D&D 5.5E: The Bard – Now with Wizard, Cleric, and Druid Added
Bards are pretty spicy in the forthcoming new D&D ruleset. In D&D 5.5E, Bards get to play with all the spells.
Well, almost all the spells, but that’s not a very exciting, clickable hook. Being technically accurate is for the body of the article and for people who race to the comments to point out how wrong you are. But you know, Bards do have access to more spells than ever before in 5.5E.
And then there’s still plenty of new/revised stuff on top of that. Bards have, at least since 5th Edition debuted a decade ago, been the go to choice for main character/total disaster PC. And it’s not hard to see why, they do a little of everything, and then they also do a lot of everything.
They’re full spellcasters, because Charisma is their main focus, they’re also the perfect face. They have more hit points than you might think. And they can even fight with a melee or ranged weapon if you want them to. Bards are the total package, with emphasis on total and package, as anyone who’s ever ironically or unironically said, “I roll to seduce” can attest.
WotC themselves seem aware of this trope because, I mean, just look at the Bard art. Yeah, this is the art for the College of Dance, but I mean, come on that wink? That’s how you end up with Aasimar. Or Tieflings.
Pick your poison. Either way, here’s a look at the new Bard.
The New Bard – Musical, Magical, and Better Than Ever
Bards are back, though they never actually went anywhere. So, even more, don’t call it a comeback. Bards remain a powerful class option in 5.5E. But let’s take a look at some of the new and changed features they get, starting with the biggest one: Magical Secrets.
Magical Secrets, if you’re not familiar with it, was how Bards got to poach spells from other spellcasters’ lists. Though this was, in the past, limited to two spells (or cantrips, but I mean, come on really) from any class, but only at levels 10, 14, and 18, with slightly more for Lore Bards.
Not anymore. The biggest change here is that starting at level 10, you can pick your prepared spells from ANY of the major spellcasting class lists. Not just Bard, but Wizard, Cleric, and Druid. Sure, it’s a little restricted in that you can’t get the rare Paladin or Warlock exclusive spell, but that just opens so many doors.
Suddenly, you’re casting like you were whatever you wanted or needed to be. Which, again, I love, I’m a fan. It makes being a Wizard seem like the worst investment ever, you have to PAY for spellbooks AND you only get Wizard spells? Go to Bard College, pal, and get all the spells with half the work. You do have to put up with theater kids, though, so it’s not all upsides.
Bardic Inspiration also gets an update, though it’s much less sexy, I’m afraid. It lasts an hour, but, otherwise it’s still basically the same. You tell someone who rolls slightly low, “remember you have Bardic Inspiration” and then they roll a d6 and still miss.
Other notable changes: Countercharm is now a reaction instead of something you do prophylactically against harpies. Now you can give someone an extra save against an effect and they have advantage to break free.
And then all the way to the 20th level, you get Power Word Kill and Heal always prepared, which is nice. But what will really seduce those dragons/gods/eldritch abominations hellbent on devouring the reality as we know it is how amazing the subclasses look.
5.5E Bard Subclasses – Now You’re Playing with Power
Alright, let us return once more to the College of Dance. This is a brand new subclass for Bards introduced in the new edition of the rules. This has been in the works for a while, and basically, you become a graceful martial artist, Bard. You get good at punching people (or kicking or elbowing, any unarmed strike, really) and wearing as much or as little clothing as you see fit.
To wit, Dance Bards get an unarmored Armor Class, and whenever they use Bardic Inspiration as either a Bonus Action or a Reaction, they can make an Unarmed Strike for free. But unlike most everyone, your unarmed strikes deal damage equal to your Bardic Inspiration die + your Dex mod. So 1d6 + 3 or 4 to start, and then climbing as you go. This isn’t a ton, but it is very nice to have it for free whenever you use your Bardic Inspiration, especially since your unarmed strike bonus damage doesn’t actually “spend” your Inspiration.
At level 6, Dance Bards can use Bardic Inspiration to improve the whole party’s initiative roll and also gain a new reaction that potentially lets them move up to half their speed, along with an ally. And speaking of moving with allies… Dance Bards at level 14 can share Evasion with someone else.
The College of Glamour—well, I mean, just look at them. They have improved from their Xanathar’s Guide appearance.
First of all, Beguiling Magic replaces your “Enthralling Performance” feature and confers a number of glam rock benefits: you always have Charm Person and Mirror Image prepared, your enchantment and illusion spells let you also try to charm or frighten someone else. Even the Mantle of Majesty has been upgraded. Now you always have Command prepared. Fun stuff all around.
The College of Lore has been updated a little, but is mostly the way it played in the 2014 Player’s Handbook. Notable changes include: Cutting Words works on creatures immune to Charm and spending Bardic Inspiration on Peerless Skill doesn’t spend your Inspiration if you still fail the check. But otherwise, they get more flexibility with their spell lists. Now they can swap out their spells on level up, so you can constantly tailor your list.
Finally the College of Valor, because WotC hates Swords Bards for some reason. Maybe they were just too powerful in Baldur’s Gate 3. Either way, the Valor Bard is your classic melee bard.
The biggest change here is that their Extra Attack feature can grant an extra attack with the attack action, or you can swap out one of those attacks to cast a cantrip. Good news for anyone playing with stuff like Booming Blade or Greenflame Blade or even the new True Strike (assuming it hasn’t changed from how we last saw it in the Unearthed Arcana).
And that’s all the new classes in the Player’s Handbook. What do you think of the changes?
