College of Arcana

Bards in the College of Arcana draw their power from their bond with their Tarot deck, that serves as a bridge between the divine and mortal realms. It guides them towards a path or rather, a crossroad,  shedding light upon the intertwining branches of Fate.

Their deck allows them to access a potential that lies beyond them. Spells, knowledge, abilities and insight that they do not possess within, but stem from the web of arcane and divine energies that flow continuously around each one of us. Through regular attunement and rituals, a bard will build a harmony with their deck that will allow them to influence it one way or the other.

 

 

Arcana Focus

3rd- and 6th-level College of the Arcana feature

Your practice of divination employ special tools. You can use a Tarot Deck as a spellcasting focus for your bard spells.

At 6th level, when you cast a bard spell that deals damage or restores hit points through the Arcana Focus, roll a d6, and you gain a bonus to one roll of the spell equal to the number rolled.

 

Reader's Sight

3rd-level College of Arcana  feature

Your affinity with the Arcana allows you to glance into the unkown, catching a glimpse of hidden knowledge or information. By executing a ritual draw from your Tarot Deck that takes five minutes, you can expand one use of your Bardic Inspiration to focus on a specific situation, problem or question of your choice to which the DM will have to give greater insight than you currently have. The DM has to answer truthfully, but the answer can be limpid, left to interpreation or cryptic according to the DM's judgment.

 

Arcana's Guidance

6th-level College of Arcana feature

Once per Long Rest, you can spend 15 minutes attuning to your Tarot Deck in order to gain various blessings from the Arcana. At the end of the ritual, you can draw a number of cards equal to a roll of your Bardic Inspiration die, each one granting a different boon (see list below). At any moment during the day, you can use your bonus action to trigger one of the boons given by the card you drew (you have to be able to touch it), after which all cards left loose their effect. If none are used before the following dawn, their effect are lost. 

When triggering a boon, you are free to confer it to yourself or to a willing creature that you can touch. 

Each effect described in the list below lasts until the following dawn, unless specified otherwise. The cards followed by an * can be triggered as a reaction instead of a bonus action.

Major Arcana

 

- The Fool : You are able to carve your own path, there were none exist. You can cast the far step spell at its lowest level. This cast doesn't expand one of your spell slot, takes only a bonus action to cast and doesn't require any of the usual components. (If you think this is too strong, I can tune it down to misty step, but I think it s kinda cool to have the Fool be slightly more powerful than the other cards, and also I have like 1/78 chance to draw it sooooo yeah)

I. The Magician : You are able to bend the elements to your will. You can bestow an additional D4 of elemental damage (choose either Acid, Cold, Lightning or Fire) to a weapon you can touch for the next hour. 

II. The High Priestess : You seek the council of the Divine and the High Priestess answers. You gain proficiency (or expertise if you're already proficient) with Insight checks.

III. The Empress : You seek the aid of the Empress, ruler of all that is spiritual. You get a +1 to your Intelligence, Wisdom OR Charisma modifier for one hour.

IV. The Emperor : You seek the aid of the Emperor, ruler of all that is material. You get a +1 to your Strength, Dexterity OR Constitution modifier for one hour.

V. The Hierophant : You seek the council of the Divine and the Hierophant answers. You gain proficiency (or expertise if you're already proficient) with Religion checks.

VI. The Lovers : Love is a flower that can bloom even between the most unlikely pairs. You can cast one time the charm person spell at its lowest level. This cast doesn't expand one of your spell slot, takes only a bonus action to cast and doesn't require any of the usual components.

VII. The Chariot : You are filled with the will to triumph. You have resistance to bludgeoning, piercing and slashing damage from non-magical weapons for the day.

VIII. Strength : Your body is imbued with greater strength. For one hour, you get advantage on Strength ability checks and saving throws.

IX. The Hermit : The Light of the Hermit's lantern radiates in your mind, revealing that which remained hidden. You gain truesight for one hour to a range of 30 feet.

X. Wheel of Fortune : The Wheel blesses you with good luck. You can cast one time the fortune's favor spell at its lowest level. This cast doesn't expand one of your spell slot, takes only a bonus action to cast and doesn't require any of the usual components.

XI. Justice* : Harm done must be punished with equal severity. As a reaction, when a creature that you can see within 30 feet of you suffers damage, you can inflict the same amount of damage (up to 5 times your Charisma Bonus) to the creature that dealt the damage. You have to be able to see the attacker in order touse that reaction.

XII. The Hanged Man : You take a moment to let go and reflect upon your situation. You can cast one time the calm emotions spell at its lowest level. This cast doesn't expand one of your spell slot, takes only a bonus action to cast and doesn't require any of the usual components.

XIII. Death : Your enemy must meet their end, decay afflicts them. You can cast one time the ray of enfeeblement spell at its lowest level. This cast doesn't expand one of your spell slot, takes only a bonus action to cast and doesn't require any of the usual components.

XIV. Temperance* : You know the virtue of balance and equilibrium. As a reaction, when a creature that you can see within 30 feet of you suffers a critical hit, you can turn the critical hit into a normal hit. Any effects triggered by a critical hit are cancelled. 

XV. The Devil : Visions of evil take over your adversary's mind. You can cast one time the crown of madness spell at its lowest level. This cast doesn't expand one of your spell slot, takes only a bonus action to cast and doesn't require any of the usual components.

XVI. The Tower : Chaos strikes the earth, bringin ruin and misery. You can cast one time the shatter spell at its lowest level. This cast doesn't expand one of your spell slot, takes only a bonus action to cast and doesn't require any of the usual components.

XVII. The Star : A shining guardian watches over you from beyond. You recover one of your 3rd level or lower expanded spell slot.

XVIII. The Moon : The Moon hides you from your enemies. You can cast one time the pass without trace spell at its lowest level. This cast doesn't expand one of your spell slot, takes only a bonus action to cast and doesn't require any of the usual components.

XIX. The Sun : The light of the Sun fills you with a renewed vitality. You can cast one time the beacon of hope spell at its lowest level. This cast doesn't expand one of your spell slot, takes only a bonus action to cast and doesn't require any of the usual components.

XX. Judgment  : Time for the Last Judgment has not come for you yet. If you fall uncouncious while you drew this card and still have an unexpanded use of Blessing of the Arcana, it automatically activates and you get advantage on death saving throws for one minute. 

XXI. The World : You know the paths that cross the land. Wherever your journey is leading you, you cannot get lost on your way and will take the shortes path leading there.

 

Minor Arcana

 

Suit of Cups : The water of life can quench all thirst and cure all wounds. You get a pool of 1-14 Hit Points (depending on the card rank) that you can use to heal a creature that you can see within 30 feet of you. 

Suit of Pentacles : Your health is reinforced by the richness of the material realm. You get a pool of 1-14 Temporary Hit Points (depending on the card rank) for the following hour.

Suit of Swords : Your blade is sharpened, honed by the wind that cuts deep. You get a pool of 1-14 damage (depending on the card rank) that you can add to one of your melee, ranged or spell attack after you rolled the damage die. 

Suit of Wands : The fire of creation burns between your fingers. You can target a Medium or smaller non-magical object that you can see within 30 feet and animate it. The animated item uses the Dancing Item stat block, except it has 1-14 Hit Points (depending on the card rank). It is friendly to you and your companions and obeys your commands. It lives for one hour, until it is reduced to 0 Hit Points or until you die. In combat, the item shares your initiative count, but it takes its turn immediately after yours. It can move and use its reaction on its own, but the only action it takes on its turn is the Dodge action, unless you take a bonus action on your turn to command it to take another action. That action can be one in its stat block or some other action. If you are incapacitated, the item can take any action of its choice, not just Dodge.

 

Sway of Fate

14th-level College of Arcana feature

You have been enriching your affinity with your deck and developing your spiritual bond for years. As much as you can trust it, it senses that it can trust you and allows you to shape the draw with your intention, your drive. You are now able to use the Arcana's Guidance : Trigger ability a number of times equal to 1 + your Charisma modifier.

Additionnally, when using the Arcana's Guidance : Draw ability, you can expand one use of your Bardic Inspiration to put a single card back in the deck and draw another one in its place.