College of Forensics

For some bards, the song that weaves through their mind is one of visual conception that tries to make sense of their surrounding environment.  Evidence and clues begin fitting together like pieces of a puzzle.  Over turned chairs, hidden scuff marks, a tuft of hair, and all manner of things weave a tapestry in the bard's mind.  A meditative ritual helps them focus, letting their minds paint a mental portrait of the scene around them.  This meditative tool is often a tune that they hum, or a mantra that they chant.  Some may find the relaxing act of smoking a pipe to be their catalyst.  These bards find that they have a gift for solving crimes or analyzing mysteries.  Their sharp wit combined with their natural charisma makes them well suited to investigation and questioning. 

Additional Spells

The College of Forensics lets you choose from an expanded list of spells when you learn a bard spell. The following spells are added to the bard spell list for you.

College of Forensics Expanded Spells

Analyze Scene

3rd-level College of Forensics feature

Like pieces of a puzzle, clues and fragments of a scene form in your mind's eye to help reveal details normally hidden to others less cunning. Use an action to gain advantage on all investigation, perception, insight, and tracking skill rolls during this time for anything within 30'.  An investigator will often hum a tune or repeat a chant or mantra while focusing on the scene before them, letting the cadence weave an alternate picture of everything around them, that only they can see.  This supernatural ability lasts for 10 minutes and can be used a number of times per long rest equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum of 1).  Special ways in which you may use this ability are listed below:

Solve a crime: Torn clothes, foot prints, scuff marks, and many other details can give the bard visual image in their mind of what took place.  They may be able to understand obscure details about the perpetrator, direction entered or exited, items involved, and much more.  The bard can see the scene play out in his head.  Faces and other details may be blurred, but seeing the scene may lead to other clues that would normally be missed.

Reconstruct an object:  Shattered shards of pottery may reveal what the object looked like, including any pictures or writing.  A mosaic fallen in disarray could be seen whole.  Just about any object that is destroyed yet has at least half of its material in the area can be restored in the bard's mind.

Detect secrets: Using signs of activity, markings, and things that may look out of place, the bard can detect traps or secret doors/compartments within 30' as long as he can see the area in normal light.

Inspirational Guile

3rd-level College of Forensics feature

When a target of your inspiration uses their inspiration die, you gain a bonus to your next attack, saving throw, or skill check equal to the amount rolled by the target of your inspiration.  If you do not make any attack, saving throw, or skill check within the next minute, your bonus is lost.  If another target of your inspiration uses their inspiration die, that result will replace any current bonus and last for 1 minute or until triggered. 

Weigh the Evidence

6th-level College of Forensics feature

As a bonus action you can evaluate your current surroundings and enemies.  Doing so grants you one of the following benefits:

• Gain a bonus, equal to your Intelligence modifier, on all attack rolls until the beginning of your next turn.
• Grant yourself a bonus, equal to your Intelligence modifier, to your Armor Class until the beginning of your next turn.
• Gain a bonus, equal to your Intelligence modifier, on all saving throws until the beginning of your next turn.

You may use this feature an number of times per long rest equal to your proficiency bonus.

Present the Evidence

14th-level College of Forensics feature

When you use your Weigh the Evidence feature, you may extend those benefits to a number of other creatures equal to your Intelligence bonus (minimum of 1).  Those others affected must be within 30' of you when you use your Weigh the Evidence feature.