Dread Calliope

“What a dreadful delight—do stay for the encore.”

Where most rogues rely on shadows and silence, the Dread Calliope heralds death with a cackle, a flourish, and the chiming song of cursed calliopes echoing through bloodstained velvet curtains. These performers walk the fine edge between humor and horror, marrying the arcane tricks of bards with the ruthless cunning of assassins. Cloaked in theatrical pageantry, they weaponize mockery, illusions, and psychological torment, turning every encounter into a surreal performance that leaves their audience screaming—or silent forever.

Inspired by mad jesters, haunted carnivals, and the lore of cursed performers who could kill with a word, Dread Calliopes are part spellcaster, part showman, and part sadist. They conjure illusions so convincing they seem to bleed, wield mockery that leaves wounds more than words, and disappear behind a curtain of madness just when the dagger lands.

To face a Dread Calliope is to enter a twisted stage play you didn’t audition for—and to hear the curtain fall with your final breath.

Level 3: Spellcasting

You have learned to cast spells.

Cantrips. You know three cantrips: Vicious Mockery and two other cantrips of your choice from the Bard spell list.

Whenever you gain a Rogue level, you can replace one of your cantrips, except Vicious Mockery, with another Bard cantrip of your choice.

When you reach Rogue level 10, you learn another Bard cantrip of your choice.

Spell Slots. The Dread Calliope Spellcasting table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your level 1+ spells. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a Long Rest.

Dread Calliope Spellcasting

		—Spell Slots per Spell Level—
Rogue Level	Prepared Spells	1	2	3	4
3	3	2	—	—	—
4	4	3	—	—	—
5	4	3	—	—	—
6	4	3	—	—	—
7	5	4	2	—	—
8	6	4	2	—	—
9	6	4	2	—	—
10	7	4	3	—	—
11	8	4	3	—	—
12	8	4	3	—	—
13	9	4	3	2	—
14	10	4	3	2	—
15	10	4	3	2	—
16	11	4	3	3	—
17	11	4	3	3	—
18	11	4	3	3	—
19	12	4	3	3	1
20	13	4	3	3	1

Prepared Spells of Level 1+. You prepare the list of level 1+ spells that are available for you to cast with this feature. To start, choose three level 1 Bard spells.

The number of spells on your list increases as you gain Rogue levels, as shown in the Prepared Spells column of the Dread Calliope Spellcasting table. Whenever that number increases, choose additional Bard spells until the number of spells on your list matches the number in the Dread Calliope Spellcasting table. The chosen spells must be of a level for which you have spell slots. For example, if you’re a level 7 Rogue, your list of prepared spells can include five Bard spells of level 1 or 2 in any combination.

Changing Your Prepared Spells. Whenever you gain a Rogue level, you can replace one spell on your list with another Bard spell for which you have spell slots.

Spellcasting Ability. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for your Bard spells.

Spellcasting Focus. You can use an Arcane Focus as a Spellcasting Focus for your Bard spells.

Level 3: Savage Mockery

When you cast Vicious Mockery, if the target fails the Wisdom saving throw you can add sneak attack damage to the spell. All other rules for sneak attack still apply.

Jack of All Trades

You can add half your proficiency bonus, rounded down, to any ability check you make that doesn't already include your proficiency bonus.

Harrowing Phantasm

You may target a creature within 60ft and conjure a Harrowing Phantasm of yourself as a bonus action that originates from you and moves to the chosen target. As long as this illusion is within 5ft of your target, you have advantage on all attacks against it and it have disadvantage against wisdom saving throws. Attacking the phantasm forces an intelligence saving throw vs your spell save DC, potentially revealing it to be an illusion. On a successful save, the target knows it's an illusion and is immune to this effect for 24 hours. On a fail, the target makes up some logical reason why their attack missed.

On subsequent turns, you may use a bonus action to puppet the phantasm around, moving it 30 ft and talking through it. If you end your turn and the phantasm is more than 60 ft away from you at any time, it vanishes.

In addition, you may cast spells of Verbal and Somatic components through your phantasm but the Rogue is still the point of origin for the purposes of calculating range. You may do this at will, but may only have one phantasm at a time.

You may also Hide as part of this bonus action.

Level 13: Preternatural Fool

In response to a creature targeting you or an allied creature with a spell or attack that initiates a d20 contest, you may use a Reaction to give that creature disadvantage and also cast Savage Mockery as part of that same Reaction.

In addition, you may summon your phantasm at your feet, and turn invisible until the end of your turn as a bonus action.

You may also move it as a free action on the same turn.

You can do this a number of times equal to your half your proficiency bonus rounded down per short rest.

Level 17: Orator of Legend

You gain access to all of the Words of Power; Power Word Pain, Power Word Stun, Power Word Heal, and Power Word Kill. All of which you may cast once per long rest.