Bard

Humming as she traces her fingers over an ancient monument in a long-forgotten ruin, an Ìqáalìe in rugged leathers finds knowledge springing into her mind, conjured forth by the magic of her song—knowledge of the people who constructed the monument and the mythic saga it depicts.
A stern Genasi warrior bangs his sword rhythmically against his scale mail, setting the tempo for his war chant and exhorting his companions to bravery and heroism. The magic of his song fortifies and emboldens them.
Laughing as she tunes her cittern, a Crystalkin weaves her subtle magic over the assembled nobles, ensuring that her companions’ words will be well received.
Whether scholar, skald, or scoundrel, a bard weaves magic through words and music to inspire allies, demoralize foes, manipulate minds, create illusions, and even heal wounds.

Class Table
Level	Proficiency Bonus	Features	Experience Points
1st	+2	Bardic Inspiration (d6), Spellcasting	0
2nd	+2	Myriad of Songs, Jack of all Trades	300
3rd	+2	Bard College, Expertise	1,000
4th	+2	Ability Score Improvement	3,000
5th	+3	Bardic Inspiration (d8), Font of Inspiration	6,000
6th	+3	Bard College Feature, Countercharm	10,000
7th	+3	-	20,000
8th	+3	Ability Score Improvement	40,000
9th	+4	-	60,000
10th	+4	Bardic Inspiration (d10), Expertise, Magical Secrets	80,000
11th	+4	-	100,000
12th	+4	Ability Score Improvement	120,000
13th	+5	-	140,000
14th	+5	Magical Secrets	160,000
15th	+5	Bardic Inspiration (d12)	180,000
16th	+5	Ability Score Improvement	200,000
17th	+6	Lingering Inspiration	225,000
18th	+6	Magical Secrets	250,000
19th	+6	Ability Score Improvement	300,000
20th	+6	Superior Inspiration, Bardic Inspiration (d20)	350,000

Class Information

Hit Dice. 1d8 per Bard Level
1st Level Hitpoints. 8 + your Constitution Modifier
Higher Level Hitpoints. 1d8 (or 5) + your Constitution Modifier per Bard Level after 1st
Armor Proficiencies. Light Armor, Medium Armor, and Shields
Weapon Proficiencies. Simple Weapons, Hand Crossbows, Longswords, Rapiers, Sabers, Shortswords
Tool Proficiencies. Three of any Artisan’s Tools or Musical Instruments
Saving Throw Proficiencies. Dexterity and Charisma.
Skill Proficiencies. Choose any three.
Equipment. A Simple or Martial Melee Weapon, one Equipment Pack, one Musical Instrument, one Non-Vehicle Tool that you are Proficient with, Leather Armor, and a Dagger.

Bard Features Summarized
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Bardic Inspiration (d6)	1st	You can use your Reaction to improve your allies rolls or heal Damage.
Spellcasting	1st	You gain Spellcasting that uses Charisma and Learning Spells.
Myriad Of Songs	2nd	You gain additional Spells based on a theme.
Jack Of All Trades	2nd	Your better at Skills you don't have proficiency in.
Bardic College	3rd	You choose your subclass, and gain features at 3rd, 6th, and 14th Level.
Expertise	3rd	You gain Expertise in some Skills and a Tool.
Ability Score Improvements	4th	You increase your Ability Scores or gain a Feat, you do this at 4th, 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th Level.
Bardic Inspiration (d8)	5th	You add more when you use Bardic Inspiration.
Font Of Inspiration	5th	You don't lose a use of Bardic Inspiration if you roll badly.
Countercharm	6th	You help your allies resist Charmed and Frightened.
Bardic Inspiration (d10)	10th	You add more when you use Bardic Inspiration.
Expertise	10th	You gain Expertise in some Skills and a Tool.
Magical Secrets	10th	You get extra Spells from any class.
Magical Secrets	14th	You get extra Spells from any class.
Bardic Inspiration (d12)	15th	You add more when you use Bardic Inspiration.
Lingering Inspiration	17th	You can give allies Bardic Inspiration dice they can use solely on themselves.
Magical Secrets	18th	You get extra Spells from any class.
Superior Inspiration	20th	You have unlimited Bardic Inspiration uses.
Bardic Inspiration (d20)	20th	You add more when you use Bardic Inspiration.

Spellcasting

1st Level Bard Feature
Spellcasting Ability. Charisma
Spell Save DC. 8 + Your Charisma Modifier + Your Proficiency Bonus
Spell Attack Bonus. Your Charisma Modifier + Your Proficiency Bonus
Ritual Casting. You can cast any Prepared Spell as a Ritual if it has the Ritual tag.
Spellcasting Focus. A Musical Instrument
Spell Learning Method. You learn one new Spell every even Level and two new Spells every odd Level.

Spells Known and Spell Slots per Level
Level	Cantrips Known	Spells Known	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th
1st	2	4	2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
2nd	2	5	3	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
3rd	2	7	4	2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
4th	3	8	4	3	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
5th	3	10	4	3	2	-	-	-	-	-	-
6th	3	11	4	3	3	-	-	-	-	-	-
7th	3	13	4	3	3	1	-	-	-	-	-
8th	3	14	4	3	3	2	-	-	-	-	-
9th	3	16	4	3	3	3	1	-	-	-	-
10th	4	17	4	3	3	3	2	-	-	-	-
11th	4	19	4	3	3	3	2	1	-	-	-
12th	4	20	4	3	3	3	2	1	-	-	-
13th	4	22	4	3	3	3	2	1	1	-	-
14th	4	23	4	3	3	3	2	1	1	-	-
15th	4	25	4	3	3	3	2	1	1	1	-
16th	4	26	3	3	3	2	1	1	1	1	-
17th	4	28	3	3	3	2	1	1	1	1	1
18th	4	29	3	3	3	2	1	1	1	1	1
19th	4	31	3	3	3	2	1	1	1	1	1
20th	4	32	3	3	3	2	1	1	1	1	1

Bardic Inspiration

1st Level Bard Feature
You can inspire others through stirring words or music. As a Reaction when you see another creature that can hear or see you within 60ft of you that fails an Attack Roll, Ability Check, or Saving Throw, you can expend a Bardic Inspiration Die, giving that creature a bonus to the Roll equal to one Roll of your Bardic Inspiration Die.
When you see another creature take Damage, you can use your Reaction to expend a Bardic Inspiration Die, healing that creature a number of Hit Points equal to one roll of your Bardic Inspiration Die.
You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Charisma Modifier + your Proficiency Bonus, regaining expended uses when you finish a Long Rest.
Your Bardic Inspiration Die is a d6, and increases when you reach certain Levels in this class. The die becomes a d8 at 5th Level, a d10 at 10th Level, a d12 at 15th Level, and a d20 at 20th Level.

Jack of All Trades

2nd Level Bard Feature
You add half your Proficiency Bonus, rounded down, to any Ability Check you make that you are not Proficient in or have Expertise with.

Myriad of Songs

2nd Level Bard Feature
You can learn a set of songs to either heal your wounded allies, deceive your foes, or a myriad of other foes. Choose one of the following tables, you gain the Spells corresponding to the listed Bard Levels in that table, they count as Bard Spells for you, are always Prepared, and do not count against your Spells Known. At DM discretion, Spells on certain Tables can be swapped for other Spells.

Songs of Blades
Bard Level	Spell	Bard Level	Spell
2nd	Sudden Spark	12th	6thlvl
4th	Gale Weapons	14th	7thlvl
6th	Barrow Haze	16th	8thlvl
8th	March of Blades	18th	9thlvl
10th	Steel Wind Strike	20th	Idkyet

Songs of Beasts
Bard Level	Spell	Bard Level	Spell
2nd	Find Familiar	12th	6thlvl
4th	Animal Messenger	14th	7thlvl
6th	Vile Swarm	16th	8thlvl
8th	Find Greater Steed	18th	9thlvl
10th	Insect Plague	20th	Idkyet

Songs of Creation
Bard Level	Spell	Bard Level	Spell
2nd	Grease	12th	6thlvl
4th	Continual Flame	14th	7thlvl
6th	Magnificent Tower	16th	8thlvl
8th	Fabricate	18th	9thlvl
10th	Creation	20th	Idkyet

Songs of Crusade
Bard Level	Spell	Bard Level	Spell
2nd	Halo of Glory	12th	6thlvl
4th	Flame Blade	14th	7thlvl
6th	Crusader's Mantle	16th	8thlvl
8th	Death Ward	18th	9thlvl
10th	Shining Armor	20th	Idkyet

Songs of Death
Bard Level	Spell	Bard Level	Spell
2nd	Inflict Wounds	12th	6thlvl
4th	Blindness/Deafness	14th	7thlvl
6th	Bloatbomb	16th	8thlvl
8th	Shadow of Moil	18th	9thlvl
10th	Enervation	20th	Idkyet

Songs of Harrying
Bard Level	Spell	Bard Level	Spell
2nd	Hex	12th	6thlvl
4th	Spike Growth	14th	7thlvl
6th	Slow	16th	8thlvl
8th	Aversion	18th	9thlvl
10th	Babble	20th	Idkyet

Songs of Rest
Bard Level	Spell	Bard Level	Spell
2nd	Goodberry	12th	6thlvl
4th	Prayer of Healing	14th	7thlvl
6th	Tiny Hut	16th	8thlvl
8th	Private Sanctum	18th	9thlvl
10th	Rejuvenate	20th	Idkyet

Songs of Retribution
Bard Level	Spell	Bard Level	Spell
2nd	Hellish Rebuke	12th	6thlvl
4th	Heat Metal	14th	7thlvl
6th	Bite the Hand	16th	8thlvl
8th	Fire Shield	18th	9thlvl
10th	Curse of Befouled Luck	20th	Idkyet

Songs of Secrets
Bard Level	Spell	Bard Level	Spell
2nd	Disguise Self	12th	6thlvl
4th	Pass Without Trace	14th	7thlvl
6th	Major Image	16th	8thlvl
8th	Phantasmal Killer	18th	9thlvl
10th	Telepathic Bond	20th	Idkyet

Songs of Seeking
Bard Level	Spell	Bard Level	Spell
2nd	Hunter's Mark	12th	6thlvl
4th	Ashen Memory	14th	7thlvl
6th	Glassee	16th	8thlvl
8th	Divination	18th	9thlvl
10th	Scrying	20th	Idkyet

Bard College

3rd, 6th, and 14th Level Bard Feature
You choose one of the Bard Colleges in the table below who's advanced techniques you delve into.

Bard Colleges
Bard Colleges	Complexity (1-5)	Description
College of Creation	3	You weave the song of creation to create motes of potential and both animate and create items.
College of Dance	2	You embody the universal art form of dance to inspire and quicken your allies and bring remorse to those who would harm you.
College of Diplomacy	3	You learn how to subtly influence others and secretly communicate with your allies to best manipulate social situations to your advantage.
College of Drama	4	You peer into a creature's strengths and weaknesses to determine a satisfying and cathartic end to that creature's tale.
College of Eloquence	2	You know the perfect words to say at the perfect time and always have the ability to inspire your allies.
College of Flame	2	You have a spring in your step and fling fire and smoke at your nearby foes who dare cross you.
College of Four Suits	5	You use a deck of magical cards to sling your spells and influence the battle around you.
College of Glamor	2	You take on the ethereal majesty of fey magic to enchant your foes and inspire your friends.
College of Lore	1	You seek to grow your understanding of all things in the world around you and use this knowledge to gain a variety of skills and abilities.
College of Machismo	3	You take on the tendencies of the macho and the proud to become the powerful center of attention.
College of Mercantilism	1	You use coins to both influence your fate and rain death on your foes.
College of Mysteries	4	You seek the deeper truth that others would try to hide while punishing them for their deception.
College of Swords	2	You use a sturdy blade and a dash of style to guard all that is good and upright.
College of Tailoring	3	You weave the world around you to serve your purpose to protect and disguise your allies or to bind your foes.
College of Valor	1	You remember and desire to embody the ancient heroes which you idolize as you strike down the wicked with your blades and magic.
College of Whispers	2	You strike terror into your foes while taking on others' personas to make creatures think you know their darkest secret.

Expertise

3rd and 10th Level Bard Feature
Choose two Skills you are Proficient with, but do not have Expertise in. You gain Expertise in those Skills.
Additionally, choose one Set of Tools that you are Proficiency with, but do not have Expertise in. You gain Expertise in that Set of Tools.

Ability Score Improvements

4th, 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th Level Bard Feature
Your skill and strength expands, choose one of the following:

Increase one Ability Score of your choice by 3.
Increase one Ability Score of your choice by 2 and one Ability Score of your choice by 1
Increases three Ability Scores of your choice by 1.
Gain one Feat of your choice.

No Ability Score increases or Feat gained from this feature can increase one of your Ability Scores beyond 20 unless stated otherwise.

Font of Inspiration

5th Level Bard Feature
Your well of inspiration deepens so that previously deemed failures have no adverse effect. Whenever you roll a 1 on a Bardic Inspiration Die, you regain the use of Bardic Inspiration that you expended.

Countercharm

6th Level Bard Feature
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 creatures of your choice within 30ft of you have Advantage on Saving Throws against being Charmed or Frightened. A creature must be able to hear or see you to gain this benefit. The performance ends early if you are Incapacitated or you end it as a Free Action.

Magical Secrets

10th, 14th, and 18th Level Bard Feature
You have explored magical knowledge from a wide spectrum of disciplines. Choose two Spells from any Spell List. A Spell you choose must be of a Level you can cast, or a Cantrip.
The chosen Spells count as Bard Spells for you, are always Prepared, and do not count against your number of Spells Known.

Lingering Inspiration

17th Level Bard Feature
Your well of inspiration inspires and improves yourself. Whenever you expend a use of Bardic Inspiration, you can grant any creature within 60ft of you that can see or hear you a Bardic Inspiration Die. It can spend it in the same ways you can, but only targeting itself. A creature keeps its Bardic Inspiration Die for 10 minutes or until it uses it. If a creature rolls a 1 on a Bardic Inspiration Die used on itself, it keeps the Bardic Inspiration Die given by this feature.

Superior Inspiration

20th Level Bard Feature
Your well of inspiration grows limitless. You have an unlimited amount of uses for Bardic Inspiration feature.

Bard Colleges

College of Creation

Bards believe the cosmos is a work of art—the creation of the Three. That creative work included harmonies that continue to resound through existence today, a power known as the creation energy, khaagaazh. The bards of the College of Creation draw on that primeval song through dance, music, and poetry, and their teachers share this lesson: “Before the sun and the moon, there was the Song, and its music awoke the first dawn. Its melodies so delighted the stones and trees that some of them gained a voice of their own. And now they sing too. Learn the Song, students, and you too can teach the mountains to sing and dance.”
Dwarves often encourage their bards to become students of the Song of Creation. And among Dragonwrought, the Song of Creation is revered, for legends portray Bahumat, Tiamat, and Sardior—the greatest of dragons—as three of the song’s first singers.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Mote of Potential

3rd Level College of Creation Feature
Whenever you expend a use of Bardic Inspiration, you can utter a note from the Song of Creation to create a Tiny mote of potential, which orbits within 5ft of you. The mote is intangible and invulnerable, and it lasts for 1 minute. The mote looks like a musical note, a star, a flower, or another symbol of art or life that you choose. The mote is expended the next time you use your Bardic Inspiration feature and it provides an additional effects based on what you used Bardic Inspiration to do:

Ability Check. You roll the Bardic Inspiration Die twice, applying the higher roll to the Ability Check, as the mote pops and emits colorful, harmless sparks for a moment.
Attack Roll. After you roll the Bardic Inspiration Die, the mote thunderously shatters. The target of the Attack and each creature of your choice that you can see within 5ft of it must succeed on a Constitution Saving Throw against your Spell Save DC, taking Thunder Damage equal to the number rolled on the Bardic Inspiration Die on a failed Save.
Saving Throw. After you roll the Bardic Inspiration Die, the mote vanishes with the sound of soft music, causing the target to gain Temporary Hit Points equal to the number rolled on the Bardic Inspiration Die + your Charisma Modifier.
Healing. After you roll the Bardic Inspiration Die, the mote pops in a mist of alacrity and distraction, allowing the target to move a number of feet equal to 5 x your Proficiency Bonus without provoking Opportunity Attacks.

Performance of Creation

3rd Level College of Creation Feature
As an Action, you can channel the magic of the Song of Creation to create one non-magical item of your choice in an unoccupied space within 10ft of you. The item must appear on a surface or in a liquid that can support it. The GP value of the item can’t be more than 20 times your Bard Level, and the item must be Medium or smaller. The item glimmers softly, and a creature can faintly hear music when touching it. The created item disappears after a number of hours equal to your Proficiency Bonus.
Once you create an item with this feature, you can’t do so again until you finish a Long Rest, unless you expend a Spell Slot of 2nd Level or higher to use it again. You can have only one item created by this feature at a time; if you use this Action and already have an item from this feature, the first one immediately vanishes.
The size of the item you can create with this feature increases by one size category when you reach 6th Level (Large) and 14th Level (Huge).

Animating Performance

6th Level College of Creation Feature
As an Action, you can animate one Large or smaller non-magical item within 30ft of you that isn’t being worn or carried. The animated item uses the Dancing Item stat block, which uses your Proficiency Bonus (PB). The item is friendly to you and creatures you chose, and obeys your commands. It lives for 1 hour, until it is reduced to 0 Hit Points, or until you die.
In combat, the item shares your Initiative Score, but it takes its turn immediately after yours. It can move and use its Reaction on its own, but the only Action it takes on its turn is the Dodge Action, unless you use a Bonus Action to command it to take a different Action. That Action can be one in its Stat Block or some other Action. If you are Incapacitated, the item can take any Action of its choice, not just Dodge.
Once you animate an item with this feature, you can’t do so again until you finish a Long Rest, unless you expend a Spell Slot of 3rd Level or higher to do so again. You can have only one item animated by this feature at a time; if you use this Action and already have an item animated from this feature, the first one immediately becomes inanimate.

Creative Crescendo

14th Level College of Creation Feature
When you use your Performance of Creation feature, you can create more than one item at once. The number of items equals your Charisma Modifier. If you create an item that would exceed that number, you choose which of the previously created items disappears. Only one of these items can be of the maximum size you can create; the rest must be Small or Tiny.
You are no longer limited by GP value when creating items with your Performance of Creation feature.

College of Dance

Bards of the College of Dance are practiced artists of the battlefield, leaping, twisting, twirling, and flowing through any terrain. To these bards, the world is their stage, and they are not shy to share their expertise in the art of dance. This college of bards is vast and diverse, with many different genres and styles of dance.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Fast Movement

3rd Level College of Dance Feature
Your Speed increases by 10ft. At 6th and 14th Level, your Speed increases by an extra 5ft.

Inspirational Dance

3rd Level College of Dance Feature
You learn how to use the universal language of dance. As a Bonus Action, you can expend one use of Bardic Inspiration to take the Dodge Action and choose a creature within 30ft of you that can see you, reinvigorating the creature as you dance. When you do, roll a Bardic Inspiration Die. That creature gains Temporary Hit Points equal to the number rolled plus your Charisma Modifier. When a creature gains Temporary Hit Points in this way, it can immediately use its Reaction to move up to its Speed without provoking Opportunity Attacks or take the Dodge Action.

Entrancing Movement

6th Level College of Dance Feature
Your movements become so graceful that even the most cold-hearted enemies are filled with remorse for having stopped your dance. Whenever a creature hits you with an Opportunity Attack, that creature takes Psychic Damage equal to your Charisma Modifier + half your Bard Level.
In addition, you can use an Action to cast Charm Person without expending a Spell Slot by weaving the incantation with your dance. When cast the Spell in this way, the target doesn’t have Advantage on the Saving Throw if you’re currently fighting it. When you reach 14th Level in this class, you can choose to cast Irresistible Dance in this way instead. Once you use this feature to cast a Spell, you can’t do so again until you finish a Long Rest.

Endless Dance

14th Level College of Dance Feature
Your dance has become so invigorating that it can inspire an ally to attack. A creature that gains Temporary Hit Points from your Inspirational Dance feature can choose to use its Reaction to make a single Weapon Attack.
In addition, your endless dancing allows you to more easily avoid being hit. You can use a Bonus Action to take the Dodge and Disengage Actions simultaneously, and whenever you expend a Bardic Inspiration Die, you can take the Dodge and Disengage Actions simultaneously as a Free Action.

College of Diplomacy

Bards of the College of Diplomacy understand that statecraft, like music or drama, is a complicated artform. Formally trained as couriers, aides, stewards, geishas, and ambassadors, these performers use civility and social protocol to open doors where others cannot. In mastering their craft, these individuals also learn to see the connections between magical and social networks, and recognize how each can influence the other.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Foreign Relations

3rd Level College of Diplomacy Feature
You learn the proper etiquette for handling those from other cultures. You learn three Languages of your choice.
In addition, whenever you make a Charisma (Deception), Charisma (Persuasion), or Wisdom (Insight) check against a creature you are interacting with in a language other than Common, as long as it can understand that Language, you treat any roll of 9 or lower on the die as a 10 in addition to the Advantage granted normally.

Magical Networking

3rd Level College of Diplomacy Feature
You can utilize your web of personal connections to extend your reach through Khaagaazh. By expending a use of your Bardic Inspiration when you cast a Bard Spell, you can choose to cast the Spell from the space of a willing creature within 60ft of you that can see or hear you.
When you cast a Spell in this way, that creature also gains a number of Temporary Hit Points equal to the number rolled on the Bardic Inspiration Die + your Charisma modifier.

Secret Communiqué

6th Level College of Diplomacy Feature
Tour mastery of statecraft allows you to communicate with but a meaningful look. The ranges of both your Countercharm and your Bardic Inspiration features are doubled, and targets do not need to see or hear you to be affected by either of those features.
In addition, you use your Countercharm feature silently, without moving, and by using a Bonus Action instead of an Action. Until the end of your next turn, targets affected by this use of your Countercharm feature have Advantage on their Charisma, Intelligence, and Wisdom Saving Throws, and can also communicate telepathically with any other affected targets they can see.

Diplomatic Immunity

14th Level College of Diplomacy Feature
You can magically compel even your enemies to act cordially towards you. As an Action, you can force up to 5 creatures of your choice within 60ft of you that can see and hear you to make a Wisdom Saving Throw against your Spell Save DC.
A target automatically succeeds if it can't understand you, but if it shares more than one Language with you, it has Disadvantage on that Save. If a target fails the Save, it becomes Charmed by you and all creatures you choose that it can see within 60ft of you. The creature is Charmed in this way until the end of your next turn if you are fighting the target, if you begin to fight the target, or after 1 hour if you do not fight the target. This effect ends on a target if it notices you or your allies harm it or a creature it is friendly towards.
While Charmed in this way, each affected creature is convinced you are representing an individual, group, or power offering them fealty, an alliance, or a trade deal in its best interests. They will treat you hospitably, rationalize any of your hostile behaviors as unusual quirks, and try to persuade their allies to welcome you and your 'entourage.'
Once you use this feature, you can't do so again until you finish a Long Rest.

College of Drama

Bards of the College of Drama seek to empower the hearts of others by memorializing that which has been lost. Those who follow this tradition are intimately familiar with the immense hardships of a fickle world, but they have also witnessed the strength and beauty that blooms in the wake of loss and victory.
These bards are often travelers, looking to experience life to its fullest, with all the highs and lows that journey entails. Members of the College of Drama are rarely gregarious performers living for the spotlight. They are more likely to be quiet observers composing heartrending ballads or contemplative poems and saving them for when they will have the greatest impact.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Tragic Flaw

3rd Level College of Drama Feature
You become adept at identifying the driving motivations of others. If you spend at least one day observing a target creature with whom you share a Language, you learn the creatures' Ideal, Bond, and Flaw. When you make a Charisma (Deception), Charisma or Strength (Intimidation), or Charisma (Persuasion) check against the target you can utilize the information learned this way to improve your chances of success.
For example, you might suggest to a creature whose Flaw is their greed that supplying your party with weapons will lead to a cut of any treasure you acquire, or a creature whose Ideal is the importance of community might be convinced that their town would enjoy boosted morale if your party are supplied with the means to kill the local monster. Any time you fail an Ability Check made in this way, you can expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration, adding a roll of your Bardic Inspiration Die to the Ability Check.

Ensemble Cast

3rd Level College of Drama Feature
You gain Proficiency in Performance, and when you perform, all creatures performing with you have Advantage on their Charisma (Performance) Checks.

Reversal of Fortune

6th Level College of Drama Feature
You gain the ability to magically influence the course of a creature’s fate. You can use a Bonus Action and expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration to choose one creature that can hear you and is within 30ft of you. Choose one Damage Type, the target gains either Vulnerability or Resistance to the chosen Damage Type (your choice). If the creature has Resistance to the Damage Type and you give it Vulnerability, the Resistance is instead removed. If the creature has Vulnerability to the Damage Type and you give it Resistance, the Vulnerability is instead removed.
When you use this feature on a creature which you have observed with your Tragic Flaw feature, then if the creature has Resistance to the Damage Type and you give it Vulnerability, the Resistance is turned into Vulnerability. If the creature has Vulnerability to the Damage Type and you give it Resistance, the Vulnerability is turned into Resistance.

Satisfying Climax

14th Level College of Drama Feature
You can learn the flaws of a creature quickly to determine the end of their story. You can use an Action to learn information about a creature within 30ft of you as per Tragic Flaw. Once you do so, you can't do so again until you finish a Long Rest.
You can use an Action to cause a creature which you know information about per Tragic Flaw to force them to make a Charisma Saving Throw, the target can choose to fail this Save. On a failed Save, choose one of the following fates to choose for the target:

The target recalls all of the pain it has suffered in its life and becomes Burning 6 (Psychic) that can only decay over time. While Burning from this feature, the target is Slowed.
The target is purged from its previous tragedy and loss and recovers from up to three Conditions of your choice.
Binding shackles of fate chain the target, causing it to become Stunned and Restrained until the end of your next turn.

College of Eloquence

Adherents of the College of Eloquence master the art of oratory. Persuasion is 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 theatrical wordplay, winning over skeptics and detractors with logical arguments and plucking at heartstrings to appeal to the emotions of audiences.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Silver Tongue

3rd Level College of Eloquence Feature
You become 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 on the d20 of 9 or lower as a 10.

Cutting Words

3rd Level College of Eloquence Feature
You learn how to use your wit to distract, confuse, and otherwise sap the confidence and competence of others. When a creature that you can see within 60ft of you hits on an Attack Roll, succeeds on an Ability Check, deals Damage, or regains Hit Points, you can use your Reaction to expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration, subtracting a number from the result equal to one roll of your Bardic Inspiration Die. The creature is unaffected if it can't see or hear you, or if it's Immune to being Charmed.

Unfailing Inspiration

6th Level College of Eloquence Feature
Your inspiring words are so persuasive that others feel driven to succeed. When you expend a use of Bardic Inspiration and the result of the Attack Roll, Ability Check, or Saving Throw remains unchanged, you regain that use of Bardic Inspiration.

Universal Speech

6th Level College of Eloquence Feature
You have gained the ability to make your speech intelligible to any creature. As an Action, choose one or more creatures within 60ft of you, up to a number equal to your Charisma Modifier. For the next hour, the chosen creatures can magically understand you, regardless of the Language you speak.
Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a Long Rest, unless you expend a Spell Slot of 1st Level or higher to use it again.

Infectious Inspiration

14th Level College of Eloquence Feature
Your pure inspiration further inspires others. When you expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration, you can, as a Free Action, use your Bardic Inspiration without expending a use of the feature before the end of your next turn.

College of Flame

The College of Flame is home to bards who sought knowledge and expertise on the natural rhythm of a flickering flame and how to replicate it.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Bonus Proficiencies

3rd Level College of Flame Feature
You gain Proficiency in Acrobatics and Performance. Additionally, you learn the Fire Bolt Cantrip, it counts as a Bard Spell for you and does not count against your number of Cantrips Known.

Where There's Smoke There's Fire

3rd Level College of Flame Feature
When an creature you can see attacks another creature, you can use a Reaction to expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration feature and cause a smoke screen to materialize between the enemy and the creature, reducing the result of the Attack by an amount equal to one roll of your Bardic Inspiration Die + your Charisma Modifier. If this causes the target to miss on the Attack, you can cast Fire Bolt as a Free Action targeting that creature.

Fire Dance

6th Level College of Flame Feature
You gain the ability to move like a flickering flame. You use a Bonus Action to Fire Dance. This Fire Dance lasts until the start of your next turn. When you Fire Dance, you can take the Disengage Action as a Free Action and your Speed increases by 10ft. While this Fire Dance is active, whenever you move within 10ft of another creature, you can force that creature to make a Dexterity Saving Throw or take Fire Damage equal to your Proficiency Bonus as sparks fly from your feet.
You cannot cast Spells or make Weapon Attacks while your Fire Dance is active, and you cannot deal Fire Damage with this feature to a creature more than once on the same turn.

Fiery Finale

14th Level College of Flame Feature
When your Fire Dance ends, all creatures within 15ft of you make a Dexterity Saving Throw against your Spell Save DC, suffering 4d12 Fire Damage and being knocked Prone on a failed Save, or take half as much Damage and not be knocked Prone on a successful Save.

College of Four Suits

Bards of the College of Four Suits see games of chance as challenging questions of fate and predetermination. These charismatic players can see the threads of fate hard at work with every roll of the dice and card draw, providing timeless material for their magic and musings. By bearing witness to this magic firsthand, bards of this college believe that the future is something that can be directed, if not controlled. As such, these magicians, tricksters, and fortune tellers play along in a never-ending game against their future selves, strategically twisting luck in their ever-growing favor to force the hand of fate itself.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Arcane Deck

3rd Level College of Four Suits Feature
You find a way to twist your bardic magic in new ways using the magic of chance. You gain Proficiency and Expertise with Playing Cards as a Gaming Set, and you can use Playing Cards as a Bard Spellcasting Focus.
In addition, you can transform a set of mundane Playing Cards into a magic one, called an Arcane Deck, using a special ritual while holding the cards. The ritual takes 1 hour, which can be done during a Short or Long Rest. You can then dismiss the Arcane Deck as a Free Action, shunting it into an extra-dimensional space. The Arcane Deck also disappears if it is more than 120ft away from you for 1 minute or more, or if you die.
You can summon the Arcane Deck to an empty hand using a Bonus Action. You can replace your Arcane Deck by performing the same ritual on another playing card set. When you do, the previous Arcane Deck becomes a set of non-magical Playing Cards again. The deck appears at your feet if it is in the extra-dimensional space when this happens.
You use this Arcane Deck for your later features, drawing and playing cards as described in those features using the following rules:

The Arcane Deck uses a standard deck of 52 cards, removing any jokers from the deck. You can use a deck of playing cards at your table for these features or use a digital tool instead.
Cards have a value equal to the number on the card.
An ace has a value of 1, and a jack, queen, or king have a value of 10.

Hand of Fate

3rd Level College of Four Suits Feature
You have a Hand of Fate which uses the following rules:

Your Hand of Fate is the number of cards you currently have available to use, and you can have a number of cards in your Hand of Fate equal to your Maximum Hand Size.
Your Maximum Hand Size is 3. Your Maximum Hand Size increases when you reach certain Levels in this class, 4 at 6th Level, and 5 at 14th Level.
Whenever you roll Initiative, you draw a number of cards from your Arcane Deck so that the amount of cards in your Hand of Fate is equal to your Maximum Hand Size.
When you draw a card, you take the card that is on top of your Arcane Deck and add it to your Hand of Fate.
When a card is played or discarded, it disappears and is placed in a discard pile to the side of the deck.

When you finish a Long Rest, shuffle the discard pile back into the deck. Discarded cards are unavailable to use in your Arcane Deck while you’re in combat, but can otherwise be used as normal when using the deck as a normal set of Playing Cards.

At the end of combat, all cards in your Hand of Fate are discarded.

At the start of combat, you summon your Arcane Deck. When you summon your Arcane Deck in this way, it, and your Hand of Fate float in the air within easy reach. While your Arcane Deck floats around you in this way, you can use it as a Spellcasting Focus without needing to hold it. Whenever you expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration, you can draw 2 cards from your Arcane Deck, then choose one card in your Hand of Fate and discard it. If your Hand of Fate has more cards than your Maximum Hand Size after this, you discard cards from your Hand of Fate so that the number of cards in your Hand of Fate equals your Maximum Hand Size.
When you reach 6th Level in this class, the draw a third cards whenever you expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration increases.

Playing The Game

3rd Level College of Four Suits Feature
Using your Hand of Fate, you can play multiple cards of the same suit at a time from your Hand of Fate and combine their values. Regardless of what your cards' combined value is, the total value can't exceed your Spell Save DC. You can play cards from your Hand of Fate in the following ways:

Fate Change. You can choose to forgo rolling a d20 for an Attack Roll, Ability Check, or Saving Throw to play one or more cards from your hand, treating their combined value as the roll of the d20 instead. Once you use this ability, you can’t do so again until you roll Initiative again and draw a new hand.
Trick. You can use an Action to send one or more cards from your hand hurtling at another creature that you can see within 30ft of you. This Action has effects based on the suit of the cards used.

Clubs or Spades. If the cards’ suit is clubs or spades, you make a Ranged Spell Attack against the target using your Spell Attack Bonus. On a hit, the target takes Force Damage equal to the cards’ combined value.

Diamonds or Hearts. If the cards’ suit is diamonds or hearts, the target gains a number of Temporary Hit Points equal to the cards’ combined value, which last for 1 minute or until you use this Trick again.

Hole Cards

3rd Level College of Four Suits Feature
When you finish a Long Rest, you can take a number of cards equal to your Maximum Hand Size from the top of your Arcane Deck. Choose 1 of those cards and shuffle the remainder back into the deck. This card is called your Hole Card, and remains separate from your Arcane Deck and Hand of Fate.
The number of Hole Cards you choose when you finish a Long Rest increases when you reach certain Levels in this class, becoming 2 cards at 6th Level, and 3 cards at 14th Level.
When you miss on an Attack Roll, or fail on an Ability Check or Saving Throw, you can choose to place a Hole Card into your discard pile and add the card's value to the roll. Regardless of the value of the card, it can’t exceed the maximum result of your Bardic Inspiration Die.
While in combat, you can treat Hole Cards as if they were in your Hand of Fate, but they do not contribute to the amount of cards you can have in your Hand of Fate.

Royal Flush

6th Level College of Four Suits Feature
You’ve learned how to draw more magic from your arcane deck and influence those around you. You can use an Action to play a jack, queen, or king card in your Hand of Fate to cast the Command Spell at 1st Level if it was a jack, at 2nd Level if it was a queen, and at 3rd Level if it was a king as a Bard Spell without expending a Spell Slot. Once you play a card in this way, you can’t do so again with that card from any other suit until you finish a Long Rest. In addition, the Range of your Trick feature increases to 60ft.

Ace in the Hole

14th Level College of Four Suits Feature
You’re an expert at using cards to influence your fortune and succeed. Your Arcane Deck becomes more powerful in the following ways:

An ace has a value of 10 instead of 1.
When you discard a card, you can choose to place it on top of your Arcane Deck instead of in your discard pile
You can choose to combine cards of the same value, rather than suit, when playing them as part of your Playing The Game feature. You choose which suit to use when you play cards in this way.
If you hit a target with Trick using Clubs or Spades, you can add your Charisma Modifier to the total of the Damage dealt by the Attack. The Trick’s total Damage dealt still can’t exceed your Spell Save DC.
You can use your Fate Change twice during per time you roll Initiative, instead of once.
If you have an ace in your Hand of Fate or as a Hole Card, you can use your Reaction to play it when you see a creature within 60ft of you make an Attack Roll, Ability Check, or Saving Throw, expending a use of your Fate Change feature if you’re in combat and replacing the target’s d20 roll with either a 1 or 10 (your choice). If the creature is unwilling, it must make a Charisma Saving Throw against your Spell Save DC, ignoring the effect and using the original roll on a successful Save.

College of Glamor

The College of Glamor is the home of bards who mastered their craft in the vibrant realm of the Fey Forest or under the tutelage of someone who dwelled there. 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.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Mantle of Inspiration

3rd Level College of Glamor Feature
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 60ft of you, up to your Charisma Modifier. Each chosen creature gains 5 Temporary Hit Points and can 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 9 at 5th Level, 13 at 10th Level, 17 at 15th Level, and 21 at 20th Level.

Enthralling Performance

3rd Level College of Glamor Feature
You can charge your performance with enchanting fey magic. If you perform for at least 1 minute, you can attempt to inspire wonder in your audience. At the end of the performance, choose a number of creatures within 60ft of you who watched or listened to the entire performance, up to your Charisma Modifier. 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.
You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Proficiency Bonus, regaining expended uses at the end of a Long Rest.

Mantle of Majesty

6th Level College of Glamor Feature
You gain the ability to cloak yourself in a fey magic that makes others want to serve you. As a Bonus Action you can take on a form of unearthly beauty for 1 minute or until you lose Concentration on the effect. As part of the Bonus Action used to take on this form and as a Bonus Action on subsequent turns, you can can cast the Command Spell as a Bard Spell, without expending a Spell Slot.
Any creature Charmed by you automatically fails its Saving Throw against the casting of the Command Spell you cast with this feature.
Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a Long Rest.

Unbreakable Majesty

14th Level College of Glamor Feature
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. While you are in this form, when a creature Attacks you for the first time on a turn, that creature must make a Charisma Saving Throw against your Spell Save DC. On a failed Save, that creature can’t Attack you on this turn, and must choose a new target for its Attack, if it cannot choose a new target then the Attack is lost. On a successful Save, the creature can Attack you on this turn, but it has Disadvantage on any Saving Throw it makes against your Spells on your next turn.
You can assume this fierce appearance a number of times equal to your Proficiency Bonus, regaining expended uses at the end of a Long Rest.

College of Lore

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. 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.
The loyalty of these bards lies in the pursuit of beauty and truth, not in fealty to a monarch or following the tenets of a deity. A noble who keeps such a bard as a herald or advisor knows that the bard would rather be honest than politic.
The college’s members gather in libraries and sometimes in actual colleges, complete with classrooms and dormitories, to share their lore with one another. They also meet at festivals or affairs of state, where they can expose corruption, unravel lies, and poke fun at self-important figures of authority.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Bonus Proficiencies

3rd Level College of Lore Feature
You gain Proficiency in three Skills of your choice.

Unsettling Words

3rd Level College of Lore Feature
You learn how to use your wit to distract, confuse, and otherwise sap the confidence and competence of others. When a creature that you can see within 60ft of you hits on an Attack Roll, succeeds on an Ability Check, deals Damage, or regains Hit Points, you can use your Reaction to expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration, subtracting a number from the result equal to one roll of your Bardic Inspiration Die. The creature is unaffected if it can't see or hear you, or if it's Immune to being Charmed.

Additional Magical Secrets

6th Level College of Lore Feature
You have explored magical knowledge from a wide spectrum of disciplines. Choose two Spells from any Spell List. A Spell you choose must be of a Level you can cast, or a Cantrip.
The chosen Spells count as Bard Spells for you, are always Prepared, and do not count against your number of Spells Known.

Peerless Skill

14th Level College of Lore Feature
When you fail on an Attack Roll, Ability Check, or Saving Throw, you can expend one use of Bardic Inspiration. Roll a Bardic Inspiration Die and add the number rolled to your Ability Check.

College of Machismo

Famed for their hulking frames and sure-footed swagger, the bards of the College of Machismo are dedicated to building (and flaunting) their own physiques. By putting their muscles to work, these entertainers will “perform" in circus acts, gladiatorial bouts, contests of strength, bachelorette parties, and anywhere they can bask in the roar of a crowd.
These bards take their pursuit of muscular perfection seriously, and will often parade their bodies unbidden. What these individuals lack in self-awareness or humility, however, they more than make up for in raw, physical power. After all, confidence fuels the strength of these bards, and this is a quality they have in abundance. When they join this college, it is common for bards to adopt pseudonyms that help them play to a crowd.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Bardic Brawn

3rd Level College of Machismo Feature
You double down on iron-pumped peacocking. Your Hit Point Maximum increases by 3, and it increases by 1 whenever you gain a Level in this class. Further, your Unarmed Strikes now deal 1d6 Damage.
Also, by flaunting your physique or muscular prowess, you can make Strength (Performance) and Strength (Persuasion) Checks instead of making Charisma (Performance) and Charisma (Persuasion) Checks respectively.
This degree of self-confidence is its own form of protection. While you aren't wearing Armor or wielding a Shield, you have an Unarmored AC of 10 + your Strength Modifier + your Charisma Modifier.

Feat of Strength

3rd Level College of Machismo Feature
You learn to draw inspiration from displays of your own physical power. As a Bonus Action, you can expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration to make a Strength Melee Weapon Attack or make a Strength Ability Check.
If you hit on your Attack or succeed on your Ability Check, you gain Temporary Hit Points equal one roll of your Bardic Inspiration Die + half your Bard Level + your Charisma Modifier.

Tireless Showboating

6th Level College of Machismo Feature
Your drive to impress others allows you to accomplish the positively Heraclean. You gain Proficiency in Strength Saving Throws. Additionally, if you can see a friendly creature that can see you, you cannot be Slowed.
In addition, you can give yourself Advantage on one Strength Attack, Strength Ability Check, or Strength Saving Throw, but only if you can see a friendly creature within 60ft of you that can see you. If this roll would have Disadvantage, you can ignore it.
You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Strength Modifier + your Charisma Modifier, regaining expended uses when you finish a Long Rest.

Center of Attention

14th Level College of Machismo Feature
You can strike a vainglorious pose that taunts your enemies and provokes their enmity. As a Bonus Action, you can make a Strength (Performance) Check contested by the Wisdom (Insight) Check of a creature within 60ft of you that can see you. Creatures that cannot be Charmed are unaffected.
If your Check is successful, the target becomes enraged by you until the end of your next turn.
Creatures enraged in this way cannot make Opportunity Attacks against creatures other than you, and have Disadvantage on Attack Rolls against creatures other than you. If a creature enraged in this way hits a creature friendly to you with an Attack, that creature has Resistance to all Damage dealt by the Attack.

College of Mercantilism

Bards of the College of Mercantilism are well versed in the artistry of cutting deals and enemies alike in order to come out ahead. Talented merchants, smugglers, and trademen alike all learn from this college in some form or another, using both silvered words and sharp cunning to inspire their allies and subvert the competition. These calculated risk-takers travel the world to make their mark-and their fortune—by navigating treacherous landscapes, economies, and people. With even just a copper to their name, these bards are always worth their weight in gold.

Coin Flip

3rd Level College of Mercantilism Feature
When you expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration, you can choose to forgo rolling the die to roll a d2 instead, gaining effects as follows:

On a 1, you treat the Bardic Inspiration Die as if it rolled its minimum result.
On a 2, you treat the Bardic Inspiration Die as if it rolled its maximum result.

Magic Coin

3rd Level College of Mercantilism Feature
You know that coins can be just as powerful as the most enthralling rhetoric. Whereas other bards may use words and song as their means for conjuring spells, you instead use a simple coin. You can use any coin worth at least 1CP as a Bard Spellcasting Focus.
In addition, you can use an Action to magically fling a coin from your hand at a creature within 60ft of you. Make a Ranged Spell Attack with the coin, using your Charisma Modifier for the attack roll. On a hit, the target takes 1 Bludgeoning Damage and 1d12 Thunder Damage. Immediately after the Attack, the coin returns to your hand. If you score a Critical Hit on the Attack, a platinum coin worth 1PP appears where you store you money.
This attack's Thunder Damage increases by 1d12 when you reach 6th Level (2d12) and 14th Level (3d12).

Expert Financer

3rd Level College of Mercantilism Feature
You gain a knack at making money, seemingly causing it to appear out of thin air. You can use an Action to expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration, gaining a number of GP equal to the number rolled.

Money Talks

6th Level College of Mercantilism Feature
You’ve learned how to briefly enchant a coin with divination magic. You can enchant a mundane CP, SP, GP, or PP that you’re holding as an Action. A creature holding the coin that knows at least one Language can understand the meaning of any word you speak, and when it speaks, you understand what it says. In addition, you have Advantage on the first Charisma (Persuasion) Check you make when negotiating the value of a good or service with a creature that’s holding or carrying the enchanted coin.
Alternatively, you can use an Action to see and hear through the enchanted coin until the start of your next turn as if you were in the coin’s space. During this time, you are Deafened and Blinded.
The coin remains enchanted for 10 minutes or until you end the enchantment early as a Free Action. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Charisma Modifier, regaining expended uses at the end of a Long Rest.

Shrewd Consumer

14th Level College of Mercantilism Feature
Whenever you cast a Spell that consumes a Material Component, you drink a Potion, or you use a Spell Scroll, roll a d2 with effects as follows:

On a 1 there is no effect
On a 2 the Material Component, Potion, or Spell Scroll is not consumed.

In addition, you gain a second Free Object Interaction.

College of Mysteries

The College of Mysteries is dedicated to uncovering secrets that lie hidden. Whether these secrets are held by time and lost to millennia, or knowledge held captive by a secret few who wish to obfuscate the truth, bards belonging to the College of Mysteries seek to unearth them and bring them back into the light.
There are, however, those bards that specialize in keeping the secrets they uncover just as well as unearthing them. These bards collect secrets for their own benefit or pleasure, and give one out only in rare circumstances, or for the right price.

Mysteries Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Answers Given

3rd Level College of Mysteries Feature
You gain the ability to peer behind the veil and see the truth. While speaking to a creature, you can expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration to peer into its thoughts, non-magically replicating the effects of the the Detect Thoughts Spell for 1 minute. If you probe deeper using an as per the Spell, if the creature fails the Saving Throw, it doesn't realize your infiltrating presence in its mind. When you infiltrate its mind in this way, you gain insight into the nature of any secrets the creature might harbor, rather than its emotional state or reasoning. If the creature succeeds on the Saving Throw, it can feel an intrusive presence in its mind that it can shut off.
While you are probing into the creature's secrets, you must hold Concentration on the effect.

Fine-Tuned Ears

3rd Level College of Mysteries Feature
Your senses have become exceptional at noticing secrets. You have Advantage on Wisdom (Perception) Checks made to notice secretive movement or communication, such as whispers or coded gestures.

Frightful Secrets

6th Level College of Mysteries Feature
You can unveil secrets that frighten the mind. As an Action you emit a low whisper that upsets the ears of anyone that hears it. One creature of your choice within 30ft of you that isn't Deafened must succeed on a Wisdom Saving Throw or become Frightened for 1 minute. While Frightened in this way, that creature must move as far away from you as possible in the safest available route on each of its turns, using the Dash Action, unless there is nowhere to move further, then the creature takes the Dodge Action. At the end of each of its turns, a Frightened creature can repeat the Saving Throw, ending the effect early on a successful Save. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Proficiency Bonus, regaining expended uses at the end of a Long Rest.

Eyes Unveiled

14th Level College of Mysteries Feature
You gain Truesight out to a Range of 60ft. You can see Invisible creatures or objects, and the true nature of shapeshifted creatures.

Truth Revealed

14th Level College of Mysteries Feature
You know all untruth nearby that is spoken. If a creature within 60ft of you speaks or non-verbally indicates a lie, you know that it was a lie, and you can deal 2d6 Psychic Damage to that creature as a Reaction.

College of Swords

Bards of the College of Swords are called blades, and they entertain through daring feats of weapon prowess. Blades perform stunts such as sword swallowing, knife throwing and juggling, and mock combats. Though they use their weapons to entertain, they are also highly trained and skilled warriors in their own right.
Their talent with weapons inspires many blades to lead double lives. One blade might use a circus troupe as cover for nefarious deeds such as assassination, robbery, and blackmail. Other blades strike at the wicked, bringing justice to bear against the cruel and powerful. Most troupes are happy to accept a blade’s talent for the excitement it adds to a performance, but few entertainers fully trust a blade in their ranks.
Blades who abandon their lives as entertainers have often run into trouble that makes maintaining their secret activities impossible. A blade caught stealing or engaging in vigilante justice is too great a liability for most troupes. With their weapon skills and magic, these blades either take up work as enforcers for thieves’ guilds or strike out on their own as adventurers.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Bonus Proficiency

3rd Level College of Swords Feature
You gain Proficiency with Medium Armor, Sabers, Rapiers, and Scimitars.
You can use Simple or Martial Melee Weapons you’re Proficient with as a Bard Spellcasting Focus.

Fighting Style

3rd Level College of Swords Feature
You adopt a particular style of fighting as your specialty. Choose one of the following options you do not already have:

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 use Two-Weapon Fighting, you can add your Ability Modifier to the Damage of the second Attack.

Blade Flourish

3rd Level College of Swords Feature
You learn to perform impressive displays of martial prowess and speed. Whenever you take the Attack Action, your Speed increases by 10ft 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. When you use a Blade Flourish, you expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration and deal additional Damage to the target equal to one roll of your Bardic Inspiration Die, as well as another benefit as follows:

Defensive Flourish. You gain a bonus to your AC equal to the number rolled on your Bardic Inspiration Die until the start of your next turn.
Slashing Flourish. You deal Damage to another creature of your choice that you can see within 5ft of you equal to the number rolled on your Bardic Inspiration Die.
Mobile Flourish. You push the target of the attack up to 5ft away from you, plus a number of feet equal to the number rolled on your Bardic Inspiration Die. You can then immediately use your Reaction to move up to your Walking Speed to an unoccupied space within 5ft of the target.

Extra Attack

6th Level College of Swords Feature
You can perform an additional Attack as part of the Attack Action.
If you have multiple copies of this feature and achieve a certain level threshold, the number of Attacks you can perform increases. At 5th Level if you have one copy of the feature, you can perform one extra Attack, at 11th Level if you have two copies of the feature you can perform two extra Attacks, and at 20th Level if you have three copies of the feature you can perform three extra Attacks.

Master’s Flourish

14th Level College of Swords Feature
Whenever you use your Blade Flourish feature, you can choose to not expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration and instead use a d8 in place of your Bardic Inspiration Die.

College of Tailoring

Knights have their swords and shields, musicians have their songs and instruments, you have your needle and thread. You are a tailor, a master of cloth, to you, clothing is so much more than just something to keep the elements off, but an expression of yourself. The clothing you wear and create is an extension of your being and empowers your own magical abilities, allowing you to create even more beautiful garbs and even repair the world and people around you.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Stitch And Weave

3rd Level College of Tailoring Feature
You learn how to weave Khaagaazh to restrict your foes, protect your friends, and weave secrets. As a Bonus Action you can expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration and do one of the following of your choice:

Weaver's Binding. You choose a creature within 30ft of you, that creature must make a Charisma Saving Throw against your Spell Save DC, on a failed Save that creature is bound by magical glowing thread and is Restrained until the end of your next turn.
Leatherworker's Armor. You choose a creature within 30ft of you and create plates of magical leather that hover over the target's body. This magical leather lasts for 1 minute or until you or the target dismiss it as a Free Action, it provides an AC of 13 + your Charisma Modifier if the target's AC is less than that.
Trickster's Guise. You choose a willing creature within 30ft of you and weave a magical disguise for it. The creature you choose has the benefits of the Disguise Self Spell for 1 hour.

Bonus Proficiencies

3rd Level College of Tailoring Feature
You gain Proficiency in Weaver's Tools, Leatherworker's Tools, and Disguise Kits.
Additionally, you can use Weaver's Tools, Leatherworker's Tools, and Disguise Kits as Bard Spellcasting Focuses.

Threaded Spells

6th Level College of Tailoring Feature
You gain the ability to thread your spells together seamlessly, making it difficult to tell where one spell starts and another one ends. When you lose Concentration on a Spell, you can use your Reaction to cast a Spell of a lower Level that has a Casting Time of 1 Action or less and uses Concentration.

Weaver's Song

14th Level College of Tailoring Feature
You gain Expertise in Weaver's Tools, Leatherworker's Tools, and Disguise Kits.
Additionally, when you use your Stitch And Weave feature, the options improve in the following ways:

Weaver's Binding. On a failed Save, the target also takes Psychic Damage equal to your Bard Level, and is also Blinded until the end of your next turn.
Leatherworker's Armor. When a creature hits the target with an Attack and is within 30ft of the target, that creature takes Psychic Damage equal to half your Bard Level.
Trickster's Guise. The target either gains the effects of the Body Double Spell for 1 hour and is able to end the effect as a Free Action, or gains the benefits of the Disguise Self Spell and the Eagle's Splendor option of the Enhance Ability Spell for 1 hour and can end both of these effects as a Free Action.

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. These bards gather in mead halls or around great bonfires to sing the deeds of the mighty, both past and present. They travel the land to witness great events firsthand and to ensure that the memory of those events doesn’t pass from the world. With their songs, they inspire others to reach the same heights of accomplishment as the heroes of old.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Bonus Proficiencies

3rd Level College of Valor Feature
You gain Proficiency with Medium Armor, Shields, and Martial Weapons.

Combat Inspiration

3rd Level College of Valor Feature
You learn to inspire others in battle. When you see a creature within 60ft of you hit on an Attack Roll, you can use a Reaction to expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration to grant the target of the Attack a bonus to its AC equal to one roll of your Bardic Inspiration Die. This bonus to AC lasts until the end of your next turn.

Extra Attack

6th Level College of Valor Feature
You can perform an additional Attack as part of the Attack Action.
If you have multiple copies of this feature and achieve a certain level threshold, the number of Attacks you can perform increases. At 5th Level if you have one copy of the feature, you can perform one extra Attack, at 11th Level if you have two copies of the feature you can perform two extra Attacks, and at 20th Level if you have three copies of the feature you can perform three extra Attacks.

Battle Magic

14th Level College of Valor Feature
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 a single Weapon Attack as a Bonus Action.

College of Whispers

Unseen in broad daylight, the bards of the College of Whispers use their knowledge of obscure magic to beguile and infiltrate: hoarding secrets and shaping the unwritten history of the world.
Known as emissaries to those versed in bardic lore, these spies and enchanters are controversial figures: some consider them base scoundrels using dark magic and deceit to amass power; others see them as noble watchers in the shadows, using their secret lore as a weapon against evil.

Creation Features
Feature	Level	Quick Explanation
Example	3rd	Example
Example	3rd	Example
Example	6th	Example
Example	14th	Example

Psychic Blades

3rd Level College of Whispers Feature
You gain the ability to make your strikes harmful to your foes' minds.
When you hit a creature with a Weapon Attack, you can expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration to deal an extra 2d6 Psychic Damage to the target of the Attack.
The Psychic Damage increases when you reach certain Levels in this class, increasing to 4d6 at 5th Level, 6d6 at 10th Level, 8d6 at 15th Level, and 10d6 at 20th Level.

Words of Terror

3rd Level College of Whispers Feature
You learn to infuse innocent-seeming words with an insidious magic that can inspire terror.
If you speak to a creature 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. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Proficiency Bonus, regaining expended uses at the end of a Long Rest.

Face Stealers

6th Level College of Whispers Feature
You gain the ability to alter your external appearance. When you finish a Long Rest, you can shapeshift into a form of your choosing.
You decide what you look like, including your height, weight, facial features, the sound of your voice, coloration, hair length, and any other distinguishing characteristics. You can make yourself appear as a member of another race, though none of your game statistics change. You also can't appear as a creature of a different size than you, and your basic shape and arrangement of limbs stays the same. Your clothing and other equipment don’t change in appearance, size, or shape to match your new form. You can’t duplicate the appearance of a creature you’ve never seen.
Even to the most astute observers, your ruse is usually indiscernible. If you rouse suspicion, or if a wary creature suspects something is amiss, you have Advantage on any Charisma (Deception) Check you make to avoid detection.
You can use an Action to revert to your natural form, otherwise the transformation lasts until you finish a Long Rest or fall Unconscious

Shadow Lore

14th Level College of Whispers Feature
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 30ft 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 Save, your whisper sounds like unintelligible mumbling and has no effect.
On a failed Save, 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.

Characters

Artham O'Carrick, Bard of Old, who died to save the quant Caloro.
Sadosc Buldarum, the Turtle Dragonwrought Bard.