Dixit is the copyrighted materials of Libellud and various creators and artists. Rather than host individual cards in anything like high quality (outside of the stuff provided in their promotional kit, like above), I am instead posting freely available card overview sheets with links to the PDF of said sheets (which can be found in full on the Dixit resources page). The purpose of me posting is not to infringe upon copyright but to give readers of Doug Alone a basic glimpse into some of the terms and objects I am describing as I use these cards in my games. I will only share those that are outright mentioned in this blog.
The image quality is purposely kept fairly low. I highly encourage you to check out Dixit either to play as intended, to weave into your own RPG adventures, or simply to appreciate the wonderful art. It is well worth it. This blog is proof that it can be used in a number of different ways.
Mirrors (Dixit #10)
Dixit: Mirrors is an expansion featuring the art of Sébastien Telleschi. It has a broad theme of daily life and whimsy with touches of surrealism.
On Using Dixit and Dixit-like Oracles
There are a variety of ways to use these cards if you do buy them. You can glimpse at the card as a whole – looking at the actions, using free association, etc – or you can look for individual elements which pop out at you and treat it much like you might use the Tricube Tales image oracles. Take the whole card. Take just a color. Take a word the card inspires and then change it into a name or a place.
For example, in the Mirrors set, above, the 7th Row & 4th Column card has a yellow fridge opening with various animals and insects pouring out. There are many ways to interpret that:
- Fridge | Cold | Storage
- Freedom | Escape | Imprisonment
- Opening | Door | Unlocking
- Insects | Rot | Decay
- Kitchen
- Colors: Yellow | Red | Black | White
- Pandora’s Box
- Any specific insect or animal on display
- The checkerboard floor might suggest “chess” or “checkers”
- The light coming out might suggest any illumination
- The decoration on the door might suggest Kamen Rider‘s belt or the kind of button given out on flights
- Need a name? Maybe the dragonfly’s wings suggest some ideas: Wingstrom.
Nearly every card has a whole host of symbols, actions, and contexts.
Why I Chose to Use Dixit Cards as a Solo Roleplaying Game Oracle
Dixit is one of my favorite board games. It is possibly my absolute favorite. I love the creative sparks. I love the style. It adapts wonderfully to lots of groups. I have picked up several expansions for it over the year [as well as “quasi-expansions” like Mysterium that has a lot of the same DNA].
It is only natural that I would want to try and use the central mechanic – sparking inspiration from the art on various cards drawn randomly – to adapt it to solo roleplaying games.
The concept of using Dixit cards did not start with Dixit. In fact, it started years ago with Everway. The combination of balancing Karma, Drama, and Fortune while using highly symbolic cards to create a more subjective response had a fairly large impact on how I thought about RPGs. I later toyed – as many have – with adapting the use of tarot cards, especially much more subjective elements, in my RPGs in general: not just the solo ones.
Still, after some years – including years that involved a new version of Everway being released – it was Dixit that helped me to cross the line. I am not the first to do it (at least others have mentioned the concept, though I have not see any practical demonstrations) but as usual I have my own particular flavor that may or may not be how others would do the same.