Bands of Bards

[Lord Iames Osari]

From another thread which is way past the revive date:


You know what I've always wanted to see? A rule (not aid another) that allows perform checks to be made in tandem, to provide a synergy bonus for each person participating. So maybe you can have a bard singing, another strumming on the lute, and a shadow danver dancing, giving a sort of synergy bonus. The problem I've always encountered is where to draw the line, and how to deal with two good performers and one bad one. Maybe average their rolls and then add synergy?

If this is a hijack, let me know, Iames.

Easy. Houserule bardic music bonuses to be unnamed. Designate one bard as the primary guy. All the other bards count as inspiring competence one the primary guy. And if one bard fails his check, then he screwed up and didn't perform as well.

[Peregrine]

And when it's not bardic music, just playing for your supper? Aid another bonuses should cover it, maybe?

[jlousivy]

For the purposes of using 'perform' to get money, i'd give each roll an additional +1 per person when it comes to the $$$.
ie: 3 bards
perform rolls of 24,26,22
result: 27,29,25 so, they get more money that night for playing in the bar than they would have if they were alone.... maybe +2

When it comes to inspire courage... definitely no. That could lead to some major abuse ie: leadership feat---20 lvl 1 bards all using inspire courage = +20 to hit on all attacks and +20 dmg

[Lord Iames Osari]

@^^: oh, yeah. Then it's aid another. But the thread was specifically about bards, so...

@^: You can't have 20 level 1 bard followers. Followers don't have PC classes.

[mabriss lethe]

There was something to this effect in one of the Monte Cook D20 books. Arcana Unearthed I think....not to be confused with WotC's Unearthed Arcana. Never bought it, but I did flip through it once or twice. I forget the exact rules, only that they were pretty nifty. (and about the only thing in the whole darned book that caught my eye.) Something to the effect that a collection of bards could form a band/orchestra/chorus...whathaveyou.

there were some pretty solid rules for synergy bonus to their performance. All nicely laid out as far as I can remember. It also made a chorus a powerful instrument of magic. A chorus could cause bardic magic to accrete into a source of usable power for themselves or other magicians. Something akin to a temporary version of the Spellpool from the Magician of the Arcane Order PrC. It looks like that book is now out of print, but I think the rules are probably in the revised version Arcana Evolved.Ooops, it's still in print. Darn my lack of attention. I've never really stopped to compare though. Most of the Monte Cook stuff I've flipped through just isn't all that interesting to me.