Expansion of the Playing Card Chess Set - THE PAWN

The Pawn is the newest and last card of the Expanded Chess Deck, which also includes the rook, knight, and bishop.

Here we have the Pawn of Spades.  It is represented by the letter O, and its value is zero.  It ranks below the 2s, which include the two of clubs, two of hearts, two of diamonds, and two of spades.  Also note the Ace supposedly has the value of one to infinity.  But here the lowest face card has the lowest number value of zero. 

Thus there is also the Pawn of Hearts, Pawn of Diamonds, and Pawn of Clubs.  The Pawn card intentionally looks different from other face cards so not to be mistaken as such.  Likewise the suit is only shown once due to its impoverished value.

The Royal Chess Suit, an Expansion on a Deck of Cards - THE ROOK, THE KNIGHT, and BISHOP

An expansion pack on a deck of cards based upon the game of chess: The Rook, The Knight, and The Bishop.

The Rook is represented by the letter I, likewise the Rook moves in straight lines like the capital letter I.  The Rook looks like the castle tower that starts in one of four corners of a chess game.  In the expanded Chess Deck, the Rook ranks above the Jack yet below the Knight.

You can see the first ever made Rook of Spades here.  Subsequently there is also a Rook of Hearts, Rook of Diamonds, and Rook of Clubs.  Adding these cards should make game play more interesting.

Rook originally meant a chariot, so the Rook represents a Charioteer holding the harnesses of the horses of his chariot. Likewise the attack of the chariot is certainly a powerful forward punch, as in chess and as it was in real life.

The Rook always has his helmet open and never holds a weapon, only the harness for the horses.  

The Knight Card is represented by the letter G.  The Knight Ranks above the Rook yet below the Bishop. 

The knight's face guard is always closed and can hold any number of weapons.  Typically the Knight of Diamonds holds a battle axe, the Knight of Clubs holds a Ball and Chain Mace, and the Knight of Hearts holds a spear tipped flag. 

The Bishop is represented by the letter Z.  Here we have the Bishop of Spades.  The Bishop ranks above the Knight but below the Queen and King.

Thus we also have a Bishop of Hearts, Bishop of Clubs, and Bishop of Diamonds. 

Finally there is one more card to add in a Chess Deck, the lowly Pawn, which you can see here.

Flags and Banners from the "Wizard" - 1989

 Several flags and banners appear in the ultimate gamer video game movie of the 80sThe Wizard from 1989.  The video game contest is being held at Universal Studios and several banners announcing the Original Nintendo event can be seen in the background.    The banners are coloured neon yellow, green and pink.    The shirts and events read as "Video Armageddon."

The British flag can be seen behind Fred's older brother Christian Slater as they are searching for the run away contest gamers.

The flag a Utah can also barely be seen in the one of the seen shots.  It is at a roadside stop in the middle of nowhere, that the state flag of Utah makes a cameo.  Coincidentally Utah has a small role in the history of video games.   The original Home Entertainment Wizard was originally from Utah - Nolan Bushnell.     Bushnell was the founder of Atari. 

Inclusion of the Page into a Deck of Cards

Finally the Page of Spades gets to enter a normal deck of cards.  The Page exists in a Tarot deck but not a regular deck of cards, until now.  The page is the lowest level of the Royal Suit, below the Jack yet above the 10.

The letter P represents the Page of any suit whether it be a Page of Hearts, Page of Diamonds, or Page of Clubs.

This is the only normal face card below the Jack.  

Expansion of the Knight in a Deck of Cards

Finally the Knight of Spades has come to light.  The expansion of the Knight into a deck of cards is important since they already exist in a Tarot deck.  The Knight ranks above the Jack and below the Queen in a normal deck.  Yet ranks below a Baron and Baroness in an expanded royal deck.   Thus there is also the Knight of Hearts, Knight of Diamonds, and Knight of Clubs.

Knights are represented by the letter G.  K is already taken by the King. G can also mean Gallantry as in a Gallant Knight saved the day. 

Heraldic Expansion of Playing card for the Women's Side

As every King is destined for a Queen, it is also appropriate to expand the Royal Suits to the other half.

The Empress is represented by the letter R.  She ranks just below the Emperor yet above the Duke.  The Empress of Spades is both above the King and Queen of any suit.

Consequently we have a Empress of Hearts, Empress of Diamonds, and finally the Empress of Clubs to contend with.  

The Queen now sits below the Emperor, Empress, and King yet above the Duke and Duchess.   Like always the letter Q represents the Queen.

The Duchess is represented by the letter X.  She ranks below the King, Queen and Duke yet above the Marchioness and Marquess.

 Doesn't the Duchess of Spades just roll of the tongue so eloquently?  Maybe Duchess of Hearts, Duchess of Clubs, or Duchess of Diamonds sounds better? 

The Marchioness is other half of the Marquis.  She ranks above the Earl, and stands just below her man the Marquis.  The Marchioness is represented by the letter H.  The Marchioness outranks all Earls, Counts, Viscounts,
and Barons.

We now have a Marchioness of Hearts, Marchioness of Diamonds, and Marchioness of Clubs. 

 The female Earl is known as a Countess, since there is no 'Earless'.  Thus the female Earl is the represented by the letter C .  The Countess of Spades beats all types of Barons and Viscounts.

In addition there is now a Countess of Hearts, Countess of Diamonds, and Countess of Clubs.
















The Viscountess is represented by the letter U.  She ranks below the Earls and Countesses and would be Counts.  The Viscountess of Spades trumps all types of Barons.  New Viscountesses include the Viscountess of Hearts, Viscountess of Diamonds, and Viscountess of Clubs.













The Baroness is represented by the letter S.  The Baroness is above the Jack or Knave yet below the Viscounts.  The Baroness of Spades is the lowest ranking of peerage.

Thus we also have the Baroness of Hearts, Baroness of Diamonds, and Baroness of Clubs. 

An Expansion of Royal Suits for the Cards

The time has come to expand the playing card universe.  Imagine playing poker, gin rummy or solitaire with these new face cards.  It'll make it more exciting!

The Emperor is now the highest ranking card of the deck in the Nobility Pack, next to an Ace.  Here the Emperor of Spades is wearing the Imperial Crown.  The Emperor is represented by the letter E.  There is also an Emperor of Hearts, Emperor of Diamonds, and Emperor of Clubs. 















 The King of Spades ranks below the Emperor and above the Duke.  Here the King is wearing the Royal British Crowns.















The Duke is a new suit just below the King and above the Marquess.  The Duke is represented by the letter D.  Note there is a Duke of Hearts, Duke of Diamonds, and Duke of Clubs.















 The Marquess is a new playing card rank.  The Marquess is below a Duke but above an Earl.  The Marquess is represented by the letter M.   Here the Marquess of Spades is wearing the heraldic crown reserved for the English Marquess.   New Marquesses include the Marquess of Hearts, Marquess of Diamonds, and Marquess of Clubs.














 The Earl is ranked below a Marquess yet above a Viscount.  The Earl is represented by the letter L since E is already taken by the Emperor.  Here the Earl of Spades is wearing the crown that belongs to the Earls of England.  So there is now an Earl of Hearts, and Earl of Diamonds, and an Earl of Clubs.

Ranks of Nobility in other nations usually call this position the Count, which is above the 'Vice-Count' and below the Marquess.  Thus the matching English Equivalent to Count Dracula would be Earl Dracula.

And if you grew up in America it'd be Earl Chocula instead of Count Chocula.  Likewise the purple puppet Count would be the 'Counting Earl' on Sesame Street.  








 The Viscount is represented by the letter V.  Viscounts rank above the Barons yet below the Earls/Counts.  The Viscount of Spades is wearing the heraldic English Viscount crown. New cards include the Viscount of Hearts, Viscount of Diamonds, and Viscount of Clubs.














 

 The lowest normal rank of nobility is the Baron.  The Baron is below all the royal suits yet above the Jack.  Here the letter B represents the Baron.  We now have a Baron of Hearts, Baron of Diamonds, and Baron of Clubs. 

Due to the popularity of the Red Baron and Baron in fiction or Red Baron Pizza.  The Baron is basically the lowest level of nobility.  In America people often confuse a Baron with a high royal rank.   Yet it's better to be a Baron than a Knight or regular peasant folk.





 



These new playing cards with added ranks of Nobility are crowned with the standard English Heraldic Crowns.  But the Spades only use English items.  The Hearts expanded family shall be crowned with French Crowns.  The Diamonds expanded family will be crowned with Spanish Crowns, while the Clubs expanded family will be crowned with Austrian Crowns.  Thus you can learn a little something about the Crowns and titles of Nobility when playing cards.  And the next time you read about some Duke or see someone mention the Count and Baron in a movie you'll know where they are in the order of Nobility.

And when playing cards you really can 'Put up your Dukes.'