I just submitted the College of Omens here on DnDBeyond. There have been attempts at creating a fortune-teller style subclass with the bard but they seemed to always introduce clunky mechanics involving drawing cards with attributes and such. To me, the Bard already had the perfect mechanic built in to reflect this: Inspiration. Moreover, they are able to dip into class specific divination spells through their Magical Secrets feature. So I decided to expand upon how the class uses Inspiration.
I already put it up on several subreddits for feedback and I received some good info and made some major changes. The overall trend though was that it was underpowered, which I didn't quite see. Originally, the 14th level ability was a Reaction that turned a determined failure of a saving throw, ability check, or hit of an ally into a success, once per day. I thought that was a pretty clutch ability, compared to say, the College of Lore's 14th level which is just letting you use your own Bardic Inspiration for ability checks.
Anyway. It is still in the works, so I appreciate feedback and constructive criticism.
Oh, I should also mention I am planning to make a Fortune-Teller background that is a variant of the Entertainer to jive with this. It will add a social aspect for players during downtime in towns and such. If you would like a nice PDF of the above subclass too, you can print it here. It will always show the most up to date version.
This subclass is a lot of fun! I worry, however, about the bardic inspiration of Linked Destinies. As written it feels like you’re giving out a free bardic inspiration to every party member. Maybe instead, you roll a Song of Rest die, just so it’s a little bit less than a free BI.
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
Some fun ideas in there ! And I like the idea of diviner bard. So, a few thoughts:
Good Omens: i see the benefit in rolling your insipiration die before, but I wonder if it might take some fun out of it, by removing the gambling-in-the-moment aspect ? I'm not fond of the Augury bit, because it's basically some free spell slots, and that's it. Bards don't get a lot of things from their college, and I would want a lv3 feature to twist the class a bit more.
Instead of rolling the inspiration die before, could the player (or the bard, since they're the diviner) maybe call out of number before it gets rolled and, if they get it right, the die isn't expanded ? This will lose power as the die grows, but you could let the player call a second number at 14th level.
Linked Destinies: oooh I like that one. Very thematic and very cool. And not too powerful, since at that level, you regain your uses on a short rest anyway. If it's too powerful, just cap the die at a D8 instead of the normal die.
Oracle Unbound: i'm not fond of the "reroll until it's not a 1" mechanic. Rerolling only once seems more reasonable. Giving an inspiration die as a reaction is nice, but it feels a bit anti-thematic to me, since it seems to be more about, well, reacting than about anticipating. I get the justification, but I'm not really feeling it that much. It might just be me though. I wonder if a feature letting someone "buy" something as a bonus action might be fun and balanced ? Like, you're against a fire creature, and you would be allowed to say (once per long rest) "I saw it coming ! I bought a scroll of absorb elements !" (with DM's approval), and you're then able to use the item (and pay for it). Basically, I would want a diviner to see further into the future as a gain power, not closer, if it makes sense ?
The following isn't a criticism, just an observation. Augury is a ritual spell. If you say the subclass gives you the spell and it's always prepared, you could cast it as much as you like.
The following isn't a criticism, just an observation. Augury is a ritual spell. If you say the subclass gives you the spell and it's always prepared, you could cast it as much as you like.
The only thing with Augury is that as it is written, after you cast it one time, the next time you cast it, it has a 25% chance of having a random reading, and it is cumulative. So the third time it's 50%, the 4th it's 75%, and so on. This feature allows the Bard to use it as many times per day based on their Charisma modifier before that 25% of it being random kicks in. Not sure if that is where the observation was aimed at?
This subclass is a lot of fun! I worry, however, about the bardic inspiration of Linked Destinies. As written it feels like you’re giving out a free bardic inspiration to every party member. Maybe instead, you roll a Song of Rest die, just so it’s a little bit less than a free BI.
It is giving a free Bardic Inspiration die to every party member, but at the cost of having to take time for a short rest, and each party member having to expend at least one Hit Die to receive it.
I did miss the part about a random reading but, as a home brew, you could use my suggestion(or not), and just rule that the feature counters that limitation, period. ;P
An example of this is Grave Domain Cleric's version of Spare the Dying which is range 30 ft instead of the usual touch range limitation.
I did miss the part about a random reading but, as a home brew, you could use my suggestion(or not), and just rule that the feature counters that limitation, period. ;P
An example of this is Grave Domain Cleric's version of Spare the Dying which is range 30 ft instead of the usual touch range limitation.
Hmmmmmmm. That is certainly worth considering. Didn't even cross my mind. Thanks for the suggestion!
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
I recognize the short rest requirement, but it still makes me nervous. I would monitor this ability in particular very closely in playtesting.
I get where you're coming from. Would it feel less troublesome as a once per day maybe? I had wanted to incorporate the Song of Rest feature because it is a perfect excuse to utilize the downtime.
Another option could be this, using the Song of Rest healing die you mentioned. Perhaps each ally who expends at least one Hit Die to receive a 1d6 from Song of Rest can record the result rolled from the 1d6. They can expend this recorded result to add it an Inspiration Die result over the next 8 hours. They may only have one such result recorded at a time and they have to expend it to be able to receive another.
As written, Fateweaver doesn't work from lv9 onwards, because Song of Rest no longer heals 1d6. I'm unsure of being able to "split" the point spending, as it might be pretty powerful once we know an ennemy's CA, for instance (although I guess the fact they're tied to inspiration might make it okay).
As written, Fateweaver doesn't work from lv9 onwards, because Song of Rest no longer heals 1d6. I'm unsure of being able to "split" the point spending, as it might be pretty powerful once we know an ennemy's CA, for instance (although I guess the fact they're tied to inspiration might make it okay).
Completely forgot that scales. I originally kept it as being a one time add, then made it so it could be split. Just put it back to a one time thing:
Starting at 6th Level, you've discovered that you and your allies share an interwoven destiny that you can subtly influence. After a short rest, allies who have regained hit points from your Song of Rest feature may record that number as Destiny Points. Over the next 8 hours, they may expend their Destiny Points and add them to the result of a Bardic Inspiration die you have granted them. They may not receive more Destiny Points until they have . Unused Destiny Points are lost after 8 hours.
I think calling it "Destiny point" will be confusing, since "points" since to imply something that can be split (at least to me). Maybe a "Destiny Twist" ? And "they may use their destiny twist to add the number recorded to the result of a bardic Inspiration Die" ?
I just submitted the College of Omens here on DnDBeyond. There have been attempts at creating a fortune-teller style subclass with the bard but they seemed to always introduce clunky mechanics involving drawing cards with attributes and such. To me, the Bard already had the perfect mechanic built in to reflect this: Inspiration. Moreover, they are able to dip into class specific divination spells through their Magical Secrets feature. So I decided to expand upon how the class uses Inspiration.
I already put it up on several subreddits for feedback and I received some good info and made some major changes. The overall trend though was that it was underpowered, which I didn't quite see. Originally, the 14th level ability was a Reaction that turned a determined failure of a saving throw, ability check, or hit of an ally into a success, once per day. I thought that was a pretty clutch ability, compared to say, the College of Lore's 14th level which is just letting you use your own Bardic Inspiration for ability checks.
Anyway. It is still in the works, so I appreciate feedback and constructive criticism.
Thanks!
Oh, I should also mention I am planning to make a Fortune-Teller background that is a variant of the Entertainer to jive with this. It will add a social aspect for players during downtime in towns and such. If you would like a nice PDF of the above subclass too, you can print it here. It will always show the most up to date version.
This subclass is a lot of fun! I worry, however, about the bardic inspiration of Linked Destinies. As written it feels like you’re giving out a free bardic inspiration to every party member. Maybe instead, you roll a Song of Rest die, just so it’s a little bit less than a free BI.
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Astromancer's Homebrew Assembly
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
Some fun ideas in there ! And I like the idea of diviner bard. So, a few thoughts:
Good Omens: i see the benefit in rolling your insipiration die before, but I wonder if it might take some fun out of it, by removing the gambling-in-the-moment aspect ? I'm not fond of the Augury bit, because it's basically some free spell slots, and that's it. Bards don't get a lot of things from their college, and I would want a lv3 feature to twist the class a bit more.
Instead of rolling the inspiration die before, could the player (or the bard, since they're the diviner) maybe call out of number before it gets rolled and, if they get it right, the die isn't expanded ? This will lose power as the die grows, but you could let the player call a second number at 14th level.
Linked Destinies: oooh I like that one. Very thematic and very cool. And not too powerful, since at that level, you regain your uses on a short rest anyway. If it's too powerful, just cap the die at a D8 instead of the normal die.
Oracle Unbound: i'm not fond of the "reroll until it's not a 1" mechanic. Rerolling only once seems more reasonable. Giving an inspiration die as a reaction is nice, but it feels a bit anti-thematic to me, since it seems to be more about, well, reacting than about anticipating. I get the justification, but I'm not really feeling it that much. It might just be me though. I wonder if a feature letting someone "buy" something as a bonus action might be fun and balanced ? Like, you're against a fire creature, and you would be allowed to say (once per long rest) "I saw it coming ! I bought a scroll of absorb elements !" (with DM's approval), and you're then able to use the item (and pay for it). Basically, I would want a diviner to see further into the future as a gain power, not closer, if it makes sense ?
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Seems very well written and thought out to me.
The following isn't a criticism, just an observation. Augury is a ritual spell. If you say the subclass gives you the spell and it's always prepared, you could cast it as much as you like.
The only thing with Augury is that as it is written, after you cast it one time, the next time you cast it, it has a 25% chance of having a random reading, and it is cumulative. So the third time it's 50%, the 4th it's 75%, and so on. This feature allows the Bard to use it as many times per day based on their Charisma modifier before that 25% of it being random kicks in. Not sure if that is where the observation was aimed at?
It is giving a free Bardic Inspiration die to every party member, but at the cost of having to take time for a short rest, and each party member having to expend at least one Hit Die to receive it.
I did miss the part about a random reading but, as a home brew, you could use my suggestion(or not), and just rule that the feature counters that limitation, period. ;P
An example of this is Grave Domain Cleric's version of Spare the Dying which is range 30 ft instead of the usual touch range limitation.
Hmmmmmmm. That is certainly worth considering. Didn't even cross my mind. Thanks for the suggestion!
I recognize the short rest requirement, but it still makes me nervous. I would monitor this ability in particular very closely in playtesting.
Tooltips | Snippet Code | How to Homebrew on D&D Beyond | Subclass Guide | Feature Roadmap
Astromancer's Homebrew Assembly
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
I get where you're coming from. Would it feel less troublesome as a once per day maybe? I had wanted to incorporate the Song of Rest feature because it is a perfect excuse to utilize the downtime.
Another option could be this, using the Song of Rest healing die you mentioned. Perhaps each ally who expends at least one Hit Die to receive a 1d6 from Song of Rest can record the result rolled from the 1d6. They can expend this recorded result to add it an Inspiration Die result over the next 8 hours. They may only have one such result recorded at a time and they have to expend it to be able to receive another.
Okay. v1.4 is up here.
As written, Fateweaver doesn't work from lv9 onwards, because Song of Rest no longer heals 1d6. I'm unsure of being able to "split" the point spending, as it might be pretty powerful once we know an ennemy's CA, for instance (although I guess the fact they're tied to inspiration might make it okay).
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Completely forgot that scales. I originally kept it as being a one time add, then made it so it could be split. Just put it back to a one time thing:
Starting at 6th Level, you've discovered that you and your allies share an interwoven destiny that you can subtly influence. After a short rest, allies who have regained hit points from your Song of Rest feature may record that number as Destiny Points. Over the next 8 hours, they may expend their Destiny Points and add them to the result of a Bardic Inspiration die you have granted them. They may not receive more Destiny Points until they have . Unused Destiny Points are lost after 8 hours.
I think calling it "Destiny point" will be confusing, since "points" since to imply something that can be split (at least to me). Maybe a "Destiny Twist" ? And "they may use their destiny twist to add the number recorded to the result of a bardic Inspiration Die" ?
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