Silverthorne Games

3 More New Bard Cantrips

Posted on July 30, 2020 by Frilf

Expanding the Bardic Repertoire, Part II

Presented here for your Summer gaming enjoyment are three more new bard cantrips, hot off the imagination.

Playtest Material

We humbly present three new bard cantrips for your playtesting pleasure. Feel free to use these in your own games and let us know what you think of them if you do. Our aim is to publish a magic compendium of new spells and magic items for 5E in the coming months, so we’d like the spells and items we include to be as “battle-tested” as possible. So, without further ado, we present the new spells, which you can read below or download in handy PDF format using the link below:

Three More Bard Cantrips Download

Amplify

Enchantment cantrip
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: 120 feet
Components: V, S, M (a howler claw)
Duration: 1 minute

Performers of years gone by created this cantrip to improve their ability to be heard in the open air and to give them the upper hand when trying to influence members of an audience. For the duration, the spell has one of the following effects, specified at the time of casting:

Your voice can be heard clearly out to a radius of 120 feet. You may suppress or resume this effect as a bonus action for the duration.
You may increase the volume of a single sound source (an instrument, a clanging piece of metal, the wind, etc.) so that it can be heard up to 120 feet away. The objects cannot be targeted if they are worn or wielded by another creature.
You may use your reaction add 1d4 to your next Intimidation, Performance, or Persuasion check against a single creature you can see within range. This spell then immediately ends, whether the check was successful or not.
You may use your reaction to add one additional damage die to a spell you cast that successfully deals thunder damage. The die type is dependent on the spell cast. Using this effect ends this spell.

You may not have more than 2 non-instantaneous instances of this spell active at the same time. Casting the spell a third time causes the oldest effect to immediately end.

Forceful Words

Evocation cantrip
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: 120 feet
Components: V
Duration: Instantaneous

You speak a string of words imbued with magical power and direct it toward a single creature you can see within range. Make a ranged spell attack. On a hit, the target takes 1d6 force damage and is pushed up to 10 feet away from you in a straight line.

The damage from this spell increases by 1d6 at 5th level (2d6), 11th level (3d6), and 17th level (4d6).

Gloomsight

Transmutation cantrip
Casting Time: 1 bonus action
Range: Touch
Components: V, S, M (an owl’s or cat’s eye)
Duration: 1 round

Until the end of your next turn, a single willing creature you touch is able to see in nonmagical darkness as though it were dim light or in dim light as though it were bright light to a distance of 15 feet. Only one casting of this spell can be active at any time. If you cast this spell again before the duration, the effect of the previous casting ends immediately.

As always, feel free to use these in your own game and let us know what you think.

Posted in Playtest Material, Today I Made a Spell (TIMAS) | Comments Off

Using Your Intelligence – Optional Rule

Posted on April 14, 2020 by Frilf

Introduction

In fifth edition fantasy gaming, Intelligence has migrated from becoming an important statistic to one of the more overlooked ones and is often relegated to the realm of a “dump stat” — not seen as desirable or even necessary for a large number of character builds (except if you are a wizard!).

In fact, if it weren’t for eldritch knight, arcane trickster, and wizard (and much more recently, the artificer), there would be almost no need to have the intelligence stat in the game. Very few spells target Intelligence for saves, either, so using it for your dump stat rarely has any serious consequences unless your fighting those squid-headed guys in a dark underground place or you are the target of certain, very specific spells.

The Solution

So how do we make this woefully neglected statistic more interesting and viable in your fantasy game? Well, at our table we have created the following house rule that might just make players think twice about maxing their other statistics and dumping good old Intelligence on the doorstep: give characters proficiency with a an extra gaming set, musical instrument, language, skill, or tool per point of their Intelligence modifier. Have a +3? You’re all set. Grab a language, a skill, and a tool. Or three languages. Or three musical instruments. Mix and match to your heart’s content.

What? Yes, you read that right. Give your players more things they can do and they might gravitate toward having a decent Intelligence score a lot more often. Since the “lowly” Int score is supposed to be a measure of how smart you are, how many things you know, and how adept you are at solving problems, this has turned out to be quite an elegant solution in our games.

Got a really bright character that just so happens to be a paladin? Give him proficiency with Thieves’ Tools or an extra language, like Celestial. Smart bard? Perhaps a few more musical instrument or gaming set proficiencies are in order. Try it out and see how it works for your game.

What About Negative Scores?

Enter the variant wrinkle to this rule: remove a proficiency for each -1 a character has in the Intelligence department. Bear in mind that you can also just say the rule affects only positive scores, but to make it really not be a dump stat, players should have to think a little harder about having that fighter with a 6 Intelligence. Losing two proficiencies they would normally have from their class or a language they would know from their background, etc., would put a bit of sting in their decision making.

In Your Game

Let us know what you think about this variant rule, if you have used it or something similar in your game, and what the results were if you do. We think it’s added a lot of fun, variety, and interest and maybe this optional rule will work for you, too!

Posted in Rule Variants & Options | Tagged dungeons & dragons, fantasy roleplaying, Intelligence, Intelligence modifier, languages, musical instruments, optional rule, proficiencies, proficiency, RPG, Silverthorne Games, skills, tool sets, vehicles | Comments Off

3 New Bard Cantrips

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Frilf

Expanding the Bardic Repertoire, Part I

One of the most interesting and well-rounded classes in fifth edition fantasy is the bard. It combines some of the most interesting aspects of fighters, spellcasters, and rogues to produce one of the best support character types in all of fantasy gaming. Yes, arguments can be made for other gish combinations (several of which have more than their fair share of merit), but bard does not require multiclassing, taking an armful of excessively eclectic feats, or other such chicanery. It’s just that good!

Spell selection is one of the very few areas where this class is lacking, in our opinion. So, we have set about to correct that issue by providing some flavorful variety for one of the most diverse character types in the game.

Playtest Material

3 New Bard Cantrips Download

New Bard Spells

Bardcraft
Transmutation cantrip
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: Self
Components: V, S, M (a tiny tuning fork)
Duration: Instantaneous

You create one of the following effects within range:

You can instantly tune or detune any instrument you see within 5 feet.
You can instantly clean your current outfit.
You gain advantage on your next skill check to identify a song or poem you have not encountered before.
You cause flames to flicker, brighten, dim, or change color for up to 10 minutes. This effect can be used to enhance your performance or speech if you so desire, changing with the dynamics of the story or song for emphasis and atmosphere.
Your voice is amplified up to three times as loud as normal while performing before or addressing others. This effect lasts for up to 10 minutes.
Your voice is accompanied by subtle music that changes appropriately with your mood and intonation. This music can be heard to a radius of 20 feet centered on you. This effect lasts for up to 10 minutes.

If you cast this spell multiple times, you can have up to three of its non-instantaneous effects active at a time, and you can dismiss an effect as an action.

Phantom Blade
Illusion cantrip
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: 30 feet
Components: V, S
Duration: Instantaneous

You select a single target you can see within range, forcing it to make a Wisdom save. On a success, nothing happens. On a failure, the target perceives that you have successfully attacked it with a shimmering dagger-like blade, taking 1d6 psychic damage. Depending on your proximity to the target, the blade appears to be thrown or wielded in your hand.
The psychic damage increases by 1d6 whenever you reach 5th level (2d6), 11th level (3d6), and 17th level (4d6).

Sanguineous Healing
Necromancy cantrip
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: Touch
Components: V, S, M (a drop of your own blood)
Duration: Instantaneous

You cut yourself as you cast this spell, touching a single living target that you can see. The target heals any number of hit points you choose that is equal to or less than your proficiency modifier. At the same time, you sustain an equal number of hit points in necrotic damage and your maximum hit points decreases by that number. This damage cannot be prevented or reduced in any way. Your hit point maximum is restored after you complete a short or long rest.

Design Notes

The first spell, bardcraft, is an attempt to create a cantrip in the vein of druidcraft, prestidigitation, thaumaturgy but adjusted to have more of a bardic flavor. The second spell, phantom blade, was designed to provide the bard with another option for an attack cantrip based off the theme of psychic damage. Since many other bardic spells and abilities are based on this damage type, it seemed a natural fit for a bard spell list. Finally, sanguineous healing is our attempt at creating a healing cantrip based on the principle or concept of self-sacrifice. This gives the bard some versatility in how other characters can be healed but prevents abuse by inflicting damage on the bard whenever it’s cast. Let us know what you think and how these spells work in your game!

Keep watching www.silverthornegames.com for new playtest material, coming soon!

Image: Dandelion Dnd Pinterest Fantasy Characters And As – Dandelion Witcher Clipart @pikpng.com

Posted in Today I Made a Spell (TIMAS) | Tagged bard, bard class, bardcraft, bardic spells, cantrips, D&D, D&D 5e, dungeons & dragons, fantasy roleplaying, fifth edition fantasy, game design, Ian S. Johnston, new cantrips, new spells, phantom blade, roleplaying game, RPG, sanguineous healing, Silverthorne Games | Comments Off

Play Testers & New Spells & 5E

Posted on August 4, 2018 by Frilf

Hello again, all! We have been wondering about the feasibility of publishing a new spell compendium (including magical items, etc.), for the fifth edition of the world’s most popular roleplayng game. So, we are going to see how many folks would be interested in play testing a few of these spells for balance and flavor and fun. Sound like a good idea? Of course, it does! If you are interested, please indicate as much by commenting on this post. We will send you a Non-Disclosure Agreement and a PDF of new spells/magic items to start you off. Then, once you have feedback for us, submit it to: playtest@silverthornegames.com.

Thanks ever so much!

Frilf

Posted in Bizarre Grimoire, House Cleaning | 1 Comment