College of Wardance

Bards of the College of Wardance are as hypnotically beautiful as they are fiercely skilled in battle. Wardancers are incredible tacticians who study the art of war as if conducting a beautiful piece of music. A Wardancer's flow and elegance can be matched by few, but where they truly flourish is amidst the clashing of blade and spell. Once the Wardance has begun, its movements can seem mesmerizing and eccentric, but this display of art is a tool of distraction to close-in on one's opponent. The goal of the Wardancer is to be in complete control of the flow and support of battle; to play the role of conductor in the music of war.

Bonus Proficiencies

When you join the College of Wardance at 3rd level, you gain proficiency in performance along with one skill or tool, and a martial weapon of your choice. If you are already proficient in performance, then you add double your proficiency bonus to your checks.

Fighting Style

At 3rd level, you adopt a particular style of fighting as your specialty. Choose one of the following options. You can't take a Fighting Style option more than once, even if you later get to choose again. 

 

Fighting Style: Dueling

When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with that weapon.

 

Fighting Style: Fencer

When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, the weapon you are wielding is considered to have the reach property, if it does not have it already.

 

Fighting Style: Skirmisher

When provoking attacks of opportunity as a result of movement, you gain a bonus +2 bonus to your AC against it and halve any damage you may receive.

 

Fighting Style: Songster

When you attack with a weapon you are proficient in, you can use your Charisma modifier, instead of Strength or Dexterity, for the attack and damage rolls.

Fighting Style: Two-weapon Fighting

When you engage in two-weapon fighting, you can add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attack.

 

Wardance

Also, at 3rd level, your invested study in the flow of music and war allows you to enter a trance-like state known as a 'Wardance' unique to you when in combat. As a bonus action on your turn, you can enter your Wardance. For 1 minute, until you are incapacitated, don medium armor or a shield, or decide to end it (no action required), you gain the following benefits:

• You gain a bonus to your AC equal to your Charisma modifier.
• Creatures have disadvantage on opportunity attacks against you.
• When a creature misses you with a melee or ranged attack, and there is another creature within 5 feet of you, you can expend one bardic inspiration as a reaction to redirect the attack to that creature. You roll your bardic inspiration die and add to the attack's damage.

Your Wardance feature can be activated twice, after which you regain all expended uses once completing a short or long rest.

Extra Attack

Starting at 6th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

 

Wardance Art

At 14th level, you have finely tailored the techniques of your Wardance to adapt with spells and have incorporated a deadly flow to your distinctive style. While your Wardance is active, you add your Charisma modifier to Constitution saving throws when maintaining concentration on a spell. Also, when you reduce a creature to 0 hit points by redirecting an attack at them, you immediately regain one bardic inspiration.

You choose one Wardance Art. You gain the benefits of this feature while your Wardance is active.

 

Wardance Art: Chromatic Twirl

When you would take damage from a creature's attack, you can make a performance check contested against the creature's perception check as a reaction. If you succeed, you halve the damage of the attack and the target is blinded until the end of its turn.

Wardance Art: Dance of Blades

Whenever you make a successful melee attack with a weapon you are proficient in, you can choose to attack a third time as a bonus action. 

Wardance Art: Gleaming Presence

You exude an enchanting 15-foot aura that diminishes the resolve of your enemies. When an enemy creature starts its turn in this aura or enters it for the first time on a turn, it must make a Wisdom saving throw or have a -2 penalty to all attack rolls, saving throws, and ability checks while it remains in the aura.

Wardance Art: Leaping Waltz

As a bonus action when you move at least 10 feet toward a creature, you can make an acrobatics check against the its AC and on a success, you jump off of them and land a distance away from the target equal to the distance you moved toward it in any direction you choose. The target takes your bardic inspiration die in bludgeoning damage and must make a Dexterity saving throw. On a failure, the target is knocked prone.