PrC Question (3.5)

[RogueDM]

I was pawing through Prestige Classes just now and came across the Spellsinger in Races of Faerun. Forgive me for not accenting it properly, but I don't have a num-pad and that makes it a pain.

I just want to understand what I'm looking at correctly. Nowhere in the requirements for the PrC does it actually list the Bardic Music Ability or anything of the like, nor levels in bard, etc. However, almost all of the class abilities are built around presumed Bardic Music abilities with the exception of the substitution spell-casting ability Spellsing (presumably their key ability) which doesn't really seem to provide a lot of benefit to bards, but I digress. This PrC seems like it really should come with a Pre-Req of Bardic Music considering its reliance on it.

Disclaimer!: The Spellsinger -does- have Bardic Music listed among its Class Features, however, the description only says that Spellsinger levels stack with Bard levels for the purposes of Bardic Music progression. Makes no mention of granting any new abilities.

Alright, that being said I'll return to an earlier point. Spellsing allows you to drop a prepared arcane spell for any arcane enchantment at least one level lower. You may do the same with a spontaneous arcane spell slot if you don't prepare spells. On the plus side you get to eschew material components (under 1gp), and gain a +2 to spell level. Which really equates out to a possible +1 increase over the level of the spell/slot dropped.

These two things considered, is this just a really terrible PrC? Clearly useless to non-bards, minus Spellsing, which is hardly worth the dip for Bards. And on a 5 level PrC one quarter of your class abilities being rubbish seems a pretty big deal.

[Segev]

Technically, if it stacks with Bard levels for purposes of Bardic Music, and doesn't say it fails to provide Bardic Music absent another source, then it would stack with Bard 0 to make your Spellsinger level count as your Bard level for Bardic music.

That said, I don't quite follow how the Spellsing power works from your description, sorry. I don't know how good the class is.

[RogueDM]

Not having the book open in front of me ATM it works like a cleric's spontaneous Healing, etc, in that you drop a prepared spell (or spell slot) in order to cast an Enchantment spell of at least one level lower. In exchange the enchantment spell's level is effectively increased by two.

Example: I could drop Evocation lvl 6 in exchange for casting Enchantment lvl 5 at a +2.

This isn't completely useless, especially for a prepared caster, but as the rest of the class seems to be geared towards the spontaneous bard it seems ill fit. The +2 is nice, but I feel like there are better ways to achieve similar or more potent ends. A bard with Spell Focus [Enchantment] might find this tempting, but again... given that's one of the few builds this is reasonable for a Req of Bardic Music would have made sense...

To that point, I dunno about this adding to your 0 (zero) Bardic Music level. It would only add to checks and bonuses (etc) from Bardic Music, gaining "levels" of bardic music doesn't confer any of the abilities the rest of the PrC's abilities modify.

As I'm explaining it I guess this PrC isn't as terrible as at first glance, but it would definitely be more attractive with a clear Gain X and Y Bardic Music abilities... or just state that it requires Bardic Music before I start reading up on the class for my musically inclined Sorcerer. That's five minutes I'm not getting back.

[Khedrac]

Technically, if it stacks with Bard levels for purposes of Bardic Music, and doesn't say it fails to provide Bardic Music absent another source, then it would stack with Bard 0 to make your Spellsinger level count as your Bard level for Bardic music.

That said, I don't quite follow how the Spellsing power works from your description, sorry. I don't know how good the class is.
This is exactly wrong (sorry).

It is fairly well established that some classes give boosts to abilities you don't need to take the class. If they don't state that they grant the ability, then they don't grant the ability. For example the Cavalier in Complete Warrior stacks with Paladin levels to determine the abilities of a Paladin's mount. It does not grant a paladin's mount to a non-paladin cavalier.

So in the above example, if you have Bardic music, you add the Spellsinger levels, if you do not Spellsinger does not grant bardic music.

[Segev]

I thought Cavalier expressly stated that you had to have a mount before its stacking feature would apply. >_>