recursal/Fanatic-Fandom huggingface dataset:
Kitsch

## Ability

### Ability

**"Fake Art, Fake Emotions"****(Play)** Your opponent's Arts & Culture cards in hand **Burn** (20) this round.

## Did You Know?

If your idea of great design is loud, proud and verging on the garish, you’re probably a fan of **Kitsch**. The word “kitsch” originated in the 19th century to criticise art seen as being in poor taste, or which hopelessly copied “high art” but remained lacklustre.

Today, the whole point of kitsch as a mode of design is to be excessive and quirky – it’s the antithesis of minimalism and sophistication, finding its niche in the “so bad, its good” category. C.M. Coolidge’s iconic painting “Dogs Playing Poker” is a great example: it’s not a classy painting to hang in your living room by any stretch, but it’s fun, fabulous and charming in a sentimental way (sounds like a certain digital trading card game, no?)
Jurōjin

## Ability

### Ability

**God of Longevity****(Draw)** Your Japanese Folklore cards, wherever they are, gain +6 Power until this is returned to your deck.

## Did You Know?

Respect your elders. Or, at the very least, respect **Jurojin**, the Lord of Longevity, adapted into the Japanese pantheon as one of the Seven Lucky Gods - the Shchigukijin. It’s worth your while, as Jurojin’s blessings include living happily and healthily into serene old age.****

****You know what they say about big things and small packages - well this guy is only 90cm tall, but he takes his role as the god of longevity pretty seriously. He’s always looking for ways to make people live longer, offering advice on everything from healthy diets to stress management. Speaking of which, this Lucky’s God’s vice is rice wine (saké), which might explain why he is depicted as a cheerful old man.****
King Arthur

## Ability

### Ability

**Valour****(Play)** If it's the first turn of a round, gain +4:energy/turn: this round.

## Did You Know?

Nicknamed the One, True King of the Britons, **King Arthur** was a mythological king said to have been the ruler of Britain during the medieval period. When he was grievously wounded at his final fight at Camlann, the legend tells that his sister, Morgan, took him to the Isle of Avalon. He didn’t die but fell into a deep sleep and is apparently still conked out and will awaken when Britain needs him the most. So, any day now then…

'King Arthur' by Charles Ernest Butler (Source: Wikimedia Commons) is licensed under Public Domain (original image resized, cropped and altered)
Hula Hoop

## Did You Know?

**Hula Hoops**  have been in existence in some form for thousands of years, but it was only in the 1950s when American company Wham-O mass-produced the colourful plastic rings that a new fitness craze would circle the world. At present, the world record for hula hooping is currently 100 hours of non-stop hooping – if you happen to break it, keep us in the loop…
Henry VIII

## Ability

### Ability

**Mad in England****(Play)** Your George III card in hand gains +25 Power this turn.

## Did You Know?

Henry VIII (1491–1547), son of Henry VII, was the second king in the Tudor dynasty. Playing a huge role in the English Reformation, Henry is mainly remembered for killing off two of his six wives, destroying religious buildings and executing anyone who got in his way! The King’s marriage history made him at best a laughing stock and at worst, a psychotic lunatic. Some have argued that Henry’s serious injury in a jousting accident in 1536 turned him from a kind generous ruler into the wife-killing tyrant we hear about today. The accident led to weight gain, paranoia and power-hungry madness.
Jousting

## Ability

### Ability

**Entertainment Fit For A King****(Return)** If you won the turn, your Unruly Rulers cards, wherever they are, gain +15 Power until played and if you lost the turn, this card gains +15 Power permanently.

## Did You Know?

If you love the idea of charging at another human on horseback while holding a big stick, you need to try **Jousting**. Originally invented in the Roman era, jousting became popular in the medieval ages and was a great passion of Henry VIII’s. In fact, Henry’s love for the sport nearly lead to his death on several occasions, and it’s believed he suffered brain damage during a jousting match in 1536 – that would certainly explain a lot.

Jousting tournaments were often held as a means of winning a lady’s honour, but we strongly advise against this approach today. In some cases, jousting tournaments were held as an elaborate way to cover up assassinations – again, we strongly recommend against murderous jousting sessions.
Ines de Castro and King Pedro

## Ability

### Ability

**Lovers’ Revenge****(Return)** If you lost the turn, your opponent's cards, wherever they are, lose -20 Power next turn.

## Did You Know?

Described as the Portuguese Romeo & Juliet, the story of **Ines de Castro and King Pedro** is arguably more harrowing than any of Bill Shakespeare’s plays. It all started when Pedro had an affair with his wife’s lady in waiting, Ines de Castro. When his father, King Afonso IV, caught wind of their romance, he ordered Ines’ murder. After taking the crown, Pedro exacted his revenge by ripping out the hearts of her killers. How could he be so heartless?
Leafcutter Ant

## Did You Know?

Number one fact about **Leafcutter Ants**: they don’t eat leaves. Instead, they carry those leaves to their nests to cultivate a fungus that grows as the leaves decompose. (Very much the ‘slow cooker’ of the insect world.)

There are three sizes of Leafcutter Ant - the *maxima ants* find and cut the leaves, while the *media ants* run press junkets and carry the leaves back to the nest.

The coolest of these ants though (and this may be subjective…) are the *minima ants* that actually ride on the leaves being carried and pluck off parasites, and then run the fungus farm back at the nest.

And if you’re one of those people who dread having the family round over Christmas, just be grateful you’re not a Leafcutter Ant. Their underground colonies can have around 10 million ants living together. Not sure who counted them, but we’ll take their word for it.
K2

## Ability

### Ability

**Above the Death Zone****(Play)** If you are trailing by 80 Power or more, your cards in hand with 4 or less Base Energy gain +40 Power this turn.

## Did You Know?

It’s also known as Mount Godwin-Austen or Chhogori: at 8,611 metres above sea level, **K2** is the second-highest mountain in the world after Mount Everest. The mountain lies in the Karakoram range, in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, and partly in a China-administered territory of the Kashmir region.

Although Everest has the higher peak, K2 is a far more perilous climb due to the unforgiving weather. In fact, as of February 2021, only 377 people have made it to the top of this mountain, and one person dies for every four who reach the top.

Simply put, unless you’re a well-experienced climber with the right equipment and years of training, we wouldn’t recommend this for the bucket list.
Info.cern.ch

## Ability

### Ability

**Net Genesis****(Return)** If it's the first turn of a round, your History of the Internet cards, wherever they are, gain +18 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

As we write this, there are currently 1.88 billion websites in existence and counting. The proverbial big bang in this ever-growing digital cosmos of worlds happened in August 1991 when British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee published the first ever website while working at CERN - the particle physics lab in Switzerland.

Hosted on the domain **info.cern.ch**, the very first website was dedicated to the WorldWideWeb project itself and was hosted on Berners-Lee’s NeXT computer. Like a rudimentary wikipedia, the site was aimed at giving users universal access to “a large universe of documents” and point them in the right direction for resources ranging from music to physics. In 2013, CERN restored the first ever website as a kind of digital fossil for the public to gaze upon.
Hungry Ghost

## Ability

### Ability

**Hungry Ghost Festival****(Play)** Your Harvest Moon card, wherever it is, gains +29 Power permanently.

## Did You Know?

Even if you don’t believe in karma, it might be a good idea to play along anyway. Because, if Buddhists are right, your bad deeds might transform you into a **Hungry Ghost**, a spirit inflicted with an insatiable appetite.

Found in every part of the Far East, these demon-like creatures are described as human-like wraiths with bulging tummies, long necks and tiny mouths. If you’ve ever come home drunk and decimated your kitchen in search of food, that’s just a snippet of what eternity is like for the Hungry Ghost. Except there’s no JustEat or DoorDash in the afterlife.

If you’re worried about running into these ghosts, don’t shave your legs. According to an ancient Chinese proverb, each strand of leg hair can scare away three ghosts!
Hunt the Wren

## Ability

### Ability

**Sacrificial Practices****(Play)** Your Weird World cards, wherever they are, gain +24 Power for 3 turns. **(Return)** Your opponent's Birds cards, wherever they are, cost -1 Energy until played.

## Did You Know?

While you’re nursing a hangover or a food coma on Boxing Day, residents of the Isle of Man gather together for a tradition known as **Hunt the Wren**. Don’t worry, there’s no real hunting involved.

Instead, a stuffed wren or a substitute is placed at the centre of a tall pole decorated with ribbons. Groups of people gather in villages and towns, singing and dancing around the wren pole.

This tradition comes from a folklore story that tells of a witch whose beauty lured in the men from the island. When they realised that she was luring them in to bring them harm, they chased her, and the witch took the form of a wren to fly away. The ‘hunt’ is a punishment for her actions.
Jack O'Lantern

## Ability

### Ability

**Light 'em Up****(Draw)** Your opponent's cards in hand **Burn** (15) for 2 turns. **(Return)** Your opponent's remaining cards in hand **Burn** (20) this round.

## Did You Know?

Legend has it that centuries ago, in Ireland, there lived a man known as ‘Stingy Jack’. He was a drunk and a con artist, and proud of it. When Satan first came to take him to hell, Jack blackmailed him into letting him live another 10 years. And when the time came, Jack tricked him again - this time making Satan promise that he would *never* take Jack to hell.

When Jack finally died he was refused entry to heaven… and then, in a case of ‘be careful what you wish for’, Satan had no choice but to refuse him entry to hell.

As a result, Jack now roams the world, trapped between Heaven and Hell, with an ember inside a turnip (a **Jack O’Lantern**) to warn others of his fate.

Wait, what? A *turnip*?

That’s right - turnips were the more common crop in Ireland. However, Irish immigrants to America soon realised that the pumpkin made a better **Jack O’Lantern**.
King Charles Spaniel

## Ability

### Ability

**The Royal Choice****(Play)** If played next to Charles II of England, your Unruly Rulers cards in hand gain +20 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

“Small dog. Some drool. Welcomes everyone happily.” That’s the **King Charles Spaniel** as described by the Purina website, and we think it’s a pretty accurate guide to this adorable breed.

Legend has it that Toy Spaniels were quite common as pets in the 1500s, but it was under the Stuarts that they were given the official title of King Charles Spaniels. Apparently, King Charles II always had at least two of these dogs by his side. Of course, he would have appointed someone to deal with the drool.

According to an urban legend, King Charles II issued a special decree that would allow this breed to enter the Houses of Parliament. The UK Parliament website refutes this, but would their doorkeepers really deny access to this dinky darling?
Hippocrates

## Ability

### Ability

**First, Do No Harm****(Play)** Lose -80 Power/Turn this turn. **(Return)** Gain +140 Power/Turn next turn.

## Did You Know?

Aside from the fact that it’s totally disrespectful, **Hippocrates** is the reason your doctor can’t gossip about the gross, gruesome and downright grizzly things they see in their day-to-day. You see, Hippocrates, a physician who lived in ancient Greece, wrote one of the oldest legal documents in history.

The Hippocratic Oath says physicians must treat the ill to the best of their ability and preserve a patient’s privacy. Hippocrates was also the first person to suggest that diseases were caused naturally, and not by a curse unleashed by the Gods as a form of punishment. What a breakthrough – if not for Hippocrates, we’d be wondering who we had wronged with every common cold we picked up.
Jules Verne

## Ability

### Ability

**Around the World****(Play)** If your deck contains a card from every album, a random card in your hand gains +80 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

Are you looking to travel to exotic places? Like to the moon? Or the centre of the earth? Or how about 20,000 leagues under the sea? If those sound like your kind of adventures, then just grab a book by **Jules Verne,** the father of science fiction.

Verne was born in France and his father was determined that young Jules would study Law. Our plucky hero had other ideas though. Okay, he still got his law degree but he kept writing throughout it (It’s always good to have a backup plan)! Things really got going for Verne though when he met publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel, who got things moving on Verne’s works. After that, things were looking up for the French novelist.

Verne gave us some of the most iconic adventure stories and works of science fiction including *Around the World in Eighty Days*, which became part of his Voyages Extraordinaires series. He combined his love of travel with his passion for writing and his tales take you to the strangest places and beyond. If you like steampunk, daring heroes and mysterious settings, you’re going to love our old pal, Jules Verne.
Iris Spuria

## Ability

### Ability

**A Beautiful Study****(Draw)** For every round completed this game, your non-Limited Prominent Painters cards, wherever they are, gain +5 Power permanently. **(Play)** If it's Round 1, your Prominent Painters cards, wherever they are, gain +15 Power this round.

## Did You Know?

There’s nothing spurious about the **Iris Spuria**. This pretty little flower can be found blooming across the world, including Europe, Africa and Asia. Colors vary but blue and purple are common (hence sometimes being called Blue Iris). They enjoy hot and dry climates and only really require watering in the spring.

They’re excellent for attracting butterflies and bees so can be ideal if you enjoy some buzzing and fluttering in your garden. However, they naturally repel deer and the deer won’t spill the tea on why it hates this little bloom so much. It’s also incredibly toxic so please don’t go eating them if you’re growing them in your garden. You will get hideously sick.
Hygge

## Ability

### Ability

**Comfortable Conviviality****(Return)** Your cards with 0 Base Energy, wherever they are, gain +23 Power until played and your cards with 1 Base Energy, wherever they are, gain +13 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

If you like wearing big fuzzy socks, wrapping yourself in a thick blanket and sipping on some hot cocoa while reading your favorite book, then the Danish concept of **Hygge** is what you’ve been searching for. Pronounced “hoo-gah” (not “higgy” as we’ve all said at least once in CUE HQ), the general feeling of coziness and warmth has become a worldwide trend and now everyone wants to copy the Danes and their chilled out approach.

It’s possible that the word actually originated in Old Norse, meaning something like “well-being” and we can see how that’s translated into today’s idea of Hygge - it’s all about self-care, creating a pleasant atmosphere and spending time with the people who make you feel the happiest.

Granted, it has also been a good opportunity for companies to now sell you everything from blankets to candles and claim it’s Hygge so maybe take some of that with a pinch of salt!
Heterodontosaurus

## Ability

### Ability

**The Whole Tooth****(Play)** Your Sharks! cards in hand gain +12 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

This turkey sized dinosaur is definitely not something you would want to meet down a dark alley. It definitely looks like something that has crawled up through your drain, a sewer rat kind-of dinosaur, and it's been something of a puzzle for scientists as they still don't know what it ate or how it lived. We're placing our bets on chicken nuggets and probably quite proud of it's funky chompers, respectively.

The name means ("different-teeth-lizard") which seems a fair starting point if we're going to get all investigative on this toothy wonder.

It was one of the earliest ornithischian dinosaurs and the lightly built, bipedal dinosaur was collected in 1966 from the 200 million year old Lower Jurassic Upper Red Beds in South Africa.

What we do know about it is that the skull suggests that **Heterodontosaurus** had the capacity for biting, tearing, and grinding with its three kinds of teeth and that really is the TOOTH of the matter. It also had feathers and tusks which just convinces us even further that it was extremely WEIRD in many ways.

'Heterodontosaurus restoration' by FunkMonk (Source: Flickr) is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 (original image resized, cropped and altered)
It's a Wonderful Life

## Did You Know?

Nowadays, we dread to imagine life without it – but when the Christmas classic ‘**It’s a Wonderful Life**’ first hit theatres, it flat-out bombed at the box office - failing to recoup the $6.3 million it would need to break even.

Fortunately, director Frank Capra was rich in friendship (we couldn’t resist).

The film went on to become the world’s favourite festive film – and it all started with a Christmas card. After years of rejections, writer Philip Van Doren Stern decided to share his short story, ‘The Greatest Gift’ with his family and friends in the form of a 21-page greeting card. David Hempstead, a producer at RKO Pictures, ended up getting ahold of it and purchased the movie rights for $10,000.
Kingfisher

## Ability

### Ability

**Flying Blind****(Return)** A random card in your hand loses -20 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

Kingfishers can be found all over the world and are exceptionally good at catching fish - they're known for waiting for a fish to get close to the surface of the water, then darting down and plucking it out with their long beaks.

Something else they're known for is for not being particularly houseproud - their nests are littered with fish bones and droppings. Nasty.
Japanese Yen

## Did You Know?

If someone offers you one thousand **Japanese Yen**, you might jump for joy. But don’t get too excited: in Pounds sterling, it’s only £6.34. Behind the U.S. dollar and the Euro, the Japanese Yen is the third most traded currency in the foreign exchange market.

It was officially adopted by the Meiji government with the “New Currency Act” of 1871, replacing the monetary system of the Tokugawa era. The word “yen” means “circle” or “round object” – likely in relation to the shape of their coins, which come in 1 yen, 5 yen, 10 yen, 50 yen, 100 yen and 500 yen denominations. The current one-yen coin dates back to 1955 and has a young tree design intended to symbolise the healthy growth of Japan.
Humorism

## Ability

### Ability

**The Four Temperaments****(Draw)** A random card in your hand gains +50 Power this turn. **(Play)** This card gains +20 Power permanently. **(Return)** Your opponent's remaining cards in hand cost -2 Energy for 2 turns. **(Start)** Your cards in hand gain +5 Power this turn.

## Did You Know?

Although thanks to the advent of germ theory causing **Humorism** to fall out of favor in the 1850s, it was a theory that lasted in various forms for over two millennia, becoming more prominent thanks to Alcmaeon of Croton before 500 BC. It was ancient Greek thinkers who systemised these ideas, with origins in Ancient Egypt or Mesopotamia.

Hippocrates was the first to apply the idea to medicine, suggesting that yes, of course, the human body is made up of blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile, and *obviously* an imbalance of these vital bodily fluids cause all that can be wrong in a human and define your character.

At its core, the theory put forward by Hippocrates and developed by Galen corresponds each humor to one of the four temperaments, and total balance was called “eukrasia”.

In short, those with red blood were the popular kids. Enthusiastic and social, they were blessed with a jokey nature, rosy cheeks and pretty skin.

Those with yellow bile were ambitious but aggressive and short tempered, kind of a nightmare to be around. And they suffered in the looks department with their greenish tinge.

Black bile was associated with melancholy, and those with too much of it had black eyes and hair, and a fearful and sickly nature.

The lucky phlegmatic lot were forgetful, sad and reserved, but they did have white hair, which is kinda cool, so swings and roundabouts.
Hysterical Strength

## Ability

### Ability

**Superhuman Strength****(Draw)** If your deck contains Psychometry and Quantum Teleportation, your cards in hand gain +22 Power this turn.

## Did You Know?

You don’t have to turn green and get big to acquire Hulk-like strength. **Hysterical Strength** can give you the power to do things you could never imagine your body was capable of. In fact, the creation of the Hulk was inspired by this concept, when American comic book artist Jack Kirby saw a woman lifting a car off her baby around 1962. And she’s not the only one to have done it.

Commonly attributed to noradrenaline production, this very real superpower isn’t bestowed on a lucky few - it’s something we can supposedly all tap into in life-or-death situations. In 2006, Quebec resident Lydia Angiyou saved several children by fighting a polar bear until a local hunter shot the bear. Bruce Banner eat your heart out.
Japanese Sea Nettle

## Did You Know?

The Japanese Sea Nettle is recognisable for its light-colored bell with browny/orange lines running from its top.

They are not particularly venomous although their sting has been known to cause anaphylaxis (serious allergic reaction) in some people, but more often hapless bathers are treated to a bit of skin irritation and a burning sensation.

These critters grow around 30cm across with tentacles as long as 3 meters. They bob around Southwest Pacific Ocean and in the subtropical waters of Japan with their diet consisting of zooplankton, while its predators include tuna, sunfish and sea turtles.
Joaquin Murrieta

## Ability

### Ability

**Robin Hood of the West****(Return)** If you are losing the round, Steal 2 Energy from your opponent.

## Did You Know?

In the mid 19th century, **Joaquin Murrieta** was described by some as a Mexican Patriot; The Robin Hood of the West. Others referred to him as a vicious desperado. Read on, then make that call for yourself...

Murrieta became one of the leaders of a band of rascals called The Five Joaquins, who were responsible for cattle rustling, robberies, and murders that occurred in the gold rush area of the Sierra Nevada between 1850 and 1863. Their crime spree included stealing over 100 horses, making off with more than $100,000 in gold, and killing 19 men.

These likely lads were able to avoid the law for several years, killing three lawmen in the process. A bounty was finally placed on Murrieta's head for $5,000. Governor John Bigler created the terrifying sounding, “California Rangers” in May 1853. Their first assignment was to arrest the Five Joaquins...

On July 25, 1853, the rangers entered into a gunfight, killing Murrieta and his right-hand man, Manual Garcia.

As evidence of the kill and a grisly trophy of the outlaws’ deaths, they cut off Garcia’s hand and Murrieta's head and preserved them in a jar of brandy. Seventeen people, including a priest, signed affidavits identifying the head as Murrieta's and the Rangers involved received the $5,000 reward.

Murrieta's grisly remains then began to travel throughout California, displayed in Stockton, San Francisco and Mariposa County, to curious and fascinated spectators willing to pay $1.00 to see the sight of the dead bandit’s head.

But despite the travelling circus, Murrieta's sister cast doubt on the sorry sight, claiming that it did not have a characteristic scar that her brother had. Others said they had seen Murrieta in California with his head intact.

As to what happened to Joaquin’s head, it met its final resting place behind the bar of the Golden Nugget Saloon in San Francisco.

The head itself would become yet a part of a great legend – the ghost of Joaquin. Even today, the tales continue of Joaquin’s headless ghost riding through the old goldfields, crying like a banshee - “Give me back my head.”

'Joaquin Murieta: The Vaquero' by Charles Christian Nahl (Source: Wikimedia Commons) is licensed under Public Domain (original image resized, cropped and altered)
Inugami

## Ability

### Ability

**This Old Dog****(Play)** 6 of your random Dogs cards, wherever they are, gain +20 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

Disney would have us believe that All Dogs Go to Heaven. But that certainly isn’t true of the **Inugami**, or “dog-god” - a powerful spirit found in Kyushu, Shikoku and elsewhere in Western Japan.

While this creature looks like a regular dog in public, its true form is a horrifying, mummified dog’s head, kept by the owner in a secret shrine like Norman Bates’ mother. Apparently, the inugami gives its creator great power and fortune, and families in possession of one are said to be able to cause illness in enemies and bring wealth to allies.

But summoning one isn’t a simple case of throwing a stick in your local park. According to legend, the dog god is made by starving a living dog to death by burying it up to its neck.
Izanami

## Ability

### Ability

**Creation and Death****(Draw)** This card costs -3 Energy this turn. **(Return)** If you are losing the round, your opponent loses -25 Power/Turn next turn.

## Did You Know?

As the deity of both creation and death in Japanese mythology, it’s obvious that **Izanami** is a master multitasker. Together with her male counterpart, Izanagi, she created the islands of Japan using a jewel encrusted spear to stir the ocean. When the spear was withdrawn, salt crystallised into drops and fell back into the ocean as islands.

The first island they made was Onogoro-shima, and the two gods seized on the opportunity to build a house on it to host their wedding ceremony. During a sacred marriage tradition, Izanami accidentally spoke first instead of Izanagi – which was apparently a huge faux-pas. As a result, their first child was born without bones. Still, they kept trying, and Izanami eventually had many children including the eight principal islands of Japan.
El Dorado

## Did You Know?

The myth of El Dorado, the lost city of gold has led many explorers and conquistadors (Conquerors - knights of the Spanish and Portuguese Empires) on sleeveless errands across South America. Most famously Elizabeth I's temporary favourite and well know yarn-spinner (exaggerator) Sir Walter Raleigh who managed to squeeze two expeditions in before parting with his head, adding significantly to myth with the daring accounts of his expeditions.

The original myth suggests El Dorado was a tribal ruler, not a city at all, so rich that he covered himself in gold dust from head to toe each morning and washed it off in a sacred lake each night (Lake Guatavita, located in modern-day Columbia)

Like most myths, it's more than likely has its origins in fact, with recent evidence suggesting it has something to do with Muisca societies process of succession, where the naked heir paddled out onto the sacred lake covered in mud and gold dust along with gold objects as an offering to the gods. Evidence suggests it wasn't pure gold but an alloy made up of gold, copper and silver called tumbaga which was valuable for its spiritual power rather than it's material value.

'Muisca raft, Gold Museum, Bogotá, Colombia.' by Pedro Szekely (Source: Wikimedia Commons) is licensed under (original image resized, cropped and altered)
Hurling

## Ability

### Ability

**Above or Below****(Play)** If you are winning the round, this card gains +10 Power and if you are losing the round, this card gains +30 Power.

## Did You Know?

**Hurling** may sound like a particularly disgusting sport, but in truth, it’s almost completely vomit-free.

The Wikipedia entry states “Hurling […] is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men.” We think there’s something slightly anachronistic about the ‘played by men’ bit - but that goes well with the fact that its origins are actually prehistoric.

Yes - Hurling is the oldest field game we know of, with a 3,000-year history. It features in ancient Irish mythology and has informed the creation of other sports - especially Lacrosse and Hockey. In fact, the word ‘puck’ comes from the Irish word ‘poc’ - the name for hitting the ball with a hurl.

Hurling is one of the most dangerous sports in the world, with a hard ball (a *sliotar*) travelling at speeds of nearly 100mph - and yet headgear was only made mandatory in 2010!
Hera

## Ability

### Ability

**Family Matters****(Return)** If your deck has 9 or more Greek Mythology cards, your Greek Mythology cards, wherever they are, gain +17 Power for 5 turns.

## Did You Know?

She may have been the Greek Goddess of marriage, family and childbirth, but **Hera**’s relationship with Zeus was dysfunctional, to say the least. Constantly battling her husband’s infidelity, Hera often took revenge on Zeus’ mistresses. Then again, their relationship didn’t exactly get off to the best start.

Although Zeus fell in love with Hera, she refused his advances. Knowing that she loved animals, Zeus took the form of a cuckoo and perched outside her window, pretending to be in distress. Hera took pity on the bird and held it close to her to keep it warm. Zeus transformed himself back to his original form and took advantage of Hera. Marriage aside, Hera is the first deity that the Greeks dedicated an enclosed roofed temple sanctuary to.
Issun-bōshi

## Ability

### Ability

**Small Samurai****(Draw)** Your Japanese Folklore cards, wherever they are, with 3 or less Base Energy gain +20 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

When it came to height, **Issun-boshi**, a beloved character from Japanese folklore, certainly drew the short straw. But being 3 centimetres tall didn’t stop him from becoming a brave warrior.

Equipped with a bowl for a boat, a chopstick for a paddle and a needle for a sword, Issun-boshi journeyed to the capital. On his way, he encountered an oni (a demon) that swallowed him whole. Using his needle, Issun-bōshi stabbed the oni from the inside, causing the oni to spit him out.

Next, our tiny hero gained possession of a magic hammer, grew to 182cm, married a girl he saved and used the hammer to conjure treasures. The tale of Issun-bōshi is a testament to the triumph of intelligence, courage, and ingenuity over physical limitations.
Jantar Mantar

## Ability

### Ability

**Skilled Observation****(Draw)** If your deck has 2 or more Wonders of Construction cards, your Watching the Skies cards, wherever they are, cost -1 Energy and gain +25 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

It’s a top tourist attraction in India and a UNESCO World Heritage site: **Jantar Mantar** is one of the five observatories built by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh, the founder of Jaipur, in 1724. If you didn’t know its purpose, you might just see a lot of stairs that lead nowhere, but in fact, this impressive site is a collection of architectural astronomical instruments.

The clue is in the name – yantra meaning instrument, and mantra meaning formula, or in this context, calculation. Of these instruments, the Samrat Jantar is the tallest. Standing 90 feet high and angled at 27 degrees (the latitude of Jaipur), its shadow tells the time of day. The domed structure on top is used as a platform for announcing eclipses and the arrival of monsoons.
Holly

## Ability

### Ability

**Festive Flora****(Play)** Your Ivy and Festive Traditions cards in hand gain +14 Power this turn.

## Did You Know?

**Holly**, and other evergreen plants like mistletoe and ivy, were used in pagan practices before being appropriated by the Christian faith. Just as the Romans adopted local gods after an invasion, Christianity was quick to adopt these practices and attribute meaning and symbolism to these items brought into the home.

As the song goes, 'It is the Holly that most closely bears the crown' with its red berries and spiny leaves it's a visual metaphor for Jesus’ crown of thorns, worn at the crucifixion.
Julius Caesar

## Did You Know?

Would-be author of ‘How to Make Friends and Get Assassinated by Them’, Caesar set up the first triumvirate, crossed the Rubicon, and expanded the Roman territory through Gaul and into Britain. Although he never was Emperor, his name became synonymous with that title in various languages (that’s where the German Kaiser and Russian Tsar come from).

Julius Caesar’s relationship status was always ‘It’s complicated’. He was held to ransom because of his first wife Cornielia’s political connections. After she died, he married the granddaughter of his captor, who was later alleged to have had an affair, at which point they divorced. And while Caesar’s marriage to his third wife Calpurnia lasted the rest of his life, during that time he famously dated Cleopatra as well as a lady whose son, Brutus, was one of those responsible for his death. You don't see that on Love Island.

As you may know, Shakespeare gave Caesar his famous last lines, “Et tu, Brute? Then fall Caesar,” giving poor Brutus a guilt complex for life. And while we’re on the subject, when you have five minutes spare check out Marlon Brando’s ‘Friends, Romans, Countrymen’ speech from the 1953 film adaptation. Just brilliant.
Kintaro

## Ability

### Ability

**Golden Boy****(Play)** If it's the first turn of a round, this card gains +70 Power. **(Return)** If you have played Shuten-doji this game, this card costs -3 Energy permanently.

## Did You Know?

None of us can say for sure what our lives would be like if we were born with superhuman strength and raised by a mountain-dwelling witch - but that’s how **Kintaro** started life, according to the Japanese fairytale.

In many ways, Kintaro was like Japan’s Tarzan: as well as bundles of energy and the strength to break rocks and uproot trees, he became friends with many of the animals around him. The story goes that, after defeating a famous demon, Kintaro met a general posing as a woodcutter named Sadamitsu, who had been sent to recruit people for his army. Being super strong, Kintaro was the perfect candidate. So, he left his animal gang behind and gained wealth and prominence as a samurai, coming to be known as Sakata no Kintoki.
Indian Purple Frog

## Ability

### Ability

**Monsoon Boon****(Draw)** If you are losing the round, gain +30 Power/Turn for 2 turns.

## Did You Know?

Let’s be honest: the **Indian Purple Frog**, hailing from the Western Ghats in India, isn’t much of a looker. With its beady eyes, pointed snout and body resembling a turtle without a shell, this weird but wonderful amphibian spends much of its life underground, emerging only for the start of the monsoon season to find a mate. Whether it likes piña coladas is yet to be confirmed, but it clearly loves getting caught in the rain.
Hinpuku-Ron

## Ability

### Ability

**Bushido Benefits****(Draw)** If your deck has 2 or more Money, Money, Money cards, your Japanese Folklore cards, wherever they are, gain +16 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

Does money corrupt or is it the people who are already corrupted? This age-old question serves as the premise for **Hinpuku-ron**, an Edo period story featured in Ugetsu Monogatari, a collection of nine supernatural tales adapted from traditional Japanese and Chinese ghost stories.

The story begins with a money-crazed samurai who discovers his servant's secret stash of cash. Instead of reprimanding him, the samurai rewards him. Cue the entrance of the spirit of accumulated gold, ready to dish out some ethereal wisdom on the tangled web of wealth and ethics.

This spirit insists that money is as neutral as Switzerland and having stacks of it doesn't automatically make someone a saint or a sinner. Of course, the spirit of gold would say that.
Julemanden

## Ability

### Ability

**Yule Tidings****(Play)** Your cards with "Yule" in the name, wherever they are, gain +22 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

Santa Claus not responding to your letters? Try writing to Julemanden instead. In Denmark, a relatively new tradition holds that **Julemanden** (“The Yule Man”) brings presents to well-behaved children, just like Father Christmas. However, while Santa lives in the North Pole, Julemanden is said to live in Greenland. He does sport a similar red hat, but he wears grey clothes and is draped in furs.

As well as leaving presents under the tree for children, Julemanden adds his own garland of Danish flags to the fir tree. If you do want to write to him, a special postal address is used by Post Danmark: Rensdyrvej 1, Postboks 2412, 1566 København V. Rensdyrvej translates as "Reindeer Way", while the PO Box number 2412 is a reference to 24 December.
Holography

## Ability

### Ability

**You're Projecting****(Play)** If you are losing the round, you gain +5 Power/Turn and your opponent loses -5 Power/Turn for 4 turns.

## Did You Know?

Bad news: we still don’t have the technology to bring people back from the dead. Good news: thanks to **Holography**, we can see live performances from long-dead musicians like Elvis or Tupac (and living ones who hate each other too much to perform together – ABBA, we’re looking at you...)

The concept of holograms was invented by a Hungarian engineer and physicist called Dennis Gabor in 1947 – of course, he didn’t have the resurrection of dead singers in mind when creating it. In fact, Gabor was working on a project to improve the quality of electron microscope imagery when he stumbled upon the idea. It wouldn’t be until 1960 that scientists were able to produce holograms that were bigger than the size of a postage stamp.
King Scorpion

## Ability

### Ability

**Rock Bottom****(Start)** If you are losing the round, this card costs +2 Energy until played and if you are winning the round, this card costs -3 Energy until played.

## Did You Know?

Scorpion II, also known as **King Scorpion**, ruled over Upper Egypt during the Protodynastic Period (c. 3200–3000 BCE). If you’re thinking of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, it’s because the 2002 film “The Scorpion King” he starred in was (loosely. Extremely loosely.) based on this Egyptian ruler. The real-life King Scorpion played a crucial role in uniting the country and building it into the world’s first empire.

```
So, why the name? In Ancient Egypt, the Scorpion animal commonly stood for dangerous things like ‘poison’, ‘storm’ and ‘attack’ – however, it could also mean ‘bad breath’. We can safely assume that was not the meaning he was going for, although we'll know for sure if we find hieroglyphs that translate to "if ya smeeeeeeeeeeell what the Scorpion King is breathin'".

```

'King Scorpion' by Udimu (Source: Wikimedia Commons) is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 (original image resized, cropped and altered)
Humerus

## Ability

### Ability

**Funny Bones****(Play)** If you are winning the round, your Brilliant Human Body cards in hand gain +20 Power this turn.

## Did You Know?

The **Humerus** is the life of the party in the upper arm, connecting the shoulder joint to the elbow joint and keeping the arm in motion. And let’s not forget about the humerus’ friends - the muscles, tendons and ligaments that surround and support it. If it wasn’t for their ongoing collaboration, you wouldn’t be able to throw your hands in the air and wave 'em like you just don't care.

Named after the Latin word ‘umerus’ meaning upper arm, this bone is pretty important. However, being one of the largest bones in the human body, it is more prone to fractures upon impact. And trust us, there’s nothing funny about breaking your humerus. But it’s nothing that a little rest, physical therapy and a well-timed punchline can’t fix.
Kenroku-en

## Ability

### Ability

**One of Three****(Play)** If your deck contains exactly 3 Feudal Japan cards, your Plant Life and Tremendous Trees cards, wherever they are, gain +13 Power for 3 turns.

## Did You Know?

Over the course of 200 years, the Maeda clan who ruled the Kaga Domain created and perfected one of the Three Great Gardens of Japan. Known as **Kenroku-en**, this little slice of heaven is no ordinary garden.

During the Edo period, the Kaga lords had a secret wish for eternal life and prosperity. So, they put all their wishes into the design of this strolling landscape garden, including a big ol’ pond to represent the ocean and an island they intended to be the home of a legendary wizard who would give them eternal youth.

While the Kaga lords didn’t technically get to live forever, their hard work certainly did. To this day, their wishes are preserved as a gorgeous garden that is a much-loved tourist attraction and a favourite spot among the locals.
Kissing Bug

## Ability

### Ability

**Bite Marks****(Play)** If your deck has 9 or more Bugs cards, your Bugs cards, wherever they are, lose -5 Power until played and this card gains +50 Power permanently.

## Did You Know?

They’re called the **Kissing Bug**, but don’t let that romantic name fool you. Known officially as Triatomine bugs, these sadistic little bloodsuckers hide in the walls during the day. At night the bugs emerge and scuttle towards the sleeping faces of their human victims and bite them, sipping on their blood as a midnight snack.

If that wasn't bad enough, the Kissing Bugs will then poop on their victims face. If ​​the bug poop enters the body through breaks in the skin, or if the victim rubs the poop into their eyes, nose or mouth while sleeping, they’ll become infected with Chagas disease. Given that the bug likes to hang out in lawn debris and dead leaves, the threat of insect-poop wounds is enough to encourage regular gardening.
Jörmungandr

## Ability

### Ability

**World Serpent****(Play)** If played next to Ouroboros, your Life on Land and Oceans and Seas cards in hand gain +14 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

If you choose to name your child “huge monster”, don’t be surprised if they turn out to be a giant sea serpent. That’s the meaning of the name “**Jormungandr**”, but given that this creature was the child of trickster god Loki and Angrboða, the “mother of monsters”, its form isn’t too surprising.

According to the Prose Edda, Odin took Loki’s three children by Angrboða and threw Jörmungandr into the sea that encircled Midgard. Jörmungandr kept growing until it was so large it could surround the Earth and grasp its own tail with its mouth.

Norse legends say that when the Ragnarok (apocalypse) approaches, the sea will flood and the serpent will thrash onto the land, spraying poison into the air and water. Rising sea levels just got scarier.
Jersey Devil

## Ability

### Ability

**The Thirteenth Child****(Play)** If your deck has 3 or more Arts & Culture cards, your Arts & Culture cards, wherever they are, lose -13 Power until played and your Life on Land cards, wherever they are, gain +13 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

One stormy New Jersey night in 1735, Mother Leeds was brought to her bed in childbirth. Rumours had spread across town that the mother of twelve was involved in witchcraft, and had sworn she would give birth to a devil.

At first, the newborn looked normal. But soon after, Mother Leeds’ 13th child changed to a demonic creature with a goat’s head, bat wings and a forked tail. After beating everyone up, it flew off into the pines.

Despite being wholly fictional, sightings of this beast known as the **Jersey Devil** have been recorded ever since. In 1820, Joseph Bonaparte, brother of Napoleon, claimed to have seen the Jersey Devil while hunting on his Bordentown estate. In 1909, the Philadelphia Zoo even posted a $10,000 reward for the creature.
Jonas Salk

## Ability

### Ability

**Seeking No Profit****(Draw)** Your Science cards, wherever they are, cost -1 Energy and gain +10 Power until played. **(Return)** Your Science cards, wherever they are, cost +1 Energy and lose -10 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

In 1947, the University of Pittsburgh recruited **Jonas Salk** to develop a virus program. An expert in epidemiology, Salk had already developed an influenza vaccine that is still in use today.

For more than seven years, Salk and his team worked tirelessly to develop an effective vaccine against the life-threatening polio virus. Following successful human trials, the federal government approved the vaccine for the public in 1955.

His invention saved millions of lives, but Jonas Salk didn’t patent his invention. When asked why not, he responded: “Could you patent the sun?” In effect, Salk was proclaiming that his vaccine was a gift to humanity.

While Salk is best known for the polio vaccine, he also had a fascinating personal life, including being the stepfather of Pablo Picasso’s children.
Jupiter-C

## Ability

### Ability

**Haters Gonna Hate****(Return)** If you won the turn, your opponent loses -10 Power/Turn next turn.

## Did You Know?

When America found out about the Soviets successful launch of Sputnik, the world’s first artificial satellite, they rushed to get their own up there.

How did it go? To give you a clue, the press called the launch “Flopnik” and “Kaputnik.” Ouch. Fortunately, they didn’t let the haters win: in 1958, the firing command was given, and the United States entered the space age as their new **Jupiter-C** rocket successfully pushed the Explorer 1 satellite into orbit.

## Trivia

"Haters Gonna Hate" is a reference to the song "Shake It Off" by Taylor Swift were this phrase is a part of a verse.
Ludwig II of Bavaria

## Ability

### Ability

**Build More Castles****(Play)** All Super Structures cards in both player's hands gain +15 Power permanently.

## Did You Know?

Ludwig II of Bavaria famously said: “I wish forever to remain an enigma, both to myself and others,” and it seems he kept his word...

The eldest son of Maximillian II of Bavaria and Princess Marie of Prussia, Ludwig was OBSESSED with lavishing vast sums of money on extravagant artistic and architectural projects, including ostentatious fairytale palaces.

These projects left him severely in debt and King Ludwig II was dethroned in 1886 after a team of experts led by psychiatrist Bernhard von Gudden declared him unfit to rule. It was the best episode of Grand Designs they never produced.

'Ludwig II' by Unknown Author (Source: Wikimedia Commons) is licensed under Public Domain (original image resized, cropped and altered)
James Webb Space Telescope

## Ability

### Ability

**Cosmic Investigation****(Play)** A random Space card in your hand gains +35 Power until played.

## Did You Know?

Good news!

NASA has released the first image from the **James Webb Space Telescope **and it is stunning! The image captures what NASA is calling Webb’s First Deep Field and shows galaxy cluster SMACS 0723 as it appeared 4.6 billion years ago. The picture shows beautifully sparkling galaxies, some of which are the oldest in the universe (billions of years old and still looking fabulous for their age).****

****It is the sharpest image ever taken in space and also the deepest. Meaning that astronomers are now able to take a good look at parts of the universe that were only tiny glimpses up until now. It is thought that the images taken by the telescope will help us better understand how our universe began, billions of years ago.****

****The James Webb Space Telescope was launched in December 2021 and is the most expensive telescope ever sent into space. It was specifically designed to capture infrared images of objects too distant, faint or old for the Hubble Telescope. After seeing this initial image, we cannot wait to see what the telescope will snap next on its mission as photographer to the stars!****