Bard, Artist

The setting sun. The blinding rain. The flickering flames of a campfire. The babble of a brook. All of these things and more inspire the Artist. They see beauty everywhere. Furthermore they translate that beauty into a form that others can understand.

The Quintessential Bard
Author Shannon Kalvar
Publisher Mongoose Publishing
Publish date 2003

Artists possess the unique ability to express beauty in a myriad of forms. They see into the heart of the world, understand it and put forth that understanding in a way that others can appreciate. How they do it differs from Artist to Artist. No two have the same style, even if they share a common medium.

Most artists choose a handful of mediums to express their vision. These differ from Artist to Artist. Some choose music. Some choose poetry and language. Others seek out the beauty of painting, stone, or wood. Bardic artists typically chose a performance art, like theatre or music but sometimes dabble in the other creative formats.

Adventuring: Artists tend towards an exploration model of adventuring. They seek out new experiences to further their artistic vision. Most treat their adventuring skills as secondary to their true calling. However, their ability to function as backup for any of the primary roles in an adventuring party makes them a strong group contributor.

Role-Playing: Artists come in two basic types: social and anti-social. Social artists see a benefit to themselves and their art in interacting with other people. They try to reach out to others so they can better express their vision. Anti-social artists are exactly the opposite. In their minds other people distract them from the important business of experiencing the world. Interactions with others sully their vision of the ‘real world.

Benefits: Artists may select one ‘method’ of expression at 1st level, and an additional one every two levels thereafter (3rd, 5th, 7th, etc.). They gain a +2 circumstance bonus to any skill roll involving that method. Available methods include anything within the Performance skill, as well as sculpture, painting, calligraphy and various visual arts.

Penalties: Artists are by their very nature open to the world and its sensations. They also have trouble staying focused on anything that does not attract their attention. As such, they are –1 on all Will checks to resist enchantments and charms, and it takes them 12x (as opposed to 10x) as long to perform a skill when ‘taking ten’.