College of Necrodance

The art of necrodancing is an unconventional form of necromancy that allows one to commune with the dead in strange ways.

Necrodancing

When you join the College of Necrodance at 3rd level, you learn the strange art of necrodancing; a secret technique that involves manipulating the magical weave with your body, in a similar manner to somatic spellcasting. Necrodancing imbues you with supernatural agility and focus, and eventually enhances your necromancy magic.

You can use a bonus action to begin a Necrodance, which lasts for 1 minute. It ends early if your are incapacitated, or if you end a turn without casting a spell. You can also cease the Necrodance at any time (no action required).

While your Necrodance is active, you gain the following traits:

• Whenever you're targeted by an attack, you can choose to roll a Dexterity (Acrobatics) check, and use the number rolled in place of your AC.
• Whenever you cast a spell that does psychic damage, you can choose to make it deal necrotic damage instead, and vice versa.
• You have advantage on Dexterity (Acrobatics) checks made to avoid being grappled.
• You gain a bonus to Dexterity saving throws, and any Constitution saving throws you make to maintain concentration on a spell. The bonus equals your Charisma modifier (minimum of +1).

You can use this feature a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, and you regain all expended uses of it when you finish a long rest.

Lethargic Dread

At 3rd level, you learn the chill touch cantrip, which counts as a bard cantrip for you, but does not count against your number of cantrips known.

Additionally, when a creature that you can see within 60 feet of you makes a saving throw against a spell or magical effect, you can use your reaction to expend one of your uses of Bardic Inspiration, rolling a Bardic Inspiration die and subtracting the number rolled from the creature's roll. You can choose to use this feature after the creature makes its roll, but before the DM determines whether the saving throw succeeds or fails.

Necrotic Frequency

At 6th level, you further familiarize yourself with the intricacies of necromancy, learning how to reanimate the dead, and how to affect them with your magical dance. You learn the animate dead spell, which counts as a bard spell for you, but does not count towards your number of spells known. You gain resistance to necrotic damage.

Additionally, your Necrodance gains the following additional benefits:

• Undead creatures have disadvantage on attack rolls against you, and on saving throws against your spells and abilities.
• Undead creatures under your control gain temporary hit points equal to your Bard level, and add your Inspiration dice to their attack and damage rolls for the duration of the Necrodance.

Compel Cadavers

At 14th level, your mastery of understanding of the undead grants you the ability to exert control over them. While you're in a Necrodance, you can use your action to attempt to assert control over an undead creature that can see and hear you. The target must make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, the target must obey your commands for the remainder of the Necrodance, or until you use this ability on another creature. A creature that passes the saving throw is immune to the effect for the remainder of the Necrodance.

In addition, your own mind and body have become more resilient to the forces of undead. You have advantage on saving throws against effects caused by undead creatures.