Wild Singer (Apath)

Unofficial rules compendium

The savage bard is a friend of nature and a warrior at heart. Like a druid, he gains his powers from nature or a nature-oriented deity, and is a divine spellcaster. His powers strike fear into the enemies of his tribe and praise and protects the sanctity of the wild.

Alignment: If a savage bard has a patron, his alignment must be within one step of his patron's alignment. A savage bard with a Lawful patron can be of lawful alignment. A savage bard without a patron or one with a non-lawful patron cannot be lawful, just like a regular bard.

Class Features

The savage bard has all the standard bard class features, except as noted below.

Illiteracy: A savage bard is illiterate, and his superstition does not allow him to learn to read and write later in life or as a part of a multiclass. A savage bard cannot use or scribe scrolls or a spellbook or formula book, and cannot later take up a class that requires the use of such a book. The savage bard has developed a fantastic memory and can recite long epic poems and songs from memory alone.

Class skills: A savage bard loses Linguistics as a class skill. He adds Survival to his list of class skills.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A savage bard is proficient with all simple weapons, plus the battle axe, chakram, handaxe, shortbow, and throwing axe. Savage bards are also proficient with light armor, medium armor, and shields (except tower shields). A savage bard is a divine spellcaster and does not suffer from arcane spell failure.

Spellcasting: A savage bard casts divine spells, which are drawn from the bard spell list. However, his alignment may restrict him from casting certain spells opposed to his moral or ethical beliefs. A savage bard must choose and prepare his spells in advance (see below).

To prepare or cast a spell, a savage bard must have a Charisma score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a savage bard's spell is 10 + the spell level + the savage bard's Charisma modifier.

Like other spellcasters, a savage bard can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. His base daily spell allotment is given on Table: The Bard. In addition, he receives bonus spells per day if he has a high Charisma score.

Savage bards meditate or pray for their spells. Each savage bard must choose a time at which he must spend 1 hour each day in quiet contemplation to regain his daily allotment of spells. Time spent resting has no effect on whether a savage bard can prepare spells. A savage bard may prepare and cast any spell on the bard spell list (exceptions below), provided that he can cast spells of that level, but he must choose which spells to prepare during his daily meditation. Unlike a cleric, a savage bard cannot substitute for cure spells.

A savage bard can’t cast spells of an alignment opposed to her own or her deity’s (if she has one). Spells associated with particular alignments are indicated by the chaotic, evil, good, and lawful descriptors in their spell descriptions.

Remove the following spells from the savage bard’'s class spell list: calm emotions, comprehend languages, detect secret doors, illusory script, prestidigitation, read magic, sepia snake sigil, summon monster (I through VI).

Add the following spells to the savage bard’s class spell list:
1st — calm animals, detect snares and pits, endure elements, summon nature’'s ally I
2nd — bull’s strength, pass without trace, summon nature’'s ally II;
3rd — snare, summon nature'’s ally III;
4th — insect plague, summon nature'’s ally IV;
5th — commune with nature, summon nature'’s ally V;
6th — creeping doom, ironwood, reincarnate, summon nature’'s ally VI.

Versatile Performance The savage bard does not have versatile performance.

Ex-savage bards

A savage bard who grossly violates the code of conduct required by his god loses all spells and class features, except for weapon, armor and shield proficiencies. He cannot thereafter gain levels as a savage bard of that god until he atones (see the atonement spell description).