lot you can do with a jar of chalk dust.*
The bard is so versatile, that you can make all kinds of other types. I wanted to make a bard who uses a non-musical medium to inspire and beguile others. Painter, dancer, acrobat, whatever. A bard is a kind of artist, and their charisma is a bit like their "creativity." I'm sure that with the right DM and party, you could have ton's of strange bard varieties, and just make sure to keep the gameplay consistent and logical. Imagine a talented painter/illusionist type bard with a magic paintbrush...He would be epic as hell to fill the bard role. :)
Your charming voice had me "straight away" I wanna hear you go on & on
it has been years since i took part in am rpg session. your channel is a really cool thing to prepare for the next session in a few weeks. back in the day i usually played played a rogue character. since ive been a street and pub musician for almost ten years and also use some cheap magic tricks to draw people in, i think ill give it a go and play a bard in the next session. im a little bit conerned that im not playing role but only act like i would act in real life.. O_o
I had a bard and i wrote the gaming sessions as stories that the character then told in the local inn. One character then started bribing my character to amp up his achievements on the stories and of course some adjustments and corrections could be made to the old and new stories. :) The character was a complete waste of space in combat, but he managed to become recognized by other players and characters trough the way i played him.
At the moment I'm playing a mix between the Scoundrel and the Ambassador.
It's a mixture of getting into mischief and then pulling the group out of said mischief if possible with little to no repercussion.
I have a character concept that I'm eager to try out which is a bard who uses a floating orb to record his adventures like a documentary, then re-plays them for a paying public like an old school victorian explorer might take slides and relatively modern explorers would take a film crew. I'm pl,anning on playing him as a steve irwin style explorer which ~I can use to explain the 5e mechanic of inspiration (which I love WAY more than the old "performance" rules which made the class sound too much like a minstrel)
You enter the local inn, then the owner says "you're a bard"...Bah Dum Tiiiisssshhh.
My favourite Bard I have ever played was a Teifling Lawyer, whose aim in life was to be a psychopomp for the Lawful Evil faction in D&D 5e. He was SOOOOooooo dapper. Was tonnes of fun.
The bard I am currently playing as in the curse of struad has been strucken with immense fear from being left in the death house(I wasn't at the last few sessions and my DM punished me for it) that I have no longer the flair or drive he once had. Now he is a shadow of his former self.
Brilliant opening.
Just recently I have developed a bard who is both a little bit of a scoundrel (in public and when he is having a good time) but is also adept as acting as ambassador due to his noble history. So far, since he has just come to the story, he hasn't had too much interaction, but since his ranger partner is shite at social stuff, he has become the party's saving grace when it comes to negotiations and swaying important figures and their opinions
My bard was a weird case of a musical mixed in with the historian, he couldn't really be much else due to being a mute character. It has led to a lot of fun moments where i had to think outside the box to get things done.
I am currently playing a bard whose background is that he is a spy for his kingdom. Before the campaign started he would be sent off to perform at some other prince/duke/king/etc's palace where he would make friends, chat people up, and of course sneak around looking for any interesting information to bring home. This has lessened as he has now joined an adventuring party, but he still manages to send messages back home to his Lord and Lady when he can.
thats a subscribe from me! thank you sir for your imparted wisdom! love your style great video thanks
I've never played before but am really interested in doing so. I've been building a charater and backstory that follows the living style of my favorite tv character Raymond Reddington from the tv show Blacklist. He is a criminal mastermind and fence. It seems like the coolest to play in persuading people to get your way and fencing stolen gems and artifacts to people in power and wealth to sway power in a world and the bard makes a perfect fit. A smooth talking overconfident "concierge of crime"
Bards are my absolute favorite class to play
My favourite bard I played was named Dorlm. He was a battle poet. He was incredible to play but usually ended up inspiring the party charging into the fray, and realising no one had followed him.
My favorite class of all times.
So weak but so, so funny and creative..
Oh my god 7:11 so savage i love it!
I will more often than not play as the ambassador bard when given the opportunity. I enjoy being the mouthpiece of the group and getting into verbal tussles with a good gm! I will usually play as an older character and the backstory is that he has retired from public service as an adviser/diplomat for several monarchies and is returning to his roots of hijinks and mayhem for one last bit of adventure before he meets his maker. It gives the character an air of worldly knowledge and also provides a reason as to why this amazing fellow is plucking out tunes on a lute in a dive bar on the outskirts of civilization.
Just in case someone reads this and is interested (which probably won't happen but who cares):
I 've got an extra type of bard, which is how a player who played the bard for the first time interpreted it, and I found it to be quite an enjoyable character to play alongside. The Treasure hunter.
The player I just mensioned is a human bard, who rather then looking for stories, songs, poems, ect. looks for great artifacts. He or she looks is on this journey to find the increadible Warhammer of lightning or whatever and show it to the party, and continue to look for new and exiting magical items.
He might also already have an artifact, with writings of an unkown script, and now seeks to find a translation of the script, so he may decipher the great spell of "Screw you, I'm the GM now"
This bard can be exeptionally fun in later levels when magical items are found more frequantly, and any utility based item that noone can find a proper use for, goes immideatly to this kind of bard.
this character has already been explored with rogues and combat characters, but bards are an increadible class for this type of character, for they may tell a great story about how they found Zuni's torch of spirits, or the horned helmet of the northern tribes, or the great belt of dwarvenkind, ect. ect.
anyone who is now inspired to make a character: you're welcome
Started thinking of the quartermaster/first mate bard. I mean they have to be pretty persuasive to keep things running on a ship, especially when captain and crew don’t agree
I'm rolling into Bard pretty soon. Can't wait to lipsync "The Touch" by Stan Bush blaring out of my iphone at the table!
I am playing an ambassador bard right now in Kingmaker (pathfinder) and I am surprised to hear that it’s not more popular.
Her skills as a diplomat (and lots of really cheesy pick up lines between myself and the man playing the King, haha) has lead to the point to her becoming Queen. 👑
On the ambassador front I try to keep the peace in the party (a right nightmare at times!), talking to a lot of our citizens peasants, soldier and noble alike. And I have rarely felt useless in a fight - high level bardic preformances are amazing.
I actually (both in and out of character) helped two of the players to mend their IRL friendship after lots of game related drama.
And also wrote two (hopefully) funny little plays about the groups victories. 😊
I'm a notorious bard main, playing many bard and bard-like characters in games. This mostly comes from my own background in the performing arts, including dance, instruments, and singing. And no two have been completely alike. I've had one who came from a family of traveling performers, who secretly had drow lineage and followed Eilistrae, but wasn't aware of it until it was told to her by the goddess and her older sister. Another is a selkie, who grew up in a seal colony with her mother, and developed a strong love for the Arts, as well as a protective duty to all seals, knowing that there are many who wish harm upon them, hunting them for sport. Being a selkie also made her learn to be careful, because there are people out there who would seek those like her out for their own ill intentions. As a selkie, she has a lot of natural charm, so making her a bard was a given. I also have a bard-like character who is a magical girl, and she's a dancer at an art college, and is also the team shield and healer, based on her water powers.
I know all about bards, but like hearing you say things
I've played a college of swords bard that documented the fighting styles of the party. It became like a combat manual and strategy document. My party were mostly war gamers so they seemed to like it. Lol
My bard actually is just there for comedic effect, but I still save my party's asses anyway
I like the entertainer bard, the knife thrower, sword dancing and juggling and acrobatic theatrics in combat.
Shadowrun -- at least 5th edition --'s Face characters come pretty close to your ambassador bard and are a standard, common character type in that setting. Faces usually have something to them other than social skills, doing a face with magic lands you pretty close to the traditional arcane bards, and you can mix them partway with most other things in the system too.
Presently playing a Gnome Archaeologist Bard (College of Lore) in my fiance's campaign. Backstory of my family being blown up in an expedition and hence why I have an obsession to find a secret door. The only time I don't do this is when I'm in polite company and it is clearly somebody's home, for example. Luckily, this obsession has yielded a few sparse treasures and said doors. The reason why I survived my family was due to me training in the College of Lore to further our expedition.
I focus on being super excited when I'm in a dungeon or ruins when there is a prospect of artifacts to be discovered. My one friend was really grumpy that I was "pouncing" on all the treasure, however, I worked it in that I was so darn curious to understand the value of the objects and learn the history of the particular dungeon/ruin. Often, it is not to gain the item, but to understand the history and value that brings my passion out. My other friend who is a Human Warlock (Merchant) is role-playing as we know each other from past work together (naturally, he being the employer trying to funnel my gnomish energy into treasure finding)
So far, it has been quite amazing and incredibly fun. I got myself a Mantle of Mists as a result of finding a secret door and use the pocket dimension as a means to examine ruins uninterrupted or even procure magical artifacts from wrongdoers and I need to hide away for several hours.
I'm planning on embroidering my character further with interacting with my chosen deity (Tymora) in that I felt that she had failed my family in their tinkering demise. Hopefully, my fiance can get to change my mind on this completely. It's tough, as often Tymora brings the gnome to amazing artifacts to discover. I'm trying to iron out the details...
I often when in a sticky situation, I pluck out my bagpipes and stir up a ditty to assist my party to victory, especially handy when you are dealing out Bardic Inspiration to individual party members and it opens up the rolep-playing nicely :)
I played a bard that was more of a courtesan. It was super fun focusing on lore, conversation, and and dance. This made interaction with nobels easier.
Currently playing a half-orc bard, who's mostly a story teller, but also composes limericks (usually regarding the local pantheon). He joined the party after leaving a traveling group of mummers, as being the only guy among a group of master thespians, was getting... quite awkward.
I'm playing the last "Indianna Jones" type currently. Well, it bit more Nathan Drake, but in kobold form. He's less than a decade old and escaped his warren, and is out exploring the world, learning myths and aiming to explore them. He's not the most Wise or Intelligent, but he's charming and plucky and is always the first to dive in to an adventure and poke at the curious thingamy. He's happy to play a song or two, but his ultimate aim to to explore the world, have many an adventure and make all sorts of friends along the way.
Hey man love your vids; i use alot of the tips you give to try and make my character more real keep up ^_^
PS: i think that this vid is a little to bright
I’m a little late to the party, but might I suggest the Skald or warrior poet Bard?
They’re bards focused on winning glory in battle, and writing the tales down to preserve the legend.
I have a character I'm working on who starts out as an emotionally repressed wizard and slowly breaks out of their shell, accepting that theyre actually ALLOWED to enjoy music and changing to (or multiclassing to somehow) a bard. I plan on having them take an ambassador bard-esque role earlier on- along with some weird workarounds to the issue of charisma in such an unconfident character like "kinda endearingly awkward" or "so verbose people just tune out and assume they're right" or "moderate doormattery translates to being very good at deescalating situations by making concessions one may or may not plan to stand by" (intelligence-based casting wouldn't work for them since they don't let themselves put in the work to bring together a system of magic like that when they could be cultivating their Acceptable Wizard Magic™).
Not to mention I'm a complete newbie at D&D at any rate and, having no in-game experience, have resorted to building characters for story with no thoughts about playability. What fun.
When I think, Singing Bard, 1 of the 1st bands that come to mind, is Nightwish & Symphony X
I guess you could call my last bard an ambassador, but I classed her more as a spy than as an ambassador. It was a character who used a combination of stealth, deception, charm and magic to acquire information, undermine the enemy, and to get out of trouble. It probably blurred the line between bard and rogue, but that's what I was going for, it was a bit of a Dragon Age: Origins approach to a bard with D&D mechanics.
I actually played an "Indiana jones" style bard, and I have a player in my own campaign that's taking a dual role as both the scoundrel and the ambassador.
For my own bard; were treasure hunters and I searched for lost spells and wrote stories of our adventures. It was incredibly fun, unfortunately she died relatively early due to an infatuation with a "hand of vecna"-style magic item.
The bard in the campaign I'm running has been using his charm to get to places he normally wouldn't, and, like you said, has given me a lot of chances to have the npcs talk about lore and history without having to plug in an npc lore dump.
I've been waiting for this!!!!
What about the "actor","dancer",or"tumblers"? Once in a pathfinder game I had DM'd, I made an NPC that was a dancer bard/assassin and it was quite fun. I ended up making him into the antagonist and hunting the party down.
Not sure if its another type of bard to add to the list but a million years ago I had a 2nd Edition bard who I was playing as a bit of a coward in a party of four players who was the only magic user (after second level) only for the party to end up with the cowardly bard and a halfling thief so I had to play him as 'the muscle', it worked out alright, I ended up going for more combat orientated spells and added a big sword to his weapons skills. He ended up at 13th level which is the highest I've got a character to. If I recall he kind of worked out as roughly a 7th level fighter/mage who could do a bit of other stuff, handy for a small party.
My Bard is aspirational, she wants to be a great pirate because of all the stories and songs she's heard about great pirates of the past.
I’m actually playing a tiefling bard who is filling the ambassador role. He knows almost every law and every cultural and speaks several languages. He is a negotiator who always seeks to talk his way out of situations.
One of my favorite experiences in a D&D game involved all the casters having to come up with the verbal components of their various spells. And during game play, the caster had to use the words to cast the spell. If you didn't, then the spell failed.