Tarot Reading

You shuffle, name a subject aloud, and lay three cards face down, turning them one at a time. Each falls upright or reversed.

The spell does not speak. It places cards. The magic is that the card which comes up is the card belonging to the subject, in the orientation belonging to it — the meaning of the card is the answer, and reading it is the caster's own work.

A subject may be a creature you can see within range (including yourself), an object or place you can see or touch, or a course of action, bargain, undertaking or question that resolves within the reading's horizon.

The three positions are what lies behind, what lies upon, and what lies ahead — past, present and future for a creature; root, pressure and outcome for anything else.

Unwilling subjects. A creature that does not consent makes a Charisma saving throw. On a success all three cards come up blank, and the casting is spent regardless. A creature may choose to fail.

Horizon. The base reading covers the next 24 hours. Anything outside it simply doesn't appear — the reading comes out thin, not false.

Cast as a ritual. A true reading, but a broad one. The cards land on the subject in general rather than on the particular question in the reader's mind, and the omen below is interpretation only — no die changes.

Cast with a 2nd-level slot. The reading narrows to the subject as named, and Omen's Weight takes hold mechanically.

Omen's Weight. The orientation of the third card leaves a mark on the subject, or on the caster if the subject isn't a creature. It lasts until that creature finishes a long rest, and a creature carries only one at a time. Upright: once, after rolling a d20 test, they add 1d4 to the result. Reversed: once, after a creature rolls a d20 attack or contest against them, they subtract 1d4 from that roll.

Repeat readings. Read the same subject again before finishing a long rest and each reading after the first carries a cumulative 25% chance of being false. A false reading is indistinguishable from a true one. Rephrasing the question does not reset it.

At Higher Levels. Cannot be cast as a ritual when upcast. For each slot level above 2nd, choose one refinement; they may be taken more than once and combined freely. Unmistakable — one card lands so squarely that what it points at is not in question, a single person, place, number or day rather than a theme. The asking card — put one yes-or-no question to the spread and draw a single card for it; upright is yes, reversed is no, and it does not lie. The fourth card — draw what is hidden, what acts on the subject without their knowing. Widen the horizon — 24 hours → 3 days → 7 days → one month → one year.