The Deck of Sixty

See also: Lore

While a recent resurgence in Sharlayan astrology has increased the visibility of the major arcana, these six cards represent but one small portion of a much larger deck that has seen thousands of years of use - the Deck of Sixty. While the origins of the deck are unclear, evidence of its use is apparent in almost every one of the Astral Eras.

Building a deck

The Deck of Sixty is most commonly divided into two distinct groups, the major arcana and the minor arcana. The six major arcana—the Spire, the Ewer, the Bole, the Arrow, the Balance, and the Spear—are said to represent the heavens and thus most often utilized in astrological and divinatory pursuits. Conversely, the minor arcana are believed to represent the land and its people, and feature six suits, each containing six cards numbered 1 through 6 (the pip cards), and three face cards, for a total of fifty-four. Each suit possesses a corresponding element, class, and faculty, as well as direct tie to one of the six major arcana—all characteristics that can be employed (at the teller's discretion) during the scrying of a fortune.

The Power of Twelve

Factors of Twelve (whimsically referred to by numerologists as "traces of the gods") can be seen everywhere in the Deck of Sixty—six (half of twelve) major arcana, six (half of twelve) minor arcana suits, six (half of twelve) times six numbered cards, three (one half of six) times six face cards, three (one half of six) elements each represented by one of two (one sixth of twelve) schools of magic—thaumaturgy and conjury (also known as Aetherial Triplicity), and two (one sixth of twelve) gods to represent each of the six (half of twelve) elements (also known as Divine Duplicity).

Suit	Alternate	Faculty	Class	Element	Major Arcana
Crowns	Wreaths	Dominion	Nobility	Lightning	The Spire
Cups	Hearts	Emotion	Clergy	Water	The Ewer
Rings	Pentacles	Possession	Merchants	Earth	The Bole
Knives	Swords	Cognition	Military	Wind	The Arrow
Staves	Batons	Volition	Smallfolk	Fire	The Balance
Irons	Chains	Contrition	Prisoner	Ice	The Spear

Face cards consist of the "knave", the "lord", and the highest-ranking "lady". When used in conjunction with the pip cards, their numerical values are 7, 8 and 9 respectively.

Basic fortune-telling

Of the Deck of Sixty, the six major arcana are the cards most often used for divining fates. There are countless methods employed by both reputable and would-be cartomancers across the realm, some using only a single card, others using the entirety of both the major and minor arcana. Two spreads, however, have proven the most common throughout Eorzea—the Trinity and the Dawn Cross.

The Trinity

The first, and perhaps most simple spread is a basic three - card spread, oft referred to as the Trinity. The arcana are shuffled and then three are drawn from the pile and placed, face down, in a row - the first to the left, the second to the right, and the third twixt the previous two, slightly raised. The cards are then turned in the order they were placed, the first representing the subject's past, the second, her present, and the third, her future.

As each of the cards represent two gods (one of astral polarity, one of umbral), two different meanings can be gleaned from the arcana depending on the direction they face when turned. In their proper, upright position, they take the astral interpretation; when inverted, they take the umbral.

The Arrow (Llymlaen) represents a past sea voyage, the inversed Spire (Rhalgr) a trial currently faced, and the Spear (Halone) ultimate success at that trial.

The Dawn Cross

A second spread known as the Dawn Cross uses all six of the major arcana and is believed to provide more detailed information regarding a subject's fate. The cards are shuffled and drawn one at a time. The first card drawn is placed face up in the scrying table's center. This card is also known as the "core" and represents the subject's present state. The second card is placed immediately to the core's left and represents what, in the past, has exerted influence over the subject. The third card is placed immediately to the right of the core and represents what will most affect the subject in the near future. The fourth card is placed below the core, with the fifth card placed immediately below that one. These cards represent misfortune the subject may face in the foreseeable future and the root of that misfortune respectively. The sixth and final card is placed directly above the core to form the cross, and is representative of the subject's overall fortune.

Arcana as entertainment

Use of the Deck of Sixty is by no means limited to divination. Records from as far back as the Third Astral Era show that the people of Eorzea have long applied the cards to such leisurely pursuits as gambling or disport. Some popular pastimes include the following:

• Hide the High Heart: A fast-paced high-low hybrid requiring both luck and cunning, betting occurs after each ten draws.
• Knights & Knave: A three-player strategy game in which each card represents a member of an army unit, the object being to assassinate the opposing armies' generals.
• Louis Louis: A game in which the object is to create a stack of cards whose sum equals the age of the Archon Louisoix when he sacrificed his life for the realm. That dealt hands are exchanged by players every round makes this particular contest one of extreme concentration.
• The Whispering Pillow: A unique game popular amongst nobles, eighteen face cards drawn from the minor deck and aged anon within the players' social circles. The arcana are then drawn in pairs to see who is "in bed with" or who is betraying whom, providing the genteel with seeds of wild gossip for their afternoon tea sessions.