House of Cards (Level 20+) | Deck of Many Things - Epic Levels
Pulling the Void card, you awaken in an astral prison. To escape the House of Cards, you must survive the deadliest foes from the Deck of Many Things!
About the adventure
You don’t know how long you have been lost here in the House of Cards. You’ve been wandering these strange hallways ever since the fateful day you drew the Void card from the Deck of Many Things… Every day the corridors and staircases shuffle and rotate, sending you into another space and time - forced to do battle with aberrations and avoid deadly traps along the way. There are others trapped here too, fellow adventurers who fell to a similar fate. It seems you must work together to overcome the challenges summoned by the Deck of Many Things - and hope you find a portal back home before it is too late. ⚔️ Embark on a series of high level adventures set in the extra dimensional arena known as the House of Cards. Each episode will feature a different set of challenges & corridors to explore. 🔮 Though each session will be combat heavy, there is always space for role-play and interacting with unique dungeon dynamics. This way, you get to use more of your epic level abilities than just a normal boss fight. 🐉 Remember, you are playing an epic-level adventurer, at the height of your power. Bring your favorite combos and broken builds - but be prepared for some twists and turns along the way. This mini-campaign will take place over several episodes with a chance to upgrade your level 20 character with custom boons and magic items in between sessions.
Game themes
Meet the Game Master
1 year on StartPlaying
27 games hosted
Highly rated for: Creativity, Storytelling, World Builder
About me
I play this game to experience magic. From intense cinematic high stakes combat to delving into ancient scrolls of arcane lore and mysteries of the divine, I love DnD. It is a profound way to tell stories, fight our inner demons, and ride the dragons of creativity together. I love to build my own worlds, drawing on various parts of the DnD multiverse, player character backstories, and a touch of modern day mysticism through philosophy, astrology and contemplative archetypes. This story is one we build together. I like to set the stage, and provide a compelling world to inhabit. But it bends, morphs and melds to what the players bring into it. This is one of the few art mediums I have found that can combine this level of collaborative world building, improv, comedy, drama, music, and high octane dice rolling into one delicious night of story making magic. I’ve been DMing 5E since 2018, though I grew up playing 3.5 my whole childhood. I’m a musician, an author and designer. Improv storytelling has been central to my life for over 15 years. I do my best to make this an enchanting world with character voices, intriguing NPC motivations, and plot hooks into player character backstory for collaborative storytelling. I love challenging and exciting combat, often with environmental effects and surprises that change up normal hit for hit battles. I roll up with tough monsters and dangerously high-stakes encounters to help heroes rise to a worthy challenge. I do love wacky workarounds and clever ideas - so expect to get rewarded for out of the box thinking. At my table you can expect to befriend magical creatures, discover new magical items, and encounter dangers to overcome. Through the highs and lows of the d20, we can laugh, cry, and cheer together. In my experience, DnD is a surprisingly profound game. The storytelling has helped my personal pathway of transformation through imagination and I aim to hold a safe and inclusive space for those who want to venture into these magical realms together. I feel the stories that we take our avatars into matter - and I try to create realms where the character choices we make can be a cathartic outlet for the trials and tribulations we humans experience out here in this world. So if you want to have some fun, make silly voices, roll dice, discover ancient prophecies, unlock secret treasures, and beat stuff with magical swords then come join me for an episode of Dragons and Dreamers. Inspirations - D20 and NADDPOD, Gene Keys, I Ching, Astrology, Archetypes Game Systems - DnD5E Tech - Discord or Zoom and Roll20
View Profile →Character creation
Creating your character
All character creation rules are on the discord server once you join. Here are the basics... - Starting Level 20, multiclass allowed - Any published 5E content is eligible, and I will share my DnD Beyond sourcebooks with those who join the campaign. - Abilities - Point buy, standard, or roll using dice roller on discord server - Some spells & items do not work in the House of Cards - see discord for more details. Magic Items on point buy system. You get 11 points to spend on... - **UNCOMMON** are 1 point. - **RARE** are 2 points. - **VERY RARE** are 3 points. - **LEGENDARY** are 4 points. - **ARTIFACTS** cost 6 points.
Can't make every session? Drop-in players are welcome, join the discord to learn more. Current party includes a Vengeance Paladin, Moon Druid, Wizard/Cleric, and Bard/Warlock But choose anything fun for you! Come join a wild level 20 adventure with your favorite build or a new experiment!
What to expect
Preparing for the session
Required... -A steady internet connect -Free discord account -Free D&D Beyond Account -Free Roll20 Account -Working headphones/microphone for voice chat -Read all of the #house-of-cards rules once you join the Discord server -At least basic understanding of your character abilities Please craft a short backstory or thematic idea for your character. Though this is a high combat series, there is plenty of space for roleplay :) If you need help creating your character, we can connect via discord.
What Elijah brings to the table
What I provide... * Symbolically satisfying roleplay opportunities with oracles, fey trickery, and plenty of space for mischief * Epic and engaging action with unique combat mechanics, environments and challenging foes * Poetry, art, lore and some (amateur) character voices to weave both the serious and the silly of this world alive * Access to many D&D Beyond Sourcebooks * Roll20 with custom maps, tokens, and artwork * Patreon supported battlemaps such as CZEPEKU and Eightfold * Ambient music and soundscapes * Rule of cool... and the rules themselves are already cool. I love getting crunchy and using rules as written so all published sources are welcome. I also love making wacky homebrew, from custom items and spells to specialized encounter mechanics. You are here to be heroes and I want to make that possible. I very much honor rule of cool. Though it may not always work... so beware the consequences! * While this is a combat-focused one shot there will be a balance of some roleplay, exploration, traps and unique encounters beyond just the normal hack-and-slash. * I celebrate nat 20s with great zeal from saving throws to ability checks * I like it when people use their skill checks and class features to learn more about the world around them - I will make it worth your investment :) * I aim to make sure each person has their voice heard at the table and gets a chance in the spotlight - even if your character is stunned, unconscious, etc. * I invite roleplay, even in combat encounters. I encourage my players to describe how your magic spells look and feel, give you the freedom to trash talk the bad guy as a free action on your turn, and may invite you to describe flashbacks/memories that arise from your character's backstory in response to the magic of the Deck of Many Things.
Equipment needed to play
Headphones
Microphone
Internet
Computer
Platforms used
Safety
How Elijah creates a safe table
🐉 Deadly high level combat to challenge even the most epic of heroes 🧞 Puzzles and traps that can either work for you or against you in this temple of trickery 🐦🔥 Homebrew monsters and dungeon dynamics to keep things fun and interesting 🗡️ Unique artifacts, epic boons and magical artifacts to bring with you for future adventures 🧙♂️ Opportunity to roleplay an epic level hero - describe your reality bending power in this high-fantasy setting ⚡ Keeping things moving - we will all do our best to keep the game moving smoothly. If there are technical issues or rules clarifications needed, I may make DM ruling to help keep the cinematic tone and feeling. I like rule of cool and am happy to bend the rules a bit - but the goal is to keep things both fair and ferociously fun. ✨ High level combat is complicated - please have at least the basic understandings of your abilities. I am happy to work with you to learn how to use the tools (Roll20, DnDBeyond, & Beyond20) ahead of time. Though a basic understanding of 5E is needed - I am happy to work with people who are inexperienced with high level combat. Just message me on discord! 🌈 I strive to make a safe space to learn, play, and create magical stories together. Be kind, be cool, and have fun - that's the main rule.