Bards. When they aren’t trying to fuck someone, they are hurling insults at the nearest bad guy. But what if the Bard broke free of the murder-hobo thought process that most players have and tried to work out their differences with the monsters? You don’t always need to be hitting things. Sometimes words can be more powerful than the sword.

The College of Negotiation was the result of a request I got from one of our patrons (Thanks Stonie!). His son was trying to come up with a class or subclass that would focus on talking before trying to murder his foes. This doesn’t mean he was looking for a pacifist class, just one that would try to talk things through before crushing their skulls with his mace. I get that D&D in a combat based game and players like to hit things and roll dice, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t something to be gained by trying to talk to your potential foe first. Maybe you will get some valuable information about what lies ahead, or they could try to pay you off so you won’t kill them. I know you can just take the money off their dead bodies, but burning those spell slots could prove costly if you run into a horde of kobolds before you take a long rest.

A good negotiator relies on his ability to calm and soothe the person, usually through speaking to them and through body language. Charisma is the key stat for a negotiator, so bard was the obvious choice. Many of the bard’s existing abilities lend themselves to being able to have an effect on an angry person or creature, whether through words or song. Sometimes those words talk the angry individual off the ledge, other times they influence them to the extent that they realize that maybe fighting isn’t the best idea.

So let’s dive into the College of Negotiation Bard and see how words can tame even the most savage beast.

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