College of Courtesans

The touch of silk on skin. The relief of released tension under a firm massaging hand. A caring smile over the rim of a wineglass. The college of Courtesans exist to be all this and more. 

In permissive societies, it is well understood that people will sell their skills in communication, comfort, and sex. The practitioners of sex work exist in every culture, with various talents and focuses in the pleasurable arts. Many sex workers are also Bards, trained in song and magics. Those Bards might find themselves called to the College of the Courtesan, who use magics and skill to provide a truly wonderful experience... And inspire their companions to incredible feats of wonder.

Knowing Touch

When you join the College of Courtesans at 3rd level, you gain the ability to sense a creature’s tiredness and desires.

When you touch a willing creature, you can discern whether they have any particular aches and pains in their body, what their current short term desire is, and whether they have any ill intentions towards you.

By expending a use of your Bardic Inspiration, you can remove one level of exhaustion from a willing creature you are touching. You can do so only once per round on your turn.

Sensual Artistry

At 3rd level, you have honed your skills in entertainment, dance and pleasure to an almost supernatural edge. 

You gain proficiency in the following skills: Insight and Slight of Hand. If you already have proficiency, you gain Expertise.

If you succeed on an insight or slight of hand check, you can attempt to charm someone affected by your talents. The target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC or be charmed by you. The target is charmed in this way for 1 hour, until it is attacked or damaged, or until it witnesses its allies being attacked or damaged.

If the target succeeds on its saving throw, the target has no hint that you tried to charm it.

Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a short or long rest.

Something to Fight For

Successful Bards of the Courtesan college are praised not just for their ability to lower the guards of their enemies, but also to raise the spirits of their companions, pushing them to higher tiers of ability and skill. Some Courtesans prefer to listen to their party talk, asking gentle questions as their clients work through their puzzle personally. Others provide massage to relieve aching bodies combined with a lecture on proper technique. 

As part of a long rest, you may provide support, reassurance, and a voice of constructive criticism to your adventuring companions. Once per Long Rest, choose any number of creatures resting with you. They gain the following benefits:
* May choose to automatically succeed on a saving throw.
* May negate a critical hit, turning it into a regular hit.
* May reroll damage dice for an Attack. They must use the second result, even if it is lower.

Once one of these benefits have been used, they may not be used again until they are affected by Something to Fight For again.

Taboo

At 14th level, your understanding of a culture’s shared fears and taboos has deepened to the point that you can turn secrets into weapons.

As an action, you magically whisper a phrase that any number of creatures of your choice within 30 feet of you hear. The targets must make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. It automatically succeeds if it doesn’t share a language with you or if it can’t hear you. On a successful saving throw, your whisper sounds like unintelligible mumbling and has no effect.

On a failed saving throw, the target is paralyzed by you for the next 1d10 rounds. It interprets the whispers as a description of its most mortifying secret. You gain no knowledge of this secret, but the targets are aware they share this secret. They also believe that you know it.

The paralyzed creatures are incapacitated (see the condition) and can't move or speak. The creature automatically fails Strength and Dexterity saving throws. Attack rolls against the creature have advantage. Any attack that hits the creature is a critical hit if the attacker is within 5 feet of the creature.

Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a long rest.