Joker and the Thief: Seafarers Nautical Edition
The Seafarers deck by Joker and the Thief was created to mark a new era for the company. It features intricate designs from the tuck throughout the cards, but a very new vibe from the usual J&T artwork.
The tuck is made with an off-white, uncoated, matte paper stock that has had the signature Sea Green ink letter pressed on the outside and in! This process, while it looks awesome as it is, leaves a de-bossed texture to the box that will also slightly wear over time (given use), yielding a very unique patina to each deck. The fact that it was created with this in mind is even more awesome!
The back design of the cards, in typical J&T fashion, is a one-way design. However, it's extremely subtle here, unlike their other designs. There's a lot of life in this pattern, serpents, eagles, and octopuses taking the center stage. Though, directly in the center is an anchor, wrapped in tentacles, grounding out the design and making it one-way. It's one of those "you have to be looking for it" patterns to notice it too.
The deck is not marked, but the back pattern offers many, many ways to add in a custom marking system. I never thought about it until writing this, staring at the card design. It would be pretty easy to do and would blend in to the pattern quite well.
The faces are fully custom, everything from the pips, the pip colors, and the court cards. Each illustrated by hand, from scratch. The nautical theme from the back design carries over to give life to the oceanic royals too! Each tells its own story with each suit being thematically and symbolically linked.
The deck consists of 56 cards:
- 52 playing cards
- Two identical jokers
- Two ad cards
This deck was originally available via a Kickstarter campaign that was fully-funded in 2019.
Where to buy?
This deck is not available on J&T's website shop, instead you can pick it up on their Amazon store. Last time I checked it was going for about $20.