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The College of Swords is already one of the bard’s strongest subclasses in D&D, and it’s even better inBaldur’s Gate 3. You have all the swashbuckling swordplay and spell crafting of the tabletop, but now with incredible ranged firepower that puts even a ranger to shame. Add to that the Bard’s famous ability to talk themselves into or out of trouble, and you’ve got perhaps the strongest subclass in the entire game.
The best thing about a College of Swords bard is that it comes online at level three, and you don’t need to invest much into gear hunting to get started. If you’re ready to enroll, the College of Swords awaits.
5 plus Constitution modifier
Light Armour, Medium Armor
Skill Proficiencies (Choose Three)
History, Insight, Medicine, Persuasion, Religion, Deception, Intimidation, Performance, Acrobatics, Sleight of Hand, Stealth, Animal Handling, Arcana, Investigation, Athletics, Nature, Perception, Survival
Spellcasting Ability
Charisma
Where the College of Lore and Valor support the party with spells and inspiring music,the College of Swords is the star of its own show. It’s a one-man band capable of taking on all challengers like a true rock star.
Your enrollment in the College of Swords starts at level three. Until then, you’re just a regular bard. But that’s still pretty great! YourBardic Inspirationhelps with skill checks, attacks, and saving throws, you get an extra short rest thanks toSong of Rest, andJack of All Tradesgives you a boost to every skill you’re not already proficient in. That’s on top of being afull spellcaster.
But once level three hits, and you enroll in the College of Swords, you gain access to the subclass’s signature feature:Blade Flourish. To briefly summarize, each of the melee and ranged Flourishes offers a different buff:Defensive Flourishprovides extra armor class,Mobile Flourishoffers crowd control and mobility whileSlashing Flourishcan attack up to two enemies at once. Except not quite.
Each of the Flourishes has its use, and you will certainly use them all at one point or another, but the onethis guide will focus on almost exclusively is Slashing Flourish (Ranged). While the in-game tooltip says this ability lets you attack two enemies at once, it also lets youattack the same enemy twice, with extra damage to boot.
This means, for the low cost of one Bardic Inspiration charge, a College of Swords bard effectively getstwo attacks at level three–something other classes don’t get until at least level five. Add in your off-hand attack, and you’ll have three attacks at level three. Add in theextra attack at level six, and that’s four attacks. And with a little multi-classing, you’re able to get the College of Swords bard toseven attacks per roundbefore the end of the game.
8(-1)
16(+3)
14(+2)
10(0)
The build willfocus entirely on Dexterityto maximize its damage output, but that doesn’t mean we ignore ourspellcasting stat of Charisma. A strongbase of 16gives us +3 to our starting modifier, which will make our initial spells strong enough to get us to level three. After that, our spells will taper off in power, so thefocus will be on spells that offer utility rather than damage or debuffsthat require a dice roll.
Constitution at 14 provides us with sufficient hit pointsthat you won’t feel too fragile with a nice set of medium armor equipped. However, you’re certainly no barbarian, so careful calculations will need to be made to ensure that your incredible damage will eliminate enemies before they can strike back.
IntelligenceandWisdom are left at 10so that Jack-of-All-Trades can provide a substantial benefit to skill checks later on.Strength is at eightas thebare minimum to leap across certain gaps, but don’t expect to win any wrestling contests.
Choosing Your Fighting Style
Besides choosing your spells, there’s one other important decision to be made upon enrolling in the College of Swords, and that’s your fighting style. Unlike Fighters, Sword bards only gettwo styles to choosefrom:DuelingandTwo-Weapon Fighting.
Dueling offers less damage but ensures you always have a bonus action handy, while Two-Weapon Fighting offers more overall damage at the expense of your bonus action. Since the focus of this build is on damage output,choose Two-Weapon Fighting.
you’re able to make this build work using Dueling instead. Just replace the weapon recommendations in the equipment section below with the bestrapierandlight crossbowyou can find (orlongbowif you’re an elf/half-elf).
At level one, we’re focusing on cantrips and spells that will be useful throughout the game.Friendshelp through certain conversation checks but beware of its use in higher difficulties.Mage Handcan grab things that are just out of reach.Healing Wordraises downed party members,Speak with Animalsopens up a bunch of smaller quests,Faerie Fireprovides a targeting advantage and spots invisible creatures, andLongstriderprovides a free movement bonus for the entire team.
you’re able to get Speak with Animals from potions, so if you’re good about gathering alchemy ingredients, feel free to replace this spell with something like Sleep or Heroism.
Disguise Selfprovides some interesting gameplay options at level two, andLesser Restorationcures what ails. If you have Shadowheart in your party, however, feel free to replace it withCloud of Daggers, which is incredibly strong in certain situations.
At level three, you enroll in the College of Swords, gain access to new proficiencies, and get the all-importantBlade Flourish. Expect to be shooting enemies for multiple attacks in most turns of combat, which we’ll discuss in greater detail in the equipment section.
Minor Illusionis a marginally useful cantrip, butInvisibility is the real prizeat level four. This provides you with advantage on all attacks and disadvantage on attacks made against you. Plus, you’re extra sneaky.
Plant Growthis underrated, but it provides fantastic crowd control that doesn’t involve a saving throw.Silencelikewise shuts down mages without requiring a saving throw.Greater Invisibilityprovides the benefits of regular Invisibility to the entire squad andDimension Doorcan help bypass some of the game’s more annoying sections (albeit at the cost of a high-level spell slot).
Finally,Greater Restorationcures what Lesser Restoration doesn’t, andFreedom of Movementprevents all movement debuffs all day long. Your final cantrip is up to you.
You don’t have a lot of options to use your reaction with this build, so it’s recommended to takeCounterspell as your Magical Secrets spell. This is a common choice in the tabletop game and can save you from a lot of headaches in some of the game’s later fights.
The build makes a small dip into multiclassing.After you reach bard level eightand 20 Dexterity,take two levels in fighter. The first level nets youArchery, which further improves your attacks, and the second level gives youAction Surge, which gives you one turn to make a flurry of extra attacks per short rest.
With Action Surge, you get two Slashing Flourish attacks (which are essentially two enhanced attacks), two regular attacks, and one bonus action attack (which, thanks to Two-Weapon Fighting, is the equivalent of a regular attack). That’sseven attacks in a single round once per short rest.
And with maximum Dexterity, the likelihood isyou’ll move first in the turn order, letting you unleash mayhem before your enemy can even respond.This will turn most fights in your favor.
Best Races For A College Of Swords Bard
Several races provide beneficial bonuses to a College of Swords bard. Below we have thepotential races ranked best to worst.
Elf
Elf provides the most benefits for a bard. You gain access to Longbows (in case you go Duelist),Perceptionproficiency,Darkvision,advantage against being charmed, andimmunity to sleep. You also getextra movementandStealthproficiency for goingwood elf, which is recommended over high elf and its one wizard cantrip.
Drow
Drow providesmost of the benefits that elves dobut with betterDarkvisionandDrow Magicinstead of Stealth and Longbow proficiency. You also getFaerie Fire as an innate spell, letting you take a different level one spell.
Half-Elf
The armor and spear proficiencies aren’t too helpful, but you still getmost of the benefits of your elven half. Go withwood half-elfordrow half-elffor the extra movement speed or spells.
Gnome
Never worry about a mental saving throw ever again. PlusDarkvisionand eitherSpeak with Animals, advantage onStealthrolls, orHistoryexpertise, depending on your sub-race.
Dwarf
Stay away from shield dwarfas the armor proficiencies already come with your subclass.Gold dwarf provides extra hit points, whileDuergar provides advantage against being charmed or paralyzed, betterDarkvision, and both theEnlargeandInvisibilityspells.
Halfing
Never having to worry about rolling a oneis nice, as isadvantage against being frightenedand being able to crawl through tiny holes. Lightfoot halflings get advantage onStealthrolls, while strongheart halflings haveresistance to poison.
Tiefling
Tieflingsfire resistanceandDarkvisionas well as a collection of three spells. Of your choices here,Asmodeus tieflingmakes the most sense asHellish RebukeandDarknessremain useful throughout the game.
Half-Orc
IntimidationandDarkvisionare useful, as isRelentless Endurance, butSavage Attacks only works in meleeand we’re going to be mostly performing ranged attacks.
Human
Thespear and armor proficiencies are largely wasted. You do get an extra skill and25 percent better-carrying capacityis always appreciated, but there are better races to choose with your Swords bard.
Githyanki
Sword and armor proficiencies are of little use, and Astral Knowledge is largely mitigated by Jack-of-all-Trades. You do get Mage Hand, Enhance Leap, and Misty Step, but you can already get most of those with your spellcasting.Pick a different race.
Dragonborn
Dragonborn providesone damage resistanceand an ability that becomes less useful the further you get into the game.Probably your worst choice for any bard.
Ring #1
Gloves of Archery
Grants proficiency with longbows and shortbows, all ranged weapon attacks deal +2 damage.
1d6 + 1 piercing, light finesse weapon
1d6 + 1 slashing, light finesse weapon
1d6 + 1 piercing, light weapon
Hand Crossbow +1
Because you get so many attacks with this build, theobjective is to enhance your weapon damageas much as possible.Gloves of ArcheryandCaustic Bandadd four total damage to every attack, which means you’ll be doing 20 extra damage per round by level six.
Almost all of that damage will be coming from yourtwin Hand Crossbows +1. Slashing Flourish (Ranged) lets you attack twice using a Bardic Inspiration charge, and your off-hand crossbow deals the same amount as a regular attack thanks to Two-Weapon Fighting.
Your swords offer a similar enhancement, butSlashing Flourish (Melee) must target two separate enemieswithin a small cone, greatly reducing its functionality. Still, you at least have them when enemies get too close.
Breastplate +1provides an excellent early-game armor class, andSilver Pendantprovides Guidance, which can help get you through some early skill checks.Crusher’s Ringprovides extra movement, andBoots of Genial Stridingwill ignore difficult terrain until you learn Freedom of Movement later.
Quite a few of these items are missable. Be sure to get theScimitar +1 and the Gloves of Archery in the Goblin Encampmentfrom their respective traders, especially if you plan to kill everyone.
Also, your firstHand Crossbow +1must bepurchased from Dammon at the Emerald Grovebefore he leaves for Baldur’s Gate (or dies). Otherwise, you’ll only be able to buy the one in the Myconid colony, restricting your damage until you reach Act 2.
Cloak
Dark Justiciar Helmet
Spell saving throws +1, Constitution saving throws +1, while lightly obscured, reduce the number required to critical hit by 1.
Amulet
Armor of Agility
17 AC Medium Armor, adds full Dexterity modifier to AC, +2 to all saving throws.
Legacy of the Masters
All weapon attack and damage rolls +2, Strength saving throws +1
Ring #2
Boots Of Brilliance
Play your instrument to restore one Bardic Inspiration charge per long rest.
Killer’s Sweetheart
Once per long rest, after killing a creature, your next attack roll will be a critical hit.
Off-Hand Melee Weapon
Knife of the Undermountain King
1d6 + 2 piercing, light finesse weapon, reduce the number needed for a critical hit by 1. Re-roll damage on two or less, taking the higher result. Advantage on attack rolls against lightly or heavily obscured targets.
Crimson Mischief
1d6 + 2 piercing, light finesse weapon, add 1d4 piercing to damage against targets with less than 50% hit points. Add your ability modifier to off-hand damage.
Off-Hand Ranged Weapon
Hellfire Hand Crossbow
1d6 + 2 piercing, light weapon, can inflict burn when attacking while hiding or invisible, cast Scorching Ray at third-level once per short rest.
Hand Crossbow +2
1d6 + 2 piercing, light weapon
Since we’ve already established a good baseline of extra damage in the early-game build,the late-game is all about improving your resilience.Dark Justiciar HelmetandArmor of Agilityboth add armor class and saving throws, whileCloak of Displacementimposes disadvantage on enemy attacks once per combat.Amulet of Health, meanwhile, provides a ton of hit points and advantage on Constitution saving throws.
Amulet of Health also lets you respect your ability scoresto improve other stats too, provided you’re okay with handing 100 gold over to Withers.
Further improvements to damage come in the form ofLegacy of the Masters, which adds to both attack and damage rolls, andKiller’s Sweetheart, which practically gaurantees a critical hit once per long rest.
Killer’s Sweetheartcan beswapped out for a Ring of Protectionin between critical hits.
Boots of Brillianceare there mostly because Freedom of Movement already lets you ignore difficult terrain, and you’ll occasionally run out of Bardic Inspiration charges during longer combat sessions.
Yourhand crossbows are upgraded to +2 versions, with the Hellfire Hand Crossbow providing a chance to burn targets and a spell you’ll probably never use because your regular attacks deal far more damage. Your swords don’t come until much later in the game, but you may use whatever +2 sword you find until you come across them.
