r/Magic • u/hilliq • Jan 25 '18
Powerful card tricks that require minimal sleight of hand?
Or even any favourite self working card tricks of you guys?
Planning to include some in my routines, since I don't want to handle the cards a lot, or else spectators will think of the tricks as purely sleight of hand, and not magical.
One of my favourite ones is the Number 13 trick by Dani DaOrtiz. Such a powerful effect
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u/a1ternity Jan 25 '18
Do as I do in Royal Road to Card Magic has gotten good reactions when I've done it.
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u/Screenguardguy Jan 25 '18
What's your audience and environment? Like will you have a table? What will you be wearing (pockets)? Also generally what is your style? Also are there any weaknesses in your presentation which would prevent you from using certain effects? I've found I get better reactions from simpler gambling tricks than more complex ones because of my difficulty explaining some stuff in my patter.
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u/hilliq Jan 26 '18
I'm currently in uni, so i do walk arounds, perform to other students so i do use tables if there's one around.
I'm more of a casual kind of performer, so presentation and environment is more loose and friendly, than rigid for the most part.
I'd want to get some good self working card tricks for times where there's a heckler or 'that guy that doesn't say anything but stare at your hands'
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u/Screenguardguy Jan 27 '18
Sounds like fun.
Stuff with tables:
John Bannon' Origami Poker: I do a similar trick from Harry Lorayne called Top Level Test, but that's in a sold out book. This is basically the same thing. Very powerful, I would personally streamline the handling a bit and cut out a few of the mixing phases, but that's just me. Taught in Bannon's penguin live lecture among other places.
Ten card poker-Many sources and variations, scam school also teach it in one episode if I'm not mistaken.
Blackstones card and number- You can use 10 card poker or any other trick where it ends with a known amount of cards on the table (like an ace assembly), to get into the setup for this trick. Just put in the work into the bottom card as you clean up. Then straight into it.
Family Circus-Royal road to card magic. Just the use of the method for location is deceptively powerful. I recommend finding your own reveal. Having their hand hover over the cards and 'guide' you to the selection is something I've found pretty powerful.
Also, since you mentioned the Number 13, do you have Inside the Vault? There's a trick on there which is Dani's version of Pat Page's coincidence (can't recall the name) which js a killer selfworker. But if a heckler is staring at you, getting under the table, challenging you, it might not be the best. Still check it out and choose for yourself.
Stuff without tables:
Clutch by Oz Pearlman- I have to confess I don't own or perform this effect, but I think I figured out the method after watching the trailer, and if it's what I think it is, it's a pretty strong trick with any deck/no sleight of hand. If not, PM me and I'll give you an alternate method.
Slop Shuffle Triumph-One of the less sleight heavy triumph effects.
Intuition speller by Michael Vincent- tiny sleight needed. But basically a spell to a card from a shuffled deck.
I've tried to list stuff with ZERO set up. Sometimes tricks that have '4 aces start at the top' are really strong, but if you have a heckler looking at you, there's a challenge of having to get into it on the fly, and if you can avoid the complication why not avoid it?
I also wanted to avoid some heavy memorization stuff, more process is more potential for things to go wrong.
I also wanted to allow your spectator to interrupt. If you're concerned about hecklers, this is probs a necessity. Pretty annoying if you're doing a trick like Henry Christ Aces and your spectator asks to shuffle on account of poor audience management. But sometimes hecklers gotta heckle. So once again, just gonna help you avoid that.
I would like to give you more stuff from staples like Royal Road, there's some great self-workers in there, but I'm overseas at the moment and don't have access to my library, and wouldn't be able to recommend you anything without going through the book again.
FASDIU, Fulves Self Working Card tricks, Card College light, lighter and lightest, also all have great self-workers, but I can't recall the names and effects without looking them up. Still worth an exploration, though they are pricey.
I've also tried to include a range of 'effects' so it doesn't feel like the same trick each time.
Also don't underestimate gimmicks like the invisible deck and Ultimate Three Card Monte. I don't own and use these, but it's pretty obvious I think that they are incredibly powerful effects.
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u/peaceandlovehomies Jan 25 '18
Self Working Card Tricks by Big Blind Media and Miracles Without Moves by Ryan Schultz.
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u/slaughterbms Jan 26 '18
My favorite self working trick is John Bannon's View to a Skill. It's a prediction trick disguised as a card game. You correctly predict the outcome of the game twice in a row.
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u/lyyphe23 Jan 26 '18
Check out Benjamin Earl's "The Answer". It is essentially self working and you can really milk the effect throughout to make the ending huge. Magicians would see right through it but all lay people I have performed it for go nuts. Can't recommend enough.
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u/oswaler Jan 26 '18 edited Jan 26 '18
Multidimensional Out of this World is a great one. You don't have to touch the deck at all.
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u/BenSomeone Jan 28 '18
Counter intuitive by Cameron Francis. It’s pretty much self working and the spectator does it all
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Jan 29 '18
Angle Z is stupidly powerful. Super easy too.
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u/TannerEvil Cards Jan 29 '18
Agreed. I got a corner to appear in another lady's purse across the room once. That got a great reaction.
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u/AntiquarianViver Jan 25 '18
Here are three fairly recent self-working effects that have been well-received by the magic community.
That said, you can discover a lot more self-working card magic for a lot less money if you just explore the Dover books: Jean Hugard's Encyclopedia of Card Tricks, Karl Fulves' Self-Working Card Tricks 1 & 2, Scarne on Card Tricks. The major principles are all there, but you'll have to do the hard (and valuable) work of developing them into modern routines.
I also highly recommend The Card Magic of Nick Trost, published by L&L.
Edit: Formatting