A Level 1 Bard has access to the following spells, abilities, and features:

  • Cantrips (Known) – 2
  • Spells (Known) – 1 + Charisma Modifier
  • Level 1 Spell Slots (x2)
  • Bardic Inspiration
  • Weapons – Simple Weapons, Hand Crossbows, Longswords, Rapiers, Shortswords
  • Armour – Light Armour
  • Skills – (Choose 3) Any
  • Armour – Leather Boots, Simple Jerkin
  • Weapons – Hand Crossbow
  • Musical Instrument – (Choose 1) Hand Drum, Flute, Lute, Lyre, Violin
  • Consumables – x2 Potion of Healing, x1 Scroll of Revivify
  • Vicious Mockery
  • Blade Ward
  • Mage Hand
  • True Strike
  • Friends
  • Dancing Lights
  • Light
  • Minor Illusion
  • Animal Friendship
  • Bane
  • Charm Person
  • Cure Wounds
  • Disguise Self
  • Dissonant Whispers
  • Faerie Fire
  • Feather Fall
  • Healing Word
  • Heroism
  • Longstrider
  • Sleep
  • Speak with Animals
  • Tasha’s Hideous Laughter
  • Thunderwave
  • Blindness
  • Calm Emotions
  • Cloud of Daggers
  • Crown of Madness
  • Detect Thoughts
  • Enhance Ability
  • Enthral
  • Heat Metal
  • Hold Person
  • Invisibility
  • Knock
  • Lesser Restoration
  • Phantasmal Force
  • See Invisibility
  • Shatter
  • Silence
  • Bestow Curse
  • Fear
  • Feign Death
  • Glyph of Warding
  • Hypnotic Pattern
  • Plant Growth
  • Speak with Dead
  • Stinking Cloud
  • Confusion
  • Dimension Door
  • Freedom of Movement
  • Greater Invisibility
  • Polymorph
  • Dominate Person
  • Greater Restoration
  • Hold Monster
  • Mass Cure Wounds
  • Planar Binding
  • Seeming
  • Eyebite
  • Otto’s Irresistible Dance

Bards can learn two spells from any class list at level 10. College of Lore Bards can also learn two spells from this list at level 6 (these spells must be level 3 or below).

  • Armour of Agathys
  • Bless
  • Chromatic Orb
  • Command
  • False Life
  • Guiding Bolt
  • Hellish Rebuke
  • Hex
  • Ice Knife
  • Magic Missile
  • Arcane Lock
  • Blur
  • Darkness
  • Darkvision
  • Misty Step
  • Pass Without Trace
  • Scorching Ray
  • Spike Growth
  • Spiritual Weapon
  • Warden of Vitality
  • Call Lightning
  • Counterspell
  • Daylight
  • Fireball
  • Grant Flight
  • Gaseous Form
  • Haste
  • Lightning Bolt
  • Mass Healing Word
  • Remove Curse
  • Slow
  • Spirit Guardians
  • Vampiric Touch
  • Banishment
  • Blight
  • Death Ward
  • Dominate Beast
  • Fire Shield
  • Guardian of Faith
  • Ice Storm
  • Wall of Fire
  • Cone of Cold
  • Conjure Elemental
  • Contagion
  • Wall of Stone

PB – Proficiency Bonus

Lvl
PB
Features
Actions
Spells
Known
1
2
Level 1 Spell Slots (x2)
Bardic Inspiration
4
2
2
Level 1 Spell Slot, Jack of All Trades
Song of Rest
5
3
2
Level 1 Spell Slot, Level 2 Spell Slots (x2), Skill Expertise (x2), Subclass
6
4
2
Level 2 Spell Slot, Cantrip Slot, Feat
7
5
3
Level 3 Spell Slots (x2), Font of Inspiration
Improved Bardic Inspriation
8
6
3
Level 3 Spell Slot
Countercharm
9
7
3
Level 4 Spell Slot
10
8
3
Level 4 Spell Slot, Feat
11
9
4
Level 4 Spell Slot, Level 5 Spell Slot
12
10
4
Level 5 Spell Slot, Cantrip Slot, Skill Expertise (x2), Magical Secrets (x2)
13
11
4
Level 6 Spell Slot
14
12
4
Feat
15

Character Level (Column ⬇), Spell Level (Row ➡)

Level
Cantrips
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
1
2
2
2
2
3
3
2
4
2
4
3
4
3
5
3
4
3
2
6
3
4
3
3
7
3
4
3
3
1
8
3
4
3
3
2
9
3
4
3
3
3
1
10
4
4
3
3
3
2
11
4
4
3
3
3
2
1
12
4
4
3
3
3
2
1

Below, you’ll find guides that cover character creation, spell selection, equipment choices, and general strategies for specific Bard builds.

The bard is a true jack of all trades, and you can shape it to fit almost any role in your party. They have lots of skill bonuses and can access almost any spell in the game through Magical Secrets. College of Lore gets even more skill bonuses and two additional Magical Secrets. If you want to take more of a martial role, College of Valour and College of Swords each get an Extra Attack. It really comes down to how you want to play and what your party is missing. If you don’t have a cleric, your bard can handle the healing. If you don’t have a rogue, your bard can do the thieving.

A bard will make a great “face” for your party with their high Charisma, variety of skill bonuses, and access to many spells that can open up new dialogue options, like Speak with Animals, Detect Thoughts, and Speak with Dead. They also have several options for making the target more amenable to what you have to say, like Friends, Animal Friendship, and Charm Person. Always initiate dialogue with your bard unless you have a specific reason not to.

Your class-specific dialogue options will frequently involve some type of performance, either by telling a story or putting on a show, or just being persuasive or deceptive. When you opt for a skill check, you’ll usually succeed due to your high skill proficiencies, and you can use the Enhance Ability spell to give yourself even more of an edge. Unfortunately you can’t use Bardic Inspiration on yourself, but you can always apply it to an ally who has a high skill bonus for a particular check.

In combat, bards excel in a support role, but can be weak in terms of dealing damage, especially early on. Some of their spells are not useful outside of dialogue, and unlike a cleric or a druid, you can’t swap them out on the fly, so be sure to pick some good combat options as well. Bards don’t get access to the better damaging cantrips like Firebolt, Sacred Flame, or Eldritch Blast, which further limits their ability to do direct damage. That said, they have plenty of options for healing, buffing, debuffing, and crowd control that can help your heavy hitters get the job done.

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Furious

If I'm not working or spending time with the family I'm probably gaming. Some of my favorite recent games I've played are Far Cry 5, World of Warcraft Classic, and 7 Days to Die.

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