Could we make use of True Strike or Blade Ward?
My take on those spells:
True strike is still a bad choice. You're sacrificing one attack in exchange for advantage on another attack, which is a strict downgrade in most cases. Even if you tweak the wording to allow TS to take effect on the same turn, that fundamental weakness still applies: "2 attack rolls, maximum of 1 hit" is strictly worse than "2 attack rolls, maximum of 2 hits."
The use cases for
true strike remain as they were:
- You can't attack effectively this turn, but you anticipate being able to do so next turn, so you cast true strike this turn to boost your next turn's damage output.
- You have a powerful attack with limited uses, which is expended on a miss. You cast true strike to maximize your odds of landing the attack.
- You get special benefits for attacking with advantage (e.g., Sneak Attack) and have no other way to access those benefits (e.g., no allies within 5 feet of the target). You cast true strike to get advantage.
The bladesinger change reduces the opportunity cost of
true strike from "1 action" to "1 attack," so the change makes
true strike more attractive in scenarios 2 and 3. But it doesn't cause those scenarios to be any more common, and it doesn't open up new scenarios where TS is worthwhile.
Blade ward is a little better. Using it reduces your damage output by more than 50% (since you sacrifice, not only your second attack, but the opportunity to cast
booming blade or
green-flame blade with your "cantrip attack"), in exchange for, at best, a 50% reduction in incoming damage. So, as a rule, you are better off with an offensive cantrip. But
blade ward would be useful in a pinch if your regular front-line defenders are out of the action; you could cast BW every turn and step in to tank for the party.