In this guest post from Vahid Qualls, we’ll tackle a question that has caused some frustration in the D&D groups I’ve belonged to.

What if the character is charismatic, but the player is still uncomfortable in the gaming group, an introvert like me, or just not very verbally agile like me and doesn’t feel like they can roleplay out charisma?

In D&D, this is especially true for the character class Bards.

Luckily, Vahid Qualls is here to help. Vahid is from the New Zealand-based Dice Legenz, who have been playing D&D on Twitch for about two and a half years. As TV and stage professionals, they’ve been making quality and popular content and are getting ready to expand.

Now, with the Bards of Aratai, the group is expanding to YouTube.

We’re keen to connect with audiences on YouTube, but not a lot of people head there to watch three-hour actual play videos, unless perhaps it’s Critical Role. So, we’ve created a show that’s much more digestible for a YouTube audience: twenty to thirty minutes of pure fun and action, with tight editing, immersive music and sound and a sprinkling of visual effects for when spells pop off.”

With a Kickstarter coming up and one with the word “Bards” in the title, I asked Vahid whether introverts can play bards.

Can Introverts Play Bards?

By Vahid Qualls

Not all of us are loud, flashy extroverts. But bards are supposed to be, right? They’re singing, prancing peacocks that charm person the pants off any passersby. At least that’s how they’re usually presented. But they don’t have to be. In this article we will explore approaches that help those of us that are introverts to play a bard just as stylishly as any extrovert. We will look at bard builds that don’t focus on performance, and practical steps to gradually gain confidence for those that DO want to add a touch of performance flair to their role playing.

First things first. The core of a bard character, in terms of their role in the party, is that they are useful in almost any situation, and that they can buff and heal their allies. These roles don’t rely on a bard being a singer or a seducer. Singing and seducing are fun ways of playing bards – and the way that Monique throws a new spin on this in The Bards of Aratai is a truck-load of fun – but there are plenty of other options that are just as enjoyable, and play to the strengths that many introverts have of being thoughtfully creative and excellent planners.

Of course introverts can play classic singing bards, and do it well. But let’s look at three non-standard bard build concepts that are super-fun, even if you’re an extreme introvert or tone deaf.

First up is a battle bard. Maybe your character was a gladiator or professional wrestler that hyped up the crowd (you can’t tell me pro wrestlers aren’t multiclassed bard/barbarian/monks), or even as a drummer in a band that rocked out venues full of barroom brawls. Battle bards are solid at fighting, but still have the extra skills and magic that make them useful outside of combat.

A good way to get the most out of battle bards’ stats is to go:

Strength or Dexterity first – depending on whether you want to be a strength or dex based battle bard,
Constitution second so you have decent hit points,
Charisma third so your spell attacks and DCs are acceptable,
Strength or Dexterity fourth – depending on which one you did not choose to go first,
Wisdom fifth so you don’t get negatives on wisdom saving throws,
And dump intelligence.

To really lean into this build, being a mountain dwarf for the extra hit points, strength and proficiency in medium armour, or half-orc for the extra strength and resilience, are worth considering. When choosing skills, pick athletics, acrobatics and intimidation. When you hit 3rd level choose College of Valor and grab the best medium armour you can afford (half-plate is the dream). And in terms of spells, go for ones that help in battle such as Absorb Elements, Bless, Heroism, and attack spells that always do damage, like Burning Hands and Thunderwave. Evelyn Havok, one of the main characters in the Bards of Aratai series from Dice Legenz, is a battle bard.

The second, very different, bard build is a poetry bard. They are perfect for creative people that like words and writing. The idea is that your character recites poetry to cast spells and channel their bardic abilities. It is a lot of fun as a player to prepare a handful of short verses to use when needed. There are so many poetry styles that lend themselves to this character: haiku for inspiring and healing, limericks for cheeky charming, iambic pentameter for flamboyant battle, or even brutal non-rhyming postmodern verses for Vicious Mockery.

Poetry bards are more about the flavour of your bard than the build mechanics. Having said that, you may want to consider going for College of Lore at 3rd level and focus on spells that play into the power of words like Message, Vicious Mockery, Command, and Dissonant Whispers. The way that a poetry bard allows you to prepare your bardic flair ahead of time is useful for many of us who don’t like the pressure of having to make up things on the spot.

“Your blows will miss the spot on which you aimed

That is because you three have now been baned”

A visual arts bard is great for people that want to cause bardic magic by describing what their character is doing, and are still gaining confidence in role playing. The idea is simple: rather than playing music, your character draws or paints something as its way of casting magic and channeling bardic powers. It could be a charcoal sketch, a magical paintbrush, even finger paints.

When making your art bard, make sure charisma is your highest stat, because that determines how effective your magic is. In terms of spells, there are plenty that lend themselves to this bard, especially illusion and conjuration spells such as light, minor illusion, color spray, mage armor, and disguise self. The only caution about making an art bard is that you should run the character past your DM and explain that you envision the art replacing the standard material components for the spells you’re casting.

“I do dark charcoal scribbles all over a fresh page in my sketchbook and the darkness spell erupts from the paper…”

Something that poetry and art bards have in common is that they lean into a superpower than many introverts have: thoughtful planning. These next tips rely on that superpower to help those of us that struggle when we’re put on the spot, but still want to perform flamboyant characters.

The first trick is to use catchphrases and pre-prepared lines that you can reuse throughout a campaign. For example, a poetry bard, every time they cast charm person, could say “Violets are blue, grass is green, I’ve charmed you, now you like me.” Or a battle bard, each time they use bardic inspiration to add damage, could shout a wrestler style catchphrase like “Here comes the boom!” or “It’s clobberin time”. Not only do catchphrases help confidence in role playing, they also give your character fun, memorable personality quirks.

To take catchphrasing to the next level you can make them musical catchphrases. Just think what abilities and spells you will use most often, find a melody from a well known song, and change the lyrics to be the name of the spell your character is casting. For example, each time you cast burning hands, rather than saying “I cast burning hands”, sing the melody of Baby Shark with the words “Burning hands, do do do do do”. OK, maybe not that song, unless you want to be banned from the table. Or an easy one is to sing AC/DC’s “Thunder! A-a-a-a-a-a-a-a” whenever you cast the thunderwave spell.

Bards are a lot of fun to play. And with a little preparation even the most introverted person can play them as flamboyantly as they want.