Sanguine Playing Cards

Leave it to those bloody Sanguinites to have turned a game of chance into a dance of secrets and codes. What's that look for, kid, don't believe me? Pull up a chair, let's sit in and watch the game over there. Not too closely, don't want them to think we're too interested...

— Trent Casseni, Professonal Gambler

The city of Sanguine is often referenced as the oldest human city still standing in Erisdaire, and those born and raised there have a foundation of countless generations for their traditions to stand. One of these is the popularity of their own design of playing cards separate from the rest of the Empire. The reasons are often left vague, but one reason is the ingrained use of these cards to pass messages among those who are intimately familiar with the subtext for the suits and designations of 'the Sanguine deck'.

The Deck

As with the standard set of playing cards, there are fifty-four cards in the deck, with two of them functioning as "wild cards". The remaining fifty-two are divided into four suits: Swords, Cups, Jewels, and Roses. Each suit is numbered from 1 to 10, with four cards given illustrated faces: the Squire, the Knight, the Queen, and King. The lowest card of each suit is the Squire, followed by the numbers 1 to 10, followed in order by the Knight, the Queen, and the King. Some versions of the deck have art resembling prominent nobility of the time, as a tribute of sorts. The two wild cards are usually the Wizard and the Jester.

Over the centuries, there have been a number of drifts made through the nomenclature for the suits and 'face cards'. Most of these have been due to lingual shifts over the centuries. For a few examples:

• The 'Swords' suit was once called 'Blades', but this changed some time after Emperor Adun Rhyliss came to power with the popular moniker of 'King of Blades'.
• The 'Cups' suit used to be called 'Bowls' until the evolution of Imperial Common caused the meaning to be closer to the former than the latter.
• For a period of time 'Jewels' was replaced with 'Coins', but this change proved unpopular and it was altered back. Decks with the suit of 'Coins' are a notable collectors' piece, though using one for play is frowned upon.
• 'The Squire' used to be called 'the Page' until changes of meaning in Imperial Common changed 'book leaves' to 'book pages'. It was agreed the Squire was suitable as a replacement, to be properly worthless in the cards.
• 'The Wizard' used to be called 'the Mystic'. As the general perspective has changed so 'mystic' has fallen out of use in favor of 'wizard' to describe arcane spellcasters, so too did the general name of the card change.

The Code

Watch their hands carefully. The sequence of cards, the way they move them about, even how they set the hand down on the table? All of that is the true message, so just ignore the chatter.

As similar to the Courtly Language, there is a great amount of the code which relies on context and method. Each suit has many meanings established for their names, such as 'Swords' meaning 'misfortune', 'weapon' or 'anyone who is armed'. Numbers, naturally, can refer to a count of such things or a "scale of one-to-ten". (For example, a 'nine of swords' can refer to severe misfortune - but not the worst imaginable.) Face cards usually are associated with ranks of authority without a strict definition, such that 'the King' may refer to the most important person in the context of discussion. This makes it possible for a single card to have a wealth of meaning on its own.

When discussing hands and how it is expressed is where the complexity to the code comes in. The order of cards in a hand, or placed on a table face-up, can suggest a sentence or situation to those who can read the cards quickly and digest them as easily as determining the number of coins in a pile. In some cases, pairing up cards by laying them down in a specific manner may get a complex statement across similarly. For example, placing the 'six of swords' as well as the 'King of Jewels' may be code for noting the most notable merchant in the area is traveling with six bodyguards. Or, alternatively, a request to pick up six weapons from the most reputable dealer which can be found.

Further complications can be made when one also considers there may be idle chatter going on, as is common for a 'friendly' game of cards. This means the context of the cards revealed at the end of a hand might be indicated by some subtle clues within the conversation. Such as the previous example being coupled with a discussion of 'having just gotten back from a trip to Farrohol' indicating a city in which the order for six weapons should be placed.

The worst part isn't even obvious, kid. Now you're never going to look at a game of cards the same way again. Will you?