College of the Deep

Minds plunged deep into the abyss, to gaze upon it as it gazes back at you; but rather than succumbing to its nihility, to the end, instead to let it empower your words and your every being. The College of the Deep sing songs of forbidden knowledge, of fruits unripe to the minds of man; to sing praise of distant realms yet to be made and have yet to be undone yet in detail as if one could have their mind whisked away to stare deeper into the strange colours realms not their own. The bards of this college pull not just the string of the weave to hear the thrums of their magic but also from more eldritch sources that lay dormant as resonating their magics with sleeping gods and beings who have merely passed its gaze upon mortal men. 

Chorus of the Deep

As your power grows more connected to realms beyond the comprehension of man and so does your mind; starting at 3rd level, whenever you grant a creature a bardic inspiration, you are able to communicate with them telepathically for up one mile.  The creature doesn’t need to share a language with you to understand your telepathic communications, but it must be able to understand at least one language. If the creature expends the bardic inspiration die the connection is cut and you are no longer able to telepathically communicate with them until they are granted another bardic inspiration. If multiple creatures are granted bardic inspiration from you, they may also communicate with one another telepathically.

Cacophonous Ululation

Starting at 3rd level you can call upon powers from the deep and beyond to inflict your foes with a creeping madness as an unearthly wailing resonates within in them. As a bonus action, you can target one creature you can see within 60 feet of you and expend one bardic die forcing it to make a wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC, on a failed saving throw, the creature's mind is filled with a turgid whisper for one minute. Whenever the creature makes a mental saving throw (Charisma, Intelligence or Wisdom) you can use your reaction to trigger the whispers to erupt into a cacophony of gibbering distracting them; when triggered you may roll a die equal to your bardic die and subtract the amount roll onto their saving throw. Once the effect has been triggered, the creature is no longer under the effects of Cacophonous Ululation.

Antediluvian Vessel

Your connection grows with the endless void and depths of realms not your own grows fervent and are able harness this power within yourself using your body as a vessel for unearthly magics taking on the visage of aberrant creatures with forms unfathomable to minds of mere mortals.

Starting at 6th level you can use your bonus action to transform your body into a vessel of eldritch potential for the next minute. While transformed this way, portions of your mind and body become more powerful as much as they become more twisted and warped, you hit point maximum and current hit points is increased by an amount equal to your levels in bard and can see through magical darkness up to 60 feet. Whenever you cast a spell that forces a save, you can choose one creature targeted by the spell and impose -1d4 to their saving throw.

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

Miasmal Aphasia

Your mind has stared into the abyss past time, past space, past the meaning of the universe and so it looked back into you, your soul, your entire being. Reality and Time are but fickle things for you to play with as you have seen the end, the beginning, the potentiality of every decision and knowing you can crush your foes and their minds.

Starting at 14th level, whenever you see a creature within 60 feet of you fail a saving throw, you can use your reaction to crush their mind and force them to make an Intelligence saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failed save the creature takes 6d4 psychic damage and has -1d6 to all saving throws, checks and attack rolls for the next minute. On a successful save the creature only takes half the damage rolled and is not afflicted with Miasmal Aphasia.

A creature afflicted with Miasmal Aphasia can use its action its action to repeat the save to regain control of its mind once more. On a successful save the creature is freed from Miasmal Aphantasia.

You may use this feature a number of times equal to your proficiency modifier.