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Subclass Bard College of Valor
The College of Valor is a Bard subclass that turns the Bard into a martial support hybrid. Medium Armor, Shields, and Martial Weapons at Level 3 give full martial capability. Combat Inspiration lets Bardic Inspiration buff allies' attacks, defenses, and damage. Extra Attack at Level 6 pairs with War Magic — the Valor Bard can replace one of those extra attacks with any cantrip.
| LEVEL | FEATURE |
|---|---|
| 3 | Combat Inspiration, Martial Training |
| 6 | Extra Attack, War Magic |
Martial Training You gain proficiency with Medium Armor, Shields, and Martial Weapons.
Combat Inspiration A creature that has a Bardic Inspiration die from you can use it in one of the following ways:
- Defense. Immediately after the creature is hit by an attack roll, the creature can expend the Bardic Inspiration die and add the number rolled to its AC against that attack, potentially causing it to miss.
- Offense. Immediately before the creature makes an attack roll or a damage roll, the creature can expend the Bardic Inspiration die and add the number rolled to that roll.
Extra Attack You can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.
War Magic When you take the Attack action, you can replace one of the attacks with a casting of one of your Bard cantrips that has a casting time of an action.
The College of Valor is the martial generalist Bard. Combat Inspiration changes the timing on Bardic Inspiration from "use now to add to a roll" to "hold and react" — allies can save the die for a defensive use (adding to AC after being hit) or an offensive use (adding to attack or damage). This makes Inspiration more efficient since it responds to the highest-impact moment.
War Magic at Level 6 creates an attack-and-cantrip turn: when you take the Attack action and get two attacks, you can fire one attack and replace the other with a Bard cantrip. This means Vicious Mockery or Thunderclap can fire alongside a sword swing in the same action. The combination of full martial kit (Medium Armor + Shield + Martial Weapons), Combat Inspiration's flexible timing, and War Magic's action economy makes the Valor Bard the strongest melee-capable option among the Bard colleges.