Using Tarot in Roleplaying Games

[Sihaya]

I was at a friend's house the other day and we decided to play a roleplaying game. I decided to play a Miss Cleo wannabe, only my character was a REAL psychic. So throughout the game, whenever my party wanted insight on something I would draw a card and tell them what I saw. This turned out wonderfully, with me being an important part of the team despite my lack of use in combat or anything. It was probably the best game I'd ever played.

So who here uses tarot in RPGs?

 

[Miren]

Hmm...I've never done that. When I was a cleric in RPG stuff, I always prayed to my gods through the DM. For the fortune telling and such. I'll have to think about that, thanks for sharing!

 

[CalypsoTea]

I've never used tarot in my D&D games, but I've been seriously considering it for my current one. My character is a fledgeling diviner (dream interpretation in particular) and I was thinking that she might use tarot once she becomes a bit more proficient. The campaign's only started recently, so it'll be a little while yet. ^_^

 

[MikeTheAltarboy]

In D&D, there's an artifact (is that the word?) called a "Deck of many things." It has about 20 cards in it, and they're described, and it's obviously supposed to be like a tarot deck. You draw a card, and depending which you draw, something momentous and irreversable happens to you.
In a game my ex was running, he decided to have a "Deck of Too Many things". He used one of my full tarot decks for it, and came up with something for all of them. He used my Cicero Golden Dawn deck, and I think based the things on the GD titles. Then, after all that, the party aquired the deck, and of the 5 people, 4 of them drew only 2 cards! Which killed them. ;-) HAHAH!

That's the closest I've come! In another RPG I played, my character did divination, but he used geomancy.

 

[Isaacrpgr]

cool

Whereas i don't od any of the actually roleplaying,that idea sounds great,as long as the EvilEverything Christians don't see you doing otherwise they will have proably a lot more stuff on those article's,And it seemed to work quite well for you,well maybe i should bring a deck whenever i do try to go to the "wildside" OF rpgs

 

[Jeannette]

I created the "Tarot Mage" class and supplemental materials for the (now defunct) I.C.E. "Rolemaster" RPG system. It was published in the "RoleMaster Companion VII" supplemental sourcebook.

Since ICE never sent me any contracts to sign or paid me in full for my work, they don't own the copyright to it, as far as I'm concerned (regardless of what they may have plastered on any materials they released). Ergo, I'm happy to send copies of any or all of my original files to anyone who requests them, at no charge.

-- Jeannette
The Tarot Garden

 

[Sihaya]

I've heard of that deck of many things.
Man, I'm thinking about playing a psychic again in a friend's game next semester.

One of my other friends says that you can use 3 Dragon Ante cards (a wierd D&D related card game) to create D&D characters. He then showed me how and it turned out pretty interesting. I wonder how tarot can be used for that.

 

[northsea]

Dragon magazine #77 has the Tarot of Many Things, and there's a Castle&Crusades' Crusader magazine article about using tarot for an RPG.

 

[Ilithiya]

In one of the AD&D 2nd edition Ravenloft boxed sets, Forgotten Lore, there was a majors-only "tarokka" deck included. It apparently was later expanded upon and sold as an accessory on its own. I'd love to have that, but it's oop for a long, long time and I haven't been looking for it.

Illy

 

[Silaria]

I've used a very cheap (and incredibly ugly) Tarot deck as a Deck of Many Things for D&D 3rd ed. I've also had my players encounter a Tarot Reader at one point during their journeys.

I also have a Mage character in White Wolf's Mage the Assention game who uses Tarot as a focus for her spells.