The Fortune Teller

You joined the traveling circus on a whim, with nothing but an incomplete deck of cards and a penchant for deception to recommend you. Fortune telling felt like a natural fit - take people’s money, tell them what they want to hear, and leave town before the truth catches up.

But then things got complicated. A couple of coincidentally accurate predictions later, and your fellow circus employees started believing that you may actually have “the gift”.

The Ringmaster saw an opportunity to use your “ability” to resolve conflicts without being seen as taking side. So now all manners of circus troubles, from missing monkeys to bold thievery, are being sent your way.

And tonight is no exception.

The Game

Designed for the One-page RPG Jam 2025, The Fortune Teller is a rules-light solo journaling role playing game whose main oracle is derived from the Lenormand divination system.  Thematically loosely inspired by the Carnivale TV show of the early 2000's as well as the novel Water for Elephants, it aims to bring the player in a world of outcasts and mystery.  The game only requires the use of a standard deck of playing cards, a pen and some paper. 

The premise is simple - join a traveling circus, pretend to read cards and solve crimes. 

Safety Tools

When playing alone, it is easy to let our control over the narrative lull us into a false sense of security. It is important to take the time to acknowledge any unexpected emotional reaction to the story and give ourselves permission to explore these feelings. The principles of nonviolent communication can be helpful in this process, and to find out more on how they can be applied in the context of solo roleplaying, you can look up I X-carded myself available on a "pay what you want" basis.

The Download

This game consists of a single two-sided page containing  the rules and the oracle table required to play the game. In addition, a low ink version is available for those who would like to print it out.