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(Atlas Games 2003)
This small package contains a mighty deck of fifty-six cards to be tossed about during play as an accessory to your favorite D20 system game (D&D, D20 Modern, Gamma World, Damnation Decade, Conan, Call of Cthulu, Star Wars, etc. etc.) While there's clearly the intention of using them with Dungeons & Dragons 3.5, any game using those basic mechanics is a viable candidate for Dorkiness. The individual cards measure about 2 inches by 3.5 inches, but pack quite a punch by allowing you to alter the rules in times of need.
So what do they do, precisely? Excellent question, my little bugbear!
Each Dork20 card has text on it that briefly bends the game rules, allowing PCs to elevate skills, alter a die roll, improve initiative, heal a comrade, hinder a foe, or otherwise do stuff in ways not normally allowed by the standard game mechanics. For example, the card "Ability Mastery" allows the PC to use one of her special abilities or class features one time as though she were three levels higher than she really is. Handy in a tight spot, that. Or for a more specific situation, use the card "Honey Tongued", which adds a +10 bonus to a single Bluff check.
At the beginning of a game session, each player is dealt four cards (or however many your friendly GM is prepared to let you get away with.) The cards may then be played at any time during the adventure, and more than one card may be played at the same time, but then the cards are discarded after all the effects take place. Players may spend XP from their character during the game to "buy" more cards to replace the spent ones, as long as they stay to four or fewer cards at one time. Also, the GM can give them out as rewards for quick thinking, good role playing, creative plans, defeating a powerful enemy, or whatever else crackles their Krispies.
Whether each player wants to keep his cards secret, lay them face up on the table, or share between players is again up to the group. Basically, use these cards however the heck you want to!
A simple idea, and it can add some unpredictable spice to your games, as long as nobody in the group minds the sudden changes of fate. None of the cards provide direct plot twists, per se, as they don't allow you to alter specific storylines or the setting. They're just mechanical tweaks to help get you through the rough spots. They'll make your hammer hit harder or your rogue extra sneaky, but you still generally have to work with the skills and talents your PC already has.
Because the cards can make things much easier than the GM originally intended (especially if several players toss helpful cards into combat or into a single situation at the same time), it's suggested in the set's "rules" that GMs should consider PCs to be one level higher than they truly are for purposes of determining XP and treasure and good things like that that are awarded at the end of the session. So, the cards may make characters' lives easier in the short run, but they'll affect the party's long-term rewards if they're used as a common accessory to your games. Just something to be aware of before diving into your Dork Deck.
The artwork is that of beloved illustrator John Kovalic, the artist behind the Dork Tower comic strips . John's work is also featured in the Munchkin! Card game, reviewed here by this kobold some time ago.
I like both the safety and the surprise elements of the cards. Everyone blows a roll occasionally, or takes a critical hit at a very inopportune time, and until now only GM fiat could save your bacon. Now, you have a legitimate (and full-color!) method to cut your party some slack. Also, if you play via the tactic of keeping every player's card hand a secret, then it's fun to have someone reveal a useful card that you didn't see coming, at just the right time, to add some pizzazz to the game play.
While the cards' mechanics can be used with any D20 game, a few of them have flavor aimed at D&D and the fantasy genre in particular, and therefore will be of little use outside of that game. For example, "Holy Moly" adds a bonus to Turning or Rebuking attempts versus undead. If your game has neither those skills nor unliving beasties in it, those cards will never see play. Similarly, "Counterspell" may work in any magic-using milieu (AD&D, BloodShadows, Cthulu), but be of little playability in your D20 Modern or D20 Future games. Granted, it’s a relatively small percentage of cards that work that way, but it's something to be aware of.
In that same vein, all the illustrations, while amusing and well done, are done as fantasy images, with wizards and knights and goblins and other staples of that setting. It would have been nice to see some other settings in the drawings, just to reinforce the idea that the cards were intended to be used in many games.
Generous use of the cards can encourage the game to get a bit away from the GM. If you allow players to use the full suggested allotment of cards, and allow them to buy more during each game, or hand them out frequently as rewards, then some combinations of cards can cause truly legendary skill bonuses or combat effects. Dire opponents that were to be the Big Bad Guy in your adventure can be quickly overcome with the chucking of a few well-timed cards.
If that's the kind of game you're going for, then game on, dudes! But if you prefer to use the powers sparingly, for a grittier mood, then you'll want to experiment with how many cards you want to use in any given session, until you find the power level comfortable for everyone. Or alternatively, limit exactly which cards or effects can be used in your rpg. You just need to be careful that the Dork20 Deck adds some fun to the game, without totally overriding the players' own sense of accomplishment for their PCs. If the cards are doing all the hard work, then it's really not the same game or the same sense of satisfaction that people signed on for.
So the next time you find yourself tip-toeing into the cavern of the ancient dragon, only to blow a sneak roll and watch in horror as the gigantic beast opens its eyes and grins at you with a fanged mouth larger than your party's halfling, you'll know what to do… Pick a card, any card!
