Final Season Arcana Rules

I absolutely LOVE the way we use the Tarot to play Engel. Everyone has really gotten the hang of using the Arcana cards as awesome narrative shortcuts as well.

With that said, I am slightly changing the way that the Arcana cards work for the final season.

1.) Their editing ability is now increased. You've already done some crazy shit, but now only crazy shit will be allowed.

2.) Each card can only be used for dramatic editing once per player. Yes, once. Ever. By you.

Lets say that in the first session Jared uses The Tower to destroy the Michaelite Himmel. Right on. Jared can never use The Tower again for dramatic editing in that session, or any session, forever and ever until the game ends. It's still drawn and valued as a normal Arcana card, but no more editing.


So, now everything is even more dramatic and magical and POWERFUL, but limited.

Do not squander your wishes - because that's what the Arcana are now. Wishes. When you draw an Arcana will you immediately plot and writhe and kvetch about how best to use it? Will you save it for a later session and hope for the best circumstances? Will you write yourself a happy ending?

Lets hope.

In order to facilitate this, here is a reprint of the Arcana and their meanings. As we go forward I will update this page to keep track of who used what and how.

Oh, and I've added the description of our Engel-series Cards which the fans will be able to buy from the show's website! I'm sure the card images are not indicative of anything that may or may not happen - it's not like Tarot can tell the future or anything.



0 – The Foolish Man
Innocence. Naivety. Simple Wisdom. Foolishness. Lucky but embarrassing breaks.
Atiniel skipping away from the foreground of the card, leaving a trail of broken toys.

1 – The Magician
Intellect. Technology. The power of Knowledge. Man’s Magic.
Serrathaal looking straight at the reader, offering a bitten apple and smiling.

2 – The High Priestess
Virginal Purity. Youthful Femininity. Enchantment through innocent beauty. Coyness.
Claudia in profile holding an Engel feather in one hand, clasping the other to her pregnant belly, looking upward blankly.

3 – The Empress
Controlled Lust. Womanly Strength. Luxury. The judgment of the Mother. Beauty.
Magdal baking cookies in a 1950s polkadot dress for all her lovely Engel with a fist clenched at her heart, throwing a holy book over her shoulder with the other hand, staring at the reader with unblinking kindness.

4 – The Emperor
War and conquest. The Secular Right to Rule. Ambition. Political Victory.
Kreutz in full Ab regalia holding an engel feather in a fist-like hand, sitting on a throne like a boss.

5 – The Hierophant
Harmony and peace. The Divine Right to Rule. Occult Secrets. Religious Victory.
Ossiel speaking to unseen Engel and people, arms wide open and welcoming. Distinct impression of a giant beetle in the background...

6 – The Lovers
Love. Motivation. Impulse. Any action resonating with the real Love of another.
Barsiel and Quoriel back to back, eyes downcast and hands far apart, wings forming a heart where they touch at tip and pinion.

7 – The Chariot
Physical Combat. Triumph in battle. Strength. Crushing victory or defeat.
Beoloth as a statue, strong, rocky and immovable, with memorials at the base.

8 – Fortitude
Courage. Endurance. Control. Protection of others. Health.
Tyrael. Just. Fucking. Tyrael.

9 – The Hermit
Secrets. Hidden items or knowledge. Unexpected counsel. Hiding or lying.
Loth inspecting a huge ring (or halo) of keys, each different and highly technological looking, with focused eyes.

10 – The Wheel of Fortune
Riches and money. The passage from one state to the next. Good luck.
Janns counting on scales, using golden mini-Engel as weights, smirking.

11 – Justice
Truth. Righteous punishment. Balance and equality. Enforcing fair-play.
Aurelia sitting on a throne of empty Templar armor and helmets, a massive sword across her crossed legs, staring at the reader.

12 – The Hanged Man
Forced sacrifice. Unrighteous punishment. Revenge. Suffering or torture.
The Ashen hanging from the foot by a chain, upsidedown, one hand holding a sword, the other dropped below (above) the head dripping blood from the fingers.

13 – Death
Unwelcome change. Death, or the destruction of ideas. Out of time.
Tsuriel in profile, kneeling and smirking, offering up a skull to an unseen figure off card, as more skulls litter the ground.

14 – Temperance
Calm. Peace. Water. Harmony and cooperation. Joining or alliance.
Pyriel, eyes closed in contemplation, with the symbols of the church, time, infinity and other sigils passing around his head.

15 – The Devil
Lies. The dreamseed. Imprisonment, slavery, bondage. Material temptation.
Helel-Emim as a man chained to his throne, with Helel-Emim as a Nephilim as the background with fiery eyes.

16 – The Tower
Destruction of a thing or organization. Ruin. Confusion and pain.
Iadoth in profile, on his knees in pain, screaming and clutching his head with eyes wide open and tearing, as rubble and bones fall in the background.

17 – The Star
Hope. Unexpected help. Dreams and prophecy. Guidance.
Raphael as a woman-like figure, looking from behind a curtain to hide her nudity as she halfway removes a broken porcelain mask from her face, revealing a ---

18 – The Moon
Change and Flux. Deception and trickery. Hiding. The night.
Reclaire staring at the moon in profile, smiling, knife behind his back in one hand, holy book on the ground under his foot.

19 – The Sun
Growth. Health. Arrogance. Fire. Standing alone in glory. Gold.
Pontifex in full glory with halo, smiling gently at the reader. Background is obviously a full grown man standing too close so most of his body is cropped out, but hand is on Petrus' shoulder.

20 – The Last Judgment
A final decision. Judgment and sentencing. Forgiveness, repentance. Rebirth.
Michael, back to reader, six winged and glorious, staring at the Earth in a black void wrapped with prayer strips. The Earth is either far away, or small enough for Michael to grasp with both hands...

21 – The Universe
The difference between Divinity and Secular. Unthinkable power. Imperfection.
The Fellowship in a circle, in various poses of looking, touching and flying with each other.

A la:

I know what I must do.

Oh GOD NO! Not my intent...

Except the Ossiel + Hai-Shalud one, maybe.

Ha! I know it was in no way your intent. Doesn't mean that I don't want to do it, though! It could be a fun "drawing-a-day" project in addition to the other projects I have going on, and something to keep me sharp. Gotta keep growin' them skills.

Me like me like. Any chance we could get another example of drastic changes? For example:

Pyriel plays the Emperor Arcana card, and everyone is immediately subservient to his will.

Can you please remind me of who has played what so far?

I think we had
MAC - CHARIOT
MATT - LAST JUDGMENT
TAYLOR - TEMPERANCE
COLLIN - THE FOOL

Is this right? Oh, and remember to include a quick description of what the card did.

Sorry for being absent minded.

MAC - CHARIOT - deus ex machina, instagib'd enemies
MATT - LAST JUDGMENT - Michael saved us from Gabriel + army of heaven
*JARED - TEMPERANCE - Michael is restored, the world is healed where he treads
COLLIN - THE FOOL - Iadoth boomheadshots all the Sarielites in order to resolve the conflict

I should have saved that one in retrospect. Oh, wells.


edit. The Temperance was so that he joined us and did go on a rampage against the church or whomever. It was a little vague considering that it was proceeded by Excalibur-esque scene of him being restored.