D&D: Dead Men DO Tell Tales – Ravenloft’s ‘College of Spirits Bard’ Proves It
The College of Spirits Bard might be the sleeper hit of Bard Subclasses with its ghostly tales and channeled spirits. Here’s why.
Of the seven new subclasses introduced in Ravenloft: The Horrors Within, the new Bard subclass, the College of Spirits, might be the one I’m most excited to play (though the Hollow Warden is a close second). It sits right at the perfect balance of cool flavor/story as well as mechanics that feel interesting and are quite strong when you sit down and think about it for even a little while.
It’s a surprise to me, considering how random the College of Spirits subclass felt in the last playtest version. But it got some fresh polish for the final release of the Ravenloft book and is much the better for it. In a nutshell, this is a subclass that banks potential extra effects whenever you use Bardic Inspiration or a Bonus Action, and then you can unleash the effects in combat for a Magic Action. Plus a souped-up Spirit Guardians that will have your Cleric awash in emerald envy.
The Bard College Of Spirits – Turns Out Ghost Stories Have Power
At the heart of the Bardic College of Spirits is the ability to conjure legendary spirits out of myth and folklore to help you and your party win the day. And to the subclass’ immense credit, it’s something you can do right away with the core level 3 feature, Spirits from Beyond.
Spirits from Beyond is the axle upon which the rest of the subclass turns. It’s the central fantasy of the subclass, and many of your higher level features feed into it. But what does it do? Well, it can be a little confusing at first glance.
But it’s actually quite simple. Here’s how it works. Whenever you grant someone a Bardic Inspiration die with a Bonus Action, as part of that action, you can “channel a spirit” at random, which you do by rolling your Bardic Inspiration die and looking up what spirit you get on a table.
It’s like a Wild Magic Surge, but for Bards. Except instead of happening right away, you channel the spirit and it remains channeled until you either finish a Short or Long Rest, or until you “Unleash” it. Unleashing a spirit takes a Magic Action, during which you pick a target within 30 feet of yourself, and then the spirit’s effects… take effect.
For instance, if you channel a Beloved spirit, it stays “channeled” at your beck and call until you take a Magic Action to unleash its effects. When you do, you give your target bonus healing (Bardic Inspiration Die + Charisma Modifier, in this case) and the spirit vanishes. It’s kind of like having potions or other consumable items except you know how potent and where their effects will take place.
If you don’t feel like rolling, you can also just spend a Bardic Inspiration die instead and pick what you want. Up to the maximum you can roll on the table, that is. Meaning a low level Bard can’t summon, say, a Coward. You also get a modified Guidance cantrip with a range out to 60 feet.
Telling Tales Out Of School At Higher Levels
Now you might think the main thing this class does is bank up uses of Channeled Spirits and then unleash them. And sure, that might be true. But one of the best add-ons to the class is in the level 6 feature, Empowered Channeling, which grants you a special Spirit Guardians spell that’s always on your list. Whenever you cast it, you can modify it to have the Spirits also protect your party, granting your allies within its range of effect Half Cover once per short or long rest. On top of this, you can cast it for free.
But Empowered Channeling is more than just souped-up spirit guardians. It’s also where you get Power from Beyond, a feature that boosts a Bard’s spellpower with an extra 1d6 to a roll of damage or healing whenever you cast a Bard spell with a spell slot.
Finally, at the highest levels, a Bard from the College of Spirit gains Mystical Connection. The level 14 feature lets you master whatever spirits you call forth. Whenever you would roll randomly, you get to roll twice and pick which result you want. Or if you roll matching numbers, then you get to pick which feature takes place.
All in all, not too bad. I feel like the class could maybe get a little tweak in terms of what its highest level ability is like. After all, being able to roll twice and possibly pick which result you get is cool and all, but as a capstone for a whole subclass? It feels a little lackluster, but the other mechanics are so interesting to play with, that it outweighs the flaw. Especially since you can Spirit Guardians up, and then run around the battlefield unleashing your channeled spirits as you see fit.
Check out the College of Spirits Bard in Ravenloft: The Horrors Within!
