Making a lemonade Bard from lemon stats. (Spell selection at 1st)

[Glarnog]

My DM is running a zero level character funnel. I think he's using Dungeon Crawl Classics from Goodman games. Great old school fun. Deadly and challenging. 4 players with 3 randomly rolled zero level characters. I believe after 2 adventures our mortality rate is 66%. Against all odds a zero level made it to 1.

Stats: Str 11
Dex 14
Con 10
Int 13
Wis 9
Chr 13

I haven't made a Bard before. This is a deadly campaign, as much from traps as combat. The stats are straight rolled. Hit points too. Only 4. So now that I really think about it, suggestions for cantrips and spells is what I'm after. And skills too. And then of course advice on what college to pick if he lives to see 3rd (unlikely).

Thanks

[kladams707]

What races are available to you & when you say straight rolled, do you mean that the stats ar determined by your order of rolls (i.e. 1st roll=str, 2nd=dex, etc.)?

[Slipperychicken]

Race: I'd consider variant human, put the +1s in charisma and wisdom. Also that feat will be of use.

Feat: You've got a few good options. I'd consider Healer (cheap healing, keep others alive to reach level 1) or Crossbow Expert (two attacks per round). Depends on what your main causes of death have been.

Cantrips: Mage Hand and light would be my picks. I wouldn't go with vicious mockery because you're honestly better off just shooting with a crossbow at level 1. If light hasn't been a problem, I'd consider message instead to allow easy scheming among party members.

Level 1 spells: Sleep (unless you're mostly running into enemies that are immune), Healing Word, Faerie Fire, not sure about the 4th one.

[JeffreyGator]

I would think about mobility for a variant human since in your high mortality game running faster than other people may be the key to success.

Half-Elf is a pretty standard bard race, put the +1s into int and WIS and you have fewer odd stats - although highest is the 15 cha.

I like vicious mockery for the disadvantage but d8+2 is going to hit more often than the d4+disad with your stats sadly.

Minor illusion has so many uses.

I like ritually cast unseen servants better than mage hands but they require more advanced planning.

Dissonant whispers is pretty fun but again you have spell landing problems.

[bovine]

I'd go with variant human (cha/wis), pick the feat moderately armored, then dip into warlock for two levels.

There. Your dex is now at the optimum level for med armor, you have AC 18/19, your CHA is on the way to 20 with an extra feat/ASI in there somewhere, and you can EB your way to glory while providing utility and offheals to your group.

For skills, you definitely want Acrobatics, Perception, and Stealth. Mix in some social skills as well. I'd get expertise in Perception and either Acro/Stealth. With Expertise, you can push your passive perception to 16 by level 5, which isn't terrible.

For cantrips, Eldritch Blast if going for a Warlock dip. Vicious Mockery in any case. Friends is good, though your DM sounds like he might be a sadist and interpret "hostile" as "immediately tries to slit your throat the moment the spell ends." Mage Hand has uses.

[Glarnog]

Race is also determined by random roll as well as "profession". So he is a human, variant not allowed. Rolls are assigned straight down the line. Just 3d6. The stats I listed already have the +1 to all of them included. Also the equipment is based on your profession. We couldn't even find rope til canabalized the rigging off a wrecked ship we're drifting on. So a baker has a rolling pin, acts like club. Shepherded had a crook acted like staff. Stable boy had a pitchfork acted like a trident, etc. We've found a few weapons along the way, daggers, spears, I think one long bow an elf has since he was the only one who could use it.

The DM is a good guy. This is a less serious, if far more challenging and dangerous campaign. While it is brutal, it is fun. Basically most every one is just a commoner who is trying to risk it all to seize some adventure and reap the rewards. I think we have about 30 copper each. We have yet to get to a town. Doesn't seem like its happening anytime soon.

Thanks for the great input so far.

[kladams707]

Race is also determined by random roll as well as "profession". So he is a human, variant not allowed. Rolls are assigned straight down the line. Just 3d6. The stats I listed already have the +1 to all of them included. Also the equipment is based on your profession. We couldn't even find rope til canabalized the rigging off a wrecked ship we're drifting on. So a baker has a rolling pin, acts like club. Shepherded had a crook acted like staff. Stable boy had a pitchfork acted like a trident, etc. We've found a few weapons along the way, daggers, spears, I think one long bow an elf has since he was the only one who could use it.

The DM is a good guy. This is a less serious, if far more challenging and dangerous campaign. While it is brutal, it is fun. Basically most every one is just a commoner who is trying to risk it all to seize some adventure and reap the rewards. I think we have about 30 copper each. We have yet to get to a town. Doesn't seem like its happening anytime soon.

Thanks for the great input so far.

I'd go minor illusion & vicious mockery. Sure you might have trouble with landing the latter, but when it does it will just be even more satisfying consdering your low score. Minor illusion is only limited by its size & your imagination. Otherwise, mage hand or friends as others have said.

For 1st lvl, you may need to relegate yourself to healer & buffer (using your bardic inspiration) for a short time. I would go cure wounds, healing word, feather fall, and sleep. Yes, I realize cure & healing word are somewhat redundant but sometimes you just need a band aid & a cantrip and other times you want to inspire your ally to give them a d6 to add to their roll and a cure wounds. When you get your first ability score increase (if you survive), trade out healing word or cure wounds for faerie fire. At 3rd level, trade out feather fall for a second level spell (you can trade a lower level spell for a higher level spell as long as you have a slot for the higher spell). At 4th or 5th (the latter you get 3rd level spells), trade out sleep for a higher level spell.

It's not optimized, but neither or your scores and these suggestions are based on what will avoid using your ability modifier until you up it a little.

[bovine]

The DM is a good guy. This is a less serious, if far more challenging and dangerous campaign. While it is brutal, it is fun. Basically most every one is just a commoner who is trying to risk it all to seize some adventure and reap the rewards. I think we have about 30 copper each. We have yet to get to a town. Doesn't seem like its happening anytime soon.


Oh yeah, I have a copy of DCC and enjoy it. And I didn't really mean that I thought your DM was legitimately a sadist. :) But the sort of world that DCC depicts is tough and magic in particular is extremely unreliable and dangerous. I would imagine with the way your adventure has gone that your DM is embracing that aspect of DCC, so Friends may not be a great cantrip.

Sucks about not being able to do a variant or to otherwise boost your stats. I'd still probably go for a 2 level Warlock dip though. You don't want to be getting a lot of face time with baddies with your 4 HP. Remind your DM that you get to roll again for HP at level 1 to add to your HP from level 0 (at least in DCC).

Edit: Please don't tell me you rolled 4 from a 1d4 + 1d8. :O

[Aaron Underhand]

Interesting challenge,

At this stage it's all about staying alive, and keeping the others alive... if you can do that they will get level 1 goodies soon, and you can start to get things going.

With your stats, mainly human party and a trap heavy environment I would go Mage Hand and Light as cantrips - though there may be an argument for Mending in your situation (especially if there is a broken crossbow somewhere around). Make sure you probe and explore with Mage hand, and hopefully avoid the traps...

Your best action is range attacking with your reasonable dex - Crossbow if you can get it, daggers if not. Make sure the rest of the party realise they need to protect you (4hp is scary), and you should be able to do support/casting/face and scouting.

For spells I would take:

Sleep - no save encounter ending at 1st - use sparingly, but use.
Feather fall - assuming those traps are catching people.
Healing word - cure in combat... your spells are too precious to use cures out of combat, if you're sure of a rest and want to you can blow a healing word into a comrade. This is a panic button - hope you don't have to cast it.
Thunderwave - will damage even on a save, and make the rest of the fight easier.

..and use your bardic inspiration!

What you do at third level depends on what support you have around you, but at 4th you pretty much have to add 1 to Cha and one to another stat... normally I'd say try for resilient Wis so leave that odd - but you need all your ASIs for stat boosts so I would say Cha + Wis

Good luck.. you'll need it.

[Glarnog]

Edit: Please don't tell me you rolled 4 from a 1d4 + 1d8. :O

Oh yeah rolled a 2 both times. :)