Master Multi-taskers: Bard Tactics in DDO

By Ralsu

Jacks of all trades--masters of none. At the risk of boring you with a cliche, it's true: bards can dabble in almost anything, but another class will be better than them in any one task. Bards can fight, but rangers, fighters, and barbarians can do it better. Bards cast spells, but sorcerers and wizards do it better. Bards can heal, but clerics do it better. Bards can fight and cast spells and heal all at once. Nobody else can do that. On top of that, the benefits gained from bardic music makes a bard a valuable member to any party. If you're comfortable with the limitations described above and enjoy helping others succeed in their roles, bard may be the class for you.

Some Basics of Fulfilling Your Role
Bard builds and roles can be categorized into four types: melee, caster, healer, and balanced. Let's take a closer look at bard builds:

• Melee: This bard is built for combat, meaning Strength is a prominent Ability score. He uses his bardic music to boost himself and his companions and then dives into the fracas.
  
• Caster: This bard concentrates on being able to cast spells from the safety of the rear. Charisma and a lot of it are the order of the day for a caster bard. Also, because bards do not have very many spells that do direct damage, caster bards tend to be into buffs (spells that benefit the party), debuffs (spells that hinder enemies), and crowd control (spells that immobilize enemies). My bard falls into this category, and you can view the full build |HERE|.
  
• Healer: Healer bards choose the Cure spells available at each level and can serve as the only healer in a group or as backup healer in a group with a cleric. In return for the heavier armor given up by not choosing cleric, a healer bard gets bardic music to buff her party without the use of spell points. A common arrangement is for a healer bard to cast cure spells on the cleric in her party to help the cleric avoid aggro (the attention of enemies).
  
• Balanced: I'd argue that balanced bards are most common. They focus just enough on fighting to be competent at landing blows, they work the bare minimum needed to be effective casters, and they select cure spells just in case someone needs to be healed. The danger of this build is the need to spend Ability points in more places.
  

The Reluctant Fighter
Bards hinder their ability to cast spells when they don medium or heavy armor. They also get fewer hit points per level than barbarians, clerics, fighters, paladins, and rangers. These two traits relegate the bard to a jab and dodge fighting style. Once the "meatier" party members have engaged, the bard can pick away at enemies from the side or from behind. A bard who tries to stand toe-to-toe with the monsters of Xen'drik will not last long.

Knowing When and Whom to Heal
If you join a party, figure out your healing responsibilities as soon as possible. Are you the only one with Cure spells? Congratulations! You're the healer. If the party has a cleric, you should work out a plan with that player. You'll usually arrive at one of two arrangements. The cleric heals everyone else in the party while you heal the cleric. The other likely plan is for the cleric to heal the melee classes while you heal the casters. The bottom line is to get your plan together so that no one is wasting precious spell points in the heat of combat.

Use Magic Device (UMD)
A good way to expand your repertoire of spells is to pump some Skill points into UMD. Wands count as magical devices, and a high UMD score will allow you to consistently suceed in your role to use a wand for a spell you don't even have! Wands are also a convenient way to continue casting a spell you do know even after you've run out of spell points.

Feats a la Carte
Your build determines what is most important to your bard.

Melee bards may want feats to improve damage or attack success, such as Weapon Focus or Weapon Finesse. Other popular Feats will include Toughness, bow-related Feats, and Improved Critical. Bards looking to improve armor class to avoid hits could pick Dodge, Mobility, and Spring Attack.

Caster bards will want Mental Toughness and Improved Mental Toughness, and they may choose Spell Focus: Enchantment to make spells more effective. Other likely Feats are Combat Casting, Extend Spell, Heighten Spell, and Mobile Spellcasting.

Healer bards may find the extra point of healing that comes with Empower Healing Spell to be worthwhile. Other solid choices are Mental Toughness, Combat Casting, and Mobile Spellcasting.

Balanced bards will pick feats that augment their average traits into a more workable level. A balanced bard with at least Strength 12 can hit consistently and make up for a mediocre base attack bonus by picking the Weapon Focus Feat and using bardic music. That same bard can cast a few more spells per rest period by selecting Mental Toughness. Combat Casting or Skill Focus: Concentration can ensure that critical cure spell does not get interrupted. Remaining Feats can go toward improving anything else the player finds lacking in the balanced build.

Spending Skill Points Wisely
Bards get a nice number of skill points to help them create a base in all areas. Several are truly critical: Diplomacy, Use Magic Device, Concentration, and Perform.

First, Diplomacy can save a bard's life by redirecting an enemy's attention elsewhere.

Second is Use Magic Device, a skill that will allow you to use wands to cast spells not normally in your repertoire. Caster bards will love this skill if they can find the right wands.

Concentration is also a good idea. The higher the Concentration, the less likely your spells will fail if under attack.

Ranks in Perform unlock more bardic music powers as a bard levels. Regardless of bard build, skill points spent here are a sound investment.

The usefulness of stealthy skills (Hide and Move Silently) or a combat skill like Tumble depend on build and playstyle.

Final Words
In the end, bards should find themselves popular for any group, but I want to add a caveat. If your build does not match the expectations of your party, you could be harassed. A group in need of a healer will be annoyed to find out your melee bard doesn't know cure spells or that your balanced bard does not have enough spell points to cast cures as a main healer in a party. A party heavy on magic users could be disappointed that you focus on heals and buffs.

Regardless of my caveat, bards will be prized for their ability to adapt and change roles as party members come and go. Just remember the basics: use bardic music to help companions, engage in melee after the hearty members, and use your spells judiciously--hypnotizing the only monster in the room may be a waste of spell points as Gugdah the barbarian charges in to spell the spell!

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Questions? Comments? Post |HERE|.