[DF] Infernal Bard

[somecallmetim]

Originally Posted by PseudoFenton

An Infernal Bard just sound like a bard who never stop playing really annoying songs... which I guess means the Social Stigma does make sense! In this case I'd assume a demonic bard would just play the teletubbies song on loop or something, sounds like the sorta thing they'd pipe into Hell.

Or maybe they'd be a Disco Infernal.

[Kromm]

It comes down to the fact that canonical infernals provoke an "OMG! Demon! Demon!" reaction which can be at odds with being a face man. See Almost Monster (DF 3, p. 11), wherein it's revealed that the Social Stigma of such beings gives -2 to to all rolls for buying or selling goods, finding backers, and other social activities described in Dungeon Fantasy 2: Dungeons as occurring in town. Unnatural Features makes efforts to avoid this via disguise, and Disguise and Shadowing in general, a pain. Most of this urban activity is customarily the bard's job . . . so it's a hassle, to say the least. As is the feature of detecting as evil, which may allow easy entrance to the Evil Temple but which very likely means that certain people won't trust you.

That said, a good roleplayer could have fun with the concept anyway. Aside from the semi-demonic aura, it's nothing that can't be overcome with an extra Charisma 2 and a desire to be an in-your-face bad boy instead of a subtle rogue. I could totally see an infernal bard modeled on Iggy Pop or for that matter Lemmy Kilmister.

[Turhan's Bey Company]

Originally Posted by Kromm

That said, a good roleplayer could have fun with the concept anyway. Aside from the semi-demonic aura, it's nothing that can't be overcome with an extra Charisma 2 and a desire to be an in-your-face bad boy instead of a subtle rogue.

"Everybody knows all the best bands are affiliated with Satan."

[Bruno]

Originally Posted by Kromm

I could totally see an infernal bard modeled on Iggy Pop or for that matter Lemmy Kilmister.

I thought the Hard Rock Kobold was funny enough (we're still adventuring with him...) but I think my brain just shorted out trying to imagine the same player doing a Lemmy impression every weekend. Or an Iggy impression, really.

And then my brain just skipped to a number of black metal bands[1] and now I don't think I'll be able to stop giggling until lunchtime.

[1] The music video for Gateways by Dimmu Borgir is giving me segfaults when I try to combine that with a DF bard.

[Not another shrubbery]

Originally Posted by Kromm

That said, a good roleplayer could have fun with the concept anyway. Aside from the semi-demonic aura, it's nothing that can't be overcome with an extra Charisma 2 and a desire to be an in-your-face bad boy instead of a subtle rogue. I could totally see an infernal bard modeled on Iggy Pop or for that matter Lemmy Kilmister.

*humph* Non-optimizing claptrap :|

Kidding! Sounds like the kind of playing against type that I used to enjoy ;)

[ajardoor]

IIRC, disguising your nature with magic or mundane stuff takes a penalty, if you got Social Stigma (Infernal).

Right?

[Bruno]

Originally Posted by ajardoor

IIRC, disguising your nature with magic or mundane stuff takes a penalty, if you got Social Stigma (Infernal).

Right?

It's actually the Unnatural Features that give the problem with disguise. Racial Appearance penalties do too - no penalty for an Orc to disguise himself as "a completely different orc I swear" but a penalty to disguise himself as "an elf" or "A human"... but Infernals don't have a racial Appearance problem.

The social stigma gives problems re helpful Holy spells and all social/In Town rolls.

[Bruno]

I'm still trying to come up with an excuse for a six-eyed-goat-skull-mask for a bard. And to hang a (singing) bard from the ceiling by their heels at least once.

[PseudoFenton]

Originally Posted by Bruno

I'm still trying to come up with an excuse for a six-eyed-goat-skull-mask for a bard. And to hang a (singing) bard from the ceiling by their heels at least once.

The latter is easy, a vat of acid with the bard bound and hung via their feet whilst being lowered into it slowly, I'd think that calls for using some (sung) Suggest skill rolls.

The former is just a matter of some odd artifact made in the form of a particularly peculiar god or nature spirit, or perhaps demon/angle/elder thing. Nature spirits tend to incorporate animalistic traits but with subtle twists and quirks, satyrs and the like have both goats and music, not too hard to stretch that to a beneficial bard mask that meet the "six-eyed-goat-skull-mask" specification you're looking for.