3.5 Class/System: The Cardcaller (Based on Lost Kingdoms)

[Fizban]

Wow. I had completely forgotten about this, and I even had a nice big post. Apparently I didn't bookmark it at all. Have considered my own ideas a couple times but still never wrote more than the roughest of outlines. It's really been 2 years? Congratulations, it looks quite shiny. I should really read all this. Get back to you in a few days? Hopefully I won't get lost this time. *dazed*

[Lix Lorn]

Ha, it's pretty understandable. When it's been left this long, you don't expect it finished...

[JBPuffin]

Dear God...it's...beautiful. Lix, for the mother of all necromancy it's also the mother of all card-casting. Thank you for returning it to page 1.

...dear God...

[Lix Lorn]

I should hope so, it took me ages.

[Fizban]

Finally got around to looking at some of the cards, though just up through level 2. The weapons aren't a problem, generally pretty weak and single target, which is actually a bit annoying in some cases. The very first card listed at level 0, the venerable Crystal Rose, affects a full line as it should (even if it's a really short range and loses the confusion/paralyze effects)-but the Banshee, destroyer of everything and devourer of souls is a single target normal attack roll? But the problems are the independants. The vast majority remain until slain or dismissed, which is convenient-so convenient I see no reason not to walk around with a whole posse of mooks at all times, buffed by some serious continuous buffs off the level 2 creatures. Encounter is after all a nebulous term and with nothing forcing them back in there's no reason you can't demand they stay active at all times. And by mooks I mean flying ranged attack griffon turrets and skeletons with more AC than a low level fighter and free DR, both of which you can have at level 1.

The griffons also don't list a range for their ranged attack, larval fly doesn't have any idea what or who or how it reduces resistances other than "it does," and so on. Needs lots of proof reading and max durations of less than forever. I expect most people would say 1 minute but that might as well just be 1 encounter, so maybe 1 hour outside of card form. More than long enough to have a posse when you break down the door, but not long enough to cover you at all times. And buffs should absolutely not persist between summonings, because piling on a bunch of round/level buffs then going into storage and getting them for no action cost later is too good.

If the cards all have their missing data filled in and callers are forced to call their cards mid fight as is proper, then maybe? Too many variables and my group doesn't meet nearly often enough to try playtesting something even if I asked. I'll try and read some more eventually but I'm not confident in my ability to judge it without running it.

[Lix Lorn]

The strength of weapons is meant to be that they're reusable...
I'm not entirely sure why the banshee is a single attack while the crystal rose is a line. I think it's just that weapons in general are meant to be attack rolls, as a rule. May change it.

The thing about walking around with a load of independents is that you can do it, but they use up card slots while they do. So, if you have four monsters following you, you can't actually do anything yourself. At all.

That said, that's not entirely true to the source. I'll have them decay over time (by HD hit points a minute) and add a feat letting them stick around, so you can do the - ooooh that's a good fix.