RaMa Deck
Available from www.spocmagic.com , Alakazam and magicbox.uk.com
Price: £15.99
Category: Magic/Mentalism effects and utility
Difficulty: 2- 3 out of 5
They say:
The RaMa Deck by Owen Packard (includes FREE DVD and MARKING SYSTEM!!!)
When was the last time you bought a gimmicked deck that you could use for more than one trick? Well, here's a deck you can use for your ENTIRE SHOW. What's more, that show will seriously kick a**e. The possibilities are truly endless. This has been called the greatest utility deck since the 'Invisible'.
Imagine this:
*You leave the room as your victim shuffles and cuts the cards before taking one and putting it in his pocket. You return and immediately - without even touching the deck - know which card he has chosen. This is like REAL magic!
*You hand your spectator two decks and turn away from him. He puts one deck in his pocket and shuffles the other. He takes a card from the mixed deck and hides it in his pants (the sicko). You turn back and ask him to hand you the deck he dropped in his pocket BEFORE he shuffled the second deck. You spread it to show one face down card. It's the same card as he currently has in his pants!!!
*You write a prediction of 2 cards on your business card. Your volunteer pushes the card into the middle of the deck. The cards it is touching are taken out and, of course, match the prediction.
*The cards are shuffled. You run through them for ten seconds and can then appear to have memorised the order of the entire deck. A guy cuts the pack and turns over the top card and you can tell him which card comes next. And the one under that. And the one under that. You get the idea.
Notice the variety of effect possible? Sound good so far? There's more...
The cards can be examined - on both sides.
They can be shuffled and cut by you or the spectator.
You never have to see their card - even the back - to know what it is.
No knucklebusting moves required. A beginner magi can operate the RaMa and perform amazing tricks!
It can be used as a normal deck - no more switching.
The possibilities are endless.
You get the special deck, precision made in red or blue bicycle.
An instructional DVD teaching you -
How the deck works
Four killer effects
Handling techniques & principles
A marking system that you can employ and use on other decks!
Access to a dedicated forum where tips, hints and new routines for the RaMa are available!
I say:
Well, this is quite an interesting bit o’ kit.
Personally, I generally don’t like to carry ‘gimmicked’ decks as they often are a bit of a one trick pony in terms of gaffing, they often utilise a reasonably complex to master stacking system or they are more magic than mentalism…but…the RaMa deck is twisting my arm rather severely.
The characteristics of the deck’s “workings” are pretty darned clever. I can’t really divulge the nature of the “gaffing” but suffice it to say that the blurb is spot on right…a spectator can handle the deck reasonably freely and the workings shouldn’t be obvious.
The deck employs a few different classic elements in a very clever way to result in a truly useful deck of cards. What’s more you can use the deck as a genuinely normal deck after you finish with a mind blowing RaMa routine…
intriguing huh?!
There is no exaggeration to say that with this little “52-piece power pack” you actually have the equivalent of at least 3 well tried and tested gaffed decks in one! Because of this there is a wide variety of effects you can perform AND as a tool to force with…well you’ll see when you get one…but it’s very cool.
The deck is a poker size Bike deck that is very nicely altered indeed. You get a colour, foldout A-3 pamphlet with full explanation of the workings of the deck and some solid routines to flex your mighty RaMa muscle with. You also get a DVD to take you through the workings and routines.
FLIPPIN’ HECK MAN!
But WAIT! There’s more! That’s right folks, you also get membership to a forum devoted to those people who own and use the deck. There you will find discussions, explanations, routines and a bunch of RaMa users to address your every whim.
Overall: 8.5/10
The RaMa deck will be, if you adopt it as a regular weapon, a powerful utility and effect/s in its own right. It’s also something you can create your own effects with. Go through some classic magic and mentalism books with the RaMa deck in your hands and you will find plenty of ways to utilise this deck to breathe new life into effects you might well have discounted. You will need to devote some time to learn the various routines and methods, it isn’t a “super-easy, self-worker” but it is pretty close. With a little practice (always recommended with any effect) you will be USING this deck most confidently.