Pokemon Tarot

[Onaorkal]

Several published and non-published tarot decks were made since the Pokemon saga started in the 90s, but here I am talking about this one : http://pokebox.storenvy.com/collections/171214-all-products/products/19684522-pokebox-doujin-poke-mon-tarot

 

The author is Cokujyo Eikyu and this deck is not official Pokemon material, but an 'amateur self-published work' (this is what the 'Doujin' means on the website).

I find it really well done, as you can see on this page (all cards are there with most Pokemon identified) : http://tarot.vn/tra-cuu-pokemon-tarot/

 

I've heard about it on the Cartomancy forum and at least another person has ordered it already, but I thought I should spread the love on here too and if there is some interest, we could even start a study group! (A feature that doesn't seem to be present on the Cartomancy forum anyway.)

 

 

So, I'm currently waiting for my deck and I haven't analyzed the cards in detail yet. The author seems to know enough about tarot to make a decent deck, meaning that from what I saw, the choice of Pokemon for each card wasn't based solely on physical characteristics, but on relevant personality traits as well.

 

I don't think a big knowledge of the Pokemon series/games is necessary to work with this deck, but if you want to dig deeper, you'll have to make a bit of research, as there are a LOT of Pokemon out there and a lot to know about them.

 

If there is at least some interest, again, I would be happy to start a study group eventually, so let me know! I'm a child of the 90's so I know the concept and first generation of Pokemon quite well.  :)

 

Here are a couple of my favorite cards to give you an idea!

 

[Trogon]

OMG! That is fabulous!!! About 10 years ago my wife had to have a knee replacement, so I'd taken a bunch of time off from work. Borrowed a friends GBA and her Fire Red. I have been completely hooked ever since. And, by the time Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby came out, with the anniversary releases of the hardest to get legendaries, I was actually able to complete my Pokédex!

 

Anyway, this is definitely going on my wish list! I'm looking forward to what you have to say about it once you have it in hand.

 

Though, I have to admit that, as great as this one looks, I've also thought one based on the anime would be great. I always picture that image from the first episode, of Ash dragging Pikachu by a cord, as The Fool. ;D

[Onaorkal]

OMG! That is fabulous!!! About 10 years ago my wife had to have a knee replacement, so I'd taken a bunch of time off from work. Borrowed a friends GBA and her Fire Red. I have been completely hooked ever since. And, by the time Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby came out, with the anniversary releases of the hardest to get legendaries, I was actually able to complete my Pokédex!

 

Anyway, this is definitely going on my wish list! I'm looking forward to what you have to say about it once you have it in hand.

 

Though, I have to admit that, as great as this one looks, I've also thought one based on the anime would be great. I always picture that image from the first episode, of Ash dragging Pikachu by a cord, as The Fool. ;D

 

I was hoping you would reply to this Trogon, since I saw in an other thread that you really like Pokemon!!  ;D

 

You're right, an anime-inspired deck would be really nice too!! I'd personally LOVE a Naruto-inspired one hehe! In the meantime I've made one myself by using cards from the TCG, since it depicts scenes of the anime.

 

Pokemon also has a TCG but they are more related to the game I think? They are not anime-based for sure I think!

 

Anyway, I will let everyone know about the deck for sure when I get it!  :)

[mariannehj]

I love this deck!

 

[Trogon]

I was hoping you would reply to this Trogon, since I saw in an other thread that you really like Pokemon!!  ;D

 

You're right, an anime-inspired deck would be really nice too!! I'd personally LOVE a Naruto-inspired one hehe! In the meantime I've made one myself by using cards from the TCG, since it depicts scenes of the anime.

 

Pokemon also has a TCG but they are more related to the game I think? They are not anime-based for sure I think!

 

Anyway, I will let everyone know about the deck for sure when I get it!  :)

 

You're right about the Pokémon TCG cards ... they're strictly battling cards and I don't believe any of them depict any people.

 

Of course, now that I'm thinking of anime themed Tarots; a "Cowboy Beebop" Tarot might be really awesome - though coming up with a full 78 card deck might be a tad difficult. Also "Bubblegum Crisis" would be good too, as well as "You're Under Arrest", "Black Butler" and others I can think of. ;D

 

Looking forward to your report!

[Page of Ghosts]

I live for the 'mons  ;D 

 

As a child born in 91 I obviously watched the anime and collected cards. We didn't have the games because a gameboy you could only play alone and I had to share consoles with my brother so SNES, Gamecube and Playstation 2 was what we had when I grew up. As an adult I got my own DS and Pokemon Platinum and I've been playing both old and new games on the handheld ever since! I only need to do Yellow and Heartgold and then I've completed a game from every generation. I'll look into this deck and see what I think about it, games + tarot is the ultimate combo to me but I've yet to get any game-related decks.

[Onaorkal]

I live for the 'mons  ;D 

 

As a child born in 91 I obviously watched the anime and collected cards. We didn't have the games because a gameboy you could only play alone and I had to share consoles with my brother so SNES, Gamecube and Playstation 2 was what we had when I grew up. As an adult I got my own DS and Pokemon Platinum and I've been playing both old and new games on the handheld ever since! I only need to do Yellow and Heartgold and then I've completed a game from every generation. I'll look into this deck and see what I think about it, games + tarot is the ultimate combo to me but I've yet to get any game-related decks.

 

Woohoo! I'm glad there are other Pokemon lovers here!!  ;D

 

I also didn't have a Gameboy when I was a kid, neither did we have any kind of consoles until the end of the 90's. So I was so happy when other family members or friends would have Pokemon Stadium at home!! I wanted to play non-stop! Then when I got old enough I bought my own Gameboy and Pokemon Yellow (my favorite!) I think I still have it, but it's defective and I can't save games anymore! :'(

Also let's not forget about Pokemon Snap! :o

Ahhhh and I also had a Pikachu tamagotchi when I was younger, then I lost it and bought another one on Ebay some years later! :P

 

All this talk about Pokemon games and this deck really put me back in the Pokemania mood! Even more than Pokemon Go did last year!

I really hope I'll manage to enable you all to buy the deck hehehe!  :-*

 

But I promise I'll be honest in my review!!  8)

[VGimlet]

That's a nice deck.  Putting it on the wanted list. 

 

As I've played pokemon for years (much like you Trogon I got started with Pokémon Red on my Game Boy) and am also a Pokémon Go player, although I've not been as active the last few weeks.  :P 

[Stormdancer]

... and am also a Pokémon Go player, although I've not been as active the last few weeks.  :P

Well get back to it!!!  Legendary raids and soon MewTwo!!!

 

This is the Pokemon deck  I have.  http://www.alchemywebsite.com/tarot/out.files/f12008.jpg

[Onaorkal]

... and am also a Pokémon Go player, although I've not been as active the last few weeks.  :P

Well get back to it!!!  Legendary raids and soon MewTwo!!!

 

This is the Pokemon deck  I have.  http://www.alchemywebsite.com/tarot/out.files/f12008.jpg

 

Oh! Looks like a cute deck Stormdancer! Is it a Majors only? Do you like to use it?

 

I can't  wait to see how 'well thought out' the deck I ordered will be!  :o But looks promising!

[Stormdancer]

... and am also a Pokémon Go player, although I've not been as active the last few weeks.  :P

Well get back to it!!!  Legendary raids and soon MewTwo!!!

 

This is the Pokemon deck  I have.  http://www.alchemywebsite.com/tarot/out.files/f12008.jpg

 

Oh! Looks like a cute deck Stormdancer! Is it a Majors only? Do you like to use it?

 

I can't  wait to see how 'well thought out' the deck I ordered will be!  :o But looks promising!

It's a full deck, but I've not really explored it even though I've had it for years.  Actually never really thought about it until I saw this thread.  OLD as dirt Woman playing Pokemon Go so maybe it's make more sense now, LOL

[Siavahda]

I've caught a glimpse of this one here and there, and coming from a household of crazy Pokemon fans I have to admit to coveting it. Do you have any more information on how well the pokemon on each card match its meaning? I've heard good things about it on that front, but it would be nice to hear from someone who owns it :)

[Onaorkal]

I've caught a glimpse of this one here and there, and coming from a household of crazy Pokemon fans I have to admit to coveting it. Do you have any more information on how well the pokemon on each card match its meaning? I've heard good things about it on that front, but it would be nice to hear from someone who owns it :)

 

Hello Siavahda! Are you talking about the deck I've introduced in this thread or the one Stormdancer already owns?

 

I'm supposed to receive mine this week, I can't wait!

 

I didn't study the cards so much yet, but from what I saw, the choice of Pokemon seemed to make sense on a tarot level. I intend to do start a study group for it eventually, if other people are interested to have one.  :)

[Onaorkal]

I've received my deck!!!  :o ;D :D 8)

 

First I have to say it is sincerely gorgeous, even more than what I would have hoped for!

 

The box it comes in is beautiful, I mean you can see it in the link I provided in the first post, but it's even better in real life. Also it's a quite sturdy box and I will keep my cards in it for sure. I will probably even put it on display, it will make the nicest decoration ever!  ;)

 

Now, the cards. The backs are reversible and again the design is very nice. It's the same design you can see on the box, but it's metallic silver and copper instead of black.

 

In fact you know what, I just checked on Youtube and someone put up a review video of the deck a few days ago! There was one already, but it was not in English and I think this one is better quality.

 

I think pictures can't do justice to those cards, because of the golden metallic effect on them. Also there are so many vibrant colors, a computer or cellphone screen might not do justice either. But I think the video I just shared is relevant if you want to get a better idea. She also compares the size of the cards with a card from the Deviant Moon deck. It's indeed a very large deck and the cards are thick.

 

In the video, you might have noticed that the Lovers card has ''The Loves'' written on it. I guess it could pass alright as is, I mean ''The Loves'' still sounds cute imo, but it was indeed a mistake. I don't know for this woman, but I received an extra ''The Lovers'' card (written correctly) with my deck, it was even in the same bag she is showing at the beginning of the video, so I don't know. In any case, don't worry about your deck, the mistake has been corrected!

I'm going to keep ''The Loves'' card for sure, it will make the greatest bookmark!  ;D

 

So yeah, yesterday when we received it, my fiancee and I looked at all the cards and wow, this deck is really packed with potential symbolism! By looking at them up close like that, I saw some details I had not noticed when looking at them on the computer. For example, in court cards with thrones, those will usually have many details either engraved or painted on them. Sometimes other Pokemon and sometimes other interesting elements. And for sure we can't say that the deck creator was lazy with the backgrounds! Many of them are really full of details!

 

I guess that is my review for now, if anyone has a question about the deck you can simply ask me! I will probably do a tentative spread with it and let you know how it goes, but I don't intend on starting a study with it for now, as I am busy finishing the one for the Mystical Cats and doing the 78 weeks of Tarot with another deck.

 

I hope that until then other people will be able to join and buy the deck. I really recommend it, especially for fans of Pokemon.

[Siavahda]

I've caught a glimpse of this one here and there, and coming from a household of crazy Pokemon fans I have to admit to coveting it. Do you have any more information on how well the pokemon on each card match its meaning? I've heard good things about it on that front, but it would be nice to hear from someone who owns it :)

 

Hello Siavahda! Are you talking about the deck I've introduced in this thread or the one Stormdancer already owns?

 

I'm supposed to receive mine this week, I can't wait!

 

I didn't study the cards so much yet, but from what I saw, the choice of Pokemon seemed to make sense on a tarot level. I intend to do start a study group for it eventually, if other people are interested to have one.  :)

 

I was referring to the deck you introduced; I've caught glimpses of it before, and I think it's beautiful, but I'm not so familiar with pokemon past gen 2 so I don't understand why each pokemon has been chosen for each card. I really wish it came with a book explaining that - it's so beautiful, and I'm sure it'll end up in my collection eventually!

 

Thank you for the link to the run-through vid, by the way. Only has me more convinced that I'll have to get my hands on it sooner or later!

[Trogon]

Good review Onaorkal! These are sounding more and more like a deck I'd love to get! I have the funny feeling that if order it and it comes with both versions of The Lovers/Loves ... I'd probably use The Loves in readings and such. Like you said, it sounds cute.

 

What did you think of the card stock? In Cosmic Creeper's review she mentioned that they're plastic? So, I'm guessing they're like the plastic playing cards that I have had for years. Those are kind of slippery, but my playing cards seem a bit thinner than this Pokémon deck. Also, did yours have many of the little edge flaws that she pointed out? And, one more question, how do you feel that they'll be for doing readings? Will they hold up to the handling, shuffling and so on (especially all that gilding)?

[Onaorkal]

I've caught a glimpse of this one here and there, and coming from a household of crazy Pokemon fans I have to admit to coveting it. Do you have any more information on how well the pokemon on each card match its meaning? I've heard good things about it on that front, but it would be nice to hear from someone who owns it :)

 

Hello Siavahda! Are you talking about the deck I've introduced in this thread or the one Stormdancer already owns?

 

I'm supposed to receive mine this week, I can't wait!

 

I didn't study the cards so much yet, but from what I saw, the choice of Pokemon seemed to make sense on a tarot level. I intend to do start a study group for it eventually, if other people are interested to have one.  :)

 

I was referring to the deck you introduced; I've caught glimpses of it before, and I think it's beautiful, but I'm not so familiar with pokemon past gen 2 so I don't understand why each pokemon has been chosen for each card. I really wish it came with a book explaining that - it's so beautiful, and I'm sure it'll end up in my collection eventually!

 

Thank you for the link to the run-through vid, by the way. Only has me more convinced that I'll have to get my hands on it sooner or later!

 

I totally intend to work on that deck, in the form of a study group or alone if no one is interested and even if I do it alone, I would be really happy to share what I found with other people.  :)

[Onaorkal]

Good review Onaorkal! These are sounding more and more like a deck I'd love to get! I have the funny feeling that if order it and it comes with both versions of The Lovers/Loves ... I'd probably use The Loves in readings and such. Like you said, it sounds cute.

 

What did you think of the card stock? In Cosmic Creeper's review she mentioned that they're plastic? So, I'm guessing they're like the plastic playing cards that I have had for years. Those are kind of slippery, but my playing cards seem a bit thinner than this Pokémon deck. Also, did yours have many of the little edge flaws that she pointed out? And, one more question, how do you feel that they'll be for doing readings? Will they hold up to the handling, shuffling and so on (especially all that gilding)?

 

Mmh, first of all, disclaimer : I am totally not knowledgeable about cardstock in general since I don't have that many tarot decks, but I'll try to answer you.

 

I understood what she meant by 'plastic-like', but they are cardboard, simply with a 'plasticky' texture I'd say? Or maybe the cards are made of 3 layers? Cardboard in the middle and a kind of thin synthetic material of some sorts on both sides? I really don't know!

 

I don't think we can say they are slippery, they have some texture, they're not totally 'smooth'. The only plastic cards I have is the Transparent Tarot. Those are actually made of plastic like the one used for sturdy acetate sheets. The feel is really not the same. When I make the cards slide together or on the table, the Transparent Tarot cards slide way more than the Pokemon Tarot cards. In fact I just compared with a few of my regular cardboard decks and the Pokemon Tarot is less slippery than some of them!

 

Also the cards are quite thick indeed!

 

About the edge flaws, I didn't watch the whole video (since I already had the deck when I found it), so I'm not sure what the flaws looked like, but I guess we can say the edges are not perfect, especially for the Major Arcana (Majors and Minors were wrapped separately since she had been selling the Major Arcana alone and now added the Minors + the box). But I don't feel it's disastrous, in fact I don't see how the edges of thick black cards could be 100% flawless. I guess really nitpicky people could have an issue with that though, I dunno?

 

I think they will shuffle well (I haven't done it already, I want to keep the order for now), even though the cards are pretty big. It looks like quality stuff, but again, I don't really know, especially since it's my first deck made of that kind of material and with gilding.

 

Hope that helped a bit!

[Trogon]

Excellent! Thanks Onaorkal! You actually gave me the information I was looking for. I think when I have a bit of change set aside, I'll be buying this one. Looks like such a fun deck!

[Onaorkal]

Excellent! Thanks Onaorkal! You actually gave me the information I was looking for. I think when I have a bit of change set aside, I'll be buying this one. Looks like such a fun deck!

 

Hope you'll like it!!  :D

 

I just reviewed all the Pokemon real quick (well, that's 802 Pokemon so by real quick I actually meant "over the course of a few days") and I recognized many of them from the deck. From what I read, many were well chosen for sure!

The author seemed to have taken a couple of things into account : myths/lore related to some of the legendary/mythical species, common personality traits for certain species and the species' types!

I can't wait to start studying it more in depth, even though I'm already knee-deep in other projects!

[chongjasmine]

I love pokemon.

But i only know gen 1 pokemon.

Collected the cards back then.

 

[EmpyreanKnight]

This deck looks seriously good. This reminded me of the Hello Kitty Tarot's fate tho. I hope that Nintendo doesn't use the copyright hammer to bludgeon it out of the market. It has sued a few people for copyright infringement, so yeah.

[Onaorkal]

This deck looks seriously good. This reminded me of the Hello Kitty Tarot's fate tho. I hope that Nintendo doesn't use the copyright hammer to bludgeon it out of the market. It has sued a few people for copyright infringement, so yeah.

 

Mmh I don't know? Pokemon has so much fanmade stuff from all over the world now, I don't think they would harass one small business like that. It can only boost Pokemon's popularity anyway! But who knows...

[Onaorkal]

I've finally done my first readings with this deck!  :D

 

Even though I didn't have time to study the cards in depth yet, I found it really easy to use. I mean the cards really closely follow the RWS system. The art is really gorgeous, I really enjoy using the deck!  :)

 

But the cards are REALLY big, they're not easy to handle at all! I think I found a satisfying way of shuffling but for sure you have to know that it's not possible to shuffle in any traditional way haha!  ;)

 

I think I will try to finish my Mystical Cats Tarot study group ASAP, then I'll delve into this one! With the 78 weeks of tarot going on at the same time, it would be a bit too much otherwise!

[Page of Ghosts]

For some reason I didn't already watch the video you linked to, but today I decided to come back to this thread and put it on... I kinda wanna cry at how awesome this deck looks! The Death card is brilliant with Yveltal, the actual death pokemon, and The Star has Jirachi the wish pokemon! I hope this decks stays on the market for a little while as I promised myself no new decks this year. Next year I'll properly dip my toes into the indie market and if I get any christmas money this deck is on the top of my list.