College of Jesters

While most bards sing to inspire courage and arouse hope in their friends, the jester uses his razor wit and comedic put downs to devastate his enemies. The jester's style of performance allows him to find flaws in others and exploit them with his cruel sense of humor. Often, jesters serve as fools and comedians in the courts of powerful nobles. Their comedy serves to lighten the mood in the royal court, while a jester's jibes and puns can put a king's political enemies in their place.

A jester's power comes from his ability to find humor in even the grimmest situation. Even while a fierce battle rages around him, the jester finds reason to make merry. Evil jesters see life as a running joke, with the punchline the pain, suffering, and torment they inflict on others. Good jesters see their role as providing relief and support to others. Neutral jesters are merely observers who report on the odd coincidences, grim ironies, and bitter comedy of life.

Unarmored Defense

3rd-level College of Jesters feature

The jester's natural talent for performance, his often outrageous dress, and his seemingly lackadaisical attitude throws his opponents off guard in combat. Even a jester armed with a vicious looking weapon cuts a comedic figure that many warriors have trouble taking seriously.

Beginning at 3rd level, while you are wearing no armor and not wielding a shield, your AC equals 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Charisma modifier.

Jester's Performance

3rd-level College of Jesters feature

You gain proficiency in the Charisma (Performance) skill. If you are already proficient with this skill you instead gain proficiency in a bard skill of your choice. 

You learn the Vicious Mockery cantrip. It doesn't count against your number of cantrips known. 

As a Jester, your performances draw the eye and ire of those around you. You learn the following performances. If a performance mentions a saving throw, the DC is equal to your Bard spell save DC, unless otherwise noted.

Jeer-ful: When a creature within 60 feet of you misses an attack roll, you may expend a bardic inspiration die as a reaction to cast vicious mockery at the creature, adding your bardic inspiration die to the damage. 

Taunt: As an action, you can expend a bardic inspiration die to taunt a creature within 30 feet. The target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or take psychic damage equal to the expended bardic inspiration die + your charisma modifier and become taunted by you until the end of your next turn. While taunted the creature has disadvantage when attacking any creature other than you, and attacks against the creature have advantage. This effect ends early if an ally, aside from yourself, causes damage to the creature.

Vexing Dialogue: As an action, you can expend a bardic inspiration die and try to break spell concentration of one creature within 60 feet. Make a Charisma (performance) check, adding your bardic inspiration die to the total. The target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw with a DC equal to your performance check. On a failed save, they lose concentration on their spell. If the target would have advantage on Constitution saving throws made to maintain concentration on a spell, such as through the war caster feat, they have advantage when performing the Constitution save for this ability.

Deflect Missiles

6th-level College of Jesters feature

Starting at 6th level, you can use your reaction to deflect or catch the missile when you are hit by a ranged weapon attack. When you do so, the damage you take from the attack is reduced by 1d10 + your Dexterity modifier + your bard level.

If you reduce the damage to 0, you can catch the missile if it is small enough for you to hold in one hand and you have at least one hand free. If you catch a missile in this way, you can spend 1 bardic inspiration die to make a ranged attack with the weapon or piece of ammunition you just caught, as part of the same reaction. You make this attack with proficiency, regardless of your weapon proficiencies, which has a normal range of 20 feet and a long range of 60 feet. If the attack hits, you may add your bardic inspiration die to the damage dealt.

Vicious Lampoon

14th-level College of Jesters feature

Starting at 14th level, your ability to weaken the spirits of your enemies through crass humor has been thoroughly refined. As an action, you may begin a performance that crushes your enemies' resolve. Each creature of your choice within 30 feet must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw against your bard spell save DC or have disadvantage on attack rolls, ability checks, and saving throws until the performance ends. On subsequent turns, you may use your action to continue the performance, which lasts for up to one minute. If you choose not to continue the performance, the performance ends at the end of your turn. 

If a creature starts their turn within 30 feet of you while your performance is ongoing, and they are not currently under the effects of your performance, you may choose to have them make a Wisdom saving throw against your bard spell save DC, falling under the effects of this ability if they fail.

At the end of an affected creature's turn they repeat the saving throw, ending the effect early on a success. Once a creature succeeds on the saving throw they become immune to the effects of this ability until 24 hours have passed.

Once you use this ability you cannot use it again until you finish a long rest.