Tarot Pip Style Decks: Pros and Cons
Deck in photo: That 90s Tarot by Kristi Prokopiak.
Tarot has become a popular tool these days because its storytelling capabilities help us understand our own narratives.
One could argue that even without memorizing what every number in every suit of the tarot means, you can glean some kind of meaning just by looking at the figures we see in the cards. Thanks to the Rider-Waite Smith deck, Pamela Colman Smith’s visual cues, and a collective understanding of symbols and the human experience, we can look at a single card and be able to weave a story out of it. We can use our interpretations to find insights about ourselves, our relationships, and our experiences.
But before the rider-waite smith deck came along in the early 20th century, tarot decks were basically just like a deck of playing cards (plus an extra suit with the major arcana).
People only had images of 10 actual swords to represent the anxiety and mental fatigue and need-to-start-over-now feeling that comes with this card. They read these cards through an understanding of numerology… and what I assume is a lot of practice and memorization too! Sometimes, artists would get creative with the arrangement of the actual swords or cups or wands or suits, using something as simple as their positioning to depict the feeling that goes with each card. Though not a purely pip-style deck, the Pagan Otherworlds Tarot by UUSI does an excellent job of this with its pips! The classic Thoth deck is also pretty pip-style in its depictions—and I think this is why, having the Thoth has my very first tarot deck prevented me from actually learning the cards in a way that I could apply to my life (I couldn’t even get through the Thoth’s little white book!).
One of my most beloved go-to decks, That 90’s Tarot is a modern take on pip-style decks that I turn to over and over. Another popular modern deck that is based loosely on this style is The Wild Unknown by Kim Krans. I learned the ins and outs of tarot with TWU and so I’ve become pretty familiar with gleaning meaning from how the pips are configured.
If you’ve ever wondered about tarot pip-style decks, here are some pros and cons to using them.
THE CONS
They can leave you drawing blanks. These decks are true testaments to how we, as humans, can really layer meaning on to anything—even a drawing of just four cups. The thing with pip decks is that sometimes, you pull a card and the meaning doesn’t come automatically, especially if you’ve been super used to the visual cues that come with Rider-Waite Smith based decks. If you’re prepared to face a spinning wheel tarot moment in front of a client or even a friend you’re reading for, then go forth with courage.
Style is relative, but some may think these decks are less “pretty.” I personally like the look of pip decks, but if they’re not your style, then it might be a little tougher for you to connect to them.
For some classic decks (like the Thoth), the wands and swords look very similar. It’s happened to me, folks. I was reading for someone with a pip deck and actually read the wands as swords and swords as wands and by the time I realized I had switch the suits up, the reading was over.
Your flow may be impeded when you realize you have to actually count the pips. If you’re not used to what these cards look like, you may actually find yourself having to stop mid-reading in order to count exactly how many pentacles are in your card (I’m speaking from experience!). If you want to deliver a super seamless reading, you’re going to have to really familiarize yourself with each card in order to call out its number right away.
For all these reasons, reading pips can be frustrating. But all these cons do have their counterparts for non-pip-style decks, so it’s all relative.
THE PROS
You put your stock knowledge to the test. While there are some readers who just naturally know how to read the cards without having to go through rote learning (ie, this is not me), I believe that tarot reading requires a lot of drills, reading practice, and memorization. There’s nothing like testing what has stuck and what hasn’t by using pip-style decks. Think of them as tarot flash cards!
They allow you to marry your stock knowledge with your intuition. When you find yourself drawing blanks, pip-style decks allow you to tap straight into your intuition. Think of your rote learning as your preparation and your intuition as your safety net. I think that the richest tarot readings come from people who know how to marry both rational and intuitive thinking when they interpret the cards.
They’re atypical. There are a ton of Rider-Waite Smith style decks out there (I mean, I’ve created some of them!)… which I feel makes these pip-style decks and the readings that come with them a lot more special. I guess if you’re the type of person who has non-ironic hipster leanings, then these decks and their aesthetic may actually appeal to you.
The Major Arcana really stands out in a pip-style deck. I like to see where the Majors show up in the readings I do and this becomes really evident when I use pip-style decks. You’re able to point out highlights and milestones right away—something that can come in really handy if it’s an aspect of tarot reading that matters to you.
They can give an extra professional look to your reading. This is all optics of course. Tarot readings can be professional no matter what deck you use—it’s all in the reader. That said, if you’re reading for someone who has no idea what tarot cards are and how they work, you may leave a bigger, more lasting impression by using cards that just resemble a regular deck of playing cards.
I hope this was helpful for you! Feel free to comment below with your favorite pip-style decks or ones you would love to explore :)