Bard

A half-elf in rough leathers hums as she traces her fingertips over an old monument in a long-forgotten ruin, and knowledge springs to mind, conjured up by the power of her song-knowledge of the people who built the monument and the tale it represents. A stern human warrior repeatedly knocks his sword on his scale armor, establishing the tone for his battle cry and exhorting his allies to valor and heroism. They are strengthened and empowered by the enchantment of his music. A gnome weaves her delicate spell over the gathering nobles, laughing as she tunes her cittern, assuring that her companions' remarks would be properly received. A bard, whether scholar, skald, or scoundrel, uses words and music to motivate comrades, demoralize enemies, influence minds, create illusions, and even cure wounds. Words and music aren't just air vibrations in Valine's world; they're powerful vocalizations. The bard is an expert in song, speech, and the power contained within them. The multiverse, according to bards, was spoken into existence, that the gods' words gave it shape, and that the echoes of these primordial Words of Creation can still be heard throughout the cosmos. Bards' music is an attempt to capture and control those echoes, which are discreetly woven into their spells and abilities. Bards' greatest strength is their tremendous adaptability. Many bards prefer to stay on the sidelines in battle, utilizing their spells to motivate friends and obstruct adversaries from afar. Bards, on the other hand, can defend themselves in melee if required, bolstering their swords and armor with their magic. Instead of obviously damaging spells, their spells veer toward charms and illusions. They have a broad understanding of a variety of disciplines and a natural talent that allows them to excel at nearly anything. From musical performance to esoteric knowledge, bards become masters of the skills they dedicate their lives to mastering. True bards are rare in this world. A bard is not always a minstrel singing at a pub or a jester cavorting in a royal court. Finding the magic bidden in music takes a lot of hard work and a certain amount of innate skill, which most troubadours and jongleurs lack. However, distinguishing between these performances and real bards can be difficult. A bard's life is spent, like any other entertainer's, travelling around the world gathering lore, telling stories, and subsisting on the appreciation of audiences. However, bards are distinguished from their peers by their breadth of knowledge, musical ability, and a dash of magic. Bards seldom stay in one location for extended periods of time, and their natural urge to travel—in search of fresh tales to tell, new talents to acquire, and new discoveries beyond the horizon—makes an adventurer's profession a natural calling. Every journey is an opportunity to acquire new talents, explore long-forgotten tombs, find lost works of magic, decode old tomes, travel to unusual places, and encounter exotic animals. Bards like accompanying heroes to see their exploits firsthand. Among other bards, a bard who can deliver an awe-inspiring narrative from personal experience gains reputation. Indeed, many bards take these ideas to heart and take on heroic roles themselves after delivering so many songs about heroes doing great things. Bards bring levity during grave times; they impart wisdom to offset ignorance; and they make the ridiculous seem sublime. Bards are preservers of ancient history, their songs and tales perpetuating the memory of great events down through time-knowledge so important that it is memorized and passed along as oral history, to survive even when no written record remains. It is also the bard's role to chronicle smaller and more contemporary events-the stories of today's heroes, including their feats of valor as well as their less than impressive failures. Of course, the world has many people who can carry a tune or tell a good story, and there's much more to any adventuring bard than a glib tongue and a melodious voice. Yet what truly sets bards apart from others - and from one another - are the style and substance of their performances. To grab and hold the attention of an audience, bards are typically flamboyant and outgoing when they perform. Every successful bard is renowned for at least one piece of performance art, typically a song or a poem that is popular with everyone who hears it. These performances are spoken about for years by those who view them, and some spectators have had their lives forever changed because of the experience. In a bard's quest for the ultimate performance and the highest acclaim, one's instrument is at least as important as one's vocal ability. The instrument's quality of manufacture is a critical factor, of course; the best ones make the best music, and some bards are continually on the lookout for an improvement. Perhaps just as important, though, is the instrument's own entertainment value; those that are bizarrely constructed or made of exotic materials are likely to leave a lasting impression on an audience. Naturally, every bard has a repertoire of songs and stories. Some bards are generalists who can draw from a wide range of topics for each performance, and who take pride in their versatility. Others adopt a more personal approach to their art, driven by their attachment to a muse-a particular concept that inspires much of what those bards do in front of an audience. A bard who follows a muse generally does so to gain a deeper understanding of what that muse represents and how to best convey that understanding to others through performance.

Career

Qualifications

Adventuring bards have typically studied under one of the bardic traditions laid out by Udros, which have become known as the Bardic Colleges. The nature and organization of each of the colleges varies from location to location with each taking on the flavor of the prevailing society, but the basic philosophies, skills and traditions remain similar at their core. Truly mastering a bardic tradition comes from study with one or more bards with greater experience; travelling and exploring the world; and focusing on creating a bardic masterwork. Along the way a bard learns the secrets of and masters the secrets of the college. The bardic colleges are: