One of Dungeons & Dragons‘ most engaging and under-utilized items at the disposal of Dungeon Master’s is the Tarokka deck. The official D&D variant of tarot, the Tarokka deck can be used in a wide variety of ways to enrich a session, reward players, and most importantly, generate personal quests for each individual at the table. Some DMs may struggle to create engaging subplots for each player, but a quick draw of the cards can ensure each party member has their own storylines to consider.
Originally introduced for the 2016 campaign The Curse of Strahd, Tarokka is a mysterious practice performed by the Vistani in the D&D kingdom of Barovia. The tales claim anyone can make a Tarokka deck, but only the Vistani can tell someone’s fortune and predict the future. The deck features four suits (swords, stars, coins, and glyphs) numbered one to nine, and 14 unnumbered cards belonging to the High Deck, cards of considerable power.
Given the amount of detail put into the Tarokka deck, it is strange it only has one official application in the D&D lore and doesn’t come up again. Functioning as a tarot deck, cards are drawn for the player as their fortune is told to add to the atmosphere of Barovia. It fits The Curse of Strahd very well, but the deck can also be one of the best tools at the DM’s disposal for generating quests and including more engaging physical interactions around the table.
The Tarokka Deck: An Invaluable Creative Tool For D&D DMs
For some, a reading only need consist of one card. What is depicted can be interpreted on the spot for whatever suits the player. The Tempter card could mean a devilish deal lurks around the corner; however, if it were drawn inverted it could mean good fortune or to expect kindness for the sake of kindness. The more cards that are drawn, the more complex the reading and the more interesting a quest can be generated. Three cards from left to right can denote the subject of the quest, a major detail, and a minor one. Their orientation will change their meaning, but the cards are so incredibly varied and open to interpretation that larger questlines, new items, and even NPCs or D&D antagonists can be created on the spot.
There are also plenty of other ways to incorporate the Tarokka deck into a campaign rather than performing mystical readings. Cards can be drawn to determine what kind of treasure is discovered. A card’s numerical value can be multiplied by the DM for how much gold is found. There are even many fan-made methods of letting random chance and player manipulation dictate what sort of encounter awaits them, and how to make it more difficult for better loot. The Tarokka deck can also be used for simple card games in taverns or among party members resting at a camp. Variations on poker or drawing for whoever has the highest number can add that small piece of player immersion not quite met by the roll of a dice.
Many first-time DMs will meticulously plan out their encounters, dungeons, and individual sessions, but the inexpensive Tarokka deck can ease that stress on both new and experienced DMs. It can offer a creative and interactive means of randomly generating a plethora of content, or players can sit down to a simple card game after a long day of adventuring. It’s both a creative tool and an effective accessory in adding life to any game. Including the Vistani or adding a fortune teller in every tavern makes the Tarokka deck an ever-present option for Dungeons & Dragons players and DMs alike.
