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View Full Version : Optimization Words are Power! A grappler bard optimization advice thread.



Foff
2019-09-24, 12:10 PM
Sooo, I'm about to embark in a Tomb of Annihilation campaign and I'm currently deciding on what to play, I know mortality rate is off the charts in this adventure and I already have PLENTY backup if this doesn't work out but what I wanted to start with is a buffer/grappler build working off the bard chassis (athletics expertise, enhance ability, enlarge/reduce).

I really liked the idea of grappling someone, knocking them prone while giving them the finger through Cutting Words but I'm skeptical of going the Lore Bard route due mostly to his lack of extra attack. I somewhat could go around this by being a Simic Hybrid and using tentacles to grapple/shove with the tentacles using attack and bonus attack grapple.

I'm still undecided on what choices to pick and wanted to submit them to the community for insight I might be missing.
Starting race could be Simic Hybrid for the tentacles and flavor, using point buy that would bring me to 16/14/14/8/8/14 starting stats after racial bonuses, i would get the manta glide ability at level one, go lore bard or valor or blade at 3, pickup warcaster at 4 and get my tentacles at 5

OR I could start Vhuman and grab warcaster right away, start with 15/14/12/8/8/16, be more support/cast oriented for the first few levels, pickup athlete or actor at level 4 (depending on what odd stat I choose at creation), be a valor or blade bard by 3, and get my extra attack at 6 either way.

What do you guys think? I like the idea of a muscle bard insulting people while beating them upand i'm not opposed to multiclassing although I'm not entirely sold on it.

I'm open to other solutions that do not specifically use simic hybrid or vhuman (i considered goliath, and dragonborn already though I found them a bit lacking).

MaxWilson
2019-09-24, 10:06 PM
I really liked the idea of grappling someone, knocking them prone while giving them the finger through Cutting Words but I'm skeptical of going the Lore Bard route due mostly to his lack of extra attack.

Get around this by taking Conjure Animals as a magical secret. Use your action to Grapple, and have your animals knock the target prone (commanding them doesn't even cost a bonus action). Use Cutting Words to penalize the enemy's near-failures into near-successes, i.e. failures.

Some animals like elks and wolves can even knock prone while attacking.

I highly recommend a level or two of Hexblade at some point for the armor proficiency and Shield spell, plus Armor of Agathys.