Bards of the College of Forgotten Paths are wanderers, drifting between realms of reality and memory, chasing echoes of places that have slipped through the cracks of time. They have a unique ability to tap into the energy of forgotten roads, lost people, and hidden stories, weaving these mysteries into their performances. These bards serve as guides for those seeking knowledge of the past and for adventurers looking for something they can no longer remember.
Bonus Proficiencies
When you join the College of Forgotten Paths at 3rd level, you gain proficiency with three skills of your choice.
Unknown Lore
At 3rd level, your songs and stories pull from hidden sources. When you use your Bardic Inspiration, you may invoke Unknown Lore. When a creature uses your Bardic Inspiration die, they may also reroll one history, arcana, or investigation check made within the next 10 minutes, taking the higher result. Within the next ten minutes they may also add your charisma modifier to their initiative rolls.
Echo of the Lost
Also at 3rd level, you can invoke the whispers of lost memories to bewilder and confound your enemies. As an action, you can choose one creature you can see within 60 feet. The creature must make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failed save, they are haunted by an echo of forgotten memories, or things that are yet to come to pass, becoming disoriented and distracted. For 1 minute, the creature has disadvantage on attack rolls and ability checks. The effect ends early if they take damage. You can use this ability a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus per long rest.
Pathfinder’s Memory
At 6th level, your connection with lost places deepens, allowing you to tap into hidden routes and unknown knowledge. As a bonus action, once per long rest, you can choose to remember the layout of any place you have been to, no matter how long ago, as if you were standing there now. You may retrace your steps without needing to make ability checks for navigation, and can also sense hidden pathways, secret doors, or shortcuts (such as hidden entrances) within 60 feet of you.
Alternatively you may do the same with a location of any place you will go to in the near future (within the next week), though this info may be more restricted (up to the DMs discretion).
Additionally, you can cast the Find the Path, or Divination spell without expending a spell slot once per long rest.
Awaken the Forgotten
At 14th level, your songs can call upon echoes from different times. As an action, you can play a melody that causes shadows of non-corporeal souls to rise and aid you in your journey. You can summon up to three spectral figures, which act on your turn. These spirits have the statistics of invisible stalkers but appear as faint, translucent figures. These figures will protect or serve you for 10 minutes before disappearing back into the mists of time. Additionally, when you summon these spirits, you may choose one ally within 60 feet. That ally gets a fleeting glimpse of a potential future, giving them advantage on one saving throw or attack roll within the next minute (they choose when to use this advantage, before rolling). Once you use this ability, you cannot do so again until you finish a long rest.