I was wondering if anyone had advice on feats for a Sublime Chord build.
First thing's first:
Str: 10
Dex: 14
Con: 14
Int: 16
Wis: 12
Cha: 17
Human. Starting at level 3. Party not yet determined, and the character will likely campaign-hop regularly anyway. Build will end up being Bard 6 Lyric Thurmaturge 3 Virtuoso 1 Sublime Chord 2 Virtuoso 8 (Pretty sure this set-up is legal). Switching Countersong for Spellbreaker Song. I am also thinking about switching Fascinate for Healing Hymn, just because I will get it back with Virtuoso. Healing Hymn will be more useful at lower levels than later levels, but I worry the same may be true for Fascinate. Less so, I would imagine.
Pretty much all WotC books + web stuff allowed, no Dragon material (except maybe the compendium), no flaws/traits but UA is mostly available. Relevant house rules... I start with an extra bonus feat at first level (total of 3 at 1st), Bards get Intimidate as a class skill, all bardic music used with Captivating Melody will work with SC casting, [edit]metamagic feats do not increase casting times[/edit]... That's all I can think of that will affect this character.
Goal: Pretty standard SC build. I wanted to maintain most bard and bard-like abilities (skills, music, Bardic Knowledge, etc) while being a dedicated caster class--hence I didn't roll up a Wizard or something.
What feats should I get? So far I've chosen Melodic Casting. I was thinking of just using my free bonus feat for Versatile Performer since I won't be particularly underpowered and my group doesn't optimize very heavily. I just like it. I am pretty set on getting Doomspeak too. Hopefully Doomspeak won't cause and DM book-throwing.
Some feats I am throwing around in the ol' noodle:
Versatile Spellcaster
Extend Spell
Rapid Metamagic (in case the DM changes his mind on the casting time)
Metamagic Song
Lingering Song
Subsonics
Spell Focus: Enchantment or Illusion
Arcane Mastery (I adore this feat, but I might not be needing to penetrate SR often)
Lyric Spell
Sound Of Silence
Extra Music--fuel other bardic feats.
One major question is whether I should try to get really focused with Enchantment and/or Illusion spells. I'm getting Captivating Melody for free with the Lyric Thurmaturge, so one shtick could be using Captivating Melody and other DC boosters to be at potent as a high-level enchanter/illusionist can be (considering the drop-off in effectiveness these schools seem to have concerning high-level encounters).
Is it best for a SC to be a real generalist with spell selection or is it good to specialize in the existing strengths of bardic casting? Perhaps it is better to ignore offensive abilities that require saves and go the buffer route. That route would benefit from things like Metamagic Song and standard bardic music buffs greatly, I believe. This all would play a great deal of importance in feat selection, no?
So, I ask you, how would you make a Sublime Chord? Any help you could impart would be greatly appreciated.