Nimble Escapeallows Disengage and Hide actions to be used as bonus actions, which helps keep you out of harms way. For extra points, try getting your hands on aSun Blade. However, this one lets you substitute one of these attacks for a cantrip. This bonus is equal toyour Intelligence modifier, with a minimum of +1. Bard cantrips are not the best in combat, but vicious mockery as a debuff spell scales better when paired with a weapon attack or two, and even blade ward has its uses against weapon damage now that youre not sacrificing a full action to cast it. Many of your class features and spells rely on this stat. Wearing a gratuitous grin, he thrust it at me, telling me to turn to page 141, only cryptically adding, Your prayers have been answered., Since then, the Bladesinger has become one of my favorite classes to play. , which can be used to give yourself advantage on attacks. I would replace strength with dexterity if you were using a rapier but be free to customize your character however you want. Challenging but rewarding, the Bladesinger requires a keen understanding of both melee mechanics and wizard spellcasting, and enough experience to know how to balance the two. Handy for certain saving throws, but mostly superfluous. Theres nothing worse than being out-nerded by a rogue. As mentioned, I generally assume that you begin as a wizard, or at least bee-line for wizard level 6 as quickly as you can if you have features or starting proficiencies you need from the other class. Putting all that together, I'm curious to see what people think are the most powerful builds. "Gish" is a commonly used term for weapon users that can also . Once, in a campaign with another wizard that had also taken Minor Illusion, we managed to distract an entire town of people by staging a mock fight, throwing illusionary Fire Bolts at each other until our rogue had robbed the crowd blind. You use your intelligence to predict and dodge away from attacks, rather than simply being protected from a magical force or something that relies on your power, and you use your power to activate your bladesong, rather than your intelligence allowing you to sing more. Losing a spell slot in such a manner obviously isnt ideal, but it might mean the difference between a bladesinger staying on the battlefield or getting KOed by a critical hit from a boss monsters legendary action. Planning on using a fireball spell, but see that one of your companions is in the blast zone? Otherwise, youll be choosing between cantrips and Extra Attack from your base class for six very long wizard levels. It also reduces that enemy's speed by 10 ft and prevents healing. As a subject for learning, it is absent from schools and guilds, with instruction only provided from a single master to a single student. Alongside the Eldritch Knight which fulfills the opposite niche for fighters who want spells to supplement their swordplay the bladesinger is reminiscent of hybrid classes in previous editions of D&D, like fourth editions swordmage. Having at least 13 Intelligence is a prerequisite for even multiclassing into or out of wizard, and the more you plan on relying on your wizard spells and AC bonus from Bladesinging, the higher you should go there. An excellent ability that fits the Bladesinger, both thematically and mechanically. Dram is a chaotic good wizard with theInvestigatorbackground fromVan Richtens Guide to Everything. Coming in at 1D6, which is the lowest in D&D 5E, it is no surprise that Wizards are a bit squishy. Make it high. Youre actually my first comment ever on this site! You also miss out on your Divine Domain capstone ability, but if that one is important to you, multiclassing into Bladesinger is not the way to go anyway. A multifaceted debuff spell. Burning through slots this way is far from your best option, and your reaction can be better spent on other ways of defending yourself, such as Absorb Elements or Shield. With access to the most flexible spell list in Dungeons & Dragons, bladesingers can choose between slinking into melee range with shadow blade and tossing fireball from the backline. Use this to shut down other spellcasters before cutting them down with your blade. Alongside the Eldritch Knight which fulfills the opposite niche for fighters who want spells to supplement their swordplay the bladesinger is reminiscent of hybrid classes in previous editions of D&D, like fourth edition's swordmage. Like with all Wizards, the most crucial ability score for you will be intelligence. Better yet if you can get Illusionist's Bracers, you can do it for free without the feat and more often. Bladesinger 5e Guide: Sword, Spell, and Song, A friend of mine knew this, so was compelled to rush over to my house one day, clutching a copy of, . While the Bladesinging tradition might have originated amongst elven sword masters, its important to note that it no longer requires the use of a blade. Wizards have always been a tricky class for me. Since the subclass rework in Tashas Cauldron of Everything, this has been expanded to all races, reflecting the traditions adaptation and expansion by other cultures. As a bonus action, you can starta Bladesong,which lasts for 1 minute and confers the following benefits: You can end theBladesong at any time, and can only activate it if you arent wearing medium or heavy armor or using a shield, which are two conditions that can end the song early. After that you could take 2 Fighter levels for a fighting style, more weapon proficiences and Action Surge. As I covered a while ago, charting out a fun multiclassing concept also means knowing when the core synergy you are looking for will come into play. Are you able to get Sapping Sting as a Bladesinger? Falling to the ground with tears in his eyes, the old man helplessly watched as the crooks snatched his purse, eagerly removing its coins like ravenous hyenas. The Bladesinger is an immensely popular and iconic subclass of the wizard. Make this the highest. Answer: No. However, the Bladesinger has the best of both worlds. If its what you want to do, do it! Hit an enemy with this, and they cant move without taking thunder damage. But which race is the best choice? The Bladesinger first appeared in second edition D&D. But how does the Bladesinger work? Needless to say, youre unlikely to miss. Keep a collection of knives, throw them onto the floor, then cast this spell. Its great to have that buffer for a class with so few hit points, but using it too often runs the danger of turning you into nothing more than a bad fighter with a few cantrips. At14th level, bladesingers can add their Intelligence modifier (at a minimum of +1) to the damage of their melee attacks while their Bladesong is active. Effective in disrupting enemy formations and tactics, this spell forces foes into the unenviable choice between a complete lack of mobility and losing health. Armor class will also be an issue. The Deep Gnome might not seem like the obvious choice for a sword-wielding spell-slinger, but its +2 Intelligence and +1 Dexterity modifier might get you to think twice before putting this subrace aside. The Extra Attack feature is not going to help all clerics equally. Originally created by elves, this tradition has been adopted by non-elf practitioners, who honor and expand on the elven ways. Excellent for raw damage output. This spread of abilities means they cant truly excel in any one area. Or a rapier-wit master fencer from the College of Eloquence? For Arcane Archer it's 2, for Battle Master it starts at 4. This can help a lot in supplementing your melee fighting capabilities. Restricted to elves only before Tasha's, it has become available to wizards of any race since the publication of that book. / Hasbro, Inc. This feat isnt fancy, but it provides something that the Bladesinger lacks quite a bit: hit points. Why bother resisting damage when you can make time itself grind to a halt? This complete guide to the Bladesinger will answer all your questions and more. Suddenly, the swish of a rapier cut through the darkness, and one of the thugs yelped, dropping the purse. Your other class is also likely to have other ability score requirements, both for multiclassing and for making them viable in their own right. The damage difference is night and day at level 5 (about 40% increase) and is enough to make the Bladesinger viable in melee. In the situation where you cannot benefit from Reaper, using one of the blade cantrips allows you a second chance to land your attack for Divine Strike damage just like the other domains. There are quite a few juicy options now available: Dwarf (Mountain): two +2s, poison resistance, and the armor/weapon proficiencies can be traded for heavy & hand crossbow proficiencies. Teleportation spell that only takes up a bonus action. The resemblance isuncanny. Though none of this will make you as good as a fighter in a straight-up brawl, being able to dip in and out of direct combat allows for a more skirmisher-style approach. Using this in combat gives you advantage on all your attacks, and disadvantage on any attacks that come your way. However, with the Bladesinging Extra Attack, you instead have the option of replacing one of the attacks of your Attack action with a cantrip, freeing you up to do things with your bonus action - including the myriad of things triggered by the Attack action. These magical secrets can then be used to pick up the wizard spells that youre missing out on at higher levels. Dram also hasgreater invisibility at his disposal in case he needs to spy on a group of criminals and then spring into action to catch them by surprise. Now you have access to level 9 spells, why not take this incredibly damaging summon spell? It's an excellent choice for anyone hoping to combine the arcane arts with useful melee capabilities. 3 Giant Wolf Spider. Those that have seen the bladesong often describe it as the most beautiful display one can witness, likening it more to dance than a martial art. The cat style focuses on swords, the bird style utilizes hafted weapons like axes and picks, and the snake style uses weapons reminiscent of its coiled namesake, like flails or whips. It also gives you advantage on every attack you make with it in low light or darkness. At worst, itll get you killed. A glass cannon, the Bladesinger can deal a hefty amount of damage and fill a lot of roles within a party but must be careful not to take too much damage, lest they fall. Even better by starting artificer and getting to 5th level battlesmith you become super SAD by using Int to attack which synergizes beautifully with bladesinger. The "Dancer" Bard Subclass confirms no revised subclasses from non-PHB books. Because you are only casting a cantrip as part of your Attack action, you can still cast a leveled spell with your bonus action, and healing is just about the one thing wizards dont do very well. For the Bladesinger, it will be intelligence and dexterity. No longer do bladesingers need to choose between making two attacks or casting booming blade now they can do both. The upside of not relying on Bladesinging is that your Intelligence score can be kept at 13 (or 14 if you really need that extra spell prep slot), letting you stick with utility and buff spells from the wizard while relying on your cleric spells to do the blasting. Fortunately, this will also help your weapon attacks if you use ranged or finesse weapons. Any other ideas ? They simply have nothing really impactful to add to their weapon attacks to make much of a difference. Scan this QR code to download the app now, current leaks on Tasha's Cauldron of Everything. Two-Weapon Fighting D&D 5E - How It Works. This time around, Ill tackle the two full-caster combinations: the bard and the cleric. Being able to deal someone a. because they dared to move past you is ridiculously strong, but even a cantrip can be surprisingly useful here. Bladesong also comes in as the bread and butter of the subclass at 2nd level. I dont think so. In other words, an ideal Bladesinger weapon. They can cast a cantrip in place of one of the attacks, which is another handy addition that the Tashas Cauldron of Everything version of this subclass instituted. For that reason, Id generally recommend starting with six levels of wizard to get to that feature as quickly as possible. Strong melee options include Booming Blade, Green Flame Blade, Shocking Grasp and Sword Burst, while ranged Bladesinger's can consider Chill Touch, Firebolt, Ray of Frost or Sapping Sting. On another note, despite the power of its smites, the paladin will be too MAD (multi-attribute dependent) on top of the sacrifices of your high-level paladin features to make sense in this combination. Answer: Bladesinger originated in Sword Coast Adventurers Guide, with a revised version later appearing in Tashas Cauldron of Everything, buffing the subclass in a few areas. 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