College of Sails

The sea calls to us all. The smell of the salt air, the sound of waves crashing against the rocks or lapping on the sand, the foam and mist and spray inspire us, and call us to climb the rigging, hoist the mainsail and set sail for adventure. Making sail with a hardy crew, one can find all sorts of ways to make waves, as it were, collecting the tales of the sea, and hoping to become a sea faring legend in one's own right. Whether you are sailing to explore uncharted waters, to visit new ports of call, to plunder the waves, to protect merchant vessels for the crown, to find shipwrecks and buried treasure,  or just for the freedom of it, a crew is nothing without its captain and a captain is nothing without their crew.

The College of Sails hones the bard's skills to effectively captain a crew, for good or for ill. These bards use their commanding presence to keep the crew sharp and they weave their performances into sea shanties that rouse the crew's spirits. The power of these captains' inspiration guides the ship through storms and shoals and dark of night, keeping spirits up if the ship is becalmed, and keeping hands steady when an enemy vessel looms off the starboard bow. Heroic swashbuckling captains protect ships at sea and explore unknown territory. Captains that sail under the black flag plunder ports, pillage settlements, and scuttle ships who's holds they've emptied, sailing into the night with the loot they've acquired by the firing of a roaring cannon and at the tip of a bloody cutlass.

Rigging master

The captain is a sailor at heart, and as such, must not only be able to bark orders, but know the workings of the ship. The bard is proficient in Nature and Survival. Furthermore, when using Athletics while climbing in a ship's rigging, or using Acrobatics to keep their footing while aboard a ship, get double proficiency.

Swashbuckling Captain

At 3rd level, you adopt a style of fighting as your specialty. Choose one of the following options. You can’t take a Fighting Style option more than once, even if something in the game lets you choose again.

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 engage in two-weapon fighting, you can add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attack.

Captain's Commands

A captain relies on his crew to follow orders and work in concert when facing fierce battles or even fiercer storms. Once per long rest, when the captain is issuing commands to the crew or party members, as a standard action the captain can grant the effects of a bless spell.

Extra Attack

Starting at 6th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

Song of the Sea

The sea is your second home, and is now its call is an intrinsic part of you. At 14th level you learn the spells Tidal Wave, Water Breathing, and Water Walk. These spells count as bard spells for you but don’t count against the number of bard spells you know. 

You are also granted a base swimming speed of 30 feet.