Class Features
As a cardcaster, you gain the following class features.
Hit Points
Hit Dice: 1d6 per cardcaster level
Hit Points at 1st Level: 6 + your Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d6 (or 4) + your Constitution modifier per cardcaster level after 1st
Proficiencies
Armor: None
Weapons: Daggers, darts, slings, quarterstaffs, light crossbows
Tools: Game set (cards)
Saving Throws: Intelligence, Wisdom
Skills: Choose two from Arcana, Deception, History, Insight, Investigation, Nature, and Religion
Equipment
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:
(a) a quarterstaff, (b) a dagger, or (c) a longsword (if proficient)
(a) a component pouch, (b) an arcane focus, or (c) a holy symbol
(a) a scholar’s pack or (b) a priest’s pack
Leather armor (if proficient)
A set of tarot cards
Cards of Power
Your insight into the secrets of the tarot grants you their power and some capacity with spells. In addition, in your hands, even a mundane deck of cards can be positively lethal. You can use your action to throw a playing card, making a spell attack against a target within 40 feet. On a successful hit, you deal 1d6 magical slashing damage. This damage increases by 1d6 at 5th level, and again at 9th, 13th, and 18th level (to a maximum of 5d6).
Cantrips. You know two cantrips, which are determined by your Focus Card (see below).
Playing Your Cards and Casting Spells. The Cardcaster table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your cardcaster spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these spells, you must play a major arcana card and expend a slot of the spell’s level or higher. Playing a card does not require an action and is part of a spell’s activation. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest.
You do not prepare spells. Instead, you keep a hand of major arcana cards that determine which spells are available for you to cast. Each card grants access to multiple spells. The spells you cast must be of a level for which you have spell slots.
You begin with magical access to the major arcana cards numbered 0 through 5th, all of which go to form your deck. As you advance in level, you add major arcana cards to your deck as per the Major Arcana Available column on the Cardcaster table.
When you complete a long rest, draw cards from your deck until you have a full hand. When you play a card to cast a spell it is moved to the discard pile. At the end of your turn, if you have less than a full hand, draw until your hand is full. When you complete a long rest, discard whatever cards you wish from your hand, then shuffle the deck and discard pile together and refill your hand. Your hand size improves with your level as per the Cardcaster table.
For example, if you’re a 3rd-level cardcaster, you have four 1st level and two 2nd level spell slots, and a hand size of three. When you draw your hand after completing a long rest, you pull The Magician (burning hands, create or destroy water, detect magic, floating disc, unseen servant, or silent image), The Empress (animal friendship, entangle, goodberry, or speak with animals), and The Chariot (blur, enlarge/reduce, magic weapon, or spiritual weapon). You can expend a 1st level spell slot to play The Magician or The Empress and cast one of the spells on that card. Alternatively, you can expend a 2nd level spell slot to cast a spell from The Chariot, or to cast a more powerful version of a spell from The Magician or The Empress. After you cast the spell and play the card, you place it into the discard pile and at the end of your turn, draw a new card to return your hand to its maximum size.
Spellcasting Ability. Intelligence is your key ability for cardcaster features, powers, and spells since you discern portents through your esoteric knowledge. You use your Intelligence whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Intelligence modifier when setting the saving throw DC for your cardcaster features, powers, or spells, or when making a spell attack roll.
Spell and feature save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier
Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier
Ritual Casting. You can cast a divination spell as a ritual if that spell has the ritual tag and you have the spell memorized. Furthermore, if a card in your hand has an optional spell with the ritual tag, you can cast that spell as a ritual without discarding the card.
Memorizing Divination Rituals. When you find a divination ritual spell of 1st level or higher, you can memorize it only if a cleric or wizard of your cardcaster level could prepare it, and you spare the time to practice it.
For each level of the spell, the process takes 2 hours and costs 50 gp, like a wizard copying a spell into their spellbook. The cost represents material components you expend as you experiment with the spell to master it, as well as incense burned to channel your mystical focus. Once you have spent this time and money, you can cast the ritual at will.
If you multiclass into a spellcasting class, you know these spells and may prepare them if such spells appear on the other class’s spell list.
Spell Focus. You can use an arcane focus or a holy symbol as a spellcasting focus for your cardcaster spells. While you have your tarot set on your person, you can use any card from it as an arcane focus.
Focus Card
At 1st level, you have chosen a face card of the minor arcana through which to channel your powers: Knight of Swords, Page of Wands, Queen of Cups, King of Pentacles. or Jack of Beasts.
Your choice grants you features at 1st level, and again at 2nd, 6th, 10th, and 14th level.
Card Mastery
At 3rd level, choose a major arcana card numbered 0th through 5th. This card is always in your hand, and it does not count against the number of cards in your hand. You can play it as often as you like without moving it to the discard pile.
By spending 8 hours in contemplation, you can change your card choice.
Mulligan
Starting at 7th level, once per day when you complete a short rest, you can discard as many cards from your hand as you wish and then draw until you have a full hand.
You can use this feature twice per day starting at 11th level and three times per day starting at 15th level.
Signature Card
At 20th level, choose a major arcana card numbered 6th–9th. This card is always in your hand, and it does not count against the number of cards in your hand. You can play this card without moving it to the discard pile.
Major Arcana
Each card entry lists spell options. When you play the card, you cast one spell from that list of your choice.
0th (1st level)—The Fool (2♣/2♠, 0)
Spell Options: detect poison and disease, expeditious retreat, hideous laughter, or mage armor.
1st (1st level)—The Magician (2♦/2♥, I)
Spell Options: burning hands, create or destroy water, detect magic, floating disc, unseen servant, or silent image.
2nd (1st level)—The High Priestess (3♣/3♠, II)
Spell Options: charm person, fog cloud, identify or sleep.
3rd (1st level)—The Empress (3♦/3♥, III)
Spell Options: animal friendship, entangle, goodberry, or speak with animals.
4th (1st level)—The Emperor (4♣/4♠, IV)
Spell Options: detect evil and good, hold person, command, or protection from evil and good.
5th (1st level)—The Hierophant (4♦/4♥, V)
Spell Options: bane, bless, sanctuary, or shield of faith.
6th (2nd level)—The Lovers (5♣/5♠, VI)
Spell Options: detect thoughts, mirror image, suggestion, or zone of truth.
7th (2nd level)—The Chariot (5♦/5♥, VII)
Spell Options: blur, enlarge/reduce, magic weapon, or spiritual weapon.
8th (3rd level)—Justice (6♣/6♠, VIII)
Spell Options: bestow curse, clairvoyance, lightning bolt, or protection from energy.
9th (3rd level)—The Hermit (6♦/6♥, IX)
Spell Options: counterspell, dispel magic, remove curse, or tiny hut.
10th (4th level)—Wheel of Fortune (7♣/7♠, X)
Spell Options: confusion, death ward, divination, or freedom of movement.
11th (4th level)—Strength (7♦/7♥, XI)
Spell Options: herculean force, resilient sphere, stone shape, or stoneskin.
12th (5th level)—The Hanged Man (8♣/8♠, XII)
Spell Options: dominate beast, dominate person, geas, or planar binding.
13th (5th level)—Death (8♦/8♥, XIII)
Spell Options: animate dead, cloudkill, contagion, or insect plague.
14th (6th level)—Temperance (9♣/9♠, XIV)
Spell Options: contingency, globe of invulnerability, or true seeing.
15th (6th level)—The Devil (9♦/9♥, XV)
Spell Options: eyebite, force cage, or mass suggestion.
16th (7th level)—The Tower (10♣/10♠, XVI)
Spell Options: disintegrate, divine word, magnificent mansion, or reverse gravity.
17th (7th level)—The Star (10♦/10♥, XVII)
Spell Options: conjure celestial, plane shift, prismatic spray, or regenerate.
18th (8th level)—The Moon ( J♣/J♠, XVIII)
Spell Options: antipathy/sympathy, feeblemind, maze, or mind blank.
19th (8th level)—The Sun (Q♦/Q♥, XIX)
Spell Options: demiplane, holy aura, incendiary cloud, or sunburst.
20th (9th level)—Judgment (K♣/K♠, XX)
Spell Options: foresight, imprisonment, mass heal, meteor swarm,or power word kill.
21st (9th level)—The World (A♦/A♥, XXI)
Spell Options: time stop, true polymorph, true resurrection, or wish.