Countdown Deck
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his thematic deck of 56 playing cards is designed to be used with the Saga of the Goblin Horde setting¸ however it can easily be used for other fantasy games as well. It offers three advantages over a standard deck of playing cards:
1. Four jokers instead of the usual two¸ and each joker has a suit. This can make the game even more crazy¸ and ties in better with some of the rules (such as the kickball rules in the Saga of the Goblin Horde campaign¸ which have a special effect if you draw the joker of clubs).
2. Prominent "countdown numbers" at the top of each card. You can use these for initiative: deal a card to each player and one for each group of NPCs¸ and count down from highest to lowest to determine turn order. Fast characters can draw multiple cards and keep the highest¸ while very slow creatures might draw two or three cards and keep the lowest.
3. A "saga symbol" at the bottom of each card. These symbols are improvisational prompts; an "elephant" could represent any sort of herd creature¸ or just something big¸ or it could be interpreted as strength¸ stamina¸ wisdom¸ memory¸ loyalty¸ etc. Likewise the "torch" might represent fire¸ knowledge¸ destruction¸ heat¸ light¸ exploration¸ etc.
The saga symbols can be used as inspiration for the goblins' boastful tales and downtime activities¸ to add flavor to the adventure generator (draw one card for each scene)¸ to flesh out complications during a chase¸ and so on.
Note: If you want to use the Countdown Deck on a Virtual Tabletop¸ or simply want to check out the cards before you buy them¸ you should download the free VTT Cards and Tokens !