I'm too Sexy: funny Bard/Swordsage build

[snakeman830]

Human Marshall 1/Bard 7/Unarmed Swordsage 1/Bard 2/Unarmed Swordsage 10 (note: if the DM is applying multiclass penalties, swap 4 Bard levels to Marshall.  Unnerving Calm, Able Learner, and Ascetic Mage aren't necessary for the build)

Feats:

1: Open
Human: Able Learner (not necessary, but useful)
Marshall: Skill Focus (Diplomacy)
3: Open
6: Open
9: Unnerving Calm
Swordsage 1: Weapon Focus (pick your discipline, doesn't matter)
12: Ascetic Mage
15: Adaptive Style
18: open

Manuvers: select every one that requires a Concentration check.  Pick Diamond Mind for Insightful Strike Discipline Focus

Minor Aura needs to be Motivate Charisma.

Now, boost your Perform Check as high as you can.  That's right, Perform.  Concentration you need 1 rank in, but is basically useless for you.  Why?

Undersong
Transmutation
Level: Bard 1
Components: V
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 10 minutes/level

This spell brings to your mind a song that helps you retain your concentration.  The song does not distract you from any task at hand—on the contrary, by humming along to the tune, you can focus your mind with ease.  As long as this spell is in effect, you can make a Perform check in place of a concentration check.

Note that unlike Path of Shadows or Melodic Casting, this applies to all Concentration checks, not just those for casting/manifesting.  Enjoy beating poison by dancing, evading Fireballs with a limerick, resisting a Chram with a song, and smacking your enemies down with a joke, further humiliating them.

In addition to using Perform checks for some really odd things, you add your impressive Cha modifier (you WILL have one) to AC and all of your Cha-based skills (such as UMD) will be very high.  Chances are, the party will listen to you.  If you have to go with the multiclass penalty friendly version, then be sure to pick up Motivate Dexterity as another minor aura and the whole party will really love you.

As you can see, there is a lot of room for customization.  I fully expect Snowflake Wardance to be a frequent addition, perhaps with an Extra Music feat or two.

If anyone asks how you accomplish things, just remind them that "you're just that sexy".

Comments?

[Negative Zero]

I saw a similar build once, that involved breakdancing people into submission via Unnerving Calm, but this build puts the schtick to far more uses. Well done.

[snakeman830]

I saw that build too, but people were using Path of Shadows and Melodic Casting for that, niether of which actually work for that purpose.  Undersong I'm surprised wasn't put up as a better method.

[Anklebite]

when I first saw the thread, I figured it would be about a particularly handsome troll bloodstorm blade with the detach feat...



"Im to sexy for my arm, too sexy for my arm, so sexy that it HURTS...."

"Im too sexy for my leg, too sexy for my leg...."

[Aldgar]

Name of "that one feat":

Metamagic Song from Races of Stone.

Unlike DMM, it has a cap that restricts you to metamagicking up to the effective spell level you can cast.

This means that you need to be able to cast 7th level spells(or metamagic cost reductions ala Arcane Thesis, metamagic school focus or incantatrix) to persist undersong this way.

[snakeman830]

Hmm.  Doesn't look like you'll be able to do that, then.  Well, with a duration that long anyway, you shouldn't need to cast it more than a couple of times each day.  I guess that will do instead.

Of course, if the DM allows custom magic items, an amulet/headband of continuous Undersong will only run you 6,000 gp.

Thanks for the feat, though.  I knew I saw it somewhere.

[Rebel7284]

Does Lyric Spell allow you to cast a spell with Metamagic Applied?  I looked at it but wasn't sure. 

Sublime Chord 5 gives you level 7 Bard Spells.  Incantatrix 3 may be easier though.

[McPoyo]

Could always extend it, since you can't persist. Not the best case, but it works from early on.

[snakeman830]

Of course, I suppose it couldn't hurt the build too much to swap back to Extend/Persist being in the feats, changing one level (not the Marshall level) to Cleric, and changing race to Illumian.  That's a way it could be persisted.

[McPoyo]

Would slow the progression a little, but it looks like it'd still work quite nicely. I do think I'm going to play this as my next character.

[snakeman830]

At minimum 10 levels of Swordsage and 2 levels of Bard must be in the build so you can know Undersong and can get access to 8th level manuvers (Time Stands Still is great, but doesn't involve Concentration checks).  Technically Swordsage can be swapped to Warblade, but then you can't get your hefty Cha to AC, so I prefer Swordsage for this.