College of the Tavern

Most bards feel at home playing their tunes, telling their stories, performing on stage. You feel most at home with a fist in your face. A lover of a good brawl, you have become adept at retelling your stories even in the midst of battle, your tales inspire those around you, enhancing your naturally inspiring talents, you know how to take a punch, and you certainly know how to hit back.

Battle Shanty

Starting at 3rd level, you can use the magic of stories to bolster your own abilities and that of those around you, provided that you aren’t wearing medium or heavy armor or using a shield. It graces you and your allies with supernatural agility, and focus.

You can use an action to start the Battle Shanty, which lasts for 1 minute. It ends early if you are incapacitated, if you don medium or heavy armor or a shield. You can also dismiss the Battle Shanty at any time you choose (no action required).

While your Battle Shanty is active, you gain the following benefits:

• You gain a bonus to your AC equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of +1).
• You have advantage on Dexterity (Acrobatics) checks.
• When you make a melee attack, you can use your reaction to grant yourself a bonus on your attack roll. The bonus equals your Charisma modifier (minimum of +1).
• Any creatures of your choice within 10 feet of you, including yourself, can add 1d4 to any saving throws you make. 

You can use this feature twice. You regain all expended uses of it when you finish a short or long rest.

Beloved Brawler

Starting at 3rd level, your performances, both musical and physical, are much adored by patrons of taverns, especially the drunk ones.

When you activate your Battle Shanty, roll a Charisma (Performance) check. Based on the result of this check, the DM may cause onlookers onto your battle to try to intervene, though never in a way that would risk their own lives. The DM will determine exactly what they do, but they may try to trip up your combatants, block their way, shout warnings to you, and other similar actions.

Inspire the Brawl

Starting at 6th level, when you take the Attack action on your turn, you can forgo one of your attacks and use a bonus action to direct one of your companions to strike. When you do so, choose a friendly creature who can see or hear you and expend one use of Bardic Inspiration. That creature can immediately use its reaction to make one weapon attack, adding the Bardic Inspiration die to the attack’s damage roll.

Bring on the Tavern

Beginning at 14th level, once per turn, when you hit a creature with a melee attack while your Battle Shanty is active, you can expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration to immediately gain another attack.

Additionally, while your Battle Shanty is active, you add your Charisma modifier (minimum of +1) to the damage of your melee weapon attacks, and any melee weapon attacks made using your Inspire the Brawl feature.