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General Tabletop Discussion
Character Builds & Optimization
The Bard: College of Lore or Valor?
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<blockquote data-quote="Weave" data-source="post: 6380046" data-attributes="member: 6779992"><p>I have been mulling this one over for a week or so now, and since the answer is so subjective maybe I will just offer two criteria I consider when weighing my options.</p><p></p><p>1. Campaign setting and party make up matter way less as external factors to consider than does what kind of DM you have. knowing how your DMs adventures tend to go should be the biggest factor. Is he a descriptive DM who relies on skill rolls in conversations, or is he more likely to embody NPCs and make you come up with that persuasive argument? College of Lore would be better for descriptive DM campaigns. Does your DM support lore heavy play by being familiar with the setting your playing? Making amazing knowledge checks is only fun if the DM is prepared enough to provide substantive responses to those checks. If its more of a fly by the seat of your pants adventure with heavy combat and light roleplaying then Valor might be a better choice mechanically.</p><p></p><p>2. More importantly, who is your character? Did your bard receive their training at a prestigious college while enjoying the perks of the noble background? Lore. Perhaps you learned your bardic crafts on the caravan road, picking up tips from traveling virtuosi and adventuring amateurs alike. Valor. Make it an organic choice and you will find the character comes more naturally during roleplaying.</p><p></p><p>Lore:</p><p>3rd level: Lore gets more skills, which is great but we already have jack of all trades and being a half elf I already have 7 skills and 2 expertise. Eh.</p><p>6th level: 2 spells from any class, up to spell level 3. Great feature.</p><p>14th level: Use bardic inspiration on any ability check. Pretty good, but at this point bonus actions are precious and I intend to use my inspirations on my comrades to mitigate damage.</p><p>Cutting words: Makes you a more effective support character on the defensive side. Great reactive defense.</p><p></p><p>Valor:</p><p>3rd level: Armor and Weapons. You get a shield, which is nice. The medium armor is not that big an upgrade for a dexterity based character, which as valor, you probably are. again, eh</p><p>6th level: Bonus attack. Nothing wrong with that. Great addition.</p><p>14th level: attack after using a spell. Since you are not taking an attack action, you don't get your level 6 additional attack. Since the smite line (which as valor most would think of pursuing) is made up of bonus actions, you get that one attack anyway on most spells you cast at 5'' range. This is comparable to lore feature.</p><p>Combat inspiration: Makes you a more effective support character on the offensive side. Great for offense and reactive defense.</p><p></p><p>As far as mechanics go, The level six extra spells from any class are the most attractive feature. Once I hit level 6 I plan on grabbing Aura of Vitality, a gnarly paladin healing spell quite powerful at that level, and the warlocks cantrip Eldritch Blast which at level 6 allows for 2d10 dmg, and can hit multiple targets. This will let me do high spell damage after using the useful "1 bonus action" spells Banishing Smite (another paladin spell accessed through magical secrets) and Healing Words/Mass Healing Words. I figure this will allow me to really stack up the actions per turn, and lets me roleplay stringing magical notes together.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Weave, post: 6380046, member: 6779992"] I have been mulling this one over for a week or so now, and since the answer is so subjective maybe I will just offer two criteria I consider when weighing my options. 1. Campaign setting and party make up matter way less as external factors to consider than does what kind of DM you have. knowing how your DMs adventures tend to go should be the biggest factor. Is he a descriptive DM who relies on skill rolls in conversations, or is he more likely to embody NPCs and make you come up with that persuasive argument? College of Lore would be better for descriptive DM campaigns. Does your DM support lore heavy play by being familiar with the setting your playing? Making amazing knowledge checks is only fun if the DM is prepared enough to provide substantive responses to those checks. If its more of a fly by the seat of your pants adventure with heavy combat and light roleplaying then Valor might be a better choice mechanically. 2. More importantly, who is your character? Did your bard receive their training at a prestigious college while enjoying the perks of the noble background? Lore. Perhaps you learned your bardic crafts on the caravan road, picking up tips from traveling virtuosi and adventuring amateurs alike. Valor. Make it an organic choice and you will find the character comes more naturally during roleplaying. Lore: 3rd level: Lore gets more skills, which is great but we already have jack of all trades and being a half elf I already have 7 skills and 2 expertise. Eh. 6th level: 2 spells from any class, up to spell level 3. Great feature. 14th level: Use bardic inspiration on any ability check. Pretty good, but at this point bonus actions are precious and I intend to use my inspirations on my comrades to mitigate damage. Cutting words: Makes you a more effective support character on the defensive side. Great reactive defense. Valor: 3rd level: Armor and Weapons. You get a shield, which is nice. The medium armor is not that big an upgrade for a dexterity based character, which as valor, you probably are. again, eh 6th level: Bonus attack. Nothing wrong with that. Great addition. 14th level: attack after using a spell. Since you are not taking an attack action, you don't get your level 6 additional attack. Since the smite line (which as valor most would think of pursuing) is made up of bonus actions, you get that one attack anyway on most spells you cast at 5'' range. This is comparable to lore feature. Combat inspiration: Makes you a more effective support character on the offensive side. Great for offense and reactive defense. As far as mechanics go, The level six extra spells from any class are the most attractive feature. Once I hit level 6 I plan on grabbing Aura of Vitality, a gnarly paladin healing spell quite powerful at that level, and the warlocks cantrip Eldritch Blast which at level 6 allows for 2d10 dmg, and can hit multiple targets. This will let me do high spell damage after using the useful "1 bonus action" spells Banishing Smite (another paladin spell accessed through magical secrets) and Healing Words/Mass Healing Words. I figure this will allow me to really stack up the actions per turn, and lets me roleplay stringing magical notes together. [/QUOTE]
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