Level Up (A5E) Bard Hymn Questions/Clarifications

[sprinkleBDH]

Hello

I tried searching other threads for a similar topic but did not find a specific one.

I was hoping someone could help me understand some of the unclear interactions with Hymns and the Battle Hymn Focus/Specializations and the "Call to arms" hymn.

Call to arms - Chooses one create within 30 feet, until the start of your next turn the chosen creature can roll one addition weapon damage on its weapon attacks (pg124 Adventures Guide)

Level 4 hymn focus: Your battle hymns can affect a number of additional creatures equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum 1). (pg126 Adventures Guide)

Does then mean bard activates the hymn and chooses 5 people to get another weapon die just until the bard takes it next turn?

What happens if the bard chooses to continue the battle hymn instead of ending it, it reads like nothing but hymns seem like continuous effects this seems to break the pattern.

At level 8 "Hymn Specialization/Hymn Focus: At the end of another creature’s turn, you can use your reaction to activate a battle hymn. This battle hymn replaces any currently activated battle hymns. Activating a battle hymn in this way does not require expending a use of Bardic Inspiration (pg126 Adventures Guide)

This also sounds like you can activate a hymn every round for free, combined with the additional creature* focus, this could easily result in giving a party extra weapon dice for the small price of the bards reaction is this intentional or is there some typo or pattern I'm missing?


*edited A typo

 

[lichmaster]

Once activated Battle Hymns continue until the bard loses concentration.
So once you get to level 4 you can give each member of the party 1 additional die of damage each round until you lose concentration.

As for the use of reaction I think it still expends one use of Bardic Inspiration. The advantage is that you can switch the battle hymn on the spot, adapting to the current situation.

A cool and simple synergy for weapon damage is to take another Focus at level 8, so that Call to arms doesn't require concentration: free extra weapon damage for all!

 

[Steampunkette]

Once activated Battle Hymns continue until the bard loses concentration.
So once you get to level 4 you can give each member of the party 1 additional die of damage each round until you lose concentration.

As for the use of reaction I think it still expends one use of Bardic Inspiration. The advantage is that you can switch the battle hymn on the spot, adapting to the current situation.

A cool and simple synergy for weapon damage is to take another Focus at level 8, so that Call to arms doesn't require concentration: free extra weapon damage for all!

The reaction battle hymn does -not- use another Bardic Inspiration use. It explicitly states as much.

Basically you get a Hymn for "Free", but it costs you your ability to react to danger or changing situations. No opportunity attack 'til your next turn, but if you're singing Overbearing Rhythm when a party member gets ambushed and dropped to 0hp you can use a reaction to sing the Ode of Blood to keep them active for a few turns so they can try to escape from their attackers and get back to someone who can provide healing.

 

[lichmaster]

The reaction battle hymn does -not- use another Bardic Inspiration use. It explicitly states as much.

You're totally right, I missed that part!

 

[sprinkleBDH]

Thanks for your help, I think my narrator is a bit worried about my bard providing additional weapon die to the entire party, pretty much all the time. Our party is a bit skewed where its 1 bard and 4 Mostly Martial characters. So the "extra" die on attacks adds up quick.

 

[lichmaster]

Thanks for your help, I think my narrator is a bit worried about my bard providing additional weapon die to the entire party, pretty much all the time. Our party is a bit skewed where its 1 bard and 4 Mostly Martial characters. So the "extra" die on attacks adds up quick.

I can understand! For a mostly melee party with many APR the added damage is substantial!
I guess it'll take some time for us Narrators to familiarize enough with the rules and be able to have the right "feeling" if something is right or not in LU, and how to adjust on the fly.

I'd expect most monsters and encounter guidelines in general to be appropriately balance considering these various aspects (i'm very confident this is true and much better than o5e)

 

[Selganor]

[...] sing the Ode of Blood to keep them active for a few turns so they can try to escape from their attackers and get back to someone who can provide healing.

I thought so, too but Ode of Blood only removes the incapacitated condition. You are still dying and unconscious (and therefore can't move or even see/hear healing effects that require you to notice them like the Marshal's Rallying Word).
But you do get your action, bonus action and reaction... good luck finding anything to do that you don't have to move anything...

 

[W'rkncacnter]

I thought so, too but Ode of Blood only removes the incapacitated condition. You are still dying and unconscious (and therefore can't move or even see/hear healing effects that require you to notice them like the Marshal's Rallying Word).
But you do get your action, bonus action and reaction... good luck finding anything to do that you don't have to move anything...

i mean...you could heal yourself.

that said, ode of blood reads like the intent is to let you act while making death saves, so i don't think it'd be that unreasonable to replace "incapacitated" with "unconscious" here.

 

[Selganor]

How could you heal yourself if you can't move or speak? Not "you have a speed of 0" but "you can't move".
And besides one Druid spell (that first poisons the target before then healing it) all A5E healing spells require a V component.

 

[W'rkncacnter]

How could you heal yourself if you can't move or speak? Not "you have a speed of 0" but "you can't move".

"you can't move" tends to translate to "you can't use your speed" in game terms.

And besides one Druid spell (that first poisons the target before then healing it) all A5E healing spells require a V component.

this, however, is fair.

either way, though, this just further proves my point that the hymn is nonfunctional as written and should have "incapacitated" replaced with "unconscious".