"Heart of the cards", "I believe in the heart of the cards", "you've activated my trap card", "it's time to duel"
Nonchalant delegation
The user expresses indifference about the approach
Redraw requests
"Try again" or "draw again" when no actual system changes occurred (this means draw new cards, not re-run the same approach)
Tie-breaking
When you genuinely cannot decide between equally valid approaches
When NOT to Use
The user has given clear, specific instructions
The task has a single obvious correct approach
Safety-critical decisions (security, data integrity, production deployments)
The user explicitly asks you NOT to use Tarot
A more specific skill (like
ask-questions-if-underspecified
) would better serve the user by gathering actual requirements
How It Works
The Draw
The script uses
os.urandom()
for cryptographic randomness:
Builds a standard 78-card Tarot deck (22 Major Arcana + 56 Minor Arcana)
Performs a Fisher-Yates shuffle using rejection sampling (no modulo bias)
Draws 4 cards from the top
Each card independently has a 50% chance of being reversed
The Spread
The 4 card positions represent:
Position
Represents
Question It Answers
1
The Context
What is the situation really about?
2
The Challenge
What obstacle or tension exists?
3
The Guidance
What approach should be taken?
4
The Outcome
Where does this path lead?
Card Files
Each card's meaning is in its own markdown file under
{baseDir}/cards/
:
cards/major/
- 22 Major Arcana (archetypal forces)
cards/wands/
- 14 Wands (creativity, action, will)
cards/cups/
- 14 Cups (emotion, intuition, relationships)
cards/swords/
- 14 Swords (intellect, conflict, truth)
cards/pentacles/
- 14 Pentacles (material, practical, craft)
Interpretation
After drawing, read each card's file and synthesize meaning. See
{baseDir}/references/INTERPRETATION_GUIDE.md
for the full interpretation workflow.
Key rules:
Reversed cards invert or complicate the upright meaning
Major Arcana cards carry more weight than Minor Arcana
The spread tells a story across all 4 positions; don't interpret cards in isolation
Map abstract meanings to concrete technical decisions
Example Session
User: "I dunno, just make it work somehow"
[Draw cards]
1. The Magician (upright) - Context: All tools are available
2. Five of Swords (reversed) - Challenge: Let go of a combative approach
3. The Star (upright) - Guidance: Follow the aspirational path
4. Ten of Pentacles (upright) - Outcome: Long-term stability
Interpretation: The cards suggest you have everything you need (Magician).
The challenge is avoiding overengineering or adversarial thinking about edge
cases (Five of Swords reversed). Follow the clean, hopeful approach (Star)
and build for lasting maintainability (Ten of Pentacles).
Approach: Implement the simplest correct solution with clear structure,
prioritizing long-term readability over clever optimizations.
Error Handling
If the drawing script fails:
Script crashes with traceback
Report the error to the user and skip the reading. Do not invent cards or simulate a draw — the whole point is real entropy.
Card file not found
Note the missing file, interpret the card from its name and suit alone, and continue with the reading.
Never fake entropy
If the script cannot run, do not simulate a draw using your own "randomness." Tell the user the draw failed.
Rationalizations to Reject
Rationalization
Why Wrong
"The cards said to, so I must"
Cards inform direction, they don't override safety or correctness
"This reading justifies my pre-existing preference"
Be honest if the reading challenges your instinct
"The reversed card means do nothing"
Reversed means a different angle, not inaction
"Major Arcana overrides user requirements"
User requirements always take priority over card readings
"I'll keep drawing until I get what I want"
One draw per decision point; accept the reading