Tarokka-based Random Encounter Effects

What is this about? Scroll below the card list to read more about these Tarokka-based
encounter effects.

The lord of Ravenloft gazes into a pool of clear liquid, observing these strange
adventurers who have traveled into his land. As conflict brews, the lord draws a card
from an ancient frayed deck at his side. Gazing at the card, he smiles and throws the
card into the pool.

The card reads...

The Merchant

The gleam of the merchant's eyes speak to rewards given at a cost.

At the beginning of the encounter, a creature may sacrifice a gemstone worth at least 10
gold pieces to gain +2 to attack, +2 to AC, or +1d6 damage.

Full Card and Effects List

The Abjurer: "A magical sheild of protection surrounds those proficient in

spellcasting." All spellcasters gain +2 to AC.

The Anarchist: "The anarchy of battle turns the worst strike into the strongest." A
natural attack roll of a 1 or 2 now also counts as a critical hit.

The Artifact: "Magical items glow with an even greater strength." All magical weapons
and armor gain an additional +1 to attack, damage, or armor class.

The Avenger: "Vengeance fills those who seek to protect their allies." A creature gains
+2 to attack and damage rolls against creatures within five feet of an ally.

The Beast: "The ferosity of the beast lies in the hearts of all beings." All creatures have
+2 to melee attack rolls but are -2 to AC.

The Beggar: "The thin form of desperation flows through, sustaining itself on gold or
blood." At the beginning of the encounter, all creatures lose 3d6 gold pieces. If they do
not have this gold, they instead take 1d6 damage.
The Berserker: "The roar of rage fills eyes with madness and fury." All strength-based
melee attacks gain +5 damage

The Bishop: "The blessing of the king's priest touches those worthy." Three random
creatures gain +1d4 radiant damage on attack rolls.

The Broken One: "Weariness fills even the stoutest forms." All creatures gain -2 to
melee attacks.

The Charlatan: "All hold within them the recognition that they know nothing." Any time
a creature casts a spell it must roll 1d20. On a 5 or below, the spell fails.

The Conjurer: "Ethereal servants fill the area, mirroring the violence around them." All
creatures have advantage on melee attacks.

The Darklord: "The death knight's cold touch caresses instruments of violence." All
melee attacks gain +1d6 necrotic damage

The Dictator: "After the battle few can remember the shout that changed the tide." Any
creature may take a standard action to give another creature a free melee attack.

The Diviner: "The eye of wisdom aims spells not at one's enemy but where that enemy
is going to be." All spellcasters gain +2 to spell attacks and the DCs of their spells
increase by 2.

The Donjon: "Fear not death, fear the cage." A random creature must make a DC 13
intelligence saving throw. On a failure, they are removed from play. They may repeat
this saving throw at the end of each of their turns. On a successful save, they return to
their original position.

The Druid: "Barbed vines reach from the earth, seeking the living and the blood
within." Any creature that moves on its turn takes 1d4 points of damage.

The Elementalist: "Spells of elemental power blaze with chaotic might." Any spell that
inflicts damage does an additional 1d6 damage and gains an additional damage type.
Roll 1d4: 1. fire; 2. cold. 3. lightning; 4. bludgeoning.

The Enchanter: "The gleam of a blue rune infuses iron with the weave." Any metal
armor gains an additional +2 AC.
The Evoker: "Flames burn ever brighter for those able to wield it." Any fire damage
does an additional 1d6 fire damage.

The Executioner: "The blade of the executioner's axe remains ever sharp." Creatures
may critically hit on an 18, 19, or 20.

The Ghost: "The tormented souls of the dead take pleasure in the failures of the
living." Any creature that misses an attack takes 1d6 psychic damage.

The Guild Member: "A payment to the guild returns dividends on the
battlefield." Creatures may sacrifice ten gold pieces for +4 damage on attacks or five
gold pieces for +2 to attack extra point of attack or both.

The Healer: "The touch of light burns brighter in the darkest shadows." All healing
spells gain +1d6 extra healing.

The Hooded One: "The blade strikes deepest in those who cannot see it coming." At
the beginning of combat, one random creature must make a DC 13 charisma check or
become blinded. They may make a new saving throw at the end of each of their turns.
On a successful saving throw they are no longer blinded.

The Horseman: "The spectral mount drives hard for those able to ride it." Any creature
that moves up to fifteen feet closer to an enemy before attacking gains +1d6 damage on
melee attacks.

The Illusionist: "Who can say which blade is real and which is but a figment of the
imagination?" Intelligent creatures that can see take 1d6-3 psychic damage at the
beginning of each of their turns.

The Innocent: "The bulwark is strongest for those who seek not the blood of their
foes." Creatures that do not harm other creatures on their turn gain +5 AC until the
beginning of their next turn.

The Marionette: "The strings of destiny move all exactly where they are meant to
be." At the beginning of each round, a random creature takes a full turn under the
control of either a random player (if a monster) or the DM (if a PC). This does not count
as their normal turn.
The Mercenary: "Those who take money for blood find themselves either rich or
dead." When a creature reduces another creature to zero hit points it gains 3d6 gold
pieces.

The Merchant: "The gleam of the merchant's eyes speak to rewards given at a cost." At
the beginning of the encounter, a creature may sacrifice a gemstone worth at least 10
gold pieces to gain +2 to attack, +2 to AC, or +1d6 damage.

The Miser: "The fear of loss eclipses the rewards of success." During its first turn in
combat a creature may spend an action to bury or hide 10 gold pieces. If it does so, it
gains +2 to AC and saving throws for five minutes.

The Missionary: "The prayers of the commoner releases a divine light." All living
creatures gain 1d6 temporary hit points.

The Mists: "The mists turn all enemies into the shadows of doubt." All creatures take -2
to attack creatures more than five feet away from them.

The Monk: "The strongest armor is the resolution of the heart and mind." All unarmored
or cloth-wearing creatures gain +2 to AC and saving throws.

The Myrmidon: "What is steel compared to the hand that wields it?" Any creature
attacking with a two-handed weapon gains +1d6 damage.

The Necromancer: "The elements of all magics become death in the end." All magical
attacks gain +1d6 necrotic damage.

The Paladin: "The blade of the righteous burns bright." All melee attacks gain +1d6
radiant damage.

The Philanthropist: "Selfless souls seek those of greatest potential." Three random
creatures gain 3d6 gold pieces and +2 to AC and saving throws for the next five
minutes.

The Priest: "The light of the gods burns in the priest's eyes." All spell damage gains
+1d6 extra radiant damage.

The Raven: "Those who give the raven its due find reward in the deed." Any creature
that reduces another creature to zero hit points gains +2d6 temporary hit points.
The Rogue: "All become thieves in desperation." All creatures gain +1d6 damage when
attacking an enemy within 5 feet of an ally.

The Seer: "Those who see the wisdom of elders know where best to strike." At the
beginning of combat, all creatures must make a DC 13 Wisdom check. Those that
succeed gain +2 to attack.

The Shepherd: "The most meager might succeed when guided by a caring hand." Three
random creatures gain advantage on skill checks.

The Soldier: "Iron and wood will never betray you." Any creature using a shield gains
+2 to AC.

The Swashbuckler: "The swiftest blade draws the brightest blood." All creatures gain
+1d6 damage when attacking with a finesse weapon.

The Tax Collector: "All must pay the tax collector in the end." On their first turn, as a
bonus action, a creature must sacrifice 1% of its total gold holdings or take -2 to AC,
attacks, and saving throws.

The Tempter: "The tempter trades blood for blood." A creature may take 1d4 damage
in order to inflict 1d6 extra damage on their next attack.

The Thief: "The swiftest hand returns with the greatest rewards." Once per turn, on a
successful melee attack, the attacker may make a DC 13 dexterity (slight of hand) check
to steal a random trinket from the enemy.

The Torturer: "Pain brings the mightiest ruler to its knees." All creatures take 1d4
damage at the beginning of their turns.

The Trader: "A ghostly grinning figure holds a glowing weapon in one hand with his
other palm out awaiting payment." At the beginning of their first turn in combat, a
creature may sacrifice an item worth no less than 10 gold pieces to gain a +2 weapon of
their choice. This weapon disappears after five minutes.

The Traitor: "Treachery lies buried deep in the soul." At the beginning of combat, a
random creature must make a DC 13 wisdom saving throw or be dominated by a random
enemy.
The Transmuter: "Who is to say what true form one might have when the winds of
chaos roar." A random creature must make a DC 13 constitution saving throw. On a
failure, the creature turns into a trinket. The creature cannot be harmed while in this
form. The creature returns to its normal form at the end of its next turn.

The Warrior: "The way of the warrior is a resolute acceptance of death." All creatures
gain +2 to attack and +1d6 damage when attacking with strength-based melee weapon
attacks.

The Wizard: "Magic lies deep in all things, binding us to the will of the universe." All
spell attacks gain +2 to spell attacks, +1d6 force damage to spell damage, and DCs
increase by 2.

A Return to I6 Ravenloft's Combat Modifiers

The original I6 Ravenloft adventure had one interesting use of the Tarokka deck that isn't
included in the Dungeons & Dragons 5e super-adventure Curse of Strahd; modifiers to
combat encounters. It was a small feature and, as presented in the original adventure,
sort of boring.

However, we also have this nice juicy Tarokka deck that we really only use once in the
whole adventure. There has to be more we can do with this thing!

Thus we have Tarokka-based random encounter effects.

Using Tarokka-Based Random Effects

Every time you (or Strahd!) thinks an encounter is looking rather bland, our lord of
Barovia (you the DM!) draws a card from the Tarokka deck and throws it into the middle
of the table. Then, using the card list, you determine what effect comes into play for that
encounter. Sometimes these effects are good. Sometimes they're really nasty.
Sometimes they're just plain weird. In some cases, they have no effect at all depending
on the situation. If that's the case, sometimes Strahd gets pissed off and draws another
card. That's his prerogative!

Unless otherwise noted all last for five minutes from the time the card is played.
This tool assumes you DON'T happen to have the Tarokka deck on hand so we've taken
the step of rolling it for you when you load the page. You can reload the page to draw
another card if you wish.

A Fun Way to Spice Up Encounters

These effects are intended to add another layer to encounters that otherwise might feel
a little bland. You don't have to use it for every encounter, or any encounter really,
unless you think it will add a bit of a fun variable for you and your players. The next time
the PCs are facing a relatively simple fight, toss out a card and see what happens!