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Bards Should Be Half-Casters in 5.5e/6e
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<blockquote data-quote="Benjamin Olson" data-source="post: 8391345" data-attributes="member: 6988941"><p>Why yes. Thanks for asking.</p><p></p><p>I think the 5e Bard is the best executed Bard in any version of D&D. A competent Bard build will feel useful and relevant in almost all situations, and occasionally gets to be the MVP, and can contribute in most roles while at the same time not showing up other classes in their own roles. I also think its the only full charisma caster that really has a satisfying design in 5e, because Sorcerers are far too limited in spells known, and Warlocks are somewhat too limited in spells known while being way too limited at spell slots in any remotely typical adventuring day. They're also, to me, the most natural charisma caster, so I like them being a particularly strong charisma caster (I can't come around to Constitution based Sorcerers, but if there were an actual "Magical Energy" stat that would be the natural home of Sorcerers. Based on the lore I think Warlocks should be Intelligence based). I don't really see your problem with the high level Bard spells; they feel thematic enough to me. Who better to wield the words of power than the groups resident singer, poet, or orator? Honestly I think on the whole Bards have one of the best curated spell lists in 5e, albeit with a few oddballs and a few that should not be there because they simply don't make any sense for memorized casters (I mean I know Feign Death is "acting" but its a "prepare and cast exactly once for that one particular scheme" spell if ever there was one).</p><p></p><p>I also find the class thematically coherent, while you find it disjointed. I'm not sure how you find them particularly more "disjointed" than any other D&D class. I'm going to guess it has to do with expectations set over years of playing D&D. Personally to me, as someone who came to regular play of D&D somewhat late in life with a European history background the thematic oddball of the full-casters is the Cleric. While there are a handful of literary and historical precedents for a heavily armored and armed priest, in the medieval european context "clericus" was the catchall for priest, monk, or person with training in the "white-collar" skills of such people (hence the word "clerk"). To me the dissonnace between historical or literary clerics and D&D clerics is far greater than the dissonance between actual performers and characters who wield bardic magic.</p><p></p><p>I also think "half-casting" is not terribly well executed in 5e progression-wise. Basically the spell slot progression is such that being a caster is pretty useless until you have the equivalent of three full caster levels, and suddenly go from someone who has three slots a day to someone who who has 6 slots a day and can actually afford to spend spell slots reasonably freely. For half casters this doesn't come until level 5, which is a substantial journey at most tables I play at. This is not a huge problem for the martial half casters, because Paladins are more interested in smiting than casting anyway and Rangers can lean on the economical Hunter's Mark, and both these "martial half-casters" are really more martial than half-caster. When they hit level 5 they're players are probably far more excited by the extra-attack than the expanded spellcasting. I find the progression a bigger problem with Artificers who to me, in 1st tier play, feel like they are too spell-based for the number of spell slots they get. Though they still fare better than the 1/3 caster Eldritch Knights and Arcane Tricksters, who are basically the only non-multiclass options in the game that don't feel "online" to me by level 5. One saving grace of all of these is that 5e has done a good job at creating a spell system with lots of low level spells that continue to be useful in mid-to-late game, such that when these classes and subclasses actually get enough casting to throw around, with the right spell picks the casting abilities of partial casters still feel useful and powerful, I just feel like they take a bit too long to get there.</p><p></p><p>Of the memorized casters, full or partial, in 5e, Bards are the only one for whom the number of spells know doesn't feel excessively constraining to me at any level. I would hate to see them stray far from their current, strong 4 spells-known start.</p><p></p><p>I'm not <em>completely</em> opposed to the idea of Bards being more of a 2/3rds or 3/4 caster or otherwise a little less magically competent <em>at some point</em> than the straight mage classes, in a system that supported such things, but should the Full-Caster, Half-Caster, 1/3-Caster framework of 5e continue to rule for future editions I would very much object from Bards losing their full-caster status.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Benjamin Olson, post: 8391345, member: 6988941"] Why yes. Thanks for asking. I think the 5e Bard is the best executed Bard in any version of D&D. A competent Bard build will feel useful and relevant in almost all situations, and occasionally gets to be the MVP, and can contribute in most roles while at the same time not showing up other classes in their own roles. I also think its the only full charisma caster that really has a satisfying design in 5e, because Sorcerers are far too limited in spells known, and Warlocks are somewhat too limited in spells known while being way too limited at spell slots in any remotely typical adventuring day. They're also, to me, the most natural charisma caster, so I like them being a particularly strong charisma caster (I can't come around to Constitution based Sorcerers, but if there were an actual "Magical Energy" stat that would be the natural home of Sorcerers. Based on the lore I think Warlocks should be Intelligence based). I don't really see your problem with the high level Bard spells; they feel thematic enough to me. Who better to wield the words of power than the groups resident singer, poet, or orator? Honestly I think on the whole Bards have one of the best curated spell lists in 5e, albeit with a few oddballs and a few that should not be there because they simply don't make any sense for memorized casters (I mean I know Feign Death is "acting" but its a "prepare and cast exactly once for that one particular scheme" spell if ever there was one). I also find the class thematically coherent, while you find it disjointed. I'm not sure how you find them particularly more "disjointed" than any other D&D class. I'm going to guess it has to do with expectations set over years of playing D&D. Personally to me, as someone who came to regular play of D&D somewhat late in life with a European history background the thematic oddball of the full-casters is the Cleric. While there are a handful of literary and historical precedents for a heavily armored and armed priest, in the medieval european context "clericus" was the catchall for priest, monk, or person with training in the "white-collar" skills of such people (hence the word "clerk"). To me the dissonnace between historical or literary clerics and D&D clerics is far greater than the dissonance between actual performers and characters who wield bardic magic. I also think "half-casting" is not terribly well executed in 5e progression-wise. Basically the spell slot progression is such that being a caster is pretty useless until you have the equivalent of three full caster levels, and suddenly go from someone who has three slots a day to someone who who has 6 slots a day and can actually afford to spend spell slots reasonably freely. For half casters this doesn't come until level 5, which is a substantial journey at most tables I play at. This is not a huge problem for the martial half casters, because Paladins are more interested in smiting than casting anyway and Rangers can lean on the economical Hunter's Mark, and both these "martial half-casters" are really more martial than half-caster. When they hit level 5 they're players are probably far more excited by the extra-attack than the expanded spellcasting. I find the progression a bigger problem with Artificers who to me, in 1st tier play, feel like they are too spell-based for the number of spell slots they get. Though they still fare better than the 1/3 caster Eldritch Knights and Arcane Tricksters, who are basically the only non-multiclass options in the game that don't feel "online" to me by level 5. One saving grace of all of these is that 5e has done a good job at creating a spell system with lots of low level spells that continue to be useful in mid-to-late game, such that when these classes and subclasses actually get enough casting to throw around, with the right spell picks the casting abilities of partial casters still feel useful and powerful, I just feel like they take a bit too long to get there. Of the memorized casters, full or partial, in 5e, Bards are the only one for whom the number of spells know doesn't feel excessively constraining to me at any level. I would hate to see them stray far from their current, strong 4 spells-known start. I'm not [I]completely[/I] opposed to the idea of Bards being more of a 2/3rds or 3/4 caster or otherwise a little less magically competent [I]at some point[/I] than the straight mage classes, in a system that supported such things, but should the Full-Caster, Half-Caster, 1/3-Caster framework of 5e continue to rule for future editions I would very much object from Bards losing their full-caster status. [/QUOTE]
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