Mistborn Tarot: Spoilers for all books (Discuss)

[Kingsdaughter613]

A little while ago I had a teacher who, as one of our directives, had us create a personal Fool card. And I decided mine would be Spook. I had so much fun I decided to create the whole deck, and now that I'm seven cards in I'm going to start posting them. I'm doing it here because there are spoilers for all the Mistborn books except, maybe, Secret History. 

The idea of the cards is that they are a deck from Scadrial's modern day. So this is an in world deck, with some cards changing names, others having meanings reversed, or switching meanings.

So the minor arcana are: Bands, Medallions, Spears, Metals, instead of Cups, Coins, Swords and Wands. Page, Knight, Queen, King become Skaa, Lady, Lord, Mistborn. All lunar symbolism is gone, as Scadrial doesn't have a moon. More specific examples will come up as I get to the individual cards.

Each card will get its own post so I can discuss the process of each piece. I'll also post the different WIPs. 

Please feel free to let me know what you think! If the major arcana works out well I will continue to the minor arcana.

Edited March 8, 2021 by Kingsdaughter613

[Kingsdaughter613]

So let's talk about the cards! The card backs are made with pink gauze and a metallic lace. (That's how I describe it anyway.) I use glue to attach it to the card. The card images are first done in pencil, inked over, and colored with a mix of marker and oil pastel. 

The media options were chosen by what I had available in class. I decided to keep using the same materials when I went beyond the Fool.

Once complete this should be a working deck.

Edited November 8, 2017 by Kingsdaughter613

[Kingsdaughter613]

The first card in the Tarot deck is the Fool. I chose Spook for the Fool because the card meanings reminded me of him. The Fool represents new beginnings, so I pictured him looking into the new, green world with the old one behind him. Spook, and his world, are starting anew. The blindfold is a warning and a reminder; the Fool can also mean recklessness and naivety. But Spook is raising the blindfold and reclaiming his innocence. So this Fool is a bit wiser than our version, who is often depicted stepping off a cliff. (Not wise enough though... but I doubt most Scadrians know that part of the story.)

To me the Fool represents a new beginning in an ending. So I chose to show Spook between an ending a beginning.

[Mistform]

So by modern Scadrial do you mean Alloy of Law Era with the cards referencing original Mistborn characters? I feel that Bands doesn't really make sense as a Minor Arcana as the only Bands are the Bands of Mourning which are very singular and important. Coins in the final empire were boxings and clips (and still used after the Catecendre (Bands of Mourning ch5 pg 103 hardcover)) but coins is still fine. The medallions are very new but if the deck is being made in the Alloy of Law era (era 2?) it could be argued that the creator was adding the new "hip" thing.

The card is much bigger than I expected, seems difficult to shuffle

[Kingsdaughter613]

No, modern as in Era 3. I am assuming the Sovreign = Survivor will be well known by then as the next card is the Fullborn...

Bands is sometimes called bracers and refers to metal minds. Harmony's Bands is used as curse, and metal minds have been called bands at times. As with out tarot, the suits can have several names. I chose metalminds for Cups since they are both things you fill. Coins actually is in reference to the shape and is also called Pentacles. Boxing aren't round, though that was my first thought too! (Edit: turns out boxings are round, so now that is an alternate name for the suit!)

I can't actually change the suit names now though, since all four appear on the Fullborn card which is already complete. I'll probably post about that one tomorrow or late tonight. The Misting post will probably be after Passover. I'll be working on the Guardian tonight most likely. The Emperor (Strength in our world; not our Emperor which is TLR) will be worked on once the whole holiday is over.

Tarot cards come in all shapes and sizes. This size was picked by my teacher. When the deck is complete I will probably scan and shrink the cards to make them more manageable. That's 78 cards though, so I'll be at it a while! (71 to go...)

Edited November 8, 2017 by Kingsdaughter613

[Kingsdaughter613]

So the second card in the deck is the Fullborn, and it features the Sovereign. Hence the spoilers, since the card makes his identity fairly obvious.

My working assumption is that by Era 3 the whole 'Sovereign is the Survivor' thing will be common knowledge. I doubt it was meant to be a secret, and if it was it isn't going to be well kept. All we need is one Southerner casually mentioning to their Northerner friend that the Sovereign had scarred arms for it to be revealed. 

So onto the card! The Fullborn takes the place of the magician card, and represents power. The Sovereign makes a good fit - he can represent all the metallic arts. On the magician card there is an infinity symbol; I replaced it with the one for the Cosmere. On the table Kell is pointing to are the symbols of the four suits: bands, medallions, spears and metals. Kell holds a spear; he represents that suit as the Mistborn of spears.

The bush in front of him has blue Marewill flowers. The sky behind him is studded with stars - another call to infinity. Behind him is Harmony's Perpendicularity. The red lining on his coat is a symbol of power. The blue vest and shirt are the blue skies he helped to restore. His coat is grey for the World of Ash and the white pants are for Preservation, which he briefly held.

As for why this card had to have Kell on it... well... The upright Magician symbolizes Power, Skill, Concentration, Resourcefullness, and action. Upside down it represents manipulation, poor planning, and latent talents. And it is one of the most powerful cards in the deck when playing the game if used properly. Also, interestingly, the card once meant a con artist!

In other words, it reminded me of Kelsier.

This was the last card I did without rough sketching it first. I did the initial image in pencil, then inked it, and colored it with oil pastel. The stars were done by melting crayons with a glue gun. I later used metallic marker to add some shine.

The next card is The Misting, taking the place of the high priestess.

(As an aside, in world this card was the Allomancer and featured the Lord Mistborn initially. That changed once certain facts got out. Since this was shortly after the game was developed there are not many Allomancer cards and those decks can be worth a lot to collectors.)

Edited April 14, 2017 by Kingsdaughter613

[Kingsdaughter613]

I have decided to change the names of the face cards; they are now Skaa, Steward, Noble, Mistborn. I think this works better, and it doesn't confuse things by having The Lady for a trump card and having a lady face card.

Edited April 14, 2017 by Kingsdaughter613

[skaa]

Ooh! Another cosmere-related tarot deck! Here's my Stormlight Archive-themed deck (possible SA spoilers, obviously). It's all just descriptions for now; I never got to make actual artwork for it because I don't really have the talent.

Anyway, good luck on your little project! I think your choices for the Fool and Magician cards are perfect. Can't wait to see the rest!

[Kingsdaughter613]

Thanks! Passover, and switching my daughter to a new facility delayed things a bit. I'm on the strength card now; I think it will feature Elend.

Edit: Did you ever make your deck? I'd love to see it.

Edited April 25, 2017 by Kingsdaughter613

[skaa]

2 hours ago, Kingsdaughter613 said:

Edit: Did you ever make your deck? I'd love to see it.

Sadly, no. Maybe one day I'll hire someone to make it for me. Right now I'm not even that satisfied with some of my card ideas, particularly The Chariot, Justice, and Strength.

Speaking of Strength, yeah I think using Elend does seem fitting. I'm imagining the scene where he fights Koloss and eventually Marsh. Well, whichever scene you end up depicting I'm sure it will be great.

[Kingsdaughter613]

The strength card has very little to do with physical strength actually; that's why it typically depicts a woman in white robes. (This being Scadrial, that stereotype is weaker.) So I'm actually using the scene where Elend gives up his crown; I feel it is the moment where you truly see the strength of his integrity. He could easily have lied about the vote change clause, but he would have had to destroy who he was to do so. Since the Strength card is about internal strength, I chose to focus on his convictions.

[skaa]

8 hours ago, Kingsdaughter613 said:

The strength card has very little to do with physical strength actually; that's why it typically depicts a woman in white robes. (This being Scadrial, that stereotype is weaker.) So I'm actually using the scene where Elend gives up his crown; I feel it is the moment where you truly see the strength of his integrity. He could easily have lied about the vote change clause, but he would have had to destroy who he was to do so. Since the Strength card is about internal strength, I chose to focus on his convictions.

That's interesting. I was basing my idea on the common "woman subduing a lion" imagery, but I guess I mistook that to mean physical strength. My bad.

[Kingsdaughter613]

It's fine. A lot of the cards have non-intuitive meanings. Like the Fool implying new beginnings, or Death change. Others are obvious though; the empress is pretty self evident. It's quite fascinating actually. Part of what I love about this project is how much I'm learning!

[Kingsdaughter613]

The third card in my deck is the Misting, taking the place of the high Priestess. The High Priestess card symbolizes intuition, mystery, and the unconscious mind. Reversed it indicates hidden agendas and a need to listen to one's inner voice. I picked Beldre for this card because it made me think of her. She's a Misting, but we don't know that when we meet her. She brings out the best in Spook, symbolizing -to me anyway- his inner voice. And she is rather intuitive. For myself, I find a purity and innocence to the High Priestess and I find those same qualities in Beldre.

For more in world reasons, I'm assuming Beldre marries Spook, which would lead to her being better known. Those who knew them would see her as being a balancing force on him (as opposed to some others... I'm glaring at you, Kell!) She's not especially open about her abilities, but people do know she had them. 

The pillars Symbolize Ruin and Preservation. Harmony's symbol is for Unity and Spirituality. The blue curtain is for wisdom, privacy, and the blue skies she'll soon see. The grey and red background is the world of Ash. The plant is a greenish brown mix; the two colors merging are a reference to the changing world. Beldre wears a simple brown Skaa dress, signifying her innocence and simplicity. The metal minds she wears tie into Harmony's symbol; they are his bands and imply knowledge and mystery. Beldre is Pushing boxings, giving the card its name. Her hands are crossed over a spear, the symbol of the Survivor/Sovereign.

In my mind this card is often paired with Fool card on Scadrial, due to the characters on them. Another example would be the Sovereign and the Survivor, for the obvious reason.

The hardest part of this card was working around the lunar imagery of the original. Scadrial not having a Moon is annoying!

The card was first sketched out in rough, then the actual thing was done on the card in pencil. It was inked with black pens of varying widths and colored with oil pastels. Finally, I added metallic marker to add a shine to parts of the image.

[ErikModi]

Loving these.  Excellent work, and great resonance with both real Tarot and the world of Mistborn!  A+

[Kingsdaughter613]

42 minutes ago, ErikModi said:

Loving these.  Excellent work, and great resonance with both real Tarot and the world of Mistborn!  A+

Thank you so much!

[Kingsdaughter613]

I'm sorry for not updating this for awhile - real life got in the way!

The next card is The Lady, taking the place of the Empress. It features Alriane.

The Empress card symbolizes fertility, feminity, abundance, beauty and nature. I chose Alriane because she reminded me of these attributes. I drew her lounging on a divan, in a field with trees in the background.

The field and trees represent The Lady's connection with nature. The trees also represent the abundant fertility of the Basin.  The red dress is a reminder of the old world, while the blue pillows she rests on recall Harmony. The blue sky is a contrast to her dress; it too is a reminder of the beauty of the new world. Alriane wears an open circlet studded with silver stars, symbolic of her connection to the Ascendant Warrior, the other major female symbol, who first saw and revealed the stars.

The picture was first sketched, then drawn. Oil pastel was used to color the image; metallic marker was used for the studs in the circlet.

[Kingsdaughter613]

The next card is the Lord Ruler, or the Emperor on our world. (The Strength card is called the Emperor on Scadrial!)

The Emperor card upright symbolizes: authority, structure, father figure, and a solid foundation. Reversed it is: domination, excessive control, rigidity, and inflexibility. On Scadrial these are reversed, so the latter descriptions are for the upright card.

Rashek is centered on the card. He wears a black cloak with a white lining. He also wears a black vest and boots, and white pants and shirt. The two colors symbolize Ruin and Preservation. On his vest are the sixteen allomantic metal symbols in white, symbolizing Allomancy, which he ‘gave’ to the North. He wears two metal armbands; they are his Atium minds which kept him alive. On his hands are many rings; his power as a Feruchemist.

He sits on a black throne against a red sky, symbolizing the world of ash. Behind him are the seven ash mounts. His feet rest in a white pool: The Well of Ascension.

As with the other cards this was done with pencil, inked and colored in oil pastel and metallic marker. The hardest part was the allomantic symbols on his vest.

Edited November 8, 2017 by Kingsdaughter613

[AonEne]

Reopened at OP's request

[Kingsdaughter613]

1 minute ago, AonEne said:

Reopened at OP's request

Thanks AonEne!

So after four years I started doing these again! I actually had a good reason for stopping: I initially worked on these while my older daughter was in a rehab facility. Mistborn and these cards really helped me through that. After things settled down I had other things to take care of, so I never got around to completing the cards. I’ve begun again and hopefully I’ll finish this time!

Some aspects of the history have changed from the earlier posts so if you see a contradiction, that’s why. Let’s just pretend the researcher got more information, okay...

So here we go: The Obligator (The Hierophant)

 

The Obligator. I made this card four years ago, so I’m afraid I don’t recall the entire process. The Obligator, of course, is Yomen, the Last Obligator. 

In Tarot the Hierophant is a teacher, the male counterpart of the priestess. When upright he represents spiritual wisdom, religious beliefs, conformity, traditions, and institutions. Reversed he represents personal belief, freedom, and challenging the status quo. An interesting card all around, at least to me.

Now, let’s see how much I can remember...

The Atium bead on Yomen’s forehead symbolizes the future and his role as a teacher and guide. The Spear and Spike represent Survivorism and Sliverism, both of which are fairly formalized. Together the Spear and Spike traditionally represent the Survivor and Ironeyes. 

Above Yomen we have Preservation on the far left, Ruin on the far right, and Harmony between them. Preservation represents stability and Ruin change. A wise teacher will balance between the two, symbolized by Harmony who maintains balance between the Shards.

[Kingsdaughter613]

The Lovers:

Who else but the Imperial Pair would suit this card?

The Lovers is a name used in our world and Scadrial’s, unlike some other cards. And yes, it represents love. On our cards the Lovers are usually... less than dressed, shall we say? Scadrial’s version keeps them clothed.

The upright Lovers represent Love, Harmony, and Unity. Reversed it represents self-love, discord, and imbalance.

Going back four years, the only specific symbol I can recall is Harmony’s. Obviously, it represents Harmony and Union. The silver on Vin’s dress represents the Mists, and she gazes upward toward the divine which she has been. Around his neck Elend wears the Survivor’s Spear.

Elend’s green book symbolized something, but unfortunately I no longer remember what it was. If I recall, I’ll edit.

On Scadrial this card typically showed a noble couple, generally nude. The oldest version of tarot cards featuring the Imperial pair date to the latter part of the Siege of Luthadel. The decision to keep the pair clothed was likely influenced by Elend and Vin being alive. Much of the more overt sexual imagery was removed at the time as well.

It is also worth noting that the Skaa were far more concerned with modesty and marriage than their noble counterparts. In part this was a reaction to the noble lifestyle, which could be rather licentious. In other respects it was a natural outgrowth of the frequent rapes and murders of Skaa women. Modesty was a survival mechanism that became part of their emerging culture. Recovered ancient Skaa decks reveal that the Lovers were often clothed and the sexual imagery tended to be subdued - if included at all. However, this practice did not achieve widespread acceptance until the Imperial Pair became associated with this card.

[Kingsdaughter613]

The Guardian:

The Guardian (The Chariot) represents willpower and determination when in the upright. In the reverse it represents self-discipline and opposition.

According to some this card once held a Hazekiller or a soldier of the Final Empire, but this is unclear. The Kandra TenSoon began adorning the card while still pretending to be OreSeur. Lady Vin was often seen accompanied by a dog and many homemade Skaa decks began featuring it. The tradition continued post-Catascande, with some alterations.

In the lower right corner of the card are a pair of Feruchemical symbols: Iron and Copper. These represent the two sets of Blessings carried by TenSoon: Presence (copper) and Potency (iron). The Blessings fit the meaning of this card very well. It is suspected that the card design was influenced by The Lord Mistborn, whose studies of Hemalurgy would have given him access to information regarding Kandra Blessings.

The remaining two symbols are both of Lerasium. The upper right is for Feruchemical Lerasium and the lower left is from an ancient variant of the Steel Alphabet. These indicate the origin of the Kandra.

The Guardian is typically depicted running. It is a matter of interpretation whether this is his run to warn Vin or his return to the Homeland. Some claim that the former is true on the reverse and that latter on the upright.

 

[Kingsdaughter613]

Strength

Strength does not represent physical strength. Instead it symbolizes inner strength and courage. For the people of Scadrial, this is best represented by Elend’s decision to give up his crown in favor of his integrity.

On the desk before Elend is the symbol for pewter, representing strength, the crown he is giving up, and a scroll for the law he is obeying. On the scroll is the Cosmere symbol, here symbolizing eternity.

The red banner and the black walls are symbolic of the World of Ash, in which Elend reigned. On the tapestry is the symbol for Electrum, indicating Elend’s wisdom and foresight in creating a government of law commanded by the people.

The Pre-Catacendre versions of this card showed a noblewoman subduing a koloss. Even then it was intended to mean internal strength, though it was often misinterpreted. It is unclear exactly when the card began taking on its present form, though it went through several iterations prior.

This is one of the original cards I created, so the symbology is basically a bunch of educated guesses based on what I can recall from four years ago. 

Edited January 31, 2021 by Kingsdaughter613

[Kingsdaughter613]

The Kandra

The Kandra (The Hermit) represent soul searching, inner guidance, being alone, and introspection when uptight. Reversed it can mean isolation, loneliness and withdrawal. Per Scadrian tradition, this Kandra is OreSeur.

The Kandra stands silhouetted against a blue sky, but stands on ashen ground. The mists swirl about him. The blue sky represents success, while the ashen ground is a reminder of the World of Ash. In his right hand the Kandra holds Harmony’s symbol, representing wisdom.

In his left hand the Kandra holds a staff, symbolizing power. The staff is bound with 16 metalminds below the hand and two above. The 16 represent the base metals and alloys. The two bands above the hand represent the original god metals. The bands are marked with feruchemical symbols, tying the Kandra back to his origins.

As with the other original cards, I am guessing at the meanings I initially gave the symbology. In other news, the deck is almost done!

[Kingsdaughter613]

Mistborn Tarot: Fortune

Fortune (The Wheel of Fortune) is an ancient card and represents luck. The Feruchemical symbol for Chromium is more recent, but the use of the chromium symbol for luck long predates the knowledge that the metal stores Fortune.

The Fortune card includes the symbols of the four Suits: Spears, Metals/Spikes, Bands and Medallions/Boxings. These are also said to be reflective of the four major Scadrian faiths: Survivorism, Pathianism, Sliverism, and Sovreigntism, or the faiths of South Scadrial.

The Wheel itself contains the symbols for Atium, Lerasium and Harmonium, representing Ruin, Preservation and Harmony. Lerasium is situated on a black background and Atium on a white background, symbolizing the balance the wheel represents. The final symbol is Duralumin. If I’m recalling correctly this is a reference to either Connection or the enhancing power of Duralumin.

The greens on the Wheel are in reference to the green plants that returned and the blue is for the return of blue skies. The band is copper, representing wisdom and calls back to the Ascension. The medallion is a double medallion, containing gold and copper symbolizing health and knowledge. The other two bands are Nicrosil, the pair of Chromium.