[3.5] Bardic-Warblade (First time Multiclassing)

['Grasshopper']

Hey there Ghouls and Goblins,

So I want to try and make my first Multiclass character. I like the idea of making a fighting Bard and I love Warblades. I also recently found the Bloodstorm Blade, throwing weapons specialist, which I have a soft spot for :P

Unfortunately, the nearest campaign I'd be able to use him in is a 4th level campaign, which doesn't leave me much room.

Any suggestions on how to make a BardBlade character? And maybe how to do it in 4 levels?

[Keld Denar]

Well, an ideal Bardblade build is Bard4/Warblade16, possibly with fewer Warblade levels if you want to PrC. Since you ARE only level 4, that doesn't leave you with a whole lot of options. You want at least 2 bard levels to make sure you get Inspirational Boost (SpC), but 3-4 would be preferable. That means either Bard3/Warblade1 or simply Bard4.

Feats would probably be:

1: Dragonfire Inspitation
3: Songs of the Heart

with plans to move on toward Song of the White Raven at 6 or 9. It really won't matter until level 8 anyway, when you get your +2 base IC.

If you are human (Silverbrow), I'd grab TWFing as well at 1st, and make sure your Warblade maneuvers include Wolf Fang Strike and Sudden Leap. This gives you 2 rounds of combat where you can "move" and attack with both weapons to get the maximum effect out of your Dragonfire.

[Veyr]

The Snowflake Wardance feat (Frostburn) is a very good option for a Bardblade, though I'm not certain how it interacts with Bloodstorm Blade.

Why 3-4 levels? Level 1 gets Inspire Courage and Fascinate, which are probably just about the best Bard class features anyway. Inspire Competence is pretty much useless, and 4 levels doesn't get you Suggestion. I see level 4 does get you 2nd level spells, and there are some great ones there, but...

Oh wait. Bard 4/Warblade 1 is IL 3 and can take 2nd level maneuvers. It suddenly makes sense! Yeah, that's probably the better play.

[Keld Denar]

Inspire Competance, while worthless on it's own, is a prereq for Songs of the Heart, a bonus +1 on Inspire Courage.

You also need a couple of levels to get more than 1 1st level spell per day so you can use Inspirational Boost more than one combat. I guess you could get a wand of it though.

Snowflake Wardance isn't really that good for a Bardblade. You generally only have 3-4 uses of bardic music per day unless you drop ANOTHER precious feat on Extra Music. SFWD uses a music use/day to activate, so having that AND Inspire Courage burns 2 music uses per combat meaning you'll burn out after 2 combats. Feats to spend on SFWD and Extra Music are also hard to come by in the traditionally feat starved Bardblade.

[Veyr]

But that's what Song of the White Raven is for.

[Keld Denar]

SotWR only increases the powah of your Inspire Courage. It doesn't give you more music uses per day.

[Veyr]

:smalleek: Well that's moronic; another thing to add to Ye Olde Houserules.

['Grasshopper']

So what about race then?

I really like the concept of a wandering Mongrelfolk bard, even though I know they have a horrendous CHA loss. Does anyone know of a more Bard-friendly homebrew? Or maybe a race with a similar feel but different stats bonuses?

[Veyr]

Well... Silverbrow Human (Dragon Magic I think — but I can never keep those dragon-y books straight) is unequivocally the best choice for this, because you count as Dragonblooded for Dragonfire Inspiration for the low, low price of the Human bonus skill point per level, plus you get a bonus feat with which to take Dragonfire Inspiration. So that's definitely the optimal choice.

Otherwise, you can still take the Dragonblooded feat, but that's effectively costing you two feats for that and Dragonfire Inspiration, which sucks. A better alternative would be to find a race that has the (Dragonblooded) subtype that you like. Your mention of Mongrelfolk reminded me of Dragonborn (Races of the Dragon), a template that adds +2 Con (and -2 Dex), so a Dragonborn Mongrelfolk would have +6 Con (but -2 Cha which hurts a lot). It might be better to apply Dragonborn to another race, though. Raptorans are an interesting choice (since you get to keep their gliding/flying); not really sure what other ones would really look that special.

['Grasshopper']

So a Dragonborn Mongrelfolk would have +6 Con (but -2 Cha which hurts a lot).

Haha, I'm going to have to play that sometime just for the fun!

But is there anything which has a Bonus to CHA? I've never seen one...

[The Cat Goddess]

The non-Outsider version of the Aasimar is +0 LA (just loses Outsider(native) and Outsider traits).

I can't recall where that's from (I think Dragon Magazine or an FR book?) but it gets tossed out sometimes.

Most everything else that is +CHA is +1 or more LA. If you're going that route, then Catfolk might serve you well... 40' move, +Dex, +Cha and only +1 LA. Plus, you know, Cat!

[Veyr]

Spellscales (also from Races of the Dragon) are draconic, which means you could get Dragonfire Inspiration, and IIRC they get a bonus to Cha. They are... rather poor, mechanically, though. A Dragonborn Spellscale seems a little ridiculous, but you could do it to get the Con bonus and the Dragonborn features (which are a bit better than Spellscale's, IIRC).

Note that Dragonborn removes all racial features aside from ability score bonuses/penalties, and movement speeds/modes.

[Keld Denar]

Note that Dragonborn doesn't actually GIVE the dragonblooded subtype. Its wierd, but true.

Also, Bardblade's don't really need Cha. A 12 Cha is enough to get a bonus 1st level spell and be able to cast them. At some point later, picking up a +2 cloak will give you a bonus 2nd level spell slot which will allow you to cast one, if you want. I'd put your stats in Dex (for TWFing), Con (for not dying), and Str (for +hit, since you don't really have feats to burn on Weapon Finesse).

[Amnestic]

Note that Dragonborn doesn't actually GIVE the dragonblooded subtype. Its wierd, but true.




"Type, Subtype, and Race: You retain your original type and
subtypes, gaining the dragonblood subtype. You still count as
a member of your original race for the purpose of any effect or
prerequisite that depends on race."

Am I missing something? :smallconfused: Unless the 'dragonblooded' subtype is different to the 'dragonblood' one. Considering WotC that wouldn't surprise me.

[Keld Denar]

You know, I swear I had a similar discussion with someone just last week about this...maybe I'm just going crazy. Maybe I'm already there?