First Life Bard Trapper Builds?

[ostill82]

Just looking for a First Life Bard Trapper Build. I like trapping, I like movement speed, and I like Spellsinger play style. I want to run one on the new server, but after a little research I don't think I'll have time to sift thru everything before the server opens. Can anyone point me in the right direction?

 

[Bliv]

This can go in a lot of directions. It depends what you want to specialize in.
Here are a few build ideas:

Spellsinger focus (good songs, some nukes, crowd control, heals):
- 18 bard / 2 rogue
- max your charisma, rest in constitution and intelligence
- grab the usual metamagic feats (maximize, empower, quicken, heighten)
- pick spell focus and greater spell focus (either enchantment or evocation)
- don't forget insightful reflexes

Rogue focus (melee or ranged dps, basic songs):
- 15 rogue, 3 bard, 2 fighter
- go swashbuckler core 2 to increase the threat range of your chosen weapon
- assassin rogue or inquisitive, pending if you want to go melee or ranged (could even go Vistani here)
- single weapon fighting for melee, every good crossbow feat if you go inquis
- dex based, either way - rest in constitution and intelligence
- 3 bard gives you bardic inspiration (+4 to your skills)

Harper swashbuckler (melee dps, basic songs, very high trapping)
- 16 bard, 3 rogue, 1 fighter
- you need the Harper enhancement tree for this build, which you may not own
- Max intelligence, rest in constitution and charisma
- single weapon fighting swashbuckler
- intelligence to hit and dmg from the Harper tree
- probably your best bet to have high trap skills

And I could go own and own.

Other players will be able to give you other ideas.

 

[ostill82]

I like the the Spellsinger 18 bard/ 2 Rogue and the Harper Swashbuckler sounds fun, but not sure if I would be good enough to get thru elite quests on a melee. Aren't they squishy? To be honest I haven't even tried melee yet now that I think about, lol.

 

[rabidfox]

I've done trapper bard on my 2nd account on HC while dual boxing my main to actually kill content. The biggest issue is that the stats you want as a trapper to find & not blow boxes tends to be counter to what you want as a bard. So you can easily find yourself being subpar as a result.

Stuff like pale trappers tend to work nicely because of the same overlapping stats desired.

 

[Bliv]

As with every build, it is usually good if it fits your playstyle.
If you are unfamiliar with melee, the 18/2 spellsinger is probably the way to go.

You can play it as a normal spellsinger. The only thing you lose is the capstone.

But as rabidfox said, bard is charisma based usually. The best trappers are intelligence based.

The Harper Swashbuckler build is intelligence based, but you're trading a lot of what bards are (songs) to be effective. I did run that build last Hardcore season and I was doing well on R4 at cap. It's an out-of-the-box build this said.

 

[Deamon81]

I tried a Warchanter mixed with a Vistani Knife Fighter which was a lot of fun
Also 18/2 Br/Rg and a good trapper (but good trapper items needed)

 

[thejaerleclan]

Bard 18 Arti 2, inquis spellsinger.

 

[Lorianna]

My current first-life bard trapper is built as an all-round general-purpose "adventurer". She's a one-woman full party. She's 32nd at the moment (haven't played her since the level cap increase), but she was easily capable of soloing legendary elite.

Bard-15, Fighter-3, Rogue-2

I need to rework a bit of her gear with the newer stuff, since I'm sure I could tighten up a few things here and there, but overall she runs at around 150 ac + displacement + incorporeal + around 30% dodge. She's fairly tough, for a bard.

37 points in spellsinger, 24 in swashbuckler, 6 in warchanter, 13 in stalwart defender, 3 in elf.

With guild buffs and her own self-buffs, not using any potions or anything like that, she runs at around 120 disable, 110 search/open locks, 100 spot (I'm at work so I can't be absolutely sure, but that's about what I remember).

<edit> Just checked when I got home from work. With all her buffs up, she's got 122 disable, 120 open lock, 117 search, 98 spot.

 

[Frantik]

For the record, I prefer pure spellsingers for the mass hold monsters and extra DCs and the cap. But in an attempt to remain on topic, I would think about a 19/1 bard/rogue split (or even 18/1/1) then in epics go Fatesinger (tier 5, epic strike) and Primal Avatar (mantle for max spell points) with a splash into Machrotechnic to grab the tier 2 ability Fluidity. This would allow you to plug in heavy armor and a tower shield for a more tanky songsmith. My first life pure Spellsinger (lvl 31) on Cormyr has a sword and it works just fine.

 

[Lagin3]

The synergy just isn't there. As posted above, there are ways to run that type* of build, but from my experience the trade-offs aren't worth it.
But this is what makes this game great, being able to make it work, even if clunky to do so, it can be done.
As Spock once said, "DO what feels right"

 

[Frantik]

The synergy just isn't there. As posted above, there are ways to run that type* of build, but from my experience the trade-offs aren't worth it.
But this is what makes this game great, being able to make it work, even if clunky to do so, it can be done.
As Spock once said, "DO what feels right"

I'm not so sure; splashing one level of rogue provides access to the Mechanic tree and +3 to all trapping skills for 7AP from Awareness and Mechanics abilities. The human race gives access to another +3 trapping skills from Skill Focus for 8 AP (which stacks i believe) plus a +4 skill action boost. Bard Inspire Competence grants a further +4 to all skills. Tier 1 fatesinger provides +3/+3 more skills. Another +6 from Shadowdancer's Technician. I think for low investment the potential for your trapping skills to be good is there. Bards get quite a lot of skill points anyway, so a tome-packing build with 14 INT at start would be bagging you 12 skill points at level 7, 10 without tomes, another +1 if you opted for human. Where it falls down is that your main stat would be CHA and not INT. But if any non-trapper and non-INT based class can mitigate this, it must be bard.

EDIT +4 from Greater Heroism

 

[gurth83]

+1 focusing chant