Origins Playing Cards

[Rick Davidson]

Hi everyone,

I'm working on a new deck, inspired by 16th century cards and I'm exploring options for production.  I was planning on the KS route and my own site but have had some interest and considering going with a distributor.  So I wonder, do you have a favourite distributor...  Any experience going it alone or through Kickstarter?

Here's a link to the site, let me know what you think.  Regards,Rick

http://originscards.com/

[RandyButterfield]

I prefer HouseofPlayingCards.com.
Although, I may be a little biased! I've never had a bad experience with Kevin and Alex.

Thanks, Randy

[Rick Davidson]

Haha hey Randy.  Just admiring your Imperials, beautiful!  Thanks for your thoughts

[MrMollusk]

Hmm....
I can't see this deck being produced by HOPC. They seem to be more into more "modern" decks. This classy, old-era deck might not gel with decks like the NOC and Mechanic decks. Then again, the killer design might overshadow the HOPC's trend!

It's a long shot, but you could always try to get in touch with Theory 11. It looks like a deck that  they'd love to produce.

If those two don't work out, I'd say Kickstarter is your best alternative.

[Card Player]

Try "FullBoatDealer"... They distributed both Virtuoso and Seasons Playing Cards. They are located in Cincinnati, OH. You can have cards delivered to them from USPCC (Kentucky) and they will distribute for you. I don't know all the details involved. Try contacting him via his eBay store or I would inquire with TheVirts or Seasons Playing Cards about their dealings with him.

As a customer, my decks have always come well packaged and his shipping time frame is impeccable.

[xela]

Those cards are absolutely beautiful!

You should really try HOPC, they would be foolish not to pick up such an awesome deck. FullBoatDealer is pretty good too, and I believe he works with AceKing and The1EyedJack to distribute decks.

Stay away from anyone that wants to buy your deck for $2-3 wholesale.

[billysac]

I'll throw out an opinion that doesn't matter much (mine  ).

I'd have no qualms purchasing the deck from hopc or kickstarter.
Some people cringe at the thought of kickstarter lately, but out of ~40 decks I've backed only 2 haven't delivered.

The others I've not dealth with, but they definitely have a good repuation.

[xela]

Hmm....
I can't see this deck being produced by HOPC. They seem to be more into more "modern" decks. This classy, old-era deck might not gel with decks like the NOC and Mechanic decks. Then again, the killer design might overshadow the HOPC's trend!

Well then good sir how do you explain the Americana?

[Don Boyer]

Hmm....
I can't see this deck being produced by HOPC. They seem to be more into more "modern" decks. This classy, old-era deck might not gel with decks like the NOC and Mechanic decks. Then again, the killer design might overshadow the HOPC's trend!

Well then good sir how do you explain the Americana?

Easily - they were simply the distributor.  Russ had already paid for everything, the decks were going to be made, etc., he just wanted someone else to do the heavy lifting of selling most of it.

There's no set "style" that HOPC has for their decks.  They run a range of styles, the only real determining factor being whether Alex and/or Kevin like the deck.

Appearance-wise, I'd say it would look right at home in the inventory of either E or T11 right now.  They're both going a lot lately for elegant boxes with a lot of metallic foils.

I will say one thing, trickz - consider doing the backs a little differently in terms of the color palate.  T11's original design for the Monarchs had a nearly-identical combination - and they ended up destroying all but a single gross of them due to how terrible it looked.  The metallic gold ink in the fine pattern practically disappeared into the dark background - it's darker than you think it would be.  Of that gross, only 111 were put up for sale and they vanished a long time ago.  Skip ahead to the second-most funded deck on Kickstarter, the "Misc. Goods Co." deck.  The box showed everything in a cool black-on-white pattern, but they did the backs in the same metallic-gold-on-black.  Almost all of the fine detail was lost because of the colors being too close together.  You don't have to take my word for it - just pick up a Misc. Goods Co. deck or look at their back design poster.

As I see it, there's a few options that wouldn't seriously upset the design.  The least-intrusive one would be to simply substitute a brighter yellow for metallic gold on the card backs, giving you a much better contrast between it and the black/dark brown/whatever that dark color is.  T11's solution was to swap black for navy and gold for white - it didn't go over as well with the fans.  Another would be to try silver metallic inks on the card backs instead of gold - but this would significantly alter the appearance of the cards as well, possibly to its detriment as far as popularity goes.

[Rick Davidson]

Wow, thanks guys for your advice.  I didn't see any notification of these posts. 

Don, that info is invaluable thanks.  I had heard about the monarchs but I didn't know how bad.  There is a lot of fine hairline detail in the design I don't want to lose.  I was considering avoiding the metallics, but I might need to tweak my line weights to be safe.

I will follow up on the distributors you've mentioned thanks, I'd prefer Kickstarter as a lesser option, just for the sake some would be wary, but it makes a good backup

[Card Player]

I will say one thing, trickz - consider doing the backs a little differently in terms of the color palate.  T11's original design for the Monarchs had a nearly-identical combination

From the reviews I've seen, most people liked the blue/gold of the monarchs better and could not understand why theory11 stopped that print run (only to go to the blue/white). If anything, the fact that theory11 did not make the blue/gold monarchs their primary finished design for the deck when all was done, should push to keep the Origins color scheme the way it is.  The Origins design is much more detailed, allowing the gold to be more effective then it was on monarchs.

[Don Boyer]

I will say one thing, trickz - consider doing the backs a little differently in terms of the color palate.  T11's original design for the Monarchs had a nearly-identical combination

From the reviews I've seen, most people liked the blue/gold of the monarchs better and could not understand why theory11 stopped that print run (only to go to the blue/white). If anything, the fact that theory11 did not make the blue/gold monarchs their primary finished design for the deck when all was done, should push to keep the Origins color scheme the way it is.  The Origins design is much more detailed, allowing the gold to be more effective then it was on monarchs.

Have you given the back of the Misc. Goods Co. deck (a.k.a. the Pedale Design deck) a close look?  The art on the box is awesome - black lines on white - but on the cards, it's metallic gold on black and it looks more like mush.  Nothing pops, nothing stands out.  Metallic gold ink, despite how people think of gold being bright and glittery, is darker than you think and in fine lines against a black background it practically disappears.  It's not the same as a "real" gold, just as metallic blue looks more like metallic grey.

I can't imagine there were a great number of reviews, considering that only 111 decks were released and the majority of them remain sealed.  I can't imagine there's more than a few dozen people who've even held the cards, out of the box, in their hands.  Such a small sampling of the overall card collecting community can't possibly provide a baseline from which to derive a general consensus among them as to what they think of this deck - it would be off by a huge margin of error, too huge to be remotely accurate.

[Collector]

@trickz, I’ll advise you to investigate Bicycle Karnival Ryujin Deck by Big Blind Media. It doesn’t have metallic inks but colors look like metallic. http://playingcards.wikidot.com/bicycle:karnival-ryujin

And of course Seasons playing cards – the same situation.

Nice design. I hope you’ll be able to print them.

@Legacy, can you get a scan/photo of the (Gold) Monarchs' back?

[Card Player]

I will say one thing, trickz - consider doing the backs a little differently in terms of the color palate.  T11's original design for the Monarchs had a nearly-identical combination

From the reviews I've seen, most people liked the blue/gold of the monarchs better and could not understand why theory11 stopped that print run (only to go to the blue/white). If anything, the fact that theory11 did not make the blue/gold monarchs their primary finished design for the deck when all was done, should push to keep the Origins color scheme the way it is.  The Origins design is much more detailed, allowing the gold to be more effective then it was on monarchs.

Have you given the back of the Misc. Goods Co. deck (a.k.a. the Pedale Design deck) a close look?  The art on the box is awesome - black lines on white - but on the cards, it's metallic gold on black and it looks more like mush.  Nothing pops, nothing stands out.  Metallic gold ink, despite how people think of gold being bright and glittery, is darker than you think and in fine lines against a black background it practically disappears.  It's not the same as a "real" gold, just as metallic blue looks more like metallic grey.

I can't imagine there were a great number of reviews, considering that only 111 decks were released and the majority of them remain sealed.  I can't imagine there's more than a few dozen people who've even held the cards, out of the box, in their hands.  Such a small sampling of the overall card collecting community can't possibly provide a baseline from which to derive a general consensus among them as to what they think of this deck - it would be off by a huge margin of error, too huge to be remotely accurate.

Yes, I am familiar with the v1 Misc. Goods Co. deck. In that example I do share your concern for the color scheme. The style or digital strokes used in Misc. Goods Co. deck is similar to the Monarch's in that they use very fine thin lines. I'm thinking because Origins uses more of a dimensional rendering and larger pixel shapes/shadowing to form the back design it could still work. There are examples like the Artisans that successfully balanced the Gold/Color. I think that's the key really, balance. Rick will most likely need to figure it out with prototype decks.

[sprouts1115]

Trickz - Don't give up on metallic inks.  If this is your first deck make it special.  Just choose one metallic ink and make it a stretch goal like mine: 
 
200% 30K  Metallic Silver ink instead of white:  @ .05 per deck extra; We can do that.  It's now a special deck.   

300% 45K Bee stock:  @ .08 per deck extra; We can do that.  Now we have some poker cards.

400% 60K Custom Black Seals:  @ .10 per deck extra; We can do that. You know It's the first run.

600%  90K Q1 Quality control.  @ .50 per deck; We can do that.  Just like the Casinos. Hardly any decks with errors.  It's a better deck.

1000% 150K Silver Gilded edges. @ approximately 2.10 per deck extra;  We can do that. A limited run of 2500 decks with Aristocrat 300 stock with silver gilded edges. Now we have a collectors item. This is the best deck I can make. Lets just say all pledges of 4 decks or more. Will at least get one of this deck. This may change; it depends on the numbers. Can you fan 64 cards?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=JREkqCvLzSo#!

[Card Player]

1000% 150K Silver Gilded edges. @ approximately 2.10 per deck extra;  We can do that. A limited run of 2500 decks with Aristocrat 300 stock with silver gilded edges. Now we have a collectors item. This is the best deck I can make. Lets just say all pledges of 4 decks or more. Will at least get one of this deck. This may change; it depends on the numbers. Can you fan 64 cards?

Gilded edges is something that should be mentioned upfront and is a deal breaker... I would choose to back out, rather then pay for crappy gilded edge handling. That would be very disappointing.

[sprouts1115]

Legacy - You would use a gilded deck. Now that's disappointing.  It's not uncommon for a first run to be gilded.  They're mainly for show and tell and not to open.  Look and Peek but don't streak. 

[Rick Davidson]

Yes personally I think the metallics can be a little overrated, like Don says they are quite dark.  And sometimes you need a second take to confirm it is metallic.  But printed well it does add an edge.  On white they look great but the dark colours are a challenge for sure.   But get the line weights right, strong and light variations..  My first priority would be the quality of the deck, metallics a nice touch. I dont want to lie awake hoping they printed ok

[Don Boyer]

Trickz - Don't give up on metallic inks.  If this is your first deck make it special.  Just choose one metallic ink and make it a stretch goal like mine: 
 
200% 30K  Metallic Silver ink instead of white:  @ .05 per deck extra; We can do that.  It's now a special deck.   

300% 45K Bee stock:  @ .08 per deck extra; We can do that.  Now we have some poker cards.

400% 60K Custom Black Seals:  @ .10 per deck extra; We can do that. You know It's the first run.

600%  90K Q1 Quality control.  @ .50 per deck; We can do that.  Just like the Casinos. Hardly any decks with errors.  It's a better deck.

1000% 150K Silver Gilded edges. @ approximately 2.10 per deck extra;  We can do that. A limited run of 2500 decks with Aristocrat 300 stock with silver gilded edges. Now we have a collectors item. This is the best deck I can make. Lets just say all pledges of 4 decks or more. Will at least get one of this deck. This may change; it depends on the numbers. Can you fan 64 cards?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=JREkqCvLzSo#!

Do we really need this much detail about your deck - on SOMEONE ELSE'S deck topic?  No, we do not.  If you want to talk about this deck, TALK ABOUT THIS DECK, not yours!

Gilded edges is something that should be mentioned upfront and is a deal breaker... I would choose to back out, rather then pay for crappy gilded edge handling. That would be very disappointing.

Agreed.  Gilded decks are for people who don't like playing cards but like to have pretty things.

Legacy - You would use a gilded deck. Now that's disappointing.  It's not uncommon for a first run to be gilded.  They're mainly for show and tell and not to open.  Look and Peek but don't streak. 

Sorry, bro - on that, I call bullshit.  I have yet to see any modern custom deck make a first run of all-gilded decks.  It's as "uncommon" as glaciers in the Mojave Desert.

Sprouts - stay on topic.

[Rick Davidson]

Heheh all good stuff.  Yes I think I'd be gutted if they weren't considered a high end all round deck, but appreciate the comments!

[MrMollusk]

Legacy - You would use a gilded deck. Now that's disappointing.  It's not uncommon for a first run to be gilded.  They're mainly for show and tell and not to open.  Look and Peek but don't streak.

It's super uncommon for the first run to be gilded...
The only 2 gilded decks I can think of off the top of my head are the Metal Blades deck and the limited Hornets deck.

Back on topic, I think this deck would look absolutely superb with metallic inks. It doesn't even need a lot. Some metallic highlights on the hearts & diamonds could really enhance the design.
As for the back design color issue, I think T11 really nailed the gold-black back with the Artisans.


You could use a similar gold, and maintain the black back. Navy blue just doesn't suit this deck, IMO.

[Don Boyer]

Back on topic, I think this deck would look absolutely superb with metallic inks. It doesn't even need a lot. Some metallic highlights on the hearts & diamonds could really enhance the design.
As for the back design color issue, I think T11 really nailed the gold-black back with the Artisans.


You could use a similar gold, and maintain the black back. Navy blue just doesn't suit this deck, IMO.

That works because the gold isn't just fine lines - there's almost more gold than black there.  They really did a sweet job on them.  Reminds me, I have to get those White Arties...

If I were doing a deck comparable in back design to the Monarchs, I'd use silver instead of gold.  It's brighter and would stand out big-time.

[Rick Davidson]

Just for fun.  Imagining these were metallic - I know which one I like but which would you prefer...  Antique silver/black box, Gold/dark blue box

[Card Player]

Gold/Dark Blue. It pops a bit more and fits the Origins style better. Silver/Black has been done so many times.

[Collector]

Gold is better. Even stock exchanges agree with me