College of Whispers 2024*

Whisper Horrid Truth

Most folk are happy to welcome a bard into their midst. Bards of the College of Whispers use this to their advantage. They appear to be like any other bard, sharing news, singing songs, and telling tales to the audiences they gather. In truth, the College of Whispers teaches its students that they are wolves among sheep. These bards use their knowledge and magic to uncover secrets and turn them against others through extortion and threats.

Many other bards hate the College of Whispers, viewing it as a parasite that uses the bards’ reputation to acquire wealth and power. For this reason, these bards rarely reveal their true nature unless they must. They typically claim to follow some other college, or keep their true nature secret in order to better infiltrate and exploit royal courts and other settings of power.

Level 3: Level 3: Psychic Blade

You gain the ability to make your words magically toxic to a creature's mind.
When you deal damage to a creature, you can expend one use of your Bardic Inspiration to deal an additional 2d6 psychic damage to that target. You can do so only once per round on your turn.

The psychic damage increases when you reach certain levels in this class, increasing to 3d6 at 5th level, 5d6 at 10th level, and 8d6 at 15th level.

Level 3: Level 3: Words of Terror

You always have the Dissonant Whispers and Wrathful Smite spells prepared.

In addition, if you speak for at least 1 minute, you can attempt to sow paranoia and fear in those who hear you. At the end of the conversation, choose humanoids within 60 feet of you who heard you speak over the full duration, up to a number equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of one). Each target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC or be frightened of you or another creature of your choice. The targets are frightened in this way for 1 hour, until it is attacked or damaged, or until it witnesses its allies being attacked or damaged. If a target succeeds on its saving throw, the target has no hint that you tried to frighten it.

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

Level 6: Level 6: Mounting Dread

When you use the Psychic Assault feature, you can curse that creature until the start of your next turn. The next time one of your allies hits the cursed creature with an attack, the target also takes 2d6 psychic damage, and the curse ends.

Level 6: Level 6: Mantle of Whispers

You gain the ability to adopt a humanoid’s persona. When a humanoid dies within 30 feet of you, you can magically capture its shadow as a reaction. You retain this shadow until you use it or you finish a long rest. You can use the shadow as a Magic Action. When you do so, it vanishes, magically transforming into a disguise that appears on you. You now look like the dead person, but healthy and alive. This disguise lasts for 1 hour or until you end it as a bonus action.

While you’re in the disguise, you gain access to all information that the humanoid would freely share with a casual acquaintance. Such information includes general details on its background and personal life, but doesn’t include secrets. The information is enough that you can pass yourself off as the person by drawing on its memories. Another creature can see through this disguise by succeeding on a Wisdom (Insight) check contested by your Charisma (Deception) check. You gain a +5 bonus to your check.

Once you capture a shadow with this feature, you can’t capture another until you finish a short or long rest.

Level 14: Level 14: Shadow Lore

You always have the Dominate Person spell prepared. You can cast this spell once without a spell slot, and you regain the ability to cast it in this way when you finish a Long Rest. If you already know this spell, you may choose another from the bard spell list instead.

When you cast the spell, you can modify it by weaving dark magic into your words, preying upon the target’s deepest fears. The target no longer has Advantage on the save if you or your allies are fighting it. On a successful saving throw, the creature only interprets your words as unintelligible mumbling. While under the effects of Dominate Person, the target believes you know its most mortifying secret.

When the spell’s effect ends, the creature has no understanding of why it held you in such fear. Once you use this feature to modify Dominate Person, you can’t do so again until you finish a Long Rest.