Pact of the Gambler

Your patron is an elusive and shadowy figure, He goes by a new name, seemingly changing it per person, and tends to use his shadowy form to manipulate his appearance to look human. He is a hard to miss figure as he is the life of the party and a smooth talker, but gambling is where he truly shows his colors. The Shadow Man is always happy to play a game, but be warned he will always turn it into a gambling match. Once you start gambling with The Shadow Man it becomes hard to stop and before you know it you have become one of his followers. Lucky for you The Shadow Man is powerful being and can grant you immense power. The Shadow Man resides in Pandemonium to hone his power, but will frequently begin speaking to you mentally. When you accept his pact he grants you a deck of cards, and in return he will call upon you when he sees fit. You are sent to explore the world around you and master the deck he granted you. You may have gambled away your free will for power, but that power comes with constant training and trials to continue to prove your worth to The Shadow Man.

This is the More Player friendly version to look at (Remove spaces):  homebrewery . naturalcrit . com /share/ByL2JmfpE

 This was meant for a specific campaign but apparently a lot of people have seen it, so im sharing the full doc so those that want to use it can

Cardistry

A deck of cards is just 54 intricately marked pieces of paper to most. To you a deck of cards is a performance tool for distractions, or a weapon for defense or attacking first. You have a large imagination and spend free time learning how to manipulate a deck of cards flawlessly and effortlessly. Take your time and gain knowledge and you can begin to use your cards more effectively.

High Roller

Are you a "High Roller" taking a more brash gambler, attempting to take fewer amount of gambles at a higher risk.

Low Roller

Are you you a "Low Roller" taking a more calculated gamble, attempting to take more gambles each at a lower risk. 

Tactical Uses

You know how to attack, defend or even perform with your deck but now you learn to use your deck in more support roles. Sometimes being in the front lines is not the best strategy and you as a great card player know how to adjust your strategies accordingly. 

 

Deck Thinning

Deck Thinning is Deck Winning, So lets use as many cards as possible as quickly as possible. You learn how to use high card costs attacks and actions.

Loan Contract

Beginning at 14th level when you make contact with someone you can put a loan shark contract on them, where if the one touched does not succeed on a Charisma saving throw then they accept the contract. The creature spawns over their shoulder with a counter on it. The one casting will roll primary die (determined by the casters level) to determine the Loan Contract creatures health, then can roll an additional secondary die (1 step down from primary die, ex: if primary die is 1d6, secondary is 1d4) at the start of each turn to add onto the health.

Loan Contract

Beginning at 14th level when you make contact with someone you can put a loan shark contract on them, where if the one touched does not succeed on a Charisma saving throw then they accept the contract. The creature spawns over their shoulder with a counter on it. The one casting will roll primary die (determined by the casters level) to determine the Loan Contract creatures health, then can roll an additional, secondary die (1 step down from primary die, ex: if primary die is 1d6, secondary is 1d4) at the start of each turn to add onto the health. This creature will not attack the one affected directly, it will only float there.

Loan Contract

Beginning at 14th level when you make contact with someone you can put a loan shark contract on them, where if the one touched does not succeed on a Charisma saving throw then they accept the contract. The creature spawns over their shoulder with a counter on it. The one casting will roll primary die (determined by the casters level) to determine the Loan Contract creatures health, then can roll an additional, secondary die (1 step down from primary die, ex: if primary die is 1d6, secondary is 1d4) at the start of each turn to add onto the health. This creature will not attack the one affected directly, it will only float there