College of Conductors

Not all bards settle for the tavern, and not everyone has the voice to fill the theatre with just their lungs. For those who seek the enormity and prestige of the orchestra but wish to share none of its glory with their fellow performers there is another path- The college of the Conductor.

These great magicians of sound command their own backup band with the raw force of their personalities, wielding all the majesty of an entire group of performers by their lonesome. Whether its conjuring phantom players or great gouts of dancing flames to cradle their instruments these bards become not a one man army, but a rather a one man show with all the trappings of an entire troupe.

Virtuosso

When you choose this college at third level your natural gift as not just a musician but a crowd pleaser blossoms. You gain the performance skill if you do not already have it, and you may double your proficiency for any performance checks you make.

Accompaniment.

When you choose this college at third level you become privy to a secret  method to make an instrument into not a simple tool but a true and literal extension of yourself.

Over the course of an hour which you spend predominantly playing an instrument you are proficient with, including during a short rest, you may synchronize a single instrument with your own personal rhythm, which persists until you synchronize with another instrument. Anytime you are playing your Synchronized Instrument you may double your proficiency bonus with it.

As a bonus action you may invest a bardic inspiration die into an instrument synchronized in this way that is within sixty feet of you, animating it through means of your inherent magic so that it may play itself on your behalf. This animation takes the form of your choosing, be it phantom images of yourself playing the instrument, the instrument changing shape so that it can play itself, the instrument simply levitating and playing itself with no apparent outside input, or anything else reasonable. 

An Animated Instrument hovers in a space but does not occupy it. It falls inert but unharmed in the space it occupies after ten minutes, if you tell it to rest (no action), if it is more than one hundred feet away from you, or whenever you finish a short or long rest.

You may use your action each turn to command your Animated Instrument to act. As part of this action the instrument may move up to your move speed in any direction, even straight up but not through solid objects.  Any attacks or saves that the instrument calls for use your statistics. Any “instrumentation” die called for are equivalent to the bardic inspiration die invested in the instrument (differentiated to make it clear that you do not expend additional bardic inspiration dice to use these abilities). An instruments actions are determined by its type, as seen below

All- Cacophony: Any creature within one hundred feat has disadvantage on perception checks that rely on sound and on concentration checks until the start of your next turn.

Strings- Soothing: The calming sound of the instrument steels the resolve and eases pain. Roll the instrumentation die, one ally within 15 feet gains temporary HP equal to half the result  plus your charisma modifier (rounded up). This HP vanishes at the start of your next turn. A deaf ally cannot benefit from this effect.

Brass- Blast!: The raucous blast of the instrument pulverizes its target . Make a ranged spell attack, using your statistics not the instrument, against one target within thirty feet. On a hit the target takes <instrumentation die+charisma modifier> thunder damage.

Percussion- BOOM!: The beating of the instrument reverberates in damaging a wave. All creatures you designate within ten feet make a Constitution saving throw, and on a failed save take <instrumentation die> thunder damage or half as much on a success.

Wind- Trill: The fluttering rhythm of the instrument urges allies onward. One ally within fifteen feet of the instrument, now or at any point during its movement this turn, may use its reaction to move up to half its speed. If it incurs any attacks of opportunity from this movement the attacker immediately takes <instrumentation die> piercing damage. A deaf ally cannot benefit from this effect.

 Instruments may also take any actions they inherently may have, such as spells or special actions alloted to magic instruments

You may also use your reaction to control the instruments in the following ways. 

All- Play Along: Expert accompaniment turns even a poor showing into a great show. When an friendly creature within thirty feet makes a performance check you may grant them advantage.

Strings- Screeching: A blow rung true is lessened in the cringing recoil of harsh noise. When an enemy attack deals damage to one of your allies within thirty feet roll the instrumentation die and subtract the result from the damage received. An attack from a deaf creature cannot be reduced in this way.

Brass- Whomp~Whomp~!: Ow, talk about insult to injury. When a creature within thirty feet misses an attack or fails a saving throw it takes <instrumentation die> psychic damage. A deaf creature is immune to this damage.

Percussion- CRASH!: The sudden noise of the instrument underscores the striking of the blow. When a creature within thirty feet takes damage from an allies attack or spell you may cause them to take an additional <instrumentation die> thunder damage.

Wind- Shrill: The harsh shriek of the instrument halts the foe in their tracks. When a creature attempts to move within fifteen feet of the instrument it makes a wisdom save and on a failed save it stops and takes <instrumentation die> pychic damage. A deaf creature automatically passes the save.

You may only take these instrument reactions a number of times equal to your charisma modifier (Min 1) until you finish a long rest, except for Play Along which may be used as often as you like. 

Note: An instrument that does not fall squarely into one of these categories should be handled with the DM discretion based on what feels it most resembles- by function or by sound. Mixing and matching abilities may be appropriate. Instruments that are not reasonably man portable, such as a piano, are not eligible.

Maestro

By sixth level you’ve practiced long and hard with your Animated Instrument, and you’re ready to go from a duet to a proper band. 

When you synchronize with an instrument you may now instead do so with two instruments (they may be the same type or different), and when you use a bonus action to animate your instrument you may animate one or both of them (but you must still spend a bardic inspiration die for each). 

When you use your action to direct your Animated Instrument you may now simultaneously give a command to both of your Animated Instruments instead, but each instrument may still only act up to once each turn.

Concerto

At level six your control has become so refined that the point of separation between you and your instruments begins to blur. 

Any effects of your bard spells or class features that require the target to be able to hear you treat your currently Animated Instruments as though they were you for the purposes of determining if the target is in audible range. 

Additionally you now regain use of your Instrument's reactions anytime you finish a short or long rest.

Lastly you may now target yourself with your bardic inspiration class feature when you make a performance check, as long as you are playing one of your Synchronized Instruments or are accompanied by an Animated Instrument.

Fortissimo

At level fourteen the force of personality that emanates from you as you conduct is something to behold, as you and the overlapping sounds that compose your music become one and the same.

You may now synchronize to and animate a third instrument, and you may issue a single command to one of your instruments each turn as a bonus action (an instrument can still only act once each turn and you can still only issue two commands when you use an action to do so).

Additionally once a turn you may add your charisma modifier to an instrumentation dice you roll when for your Animated Instruments, even if you would already do so (ergo you would add it twice for those actions, such as blast).

The Show Must Go On

Your countless hours of playing by the time you reach level fourteen have taught you to control the pace and flow of your music to prolong the longevity of your band nigh indefinitely. 

When you invest a bardic inspiration die to animate an instrument it no longer falls inert after ten minutes, though it still falls inert for any of the other listed reasons.