Deck Name: Tarot of Many Doors Tarot
Publisher & Year: Self Published, 2019
Where to buy –https://www.manydoorstarot.com/
When I first got wind of the Tarot of Many Doors I was intrigued. I loved the art style and themes surrounding this deck, I also loved the chance to support the artist and creator behind the deck, Felix, a non-binary trans artist, performer and writer. I adore the work they do and loved the idea behind this deck. It’s focus is on all things feminist sci-fi and queer magic. Between the many tentacles, creatures and space themes… I was instantly hooked!
While going through this deck when it first arrived, three cards jumped out to me instantly. A lot of the cards grabbed me in new ways and I loved that, but these three just had me picking them back up to take another peek.
Warp Drive (Chariot) was an instant connection for me. This is my “get out of Imposter Syndrome” card and I pull it out of my deck often when I’m feeling that spiral take hold. Warp Drive lets me know that I’m in full control of my own ship, it’s full speed ahead! Sometimes we don’t feel like we have full control over ourselves and when Imposter Syndrome kicks into full swing it makes things really hard when second guessing is at play. Just take the controls and move forward, think about it later.
Majesty (Empress) is not only my birth card but it’s also a personal significator for me. I adore whales, specifically Humpback Whales. This card for me is just perfect, I have no other words, it’s just… perfect. There is such a gentle, yet giant, power behind these beautiful whales.
The 4 of Potions (Cups) gave me all the feels. Sometimes when you’re just not interested or going through some depression in your life, you just want to melt and disappear, at least that is how I feel personally when I go through these times. When I saw how crumpled and limp the character was in the card, it reflected this so well for me. I have felt very much like that character many times and I just want to melt into the background so I can be fully left alone.
The Tarot of Many Doors is entirely illustrated in a gray chromatic design features themes relating to feminist sci-fi, space, queer magic, tentacles, creatures, and everything in between. I’m a huge fan of the art style and drawn design of this deck, I also love that gray color palette used for it. So often we see black & white decks but rarely gray themes, love it!
The cards all feature a gray border with handwritten titles on the cards, I have a soft spot for handwritten anything! The card backs are reversible and feature doors of all kinds and a few hints of silver gilding on a few doors. Love that small little feature of the gilding, it’s beautifully done.
Now, some of the titles have been changed to help keep this deck non-binary and I love the changes they made. The courts are as follows: Reveries (Pages), Walkers (Knights), Speakers (Kings), Readers (Queens).
Also, some of the major names have been changed, as well as most of the suits. These are also as follows: The Child (Fool), The Oracle (High Priestess), Majesty (Empress), The Stratagem (Emperor), The Archivist (Hierophant), Warp Drive (Chariot), and the Suspended (Hanged Man) to name a few. The suits are now Potions as Cups, Wires as Swords, Dice as Coins and Wands remained unchanged.
The cards are standard size at roughly: 2.75” x 4.75”
Card Stock + Shuffling
The cardstock is fairly thick but not stiff like some decks. It’s for sure a deck that feels like it will last a long time and take some good handling, which I like a lot! I really can’t get a rifle shuffle in with this deck due to the cardstock, but it overhand shuffles just fine. The edges are smooth and the whole deck just feels great in your hand!
Guidebook + Packaging
The deck comes packaged with a “LWB” that just goes over the changes made in the deck, nothing else on the cards themselves as far as meaning and interpretations go. However, this deck follows RWS so I really don’t think interpretations are needed anyways, so any book can be paired with this deck if you would like one.
I loved the packaging, it arrived in a velvet like drawstring bag with an embroidered logo on the front. The deck itself comes in a tuck box as well, so the overall packaging was a delight to see. I also got the zine that can be purchased separately, it shows the process of the deck creation and I love it! I’m a huge zine freak so this was great to see!
Overall, this deck is a delight and I’m so glad it’s out and available for others. It’s a great addition to my collection and has been a joy to work with!
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/manydoorstarot/