[Musicianship] Best Bard Template that fits latest changes to Barding ?

[popps]

The upcoming changes to Barding will give a bonus to real skill in barding abilities.

Taking that into account, what would be the most effecting Bard Template that goes along with how the ability will change ?

I assume all 4 Barding skills maxed out to 120 "real" skill to get the max possible real skill bonus.

That leaves only room for 2 more skills plus perhaps a third if one plays out with items to put on more points.

So, what other skills would fit the best with a Bard Template that wants to maximize on the upcoming bonuses to real bardic skills ?

 

[Barry Gibb]

Review this forum for all current Bard templates and you will find your answer. The upcoming changes to the Bard Masteries and skill timers will not holisticallly change existing Bard templates.

The changes probably wont even promt you to change how high you take them (other than the emphasis of needing real skill). You will still need Musicianship, whatever Bard skills you want use, and other skills to support what you want to do.

Stayin Alive,

BG

 

[Luke Carjacker]

From what I understand, the optimal bard templates will include 2 bard skills + music. The timer reductions & bonuses seem to apply with 2 skills; I didn't notice the notes saying anything about an additional bonus with having all three + music.

I've always hated peacemaking myself, so the simple answer is provoke, discord, music. My main bard/mage character has always had those three plus magery, med, eval all to 120. Good template that's versatile and powerful in almost all situations.

I do have some other bard template that I play. I have a discord/tamer and it's unlikely I will throw on additional bard skills to get the bonuses for more skills. I also have a bard/archer that I can swamp in provoke or discord depending on the situation. This char is already around 800 skill points to get music/bard skill + abc archer skills, so there's no chance I'll be adding a 2nd or 3rd skill to this template. I've also been trying a mystic/mage/bard char (modification of my main bard/mage) with one bard skill that works great at spawns, and there's no room for a second bard skill. Again, herein lies the problem; a lot of skills are just better uses of skill points & mana than bard skills.

I am giving a little thought to how these new skills can be used in PvP. I'm not looking to build some sort of gimp template, but just maybe find some way that my bard is not a sitting duck on the battle field. (On a side note, I'm very very very very disappointed that the developers seem to have wasted the bulk of their time worrying about such gimp templates rather than supporting bard skills as a whole). Now that spellcasting doesn't interrupt bard masteries, I think there are some possibilities I plan to test.

 

[Storm]

I would think if you are going to use the new abilities a lot then as much mana regen items and med/focus would be the only major change!

 

[NBG]

Discord archer/thrower is really decent.

you can leech enough back to keep the songs going so it really ups the damage and the suit is fairly easy to make.

 

[popps]

Thanks for the replies.

I have read, that the new bard songs can be particularly usefull to a Bard tamer but I have not yet had the time to look into it so I am not sure why this would be.

Can someone please explain to me why would a Bard Tamer squeeze the most out of these new Bard songs if that is the case ?

Or, as others said, would it instead be better to have a Bard warrior with Mana Leech weapons ?

At that point, if the goal is to have mana at all times, why not a Bard Vampire ??

 

[Luke Carjacker]

Vampire's don't leech mana, they leech life. Wraith form does allow you to leech mana, so the sold necro/peacer template might get some benefit from being able to maintain the peacemaking spell songs. Maybe find some way to throw in discord or provoke as well to reduce bard timers & mana costs.

I've personally tried using bard masteries on my bard/archer and was not able to leech mana at a consistent enough pace to keep the songs active for very long. With the reductions in upkeep costs, I'll give it another shot.

 

[WildWobble]

120 music
120 peace
120 provoke
120 discord
100 magery
70 necro
20 focus
50 meditation

Necro for lich form for a big mana regen boost.
change up suit for some +skills can up med more that way say +20 skill off sleeves +20 mage +20 focus off crystalline ring. Brace either +skill 1/3 fc fcr

I threw on 2 vollems and my bard is very kick ass!
Mainly my gear is tailored to +mana regen so i can keep songs going.

 

[popps]

Necro for lich form for a big mana regen boost.

Lich form ?

Someone else mentione Wraith form as an effective way to get most mana back....

Which is better ? Lich or Wraith ?

Mainly my gear is tailored to +mana regen so i can keep songs going.

Can you describe more in details what gear you are using ?

Any particular artifact/talisman or clothing ?

 

[Poo]

well the difference between the lich form and the wraith form is gonna be that lick form just gives you a straight MR boost at the cost of your HP.

i cant recall the exat numbers but i think its like +10 MR.

where as the wraith form you leech mana off the stuff your killing.
which is good IF the stuff your killing has mana for you to leech off of.

but i think the biggest thing about both of those when your talking bard is gonna be is your bard gonna be right up there shouldering his way into the fight to be able to wither to get the leech from the wraith form (and your gonna need spirit speak for your wither to work effectivlly)

or do you wanna sit back and launch off spells.
in that case then you should be using the lich form for the MR boost.

but i think at the end of the day it comes down to your suit and your template.

from what i can see so far, if your using the peace or provo bard masteries you can roll fairlly good with just meditation and a nice suit (40LMC and some mana regen around 10)

now if your gonna try to use the disco ones then your gonna need some more harder mana regen.

course, keep in mind that the peace and provo spells dont do damage to the critters, only the disco ones do.

so are you gonna be using your masteries to get the extra buffs from peace or provo masteries like MR and HCI and DI and such, or do you need your masteries to do damage.

personally with the way i play my bards (the mage ones) i need the damage.
so i either drop EVs or take my Vollums and then disco the critter, slap my castings on it or my vollums then drop the disco mastery on it for some extra damage then start floating in some spells.

but if your gonna roll in a big group then maybe the buffs are gonna be what ya need.
personally i havnt gotten much use out of the buff ones yet.
and personally even if i where to go in a group to do a peerless i think id use the disco one to deal out the damage.

i really should try the HCI/DI one with a pack of warriors partied, it may be worth it.

 

[Shamus Turlough]

Just to note, 6 hp regen negates the life drop from lich form. Not hard to work that much into a suit with the totem and CC.

 

[Logrus]

The stuff I've run around with so far

Mage or Mystic + Provo: Summons get the HCI and DI bonus as well as the stats and healing


Tamer Peacer: The damage reduction on the tames helps alot/ But I dont play a tamer very well so I can't speak to the real usefulness

Disco Mystic/Disco Mage: Very Mana intensive but despair and plague make a nasty combination on low resist players.
Tribulation drops HCI when fighting dexers and archers. (Not to mention the 30% damage and combining with a flame strike can be up to 40+ damage on an uncursed player. (Sleep also stacks with tribulation which is also a HCI debuff)


Provo Mystic/Mage : Invigorate is nice for healing on the run

 

[Poo]

for some reason i didnt realise that the buff spells effected your summons and your pets.

thats very interesting.

im working how a normal disco on a critter then one of the buffs like the HCI SDI increase one, then a greater dragon tanking.

hmmmm.

or even a collasul(sp?) for that matter.

*steeples fingers and cackles evilly*

 

[Poo]

taming 90 then buff up with ring/watch to 120
animal lore 110/120
disco 120
provo 120
music 120
med 110
magic 40 (+30 from ring and watch, +10 to 12 or even 15 from spellbook) 80/85

that leaves the talisman for LMC
also leaves the ring and watch to get 2/4 casting.
pick up the vesper musem shield for another 1/2 if needed.

should be able to easilly get the 100 LRC and remaining 30 LMC and at least 10 MR out of the tunic/legs/arms/gloves/hat/neck

hmmmmm

just spit balling here.

wonder if that magic is gonna be too low though to be effective.

 

[ultima77]

taming 90 then buff up with ring/watch to 120
animal lore 110/120
disco 120
provo 120
music 120
med 110
magic 40 (+30 from ring and watch, +10 to 12 or even 15 from spellbook) 80/85

that leaves the talisman for LMC
also leaves the ring and watch to get 2/4 casting.
pick up the vesper musem shield for another 1/2 if needed.

should be able to easilly get the 100 LRC and remaining 30 LMC and at least 10 MR out of the tunic/legs/arms/gloves/hat/neck

hmmmmm

just spit balling here.

wonder if that magic is gonna be too low though to be effective.

Healing might be a little low with magery at that level.

For fun, I'm thinking of trying 4X Legendary bard, 120 Mystic, 120 Focus with a mastery in Provo for the 40% DI for RCs. Thoughts?

 

[Poo]

RC?

 

[Storm]

rising colossus

 

[Poo]

im still use to RC being Rotten Corpses