Blade

Blade is a class kit in.

Introduction
Blades are a Bard kit that specializes in highly complex, scenic and visually stunning fencing techniques which usually find the enemy unprepared and unable to counteract. This makes blades somewhat more efficient in melee combat than their bard colleagues, but they far from excel in it.

Combat training takes its toll on the other "trademark" bard skills and they tend to neglect singing, pickpocketing and gaining lore - these skills will always be underdeveloped in comparison to unkitted bards. Spellcasting, however, is not affected by any penalties. A Blade is as good a spellcaster as any other bard.

In order for bards to cast a spell, first they need to successfully scribe a mage spell scroll into their spell book (scroll lost in process regardless of success or failure), in which they must prepare the spell by putting it into an empty spell slot, then they have to rest to get the spell ready. Spellcasting is also affected by armor, wearing an armor of any kind (other than the few Elven Chain Mails found) renders it impossible.

Bards are generally neutral characters, tending toward the chaotic—they come and go when they want, and are usually not bound by obligations, countries or organisations. There aren't many bards who are either good- or evil-aligned.

Only humans and half-elves can become bards.

Bards may not dual class.

Character abilities table
During character creation, rolls below the minimum value for the class will be increased to that value. This table uses the values for Humans, other Races have modified ability scores.

Bard song
The signature ability of the bard is their battle song. While active, the party will be fortified against fear, both natural and magical. Specifically, the party will be rendered immune to magical fear, will have any such existing effects removed from them and their morale will be gradually restored to its baseline while they hear the song. All Bard songs work within a limited range, roughly 5 to 6 meters, and the singer’s view must not be blocked by doors, corners.

In EE version 2.0+, Bard song of the same type no longer stacks, and all songs break invisibility, but the patch does give the bard song a +1 Luck bonus to allies who hear it at Blade level 1. Blades do not improve their song as they level up. This only matters from level 15 up.

Blades can still select the Enhanced Bard Song HLA. It will replace their default song and improve their singing bonuses significantly, though will come into play fairly late in game - the Blade must be at least lvl 24 ( only).

Gameplay
 * The song effects take 1 to 6 sec to kick in, so do they when they go away, if you're feeling lucky, you may direct the bard to do something else, switch back to singing while still maintain the song benefits

Pick pockets
A bard can attempt to steal items from other characters. The chance to steal an item depends on the percentage, which automatically increases with the Blade's level, up to a maximum score of 57 at level 16, plus dexterity modifier.

Lore
Blades have only half the staring Lore for Bards and receive only 5 Lore points per level.

Wizard spellbook
Bards begin to advance in wizard spells slots when they reach level 2, up to the 6th spell level.

Bards are known for their quick levelling, which gives them a slight advantage over mages when using spells that indefinitely scale with the caster's level - like Skull Trap, Dispel Magic (arcane), Remove Magic, Flame Arrow, Lower Resistance, Pierce Magic, etc. As the level difference between mages and bards always favors the latter, bards surprisingly get the upper hand when casting those spells and keep their advantage all the way up to reaching the level cap, as mages cannot progress past lvl 31, while bards can get to lvl 40.

The advantage fades when using spells with effect that is capped at a certain level, like Fireball - the bard will be the first to get the maximal possible effect at lvl 10, but lose all advantage once the mage reaches the same level.

Two-weapon Fighting
The Blade is the only Bard class able to invest three proficiency points in two weapon style. They can even go one step further, select Use Any Item and wear Montolio's Cloak to fully negate the off-hand penalty to THAC0 which is boosted by available spells like Tenser's Transformation.

This does not mean that a Blade should go melee exclusively as spells like Melf's Minute Meteors and ranged damage arrows like Acid Arrow work extremely well with both spins.

Offensive Spin
Upon activating this ability, the Blade doubles their movement speed, receives two points bonus on THAC0 and damage, one extra attack and all their melee and ranged attacks do maximum damage for the next 4 rounds. The damage effect is similar to Kensai's Kai but last more than twice as long and can apply to range weapons.

This ability does not stack with Haste or Improved Haste, but does stack with Oil of Speed. It cannot be used together with Defensive Spin.

Defensive Spin
When activated, this ability gives the blade 1 AC bonus per level up to a maximum of 10 AC, but makes them unable to move around the map for the duration of the ability (4 rounds). Great for being an AC tank with Ghost Armor while casting spells, especially in BG1.

Defensive Spin can not be used together with Offensive Spin, but the Blade retains all his other abilities - bard song, spells and melee/ranged attacks.

This ability works well with the Enhanced Bard Song, Greater Evasion and various protective spells and can, for a short period, help the Blade achieve the highest AC possible in the series.

Kit description
The Blades are the expert fighters and adventurers whose bardic acting abilities make them appear more intimidating and fearsome. This Bard's fighting style is flashy and entertaining, but is also lethally dangerous.

Advantages:
 * May place 3 slots in Two-Weapon Style
 * May use the Offensive Spin and Defensive Spin abilities once per day. Gains one use each at level 1 and an additional use each every 4 levels thereafter.

Disadvantages:


 * Only has one half the normal Lore value
 * Only has one half the normal Pick Pockets skill, the dex modifier to this skill is also halved. Blades will reach up to 57 in pickpocketing at lv16, and with 25 dex, they’ll have the combined score of 80.
 * Bard Song does not improve when a blade gains levels

Gameplay
In BG1: Offensive Spin with Spider's Bane (quick slot weapon) and/or Melf's Minute Meteors allows for wiping mages out very quickly. Then while in Defensive Spin they have the highest AC possible of any class and have even better melee damage resistance (95% since only enemy rolls of 20 will hit) than Dwarven Defenders in Defensive Stance! Don't miss the Twinkle +3 or Elven Chain Mail. The rest of this section is dedicated to BG2.

Blades, like all other bards, tend to have a supporting role in the party. Offensive Spin, Defensive spin and buffing up with spells like Stoneskin, Mirror Image and Tenser's Transformation can allow them to enter they fray for the duration of their effects and actually have an impact if carefully managed. But outside those short moments: a mediocre THAC0; low number of attacks; and low Hit Die severely limit their usefulness and survivability in melee.

An experienced player should thus strive to use them tactically, finding the best moment to activate one of their special abilities. Defensive spin, for example, is great for holding the enemy stuck at a doorway, allowing the Blade's companions to hit said enemy with missiles and long reach weapons from a safe distance. It can also keep a powerful enemy occupied while the rest of the party clears out its minions or simply regroups.

Offensive spin is best used to place a decisive blow on a single, powerful enemy once all his protections are dispelled. In this respect it should be utilized much like the thief's Backstab. Tenser's Transformation being cast after activating Offensive Spin should facilitate hitting the enemy, as Blades have poor THAC0.

Outside those brief moments of glory (which are still more than what any other bard can achieve), Blades should stay back and either: cast summons and/or spells that indefinitely scale with the caster's level - like Skull Trap, Dispel Magic (arcane), Remove Magic, Flame Arrow, Lower Resistance, Pierce Magic, etc.; or singing (once the Blade gets the Enhanced Bard Song late in the game of BG2:SoA or early in BG2:ToB) if the party already has many physical attackers looking to hear a song.

Ninjatō of the Scarlet Brotherhood, Belm, or Kundane as well as Gauntlets of Extraordinary Specialization (Once Use Any Item is chosen) combined with Improved Haste allow for 9 Attacks per Round (APR) continuously when wanting to quickly clear non-boss enemies or the occasional boss with poor AC.

THAC0 can also be supplemented with (permanent +4) by using Mislead (have duplicate sit away form combat), and/or Invisibility used to set Time Stop traps for all but a few bosses.

The Blade is arguably the best user of Vhailor's Helm as the summoned duplicate can sing Enhanced Bard Song for the party even if the duplicate is below level 24 as the original bard song has now been replaced on the character.

By equipping Purifier, Hindo's Doom, and/or other items (Once Use Any Item is chosen) the blade is free to cast spells up to level 6 while in Defensive Spin at 100% Magic Resistance and at the -24 AC cap (which gives 95% damage reduction even against powerful foes like red dragons) simultaneously. This makes the blade arguably the most defensive magic casting class available in the game and the toughest by far to interrupt. Up to 20 D6 with Flame Arrow or Skull Trap is possible compared to Abi-Dalzim's Horrid Wilting (the most damaging spell in the game) to finish off tough opponents

Comparable attack/spell hybrid class builds in BG2 are the Human Berserker (7 to 13 levels) dual classed to a Mage (or a fighter/mage Multi-Class). They can not get 100% MR nor -24 AC (let alone both simultaneously) nor provide song buffs, but will have more hit points, attacks per round, spells, and possible a slightly better THAC0 if 11 or more fighter levels were taken.

The Blade's Pickpocketing will never truly reach the point to be of any practical use (though drinking a few Potion of Master Thievery does help). Bards improve their lore at the pace every mage does and thus have no comparative advantage since both may use Identify (arcane).

High-level class abilities
Bards have almost the same high-level class abilities as thieves, but instead of Assassination, they have enhanced bards song and magic flute, despite no skill points into Set Traps the traps HLAs available to the Bard will never fail or accidentally trigger on the Bard.
 * Alchemy
 * Avoid Death
 * Enhanced Bard Song
 * Evasion
 * Greater Evasion, requires evasion already selected
 * Magic Flute
 * Scribe Scrolls, use any item is a requirement
 * Set Spike Trap
 * Set Exploding Trap
 * Set Time Trap
 * Use Any Item

Stronghold
Bards protagonists may run the Five Flagons Inn stage after they rescue Raelis and Haer'Dalis from the planar prison