Bards beat the hassle of waiting for your fighter-mage to get up high enough to get his old class back. A blade is awesome at melee. At my lowly stage in the game, I dual wield the sunfyre sword or the sword of roses and the flail of ages. I do not get touched if I wade into the enemy and go into a defensive spin and offensive spin simultaneously. Offensive spin is really a simulatenous casting of haste, beserker rage and Kai. If I'm stuck in the wrong place, I can use a wand or cast offensive spells. Money is not a problem. If I see a +2 shield I like, I pickpocket it, with a skill of 120% success. The only thing I can't get is stuff at the Adventurer's mart. If I am up for a big battle, I can go invis (if needed) and pickpocket the enemy and take away his giant strength potions and arrows and force them to melee. My AC can reach -19 at a mere level 10 with improved invisibility, spin and ghost armor. Strength can't go about 18/01? Pick up a girdle or use innate Holy Might to improve my strength to envious proportions. Then there are those occasional instruments that are the icing on the cake. Maybe my lore is not all that high but I don't have to waste spells identifying +2 daggers.
I may never get level 7 spells, but neither do most casters (not Aerie or Jan Jansen), and I will get plenty of 6 level spells early on. The blade is a challenge but turns fights into chessmatches and there are so many wages to dispose of my enemies.
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