Rubato

As a rubato, you gain access to one martial tradition of your choice.

Maneuvers

You begin play with knowledge of 3 martial maneuvers chosen from the martial disciplines offered by your chosen tradition. Once you know a maneuver, you must ready it before you can use it (see Maneuvers Readied below).

You learn additional maneuvers at higher levels, as indicated on Table: The Rubato. You must meet a maneuver’s prerequisites, if any, to learn it. In addition, the maximum level of maneuvers gained through rubato levels is limited by those listed in the table as well, although this restriction does not apply to maneuvers added to your maneuvers known through other methods, such as prestige classes or feats.

Upon reaching initiator level 4th, and at every even numbered initiator level thereafter (6th, 8th, 10th, and so on), you can choose to learn a new maneuver in place of one you already know. In effect, you lose the old maneuver in exchange for the new one. You can choose a new maneuver of any level you like, as long as you observe the restriction on the highest-level maneuvers you know; you need not replace the old maneuver with a maneuver of the same level. You can swap only a single maneuver at any given level.

Your initiator level is equal to your class level, and your initiation modifier for your rubato maneuvers is Charisma.

Maneuvers Readied

At 1st level, you can ready all three of your maneuvers known by practicing your performance skills or communing with the primal rhythm for ten minutes. The maneuvers you choose remain readied until you decide to change them by repeating this process. You need not Rest to ready maneuvers; any time you can practice for ten minutes, you can change your readied maneuvers. You must always ready your maximum number of maneuvers readied.

You begin each encounter with all your readied maneuvers unexpended, regardless of how many times you might have already used them since you chose them. When you initiate a maneuver, you expend it for the current encounter, so each of your readied maneuvers can be used once per encounter, unless you recover it, as described below.

As you advance in level and learn more maneuvers, you are able to ready more but must still choose which maneuvers to ready.

Recovering Maneuvers

To recover your expended rubato maneuvers, you must expend tempo. You can recover a single expended maneuver as a swift action by spending 2 points of tempo or as a free action by spending 3 points of tempo. You may not recover a maneuver by spending tempo in the same round that you initiated it, though you might be able to recover it in other ways.

Alternatively, you may spend a standard action to recover a single expended maneuver of your choosing.

Stances

You begin your career with knowledge of one stance from any discipline offered by your martial tradition. At 4th, 7th, 11th, and 13th levels, you can select an additional stance to learn, as listed on the table.

Unlike maneuvers, stances are not expended and you do not have to ready them. All the stances you know are available to you at all times, and you can change the stance you are  currently maintaining as a swift action. A stance is an extraordinary ability unless otherwise stated in the stance or discipline description.

Unlike with maneuvers, you cannot learn a new stance at higher levels in place of one you already know.

As you fight and draw on the primal song, you build up your tempo. When you enter combat, you gain a tempo pool equal to 1/2 your class level (minimum 1) + your rubato initiation modifier at the start of your first turn. You add one point of tempo to your tempo pool at the start of each of your turns thereafter. Your tempo pool persists for one minute after the last enemy combatant is defeated or the encounter otherwise ends.

Outside combat, you have no tempo to spend. You may not gain tempo out of combat, even if another ability would normally permit you to.

In addition, tempo counts as animus for the purpose of meeting the prerequisites of feats and prestige classes.

Unlike typical bards, rubati do not gain any rounds per day of bardic performance. Instead, you may spend one point of tempo as if it were a round of bardic performance.

As a rubato, you do not learn any of the standard bardic performances. Instead, you select performances from the following list.

Alacritous Allegro

Prerequisite: Bard level 6, Perform 6 ranks. Components: Audible or visual

You can use this performance to infuse your body with alacrity, allowing you to move and attack more quickly. You gain a +1 bonus on attack rolls, a +1 dodge bonus to AC and on Reflex saves, and a +10 enhancement bonus to your land speed. At 9th level, and every three bard levels thereafter, your enhancement bonus to land speed increases by +5, to a maximum of +30 at 18th level.

Additionally, when making a full attack, you may make an extra attack with any weapon, as though under the effects of the haste spell. bonuses do not stack with the haste spell.

Aria of Animal Empathy

Prerequisite: Natural Lore 1 rank Components: Audible or visual

You can use this performance to influence the attitude of animals. This performance functions as the ranger’s wild empathy ability, except you make a Perform check in place of the normal check made using the skill. If you already have wild empathy from another class, you add your class levels that provide wild empathy to the results of the Perform check to influence an animal.

Canon

Prerequisite: Perform 9 ranks Components: Audible and visual

You lead your allies in a martial rhythm. When an affected ally initiates a maneuver, that ally can recover an expended maneuver of different type (for example, an ally that initiates a strike may recover a boost or a counter). Each affected ally may only recover up to one maneuver per round in this fashion.

Charming Performance

Prerequisite: Bard level 3, Perform 4 ranks Components: Audible and visual, mind-affecting, enchantment (charm)

You learn a performance that charms the mind of a single creature. The target of this performance must be within 90 feet, able to see and hear you, and be capable of paying attention to you. You must be able to see the target.

The creature is charmed as the charm person spell, except that the Will save DC is 10 + 1/2 your bard level + your Charisma modifier. The target creature remains charmed for as long as you continue this performance. This performance costs 1 round of bardic performance for each minute it is performed (spent at the beginning of each minute).

On a successful save, the target creature becomes immune your use of this performance for 24 hours.

Charming Performance, Mass

Prerequisite: Perform 9 ranks, Charming Performance

When you use Charming Performance, you target one additional creature for every two additional rounds of bardic performance you spend up to a maximum number of creatures equal to half your bard level, rounded down.

Con Moto

Prerequisite: Perform 12 ranks Components: Audible or visual

Your upbeat tempo enhance the maneuvers of your allies, leading them to dance to the beat. Whenever an affected ally initiates a maneuver, you can spend 2 tempo as a free action, even if it isn’t your turn. If you do, that ally may move up to 15 feet as part of the maneuver (resolve this movement either immediately before, or immediately after initiating the maneuver) or if the maneuver already involves movement, they may increase the distance moved by 15 feet. This movement provokes attacks of opportunity as normal, unless another ability would prevent such attacks. In addition, the save DC of that ally’s maneuver (if any) increases by 2.

Counterpoint

Components: Audible or visual

You learn how to lead your allies in a defensive rhythm. Affected allies gain a bonus equal to 1/2 your rubato class level (minimum one) on all non-damage rolls made as part of initiating counters.

Crescendo

Prerequisite: Perform 15 ranks, Charming Performance Components: Audible or visual

You can maximize your strikes with tempo, smiting your enemies with the triumphant rise of the primal song. Unlike other bardic performances, you may activate this performance while maintaining another performance. When you initiates a strike with an initiation action of 1 standard action, you can expend 7 points of tempo to maximize the damage (including ability damage, if appropriate) dealt by that strike. Treat all damage dice rolled as part of the strike as though they had achieved the maximum result. This does not affect any other part of the strike, such as attack rolls or rolls to determine the duration of effects.

Deceptive Tale

Components: Audible, language-dependent

You learn a performance that weaves magic into your lies and imbues the most fantastic claims with the semblance of truth. While you maintain this performance, you take half the normal penalty on Deception checks for unlikely lies (rounding down to -2). At 6th level, this effect also applies to Deception checks for far-fetched lies, and at 12th level, it applies to Deception checks for impossible lies.

Discordant Orchestra

Prerequisite: Perform 6 ranks Components: Audible, sonic

You can use this performance to cause damaging resonant vibrations within the foes who perceive it. Choose a single creature you can see within 30 feet of you each round. That target must make a Fortitude saving throw or take 4d6 points of sonic damage plus your ranks in Perform. A successful save halves this damage. This performance cannot be affected by effects that allow you to continue a performance after you stop maintaining it.

With precise care, you can increase the resonant damage of this performance. Each round that you maintain this performance after the first, you can create an additional damaging vibration by spending a number of additional rounds of bardic performance equal to the number of vibrations you already maintain. For example, if you have already created three damaging vibrations, you will need to spend 1 round to maintain this performance plus an additional three rounds to create a fourth vibration.

You can have a maximum of one damaging vibration for every four ranks in the Perform skill used. Each damaging vibration must target a different creature, but you may change the target for each vibration as normal. Maintaining additional vibrations you have already created do not cost additional rounds of performance beyond the normal number needed to maintain the performance.

Fortissimo

Prerequisite: Perform 6 ranks Components: Audible

You empower your martial techniques with tempo. Unlike other bardic performances, you may activate this performance while maintaining another performance. When you initiate a strike with an initiation action of 1 standard action, you can expend 4 points of tempo to increase the damage (including ability damage, if appropriate) dealt by that strike by 50%. You can activate this performance after rolling your attack roll and determining if it hit or missed, but must activate it before damage is rolled. You must wait 3 rounds after performing a fortissimo before you may perform it again.

Fugue

Prerequisite: Perform 18 ranks Components: Audible

You learns to maintain two bardic performances at the same time. You can activate two bardic performances with the same action, paying any associated costs for each separately. Performances noted as being able to be used while maintaining other performances (such as fortissimo) do not count against this limit.

Incite Violence

Prerequisite: Perform 6 ranks, Inspire Fascination aura Components: Audible, enchantment (compulsion), language-dependent, mind-affecting

With a few choice words, you inflame passions and distract from reason, driving those who hear you into a violent riot. This performance only affects creatures you have fascinated, such as by using your Inspire Fascination aura. Using this performance does not end the fascinated condition.

As a full-round action, select a number of fascinated creatures up to a maximum equal to your ranks in Perform. They must make a successful Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 your bard level + your Charisma modifier) or be affected as by the rage spell for a number of rounds equal to your bard level.

When you use this performance, you must indicate the intended target of violence. Enraged members of the crowd immediately attack the target if possible. The target does not need to be present (e.g. “kill the king” is a suitable choice) and can be an object instead of a person (e.g. “destroy the prison!” is likewise appropriate). Other members of the crowd may follow suit, though they do not gain the benefits of rage.

If two or more bards are attempting to direct the crowd against different targets, they must make opposed Charisma checks, with the crowd following the directions of the winner.

Metronome

Components: Audible

You create a stronger, faster beat as you play the music of the primal song. While maintaining this performance, you add two points of tempo to your tempo pool at the beginning of each of your turns. At 5th level and every five levels thereafter, the amount of tempo gained by this ability increases by 1.

Piper’s Calling

Prerequisite: Perform 6 ranks Components: Audible or visual

This performance calls upon swarms of rats to attack your foes. Starting this performance summons 1d3 rat swarms in squares adjacent to you. These rat swarms are under your mental control and act on your initiative. These swarms immediately disappear when you end the performance.

For every 6 additional ranks of Perform that you possess, you may summon 1d3 additional rat swarms (2d3 at 12 ranks, 3d3 at 18 ranks).

Relax Tensions

Components: Audible or visual, mind-affecting

You can soothe your allies to relax the fatigue and tension of regular hardships. Each ally within 30 feet of you (including yourself) ignores the fatigued and shaken conditions for as long as you maintain this performance.

Rallying Performance

Components: Audible, mind-affecting

An invigorating performance can quickly rally dispirited allies. You make a Perform check each round of this performance. Any ally within 30 feet (including yourself) may use this check in place of their own saving throw against fear effects. Those already under a fear effect can attempt a new save each round using your Perform check at the beginning of their turn. Rallying performance does not work on effects that don’t allow saves.

Serenade of Healing

Prerequisite: Perform 4 ranks Components: Audible and visual, mind-affecting

Music is known to have soothing and restorative properties, and this performance enhances that to magical levels. Each round you perform the serenade of healing, you may target a single creature within 30 feet, healing them for a number of hit points equal to 1d8 + your bard level.

You can provide greater healing as your Perform skill improves. For every 4 ranks you possess in the Perform skill used, this performance can heal 1d8 damage (1d8 at 4 ranks, 2d8 at 8 ranks, and so forth).

If serenade of healing is extended using the Lingering Performance feat or a similar effect, the amount of healing provided is halved in each round you don’t spend any rounds of bardic performance to maintain it. For example, when a 10th-level bard with 8 ranks in Perform uses Serenade of Healing with Lingering Performance, he would heal for 2d8 + 10 normally or half that amount—that is (2d8+10)/2—in any lingering rounds.

Serenade of Healing, Mass

Prerequisite: Perform 8 ranks Components: Audible and visual, mind-affecting

When you use Serenade of Healing, you can target additional creatures. The healing is reduced by 1d8 for each additional target creature. For example, if you have 12 ranks in Perform, you would normally heal one creature for 3d8 + your bard level. By targeting 2 creatures, each would instead be healed for 2d8 + your bard level.

If you target enough creatures to reduce the number of dice 0, each creature is only healed for a number of hit points equal to your bard level.

Mass Serenade of Healing cannot be extended using the Lingering Performance feat or similar effects.

Shattering Crescendo

Components: Audible or visual, sonic

You can use this performance to augment your current performance without stopping its effects. By creating a rising crescendo of shattering force, you can spend 1 round of bardic performance as a standard action to direct a sonically charged burst at a creature or object. This performance deals 1d4 points of sonic damage plus your bard level to the target and deals full damage to objects.

Unlike a normal bardic performance, you can perform a shattering crescendo while maintaining another bardic performance without disrupting its effects.

The action cost of using this performance cannot be reduced in any way.

Sonata of Stone

Components: Audible or visual, Earth

Your performance shakes the very earth beneath your feet. Enemies within 30 feet of you struggle to maintain balance due to the rumbling of the earth, giving them a -1 penalty to AC and Reflex saves while they are within the area. This penalty increases by 1 for every 5 ranks you possess in the Perform skill used to a maximum of -5 at 20 ranks.

Creatures who are flying or levitating above the ground are unaffected by this ability.