Yeah. In Act 3. Where everything is overepowered anyway.
So you delay getting a second attack until level 9 and you somehow think this is the best approach to melee swords bard? You have to go Bard 6 first, and going 2 Paladin after is just the logical choice. For any level after this, it doesn't make sense to chase Pact of the Blade at level 12 when you can get more bard levels: more smites, confusion, hold monster, counterspell, and a fucking myrmidon. Your build also only has one feat btw.
I never said I have not respecced. I actually wrote the opposite. I started with Warlock 5, which is one of the best starts possible IMO.
Yeah, like a druid. Or pure class Warlock.
Since you can respec from anything to anything else, whatever you start with is not in anyway relevant to how you finish. You made a warlock and then respecced him to Bard, but you could have respecced him to a better bard, so my point still stands. You don't need strength elixirs either. Your dex should be high regardless, so just dump strength and use finesse weapons. 3 levels for just cha modifier is a trap. 18 dex and savage attacker, 16 cha + acuity helmet will give you guaranteed hold person/monster.
As a package 10 Bard brings so much to the table. If you don't need counterspell, you can choose one of the other best spells in the game instead. And don't sleep on hold monster either. Illithid powers are also cheating.
To me, memes like that suggest that the people that make them have a Belgian sense of humour. Mostly harmless but not very funny.
1) choosing to not use half the classes/feats/items in the game in order to create some semblance of challenge is not what motivates me
I just told you, there isn't much fun in finding out what's good when nearly everything in the game makes it very easy on the hardest difficulty
The average fan is a normie, homosexual or a woman.
How many hours did you clock?
219 currently
Wdym 10 less damage? If you are running GWM, you have no asi feat. Max 18 CHA with hag's hair and you are investing 3 levels for CHA mod. You can still build STR like a stock standard Paladin build for similar results if you insist on GWM and reach, or take elixirs, whatever. Savage attacker across normal and smite rolls does similar overall damage anyway, so the difference is a d8 rapier vs d10 polearm.
Yes, 10 damage less was hasty. Its rather 7-8 damage less, after we consider Dueling Style, ASI and difference in damage dice. Still, two hits per attack versus just one (5 times per Short Rest). Plus frequent GWM Bonus Action attack procs, whenever you kill or crit (which should be almost every round, every second round minimum).
Not even close to 7-8. Savage attacker on smite attacks is comparable to GWM and is better than GWM against high AC targets. Also, the more damage sources you add to your attacks the faster GWM falls off.
