Some Bardic Schools

Typing this while listening to vid blogs of creators in almost rears over ivcence dramgate  Early on I thought it was mostly speculation an I assume big companies are bad actors but this now looks worse than anything. So I will do an update on my hombre digest book shortly and just finish it. I will be working on a new draft after this with more similarities shaved off.

The core thing that got me back into clone and retro gaming after 20+ years playing BRP and TSR Marvel was the simple statblocks old-school products used so I can run DCC and hundreds of games adventures and adib from the basics of AC HP Mov Att. If your clone uses that I'm probably fine with trying to use your stuff. One thing made me interested in DnD5 besides having young friends was powerful monsters for my high level games.

So I think I will focus on my clone a while and less on new stuff. Im playing in 3 games plus at moment which is good and TV and Oblivion also been calling. Banned off FB for me threatening jesus christ and reading lots of my Dec shopping spree. 

Ive been doing bard stuff cos I have bard player in game at moment. Luckily bards and magic song powers and levels and classes have also been in video games since the 80s.  

Some Bardic Schools
Subclasses are more like example builds with a bunch of flavour notes. So can be used as literal examples for starting characters or quickstart characters if you wanlk in late. Also to flex using the system to build weird characters

Skald 
Barbarian bards aid warriors and their people in war. Mostly illiterate and travel with warbands advising, entertaining and even healing them. Some might also drive chariots or be expert riders. Many carry a standard in battle and wear spectacular headwear like animal head helmets or huge brush crests. Skalds from many lands often meet and recognise each other to share oral traditions. They will often operate with each other against urban enemies 
Chaotic 
Magic: Battle Song & Druidic spells  
-Zero Level: Berry, Cauterise, Fire Berry & Trumpet
-First Level: Enlarge 

Martial Skills: Axes, Frenzy 
Arts Skills: Survival, First Aid. Memorise, Music Lore (Harp & Bagpipes)
Languages: Common S, Runic R, Dwarvish S, Elvish S, 
Equipment: Barbarian kit and bag of tribal totems, standard bearers totem helmet
,  
Minstrel 
Performers start as students, buskers and wanderers until they gain success or become a servant in an inn or rich houses to provide music for the wealthy on command. Often dress and have manners beyond their means. Some become ambassadors or even spies in the employ of several masters. Adapted to courtly intrigues and public drama they have a guild and traditions about the way people should be bards ad considers theirs to be the norm
Neutral
Magic: Enthralling Song & Arcane spells
-Zero Level: Charisma, Clean, Ignite, Mend
-First Level: Sleep 
Arms Skills: Crossbow, Blades
Arts Skills: Poetry, Performance, Etiquette, Music Lore (Sing & Lute)
Languages: Common R S, Ancient R S 
Equipment: Fancy outfit for performances, passport for travel accepted in several lands

Jester

Comedic clown servants are often very athletic and good at self-humiliation. Often thought of as idiotic most are cunning and may manipulate others. Many keep exotic pets and many jesters are treated as pets which can make them good spies. Many villages have a village idiot for good luck and proof they have prosperity. Idiots would battle and the best would end up as servants of a lord. Over time they grew into a methodical school and guild.
Chaotic
Magic: Dolorous Song, Mentalist spells
-Zero Level: Awake, Cure, Dexterity, Puppetry
-First Level: Mesmerise

Arms Skills: Club, Blade
Arts Skills: Tumbling, Juggling, Taunt, Music Lore (rattle & drum)
Languages: Common R S, Dwarvish S, Gnomish S
Equipment: Colourful costume, 4 wooden clubs, 4 wooden balls, 2 Puppets, Marott (sceptre with jester head to parody rulers or as a club) 

Troubador 

A new school of lascivious bards singing tales of the cult of romance that love is better than the duty to your lord. These love poets are the very latest thing in courts but many respectable people think they are witches or potential witches (unlawful spell casters). Many embrace rebellious new ideas and become cast out by the church and state as unlawful cults. Youths and the poor are claimed to be especially drawn to them but in reality, all sorts follow such bards. Brought over after men returned from foreign holy wars this adds to the story some tell that troubadours are dangerous heretical cultists spreading wickedness.  Some Troubadors are interested in occult theories but many more are just in it for the sex and romantic lifestyle. They would make good spies as their illicit affairs require similar skills
Chaotic Oath: "Get Drunk Every Day" for a Lv1 Scroll per month
Magic: Love Song and Mentalist spells
-Zero Level: Charisma, Constitution, Evil-Eye, Whisper
-First Level: Charm Person
Arms Skills: Swords, Blades
Arts Skill: Cryptography, Fast Talk, Music Lore (Lute & Sing), Seduce 

Equipment: Book of poetry about past loves, a bottle of wine, wanted poster with your description or name from back home

Prophet

Sings praises of the gods and nobility who descend from them. Many are inspired by their piety and visions and many work in temples with priests as singers and musicians and in processions. They also will inspire fighting folk and sing of heroes and doers of great deeds. While they lack the authority and certainty of priests many are undoubtedly holy. Many become gifted scholars through temple libraries and meeting holy leaders
Lawful Oath: "Chastise the Lawless" for Staff+1
Magic: Heroic Song, Divine Spells

-Zero Level: Aura, Cure, Light Ray, Wisdom
-First Level:  Augry 

Arms Skills:  Staves, Sling
Arts Skills: Divination, First Aid, Healing, Music Lore (Harp and Sing)
Languages: Common R S Ancient R S

Equipment: White robes, holy book, holy symbol

Wild Singer

Singers of the wilderness who have learned the songs of faerie folk a dangerous occupation. To survive they need many secret skills and abilities. They risk being kidnapped if faerie like them too much and death if they fail. Some join faerie folk willingly or by invitation. In the human world such characters often spread faerie propaganda and spy for elves. Some humans are very curious others are suspicious. Some people who grow near faerie folk adopt this school and may work to keep peace between humans and faeries even recovering kidnapped victims or trading changelings back for stolen children. They often help deal with dangerous animals and even work as shepherds to be close to nature and away from the common herd of humans 
Nuetral Oath: "Celebrate All Festivals" for d4+4 +1 arrows per month
Magic: Beast Song, Druidic spells

-Zero Level: Alarm, Beastcall, Berry, Sting

-First Level: Entangle

Arms Skills:  Archery, Blades
Arts Skills: Faerie Lore, Nature Lore, First Aid, Music Lore (Lyre & Sing)

Languages: Common R S Elven R S
Equipment: clothes of an elf servant, week of elf rations with no weight

Grave Singer 

These magical grave robbers sing the dead from their graves and sell them to necromancers and medical students. As they grow in power they can work on fresher corpses with meat. Knowing their art is forbidden and only appreciated by the dead so many work as morticians, grave diggers, taxidermists, headstone carvers and other gloomy skills to be near death more often. The secret school dream of making the journey to the underworld to plunder power, knowledge or recover a dead lover. Playing for great powers of undeath who are are eternal are a more worthy audience. They are very theatrical and like to practice choreography for undead dances. Occasionally their are death festivals with parades and costumes and grave singers will come out into the open. Many failed as necromancy students as they were too artistic. Some narrowly avoided attending the black school where imps from hell teach students in the transdimensional library annex of hell. Many like to live in old crypts and tombs
Lawful Oath "Keep fastidious Higiene" for a scroll per month
Mafic: Bone Song, Arcane spells

-Zero Level: Cold, Evil Eye, Exterminate, Stun

-First Level: Skeleton Servant 

Arms Skills:  Blades, Sycthe
Arts Skills: Mortician, Death Lore, Intimidate, Music Lore (Lyre & Flute)

Languages: Common R S Ancient R S
Equipment: Skull bone lyre with human hair, femur bone flute

Harlequin 
These foreign clowns from the continent are bizarre performers who travel in troups and enact symbolic plays mostly with mimes and dance and some musical company. You often see them at fairs and festivals in cities especially those with ports and more foreign born peoples. Harlequins will adopt orphans into their troupe and will also befriend beggers, thieves and other outcastes guilds. Some say they are spies and assassins or have some agenda but they have not ever been seen near such incidents and were deemed innocent by divination investigations. They speak rarely in public or unmasked with strangers. Many of their stories feature strange gods, monsters and alien beings and places which some find unhinging. Rural commoners find them a bit weird and fancy like a cult but urban people consider then status enhancing of the comunity  
Chaotic Oath "Always wear two opposite colours" for a +1 silver dagger
Magic: Mentalism spells

-Zero Level:  Calm, Open, Palm Phantom, Slap 
-First Level: Illusion

Arms Skills: Blades, Clubs 

Arts Skills: Acrobatics, Dance, Balance, Music Lore (Lute & flute)

Languages: Common R S Halequin R S
Equipment: Costume, colourful scarves, decorative mask, decorative flag or banner to attract spectators at a performance

More?
Id consider manead dionysis cult brd or a horrorfying screaming old woman bard for funerals or scaring people but I'm feeling restrained at the moment.