College of Swords Bard: What spells?

[jaappleton]

So I'm starting at lv7, with two Rares and an Uncommon.

I had this concept of a Tabaxi with two Sunblades, and a Cloak of Protection. Basically, he's a Nobleman, but it'll have to take quite awhile for him to actually be of real importance, too many siblings before him. But he wants to help his people, so he starts adventuring.

The only issue is, I don't quite know what spells to take. Typically when I play a caster, its the Blaster style, and the vanilla Bard list doesn't have much of that.

He's a swordsman first that can put together some magical tricks, is what I'm seeing him as.

I know that TWF is somewhat looked down upon, but with the Flourishes and Sunblades, I think it's enough to work well.

So what spells can I take to enhance my abilities, or put together some tricks?

[Tauguy628]

These are just some ideas of fun bard spells:
Level 1: Disguise Self, Dissonant Whispers, Healing Word
Level 2: Heat Metal, Hold Person, Invisibility, Suggestion
Level 3: Hypnotic Pattern
Level 4: Dimension Door, Greater Invisibility, Polymorph

These spells are by no means a comprehensive list. However, it includes many strong spells that help you be better at what you do (both out of combat and in) and a few other tricks like heat metal, hypnotic pattern, and polymorph.

[Degwerks]

So I'm starting at lv7, with two Rares and an Uncommon.

I had this concept of a Tabaxi with two Sunblades, and a Cloak of Protection. Basically, he's a Nobleman, but it'll have to take quite awhile for him to actually be of real importance, too many siblings before him. But he wants to help his people, so he starts adventuring.

The only issue is, I don't quite know what spells to take. Typically when I play a caster, its the Blaster style, and the vanilla Bard list doesn't have much of that.

He's a swordsman first that can put together some magical tricks, is what I'm seeing him as.

I know that TWF is somewhat looked down upon, but with the Flourishes and Sunblades, I think it's enough to work well.

So what spells can I take to enhance my abilities, or put together some tricks?

Tauguy628 lists some pretty good spells for you to know. I just wanted to add that I believe that the Sunblade is a Legendary item not a Rare.

[jaappleton]

Sun blades are, indeed, Rare.

I personally think they should be Very Rare, but I’m not looking a gift horse in the mouth. XD

Here’s what I have so far:

Faerie Fire
Healing Word
Hold Person
Shatter
Silence
Hypnotic Pattern
Dimension Door
Greater Invisibility

That’s 7/10

I have some damage, some ways to disable, etc.

What can I do with an illusion spell like Major Image? Theoretically, if a friend and I stick close together, could I have a Large creature appear, with us in the center, and have the illusion disguise us as the creature ‘moves’ (centered on us)? Or, say, have the appearance of 6 soldiers, so we could walk through an enemy base unhindered?

[Degwerks]

Sun blades are, indeed, Rare.

I personally think they should be Very Rare, but I’m not looking a gift horse in the mouth. XD


I'll be damned. I was mistaken and I apologize.
I think I had them confused with a sun blade we got from Out of the Abyss campaign. It had a Legendary sun blade in it.

[lunaticfringe]

See Invisible, Plant Growth, Speak w/ Plants, Speak w/ Dead, Catnap, Leomund's Tiny Hut, Sending, Blindness(/Deafness), Bane, Feather Fall

[RSP]

Sun blades are, indeed, Rare.

I personally think they should be Very Rare, but I’m not looking a gift horse in the mouth. XD

Here’s what I have so far:

Faerie Fire
Healing Word
Hold Person
Shatter
Silence
Hypnotic Pattern
Dimension Door
Greater Invisibility

That’s 7/10

I have some damage, some ways to disable, etc.

What can I do with an illusion spell like Major Image? Theoretically, if a friend and I stick close together, could I have a Large creature appear, with us in the center, and have the illusion disguise us as the creature ‘moves’ (centered on us)? Or, say, have the appearance of 6 soldiers, so we could walk through an enemy base unhindered?

Do you have Warcaster? Getting S moves (sans also having M components required) could be an issue otherwise.

RAW, Major Image can only create one image, so 6 soldiers is out (Seeming can affect 6 targets at once to change their appearance, if that's what you're looking for). Creating a large creature for two characters to Hide in could work.

I'd recommend taking a look at Fear. You don't need Fear and Hypnotic Pattern, and both are good spells, but if you're in the front lines already, I think Fear is the better spell in part due to the added effect of causing targets to drop what they're carrying means, even if they eventually break the spell and re-engage, they're without their best weapons.

Phantasmal Force is a good spell (depending on DM) and Heroism can go a long way for a 1st level spell.

For level 10 MS, Steel Wind Strike could be thematically appropriate. I'm a huge fan of Sanctuary as well if Chr is decent, your AC won't be great and Sanctuary can prevent an entire round's worth of attacks on you, but it looks like your bonus action will mostly be occupied already.

Also, you might want to trade out the 2nd Sun Blade:

A rare item is a great boon and there are some great options out there,
You probably are missing out on a lot of good items using two attunement slots on weapons,
The 2nd Sun Blade is, at best, half as effective as the first, due to 2 attacks to 1, and you won't always want to use your bonus action for fighting.

[LeonBH]

What can I do with an illusion spell like Major Image? Theoretically, if a friend and I stick close together, could I have a Large creature appear, with us in the center, and have the illusion disguise us as the creature ‘moves’ (centered on us)? Or, say, have the appearance of 6 soldiers, so we could walk through an enemy base unhindered?

The point behind illusion spells in general is to alter people's beliefs by altering their perceptions. Major Image lets you instantly create evidence you need for your deception, as long as the victims never get a chance to touch the illusion. Think of it as Inception, but you're doing it in real time.

As opposed to enchantment spells which let you directly take control of someone's mind, illusions are used to make the creature think it was their own idea to do the actions you've caused them to do.

So your imagination is the limit when it comes to Major Image. What do you want the victims to think? What do they need to see or hear to be convinced?

As an example, I've used Silent Image (the inferior 1st level version of this spell) to conjure the God of Death and convinced everyone that they're about to be reaped, and only I could convince the God of Death to spare them. And I would only help them if they surrendered. This was in the middle of combat, and turned the tide of battle (from TPK to a cake walk) as everyone of our enemies cowered in fear.

[Finger6842]

So I'm starting at lv7, with two Rares and an Uncommon.

I had this concept of a Tabaxi with two Sunblades, and a Cloak of Protection. Basically, he's a Nobleman, but it'll have to take quite awhile for him to actually be of real importance, too many siblings before him. But he wants to help his people, so he starts adventuring.

The only issue is, I don't quite know what spells to take. Typically when I play a caster, its the Blaster style, and the vanilla Bard list doesn't have much of that.

He's a swordsman first that can put together some magical tricks, is what I'm seeing him as.

I know that TWF is somewhat looked down upon, but with the Flourishes and Sunblades, I think it's enough to work well.

So what spells can I take to enhance my abilities, or put together some tricks?

I'm not sure what your party makeup will be which could very well affect these choices. But spells I'd consider focusing on blasting and survival:

Cantrip Vicious Mockery, Blade Ward, Thunderclap
1st Thunderwave, Faire Fire, Dissonant Whispers
2nd Shatter, Heat Metal, Heroism, Invisibility
3rd Major Image, Hypnotic Pattern, Plant Growth
4th Freedom of Movement, confusion

Magic Items are much the same, what role will you perform for the party will probably decide which are best.

Consider
Boots of elvenkind for advantage on sneak which is critical in a scouting role.

Want to up your survivability, Headband of Intellect and now you can add +4 to all INT related checks (+5 if you add one of your ASI points) or Belt of Dwarvenkind which will give you +2 Con and Poison resistance/advantage. or Mantle of Spell Resistance

I think Tabaxi are strength dependant so you can use STR as your dump stat and then take Gauntlets of Ogre Power
The Sun Blade is versatile so you can use it 2 handed and take a +2 shield if you have proficiency. TWF doesn't typically synergize well with Bard.

Personally I'd take the Headband of Intellect (U/19), Belt of Hill Giant Strength (R/21) and a single Sun Blade (R/Versatile, Finesse).
Assuming Stat priority of (CHA>DEX>CON>WIS>STR/INT and that you still get Jack of All Trades your saves/skill checks in every category but wisdom will be out of this world.

[AlexeyK]

I just wanted to point out that Sun Sword is a Longsword (finesse, versatile), which allows you to use Shortsword proficiency. But, being a Longsword, it is not light. Hence, you won't be able to use it as TWF without a Dual wielder feat, unless your DM homebrews some Sun (short)Swords.

[Rogerdodger557]

Do you have Warcaster? Getting S moves (sans also having M components required) could be an issue otherwise.

RAW, Major Image can only create one image, so 6 soldiers is out (Seeming can affect 6 targets at once to change their appearance, if that's what you're looking for). Creating a large creature for two characters to Hide in could work.

I'd recommend taking a look at Fear. You don't need Fear and Hypnotic Pattern, and both are good spells, but if you're in the front lines already, I think Fear is the better spell in part due to the added effect of causing targets to drop what they're carrying means, even if they eventually break the spell and re-engage, they're without their best weapons.

Phantasmal Force is a good spell (depending on DM) and Heroism can go a long way for a 1st level spell.

For level 10 MS, Steel Wind Strike could be thematically appropriate. I'm a huge fan of Sanctuary as well if Chr is decent, your AC won't be great and Sanctuary can prevent an entire round's worth of attacks on you, but it looks like your bonus action will mostly be occupied already.

Also, you might want to trade out the 2nd Sun Blade:

A rare item is a great boon and there are some great options out there,
You probably are missing out on a lot of good items using two attunement slots on weapons,
The 2nd Sun Blade is, at best, half as effective as the first, due to 2 attacks to 1, and you won't always want to use your bonus action for fighting.

College of Blades Bards can use their weapons as an arcane focus, so the War Caster feat would cancel out any problems

[jaappleton]

I just wanted to point out that Sun Sword is a Longsword (finesse, versatile), which allows you to use Shortsword proficiency. But, being a Longsword, it is not light. Hence, you won't be able to use it as TWF without a Dual wielder feat, unless your DM homebrews some Sun (short)Swords.

I never noticed this.

Huh.

This, coupled with another comment regarding how the second Sun Blade would essentially be a waste as it'd only ever get the bonus action attack usage, has me rethinking the TWF aspect. Switching to Dueling really frees up another Rare item, which is... Very tempting. Cloak of Displacement would be quite good.

[History_buff]

These are just some ideas of fun bard spells:
Level 1: Disguise Self, Dissonant Whispers, Healing Word
Level 2: Heat Metal, Hold Person, Invisibility, Suggestion
Level 3: Hypnotic Pattern
Level 4: Dimension Door, Greater Invisibility, Polymorph

These spells are by no means a comprehensive list. However, it includes many strong spells that help you be better at what you do (both out of combat and in) and a few other tricks like heat metal, hypnotic pattern, and polymorph.

This is pretty similar to my spell list on my swords bard.

Differences: thunderwave instead of disguise self, shatter instead of suggestion, and dispel magic instead of hypnotic pattern.

Probably picking up synaptic static in a level, and at 10 getting find greater steed and steel wind strike, while swapping thunderwave for feather fall.

I’m more martially focused and have 3 levels in fighter as an EK, cuz I’m the closest thing the group has to “a tank”.

21 base AC, maximum potential AC of 34. Godly dex saves. Added utility over pure martial. Great skills. Just a blast to play.

[bloodhawk]

By RAW, you can't be attuned to two of the same magic item at the same time, so I'd check in with your DM first and make sure that's okay first.

[Beechgnome]

It may be vanilla, but I would add longstrider, given your class race and subclass. That extra 10 feet will come in handy when you Tabaxi dash and flourish. Also no concentration.

Blindness deafness is also great as a concentration free scaleable spell that will give you advantage on your attacks while giving opponents disadvantage.

And I think someone already suggested Freedom of Movement. You are a leaf on the wind, my friend. Let none hold you back.

[Temperjoke]

Depending on the rest of your group, you might want a utility spell or two, such as Comprehend Languages, Identify, or Knock. You might also want a ranged spell attack just to round out your options, like Dissonant Whispers.

[Beechgnome]

Also thematic and useful to your style is Enhance Ability (Cat's Grace particularly).

It's also a bit niche, but Warding Wind could be useful by letting you stick to melee while protecting yourself from archers/ranged attacks.