Card Caster version 2

A sudden explosive blast of fire made Aranais stumble, twin daggers falling to the ground. He reached for his crossbow - the firing mechanism was broken by the blast.  He glanced up - the tall, slender man stood calmly, fingers tracing the air that was filled with magical cards swirling around his body like a bandolier. He watched helplessly as a card was chosen seemingly at random and thrown into the air. A small rock golem fell from the sky with an explosive burst of sand next to Aranais, pinning his leg. The Card Caster grinned, pulling his tinted goggles over his eyes. "Now, about that book you tried to steal..."

Far across the Greensea, in the deserts of Venubia, a new type of Wizard tradition was born: the Card Caster. Originally created by traveling fortune tellers using decks of tarot cards to cast magic, Wizards who had seen the traveling circuses quickly began adopting the style for themselves, infusing blank cards with the effects of their spells. Adding an element of surprise to even the caster, the cards flow around the body in a random order known not even to the caster himself.

As a Card Caster, your wizard forgoes using spells traditionally with a spell book in favor of using a deck of cards to cast magic imprinted on them. To cast a spell, simply reach and grab a card.

You are given a Holster - a pouch or container to hold your cards - that may be as plain or ornate as you would like. Inject it with your personality.

If any of your cards are ever destroyed, you may find them in your Holster. If your Holster is ever lost or destroyed, you may purchase or craft a new one - but any spell cards that were in your deck are lost forever and must be recreated with new blank cards and components. 

If you would like, your cards may count as your spellcasting focus.

The Spell Deck may have between 20 and 40 cards to choose from. A caster initially starts with a deck of 20 and can add more cards to reach the limit. Cantrips (since they do not require a spell book) can be used at will. Spells, 1st - 5th level, can have only three copies each. Spells 6th level and higher can only have two copies. 9th level spells may only have one card per spell. Each spell in the Spell Deck will be linked to a number on a d20 die  (or die suitable to the amount of unique cards you have in your deck). As such to have 40 cards you must have copies of some spells. You may substitute this by making a Spell Deck yourself and using that instead.

The caster may add and remove cards from their deck during a short rest. The Deck will not activate if there are less than 20 cards chosen, however, as the imbued magic of each card coalesces together to form the overall ability for the deck to work. Each card acts as a focus for the spell it contains.

After learning or finding a new spell the caster may create a card (and copies of that card) during a long rest. The cost of card construction increases per level of spell. Lvl 1 - 5gp, Lvl 2 - 10gp, Lvl 3 - 25gp, Lvl 4 - 50gp, Lvl 5 - 75gp, Lvl 6 - 100gp, Lvl 7 - 125gp, Lvl 8 - 150, Lvl 9 - 200gp. If the spell requires materials, add the monetary cost of the materials as additional gp.

After rolling for initiative in battle, your wizard draws 5 cards from the Spell Deck at random.  You will roll a d20 (or die suitable to the amount of unique cards you have in your deck) 5 times and will draw the corresponding card once you roll for initiative (If you have no more copies of that card you will reroll) or shuffle your deck and draw 5 cards.

After the spell is complete, the card is sent to the Discard deck. When battle ends, cards from the Discard deck return to the Spell Deck. If a caster only has cards in the discard deck they cannot perform magic until the battle is complete. If a card caster runs out of cards in their hand, they cannot use their spells. If they run out of spell slots, they will not be able to activate the cards.

Out of combat,  the Card Caster can use any of the cards from their deck.

Cards can only be destroyed by the caster who made them or by extremely high level magic. If lost, the cards return to the deck holster and the cards can be re-summoned by the caster during a long rest.

 

Reshuffle/Draw

At 2nd level, once per short rest, you may return all cards in your hand into your deck, shuffle, and draw five cards without waiting one minute. This counts as an action. Once per turn, as a bonus action, you may select a card from the deck to replenish your hand.

Mobile Casting

Beginning when you select this subclass at 2nd level, you have a throwing distance of 30/60. Once the card reaches its destination the spell may activate at its normal spell range from that point.  At level 10 the maximum distance thrown increases to 60 feet with no disadvantage. You may also cast a spell with a range of touch and your card can deliver the spell as if you had cast the spell.

Metamagic

At 6th level, a card caster is empowered to create a unique card for their deck, which alters how other cards or the deck may be used. These cards are used as Bonus Actions and are limited to one of each card per deck.

The Emperor
(Bonus Action) Activating this card allows the caster to draw upon the power they need for additional resources to get the task completed, draw three additional cards from the top of the deck and add them to your hand.

Knight of Coins
(Bonus Action) You can enhance an endeavor significantly and reap many blessings as a result. Using an additional spell slot, the next spell card activated activates twice, and, if the spell targets a creature, can target a separate creature.

The Fool
(Bonus Action) For the remainder of the battle, when you are attacked, you draw a card from your deck as a reaction and may activate it immediately, targeting your attacker.

Temperance
(Bonus Action) Activating this card allows the caster and the deck to act perfectly in sync for a moment and the caster is able to Identify and acquire the exact card they need from the deck and place it in their hand.

The Tower
(Bonus Action) Activating this card allows the caster to pull out their last resort. Discard your entire hand, choose a damage type, and do 2d10 worth of damage per amount of cards discarded to a creature. You cannot draw a card next turn.

The Moon
(Bonus Action) Your cards eclipse you offering you security from attack, you can cast mage armor on yourself at will, without expending a spell slot or material components.

The Chariot
(Bonus Action) You can cast Expeditious Retreat on yourself at will, without expending a spell slot or material components.

Wheel of Fortune
(Bonus Action) Activating this card allows the caster to pull arcane magic from the world around them to their benefit, regaining a spell slot.

The Sun
(Bonus Action)  Confident in your sacred power, your magical prowess with cards offers you supernatural luck over all games of chance. When you receive randomized results from a game of chance or a magic item, including drawing a card from your deck, you can instantly take one additional result and choose between the two. The result you do not choose is placed back into its source at random if possible. This happens magically, and creatures without truesight can’t notice you replacing a result. Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before using it again.

Judgment
(Bonus Action) You have found inner awakening and council and can perform a cold reading on another creature. If you spend at least 1 minute observing or interacting with another creature outside combat, you can learn certain information about its capabilities compared to your own. The DM tells you if the creature is your equal, superior, or inferior in regard to two of the following characteristics of your choice:
• Intelligence score
• Wisdom score
• Charisma score
• Strength score
• Dexterity score
• Constitution score
• Health
• Armor Class

Card Shield

Beginning at 10th level, you can direct your floating cards to create a temporary shield to absorb incoming damage. You may use your reaction to expend one spell slot and reduce any incoming melee damage to you by an amount equal to five times the spell's slot level.

At level 16 you may use your reaction to shield against magical attacks at the cost of two spell slots. You do not increase damage reduced by using two slots (ex. expending a 4th level slot and 2nd level slot would not stack to reduce damage by 30, it would take the higher x 5 to block 20 damage from the attack).

Capture Card

Starting at the 14th level, you can capture a creature within your cards. As an action, choose one creature you can see within 20 feet of you. This creature must have a hit point maximum of at least 30 hit points and have 10 or fewer hit points remaining. An unwilling target must make a charisma saving throw. If it fails this save or is a willing target, it disappears into extradimensional space within one of your cards.

You may carry up to 3 captured creatures in this way at any time. Further captures may only be completed if you release one or more of the others.

As an action, you may summon your bound creature within 20 feet of yourself. It is friendly to you and your allies and obeys your orders as if it is affected by dominate monster. You can release the creature or return it to its card as an action, and it returns automatically after 1 hour. Its hit points are fully restored whenever you complete a long rest.

If this creature is killed, its form and consciousness dissipate into the ether.

Intelligent creatures are harder to control in this way. If the target has an Intelligence of 8 or higher, it has advantage on the saving throw against being captured. If it fails the saving throw and has an intelligence of 12 or higher, it can also repeat the saving throw whenever you complete a long rest until it succeeds and is freed from this feature's effects. If freed, the creature appears at a safe location approximately 5 miles away from your current location.

A creature that willingly lets you capture it never attempts to escape.