Revolution Deck

[Sovereign]

Hi guys, earlier in the year when we launched the Great Whites deck we ran a competition to have a custom deck designed for you - James Watson won and after a lot of discussion he decided on a deck based on the American Revolutionary War. Attached is a screenie of the development for the face cards. I'm going full custom all original on this deck, and I've spent a long time figuring out the face details and including characters from the era - it should be pretty cool, I've got a good feeling about it.

I'm planning to make the deck feel kind of like almost an antique deck from the time, so it will be aged but not overworked - I'm really quite excited about bringing it to life. I'll keep posting as I draw all the threads together and get everything in place.

I hope you guys like it.

[Sovereign]

Busy afternoon, looking at some different styles, I'm thinking something like this might be the winner:

[Don Boyer]

I hope you're planning to put some Redcoats on the red suits... 

Use blue for the black suits - the American military, when they had uniforms, generally wore blue - or at least that what they wore in the history book paintings.

[Sovereign]

Right on the money Don, that's actually what James suggested. I was toying with adding colour behind the lines, but I like the effect of it looking like the engraved printing was done in ink of the appropriate colour. The decks are going to be fairly minimal I think, I was tempted to go crazy lavish but I like the idea of making it look like a real piece of ephemera from that era - I'm going to go nuts with the aged printing on the box I think.

Box next.

Phill

[sprouts1115]

Sovereign - This might be a good thing. The wounds from the Founders Deck need to heal.  Make it your own deck, but check out the Kickstarter that sucked so many people in to the scam including me.  You might get some good ideas.  http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dodsr/founders-playing-cards?ref=card

[Don Boyer]

Right on the money Don, that's actually what James suggested. I was toying with adding colour behind the lines, but I like the effect of it looking like the engraved printing was done in ink of the appropriate colour. The decks are going to be fairly minimal I think, I was tempted to go crazy lavish but I like the idea of making it look like a real piece of ephemera from that era - I'm going to go nuts with the aged printing on the box I think.

Box next.

Phill

PLEASE, I BEG OF YOU!  Make the tuck box look authentic to the period - but LEAVE OUT the artificial aging!  Make it look like a pack you would find if you were in Boston in 1775, true to the period but not all dirtied up.  The dirty deck concept is really getting worn out now.  Does the Constitution have all kinds of stains and tears and creases?  Think about it.

[Sovereign]

PLEASE, I BEG OF YOU!  Make the tuck box look authentic to the period - but LEAVE OUT the artificial aging!  Make it look like a pack you would find if you were in Boston in 1775, true to the period but not all dirtied up.  The dirty deck concept is really getting worn out now.  Does the Constitution have all kinds of stains and tears and creases?  Think about it.

Good point I guess, but I should have clarified that I was going to dig in and make the aging *accurate* rather than making it a mess of grunge brushes. One of my friends is a special effects artist who gave a talk at a magic meetup here in the UK which was basically all about realistically aging props, I was planning on pinching some of his ideas.

The Constitution does have faded damaged ink, ink spatters and surface stains btw. 
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6c/Constitution_of_the_United_States%2C_page_1.jpg

Additionally I should mention this isn't a commercial deck, it is an insanely limited edition for the competition.
I lied about the box anyway, I'm looking at the backs now.

Phill

[Sovereign]

Current thinking on the card back - James suggested possibly incorporating the two flags of the nations (both of which have changed since). I quite like the block print effect, but I might dig back in and think about some other ways to represent it.

Phill

[speedyy400]

So will this definitely be a one way back? Or are you looking at the option of making it two way?

[Sovereign]

Hi Speedy, I haven't really thought about that but I don't think it would be too hard to do, I could double up the flags so it is rotationally symmetrical. (crappy visual attached)

[Don Boyer]

Hi Speedy, I haven't really thought about that but I don't think it would be too hard to do, I could double up the flags so it is rotationally symmetrical. (crappy visual attached)

Agreed...crappy... 

Try something similar but different.  Stick with the halving of the back, but instead of flags, why not depict on one half a unit of British soldiers clashing with Colonial guerilla fighters (guerilla tactics originated with the Revolutionary War).  Then rotate the image onto the bottom.  THAT is more in line with the "Unrest" theme.

[Lukeout]

Not a huge fan of the back direction. But as a guy who grew up on land George Washington used to own, and whose brother was the head gardener at Mount Vernon for a decade+, I am totally digging the faces! You may want to look at the chair design at Independence hall during the constitutional convention that George sat in - it has an almost crown-like back that could look good behind him (the top of the chair is below).

My suggestion for the backs would be something along the crossed muskets (one direction, but cool), or if you do flags, I'd go with naval pennants shape (also one direction, but cooler than the band of the same name). You could do a top down look at two lines of muskets (the people holding them off screen to the right and left) and fill the center with smoke (from the muskets). Just brain barfing, not sure if any of those would work, but the flags feel forced to me.

Can't wait to see what this is like when it's done!

[Sovereign]

I dunno, I do like the flags (also it was a suggestion from James and I like the solid blockness of them). Both of the flags are instantly recognisable as the flags of our two nations, but both have changed since the Revolutionary war, and I like that, that sense of nation and the zeigeist that the flags capture. I toyed with the idea of using military ensigns, or the Naval Jack instead of the Union flag, but again, I like the idea that the Revolutionary war was about more than just two military forces, it was about that sense of nation.

Don, you're like the kind of client I hate - forget reaching for an iconic graphic solution, why not spend 20 hours researching and illustrating historical military units? Thanks. 
To be honest, I am continually aware of flippin' Jackson R with this kind of thing: http://www.kingswildproject.com/images/kwbackhero2.jpg he has got historical Americana on lockdown.  I don't want to use curlicues or the kind of woodtype ornaments I usually like, simply because I don't want this to look like a 'me-too' deck. (Since my Fedora 52 went down so badly! ;-P ) I was thinking of looking at architectural reference, Lukeout's chair suggestion is good, but it would have to be done in a non-JR way.

I'll have more of a ponder tomorrow I reckon, thanks for everyone's input.

[speedyy400]

Maybe you could do something along the lines of the signing of the Treaty of Paris, the ending of the Revolutionary War?

[Sovereign]

The four ribbon locked wax seals on the treaty is pretty iconic
http://joshblackman.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/treaty-of-paris.png

[speedyy400]

Maybe that across the top of the card and then somebody signing the treaty to go halfway down and then inversing it to make it a two way. Just an idea.

[Sovereign]

I think I might hold that back for the box? Dunno.

[Don Boyer]

I dunno, I do like the flags (also it was a suggestion from James and I like the solid blockness of them). Both of the flags are instantly recognisable as the flags of our two nations, but both have changed since the Revolutionary war, and I like that, that sense of nation and the zeigeist that the flags capture. I toyed with the idea of using military ensigns, or the Naval Jack instead of the Union flag, but again, I like the idea that the Revolutionary war was about more than just two military forces, it was about that sense of nation.

Don, you're like the kind of client I hate - forget reaching for an iconic graphic solution, why not spend 20 hours researching and illustrating historical military units? Thanks. 
To be honest, I am continually aware of flippin' Jackson R with this kind of thing: http://www.kingswildproject.com/images/kwbackhero2.jpg he has got historical Americana on lockdown.  I don't want to use curlicues or the kind of woodtype ornaments I usually like, simply because I don't want this to look like a 'me-too' deck. (Since my Fedora 52 went down so badly! ;-P ) I was thinking of looking at architectural reference, Lukeout's chair suggestion is good, but it would have to be done in a non-JR way.

I'll have more of a ponder tomorrow I reckon, thanks for everyone's input.

Glad to know that I'm such a pain in the ass!    Seriously, though, it would require little research.  Look at just a few period painting depicting the war and you'll have enough reference for uniforms and weapons.

You said you wanted unique.  I've seen flag decks all the time - usually inexpensively-made ones like the Waddington's Union Jack deck.  Jackson hasn't done a battle scene on any of his backs.  His newest back is actually based on some of the more classic card backs out of the late-19th and early-20th centuries.

[Sovereign]

Seriously, though, it would require little research.  Look at just a few period painting depicting the war and you'll have enough reference for uniforms and weapons.

Cool, I'll just press that 'Do Job' button my clients assume is built into every mac.   

Phill

[Don Boyer]

Seriously, though, it would require little research.  Look at just a few period painting depicting the war and you'll have enough reference for uniforms and weapons.

Cool, I'll just press that 'Do Job' button my clients assume is built into every mac.   

Phill

I'm not saying there isn't labor to be done, just that you wouldn't have to look hard to research the imagery.  An hour on Google would likely be more than enough to give you reference material for making a battle scene on the backs of your deck.

[MrMollusk]

Hmmmm. The back designs with the flags just don't seem to mesh with the court cards, in my opinion.

I think the best back you've had is actually the first one, mainly because it has the same lithograph style as the face cards. Maybe try doing something less minimalistic? I think your best bet for this deck is to have a highly detailed back.

[Justin O.]

What if you did two flags with a design in the middle, or two crossed fags?

Here is a (crappy) image of *kind of* what I am talking about. (Forgive the image, I only have access to MSPaint at work...  )

Edit: Those are supposed to be eagles on a coin in the middle, for those of you that can only see scribble of blobs of crap.

EAGLES.

Double plus edit: Pretend there are stars on the flag. Cause apparently stars are true to cannon for America-stuff.

[Sovereign]

Hmmmm. The back designs with the flags just don't seem to mesh with the court cards, in my opinion.

I think the best back you've had is actually the first one, mainly because it has the same lithograph style as the face cards. Maybe try doing something less minimalistic? I think your best bet for this deck is to have a highly detailed back.

The later visuals were just to show the layout, I intended for them to have the same style as the others, with both the wibbly wobbly flag, the fading and the engraving lines.

[Sovereign]

What if you did two flags with a design in the middle, or two crossed fags?

Here is a (crappy) image of *kind of* what I am talking about. (Forgive the image, I only have access to MSPaint at work...  )

Edit: Those are supposed to be eagles on a coin in the middle, for those of you that can only see scribble of blobs of crap.

EAGLES.

Double plus edit: Pretend there are stars on the flag. Cause apparently stars are true to cannon for America-stuff.

Justin, this is a pretty cool idea, it has the rotational symmetry right. I'll have a think.

[Justin O.]

So because I am bored (And work is really slow), and because MSPaint gets a little easier by the 6th hour of my shift, I decided to show what I meant by having the flags cross.
Turns out I meant flag poles, which I'm sure you all understood, but it *also* turns out that to do what I mean both flags have to use the same pole so now you get a double flag crossing a wooden pole!

Calm down, I know it's exciting. A wooden pole! Who would have known it could work so well?
Not me.

But mostly this is to illustrate what I though would be a neat way to present the flags (Which I love by the way, the way that you combined the two. Looks great!) on the card backs

Again I apologize to the crappy MSPaintness...