Barleywine
I'm closing in on the TdM deck I want next. I have a particular purpose in mind: I've developed a couple of spreads that require two decks to ensure that competing paths or "trains" in the question have equal access to all of the possibilites shown in the cards. I presently have the Fournier, but nothing to use in tandem with it except my wife's old Classic and its "fuschia" patches. This is what it's come down to:
In terms of sympathetic coloring, the Universal comes closest, and hopefully it still comes with Lee's book from Lo Scarabeo. It's also the least expensive of those I'm interested in.
The CBD is wonderfully crisp and clear, with stong coloring.
The ISIS definitely has "presence."
The Hadar has very nicely muted coloring, but it isn't clear from Amazon's site whether they're just selling a book in French or the actual deck.
The Grimaud is also a contender, but its availability may be drying up.
The accurate "historical restoration" decks aren't really what I want for this purpose, and I don't want square corners since I don't trust myself to round them, even with the right tool.
Also, much as I like the Marseille Cats, I want something a little closer to traditional. Similarly, I don't want to deal with Jodorowsky's "innovations."
Among my top five choices, I have no feel for comparative quality in terms of cardstock and overall production values. I assume if I'm paying in the range of $50 USD that these would be excellent. I did see one comment on Amazon that said the Universal's cardstock is on the thin side. From what I've seen in other threads, I don't suppose I could go wrong with either the CBD or the ISIS.
Any insights comparing just these five would be appreciated, unless anyone knows of a deck I haven't seen that would suit my purpose.
In terms of sympathetic coloring, the Universal comes closest, and hopefully it still comes with Lee's book from Lo Scarabeo. It's also the least expensive of those I'm interested in.
The CBD is wonderfully crisp and clear, with stong coloring.
The ISIS definitely has "presence."
The Hadar has very nicely muted coloring, but it isn't clear from Amazon's site whether they're just selling a book in French or the actual deck.
The Grimaud is also a contender, but its availability may be drying up.
The accurate "historical restoration" decks aren't really what I want for this purpose, and I don't want square corners since I don't trust myself to round them, even with the right tool.
Also, much as I like the Marseille Cats, I want something a little closer to traditional. Similarly, I don't want to deal with Jodorowsky's "innovations."
Among my top five choices, I have no feel for comparative quality in terms of cardstock and overall production values. I assume if I'm paying in the range of $50 USD that these would be excellent. I did see one comment on Amazon that said the Universal's cardstock is on the thin side. From what I've seen in other threads, I don't suppose I could go wrong with either the CBD or the ISIS.
Any insights comparing just these five would be appreciated, unless anyone knows of a deck I haven't seen that would suit my purpose.