New D&D feat gives the best part of Sorcerer to all classes
D&D 5E’s upcoming Book of Many Things introduces the Cartomancer Feat, which grants the best Sorcerer class feature to all of the spellcasters in the game, allowing for some amazing combos.
Dungeons & Dragons’ new Book of Many Things only introduces a single Feat, but it’s a powerful one, as the Cartomancer has an ability that works in the same way as the Sorcerer’s Quicken Spell Metamagic option, allowing spellcasters to use their magic faster in combat.
Cartomancer is a Feat that can only be taken by level 4 characters with the Spellcasting feature. Those who take it gain instant access to the Prestdigitation Cantrip and can use it without verbal or somatic components. This allows for fancy card tricks without letting others know that the character is using magic to deceive them.
More importantly, they gain the Hidden Ace ability, allowing them to imbue one of their spells into a card, which can then be cast as a Bonus Action. The imbued spell has to have a casting time of one Action, and the feature can only be used once per Long Rest, but it has a lot of uses for many classes.
Wizards of The CoastD&D 5E’s new Cartomancer Feat offers the Sorcerer’s Quicken Spell to all spellcasters
Characters who take the Cartomancer Feat from D&D’s Book of Many Things can cast a spell as a Bonus Action, opening up many interesting combos. Usually, characters cannot cast two spells in the same turn, as the rulebook says the limit per turn is a Bonus Action and a Cantrip, or an Action and a Bonus Action. This works in the same way as the Sorcerer’s Quicken Spell Metamagic ability, except it’s restricted to one use per day.
With Cartomancer, a Cleric could cast Inflict Wounds and attack in the same turn; an Arcane Trickster could incapacitate a foe with Tasha’s Hideous Laughter and then Sneak Attack them while they’re prone, and anyone with Greater Invisibility can immediately start messing with people without needing to waste a turn on casting it.
It bears mentioning that one magic-using class doesn’t gain the benefits of Cartomancer, and that’s the Warlock. This is because D&D Warlocks use the Pact Magic feature, which is different from Spellcasting unless a character is willing to multiclass. Luckily, a Cartomancer Warlock build wouldn’t be a game-breaker, so DMs might be willing to allow it, especially as the poor Warlock is already starved for spell slots, so isn’t in a position to pull off powerful one-turn combos that don’t involve Hex and Eldritch Blast.
Regardless, Cartomancer is an excellent Feat and one of the best additions to the D&D 5E rules in the Book of Many of Things. Sure, there might suddenly be a lot of cardshark D&D characters in the near future, but that’s a small price to pay for such a powerful ability, especially for the spellcasters who love to fight on the front lines and want to cast and whack in the same turn.
