Behind The Art: Spear of Destiny

Spear of Destiny is proving early on to be one of the more coveted cards in the game.  At the time of this writing in early July, 2022, it is known that there were sample/test cards (referred to here as "sample cards" for this article) printed and in circulation to an extremely limited number of social media personalities and lucky event giveaway winners.  The numbers were recently detailed in my article about sample cards, their extreme rarity, and high value. To summarize, there is strong reason to believe that there is less than 10 copies of this sample card that exist in the world. In an era where sample cards from recent upstart TCGs sell for hundreds and thousands of dollars even with population sizes of 100+ copies, that point is notable.

The card design for the Spear of Destiny, like many Sorcery: Contested Realm cards is particularly flavorful.  The type line reads: "A Unique Relic guided by divine providence".

Consider the language choices and their definitions in this narrative:

• "Divine" - of, from, or like God or a god.

• "Providence" - the protective care of God or of nature as a spiritual power;

  • Or alternatively: timely preparation for future eventualities​

The text masterfully matches the mechanic of the card:

• Throw this Spear in a cardinal direction. It kills the first enemy minion it hits.

Flavorful text paired with flavorful gameplay mechanics is the magical elixir that captures the imagination and enthusiasm of Sorcery fans. This particular card mechanic delivers in a way that only a grid-based design concept like Sorcery can; it projects the spear in a cardinal direction, killing any enemy minion in its path, regardless of size and power level.  It is powerful mechanics like these that prove worthy of the "Unique" rarity label.

The illustration work by Andrea Modesti is beautifully fitting for the card mechanic. The spear's design resembles that of an ancient era weapon, perfectly pairing with the type line text's origins in late Middle English and Old French or Latin parlance.

Mr. Modesti shared some insights about the art direction that he received from Sorcery creator, Erik Oloffson, and his process for evolving the design:

At first I was not very sure how to set the spear, I had doubts both about its position in the painting and whether it should be depicted as a "new" weapon, in current use, or an ancient object. 

This is where ... Erik helped me, telling me it had to be an ancient object, a relic "from a legendary past" ... With this and other useful tips the painting took shape. And also for the suggestion to finally add some sort of halo, brightness or light rays around the spear, I have to thank Erik.

The light rays, extending in any given "cardinal direction" is the fabric that masterfully marries card mechanic with illustration design.

Mr. Modesti was generous enough to share several process sketches and water color process images that were used in his development process.  Those were profiled in a YouTube Video on my Collector Arthouse Channel, and are included below as well.

Finally, at the end of this article are images of the first ever sample card for this impossibly rare "Unique" card, which was offered via Collector Arthouse exclusively through the Sorcery: Contested Realm Fan Community Group and mirrored in the Collector Arthouse Discord.  

My thanks to Mr. Modesti for his insights and the inspiring illustrations he has contributed to this game!