| Now there are many who
play bards in our realm, but how many know how to role play
the part well? Well, in this essay I hope to give you some
pointers from what I have learned both playing a bard, as
well as being a guildmaster of a guild of bards (Songsmiths
of Sosaria in Chesapeake).
First, one question that comes up a lot. Should bards ONLY
use their musical skills. Of course not! The bards of our
land have always been a bit of jack of all trades. Some
skills that go with barding traditionally follow:
Magery: Bards
have always been known for knowledge of a little magic.
Magic is often used to help the bard, help to innocent,
and, of course, add to special effects for concerts and
storytelling.
Archery: As
bards are generally not too strong, bows are often the weapon
of choice. Plus, as bards tend to be quick with their hands,
they can often get off many a shot, then run from their
attacker, then line up for yet another shot.
Bowcraft:
Iolo, one of Sosaria's greatest known bards was a bow craftsman.
Also it is handy to make your own weapons.
Animal Taming:
Bards often have been almost like partial rangers, often
preferring the quiet of the woods to the hustle and bustle
of city life, although he/she never shies away from an open
tavern. :)
Theft: Bards
have often been known as a bit of a roguish sort. Just try
not to be one of the thieves that steals from people down
on their luck, or a rune/key thief, as most people (myself
included) hate this kind of thief.
Now, how about music skills. Well, the first thing to do
is set up a few simple macros, one like [*strums lute* then
Use last object] to set up you playing your instrument.
Another I like is *tunes lute* to be used after an unsuccessful
use of your instrument. Now, the next, add macros for your
basic bardic skills, such as [*plays a peaceful melody*,
useskill Peacemaking]. Having these basic macros set up
will then allow people to know what you are truly doing,
plus add a little hint of realism.
The main goal of the bard is, of course, to sing! Now,
how does one sing in UO do you ask? Quite simple. First,
come up with the text to your song, and save it as a text
file. Possible subjects to use are hunting trips that had
an interesting occurrence, quest events, or dungeon trips.
Now, when you are ready to sing your song, put UO in windowed
mode. Next open up notepad in a window sized to fit right
beneath your UO window. Then, from here, you can effectively
read your song quite easily for the singing. Now, there
are two methods for singing, either type the song in real
time (preferred), or macro the song (for the slow typer).
Typing the song is pretty straight forward so I won't go
in detail on how to do that. For macroing a song, you just
set up "Say" macros, one for each line of your song. If
you use macros here, it is very easy to go too fast. In
order to prevent this, once you hit the macro for each line,
read through it yourself, that way you will know your audience
has had a chance to keep up with your song.
Now, while you sing it is good to strum your instrument
a few times during the song. I find it works well playing
the instrument once at the very beginning of the song, then
to play it after/during every second line, especially for
4 line verse songs. This way people do not get too annoyed
by the sound of the instrument, but still have some instrument
sound with your song, a compromise. Then at the end of your
song, I usually have a macro that says *Plays a final chord*,
then bow. This helps people know when to clap, and when
the song is over.
A big problem for singing bards is to find a good place
to sing, with an attentive audience. Many people think there
is no one out there that has the patience for a bard's song,
but trust me, they are out there. I have found that even
a number of non Role Players will be impressed by a bard's
song, a few even get the idea that you CAN role play in
UO. Just do not get discouraged by spammers, thieves and
the like as you WILL run into many of them, but if you just
continue your songs ignoring their efforts at disruption,
they do leave as they realize they are not getting any attention.
Another thing to consider is to make sure you hold your
concert in an isolated place rather in the middle of a road
or major path. This will both help make sure you will not
be disrupted, but also, that you are not disrupting others.
Also, for those of you that have problems finding things
to sing about, or are just bad poets, try looking for a
book of Madrigals. I find these work well in the context
of UO. Another possibility is poetry, as poetry and music
are actually quite close in design. Also, to get more ideas
for songs, try walking the world to get to places instead
of using magic to get everywhere, as often, the journey
is half the story! Well, I hope these hints help you role
play a bard. They can be fun characters to play, and singing
for people can be quite fun. Just do not lose hope if your
first few concerts seem a bit disrupted, as eventually you
will find an audience that appreciates you.
Respectfully,
Cherveny, the atonal
bard Lord of the Music
Songsmiths
of Sosaria, Chesapeake |
Stratics Central
