College of Entropy

What's the end of all things? Bards of the College of Entropy know that order's but a fleeting construct imposed, for a time, on an inherently anarchic universe. At their most socially graceful, these bards serve as comfort at funerals & in times of war and famine. At their most abrasive, they chant doomsday prophecies in the town square & act as grim seers who foretell only death & failure.

Every bard joining this college learns a portion of a dark song called “the dirge.” It's said this song’s rhythm's the last beat of a dying heart, its melody the sound of fading stars, & the lyrics're the epitaph to life. No bard knows the entire song, but the College of Entropy works to complete it. When performed, this symphony of pandemonium brings all of existence to a grand close.

Dark Prophecy

Starting at 3rd level, you can prophesy violence & misfortune.

If you spend at least 1 min talking to a humanoid who shares a language w/ you, you can expend 1 use of your Bardic Inspiration to mark that humanoid for failure. The next time that creature attempts an ability check, you can cause it to automatically fail. If you can't observe the creature when it attempts the ability check, you instead magically sense that it's attempting an ability check. You're aware of what kind of ability check's being attempted, but not the nature of the situation in which it's being attempted. The mark lasts until expended, or until you or the marked creature finishes a short or long rest.

Dirge of Entropy

At 3rd level, you learn how to perform a profane melody that debilitates all who hear it. You may take an action & expend a use of your Bardic Inspiration dice to begin the dirge. The dirge's a powerful song that lasts for 1 min & requires concentration (as though concentrating on a spell). While performing the dirge, you can't communicate verbally or cast spells that require verbal components. The dirge ends automatically if you become unable to speak.

The dirge affects all creatures of your choice w/i 60 ft of you, as long as they can hear the dirge.

• 1/turn when an affected creature fails a saving throw, it takes 1d6 necrotic damage. This damage increases to 2d6 when you reach 6th level & 4d6 at 14th level.
• If an affected creature rolls a nat 1 on an attack roll during its turn, its turn ends immediately, forfeiting any other attacks, movement, or actions it might've taken.

Woeful Enunciation

At 6th level, you learn to merge your verbal magic w/ your dirge of entropy, weaving them together in a flawless performance. While you're maintaining your dirge of entropy, you may cast spells that require a verbal component of a spell level = to or lower than 1/3 your bard level (rounded down).

Crescendo of Annihilation

At 14th level, your dirge of entropy gains a terrifying movement, the crescendo of annihilation. At the start of your turn while you're performing your dirge of entropy, you may choose to've it enter its crescendo. Your dirge of entropy gains the following properties for 1 min, in addition to its normal effects. Once you've used this feature, you must finish a long rest before you can use it again.

• 1/turn, if an affected creature fails a saving throw by 5 or more, it takes an additional 4d6 necrotic damage.
• Affected creatures can't regain hp or gain temporary hp. If an affected creature's reduced to 0 hp, it dies instantly, its body moldering into sickly black paste over the next min.