Pairs: Modegan Deck

Renowned fantasy author Patrick Rothfuss was generous enough to make Pairs a part of his world. It doesn't yet appear in the books, of course, but we've created this deck based on archetypes from his best-selling book, The Name of the Wind. And who knows, Pairs might just show up in the Four Corners world at some point in the future.

The Modegan Deck features concepts and culture from the Modegan people, a race that's not explored in great depth (yet) in the Kingkiller Chronicle. It also contains the bonus game Blackstone, which is a Modegan traditional game rumored to be even older than Pairs.  

• Theme: High Fantasy, based on the works of Patrick Rothfuss
• Art by: Shane Tyree
• Variant Game: Blackstone
• Download the Modegan Deck Rules (PDF, 1.3 Mb), including the rules for Blackstone
• Download the Pairs Companion Rulebook (PDF, 5.6 Mb)

Pairs is a "New Classic Pub Game" featuring an unusual deck of cards. The deck has only the numbers 1 through 10, with a different number of each card: 1x1, 2x2, 3x3, and so on, up to 10x10. 

In the basic game, points are bad, and you score points by getting a pair. So, if you have a 10, there are 9 other cards that could pair it up, and you'll get 10 penalty points if you do. Players take turns deciding whether to take another card, or fold, trying to avoid scoring points. When you fold, you have to take points, but only the smallest card in play.

Blackstone is slightly like Pairs, but the only dangerous cards are the 10s (the "black stones"). Players take turns drawing multiple cards, trying to avoid collecting a pair of 10s. All other cards go into the middle, and these discards dictate the price of folding, as well as the penalty for losing. 

Modegan Card List: Because the Modegans chose not to write names on their cards, you might be curious what each card represents. Here is the list, provided by Patrick Rothfuss:

1. The High King
2. Lords of Modeg
3. Cimbrelines
4. Ammari
5. Guards
6. Townsfolk
7. Mendicants
8. The Riders
9. Hollow Gods
10. The Tesh

Pairs was designed by veteran game inventors James Ernest and Paul Peterson, and released in October 2014. There are many different art decks to choose from, but they all work for the same game (and many variant games!)