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I've been plugging away at the Alternate Bard between other projects, and I've finally got a "full" version of the class to show you all! Included here is the Alpha version with levels 1-20, three Traditions, the Bard spell list, and a few spells!

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Bardic Inspiration is meant to be the primary resource of this class, offering powerful subclass features that help you lean into your subclass theme.

Like the Artificer, the subclasses of the Alternate Bard will greatly determine how your Alternate Bard will play in combat.

Fools (p. College of Fools) are all about slippery movement and soft taunting with vicious mockery. They also make great infiltrators.

Loremasters (p. College of Lore) I view this subclass as the Bard. They get buffs to Bardic Inspiration, and really lean into their Magical Secrets spells.

Skalds (p. College of Valor) are the frontline Bards. Not sure if heavy armor is too much for this subclass, but I figured you would need to survive on the front lines somehow. Their features are mostly about buffing your allies. An eventual College of Swords analog would be a self-buffing martial Bard (...Exploits???).

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Anyway... This is an Alpha version so I'm very interested to hear what you have to say in terms of feedback (just be nice). 

~laserllama

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Comments

Jeff Potato

I like it more than I expected to. The Skald actually looks decent and I think the Loremaster is...maybe workable if you pick your spells well. My instinct is that the Fool needs more offensive ability -- more ways to screw with enemies, whether damage or otherwise. Is True Strike meant to add your spellcasting modifier *instead of* or *in addition to* whatever you'd normally be using for the attack? It's definitely more true to the style of the traditional D&D bard, which certainly wasn't a full caster before. I'm not sure whether that's a good thing, honestly.

Worst Warlock

The fool forces enemies to target it for attacks if they don't want to suffer disadvantage due to the reworked vicious mockery, and then potentially negates the attack against itself too with its second cast, all while dealing cantrip+CHA damage up to twice a round- without expending resources! The fact it already gets to use its cantrip twice a round anytime an enemy doesn't want to eat the disadvantage puts it way ahead on damage over the loremasster BEFORE factoring in CHA to damage. This is super good- and for other ways to screw with people you have spells from every single spell list.

Anonymous

My biggest problem is that pretty much all of this classes main features feel centered around Reactions: Bardic Inspiration, Cutting Words, Combat Inspiration, Countersong, Sharper Wit It doesn't feel like the class or subclasses get enough new or interesting options for using their actions or bonus actions generally, which I think a half caster like this / artificer REALLY needs