D&D 5E Anyone else think the Bard concept is just silly?

[Gardens & Goblins]

Metal. Now that's silly. Hairy men, singsonging? HA!

 

[Lord Twig]

Full poems or poetic phrases from famous epics and sagas that inspire greatness?

I can imagine sitting in an audience and being inspired by a particularly good epic. Heck, I have come out of speeches thinking, "Yes! I'm going to do this!" Then I get started and about 15 minutes later I am thinking "Well, maybe I'll do this later." By the next day I'll realize that it was foolish to think that this time would be different and I go back to playing video games.

While actually in combat? No. No amount of encouragement is going to convince me that we all wouldn't be better off just having the guy pick up a sword and start fighting next to us. But of course D&D changes this. The Bard's encouragement is magical (or at least magical in the way that a dragon can fly despite physics) and has a measurable impact on the effectiveness of others. Heck! The Bard can actually do physical harm to someone with an insult (Cutting Words).

So for me, magic changes the Bard from a singing fool, to a valuable support character.

 

[Brandegoris]

I can imagine sitting in an audience and being inspired by a particularly good epic. Heck, I have come out of speeches thinking, "Yes! I'm going to do this!" Then I get started and about 15 minutes later I am thinking "Well, maybe I'll do this later." By the next day I'll realize that it was foolish to think that this time would be different and I go back to playing video games.

While actually in combat? No. No amount of encouragement is going to convince me that we all wouldn't be better off just having the guy pick up a sword and start fighting next to us. But of course D&D changes this. The Bard's encouragement is magical (or at least magical in the way that a dragon can fly despite physics) and has a measurable impact on the effectiveness of others. Heck! The Bard can actually do physical harm to someone with an insult (Cutting Words).

So for me, magic changes the Bard from a singing fool, to a valuable support character.

Agreed! He IS valuable.. He just looks silly LOL

 

[Lord Twig]

Agreed! He IS valuable.. He just looks silly LOL

True enough! LOL

 

[The Crimson Binome]

Heck! The Bard can actually do physical harm to someone with an insult (Cutting Words).

It's worth noting that damage descriptions are left up to DM interpretation, and psychic damage is specifically noted as being less physical than other types. Psychic damage didn't even exist back in 2E or 3E, because those editions stipulated that HP damage must correspond to physical damage sources; and psychic damage has never been a damage type in any edition that didn't include overnight full-healing.

 

[Lord Twig]

It's worth noting that damage descriptions are left up to DM interpretation, and psychic damage is specifically noted as being less physical than other types. Psychic damage didn't even exist back in 2E or 3E, because those editions stipulated that HP damage must correspond to physical damage sources; and psychic damage has never been a damage type in any edition that didn't include overnight full-healing.

Certainly! I don't want to get into a "HPs is meat" argument, but regardless of how you describe the damage a high level Bard can easily kill a person who has taken no other damage with Cutting Words or Dissonant Whispers. Being dead is still physical harm even if you leave a good looking corpse.

 

[Tony Vargas]

a high level Bard can easily kill a person who has taken no other damage with Cutting Words or Dissonant Whispers.

Who looks silly now?

 

[Brandegoris]

Who looks silly now?

LOL Still the Bard?
As I die I think I will be even more offended that I was killed by a bard

 

[cbwjm]

LOL Still the Bard?
As I die I think I will be even more offended that I was killed by a bard

Imagine how embarrassed you'd be if that bard was a gnome.

 

[Tallifer]

Why did armies have bag pipers, or fife and drums, or various other musicians, accompany them into battle? Music is a powerful enhancement to emotion.