Stormsinger bard

[KevlarTheD]

What would an appropriate build be for a Stormsinger?

AFAIK, the best ability for the Storm singer PrC comes at level 3, and if I'm reading it correctly it's amazing. A 60' ranged touch attack every turn, does damage based off your perform skill.

The PrC requirements involve spending a lot of skill points and the Bardic Music ability. Fortunately, bards tend to have skill points. Unfortunately, I have never heard anything about levels of bard (aside from Elan in OOTS). Is it really that bad?

Would it be worth it to dip bard for a few levels, then take 3 stormsinger levels to get some kind of damage output going, then finish on a third option?

- The Stormsinger PrC lets you gain spellcasting levels (10/10!) - bards' spells don't seem too powerful, though. Bard/Wizard with CHA and INT as the two main stats seems like it would work (high INT letting you get enough skill points to qualify for the PrC)

I'm not set on using this type of build, I just came across this interesting PrC ability and want to know if there's a practical way to access it. Build a character around Racial levels?

[rot42]

It costs a use of Bardic Music, requires a ranged touch attack roll, and allows a Reflex save (DC Cha based) - not every round and not guaranteed, but it definitely has a few things going for it. At level eight you should be hitting a DC 42 or so: 11 ranks + 6 Cha (18 + 2 level ups + 2 item) + 10 Competence (pricy but probably doable if you want to focus on this and other Singing checks) + 2 MW instrument + 3 Circlet of Persuasion. Forty two damage at 60' before misses, saves, and resistance is a nice trick to throw out when you are not doing something else. It looks like the ability will accept Dragonfire Inspiration for another couple d6s of fun.

Bards are great fun and not bad at all, though you do need to pay enough attention not to become a "knave of all trades". If you really want to combine it with Wizard, look at the Prestige Bard variant in Unearthed Arcana, or use the Sublime Chord prestige class for a more caster-y feel. The biggest problem with Bard spells is that you never get enough of them, not that they are bad.

[Piggy Knowles]

By far, the best use for the Stormsinger comes at levels 5 and 7. Seriously, Control Winds and Control Weather have HUGE effects, enough to destroy entire towns or armies. Control Winds in particular is nice, as its effects begin immediately and can even be used in dungeons.

By level 12, you can go from completely still air to tornadoes. That means ranged attacks are completely impossible, and even colossal creatures can't move without making a save, while anything Large or smaller is blown away completely. You're also uprooting trees, destroying buildings, etc.

In any case, a fairly straightforward build for a Stormsinger would be Bard 5/Stormsinger 5/Sublime Chord 2/Stormsinger +5, and then fill in the last three levels however you'd like.

If you want to focus instead on the ranged touch aspect, consider Spellthief 1/Bard 4/Stormsinger 3/Unseen Seer 2/Sublime Chord 2/Unseen Seer +8. Take Master Spellthief for CL-boosting fun, pick up spells like Divine Insight and Hunter's Eye from your Unseen Seer advanced learning, and spit out super-maxed perform checks for high damage with your touch attacks, plus sneak damage to boot.

Alternatively, you could compromise between the two builds by going up to Stormsinger 5 (giving you Control Winds), and dropping the last two levels of Unseen Seer. You lose a little sneak attack damage, but Control Winds is pretty fun.