Judge feedback

Judge feedback is anonymous and shown in a random order.

• How clear & compelling is the game's central idea? the Maelstrom itself reminds me of Annihilation, which is good. the theme also kept me interested in reading the text. How elegant, useful, and intuitive are the game's mechanics? The tarot as pretty much a procedural dungeon is really cool, and the way it pulls the theme through the whole game with how stats work as well as dice is very nice. How cohesively designed do you think the game is overall? The order the game is presented in makes it very easy to follow what procedures and when to use them. the voice used to write in is also constant throughout.
• This game is wonderful. Going a journey as a normal person, perhaps even yourself, into a magical world is a wonderful genre and this game pulls that focus forward wonderfully. It could do with some clarifications on the rules, but they are minor. Spending dice for Sorcery or to change cards should be explained sooner. The Monarch should be elaborated on just a little bit, as currently it reads like the game wants that scene to be a long exposition by the Interpreter, which seems antithetical to the rest of the game. The game's play time is surprisingly longer than I expected, as needing to draw each card is a lot and I was assuming this was meant to be a oneshot. Also, the dice placement around the central card seems like it might be hard to keep track of without a paper sheet. The tarot themed is caried throughout it beautifully and in a unified fashion. I find the physicality of the cards to be wonderful, and the possibility for storytelling to be exquisite. This is one of the Threeforged games I most hope to play.
• The theme of delving into a "dungeon" (really, fantastical, chaotic, magical) landscape derived from tarot readings is very very cool. There's some great guidance, imagery, and leading questions to help tarot novices (like me) navigate the game! Stuff like inverted vs upright cards, the meanings or themes of the suits, etc, is all very helpful and evocative. I like the principles of rewarding creativity and reveling in the weird and small moments that make up the journey. There are a couple spots (like the final scene/meeting the monarch and Sorcery) that both left me wanting a few more words but also intrigued me enough that I'd be happy implementing them in my own way in my own game.