Help me optimize a bard. Seriously.

[AndyJames]

No skill is essential, especially with an idiot DM. Just make sure you have escape options, preferrably ones that is self only.

Holy Word bomb is well... Read up on Holy Word and think about ways to increase caster level In Core alone, I can end up with a caster level of 31 for Holy Word at level 20. Enough to kill myself with no save, no SR if I am not Good aligned and am stupid enough to cast it

[Terronus]

You realize Virutoso advances Sublime Chord spellcasting, right?

Well I feel sheepish.   I guess virtuoso does have better songs as well.

[Akalsaris]

Holy Word Bomb can be done with straight cleric. You have no idea what it is, do you?

And yes, the two kids are adorable, but the woman singing the theme is almost incomprehensible. I keep trying to figure out if she is doing Mandarin or English...

Only the barest idea that it's based on maximizing the CL for Holy Word through dual advancement =P

And yeah...I tuned out the theme entirely.  I live in Japan and am only passable at the language, so I tend to generally tune out the words of most stuff on TV, especially if its not English.

[AndyJames]

Holy Word Bomb can be done with straight cleric. You have no idea what it is, do you?

And yes, the two kids are adorable, but the woman singing the theme is almost incomprehensible. I keep trying to figure out if she is doing Mandarin or English...

Only the barest idea that it's based on maximizing the CL for Holy Word through dual advancement =P

And yeah...I tuned out the theme entirely.  I live in Japan and am only passable at the language, so I tend to generally tune out the words of most stuff on TV, especially if its not English.

Then I would kindly suggest that you don't comment on it. Nothing worse than an empty vessel proving himself to the world.

[Akalsaris]

Point taken

[Operation Shoestring]

Bards already have a high willsave.  Chuck force of personality out the window.

[E-mail]

* E-mail casts Anmate Thread!

There is no reason to barf up a new thread for an old build that needs refinement. The last time I was trying to use this build I became seriously ill and never got to participate in the campaign, but now that Im back on my feet again Im joining the next one.

The setting is DragonLance during the Age of Mortals, and me and my four nerdy friends are going to try out the Key of Destiny campaign. The party will consist of the following characters:

A human rogue/fighter. This character will be a strength based two weapon fighter with a schimitar and a shortsword, and he will be blowing most of his feats on improving his critical hits and his battlefield mobility. This character SUCKS ASS, and everyone else in the party has placed bets on how long this guy will live. My bet is 3 hours and 23 minutes of play, and I am by far the most optimistic.

A human evoker. This guy is a gifted player, and a firm believer in practical optimization. Thouugh evocation is a weak choice, I enspect this guy to provide the party with a decent arcanist.

A human druid. This guy will be focusing his efforts on spellcasting while his animal companion tanks the enemy, until he gets wildshape for himself that is. I enspect this character to work well.

A human rogue/bard... played by me. I will focus her efforts on trapfinding, social skills, bardic music and spellcasting, in other words a little bit of everything the other members of the party havent covered themselves.

My build:

Race: Human

Stats (bonuspoints from high levels):
Str: 6
Dex: 14
Con: 12
Int: 14
Wis: 6
Cha: 18 (+1 at lvl 4, 8, 12, 16 and 20)

Build:
-1: Rogue 1 Feat (Dragontouched), feat (Able Learner)
-2: Rogue 2
-3: Bard 1 Feat (Melodic Casting)
-4: Bard 2
-5: Bard 3
-6: Bard 4 Feat (Dragonfire Inspiration)
-7: Bard 5
-8: Bard 6
-9: Mindbender 1 feat (Improved Initiative)
-10: Virtuoso 1
-11: Sublime Chord 1
-12: Sublime Chord 2 feat (Mindsight)
-13: Virtuoso 2
-14: Virtuoso 3
-15: Virtuoso 4 feat (Practiced Spellcaster)
-16: Virtuoso 5
-17: Virtuoso 6
-18: Virtuoso 7 feat (Improved Toughness)
-19: Virtuoso 8
-20: Virtuoso 9

Spell Selection:

0th:
Read Magic
Prestidigitation
Mage Hand
Detect Magic
Light
Ghost Sound

1st:
Inspirational Boost
Charm Person
Silent Image
Grease

2nd:
Invisibility
Ray of Stupidity
Alter Self
Glitterdust

3rd:
Glibness
Haste

4th:
Dominate Person
Enervation
Polymorph
Assay Resistance

5th:
Teleport
Dispel Magic, Greater
Wall of Stone
Mind Fog

6th:
Superior Resistance
Animate Objects
Ottos Irresistible Dance
Contingency

7th:
Ethereal Jaunt
Stun Ray
Spell Turning
Plane Shift

8th:
Maze   
Polymorph any Object
Telekinetic Sphere

9th:
Shapechange
Time Stop

Now, can you please tell me how I can kick more ass? It would be greatly appreciated

Also, if any of you are familiar with the Key of Destiny adventure,  would love to hear what I can enspect to have to prepare for.

PS: Word of Creation and Song of the Heart is banned from this campaign

[Omen of Peace]

I'd drop the second level of rogue for one of bard.

[Umbral]

I often find a level of Sand Shaper worth it for a Bard who is going Sublime Chord. the extra spells get added to both Bard and SC lists, and increase your versatility massively.

[Solo]

Buy a wand/eternal wand of Detect Traps, and put that rogue level into Bard.

I will focus her efforts on trapfinding, social skills, bardic music and spellcasting, in other words a little bit of everything the other members of the party havent covered themselves.

May I suggest Bardic Knack instead of Bardic Knowledge? Combined with the spell Improvisation, it means you get virtual ranks equal to your caster level for skills which you have no ranks in to begin with.

For what a bard like that would look like: http://www.thetangledweb.net/forums/profiler/view_char.php?cid=17445

I ran out of skill points for K. Arcana and Spellcraft (possibly should have traded a few points in Str for more skill points), but the group I'm in has a Wizard, Druid, Beguilder, and Cleric, so it wasn't too necessary.

More detailed description of Bardic Knack and Improvisation at the bottom of that character sheet.

[SorO_Lost]

Pick up the masterwork drums out of complete adventurer. You can play the drums and sing at the same time, and the bonuses only require you to play them, not use them as a focus / material component to bardic music.

On a side note. Randomized loot and the desire not to mix arcane & divine (for any reason) does not make a DM an idiot. Suggesting dirty tricks just to ruin the game for three other people because you're a dick can though. It just depends on how much you like your 'friends'.

[Solo]

What do masterwork drums do?

[SorO_Lost]

+1 to inspire's damage bonus. But it imposes a -1 change to the bonus against fear.
Totally worth it.

The Lute is handy too, +1 bard level for bardic music effects, So you could aim to be a 7th level bard using a lute and still have a base bonus of +2 for inspire.

[GawainBS]

Why not use a Vest of Inspiration then? It keeps your hands free. I might have the name off.

[Agita]

Why not use a Vest of Inspiration then? It keeps your hands free. I might have the name off.

Why not use both?

[skydragonknight]

2 things right off the bat:

1. Silverbrow Human from Dragon Magic. Lose the human's bonus skill point for the dragonblood subtype and featherfall 1/day.
This saves you taking Dragontouched. For "flavor only"(since your circle puts high value on that), since you have the blood of a cold-breathing dragon and not a fire-breathing dragon, see if you can get dragonfire inspiration to deal cold damage instead of fire. The "secondary benefits" of this is that fire is the most easily resisted energy type in the game. All other energy types are better than usually better than fire.

2. Dragonfire Inspiration works off the attack bonus, not the damage bonus, which is why the Masterwork Horn was suggested for the first bard...actually the horn isn't the right one either. Surprised no one caught this! It's the mandolin that raises the attack rolls.
So matter what you use(unless you tap dance) you'll always want Melodic Casting because either you can't use somatics or you can't use verbal(worse than somatics; ALL bard spells have verbal components)

3.(I lied) Asking the druid to cover listen/spot while you focus on other skills might not be a bad idea. Considering his wisdom modifier will be way higher than yours and he'll have alertness when next to his animal companion, 9/10 he'd roll better than you if you both had max ranks, so better to use the skill points on something no one else in your party can do.