Recently, I came across a Kickstarter that appeared to have potential. Reference cards for D&D 5e titled “The Deck of Many“. They looked flashy, useful, and not like any reference product I had seen thus far. So, of course, I had to back the entire thing to receive every single deck I could. What made this Kickstarter for me even better was the fact it was made by people local to me and shipped locally as well. Yay for Canadian made!
From finishing the Kickstarter, it took only a few short weeks to receive my product. Yes, receive it. I was highly impressed with the rate at which the company worked to produce all of the decks they needed to, assemble them, and assemble the packages for shipping. Incredibly impressed. Most Kickstarters I assume to be waiting many months for completion. Certainly not for The Deck of Many.
When I received them they were all very neatly packaged, the cards were shrink-wrapped safely in their decks, and I had the extra Kickstarter reward cards with them. I was very excited to open them up and begin using them!
Starting off with The Deck of Many Conditions, I love them already. The art is fun and unique, they’re easy to read, and the cards are made of heavy, durable quality. I wouldn’t even be overly concerned about getting them a bit wet by accident, the material is of a higher end quality. The condition set has two sides to all of the cards, ensuring multiple copies of each condition. I like the idea of using these references cards at the table with newer players who could truly benefit from their DM handing out the card to them once they were suffering a certain condition.
The Deck of Many Things, the one I was primarily excited for, was gorgeous. Instead of having the information on each of the cards themselves, the back of the cards had a very nice, purple design and the front of them had a large picture of what the item was. There were then three reference cards that came along with the deck to explain what each card did. These cards are more aesthetic for myself than anything else as I don’t often have The Deck of Many Things in play. However, if I ever do this will come in incredibly handy so that the player can have the deck themselves without having to fish through reference books.
The Deck of Many NPCs. This one I find particularly interesting and useful. Need an NPC fast and don’t have a chart handy? Just pull out your deck! Also fantastic for quick and easy reference of common NPCs like an Acolyte. My favourite out of the whole bunch, however, was *Terry Askew as pictured. Definitely, need to utilize this one somewhere in a game. All of the character stats are on the reverse of the cards. What I will likely do is attach the card onto my DM screen standing upright so that the players can see the picture and I, as the DM, can see the stats, without having to keep multiple references open at once.
The Deck of Many Weapons. Once again, I find this a very useful resource for newer players or perhaps players with a short memory span like myself. You can pick out the weapons your character is using (basic weapons are included only) and have them ready on hand to help yourself refer to. My favourite art in this deck was how the darts were conceptualized.
The Deck of Many Monsters I-III. A lot of resources and references for DMs! Definitely going to be checking these before every session to see if I have a use for them during my upcoming encounters. I just find having a card reference so much fast and easier than a large, clunky book or stat block sheet and I’m not a fan of digital references, either. These will be real space and time savers for me. Also, how could you not love this Baby Mimic? Hrm?
All of the decks themselves came with empty reference cards you could fill in as you pleased. This was a nice addition for those would want to add to their decks and use them as their primary reference source.
Overall, I was very impressed with the service, the quality, and the outcome of The Deck of Many. For $16/deck or $70 for the full set, I would highly recommend paying the extra for the full set as you are saving so much money and getting a good deal on a high-quality product. If you, like myself, want to always improve your quick referencing abilities as well as make your tables more inclusive of newer players (help referencing with weapons and conditions specifically), I definitely recommend this product.
Click to check out The Deck of Many! There’s always the added bonus of supporting a Canadian business!
Aspiring Halfling 