Epic Tarot - four fantasy worlds for shadow work
Some tarot cards are meant to uplift you. These are not. Epic Tarot by Riccardo Minetti and Paolo Martinello builds four sprawling fantasy worlds, each connected to an element and a season. The imagery is dark, sometimes confronting, always dramatic.
The cards follow the structure of a classic tarot, but the visual language deviates considerably from what you see in a Rider-Waite-Smith deck. Martinello draws scenes full of movement, conflict and emotion. Glossy cardstock intensifies the colours and deepens the shadows.
What you see on the cards
Each card shows a fragment of a larger narrative. Characters do not stand still, they fight, flee, mourn or transform. The backgrounds are not decoration but part of the meaning: a winter landscape for one card, a summer meadow for another.
The elements determine the mood. Earth and winter bring structure and cold, fire and summer heat and impulse. This connection runs through the entire deck and helps you recognise visual patterns quickly.
There is no text on the cards themselves. Only symbols, faces and landscapes. That asks for looking, not reading.
What this deck works for
Epic Tarot is designed for introspection. The images force you to look beyond a standard meaning. Shadow work, examining hidden emotions and confronting the ego, those are themes that return throughout.
The guidebook is a pocket-sized instruction booklet, enough to grasp the basic meanings. But the real depth lies in what you see yourself. That makes the deck suitable for people who already have some experience with tarot, or at least are willing to persist for a while.
Draw a card and spend five minutes just looking at the image. What happens? Where do you look first, where does your gaze go next? Only then read the meaning.
About Riccardo Minetti and Paolo Martinello
Riccardo Minetti is a tarot designer and writer. He often works with symbolism that goes beyond classical traditions, and Epic Tarot is a good example of that.
Paolo Martinello is a fantasy illustrator. His work is characterised by dramatic compositions and a strong emphasis on emotion. For Epic Tarot he has chosen a style that has more in common with book covers than with traditional tarot cards.
Specifications
- Number of cards: 78 (22 Major Arcana, 56 Minor Arcana)
- Size: 70 x 120 mm
- Material: Glossy cardstock
- Guidebook language: English
- Publisher: Lo Scarabeo
- Included: Instruction booklet (Little White Book)
Questions we often get
Does this deck work for beginners?
That depends. The structure is classic, the booklet gives basic meanings. But the images require interpretation. If you are used to holding on to fixed meanings, that may take some getting used to.
How does this deck differ from a Rider-Waite-Smith tarot?
The order and meanings are comparable, but the visual language is completely different. Not symbolic tableaux, but complete fantasy scenes with their own narrative logic. That makes it less immediately readable, but richer in detail.
