New Profession: Bard?

[Totle]

So, initially, Blizzard made a great April Fool's day joke with the Bard... but while it seemed ridiculous at the time, it wasn't without potential.

Let's consider for a moment the drums that leather workers can make. Use this concept as the basis - your item would be a basic instrument, and just with black-smithing or engineering, you could eventually branch out to either drums or string/woodwind (depending how fancy it gets if developed) with each having a specialty.

In warfare it wasn't odd to see a musician on the field of battle, playing and inspiring his forces.
Something with drums (like now) might play an inspirational beat that buffs stats.
String/Woodwind players might play a particular song that they wrote after completing some great feat that would give an effect. For example, let's say someone just downed Onyxia. She would then drop a "song" that the bard would "learn" (essentially, he would be making a song about taking down Onyxia) that might increase either stats or crit or general ability against dragonkin or something that wouldn't be stat based like health/mana regen or haste.

It would require some retooling of the drums but similar in nature. Some ideas might be:

• Song of the Relentless - increase health regeneration by X for Y secs.
• Anthem of Conquest - a heroism-type affect for groups w/o a Shaman, gives exhaustion
• Melody of the Archmage - a buff that increases the primary stats of spellcasters (Spirit/Intellect)
• Melody of the Combatant - a buff that increases the primary stats of melee/phys damage (Strength/Stam/Agility/Block
• Aria of Anguish - reduce opponents strength by X and increase cast time by Y

Anyways, it's a rather rough idea. It seems like it would add a bunch of extra buttons on your bar for a profession, but not necessarily. Mostly the bard would be working to upgrade his instrument much like enchanters do with their rods, but they would also be making songs and selling them. Then prior to battle, the bard would play the song and the party members would click on it (like a fish feast) and get the buff. For the offensive ones, during combat the bard would right click his instrument to open a menu with all the songs he has available to play. The songs bought would be one time use (like how it might take you years to master Beethoven, well, a week in between raids isn't enough time to master the song yourself, so the other player would "play through you" thus you not being able to recollect the song after you've played it. It explains the consumable aspect of the profession.), but if you "looted the song" off of Onyxia, that becomes a song "you created" and thus can play over and over again or can scribble down and sell for one time uses.

Songs would essentially drop off of bosses, but could also come from completing certain achievements or a quest line, or even exploration. But you might think - well, if everyone downs Onyxia and gets the song, then there's no point in selling since non-bards couldn't use the item. True. But then again, you don't need to be an alchemist to drink a potion, and perhaps as long as you have an instrument you'd be able to play the song that you bought (not sure yet how to work around this, ideas would be appreciated). But along with upgrading your instrument, it would also require maintenance, so after, for example, 10 songs, your lyre or guitar might require new strings or your drums might require a new leather covering.

It's still a WIP, but what are your thoughts?

[Insomnium]

This is more of a class thing. Otherwise it´s get way too complicated. Mainly if you have to scroll through pages of songs while in combat with.. say... Deathwing and he is about the cast something you have to inerupt or something.

[Syribane80]

the bard would be funny :P but can't evolve :P a bard doesn't really relate to lore such as warriors or preists would ... a bard seems to out there ... not a bad
concept I just can't see how it fits ... considering not much of the game has to do with music :P

[KandyCane]

Fifth Expansion; the Emerald Dream.

-Lots of new content!
-Revamped dungeons!
-Faster mounts!
-Faster weapons!
-New profession: BARD!
-New hero class: Guitarhero! Defeat your enemies with the mighty chords of your songs combined with the Bard profession!

[Powerogue]

certainly not this or next expansion. already shown they're making (prospecting? excavating? i forget the name)

[pinkduck]

Honestly, I liked the guitar hero idea. I'd totally play that.

[Marcc]

That looks like Paragon from Guild Wars or Bard from Ragnarok Online, both classes were kinda crappy in their respective games, but who knows, Blizzard maybe can make them good.

[Insomnium]

certainly not this or next expansion. already shown they're making (prospecting? excavating? i forget the name)

Archeology I think it was, prospecting is a JC thing.

[Soyuz]

Well, a bard would be cool, but not as a profession. A profession is something in which you craft things and then sell or use them.
A bard could craft songs. But.. How would that be on the AH? cassettes? CDs? parrots?

But the idea of a class would be cool, it could be the first pure buffing class.
Talent tree:
War Songs (metal music with lots of yelling)--> Combat buffs. (includes AP, SP, MP5 etc)
Lullabies (classic, with opera voices)--> Pure CC.
-can't come up with a 3rd-

[FailHulk]

Fifth Expansion; the Emerald Dream.

-Lots of new content!
-Revamped dungeons!
-Faster mounts!
-Faster weapons!
-New profession: BARD!
-New hero class: Guitarhero! Defeat your enemies with the mighty chords of your songs combined with the Bard profession!

This but with Demon Hunters, I think what is haunting the Emerald Dream are demons sent by Sargeras.

[SonsofDisaster]

Bards have long been a "standard" character class, going all the way back to 1st Adv. DnD. It would be pretty strange to take something that's been around that long as a class and change it to a profession. On the other hand, I could see them giving something traditionally "Bardic" to another class (ie. some spellcaster gets the ability to buff the party through "song"), as they have given class abilities to other classes in the past

[RakuRaku]

No anthem of conquest please. BL is really the only reason why shamans are taken to raids still. :-[

[Fowl]

Bards have long been a "standard" character class, going all the way back to 1st Adv. DnD. It would be pretty strange to take something that's been around that long as a class and change it to a profession. On the other hand, I could see them giving something traditionally "Bardic" to another class (ie. some spellcaster gets the ability to buff the party through "song"), as they have given class abilities to other classes in the past

Hymn of Hope?

[talitu]

bards in EQ were great prob my fave class even with he finger crippling song mechanic the game had. you were relatively weak in your own abilities but you dumped out soo much haste / mana /buffs groups loved you and pulling as a bard well.. fading memories , i miss you!

[Jekk]

That looks like Paragon from Guild Wars or Bard from Ragnarok Online, both classes were kinda crappy in their respective games, but who knows, Blizzard maybe can make them good.

Obvs, you did get that much into Ragnarok Online. Bards were a staple of War of Emperium, the wintergrasp equivalent, and once they transcended into Clowns they were fairly strong in pvp.

This being said, I don't think World of Warcraft needs a pure-support/buffer class.

Also inb4: Shamans make me lul with BL/totamz.

[RakuRaku]

Mmm... If only wow had a dervish.

[Izenhart]

Well, nowadays is really hard thinking of a new class or a new profession, since all the new ideas someone can get up with, are already taken.

Just like all of this bard's abilities will be overwrited by all the other buffs and debuffs in the raid

[Deleted]

I don't get this obsession with the bard class.

It won't happen... There never was anything like a bard class in the whole Warcraft universe.. :/

[Raptor]

this idea sucks, bards has nothing to do with WoW. we already have drums to buff people.
new profession: lifebinder? you can create little zombie and he will buff you health/sp/ap or w/e. he is like non-combat pet. to create this thing you need corpse of humanoid, leather, thread.

[Ttam]

at the guy who said the bl song would ruin shamans.

imagine this.

Boomkin + a ret = no need for spriest( ignoring fort)

UH dk+ele sham + spriest = no need for boomkin.

DK( frost) + marks hunter = no need for enh shaman.

What I'm saying is that every class spec has a unique utility combo that 2~ 3 other classes combined cover.

Anyway it'd only be a Power Infusionesque(20%) spell