Class: Gambler

The Gambler
		Anarchy
Level	Special	Deck Size	Max Hand Size	Max Grade	Idioms	Whims Known
1	Gamble	6	2	Subtle	1	3
2	Card Trick	7	2	Subtle	1	4
3		8	2	Subtle	2	5
4	Card Trick	8	2	Subtle	2	6
5		9	3	Lesser	2	7
6	Card Trick	10	3	Lesser	2	8
7		10	3	Lesser	3	9
8	Card Trick	11	3	Lesser	3	11
9		12	3	Lesser	3	12
10	Gambler Talent	12	4	Greater	3	13
11		13	4	Greater	4	14
12	Gambler Talent	14	4	Greater	4	15
13		14	4	Greater	4	16
14	Gambler Talent	15	5	Greater	4	17
15		16	5	Greater	5	19
16	Gambler Talent	16	5	Greater	5	20
17		17	5	Overwhelming	5	21
18	Gambler Talent	18	5	Overwhelming	5	22
19		19	6	Overwhelming	6	23
20	Gambler Talent	19	6	Overwhelming	6	24

 

Gambler

Amaryllis, iconic gambler

"Life may be a gamble... but no worries. I've got loaded dice."

The nature of Chaos is such that those with a predisposition towards gambling look favorably upon it. Sometimes, a gambler finds herself not just a common gambler, but a gambler in the Chaotic sense, gifted with the ability to tap into the powers of uncertainty. Their knack for throwing dice or playing cards becomes translated into gambling with the very mechanics of the universe.

Game Rule Information

Gamblers have the following game statistics.

Force Alignment: Chaos.

Force Resistances: UO 5 + level, TO 5 + level.

Abilities: Luck is the most important ability for a gambler, while Bravery is also useful.

Hit Points at 1st Level: 5 + Con score.

Hit Points at Each Additional Level: 5 + Con modifier.

Healing Surges: 6 + Con modifier.

Defenses: Fort +0; Ref +4; Will +2; Det +2.

Starting Age: Simple.

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the gambler.

Proficiencies

Weapons: Any three.

Armor: Light, mystic.

Implements: Coins, Dice.

Anarchy

The gambler's ability to call upon Chaos is known as anarchy. Individual abilities of Chaos are known as whims and are grouped into idioms, which are particular applications of Chaotic power.

 

Chaotic Idioms
Idiom	Description
Discord	Where there is disharmony, there is chaos - and so you sow the seeds of distrust and danger.
Dynamics	It's said that all of existence is governed not just by physics, but by something even greater. This idiom teaches you how to twist, bend, and eventually break those rules.
Entropy	All good things must end, and you know how to manipulate that process.
Freedom	You seek to become unshackled from the rules not just of society, but of reality itself.
Random	To be unpredictable is to be powerful... or whatever else suits your fancy at this moment.
Uncertainty	True knowledge is impossible, and you manipulate that notion to its breaking point.

 

As events occur around the gambler, some of them trigger her Chaotic abilities. A gambler has a number of triggers equal to the number of idioms she would have access to at her class level, even if she has access to fewer or more idioms. You select triggers from the trigger lists of idioms you can access; you can change your trigger selection with a short rest.

Whim Grades
Grade	Minimum Luck
Subtle	10
Lesser	13
Greater	16
Overwhelming	20
Inconceivable	23

To access her powers, a gambler builds a deck out of the whims to which she has access. You can have up to four copies of the same whim in your deck, but the number of whims in the deck must precisely match the number on the class table, above, for your level. You can change out the whims in your deck with a long rest. Whims are placed in a deck in a random order.

When a trigger occurs - when you are triggered - you must draw the indicated number of whims from your deck; the exception is if you (and only you) decide to use a reaction instead, which forfeits your draw. At the end of each of your turns, if you have more whims than your max hand size, you must discard whims until you have a number of whims equal to your max hand size. Discarded whims go into your discard pile.

If at any time your deck is empty, you reshuffle: refill your deck with all whims from your discard pile at random.

When you effect a whim, you remove it from your hand and put it in your discard pile. If you have not been triggered within the last five minutes, you automatically discard your entire hand and reshuffle.

To use any given whim, the gambler must meet its minimum Luck score, per the table on the right.

When not in a combat or stressful situation, the gambler can use any whim in her deck with a few moments' worth of "screwing around."

The gambler begins with three known whims. She gains knowledge of additional whims each level, as per the class table, above. At fourth level and every four levels after, she can trade out up to two whims for new whims from any idiom she can access.

The gambler's key ability for her chaotic attacks is her Luck.

Gamble

As a gambler, it is in your nature to gamble; but now, you can do so with far more than just dice.

Gamble Results
Gamble Value	Bonus
1 - 3	+0
4 - 6	+1
7 - 8	+2
9	+3
10	+4
11	+5
12+	bust

As a standard action, you can discard a whim to use this ability. If you do, you select a trait from the list below, and roll 1d6, consulting the table on the right. You and all allies within Medium range (100 feet) gain the bonus as a feat bonus to the chosen trait.

While this ability is active, at the beginning of each of your turns, you can choose to hit. If you do, roll 1d6 again and add it to the original result, consulting the table on the right; the bonus changes appropriately. If the result of your gamble is greater than 11, you bust: the effect ends, and you suffer a -2 feat penalty to the chosen trait until you take a short rest.

If you choose not to hit, that gamble value is instead reduced by 1. If a gamble is reduced to 0, it ends.

You can have any number of gambles operating at the same time.

The available traits that you can grant a bonus to via gamble are as follows:

• physical attack rolls
• force attack rolls
• armor check rolls
• Fortitude defense
• Reflex defense
• Will defense
• Determination defense

Note that some class features may also grant you additional traits that you can modify with gamble.

Design Notes

Chaos alt caster, extra mechanics are kinda support-y. Inspiration here.

Full rebuild, t20 v4.

Oct 6, 2017: Pondering this - along with other adepts. I'm thinking that instead of a static mechanic here, have a set of potential "gambles" the gambler can use, with different effects. So "blackjack" - the default, here - would be just one option, but it would be the only one that gives buffs.

Others might be... say, "roulette," on a d12. Might be a status effect deal - the less likely you are to get the range you pick, the stronger the status effect you can pick.

Hmm... yeah, I think that might be a solid plan.

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