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Someone did this to me a long time ago.

He basically took out a card from the deck, placed it face down in front of me. Told me to imagine a "board with all the cards on it", and select one.

When I told him what it was he revealed it was the card selected.

Is there a thought force similar to this?
And what is the average percentage of success?

On the Devils Picturebook DVd by Derren Brown there are a few methods described on the 2nd disc that sound very similar to this. I highly recommend the dvd although it is a tad pricey and most of the routines are more on the advanced side.
Saying that though I just love watching it in awe

The ID isn't a 'trick'.

It's a utility device.

I guess the principle could be used in a mentalism routine, but the deeper I dig down the rabbit hole, I discover that mentalism and playing cards is a bit taboo.

However, it's use as a prop in mentalism is undeniable.

You can find information about this in both Pure Effect and on Devil's Picture Book, both by Derren Brown who might be a Mentalist and then again he might not.

I will chance my arm and say its both. It all depends how it is presented.

"Think of one card" ah look there is your card. or

"I am an expert at reading people and before i come out tonight i knew that you would pick a certian card"

All to do with presentation. Its one of them rare devices that can be used for both, or you can give it the old "I programed you veriabley to chose the ace of clubs"

Where something like the raven is a magic device. It has one purpose the ID is more of a tool.

Markdini wrote:Where something like the raven is a magic device. It has one purpose the ID is more of a tool.

Now that really is splitting hairs!

Hmm the raven is a toy with a novety value IMHO it has one use its like a screwdriver if you will, a ID has many uses so is more of a swiss army knife, the ID can do more then one thing even if it all card related.

Thanks for the replies. I thought it was more of a technique, a la "thought force". I actually purchased devils picturebook a few days ago from his website. Still waitting for it to arrive. Is there anywhere online that I can get Pure effect? It seems to be gone everywhere

Marvell wrote:You can find information about this in both Pure Effect and on Devil's Picture Book, both by Derren Brown who might be a Mentalist and then again he might not.

As far as I remember its a gimmicked version in Pure effect. Maybe we are talking about ungimmecked versions? Mental force + index + slight?
Lennart Green has a version that works with a borrowed deck and no psycological force! But Lennart Green is Lennart Green!

requiemfad wrote:Is there anywhere online that I can get Pure effect? It seems to be gone everywhere

Send a PM to Marvell - he had some info on a possible source recently.

Our Manager at work had Pure Effect. He didnt understand it.. So he gave it to me .. FREE..

And I picked up Tricks of the mind yesterday with a HMV voucher I was given at work..

I.D wrote:Our Manager at work had Pure Effect. He didnt understand it.. So he gave it to me .. FREE..

Don't let him see how much they're charging for it on e-bay!

The I.D. is truely a wonderful device. but is it magic or mentalism?

first: just in case anyone doesn't know, it is completely self working.

personally, i feel the answer to... is it magic or mentalism, is determined by how you present it. i have presented the I.D. as "unexplainable magic", i have also presented it as the "most amazingly undetectable... erm... sleight of hand". my favorite presentation however is "mind control" whereby i suggest that whilst chatting with the spec i have been "planting seeds" to influence their choice of a card.

either way, the I.D. is a wonderfully versitile item that can be presented in many different ways.

B0bbY_CaT wrote:first: just in case anyone doesn't know, it is completely self working.

I can't agree with that I'm afraid!

Many years ago, I was talking with who has become a well-known magician about the ID. We were deliberating as to whether the ID is an 'amateur's dream' or a 'professional's secret weapon'.

A crazy conversation, I know.

But we concluded that the ID isn't a 'self-working' miracle. Sure, the deck does 50% of the work, but with this utility, 50% of the effect is in the actual method of use, the dynamics of the trick and the performance.

Even in the hands of someone who performs the standard 'think of a card, look it's the only one I turned over in the deck' routine, the ID's own mechanisms dictate that work is required by the magician to get it to function correctly, and it still needs practice.

Secondly, the ID is a UTILITY PROP. Utility props by definition are used as part of a larger EFFECT. The ID needs magician's interaction and manipulation to work, ergo, it's not completely self-working.

Although, it IS self-contained.

I think the danger of proclaiming it as 'self-working' is that people may assume it's actually easier to perform than it really is.

The ID can be used for some VERY powerful effects—and most of them are a far cry from the regular and 'in-the-box' methods.

There's also the problem of revealing the face down card as you push the cards from one hand to the other. It has to look exactly the same as the movement used to push all the others or someone somewhere will call you out. Definitely not 100% self-working to the extent of presentation, though the principle guarantees that the card you need will be face down.