Decent char?

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Here's an imported Elven Bard to BG2.. just wondering if you guys have any opinions on him.

NAME: Abasyntha Bladesinger
Elven Lawful Neutral Bard
17/21/16/14/15/18 = 89

Alright.. I want to make him a Blade.. Why?

a) Defensive Spin helps with spellcasting
b) Offensive Spin lets me hack and slash
c) Good armor class w/ dexterity helps
d) Dual Wield proficiency bonus

Proficiencies in Long Swords & Dual Wield.

PARTY:

me (Protagonist, Spells, Lore, Combat)
Jaheira (Combat, Healing)
Jan (Thievery, Spells)

Any opinions?

 

Well, I'm not a fan of Bards but his stats look really good and if you want to play a bard then go for it. Maybe someone who's played Bards can comment on that.

I think having Jaheira and Jan in your party is a good idea, cause as you've indicated you cover all the required elements with just 3 characters allowing you to experiment with the other NPCs to see which ones you like.

Have fun playing the game with your bard.

 

Ahhh blades; everyone should have one. Ive never played a blade as the protagonist, but I used Haer'Dalis in the first party I completed SOA with and he becomes stupidly hard at high levels. If youve never used one in SOA before then it takes a bit of getting used to, but once youve got the hang of which spells to use when then your music man will decimate all.

A few tips; let your blade learn predominantly protective/enhancement spells plus a few essentials like magic missile etc. Also, for your party I'd go for necromantic spells as Jan cant learn these. Plus Vampiric Touch can be a lifesaver at lower levels. Obviously Stoneskin is indispensible, and mirror image and blur are pretty important too. Try and get some elven chainmail or some AC bracers even though youve go a really high dexterity score and some good swords and you, my friend, will be sorted. Enjoy!

 

Bards rock. Provided you like roleplaying and not powegaming, you will have a blast with a bard. They can hold their own in a fight if need be, make great backup with both bows and magics, and can identify damned near anything. I personally prefer skalds over blades, but that's just me.

 

if you want a great bard, haer'dalis is the way to go with his two proficiencies in short swords, and numerous other bonuses like his innate resistances to fire, cold, etc

but for user created ones...

you can identify anything in the game, pick everyones pockets clean and help out your mage with spells - if required, you fight like the best of them, if not, sit back and let your bard songs give bonuses to the rest of your party

blades are very good due to their dual wielding (having more attacks is better than just a low THAC0)

your bard will not require a very high con - cos he wont get hit if you use his/her blur/mirror image/stoneskin spells and (if youre a blade) defensive spin
add protection from magic energy/elements and he/she wont get hurt at all!

once your bard finds a niche in your party you'll quickly find out how cool these guys are - and if you should take him/her through to ToB... *no spoilers* =)

 

Nice stats but how did you get 21 dex ? There is just one tome of dex in BG-1 ToSC and since elves can have dex-19 you should rather have dex-20. Do you use kiel's buckler for any chance or have you played the dark side (I don't know it - maybe there is another one) ?

 

1. Blades are the worst bard kit (IMO) due to the low lore they get (still better than an ordinary character but not as good as a regular bard)
2. The name sound female IMO
3. If you REALLY want a blade get Haer D'alis instead, he is specialized in short swords and in ToB (SPOILER) he gets specialized in long swords as well.
4. And elves usually are chaotic (not a demand though)
So i would make your character a Skald instead their song rocks, and they have great lore. So i would make him a Two-Handed sword+Longbow weilder. Much better.

[This message has been edited by Firestorm (edited October 25, 2001).]

 

Hey, why has this bard a lawful neutral aligment? I think that most of the bards are chaotic...

 

Blades are very useful because:
-Their spins are very helpful at spellcasting and charging
-if you dual-wield and cast some protections on you they become unstoppable(stoneskin,mirror image etc)
-they can have up to 6th Lev spells which enables them to do spell combos with your party wizard(brech-pierce magic,greater malison-chaos and many others).
-Give him an elven chain and you can have him cast spells while charging(better use def.spin with this)
-At high levels he gains a better song and the Use All ability whch talks for itself!
-And his Lore will never trouble you no matter how low.I had Haer'Dalis identify any motem in the game with no problem whatsoever.
Good hunting!

 

oh one more thing: you might know this already, but ring of free action and defensive spin were meant for each other (if youre a blade) - try it and see why =)

 

Oh,and if things get too bloody you can cast Tenser'd Transformation(and having cast before protections)and show them how it's done!!

 

Hi,

Bards need to have a neutral element to their alignment, hence lawful neutral is ok, so is chaotic neutral.
I can't seem to select an elven bard though, only half elven and human are options for me.
Also, while 21 dex is great I am not sure whether it is possible without editing? as ragusa mentioned, 19 for an elf (except elves don't seem to be able to become bards) plus one for the tome in BG1 makes 20.
Never played the DSTOSC (?) add on so maybe there was an extra tome in there.

If you are going to use a custom character, I think it might be nice to mention it when you ask for advice.

I never liked the slightly racist DND rules either, never understood why you can't have a pure elven bard, afterall, LOTR has loads of them!

Back to the original question, I have played a bard though BG1 and really enjoyed it, I have him waiting and ready to import to BG2/TOB when I have finished my mc f/m and my new mc f/t characters. I have had a think about which kit, if any I would go for when importing and settled on the skald. He suits my playing style more, I very rarely use pickpocket, the lore is very useful, and I used bardsong a lot in BG1 and found it useful. I also like the idea of the bonus damage and THACO with all weapons, I always use my bard for ranged weapon support, magic support and spellcaster protection.
Blades look good as well, more offensive front liners than the other bard options with that dual wield ability. I am planning to use Haerdalis in my f/t game to see how good they are and can always change my mind....

Cheers,

WittyNewt.

 

Thats one of the coolest things in 3rd. Ed. D&D, no racial restrictions.

Well back to the subject; Although a Blade can get 3 prof's in two-weapon style he still only has the HP of a bard and they arent suited for a frontliner. And there are a better Blade NPC than you can make yorself so i would strongly dis-encourage making a blade. But its your choice.

 

Bards are the best class! They are practicaly Mage/Fighter/Thieves (albeit with toned down abilities)!

Thief kits are better though, but for my bard, i used Shadow Keeper (i hope this doesnt count as cheating) to make him a halfling jester.

Using Shadow Keeper in a way like this is okay i think and should be allowed, I then used Xzar's old Portrait - Perfect Jester!

Here are his NATURAL stats:

Jonbon Tinglefoot
level 26- Bard/jester
14/18/14/17/9/18
Chaotic Neutral
Short Sword ++
Short Bow ++
Single Weapon +

 

I don't see why anyone would use a blade (I like other bards though). He basicly gives up all the skills that make a bard usefull for a couple of special abilities. He only has half the normal lore which is still ok but you might have to memorize identification for the better items. He gives up half of his pickpocket percentage. And last his song never improves. As for his spins, if you want someone who can fight than take a fighter or a fighter/mage of some kind. This is just my opinion though so if you like blades than use them. (and oh ya his stats. look pretty good for a bard.)