D&D 5E Must-have bard spells?

[mgrinshpon]

Bards only get 22 spells, or maybe 24 if you go into the College of Lore. Since that's a paltry amount compared to the Wizards 44+, what do you consider the must-have bard spells?

I'm going College of Valor Bard. The ones that really popped out are:

• Cure Wounds (1): self explanatory
• Faerie Fire (1): Really boost the effectiveness of ally fighters. Dex save.
• Thunderwave (1): Surrounded by mooks? This is your ticket out until dimension door.
• Dispel Magic (3): self explanatory
• Dimension Door (4): cheers
• Feeblemind (8): Int saving throw which is probably great against a ton of different monsters. Turns the target into a vegetable for at least another 30 days.

As for the spells from other schools, my thoughts were

• Haste (3)
• Eldritch Blast (Cantrip): more powerful than archery
• Thaumaturgy (Cantrip): it's just cool
• EDIT: Wish (9): most powerful spell in the game

These are the for-sure amazing spells. What else looks top notch?

 

[ppaladin123]

Bards only get 22 spells, or maybe 24 if you go into the College of Lore. Since that's a paltry amount compared to the Wizards 44+, what do you consider the must-have bard spells?

I'm going College of Valor Bard. The ones that really popped out are:

• Cure Wounds (1): self explanatory
• Faerie Fire (1): Really boost the effectiveness of ally fighters. No save.
• Thunderwave (1): Surrounded by mooks? This is your ticket out until dimension door.
• Dispel Magic (3): self explanatory
• Dimension Door (4): cheers
• Feeblemind (8): Int saving throw which is probably great against a ton of different monsters. Turns the target into a vegetable for at least another 30 days.

As for the spells from other schools, my thoughts were

• Haste (3)
• Eldritch Blast (Cantrip): more powerful than archery
• Thaumaturgy (Cantrip): it's just cool

These are the for-sure amazing spells. What else looks top notch?

Check out hold person/hold monster. Each paralyzes the target if it fails a saving throw. Paralyze not only gives attackrs advantage on their roll but makes every hit an automatic critical hit. That is huge...especially for paladins and rogues since smite and sneak attack dice are also doubled on a critical hit.

 

[gyor]

When it comes to Magical Secrets, steal at least one of the Paladin's Smite Spells if you plan on melee fighting and Ensnaring Strike if you plan on using ranged or thrown weapons.

Find Steed gets you a cool mount.

Revive is a must, it lower level then raise dead and lacks the side effects if you're allies have been dead for over a minute things went really wrong in battle.

 

[mgrinshpon]

When it comes to Magical Secrets, steal at least one of the Paladin's Smite Spells if you plan on melee fighting and Ensnaring Strike if you plan on using ranged or thrown weapons.

Yes! How did I not see those?

Find Steed gets you a cool mount.

Revive is a must, it lower level then raise dead and lacks the side effects if you're allies have been dead for over a minute things went really wrong in battle.

I'm not crazy about Find Steed when I have Awaken. Revive does look pretty sweet, though. EDIT: Revive is not on the bard spell list and thus instantly worse than Raise Dead or Resurrection. Bards have between 4 and 6 flex slots for other schools' spells making it difficult to justify in the face of spells like Haste and Wish.

 

[Diirk]

When it comes to Magical Secrets, steal at least one of the Paladin's Smite Spells if you plan on melee fighting and Ensnaring Strike if you plan on using ranged or thrown weapons.

Not sure how effective the smite spells actually are, given that they require concentration... so they'll interfere with any number of other amazing spells such as bless, haste, bane etc.

 

[Gladius Legis]

Not sure how effective the smite spells actually are, given that they require concentration... so they'll interfere with any number of other amazing spells such as bless, haste, bane etc.

Agree. They're good for Devotion and Ancients Paladins, but Bards have better options. Like said Haste.

Another good 3rd-level Magical Secrets choice, if you're going to deal with mages, is Counterspell.

 

[borg286]

Here is my list. Feel free to comment.
Some highlights of spells to snipe are:
6th: 3rd level Aura of Vitality(70 HP total for out of combat healing), Fireball (obvious), Haste(obvious)
10th: Wall of Force(no save impassable wall), Black tentacles of forced intrusion(BC + damage)
14th: Magic jar (awesome!), Reverse gravity (BC, falling results in prone with no save + 10d6 damage in open space no save, 20d6 if ceiling is 100' high)
18th: Wish (duh), true polymorph (I'm not being creative, I know), Gate (Very versatile spell)

 

[Atlatl Jones]

For College of Valor bards focused on archery, Swift Quiver is a good alternative to Haste, since it only takes a bonus action to cast and gives two additional attacks instead of one. Hex or Hunter's Mark are also good sources of extra damage for Valor bards.

The Warlock list also has some good spells. Armor of Agathys is great for melee-oriented Valor bards. It's one of the few buff spells that doesn't require concentration.

 

[AmpsterMan]

So being new to the game I want to make a valor bard. What kinds of spells do you all recommend a bard to take? (i.e. crowd control, direct damage, adventuring, etc)

 

[Mistwell]

For me, these are the spells I am looking at right now. But this also assumes you are interested in being a healer as well:

1: Cure Wounds, Faerie Fire
2: Lesser Restoration, Silence (assuming your DM lets you use it in reaction to a spellcasting foe about to cast a spell)
3: Dispel Magic, Stinking Cloud
4: Dimension Door, Polymorph
5: Greater Restoration, Mass Cure Wounds
6: Eyebite, Mass Suggestion
7: Regenerate, Teleport
8: Dominate Monster
9: Power Word Heal

 

[AmpsterMan]

I see, so mainly "support" spells. This is good because I'll be playing a bard that has a sword and shield so I can't play my flute when in the middle of an engagement (I wouldn't allow myself to play a flute one handed and I consider my shield to be "weilded"; I don't try to beat the system much)

So as long as these spells are useful out of combat, which it seems they are, I am happy

 

[Paraxis]

I see, so mainly "support" spells. This is good because I'll be playing a bard that has a sword and shield so I can't play my flute when in the middle of an engagement (I wouldn't allow myself to play a flute one handed and I consider my shield to be "weilded"; I don't try to beat the system much)

So as long as these spells are useful out of combat, which it seems they are, I am happy

I don't think any bard will use instruments during combat, use a spell component pouch and just put your sword away while you cast.

Lutes are for the camp fire songs, spell component pouches are for battle.

Must have spell, the legendary monster killer, contagion.

 

[AmpsterMan]

Heh, now I want to play a dual weilding bard; longsword in one hand, magic flute/dagger in the other.

Or better yet, metallic Banjo that doubles as a Maul

 

[Mistwell]

Must have spell, the legendary monster killer, contagion.

This is, of course, assuming the interpretation that they get the disease on turn one is even the correct interpretation. Otherwise, I do not think it would be a wise choice for your Magical Secrets ability at 10th level.

 

[brehobit]

Faerie Fire (1): Really boost the effectiveness of ally fighters. No save.

Just noting that there is a dex save here...

 

[Paraxis]

This is, of course, assuming the interpretation that they get the disease on turn one is even the correct interpretation. Otherwise, I do not think it would be a wise choice for your Magical Secrets ability at 10th level.

It is very hard for me to see how anyone would/could interpret the spell where you didn't get afflicted with the disease on turn one.

Your touch inflicts disease. Make a melee spell attack against a creature within your reach. On a hit, you afflict the creature with a disease of our choice from any of the one described below. At the end of each of the target’s turns, it must make a Constitution saving throw. After failing three of these saving throws, the disease's effects last for the duration, and the creature stops making these saves. After succeeding on three of these saving throws, the creature recovers from the disease, and the spell ends.
Since this spell induces a natural disease in its target, any effect that removes disease or otherwise ameliorates a disease’s effects apply to it.


On a hit you are afflicted, seems straight forward to me.

After three successful saves you recover from the disease, you have to be suffering some effect to recover from for this part to make sense.

I know it is OP as all get out and trivializes legendary monsters once you touch them with it, but those things don't make another reading of the spell any more valid. D&D has always had save or suck/die spells and still does, this one spell just makes that legendary monster auto save thing kinda pointless.

 

[Mandragola]

Supposedly it still gets better after 3 turns... albeit a lot can happen in 3 turns.

I think hex is pretty good myself. Giving a critter disadvantage on attacks is excellent, especially for big guys. Nice that you also get to inflict more damage on them. It does feel a bit odd going for a level 1 spell, but you can cast it as a bonus action so it's something to do with low-level spell slots even up to quite high levels I think.

 

[Mistwell]

It is very hard for me to see how anyone would/could interpret the spell where you didn't get afflicted with the disease on turn one.

Your touch inflicts disease. Make a melee spell attack against a creature within your reach. On a hit, you afflict the creature with a disease of our choice from any of the one described below. At the end of each of the target’s turns, it must make a Constitution saving throw. After failing three of these saving throws, the disease's effects last for the duration, and the creature stops making these saves. After succeeding on three of these saving throws, the creature recovers from the disease, and the spell ends.
Since this spell induces a natural disease in its target, any effect that removes disease or otherwise ameliorates a disease’s effects apply to it.


On a hit you are afflicted, seems straight forward to me.

After three successful saves you recover from the disease, you have to be suffering some effect to recover from for this part to make sense.

I know it is OP as all get out and trivializes legendary monsters once you touch them with it, but those things don't make another reading of the spell any more valid. D&D has always had save or suck/die spells and still does, this one spell just makes that legendary monster auto save thing kinda pointless.

Disease affliction, however, does not mean you have the harmful symptoms right away. It just means you have the disease, and in this case it states it's the natural form of the disease.

One thing that separates disease from pretty much every other type of affliction, is that they have incubation times prior to being hit with the symptoms. This explains hundreds of side treks done over the years by adventuring parties to get a PC back to town and pay for a cure disease from a cleric before the symptoms kick in.

We won't know until the DMG, which will have the disease rules.

 

[Mistwell]

Supposedly it still gets better after 3 turns... albeit a lot can happen in 3 turns.

I think hex is pretty good myself. Giving a critter disadvantage on attacks is excellent, especially for big guys. Nice that you also get to inflict more damage on them. It does feel a bit odd going for a level 1 spell, but you can cast it as a bonus action so it's something to do with low-level spell slots even up to quite high levels I think.

How does that work? Do you pick Strength for the ability that is cursed, and their attacks are strength checks? What if they end up using Dex for their attacks?

 

[brehobit]

How does that work? Do you pick Strength for the ability that is cursed, and their attacks are strength checks? What if they end up using Dex for their attacks?

Attacks are not checks, so Hex won't do this.

That said, there are a handful of things that involve making an athletics check (grapple for example as I recall) and there Hex is brutal with it's "1st level have disadvantage, no save". Also could be fun if you've got an assassin on your team who hides a lot and you give a disadvantage on Wis to the target. Good luck with that.

Halfling warlock hiding behind a human is going to rock it out there.