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Hey guys, haven't posted here for a while. University has taken most of my time.

I am working on an effect created around legends of people who encounter a mysterious stranger and end up losing their soul. It is basically a version of the "Judas Card", but also inspired by something Eugene Burger does in one of his Voyages. I really enjoy putting an effect together like this, yet I struggle a bit with the ending. But to begin with the beginning...

(wording is not final, just the basic idea)

I explain how a young man once met the Devil on a dusty crossroad. "Allow me to show you what happened" (I remove an envelope from my pocket) "The Devil told the young man, that there was something in the envelope. The young man was curious and asked what it was. 'That is a secret - a secret which you might win from me in a little game of cards.'" I produce 10 cards from my pocket "We play four hands, and if you win just one of them, I will show you what is in the envelope, continued the Devil."

From then I use the "Judas card" principle

1. hand: I shuffle and deal the cards.

2. hand: Before dealing each card, I offer the participant a choice of whether he wants the card or not (face down). I use SecD or BotD.

3. hand: "Did I forget to mention that if you win, your soul will belong to me? I am sorry about that... To make up for it, I will make it very easy for you this time, said the Devil... wouldn't you say it would be a great help if you could actually see the faces of the cards as you discard half of them?" Agreement. "Please, point to one of these two cards (faces shown)" ...

4. hand: "Now the young man began to realise, just what his curiosity had led him into, and the devil handed him the cards for the final shuffle, and said, Why don't you deal the cards this time?"

In the fourth hand, I have no control of the cards, so I have a scenario for the two possible outcomes.

However, should I lose on the last hand, I want to open the envelope and show that it contains an identical hand to the one that the participant just dealt himself.

I have considered numerous ways to do this, but most of them seem very burdensome and impractical - an index (but I have to pick out 5 cards and load them into an envelope which I must then substitute for the original... bit hard to do in a discrete way), an accomplice with an index, switching of hands...

So my question is, how you would do something like that?

Also, the two outs allow me to leave the cards entirely in the participant's hands in the last round. But I am uncertain whether that is not less impressive to a non-magician than the previous (third) round.

Any other tips, criticism and suggestions are also welcome. Method-sensitive answers can go to my inbox

- C

If you are looking for an ending for this, try and see if you can find Ricky Jay doing it, on a documentary about him - someone know the title?

Amazing acting.

I've never bothered with the effect, because, like you, I was never happy with the lack of climax the effect had.

"Let's do the same thing, 4 times!"

Yawn.

Alright I've been giving this a bit of thought and I think I have an answer for you.

For simplicity's sake lets say the ten cards are Ace to Five spades and Ace to five Harts (I know the Judas card won't work with this set but this is just for explanation}.

AS AH
2S 2H
3S 3H
4S 4H
5S 5H

After the first two games (I would say don't do this effect more than three times) you then switch the ten cards for a set of five duplicate cards. So now your ten cards are just Ace to Five of spades twice.

AS AS
2S 2S
3S 3S
4S 4S
5S 5S

You have the cards stacked correctly so every choice of two the participant makes will be the same card. He takes a two of spades for himself and gives a two of spades to you etc.

You then switch your five cards in your hand for the other removed cards (A to 5 of Hearts)

You can then open the envelope (or they can, hell they can be holding the envelope form the beginning) witch will contain the five forced cards.

Like I said this won't work with the two A to 5 straits but you get the idea.

Also don't forget to tell them at the beginning that you will play three hands and really bring the focus to the last hand being important. What you don't want is for them to think you just kept playing till the right combination showed up.

I agree with JER - three times through is the limit. It is usually the best number of times dramatically. Many folk stories and fables use things that happen in threes - three sons, three magical gifts, three wishes. It also helps to stop the audience gettig bored rigid by the apparent repetition of the same process (even if you change it a bit each time).

Also, the story doesn't really make sense. If you win, you lose your soul? Huh? Surely it should be that they will play three times. If the young man won any of the three hands, he would be allowed to see inside the envelope. If he lost all three, his soul would belong to the Devil.

I'll drop you a PM about an idea I had for the envelope bit.

Thank you both,

I agree, the trick usually lacks a climax, which is what I hoped to bring in by the reveal.

Thanks for the suggestion on the switch... Also seems reasonable to reduce the number of hands played to three.

I also wouldn't have to rely on the extra out, which is great.

Thanks a lot, I will definitely work this into the routine.

This is only a suggestion but structure wise you might want to do it like this.

First round is all face up (done two at a time) using the Judas card principle (I've found that if the choices are a Jack and a nine people go for the Jack every time). The Participant looses.

Second round ten new cards are selected all face up again. This time you might not want to risk a psychological force for the Judas card. So have the first two choices both be potential Judas cards and swap the last cards after the selection has been made. The Participant looses.

In the final round another set of cards are selected you talk about how you realized that you were being manipulated, and that relying on your vision was letting you down, so you decided to rely on faith. (I know Gods a touchy issue with some but if your including the Devil why not include God?)

All selections are made face down the Participant wins and you reveal that he won with the same hand you did.

However the most important part of this trick is the story and story telling are where I fail. So perhaps a more experienced story teller can help you out.

Very nice ideas.

I have no problems mentioning God, or giving my routines religious themes or morals... while I do not want to do gospel magic, faith is a big part of who I am, so it is not an unwelcome theme.

I'm still working on my own style, but I find that story-telling is something I should explore more deeply.

I've been playing around with your suggestion; there might be something there, but I need to work on it a bit more to say for certain.

Thanks a lot,
C

If I went as far as the crossroads in the telling of this tale I'd definitely make mention of Robert Johnson. There you have a ready made tale and the young man's motivation for meeting the devil. As for why he needed to win the game to lose his soul - well, what makes people so convinced the devil would be interested in their mediocre grubby little souls anyway? Young Johnson wins the game, the devil takes his soul, and Robert Johnson's guitar playing passes into legend as he becomes the father of the blues and the grandfather of rock and roll. Oh, and the great-great-grandfather of McFly... no deal with the devil, no Derren Brown's Enigma.