Bard Class Changes
Ability Score
You gain a +1 to your Dexterity or Charisma Score.
Starting Equipment Starting Wealth
You start the game with 125gp or 5d4 x 10 gp which you can spend on equipment and supplies.
(Updated) Countercharm
At 6th level, you gain the ability to use musical notes or words of power to disrupt mind-influencing effects. As an action, you can start a performance that lasts until the end of your next turn. During that time, you and any friendly creatures within 30 feet of you that can hear you are immune to the frightened and charmed condition. A creature must be able to hear you to gain this benefit. The performance ends early if you are incapacitated or silenced or if you voluntarily end it (no action required).
(New) Living Inspiration
At 17th level your ability to inspire others is of legendary renown. When you roll initiative and have no uses of Bardic Inspiration left, you regain one use. Additionally, when you use your bonus action to give an ally Bardic Inspiration, you can instead give two allies Bardic Inspiration, provided they are both within 60 feet of you. You still expend only one Bardic Inspiration die as normal when doing this.
Superior Inspiration Song of Ages
At 20th level your presence empowers your allies as their spirits are lifted during battle. You may use to use musical notes or words of power as an action to grant allies who can hear you within 120 feet a bonus equal to your Charisma modifier to skill checks, saving throws, attack rolls and armor class. The song lasts for up to one minute as if concentrating on a spell (it requires concentration). Song of Ages ends early if you become incapacitated or stop playing your instrument or speaking (which you must do for the duration). Once you use this feature, you cannot do so again until you complete a long rest.
Bard Colleges
The way of a bard is gregarious. Bards seek each other out to swap performances and stories, boast of their accomplishments, and share their knowledge. Bards form loose associations, which they call colleges, to facilitate their gatherings and preserve their traditions. Each college specializes in the specific ways they have learned to manifest the cosmic sounds of creation.
At 3rd level, you delve into the advanced techniques of a bard college of your choice. Your choice grants you features at 3rd level and again at 6th and 14th level.
The College of Chaos
While most bards use their skill with words to entertain and support, some choose to spread confusion, misinformation, and distrust. Though they reject the idea of leaders, some discordant bards join the College of Chaos, a leaderless association of misanthropes that study the destructive words of creation of the Abyss or Elemental Chaos.
Sower of Discord
When you join the College of Chaos at 3rd level, you gain the skills to better sow strife amongst your foes. You gain proficiency with disguise kits, forgery kits, and thieves' tools.
Bewildering Whispers
Starting at 3rd level, you learn to spread confusion in the midst of battle. When a creature within 60 feet that can see and hear you makes an attack roll, you can use expend a bardic inspiration as a reaction, forcing it to make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, the creature must use their attack against another creature of your choice within their reach.
Pandemonium
Beginning at 6th level, your Countercharm exudes chaotic magic. When you use your Countercharm, you can force a creature within the effect to make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, roll a d10. The target suffers the effect from the Pandemonium table until the end of your Countercharm.
A creature suffering from this effect can make a Wisdom saving throw at the start of each of its turns, ending the effect on a success. Once a creature succeeds on their saving throw they are immune to this feature for the next 24 hours.
Reign of Chaos
You have mastered the chaotic magic that is the source of your power. At 14th level you learn the confusion spell, but it doesn't count against your total number of Spells Known. If you already know confusion, you learn another enchantment spell of your choice from the bard spell list.
As a bonus action on your turn, you can expend a bardic inspiration to cast confusion with the following changes:
- You can only target one creature with the spell.
- The spell doesn't require your concentration, but you cannot have more than one instance of the spell active.
- When a creature makes a saving throw to resist the effects of this spell you can expend a bardic inspiration to impose disadvantage on its saving throw.
Pandemonium
| d10 | Effect |
|---|---|
| 1 | They retreat into their mind and are Paralyzed. The effect ends early if they take damage. |
| 2 | They are Incapacitated and convinced that their allies are secretly plotting against them. |
| 3 | They are Frightened of the closest creature and use their turn to flee from it. |
| 4 | They cannot speak or cast spells and they feel if they open their mouth their voice will escape. |
| 5 | They cannot speak or cast spells and they feel if they open their mouth their voice will escape. |
| 6 | They are highly suggestible and do anything they are told to do that isn't self-destructive. |
| 7 | They experience insatiable hunger and use their action to eat anything they can. |
| 8 | They use their turn to repeat their previous turn or action to the best of their ability. |
| 9 | They shake wildly and have disadvantage on all Strength and Dexterity checks and saving throws. |
| 10 | Their eyes turn inky black and they are completely blinded and deafened. |
The College of Crossroads
While most bards are naturally skilled musicians, singers, or storytellers, some gain their talent through more nefarious means. Known informally as the College of the Crossroads, this organization is named for the traditional location where such mortal bargains are made. An agreement with a devil, to learn the binding words of creation used by powerful devils.
Infernal Confidant
You have gained strange and sinister skills at the Crossroads. When you join this College at 3rd level, you gain proficiency in the Performance skill and you learn to speak, read, write, and sing in Infernal, the language of Devils.
In addition, whenever you make a Charisma (Deception), Charisma (Performance), or Charisma (Persuasion) check when interacting with devils, you gain advantage.
Binding Bond
Additionally at 3rd level, you can bind a creature into a temporary bonding contract of infernal torment. As a bonus action, you can expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration to target a creature you can see within 60 feet of you to become bound to you for 1 minute or until you use this feature on another creature. The bound creature suffers the effects of the Bane spell (does not require concentration). The bond is broken if you and the target are more than 60 feet away from each other. You can bind a number of creatures equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of 1).
Whenever you deal damage to a bound creature, you gain temporary hit points equal to your Charisma modifier + your bard level.
The College of Eloquence
Adherents of the College of Eloquence master the art of oratory, manifesting the sounds of creation through articulate dialogue, poetry or lyrical arrangement. Persuasion and word play are regarded as a high art, and a well-reasoned, well-spoken argument often proves more persuasive than facts. These bards wield a blend of logic and cunning wordplay, winning over skeptics and detractors with logical arguments and plucking at heartstrings to appeal to the emotions of audiences.
Silver Tongue
Beginning at 3rd level, you are a master at saying the right thing at the right time. When you make a Charisma (Persuasion) or Charisma (Deception) check, you can treat a roll that is lower than your Charisma modifier, excluding a natural 1, as a 10.
Unsettling Words
Additionally at 3rd level, you can spin words laced with magic that unsettle a creature and cause it to doubt itself. As a action, you can expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration, choose one creature you can see within 60 feet of you, and roll a Bardic Inspiration. The target must succeed on an Intelligence saving throw against your Spell Save DC or subtract the number rolled on the Bardic Inspiration die from the next saving throw it makes before the end of your next turn.
Unfailing Inspiration
Starting at 6th level, your inspiring words are so persuasive that others feel driven to succeed. When a creature adds one of your Bardic Inspiration dice to its ability check, attack roll, or saving throw and the roll fails, the creature can keep it as a special Bardic Inspiration that grants a bonus equal to your Charisma modifier instead of your Bardic Inspiration die.
Universal Speech
Additionally at 6th level, you have gained the ability to make your speech intelligible to any creature. As an action, choose one or more creatures within 60 feet of you, up to a number equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of one creature). The chosen creatures can magically understand you, regardless of the language you speak, for 1 hour.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest, unless you expend a spell slot to use it again.
Infectious Inspiration
Finally at 14th level, when you successfully inspire someone, the power of your eloquence can now spread to someone else. When a creature within 60 feet of you adds one of your Bardic Inspiration dice to its ability check, attack roll, or saving throw and the roll succeeds, you can use your reaction to encourage a different creature (other than yourself) that can hear you within 60 feet of you, giving it a Bardic Inspiration die without expending any of your Bardic Inspiration uses.
You can use this reaction a number of times equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of once), and you regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
College of Fools
Bards who join the College of Fools manifest the sounds of creation through insults and jokes. Where other bards seek out forgotten lore or tales of epic bravery, Fools ferret out embarrassing and hilarious stories of all kinds. Whether telling the tale of a stable hand’s affair with a duchess or a mocking satire of a paladin’s innocence, a Fool never lets social decorum get in the way of their mastery of insults.
Fools adventure to undermine the plans of the powerful and arrogant liars and keepers of secrets. Among bards, Fools are unmatched acrobats, and their ability to tumble, dodge, leap, and climb makes them slippery opponents in battle.
Satirical Theatrics
When you adopt the College of Fools at 3rd level, you gain the skills necessary to pass as a bumbling nincompoop. You gain proficiency in the Acrobatics and Slight of Hand skills. If you are already proficient in either of these skills you instead gain proficiency in Deception or thieves' tools.
Tumbling Fool
Your training allows you to move about in strange and bizarrely entertaining ways. Starting at 3rd level, you can take the Dash action as a bonus action on your turn. When you take the Dash action, you gain the following benefits, which last until the end of your current turn:
- Opportunity attacks against you are made at disadvantage.
- You gain a climbing speed equal to your movement speed.
- You reduce any falling damage you take by an amount equal to your bard level + your Charisma modifier.
Sharp Tongue
At 6th level you learn the vicious mockery cantrip, but it doesn't count against your total number of Cantrips Known. If you already know vicious mockery you learn an another bard cantrip of your choice. When you damage a creature with vicious mockery, you gain a bonus to the damage roll equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of +1).
Sharper Wit
Starting at 6th level, when a creature that you can see targets you with a weapon or spell attack, you can use your reaction to cast vicious mockery targeting the attacker. If the attacker fails their saving throw, they must choose another target within range of their attack. If there are no other creatures in range then their weapon or spell attack misses. You can cast vicious mockery as a reaction a number of times equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of once), and you regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
Fools Luck
You have reached the pinnacle of the satirical performing arts. Upon reaching 14th level, you can combine your bardic magic with foolish antics to manipulate luck. When you make an ability check, attack roll, or saving throw with advantage, you can choose to automatically fail in comical fashion.
Once you've used this ability to purposefully fail, you gain 1 point of Fools Luck. You can have a number of points of Fools Luck equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of 1). Any unused Fools Luck fades at the end of your next long rest.
When a creature within 30 feet that can hear you, makes an attack roll, ability check, or saving throw, you can use your reaction to expend a charge of Fools Luck and impose advantage or disadvantage (your choice) on the roll.
College of Glamour
The College of Glamour is the home of bards who mastered the whimsical sounds of creation that exists in the vibrant realm of the Feywild, typically under the tutelage of someone who dwelled there. Tutored by satyrs, eladrin, other fey, or rarely even Archfey, these bards learn to use their magic to delight and captivate others.
The bards of this college are regarded with a mixture of awe and fear. Their performances are the stuff of legend. These bards are so eloquent that a speech or song that one of them performs can cause captors to release the bard unharmed and can lull a furious dragon into complacency. The same magic that allows them to quell beasts can also bend minds. Villainous bards of this college can leech off a community for weeks, misusing their magic to turn their hosts into thralls. Heroic bards of this college instead use this power to gladden the downtrodden and undermine oppressors.
Mantle of Inspiration
When you join the College of Glamour at 3rd level, you gain the ability to weave a song of fey magic that imbues your allies with vigor and speed.
As a bonus action, you can expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration to grant yourself a wondrous appearance. When you do so, choose a number of creatures you can see and that can see you within 60 feet of you, up to a number equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of one). Each of them gains 5 temporary hit points. When a creature gains these temporary hit points, it can immediately use its reaction to move up to its speed, without provoking opportunity attacks.
The number of temporary hit points increases when you reach certain levels in this class, increasing to 8 at 5th level, 11 at 10th level, and 14 at 15th level.
Enthralling Performance
Starting at 3rd level, you can charge your performance with seductive, fey magic.
If you perform for at least 1 minute, you can attempt to inspire wonder in your audience by singing, reciting a poem, or dancing. At the end of the performance, choose a number of humanoids within 60 feet of you who watched and listened to all of it, up to a number equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of one). Each target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC or be charmed by you. While charmed in this way, the target idolizes you, it speaks glowingly of you to anyone who talks to it, and it hinders anyone who opposes you, although it avoids violence unless it was already inclined to fight on your behalf. This effect ends on a target after 1 hour, if it takes any damage, if you attack it, or if it witnesses you attacking or damaging any of its allies.
If a target succeeds on its saving throw, the target has no hint that you tried to charm it.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Mantle of Majesty
At 6th level, you gain the ability to cloak yourself in a fey magic that makes others want to serve you. As a bonus action, you cast command, without expending a spell slot, and you take on an appearance of unearthly beauty for 1 minute or until your concentration ends (as if you were concentrating on a spell). During this time, you can cast command as a bonus action on each of your turns, without expending a spell slot.
Any creature charmed by you automatically fails its saving throw against the command you cast with this feature.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.
Unbreakable Majesty
At 14th level, your appearance permanently gains an otherworldly aspect that makes you look more lovely and fierce.
In addition, as a bonus action, you can assume a magically majestic presence for 1 minute or until you are incapacitated. For the duration, whenever any creature tries to attack you for the first time on a turn, the attacker must make a Charisma saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failed save, it can't attack you on this turn, and it must choose a new target for its attack or the attack is wasted. On a successful save, it can attack you on this turn, but it has disadvantage on any saving throw it makes against your spells on your next turn.
Once you assume this majestic presence, you can't do so again until you finish a short or long rest.
College of Lore
The largest and most versatile college, the Bards of the College of Lore know something about most things, collecting bits of knowledge from sources as diverse as scholarly tomes and peasant tales. Instead of specializing in any particular sound of creation, they instead rely upon their vast collection of secret knowledge and lore to be versatile in all different sounds of creations, and masters of none.
Whether singing folk ballads in taverns or elaborate compositions in royal courts, these bards use their gifts to hold audiences spellbound. When the applause dies down, the audience members might find themselves questioning everything they held to be true, from their faith in the priesthood of the local temple to their loyalty to the king.
Bonus Proficiencies
When you join the College of Lore at 3rd level, you gain proficiency with three skills of your choice.
Exploit Lore
Also at 3rd level, you learn how to use your extensive knowledge of weaknesses to distract, confuse, and otherwise sap the confidence and competence of others. When a creature that you can see within 60 feet of you makes an attack roll, an ability check, or a damage roll, you can use your reaction to expend one of your uses of Bardic Inspiration, rolling a Bardic Inspiration die and subtracting the number rolled from the creature's roll. You can choose to use this feature after the creature makes its roll, but before the DM determines whether the attack roll or ability check succeeds or fails, or before the creature deals its damage. The creature is immune if it can't hear you or if it's immune to being charmed.
Additional Magical Secrets
At 6th level, you learn two spells of your choice from any class. A spell you choose must be of a level you can cast, as shown on the Bard table, or a cantrip. The chosen spells count as bard spells for you but don't count against the number of bard spells you know.
Peerless Skill
Starting at 14th level, when you make an ability check, you can expend one use of Bardic Inspiration. Roll a Bardic Inspiration die and add the number rolled to your ability check. You can choose to do so after you roll the die for the ability check, but before the DM tells you whether you succeed or fail
College of Swords
Sound of blades slicing through air and the clashing of sharpened metal
Bonus Proficiencies
When you join the College of Swords at 3rd level, you gain proficiency with medium armor and the scimitar.
Fighting Style
At 3rd level, you adopt a style of fighting as your specialty. Choose one of the following options. You can't take a Fighting Style option more than once, even if something in the game lets you choose again.
Dueling. When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with that weapon.
Two-Weapon Fighting. When you engage in two-weapon fighting, you can add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attack.
Blade Flourish
At 3rd level, you learn to perform impressive displays of martial prowess and speed.
Whenever you take the Attack action on your turn, your walking speed increases by 10 feet until the end of the turn, and if a weapon attack that you make as part of this action hits a creature, you can use one of the following Blade Flourish options of your choice. You can use only one Blade Flourish option per turn.
Defensive Flourish. You can expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration to cause the weapon to deal extra damage to the target you hit. The damage equals the number you roll on the Bardic Inspiration die. You also add the number rolled to your AC until the start of your next turn.
Mobile Flourish. You can expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration to cause the weapon to deal extra damage to the target you hit. The damage equals the number you roll on the Bardic Inspiration die. You can also push the target up to 5 feet away from you, plus a number of feet equal to the number you roll on that die. You can then immediately use your reaction to move up to your walking speed to an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the target.
Slashing Flourish. You can expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration to cause the weapon to deal extra damage to the target you hit and to any other creature of your choice that you can see within 5 feet of you. The damage equals the number you roll on the Bardic Inspiration die.
Extra Attack
Starting at 6th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.
Master's Flourish
Starting at 14th level, whenever you use a Blade Flourish option, you can roll a d6 and use it instead of expending a Bardic Inspiration die.
College of Valor
Bards of the College of Valor are daring skalds whose tales keep alive the memory of the great heroes of the past, and thereby inspire a new generation of heroes. Manifesting their sounds of creation through warcrys, rallying speeches, and the inspiring beats of war, these bards often join the frontlines of the battlefield much like the heroics they seek to preserve.
Bonus Proficiencies
When you join the College of Valor at 3rd level, you gain proficiency with medium armor, shields, and martial weapons.
Combat Inspiration
Also at 3rd level, you learn to inspire others in battle. A creature that has a Bardic Inspiration die from you can roll that die and add the number rolled to a weapon damage roll it just made. Alternatively, when an attack roll is made against the creature, it can use its reaction to roll the Bardic Inspiration die and add the number rolled to its AC against that attack, after seeing the roll but before knowing whether it hits or misses.
Extra Attack
Beginning at 6th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, when you take the Attack action on your turn. Moreover, you can cast one of your cantrips in place of one of those attacks.
Battle Magic
At 14th level, you have mastered the art of weaving spellcasting and weapon use into a single harmonious act. When you use your action to cast a bard spell, you can make one weapon attack as a bonus action.
College of Whispers
Most folk are happy to welcome a bard into their midst. Bards of the College of Whispers use this to their advantage. They appear to be like other bards, sharing news, singing songs, and telling tales to the audiences they gather. In truth, the College of Whispers teaches its students that they are wolves among sheep. These bards use their mastery of the ghastly sounds of creation found in the Shadowfell to uncover secrets and turn them against others through extortion and threats.
Psychic Extortion
When you join the College of Whispers at 3rd level, you gain the ability to make your spells magically toxic to a creature's mind.
When a creature is damaged by one of your leveled spells, you can expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration to deal an extra 2d6 psychic damage to that target. You can do so only once per round on your turn.
The psychic damage increases when you reach certain levels in this class, increasing to 3d6 at 5th level, 5d6 at 10th level, and 8d6 at 15th level.
Words of Terror
At 3rd level, you learn to infuse innocent-seeming words with an insidious magic that can inspire terror.
If you speak to a humanoid alone for at least 1 minute, you can attempt to seed paranoia in its mind. At the end of the conversation, the target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC or be frightened of you or another creature of your choice. The target is frightened in this way for 1 hour, until it is attacked or damaged, or until it witnesses its allies being attacked or damaged.
If the target succeeds on its saving throw, the target has no hint that you tried to frighten it.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Mantle of Whispers
At 6th level, you gain the ability to adopt a humanoid's persona. When a humanoid dies within 30 feet of you, you can magically capture its shadow using your reaction. You retain this shadow until you use it or you finish a long rest.
You can use the shadow as an action. When you do so, it vanishes, magically transforming into a disguise that appears on you. You now look like the dead person, but healthy and alive. This disguise lasts for 1 hour or until you end it as a bonus action.
While you're in the disguise, you gain access to all information that the humanoid would freely share with a casual acquaintance. Such information includes general details on its background and personal life, but doesn't include secrets. The information is enough that you can pass yourself off as the person by drawing on its memories.
Another creature can see through this disguise by succeeding on a Wisdom (Insight) check contested by your Charisma (Deception) check. You gain a +5 bonus to your check.
Once you capture a shadow with this feature, you can't capture another one with it until you finish a short or long rest.
Shadow Lore
At 14th level, you gain the ability to weave dark magic into your words and tap into a creature's deepest fears.
As an action, you magically whisper a phrase that only one creature of your choice within 30 feet of you can hear. The target must make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. It automatically succeeds if it doesn't share a language with you or if it can't hear you. On a successful saving throw, your whisper sounds like unintelligible mumbling and has no effect.
On a failed saving throw, the target is charmed by you for the next 8 hours or until you or your allies attack it, damage it, or force it to make a saving throw. It interprets the whispers as a description of its most mortifying secret. You gain no knowledge of this secret, but the target is convinced you know it.
The charmed creature obeys your commands for fear that you will reveal its secret. It won't risk its life for you or fight for you, unless it was already inclined to do so. It grants you favors and gifts it would offer to a close friend.
When the effect ends, the creature has no understanding of why it held you in such fear.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.