BARD
Untold wonders and secrets exist for those skillful enough to discover them. Through cleverness, talent, and magic, these cunning few unravel the wiles of the world, becoming adept in the arts of persuasion, manipulation, and inspiration. Typically masters of one or many forms of artistry, bards possess an uncanny ability to know more than they should and use what they learn to keep themselves and their allies ever one step ahead of danger. Bards are quick-witted and captivating, and their skills might lead them down many paths, be they gamblers or jacks-of-all-trades, scholars or performers, leaders or scoundrels, or even all of the above. For bards, every day brings its own opportunities, adventures, and challenges, and only by bucking the odds, knowing the most, and being the best might they claim the treasures of each.
Role: Bards capably confuse and confound their foes while inspiring their allies to ever-greater daring. While accomplished with both weapons and magic, the true strength of bards lies outside melee, where they can support their companions and undermine their foes without fear of interruptions to their performances.
Theme: Travelling Minstrel, Juggler, Neustrian Troubadour, Ostland Skald, Street performer, Busker, etc.
Alignment: Any
Attribute Bonus:
+1 Social
+1 Prowess
Health: Body X3
Power: Social X1
Armour Proficiency: Cloth, Leather, Mail
Starting Equipment: A studded doublet or leather coat, a set of quality clothes, a hand weapon, a crossbow or recurve bow, a dagger and an instrument.
Skill Priority
Primary: Advanced
Secondary: Basic
Tertiary: Combat
Basic Skills
Appraise +10%
Concentration +10%
Dance +5%
Endurance +10%
Evade +10%
First Aid +10%
General Knowledge +20%
Insight +10%
Perception +20%
Persuasion +20%
Scavenging +5%
Wardrobe & Style +10%
Combat Skills
Brawling +10%
Choose 2 at +10%
Advanced Skills
Spellcraft at +20%
Choose 4 at +10%
Animal Handling
Arcane*
Diplomacy
Etiquette
Gambling
History
Investigation
Languages*
Logic
Performance*
Play Musical Instrument*
Seduction
Streetwise
Theatrics*
Spells
Spells known: A Bard begins with 3 Arcane Spells up to a Power equal to their Social modifier, he can hold in memory a number of spells equal to half his Social attribute.
Bard Talents
Spellcraft
Casting Time 0, Power 0, Self
Trained in the art of Spellcraft this talent allows the Bard to use Spells. This talent gives access to the Arcane: Spellcraft skill.
Loremaster
Cost: 0
A Bard uses his Social attribute score X 2 as the base Rank of any untrained Knowledge skill tests.
Bardic Performance
A bard is trained to use the Perform skill to create magical effects on those around him, including himself if desired. He can use this ability for a number of rounds per day equal to 4 + his Social modifier score x 2. Each round, the bard can produce any one of the types of bardic performance. The Bard must choose his repertoire each day and may have a repertoire of Performance in memory equal to his Social attribute modifier score.
Starting a bardic performance is a standard action, but it can be maintained each round as a free action. Changing a bardic performance from one effect to another requires the bard to stop the previous performance and start a new one as a standard action. A bardic performance cannot be disrupted, but it ends immediately if the bard is killed, paralyzed, stunned, knocked unconscious, or otherwise prevented from taking a free action to maintain it each round. A bard cannot have more than one bardic performance in effect at one time.
Each bardic performance has audible components, visual components, or both. If a bardic performance has audible components, the targets must be able to hear the bard for the performance to have any effect, and many such performances are language dependent (as noted in the description). A deaf bard has a 20% change to fail when attempting to use a bardic performance with an audible component. If he fails this check, the attempt still counts against his daily limit. Deaf creatures are immune to bardic performances with audible components.
If a bardic performance has a visual component, the targets must have line of sight to the bard for the performance to have any effect. A blind bard has a 50% chance to fail when attempting to use a bardic performance with a visual component. If he fails this check, the attempt still counts against his daily limit. Blind creatures are immune to bardic performances with visual components.
Distraction
Casting Time 1, Power 1
A bard can use his performance to counter magic effects that depend on sight. Each round of the Distraction, he makes a Perform (act, comedy, dance, or oratory) skill check. Any creature within 30 feet of the bard (including the bard himself) that is affected by an illusion magical attack may use the bard’s Perform check result in place of its saving throw if, after the saving throw is rolled, the Perform check result proves to be higher. If a creature within range of the Distraction is already under the effect of a non-instantaneous illusion magical attack, it gains another saving throw against the effect each round it sees the Distraction, but it must use the bard’s Perform check result for the save. Distraction does not work on effects that don’t allow saves. Distraction relies on visual components.
Fascinate:
Casting Time 1, Power 3
A bard can use his performance to cause one or more creatures to become fascinated with him. Each creature to be fascinated must be within 90 feet, able to see and hear the bard, and capable of paying attention to him. The bard must also be able to see the creatures affected. The Distraction of a nearby combat or other dangers prevents the ability from working. For every Social modifier point he can target one creature with this ability.
Each creature within range receives an opposed Persistence Saving Throw to negate the effect. If a creature’s saving throw succeeds, the bard cannot attempt to fascinate that creature again for 24 hours. If its saving throw fails, the creature sits quietly and observes the performance for as long as the bard continues to maintain it. While fascinated, a target takes a –20% penalty on skill checks made as reactions, such as Perception checks. Any potential threat to the target allows the target to make a new saving throw against the effect. Any obvious threat, such as someone drawing a weapon, casting a spell, or aiming a weapon at the target, automatically breaks the effect.
Fascinate is an enchantment (compulsion), mind-affecting ability. Fascinate relies on audible and visual components in order to function.
Inspire Courage
Casting Time 1, Power 2
A bard can use his performance to inspire courage in his allies (including himself), bolstering them against fear and improving their combat abilities. To be affected, an ally must be able to perceive the bard’s performance. An affected ally receives a +10% morale bonus on Concentration tests against charm and fear effects and a +10% competence bonus on attack and +2 weapon damage rolls. For every Social modifier halved (rounded up), this bonus increases by +1, to a maximum of +4. Inspire courage is a mind-affecting ability. inspire courage can use audible or visual components. The bard must choose which component to use when starting his performance.
Inspire Competence:
Casting Time 1, Power 2
A bard can use his performance to help an ally succeed at a task. The ally must be within 30 feet and able to see and hear the bard. The ally gets a +10% competence bonus on skill checks with a particular skill as long as he continues to hear the bard’s performance.
Certain uses of this ability are infeasible, such as Stealth, and may be disallowed at the GM's discretion. A bard can't inspire competence in himself. Inspire competence relies on audible components.
Suggestion:
Casting Time 1, Power 3
A bard can use his performance to make a suggestion to a creature that he has already fascinated (see above). Using this ability does not disrupt the fascinate effect, but it does require a standard action to activate (in addition to the free action to continue the fascinate effect). A bard can use this ability more than once against an individual creature during an individual performance.
An opposed Persistence saving throw is required. This ability affects only a single creature. Suggestion is an enchantment (compulsion), mind-affecting, language-dependent ability and relies on audible components.
Dirge of Doom
Casting Time 1, Power 4
A bard can use his performance to foster a sense of growing dread in his enemies, causing them to take become subject to a Fear spell. To be affected, an enemy must be within 30 feet and able to see and hear the bard's performance. The effect persists for as long as the enemy is within 30 feet and the bard continues the performance. The performance cannot cause a creature to become feared, even if the targets are already shaken from another effect. Dirge of doom is a mind-affecting fear effect, and it relies on audible and visual components.
Inspire Greatness:
Casting Time 1, Power 4
A bard can use his performance to inspire greatness in himself or a single willing ally within 30 feet, granting extra fighting capability. To inspire greatness, all of the targets must be able to see and hear the bard. A creature inspired with greatness gains 2D6 bonus Health, the commensurate number of temporary Health points, a +10% competence bonus on attack rolls, and a +10% competence bonus on Endurance tests .. Inspire greatness is a mind-affecting ability and it relies on audible and visual components.
Soothing Performance:
Casting Time 1, Power 4
A bard can use his performance to create an effect equivalent to the Heal Wounds spell to all friendly subjects within 30’. In addition, this performance removes the fatigued, sickened, and shaken condition from all those affected. Using this ability requires 4 continuous performance tests, and the targets must be able to see and hear the bard throughout the performance. Soothing performance relies on audible and visual components.
Inspire Heroics:
Casting Time 1, Power 5
A bard can inspire tremendous heroism in himself or a single ally within 30 feet. For every three Social modifier bonus points, he can inspire heroics in one additional creature. To inspire heroics, all of the targets must be able to see and hear the bard. Inspired creatures gain a +20% morale bonus on saving throws. The effect lasts for as long as the targets are able to witness the performance. Inspire heroics is a mind-affecting ability that relies on audible and visual components.