A Bard's Tale

Throughout history, bards have been seen as entertainers, sources of knowledge, and inspiring orators. But they were seldom picked to be more than a flag bearer in battle, with the infantrymen using the oft repeated taunt “Why don't we duel, you and your pen, me and my sword and then we'll see who is mightier.”

And then came the Quiet Night. Monsters poured from the darkness, literally killing sound as they went. The first guards in a small frontier town tried to sound the alarm but, despite the bell moving, nothing rung forth. After the guards were dispatched, the monsters went from house to house, tearing through people who's screams died in their throats. And even when the houses and buildings fell under their own weight, all was silent for miles in every direction. 

The horde of monsters drove across the continent towards the oceans, felling even the king's standing army. Without the ability to coordinate through drum, trumpet and orders, they made quick work of man even when evenly matched. Letters were sent to warn those who still lived in audible zones, but it was little more than pleas to move further and further from the soundless void.

But one gnomish bard wasn't content to run. No, she fancied herself a hero and was determined to tinker together a device that would make sound in the void. She envisioned tinkered ear trumpets, flaring horns, and stethoscopes.

It took nearly a dozen close calls with the monsters, but Styli Redlinings eventually perfected her first device. She had been working on the theory that a loud or shrill enough sound might cut through the din. And that it did. But it also cut through the closest creature like an invisible knife. And that day, the Redlinings Company was born.

Over the month that followed, Styli worked tirelessly to weaponize her design. She was able to make several variants, including one that hit the monsters like a ton of bricks, another that caused them to spontaneously combust, and even one that just made them wink out of existence. 

It took time to break up the horde, driving the monsters back to where they came from, and even then, they were still known to appear and ravage a town that wasn't prepared. The silent voids still existed, blanketing a huge swath of the continent. But the bards, those who could afford and play Redlinings brand instruments, were there to defend, rescue, and fight the battles that no one else could.

Styli even invented a sonic pen, just to answer the age old question.

Inspiration

- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvipPYFebWc
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LNS8qM4FUQ

Your Adventure

In A Bard's Tale, you play a bard adventurer with a sonic weapon. Maybe you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth and bought an official Redlinings Sound Hammer right from the store, or maybe you've cobbled together a knockoff from junk and after market parts. Or maybe you found it in the woods and thought it was your calling.
No matter how you came upon it, people now look to you to act as a protector. But whether you're in it for the heroics, profit, the thrill, or the groupies, there's more monsters than bards so you're always in demand. 

Your Instrument

Rumors and tales of bards often center around their instrument. Because of their expense, very few people have unaltered factory models. Pieces can be swapped out when damaged and they're often customized to be fashioned after traditional weapons, with bright colored paints, or even merged with the bard's old, normal instruments. 

As a starting adventurer, your instrument has two of the following features. You will be able to add more as your adventures progress.

bellows 
Blows air into the instrument to through a mechanical process.
@todo Mechanical bonus to multi-tasking. Multiple attacks?

bow 
A long thin pieced used for playing a stringed instrument
@todo Bonus slicing damage. Requires strings.

catgut 
strong string made from animals’ intestines
@todo Damage bonus and/or durability if we want item breakage.

damper or mute 
an object used for making a musical instrument produce a sound that is softer and less loud
@todo Ability to produce temporary void fields?

drumstick 
music a stick used for playing a drum
@todo Bonus bludgeoning damage. Requires drum head.

head 
the top of a drum
@todo Bludgeoning damage

mouthpiece or microphone
the part of something such as a musical instrument that you put in or near your mouth
@todo Piercing damage. Faciliates singing or oratation

pick or plectrum
a small thin piece of plastic or metal used for playing the strings of a guitar or a similar musical instrument
@todo Mechanical bonus to multi-tasking. Multiple attacks?

pipe 
one of the large tubes on an instrument that air passes through to make the sound
@todo Bonus damage

resonator 
the part that makes sounds resonate inside a musical instrument or piece of equipment
@todo Lingering “damage over time” damage.

stop or tuning peg or pedal
one of the parts on the instrument that you push, turn, or pull in order to control the level of sound
@todo “Modes”. Effectively, with the right tweaking, the instrument substantially changes.

strings 
music one of several long pieces of nylon, wire, or another substance stretched across a musical instrument, and used for producing sounds
@todo Slashing damage. Number of strings can impact dice size and number.

keyboard or valve 
the part of some musical instruments that can be pushed/released to change the sound of the note
@todo Like modes, but less time consuming changes = less impact

Examples

Lindey's Violin – This seemingly standard violin has a pipe sticking out of the side. It does 4d6 slicing damage and any one's are rerolled.

Grandstand Drum – Originally given away at the king's arena, that practice was discontinued when their intense vibrations collapsed a row of bleachers. Combining a drum head with a deep resonator, this instrument does 1d12 damage this round. If played next round, it does 2d12 damage, 3d12 on the third successive round, and 4d12 on the fourth successive round.