Vanguard

Bond Magic

A Vanguard gains their abilities directly from the bonds they form with others. This is what allows them to manipulate (and sometimes see) the Weave, allowing them to cast traditional magic. For most, empathy is a virtue, for a Vanguard it is their nature. Bonds with the people they love, the ones who have hurt them, the ones who have forgiven them, it is the source of their gifts, and the reason for their endless variation. No two Vanguard will establish the same dynamics, and so no two will exhibit their powers in the same way.

As these Bonds grow, both in number and strength, one will become the Guiding Bond of a Vanguard. Their most important person, truth, or ideal. It will be the true north in every decision, and the sole hope in times of need. Developing a Guiding Bond isn't guaranteed, but the results are powerful and plentiful when they occur. Work with your DM in deciding when and how your Guiding Bond is formed.

Bond-lines

Guiding Bonds can be positive, they can be negative. They can be beneficial or inconsequential. True bonds will enact a responsibility and a reward, their gifts are varied but can usually be discerned to be separated by the number of persons connected by the bond, the nature of the connection, and the nature of its inception. These things determine your Bond-lines, and frame the nature of your magic and abilities granted by your Guiding Bonds. Consult the Bond-Line section and work with your DM to determine how the nature of your bonds influence your magic and other abilities.

Creating your Bond-line

As you are thinking about your character's potential Bond-lines, ask yourself these questions:

• When was your Guiding Bond first created? How old were you?
• How many people are a part of your Guiding Bond? Are your ties identical with all people involved?
• Was this Bond forged in the heat of the moment, at a time of desperation? Perhaps it was pre-planned and brought to fruition? Was it complete happenstance?
• Is your bond romantic? Was it always? Was romance the goal?

Broken Bonds

Vanguard must cultivate and grow their bonds, a failure to do so, or to break or lose bonds entirely, results in a Broken Aspect to their abilities. Bonds can be broken by the death of a loved one, a betrayal so great it drives one party into apathy. Bonds are mutual, collaborative, growing almost living things, they cannot be one sided obsessions, or fixations. They cannot be a channeled longing or wishful daydream. Bonds that embody the Vanguard are forged. They are hammered by hardship, melded together by the heat of desire or joy. They are crafted and shaped by memories together or time spent collaborating. To lose such a connection is no easy thing, nor is it one without consequences. A player who allows their bonds to be broken, who drives a loved one away or is cut off in turn, will have their powers as a Vanguard changed. The power of empathy turns twisted, using the Vanguard as a power source instead of a vessel. They will become a Broken Bond Vanguard. Only a handful of Broken Vanguard have ever existed. Not much is known about how they can be healed, or even if such a thing is possible. The mending of a bond, the forgiveness and openness required, can perhaps be a dedication for life. A goal in the vein of absolution, of reconnection. Perhaps then a Vanguard can regain their previous power.

Hit Points

• Hit Dice: 1d8 per Vanguard level
• Hit Dice at 1st Level: 8 + your Constitution modifier
• Hit Dice at Higher Levels: 1d8 (or 5) + your Constitution modifier per your Vanguard level after the 1st

Proficiences

• Armor: Light armor
• Weapons: Simple weapons, martial weapons
• Saving Throws: Charisma, Constitution
• Skills: Choose three from Acrobatics, Athletics, Intimidation, Perception, Performance, Survival, Insight, and Nature

Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background

• (a) quarterstaff or (b) two batons
• (a) sling or (b) any simple weapon
• (a) dungeoneer's pack or (b) explorer's pack

Preparing and Casting Spells

The Vanguard table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells. To cast one of your Vanguard spells of 1st level or higher, you must expend a slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest.

You prepare the list of Vanguard spells that are available for you to cast, choosing from the Vanguard spell list. When you do so, choose a number of Vanguard spells equal to your Charisma modifier + your Vanguard level (minimum of one spell). The spells must be of a level for which you have spell slots. For example, if you are a 5th-level Vanguard, you have four 1st-level, and two 2nd-level spell slots. With a Charisma of 14, your list of prepared spells can include seven spells of 1st or 2nd level, in any combination. If you prepare the 1st-level spell Command, you can cast it using a 1st-level or a 2nd-level slot. Casting the spell doesn't remove it from your list of prepared spells.

You can change your list of prepared spells when you finish a long rest. Preparing a new list of Vanguard spells requires reflection on your bonds to others: at least 1 minute per spell level for each spell on your list.

Spellcasting Ability

Charisma is your spellcasting ability for your Vanguard spells, since their power comes from your ability to create and sustain bonds. You use Charisma whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Charisma modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a Vanguard spell you cast and when making a spell-attack roll with one.

Kindred Spirit

At 3rd Level, your bond has allowed you to commune with Nature and its beings. You can choose to learn Sylvan, Primordial, or have the Speak with Animals Spell always prepared as a ritual spell. Upon meeting Fey, Beasts, Elementals, or Plants, your aura of serenity will grant you advantage on Charisma or Intelligence checks made for the purposes of befriending or questioning these creature types. You can use this feature a number of time's equal to your proficiency bonus. You also gain a bonus of +5 to your passive perception as well as any perception checks made for the purposes of observing these creatures, and anticipating their levels of aggression or anger.

Call of Storm, Blessing of Rain

At 6th level, your magic is bolstered by the very air around you. Meditating for 10 minutes outdoors will call forth a torrent of rain. Work with your DM to determine the intensity of this rain, accounting for the climate and environment. When standing in this rain you gain the ability to cast one of the following spells without the use of a spell slot, ignoring their material component requirements; Elemental Weapon, Lightning Arrow, Lightning Bolt. You retain this ability for up to 24 hours.

At 10th level, you gain access to the following spells to choose from; Storm Sphere, Guardian of Nature, Conjure Minor Elementals. Creatures now have disadvantage when making their first saving throw against the effects of a spell cast using this feature.

Bond Forged of The Elements

At 13th level, you can use an action to selectively grant yourself and any bonded persons (so long as they are within 150 feet of you) Resistance to a single type of elemental damage; Cold, fire, lightning, or thunder. You, and they, gain Immunity to that damage type if already resistant. This lasts for 8 hours, and the selected elemental damage can be changed after a short rest.

Atmospheric Wrath

Your bond has unlocked immense magical power within you. You have become a force of nature, able to bend the elements to your will and use them to fuel your body. Starting at 16th level, having 0 hit points doesn’t knock you unconscious. You still must make death saving throws, and you suffer the normal effects of taking damage while at 0 hit points. If you make a death saving throw at the start of your turn, Storm of Vengeance is cast at your location. This version of the spell doesn't require concentration, and doesn't damage you or any bonded persons in its range, and immediately and simultaneously casts all rounds of its effects at once. Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a long rest.

Friendship Bond Spells

At each Vanguard Level, choose one of the offered spells to add as a Bond-line spell. At Level 16 you may choose two.

Vanguard Level	Spell
3	Maximilian’s Earthen Grasp, Rime's Binding Ice
6	Freedom of the Waves, Wind Wall, Thunder Step
10	Watery Sphere, Summon Elemental, Guardian of Nature
13	Cone of Cold, Control Winds, Maelstrom
16	Sunbeam, Chain Lightning, Investiture of Flame, Ice, Stone, or Wind

Avoidance and Awareness

At 3rd Level, your bond has allowed you to manipulate the focus of those who might harm you. use an action to choose an amount of creatures equal to or less than your proficiency bonus within 30 feet of you that have a minimum Intelligence score of 1; attempt to force their attention to any object, person, or other stimuli in range (of sight, hearing, etc). This person must make a Wisdom saving throw against your Spell Save DC. On a successful roll, their attention remains unaffected. On failure, they are distracted, and their attention will not stray back onto you for up to 1 minute. This feature can be used a number of times equal to half your proficiency bonus rounded down, and you regain one use every short rest.

Self-Imprisonment

At 6th level you gain the ability to trap the minds of others. After concentrating for 1 minute, you are able to use an action and supplant a person's awareness with an illusion of your own making. They must be within 30 feet and within your line of sight. This person must make a Wisdom saving throw against your Spell Save DC. On failure, the target will be made completely unaware of the real world, instead forced into your psychic reality. This illusion can last up to 1 minute. On a successful save the target is unaffected by the illusion, and is made aware of your general location. This feature can be used once and you regain one use per short rest.

Starting at 10th level, even on a successful save, the target experiences a dual reality, not quite shaking off the psychic attack. All actions are made with disadvantage, the range of their attacks and abilities are halved, and their movement speed is reduced to 5 feet. These effects last for 1 minute. You are now able to use this feature a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus. You regain 1 use per short short rest.

Spoils of Sensation

At 13th level you gain the ability to store your illusions within the Weave, creating Spoils that can be imbued with your illusions and made to take effect on those who come across them. To create a Spoil you must us an action, create the illusion, and concentrate onto the object you'd like to enchant. The illusion can be triggered by sight, hearing, touch, smell, or even by proximity or location. This illusion will fool all who's passive perception falls below your Spell Save DC, those with higher perception must make a wisdom saving throw with disadvantage against your Spell Save DC + the number of bonded persons within 1 mile (including you). You can create a number of Spoils equal to your proficiency bonus, and each will remain enchanted for up to a week. After creating the maximum number of Spoils, you must wait a full day before creating new Spoils or refreshing old ones.

Reality Overwritten

At 16th Level you are able to use your influence on the Weave to change reality. When you or a bonded person within 100 feet are attacked or targeted for a spell, you can use your reaction to force the attempts to fail, and instead redirect them to other targets within that same range. Those targets are also put under the effects of your Self-Imprisonment feature. You can use this feature twice per day, and you regain all uses at dawn.

Enduring Bond Spells

At each Vanguard Level, choose one of the offered spells to add as a Bond-line spell. At Level 16 you may choose two.

Vanguard Level	Spell
3	Blur, Crown of Madness
6	Hypnotic Pattern, Slow, Counterspell
10	Greater Invisiblity, Hallucinatory Terrain, Raulothim's Psychic Lance
13	Dominate Person, Modify Memory, Synaptic Static
16	Mental Prison, Otto's Irresistible Dance, Programmed Illusion

Army of One

At 3rd level, you can gain proficiency in additional skills or tools equal to half your proficiency bonus rounded down. These skills must be ones that those bonded to you are proficient in. They can be changed after each Long Rest. The bonded persons gain advantage when making these skill checks while within 30 feet of you. Once per Long Rest you may bolster a bonded person even further granting them a critical success in one of these skill checks.

Starting at 6th level, you are able to prepare a number of spells from the spell lists of those bonded to you, equal to half your proficiency bonus rounded down. These spells are in addition to your prepared Vanguard spells, and can be changed after each Long Rest. These spells may only be cast while the bonded person whose spell lists they originate from are within 60 feet of you. Once cast, these spells become unavailable until after a Long Rest.

Guardian for All

At 10th level, your ability to channel your bonds has been given form. You are able to use an action and form a Guardian companion. Work with your DM to determine what form your guardian takes, and its able to take the stat block of a CR 10 or lower Beast or Construct. Attacks made targeting you or any bonded persons while both the targets and attackers are within 120 feet of this guardian are made with disadvantage. This guardian adds your proficiency bonus to its attacks and saving throws, and gains an additional 1d10 to its HP pool for every Vanguard level above 3. When given the word, it can shapeshift into a a twin set of charms that can be carried or worn. Both charms must come together again to release the Guardian. If the guardian is reduced to 0 hit points, it cannot be summoned again until after a Short or Long Rest.

Empathetic Awakening

At 13th level, the bonds that fuel your magic can be awakened by using a bonus action, granting you and all bonded persons additional abilities. You are now able to communicate telepathically as long as you are in the same plane of existence. Additionally as an action, you or any bonded person can attempt to open their mind further, allowing each other to see the world through their eyes. While awakened, you are immune to being Frightened, Charmed, or Stunned. Additionally you cannot gain any levels of exhaustion, and any levels of exhaustion you already have will be reduced by one. This affect lasts until the next dawn. You can only awaken your bonds once before needing to Long Rest.

Collective Endeavor

Starting at level 16, you and those bonded with you are able to work together, combining all bonuses and proficiencies to skill checks and saving throws. This can be done a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, and you regain all uses with a long rest. Weapon and armor proficiencies also become shared as long as you are in the same plane of existence. Normal rules of encumbrance and penalties to mobility still apply. Additionally you gain a number of attunement slots equal to your half your proficiency bonus rounded down. These additional attunement slots can be used by you or be granted in any combination to your bonded persons. These slots can be redistributed after a long rest.

Communal Bond Spells

At each Vanguard Level, choose one of the offered spells to add as a Bond-line spell. At Level 16 you may choose two.

Vanguard Level	Spell
3	Aid, Lesser Restoration
6	Counterspell, Glyph of Warding, Catnap
10	Fire Shield, Otiluke's Resilient Sphere, Mordenkainen’s Private Sanctum
13	Dawn, Conjure Elemental, Greater Restoration
16	Blade Barrier, Bones of The Earth, Conjure Fey

Warring State

At 3rd level, when you have broken your binds, you lose access to both your Vanguard's Will and Forger of Bonds features. Instead your hit dice now become 1d12 per Vanguard level. In addition; you gain a permanent 15 feet increase to your movement speed and gain proficiency with Heavy Armor and Shields.

Origin of Loss

At 6th Level, Broken Bond Vanguard are able to channel their grief and rage into their weapon, or conjure a weapon of their choice using this feature (this requires an action). The weapon becomes a magical +2 weapon and deals an additional 1d8 Necrotic damage. You become proficient with this weapon even if you are not normally proficient with weapons of its type. You add your Spellcasting Ability Modifier to attacks made with this weapon, and to its damage. When making an attack with this weapon you gain an Extra Attack and can attack three times, instead of twice, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn. You cannot be disarmed of this weapon.

Depths of Despair

At 10th level, you are able to corrupt sections of the Weave, consuming its magic to offset the toll of casting your spells. A number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, you may cast spells using a spell slot one lower than it would normally cost. Doing so costs your Action and Bonus Action. This feature cannot be used to upcast a spell. If casting a spell that can heal in this way, the healing is halved. If casting a spell that would damage in this way, the damage is doubled. You regain all uses after a Long Rest.

Beginning at level 13, when you deal damage to a creature that can cast spells, you can use a bonus action to gain one spell from its list of prepared spells and cast it without expending a spell slot, at the expense of one use of this feature. You can only do this if you haven't cast a leveled spell already this round. This spell cannot be of a higher level than you normally would be able to cast using this feature, and it cannot be a spell you already have prepared. The creature must make a Saving Throw using their Spellcasting Ability against your Spell Save DC. If they fail the Saving Throw, that spell is now removed from the creature's list of prepared spells and if the spell or its effects are currently active they dissipate.

Finite

At level 16, you have mastered your corruption of the weave and are able to weaken its influence over you. All magical damage to you is reduced by 1d6 + your proficiency bonus. Upon walking into areas covered by magical effects, the caster must make a saving throw using their Spellcasting Ability against your Spell Save DC. If they fail, the spell effect ends, and the caster gains a level of exhaustion. If they succeed, you must make an additional saving throw against the spell's effects each time you would normally do so, until you leave the area or influence of this magic. Succeeding the additional Saving Throw will result in you still taking full damage, not half, if it is an effect capable of dealing damage. A caster can only be effected by this feature once per day.

Broken Bond Spells

At each Vanguard Level, choose one of the offered spells to add as a Bond-line spell. At Level 16 you may choose two.

Vanguard Level	Spell
3	Hold Person, Spiritual Weapon
6	Phantom Steed, Haste, Vampiric Touch
10	Fire Shield, Sickening Radiance, Shadow of Moil
13	Far Step, Wall of Force, Steel Wind Strike
16	Scatter, Fizban's Platinum Shield, Contingency

Trust

High levels of trust between a Vanguard and the person with whom they've established their Guiding Bond make their magic react almost explosively when worked in concert with others. Your Vanguard's Will feature is now able to cast spells from the Evocation and Transmutation schools of magic, from any spell list. Additionally; your bond-line spells whose primary effect is dealing damage gain an additional damage die for each bonded person that is within the spell's casting range of you when cast. Finally, those who have their bonds to you strengthened by your Forger of Bonds feature can now gain the Haste effect for one minute.

Secrecy

A closed off or secretive dynamic between a Vanguard and the person with whom they've established their Guiding Bond will grant them a more secure connection with their magic. Your Vanguard's Will feature is now able to cast spells from the Conjuration and Enchantment school of magic, from any spell list. Additionally; your bond-line spells can be cast without verbal or somatic components. Finally, those who have their bonds to you strengthened by your Forger of Bonds feature can now gain a +5 to Stealth, Sleight of Hand, and Deception checks for one minute.

Romance

When elements of romance exist between a Vanguard and the person with whom they've established their Guiding Bond, their magic gains the ability to spread across their bonds. Your Vanguard's Will feature is now able to cast spells from the Necromancy and Divination schools of magic, from any spell list. Additionally; your bond-line spells that specify a number of targets can now affect additional targets up to the number of bonded persons within the spell's casting range of you when cast. These additional targets must still satisfy the spell's requirements (such as range, creature type, etc). Finally, those who have their bonds to you strengthened by your Forger of Bonds feature can now add your proficiency bonus (if applicable) to saving throw and attack rolls for one minute.

Shared Space

A Vanguard's magic changes with the nature of their Guiding Bond. One that has spent long stretches of time in close quarters with the person with whom they've established their Guiding Bond will cause a change in the magic's nature. Your Vanguard's Will feature is now able to cast spells from the Illusion school of magic, from any spell list. Additionally; your bond-line spells are now able to utilize your bonds. A bond-line spell that requires concentration can instead use the concentration of a willing bonded person within 100 feet of you. The spell still uses the spellcasting ability and Spell Save DC of the Vanguard. This feature can be used a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus. You regain all uses on a long rest, or one use on a short rest. Finally, those who have their bonds to you strengthened by your Forger of Bonds feature can now attune to a magical item instantly without using an attunement slot. This attunement can only last up to ten minutes.

Safe Space

A Vanguard's magic changes with the nature of their Guiding Bond. One that has spent long stretches of time away from the person with whom they've established their Guiding Bond will cause a change in the magic's nature. Your Vanguard's Will feature is now able to cast spells from the Abjuration school of magic, from any spell list. Additionally; your bond-line spells that target yourself or any bonded person will also grant an increase to their maximum HP of 15 for every bonded person within the spell's casting range of them when cast (including you). Bond-line spells that heal will also do max healing once per day. Finally, those who have their bonds to you strengthened by your Forger of Bonds feature can now gain resistance to non-magical damage for one minute.

Betrayal

If there exists a significant moment or instance of betrayal between a Vanguard and the person with whom they've established their Guiding Bond, their magic will expand, gaining stronger centralized areas of effects. Your Vanguard's Will feature is now able to to cast spells that create areas of effect, from any spell list. Spells cast using this way will gain an increase of 20 feet to the radius of their area of effect. Additionally; your bond-line spells that specify targets will also create small 10 foot radius area of effects around each affected target. This small area will have the same effect as the targeted spell when applicable; i.e healing, damage, buffs or debuffs. Finally, those who have their bonds to you strengthened by your Forger of Bonds feature can now have their movement speed doubled when traveling through any magical area of effects (yours or not).