Aasimar Bard Build Guide

Levels 1-4

Start with 14 Dexterity and 15 Charisma. At level 3, select the College of Eloquence. Silver Tongue ensures your Persuasion and Deception checks never roll below a 10 on the die, while Unsettling Words allows you to expend a Bardic Inspiration as a bonus action to subtract the roll from a target's next saving throw. At level 4, immediately take the Fey Touched feat to round your 15 Charisma up to 16. Select Silvery Barbs or Gift of Alacrity as your enchantment/divination spell. This single feat skyrockets your spellcasting DC and gives you a free Misty Step to escape grapples.

Levels 5-10

Level 5 is a massive power spike. Font of Inspiration recharges your Unsettling Words on a short rest, and your Aasimar Celestial Revelation comes online, granting you flight. Use your action to activate your wings, fly 30 feet up, and drop a Hypnotic Pattern. At level 8, your 12 Constitution is going to hurt your concentration checks. Instead of maxing Charisma, take the Resilient (Constitution) feat to bump CON to 13 and gain proficiency in Constitution saving throws. This ensures your Polymorph doesn't drop when a stray goblin arrow hits you.

Levels 11-16

At level 10, Magical Secrets opens up the Bard spell list. Take Counterspell and Wall of Force. Because of Jack of All Trades, you add half your proficiency bonus to Counterspell ability checks, making you better at it than a Wizard. At level 12, take your Charisma to 18. Level 14 grants Infectious Inspiration from your Eloquence subclass, allowing you to pass around Bardic Inspiration without expending your pool when an ally succeeds on a roll. This creates a massive economy of support.

Levels 17-20

At level 18, your final Magical Secrets must include Wish, giving you unparalleled versatility to replicate any lower-level spell instantly without components. For your level 16 and 19 ASIs, prioritize capping your Charisma to 20, then grab the Alert feat. With a mediocre 14 Dexterity, Alert ensures you win initiative, allowing you to activate Unsettling Words and cast Forcecage before the enemy boss gets a single turn.

Cantrips

Take Vicious Mockery and Minor Illusion. Vicious Mockery is vital because it is one of the few ways a support Bard deals damage, which you need to trigger your Aasimar Celestial Revelation extra radiant damage. Minor Illusion provides at-will cover to block line of sight from enemy archers.

Level 1-2 Spells

Healing Word is mandatory; combined with your Aasimar Healing Hands, you have multiple ways to revive downed allies. Silvery Barbs forces rerolls to ensure your debuffs land. At second level, Shatter gives you an AoE damage option to trigger your racial damage boost, while Invisibility helps you scout with your Darkvision.

Level 3-5 Spells

Hypnotic Pattern is your bread-and-butter concentration spell. Dispel Magic synergizes with Jack of All Trades. At fourth level, Polymorph turns your 33 HP fighter into a Giant Ape. At fifth level, Synaptic Static targets Intelligence saves (which most monsters fail) and applies a non-concentration d6 penalty to enemy attack rolls, stacking beautifully with Unsettling Words.

High-Level Spells

Mass Suggestion at 6th level requires no concentration and can remove half an encounter instantly. Forcecage at 7th level is an automatic win against enemies without teleportation. Feeblemind at 8th level destroys enemy spellcasters, especially when you subtract your Unsettling Words die from their Intelligence saving throw.

Fey Touched

Take this at level 4. Bumping your 15 Charisma to 16 is essential, and getting a free casting of Misty Step protects your fragile d8 hit die. Adding Silvery Barbs to your known spells without burning a Bard spell choice is incredibly efficient.

Resilient (Constitution)

Take this at level 8. Starting with a 12 Constitution makes you a liability for concentration checks. Bumping it to 13 and adding your proficiency bonus ensures your Hypnotic Pattern stays active even if you get tagged by a ranged attack while flying.

Inspiring Leader

Take this at level 12 or 16. You have a high Charisma, and an Aasimar's celestial nature fits the flavor perfectly. Granting your entire party temporary hit points after every short rest mitigates the fact that your DPR is a pitiful 3.58 in tier 3.

Tier 1 (Levels 1-4)

Stick to Studded Leather armor and a shield if you multiclass, or just Studded Leather for 14 AC. Buy a Lute as your spellcasting focus. Keep a light crossbow, though Vicious Mockery will be your primary action when not casting leveled spells.

Tier 2 (Levels 5-10)

Seek out a Rhythm-Maker's Drum +1. This boosts your spell save DC, directly increasing the chance enemies fail their saves against Hypnotic Pattern, and lets you regain one Bardic Inspiration per day, fueling Unsettling Words. A Cloak of Protection is also vital to patch your 12 Constitution and 10 Wisdom saving throws.

Tier 3 (Levels 11-16)

Upgrade to a Rhythm-Maker's Drum +2. Hunt for an Instrument of the Bards (Canaith Mandolin), which imposes disadvantage on saving throws against charm spells like Hypnotic Pattern. It also grants free castings of Cure Wounds and Dispel Magic.

Tier 4 (Levels 17-20)

The Tome of Leadership and Influence is your ultimate goal, pushing your Charisma beyond 20 to 22. Pair this with Studded Leather +3 to bring your AC to a respectable 19, ensuring you survive the deadly attack bonuses of CR 20+ creatures.

As an Eloquence Aasimar Bard, you are a backline controller and secondary healer. Your low DPR (peaking at 13.2 with spells) means you absolutely cannot carry the party's damage output. You need heavy hitters who benefit from your crowd control.

A Paladin is your best friend. Their Aura of Protection covers your glaring 10 Wisdom saving throw weakness, and your Unsettling Words can guarantee an enemy fails a save against their Wrathful Smite or Banishment. A Rogue also pairs beautifully; your Bardic Inspiration ensures their Sneak Attacks land, and they can capitalize on the paralyzed or incapacitated conditions you inflict.

You also pair well with a Wizard or Sorcerer. When you use Unsettling Words as a bonus action to reduce an enemy's saving throw, the Wizard can immediately follow up on their turn with a devastating Disintegrate or Flesh to Stone, guaranteeing a kill.

Hexblade Warlock 2

A two-level dip in Hexblade solves almost all of the Aasimar Bard's weaknesses. You gain medium armor and shield proficiency, boosting your AC from 14 to 19. You also get Eldritch Blast and Agonizing Blast, which perfectly synergizes with your Aasimar Celestial Revelation, allowing you to trigger the extra radiant damage reliably from a distance rather than relying on the low-damage Vicious Mockery.

Divine Soul Sorcerer 1

A single level dip gives you the Shield spell and Absorb Elements, drastically improving your survivability. The Favored by the Gods feature adds 2d4 to a failed saving throw, which acts as a fantastic panic button when your 10 Wisdom inevitably causes you to fail a crucial save against Hold Person.

• Wasting Actions on Healing Hands in Combat: Healing Hands requires an action to touch a creature. In combat, use your bonus action for Healing Word and save Healing Hands for out-of-combat stabilization to preserve your action economy.
• Trying to Melee: With 8 Strength and 14 Dexterity, your melee DPR at level 5 is 3.9. Never draw a rapier. Rely on cantrips and leveled spells from a distance.
• Forgetting Radiant Soul's Action Cost: Activating your Aasimar flight takes an action. Do this on turn one of combat or right before combat starts, so you don't waste a turn of spellcasting while enemies close the gap.
• Overlooking Wisdom Saves: With a 10 Wisdom, you are a prime target for fear and charm. Do not fly too far away from your Paladin's Aura of Protection, or you will be locked out of the fight.