So!
At one point, a player of mine ran into a Deck of Many Things.
So far, so good, right?
After a couple of cards, one of the cards was The Winged Serpent (which was subsequently drawn more than once).
In response to some bad cards, the player wanted to wish the bad cards out of existence. This was permitted within limits - it was suggested that maybe the cards were, instead, replaced by cards from a standard Deck of Many Things (though drawn randomly).
During this time, the Harrow Deck of Many Things ended up (secretly) sentient, and various other things, and it was implied that maybe the other deck was, and they didn't like each other, until they did (for reasons), and it was an interesting mess, that resulted with the drawing character having one opposed alignment clone out in the world with no personal memory of what had just happened, another opposed alignment clone who (along with the character) was of a reversed gender (and for a time became allied, but then opposed again - oh, those fickle cards), and so on.
At the time, it didn't really matter which cards were chosen (we'd specified several, but some were left undetermined - and the character ended up a disintegrated pile of ash and a gem shunted into the plane of air), but, for reasons, I was looking into revisiting it into what they ultimately should be.
So, reviewing my old notes, I was thinking about things, and realized there were some decisions that hadn't been made yet!
And so, now, I have some questions:
So, the Deck of Tantalizing Dooms or Deck of Many Dooms (as I'm tentatively calling it) is a Deck of Many Things but within limits.
It has the following standard cards:
- Balance: instantly change to the opposite alignment (or lose a level, if you don't act according to that)
- Donjon: you are imprisoned (either as the spell, or by a powerful being)
- Euryale: you take a -1 penalty on all saves from now on
- Fool: lost 10,000 XP and draw an extra card
- Idiot: lose 1d4+1 points of intelligence, and may gain an additional draw
- Rogue: one of your NPC friends made forever hostile; if you've no cohorts, the enmity of a powerful person/community/religious order/etc.; it's secret until revealed "with devastating effect."
- Ruin: all non-magical possessions (wealth, property) are lost
- Skull: defeat a dread wraith (solo) or can't be raised (even by miracle/wish); others who help get their own dread wraiths
- Talons: every magic item you own is instantly and forever lost (except for the deck)
- The Void: the body functions in a comatose state, but the soul is trapped elsewhere (plane, planet, outsider, etc.); miracle/wish only reveals where its entrapped
... as well as the following cards from a different deck:
- The Mute Hag: the character permanently loses a single sense; additionally, the character’s most private secret (determined by the GM) is known to all who see the character; if there is no such secret, an entirely believable lie is spread instead
- The Idiot: the character’s charisma, intelligence, and wisdom are reduced to 3
- The Fiend: a powerful evil outsider takes notice of a character and makes plans to destroy it
- The Eclipse: from dusk to dawn, you are treated as if you were one level lower; you choose the class, if you have levels in more than one
- The Sickness: the character becomes afflicted with an incurable plague (only able to be removed by miracle or wish); though it cannot be removed, the effects can be negated by restoration as normal
- The Betrayal: an <NPC> ally betrays you (animal companion, cohort, etc.; if you have none, see Rogue
In addition, it can have six of the following added to it:
- 1) the avalanche: become the center of an earthquake (as the spell) and Will v. imprisonment effect
- 10) the crows: choose either most valuable item, or an ally of the GM’s choice; it is destroyed and cannot be recovered by mortals (this is made clear before the choice is made)
- 28) the lost: can never again gain levels in the class you have the most levels of until the character dies and is returned to life; when next returned to life, undergo a reincarnate effect, no matter what effect is used
- 39) the rakshasa: any time a creature lies with an intent to deceive, they are instead turned into a random animal for 1 hour; the character becomes the puppet of a mysterious enemy chosen by the GM (the method is also chosen by the GM: possessed by a spirit, bodily possession under certain circumstances, can be manipulated from afar); the character gains no particular information is gained about this creature, unless the GM allows it
- 41) the snakebite: the character’s alignment switches to the opposite alignment; further, any creature who comes into contact with the character for any reason must succeed at a Fortitude save or be poisoned by Greenblood Oil (fort save 10+level+constitution modifier)
- 43) the tangled briar: (1/day) you can communicate with plants as if with speak with plants and have them answer any question that could be known to them truthfully; however, this upsets the local flora and fauna causing 1d4+2 shambling mounds (advanced template) to erupt from the earth and attack (regardless of surrounding terrain); additionally, when first drawn, a slain enemy returns to life and seeks retribution
- 48) the tyrant: (once) gain the ability to issue a command to any creature in the universe and have the order obeyed, as if compelled by dominate monster for the task (though even orders to kill itself are followed); any creature targeted knows it’s acting against its will, and knows the name and location of the character. Immortal creatures cannot effectively kill themselves, and such acts cause only fleeting (if considerable) pain; additionally, creatures that grant boons typically have the power to revoke them, and do so as soon as the command releases them. The GM ultimately decides what this card can accomplish. Alternatively, an incredibly powerful evil entity appears, subdues the character, and drags them off to its foul lair. The specifics of the evil creature, its lair, and whether or not they are retrievable is up to the GM.
- 50) the uprising: 3d6 unruly, accident-prone 1st-level commoners appear to serve the character; if these are killed, knowledge of their deaths and treatment spreads far (generally causing the normal penalties to leadership), with the GM determining the repercussions
- 53) the waxworks: 1d6 exact duplicates appear in a 20 mile radius with the opposite alignments and who oppose the original’s goals
... so which ones should it have? Why?
The Harrow Deck of Many Things has already lost the mute hag, the idiot, the fiend, the eclipse, the sickness, and the betrayal cards.
While it has gained the flame card from the standard deck, it's also gained the moon, gem, knight, and vizier cards; and will gain the comet, fates, jester, key, star, and sun cards.
In exchange for those last six cards, however, it will need to lose six "negative" cards from the following list:
- 1) the avalanche: become the center of an earthquake (as the spell) and Will v. imprisonment effect
- 10) the crows: choose either most valuable item, or an ally of the GM’s choice; it is destroyed and cannot be recovered by mortals (this is made clear before the choice is made)
- 28) the lost: can never again gain levels in the class you have the most levels of until the character dies and is returned to life; when next returned to life, undergo a reincarnate effect, no matter what effect is used
- 39) the rakshasa: any time a creature lies with an intent to deceive, they are instead turned into a random animal for 1 hour; the character becomes the puppet of a mysterious enemy chosen by the GM (the method is also chosen by the GM: possessed by a spirit, bodily possession under certain circumstances, can be manipulated from afar); the character gains no particular information is gained about this creature, unless the GM allows it
- 41) the snakebite: the character’s alignment switches to the opposite alignment; further, any creature who comes into contact with the character for any reason must succeed at a Fortitude save or be poisoned by Greenblood Oil (fort save 10+level+constitution modifier)
- 43) the tangled briar: (1/day) you can communicate with plants as if with speak with plants and have them answer any question that could be known to them truthfully; however, this upsets the local flora and fauna causing 1d4+2 shambling mounds (advanced template) to erupt from the earth and attack (regardless of surrounding terrain); additionally, when first drawn, a slain enemy returns to life and seeks retribution
- 48) the tyrant: (once) gain the ability to issue a command to any creature in the universe and have the order obeyed, as if compelled by dominate monster for the task (though even orders to kill itself are followed); any creature targeted knows it’s acting against its will, and knows the name and location of the character. Immortal creatures cannot effectively kill themselves, and such acts cause only fleeting (if considerable) pain; additionally, creatures that grant boons typically have the power to revoke them, and do so as soon as the command releases them. The GM ultimately decides what this card can accomplish. Alternatively, an incredibly powerful evil entity appears, subdues the character, and drags them off to its foul lair. The specifics of the evil creature, its lair, and whether or not they are retrievable is up to the GM.
- 50) the uprising: 3d6 unruly, accident-prone 1st-level commoners appear to serve the character; if these are killed, knowledge of their deaths and treatment spreads far (generally causing the normal penalties to leadership), with the GM determining the repercussions
- 53) the waxworks: 1d6 exact duplicates appear in a 20 mile radius with the opposite alignments and who oppose the original’s goals
I'm currently calling the Deck of Fantastic Wonders or Deck of Many Delights.
... which six cards does it lose, and why?
In addition to shopping around for names, I'm also looking to develop the personalities of the decks, the way they can justify themselves as friends of each other and masters of different alignments, and it's noted that they actually "play quite well with other intelligent items and don't mind others" - I'm interested in developing this, as well.
Further, both have the secretive and uncaring intelligent item traits. Despite that, neither are malicious or harmful to those they like (which, from my notes, is most people). It seems at least the latter is gregarious and kind and pleasant of personality, while the former is focused and warm.
I'm looking forward to your thoughts and ideas!
To head off any questions: yes, of course, it's not balanced, and it's ludicrous. The the players don't necessarily know this exists.
Also, this is meant to be a fun, all-round, conversation! Enjoy!
Also!
I feel I should clarify at least one idea I've had since writing this, earlier.
Changes to effects based on the decks!
You may notice that the card effects are a combination of the "original" cards and the "reformatted" cards the second time the HDoMT was released. When I was first drawing on both resources, I didn't know which to choose. So I'm curious what you all generally think.
It could be that either differentiating between the effects - a random chance one or the other, the effect depends on the wielder, or some other factor -; or setting the card's result based on the deck it is in would be better.
Generally the "not as bad" or "more whimsical" effect I'll refer to as "{fluffy bunny deck version}" while the "worse" or "more deadly" version I'll call "{doom to the unworthy deck version}" for clarity, below.
If a card ends up in the "DOOOOOOOOOOOOM" deck, perhaps it chooses the "less awful" version of a card for a non-evil wielder, and a "more awful" version for an evil wielder. Or maybe the DECK OF ALL DOOMS only has the "more awful" versions while the DECK OF ALL WHIMSY has only the "dangerous but beneficial" versions! Or something else! Please weigh in with what you think!
- 39) the rakshasa:
-> {fluffy bunny deck version} any time a creature lies with an intent to deceive, they are instead turned into a random animal for 1 hour
-> {doom to the unworthy deck version} the character becomes the puppet of a mysterious enemy chosen by the GM (the method is also chosen by the GM: possessed by a spirit, bodily possession under certain circumstances, can be manipulated from afar); the character gains no particular information is gained about this creature, unless the GM allows it
- 41) the snakebite:
-> {look, it's a tossup} the character’s alignment switches to the opposite alignment;
-> {still a tossup} further, any creature who comes into contact with the character for any reason must succeed at a Fortitude save or be poisoned by Greenblood Oil (fort save 10+level+constitution modifier)
- 43) the tangled briar:
-> {fluffy bunny deck version} (1/day) you can communicate with plants as if with speak with plants and have them answer any question that could be known to them truthfully; however, this upsets the local flora and fauna causing 1d4+2 shambling mounds (advanced template) to erupt from the earth and attack (regardless of surrounding terrain);
-> {doom to the unworthy deck version} when first drawn, a slain enemy returns to life and seeks retribution
- 48) the tyrant:
-> {fluffy bunny deck version} (once) gain the ability to issue a command to any creature in the universe and have the order obeyed, as if compelled by dominate monster for the task (though even orders to kill itself are followed); any creature targeted knows it’s acting against its will, and knows the name and location of the character. Immortal creatures cannot effectively kill themselves, and such acts cause only fleeting (if considerable) pain; additionally, creatures that grant boons typically have the power to revoke them, and do so as soon as the command releases them. The GM ultimately decides what this card can accomplish.
-> {doom to the unworthy deck version} an incredibly powerful evil entity appears, subdues the character, and drags them off to its foul lair. The specifics of the evil creature, its lair, and whether or not they are retrievable is up to the GM.
EDIT: Hah! Notes left on the top on accident. XD Oops!