Midnight Rambler

I'm always open to new systems, and what they bring to the table (pun intended).  New mechanics are very interesting to me, whether they are heavy crunch, or narrative focused.  I do admit that I'm partial to "old school" when it comes to mechanics; I'm very much a product of early TSR, so sometimes the newer narrative-based systems feel "off" to me.  Still, I endeavor to learn as much as I can, and see what's out there.

One particular mechanic that I've been interested in is playing cards.  There's a whole list of games that utilize playing cards in some fashion or another, so I won't bore you with the details.  The thing that draws me to cards as a mechanic is the potential depth.  Suits, color, face cards, jokers, discard pile, draw, hands, and number value can all be used in a game (or not).  It's possible to use just the numerical value of the cards, but that would be such a waste.

I've dabbled with using a playing card system in the past, but never committed to it.  It just didn't seem like the right path at the time, although I can't tell you why nowadays.  Maybe because it was different, or not the comfortable route.  Say what you want, but familiarity is a selling point, and a big one at that.

Now I'm starting to come back around to cards.  I have some basic ideas so far, nothing too mind blowing.  Ace(1) through 10, face cards count as special abilities, Jokers are GM devices, that sort of thing.  I was considering using a player's Hand Size as their stamina/health, which can be increased through experience.  A character takes damage, and their hand size is temporarily reduced. 

Players would play a card from their hand to beat a TN set by the GM.  If the Suit matches the skill being played, they get to play another card from their hand.  Players also have the option to play from the top of the deck, but that can hold some potential consequence.  Not sure about the discard pile, and how that would come into play.

Another idea is that a player starts off with a set number of cards in their deck, and they can buy cards with experience.  You would only be able to buy a rank higher than your current rank in a suit, so no skipping  over to the higher number cards.  Face cards would activate some kind of special ability that was purchased, such as a second attack, or a distraction that gives an enemy a negative modifier.

One thing I'm struggling with is target numbers (TN).  I'm either going with an approximation of a d10, or a d13; face cards either cap out at 10, or increase in value up to 13.  Since I haven't made up my mind, I'm not sure what a good range for easy, average, and hard difficulties would be for players.

So, whatcha think?  Good idea, bad idea, or indifferent to the whole thing?