Over the Top?

[Joan Marie]

Can anyone tell me what the hell this even is?



This kickstarter for a tarot deck called The Deck of Many Animated Spells, Tarot and More for 5e (which only has a few hours left and may be over by the time you see this) has raised nearly $1 Million as of this post.

How is that even possible?

And what even is this?

Please have a look and tell me what you think because i am just floored by this.

(It says the cards are "animated" but ...are they?)

[Pen]

The cards seem to be for gaming - the sort played either digitally or actually with a group, with a board and characters - wizards, witches etc., so spells would be needed I guess. Apparently they work by using 8 frames on a loop - I'm not sure how or if this works digitally, but imagine a flip book with 8 images, each slightly different which when flipped makes it appear that the figure moves - repeated over and over when you tilt the card. I wonder if each card is a holograph? I can't imagine each being a mini computer or 'smart card', but of course I could be wrong...

[Joan Marie]

I wonder if each card is a holograph? I can't imagine each being a mini computer or 'smart card', but of course I could be wrong...

That's what I thought too, it's like those 3-D postcards and such, only maybe a bit more detailed. The old ones tended to be pretty simple, switching back and forth between 2 images when you tilted the card. (It's a man, now it's Jesus! - A man again! -Jesus!)
I think it said that each of these has like 6 images so the effect is maybe a bit smoother. But it still looks really limited, to me.

I think you are right though, these must be some kind of gaming thing like Pokeman or something and that might explain the massive audience. It doesn't seem to really have a lot to do with Tarot.

Still, a million dollars on a kickstarter for some cards feels insane to me.

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[Pen]

Just asked my son-in-law who's a graphic designer (and gamer). He says it sounds like a lenticular system, where 8 images would be stacked in layers and the movement happens when the card is tilted. And yes, a million dollars does seem insane, but I suppose enough people want them to make it happen.

Looking at the dinosaur makes me queasy - the background moves too - not very successful.

[Papageno]

Just asked my son-in-law who's a graphic designer (and gamer). He says it sounds like a lenticular system, where 8 images would be stacked in layers and the movement happens when the card is tilted. And yes, a million dollars does seem insane, but I suppose enough people want them to make it happen.

Looking at the dinosaur makes me queasy - the background moves too - not very successful.

"Lenticular system: full-color, limited-angle, autostereoscopic alternative to holography."

I had to look this up.

queasy indeed.

[qndynes]

Haha yes I had the same reaction when I saw this. The images themselves look good, too digital for my taste but not bad, but I didn't/still don't understand where the tarot in this is? I did think of a game like D&D, that's what it looks like since it doe have spells like Pen mentioned in his comment.

[Charlie Brown]

"5e" refers to Dungeons and Dragons (5th Edition). It's a D&D-inspired product.

[qndynes]

Oh look at that I wasn't that far off!

[Joan Marie]

"5e" refers to Dungeons and Dragons (5th Edition). It's a D&D-inspired product.

Thank you Poindexter.

[Niobium]

So, just a note, this is basically a kickstarter for *several* different card decks. The 78-card Tarot deck was a stretch goal, and is one of the (enormous number of) decks you can pick for your reward. The bulk of the Kickstarter is focused on spell cards for D&D 5e, which are a popular way to indicate spells being cast in tabletop games. It brings a bit of the TCG flavor to D&D, and is also *much* easier to keep hold of than, you know, 5 books. x.x

The major arcana have been finished, and can be seen at https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hi ... ts/2834820 (warning, gif heavy).

The minors are underway. The Tarot is available by itself, and if you're into lenticular things is quite fun. D&D 5e is insanely popular at the moment, so I'm not too surprised this one got so high.

Another deck you'll often see referred to in conjunction with D&D is the 'Deck of Many Things' (which their KS is named for), which is an in-game item that has the likelihood of killing you, but a small chance of granting you amazing stuff. It works nicely as a little oracle deck, since it has a lot of key concepts. Here's an example of one that recently went up on Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/listing/802585767/ ... _purchases

I did fund this one so I'm happy to share how it comes out.

[Papageno]

Another deck you'll often see referred to in conjunction with D&D is the 'Deck of Many Things' (which their KS is named for), which is an in-game item that has the likelihood of killing you, but a small chance of granting you amazing stuff. It works nicely as a little oracle deck, since it has a lot of key concepts. Here's an example of one that recently went up on Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/listing/802585767/ ... _purchases

I did fund this one so I'm happy to share how it comes out.

The Floral and Fauna Deck of Many Things is very attractive, it reminds me a great deal of The 5-cent Tarot 2nd Ed.