Using Tarot Cards in-game
Web_Weaver:
My opinion may well fall into the "i'm plugged into the zeitgiest" syle of post previously warned against but tarot is an especially subjective subject. To try and keep it practical I will limit things to my own experiences.
I am friends with someone who considers tarot games of any sort totally anathema, based on his own Christian belief. As such I respect that view and have never suggested that we play Everway, even though it uses a re-imagined deck, its in my collection, and its something I have always been fascinated by.
I used to be friends with a tarot reader, who would probably (I can't be totally sure) be offended by playing games with them because of the level of respect she granted her own cards - wrapped in silk, never to be touched by anyone except for a reading.
I suspect that the majority of people sit somewhere in the middle of these views. I myself have used tarot as a fortune telling device on a small number of occasions, I am otherwise rational, scientific and sceptical. So, I can see the potential.
As for actual reaction at the table, I have played a demonic character in In Nomine where I swapped out the d6s for the appropriate minor arcana, I was going for an edgy feel in a game that was already well in that camp. I still got some nervous looks from the GM and one of the other players whilst I shuffled my decks, but that was part of the pay-off.
I think this is essentially a marketing decision. I would ask myself if I was using tarot to be cool and edgy, to provide inspirational creative constraint, to encourage a mystical mood, etc. Any way is cool but the marketing would be different, especially if we define marketing as the way you communicate to the people who might enjoy your game.
As anyone who uses tarot will tell you, the questions and the answers are inextricably linked, as is the mind set and approach, so I think your "fate dice system" would perfectly suit the use of tarot if only because it would encourage more open and potentially creative questions and more interpretive answers.
Jamie
Chris_Chinn:
Hi talisman,
Welcome to the Forge! (as a poster, at least)
Quote from: talisman on December 12, 2010, 07:02:23 PM
We ask the game a yes or no question, and pull a card. If it's right-side up it means yes, if it's upside-down it means no. You can do this with a six-sider too. 4+ is a yes, 1-3 is a no.
The primary game I'm familiar with that uses tarot cards is Everway, and one of the issues it had was not having a simple yes/no resolution system, which put a lot of work into the group's hands into interpreting each card draw, particularly if they weren't familiar with how tarot associations work.
Here's a useful thing to consider about your play (and you'll probably need to play more to observe it), how do you decide which questions are legit vs. "That would be stupid to put in this game?" Do you sit down and talk about the setting ahead of time? Do you see the other players give you a funny look then revise your possible addition to the setting? Likewise, how do you decide which things are assumed vs. worth asking? How do you avoid hogging the question/event creating process spotlight too much?
You don't need to overthink these questions, but just watch next time you're playing. You might find some useful best practices, or even some unspoken rules that really make the difference between this being fun or unfun.
Chris
Bill_White:
Note that Everway's "Fortune deck" is not the Tarot deck per se,, but a custom-made set of major arcana-like motifs capable of being interpreted as a judgment on the outcome of in-game actions. If I recall correctly, it is intended mainly to inform the GM's decision-making in play, although it did have a role in character creation--fortune-telling as character creation. Conversely, Joe Prince's Swansong integrates a straight-up Tarot deck into the game, using cards for their numeric values and oracular motifs.
Recently, some indie games have begun to use playing cards qualitatively rather than quantitatively.
Vincent Baker's In A Wicked Age uses "oracles" associated with playing card values to provide the initial in-game situation elements for each session.
My own game Ganakagok layers Tarot-like motifs and in-game color on top of a regular deck of playing cards, and uses them for character and situation generation as well as to shape the consequences of in-game action; the "conflict resolution" mechanics actually assign narration rights via the force of character's in-game attributes as signaled through role-playing.
I'm trying to do something similar with a game-in-progress I'm calling The New World, a game of historical fantasy and colonial cultural conflict and accommodation.
I've also experimented with using I Ching-like mechanics once or twice, without getting much traction, but there's a rich vein there, I think.
Joe J Prince:
I love using tarot cads in my games!
Alongside the aforementioned Swansong, Hell 4 Leather uses tarot cards exclusively, no character sheets or anything (it's better than Swansong too, shh).
I've never met anyone who objected to using tarot cards in a RPG, but I'm informed they exist on the internets. Tarot decks are quite expensive though so that can be a potential barrier. Which is why I've got rules in H4L enabling you to use a standard deck instead - not as cool though!
Cheers
Joe
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