How to shuffle the Fablemaker’s Animated Tarot Deck

You may have heard of the Fablemaker’s Animated Tarot,, the world’s first-ever animated tarot deck. Lenticular printing is what makes this deck special, but it also makes the cards thicker than a static deck. Read this tutorial to find out how to shuffle the Fablemaker’s Animated Tarot.

The Fablemaker's Animated Tarot Box and The Magician card.

What is the Fablemaker’s Animated Tarot?

The Fablemaker’s Animated Tarot is a deck of lenticular tarot cards inspired by the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. In addition to being an oracle deck for divination, its companion guidebook offers ways to use the deck in your own games.

How do you shuffle the Fablemaker’s Animated Tarot?

Due to the thickness of the Animated Tarot cards, shuffling the deck requires a unique approach. Here’s a version of the pile shuffling method that works well with the Fablemaker’s Animated Tarot deck:

1. Make three piles of cards by taking a card off the top of the deck and placing it in the first pile, placing the second card on the top in the second pile, the third card in the third pile, the fourth card in the first pile, and so on until you have three equal piles of twenty-six cards each.

Three numbered tarot cards labeled '1', '2', and '3' on a white background.

2. Take half of piles one and two, shuffle them together, and set them to the side.

3. Grab the second half of pile two and the top half of pile three and shuffle them together.

Illustration of three piles of tarot cards labeled II, III, and 123 on a white background

4. Shuffle what’s left of piles one and three together.

Hand-drawn illustration of tarot cards with numbers on a white background

5. Stack the three new piles on top of each other into the complete deck.

Illustration of tarot cards with a deck and a single card on a white background.

6. Repeat as necessary.

When it comes to how many times to shuffle a deck or when to stop, there is no concrete answer. Most tarot users stop shuffling either when it feels right based on intuition or when they suspect the cards are well mixed.

There’s no right or wrong way to shuffle a tarot deck. The method you use may cause the cards to hold a slight bend over time. Just like a beloved book begins to show wear the more times you read it, your deck may do the same. As you get to know it, your deck’s character will emerge through evidence of your adoration for its edges and curves.

Where can you get the Fablemaker’s Animated Tarot?

You can get the Fablemaker’s Animated Tarot on the Hit Point Press website as a standalone deck, or as a box set complete with a guidebook. You can also get it as an add-on for the virtual tabletop Roll20.