SS16 Virts Private Launch

[The Flying Fisherman]

It has been a long long time since i was here, back in the day before things changed I was a regular poster here. I used to have the same name if anyone remembers .... Good to see some familiar names still around. Anyway, i have seen a post or two on instagram that have since been taken down and they are as you see in the ebay link, so seems like its legit.

[volantangel]

I actually really dont like these. I might not turn up at the private launch in person this year.

[sinjin7]

So the only differences I see are that they are full bleed backs now (which should've been the case from the beginning) and the faces have those bars that bleed to the side edges. This is still essentially a re-color, and not a very dynamically colored one at that. It definitely didn't justify the arduous series of email teases and overhype. I think I'm at the point of re-color fatigue on the Virts decks. I still love their promotion of cardistry, but they need to revamp the back design to something completely different instead, or else they're just a one-trick pony as deck designers.

[farmisen]

Got bored and bailed out when they tried to make me jump through a 2nd email hoop only 6 hours I responded positively to their invite.

[jerichoholic]

So the only differences I see are that they are full bleed backs now (which should've been the case from the beginning) and the faces have those bars that bleed to the side edges. This is still essentially a re-color, and not a very dynamically colored one at that. It definitely didn't justify the arduous series of email teases and overhype. I think I'm at the point of re-color fatigue on the Virts decks. I still love their promotion of cardistry, but they need to revamp the back design to something completely different instead, or else they're just a one-trick pony as deck designers.

I just don't think full bleed backs with this style of back. Something like the Luxx decks, definitely, but this, not so much.

[hawk199]

Just want to check...are the decks distributed by gamblerwarehouse?

[sinjin7]

I just don't think full bleed backs with this style of back. Something like the Luxx decks, definitely, but this, not so much.

This is a deck specifically targeted for cardistry. Back borders are useful for magicians because they make certain moves like double lifts easier to mask. Full bleed backs are useful for cardists because, in general, they make fans look better because they mask uneven fans. Borders make an obvious tell tale if your fans or spreads aren't spaced perfectly, but without the borders, you can get away with less than perfect fans and spreads and they'll still look good. For this reason full bleed backs are completely appropriate for this style of back which is made specifically for cardistry.

[jerichoholic]

Yes i'm totally aware of that, it just doesn't seem like this style of back would look that good in fans and flourishes, imo anyway.

[The Flying Fisherman]

I also agree that the borderless decks aren't necessarily better for cardistry. A bad fan for example will not look good with a borderless deck, possibly even worse if the fan is not perfect as the deign should ideally match up, whereas the border gets rid of that issue.
Eitherway the deck is growing on me after seeing a few vids and photos online but i am not so keen on the face stripe design they have implemented.

[badpete69]

Got my order today Much faster than last year.

EDIT: Wow I can't believe people are selling 1 deck for $55 to $75 on ebay hehe Most collectors got 1 free deck . Plus the wide release is coming soon. Oh well if someones bites

[alric]

I also agree that the borderless decks aren't necessarily better for cardistry. A bad fan for example will not look good with a borderless deck, possibly even worse if the fan is not perfect as the deign should ideally match up, whereas the border gets rid of that issue.
Eitherway the deck is growing on me after seeing a few vids and photos online but i am not so keen on the face stripe design they have implemented.

I don't know what kind of full bleed decks you've been fanning with, but I have to respectfully disagree with this post. Having borders (usually white) on the backs make it obvious if your fan is even slightly off because the uneven spacing between the obviously visible white borders will scream out that your fan is jacked up. You don't have that problem with full bleed backs so they actually help disguise uneven fans by making it harder to tell if the spacing is less than perfect. smh

[sinjin7]

I also agree that the borderless decks aren't necessarily better for cardistry. A bad fan for example will not look good with a borderless deck, possibly even worse if the fan is not perfect as the deign should ideally match up, whereas the border gets rid of that issue.
Eitherway the deck is growing on me after seeing a few vids and photos online but i am not so keen on the face stripe design they have implemented.

I don't know what kind of full bleed decks you've been fanning with, but I have to respectfully disagree with this post. Having borders (usually white) on the backs make it obvious if your fan is even slightly off because the uneven spacing between the obviously visible white borders will scream out that your fan is jacked up. You don't have that problem with full bleed backs so they actually help disguise uneven fans by making it harder to tell if the spacing is less than perfect. smh

While it may be true (depending on the actual design) that full bleed backs don't automatically make a deck better for cardistry, they definitely help fans look better for the reasons that alric stated. Therefore they can be made to be especially good for cardistry since fans and spreads are important flourishes for a cardist. Most full bleed backs have either a uniform patterns in a small scale (think Bee diamond backs, Steamboats, or E's Republic No. 2), or they have pretty embellished and ornate backs (like Luxx Palme, Draconian, Occults, or Zenith). When these types of backs are fanned or spread, the resulting "busy-ness" of the patterns help camouflage the edges of the cards in uneven fans.

Granted, if you lack the skill to make even halfway decent fans, then I suppose a bad fan is a bad fan, no matter what cards you use. But I think there's not much question a slightly imperfect fan will still look better, not worse, when using decks with full bleed backs, Certainly that same imperfect fan would look even more flawed with borders.

[Fox-13]

While it's true that borderless design generally help mask uneven fans and spreads, I don't think this is the main reason why they went borderless. It think they wanted the colors to blend more into each other and to create shapes of colors undisrupted by borderlines. Look at the pictures they post on instagram, while being essentially a recoloring of the deck, the spreads and fans do feel much different, and more vibrant.

One point on even fans to be made with this deck. The angle of the black line on the left side creates a "pixelized" line that will tell if your fan is even or not. So, even with this deck being borderless, you will still need skill to make a perfect-looking fan.

[The Flying Fisherman]

I also agree that the borderless decks aren't necessarily better for cardistry. A bad fan for example will not look good with a borderless deck, possibly even worse if the fan is not perfect as the deign should ideally match up, whereas the border gets rid of that issue.
Eitherway the deck is growing on me after seeing a few vids and photos online but i am not so keen on the face stripe design they have implemented.

I don't know what kind of full bleed decks you've been fanning with, but I have to respectfully disagree with this post. Having borders (usually white) on the backs make it obvious if your fan is even slightly off because the uneven spacing between the obviously visible white borders will scream out that your fan is jacked up. You don't have that problem with full bleed backs so they actually help disguise uneven fans by making it harder to tell if the spacing is less than perfect. smh

Yeah true, maybe I've just been out of the game too long to throw my two cents in the mix.

[The Flying Fisherman]

I also agree that the borderless decks aren't necessarily better for cardistry. A bad fan for example will not look good with a borderless deck, possibly even worse if the fan is not perfect as the deign should ideally match up, whereas the border gets rid of that issue.
Eitherway the deck is growing on me after seeing a few vids and photos online but i am not so keen on the face stripe design they have implemented.

I don't know what kind of full bleed decks you've been fanning with, but I have to respectfully disagree with this post. Having borders (usually white) on the backs make it obvious if your fan is even slightly off because the uneven spacing between the obviously visible white borders will scream out that your fan is jacked up. You don't have that problem with full bleed backs so they actually help disguise uneven fans by making it harder to tell if the spacing is less than perfect. smh

While it may be true (depending on the actual design) that full bleed backs don't automatically make a deck better for cardistry, they definitely help fans look better for the reasons that alric stated. Therefore they can be made to be especially good for cardistry since fans and spreads are important flourishes for a cardist. Most full bleed backs have either a uniform patterns in a small scale (think Bee diamond backs, Steamboats, or E's Republic No. 2), or they have pretty embellished and ornate backs (like Luxx Palme, Draconian, Occults, or Zenith). When these types of backs are fanned or spread, the resulting "busy-ness" of the patterns help camouflage the edges of the cards in uneven fans.

Granted, if you lack the skill to make even halfway decent fans, then I suppose a bad fan is a bad fan, no matter what cards you use. But I think there's not much question a slightly imperfect fan will still look better, not worse, when using decks with full bleed backs, Certainly that same imperfect fan would look even more flawed with borders.

Also here.... All my cards are in a different country to where I'm living now and so I only have a couple decks with me so I can't test a borderless out but I think you guys are correct for the most part. Full bleed decks do look kind of busy for me though but that's another story.