Description

This is a Rún card from the Bispell deck.

The Strowlerverse features a deck of cards, called a Bíspell deck, that is almost as ubiquitous as a standard deck of playing cards. A wide range of games are possible with the deck, from simple children’s games that resemble Go Fish to complex trick-taking games along the lines of Bridge. A modern deck holds four numbered suits plus a trump suit. There are rumors of a fifth numbered suit—a mystical one—that has been lost, suppressed, or both.

In addition to the regular cards in the standard Bíspell deck (called the dæl), many players collect Rún cards. These are non-suited character and archetype cards and hundreds of them exist. No two decks will be the same, depending on which cards a player has collected.

These extended decks are used to play “Walk the Labyrinth”, a storytelling game. Each player constructs a narrative using the cards they are dealt. Players may choose to work together to tell cooperative tales or compete to help or hinder the heroes of the shared story. Beneath the obvious “imaginary play” element, this game features hidden levels of magical teaching and political intrigue. Many Strowlers identify with certain Rún cards in the deck, and may construct their own identities and personal narratives around their interpretation of that card and its journey through the labyrinth.