Modern Witch Tarot Cards
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Modern Witch Tarot Deck Review: Orica’s Quick Take
Modern Witch Tarot is the kind of deck I reach for when someone wants classic tarot meanings without the old-world distance. It is bright, fashionable, inclusive, and very easy to understand if you already know the Rider-Waite-Smith system. The cards still speak in familiar tarot language, but the people inside them look like they could be your friend, your coworker, your older sister, or you on a brave day.
My short answer: this is a strong beginner-friendly deck, a lovely everyday reader, and one of the cleanest bridges between traditional tarot and modern witch culture. It is not a soft, dreamy oracle-style deck. It has attitude. It can be funny, blunt, tender, and dramatic in the same reading.
What the Modern Witch Tarot is like
Created by Lisa Sterle, Modern Witch Tarot takes the bones of Pamela Colman Smith’s famous tarot scenes and redraws them for a world of leather jackets, laptops, headphones, city apartments, selfies, and chosen-family friendships. That is why it works so well for learners: the meanings are not hidden behind a totally new system.
The magic here is not about changing tarot into something unrecognizable. It is about asking, what would this card look like if it happened in my life today? The answer is often wonderfully clear. The deck shows witches who are tired, ambitious, heartbroken, confident, messy, fashionable, spiritual, funny, and still learning. That makes the readings feel close to the body.
First impression
Four cards that show the deck’s modern voice
These cards show the deck at its best: confident, stylish, and easy to connect with. The magic feels less like a faraway temple and more like personal power you can practice in ordinary life.
Art style and deck feel
The art is bold, graphic, and clean. You get strong outlines, saturated color, expressive poses, and a very readable scene on almost every card. This is helpful in daily readings because your eye quickly understands what is happening. You do not need to decode tiny esoteric symbols before you can begin.
The mood is modern witch rather than antique mystic. Think boots, jackets, candles, city rooms, plants, laptops, and confident eye contact. The deck feels youthful, but not childish. It has enough emotional range for serious readings, especially around confidence, burnout, friendship, work, identity, and boundaries.
Deck-specific card study
Why The Magician feels like creative self-trust
In this deck, The Magician does not feel like a distant ceremonial master. The image has a practical, stylish confidence: tools are close, attention is focused, and the whole card says, “use what is already on your table.”
For readings, this makes The Magician excellent for questions about starting a project, claiming your voice, or noticing that you are waiting for permission you do not actually need. The card still means skill and manifestation, but the modern styling makes that message feel immediate.
How it reads in practice
Modern Witch Tarot reads quickly. Most cards give a clear emotional cue on the first glance, which is great for one-card pulls, morning check-ins, and beginner spreads. The deck is especially good when a querent needs a straight answer but does not want a cold one.
Because it follows Rider-Waite-Smith so closely, you can use most classic tarot books and meanings with it. The difference is tone. The old scenes become more social, more current, and sometimes more emotionally obvious. The Three of Swords hurts in a way that feels like a modern text-message heartbreak. The Nine of Cups feels like personal satisfaction you can actually imagine. The Eight of Swords looks like the mental trap of overthinking your own choices.
Reading flow
Cards that make everyday questions easy to read
The Cups suit is warm, social, and very human here. It is especially useful for friendship questions, dating confusion, creative dreams, and emotional self-checks.
Beginner friendliness: easy, medium, and hard examples
Easy: ask, “What energy should I bring into today?” and pull Strength. In this deck, the card feels like calm courage rather than force. A beginner can read it as: be gentle, but do not shrink.
Medium: ask, “What is blocking this project?” and pull Seven of Cups. The deck makes the card feel like too many tempting tabs open in the mind. The message is not “your dreams are bad.” It is “choose one real step before the fantasy gets foggy.”
Hard: ask, “What truth am I avoiding?” and pull Everything is Fine. This bonus card is funny until it is not. It can show the moment when you are pretending to be okay while your nervous system is waving a little red flag. In a reading, I would treat it as a compassion card, not a doom card: stop performing okay-ness and get honest support.
Deck-specific card study
Why Everything is Fine became the deck’s signature card
This bonus card is the clearest example of the deck’s humor and pain living in the same room. It carries the Ten of Swords feeling, but the title turns it into a very modern kind of denial: the smiley mask we wear when we are exhausted, disappointed, or trying not to bother anyone.
I like it as an optional extra because it names something the standard tarot sometimes implies but does not say this plainly. If it appears in a spread, I would ask: “Where are you saying you are fine because it feels easier than telling the truth?”
Best questions to ask this deck
- What part of my life needs more confidence right now?
- Where am I performing okay when I need real care?
- What would the brave version of me do next?
- What boundary would make this situation healthier?
- How can I bring magic into my ordinary routine?
This is not the deck I would choose for extremely abstract spiritual philosophy. It shines when the question is human, practical, emotional, and close to everyday life.
Shadow and stress
Cards that speak clearly when life feels messy
Modern Witch Tarot is not all sparkle. Its harder cards are some of its strongest, because they show anxiety, burnout, and endings in a language many modern readers instantly recognize.
What I like most
I love that the deck lets new readers feel included in tarot without throwing away the traditional structure. Many modern decks become beautiful but hard to study because the images drift far from the classic scenes. Modern Witch Tarot stays close enough to learn from, while still feeling fresh enough to use with real people in real situations.
I also like its confidence. The deck does not whisper, “maybe you are magical.” It says, “of course you are; now what are you going to do with it?” That makes it a good deck for readers who are building self-trust.
What to know before buying
The cards are glossy and can feel slippery at first. Some readers love that smooth shuffle; others prefer a softer matte finish. The deck can also feel a little thick in the hand, so if you have smaller hands, you may prefer overhand shuffling or splitting the deck into two piles before riffle shuffling.
Also check the exact edition and listing. Modern Witch Tarot is popular, so make sure you are buying a legitimate copy with the guidebook and packaging you expect. If a deal looks strangely cheap, look closer before ordering.
Deck-specific card study
Why the 2 of Cups feels warm instead of old-fashioned
The 2 of Cups is a perfect card for seeing how this deck updates tarot without losing the meaning. Instead of feeling formal or antique, the connection feels mutual, present, and easy to imagine in modern life.
In readings, that makes the card useful beyond romance. It can speak to chosen family, creative partnership, reconciliation, or the simple magic of being met by someone who respects your whole self.
Who will love this deck
- Beginners who want a modern Rider-Waite-Smith friendly deck.
- Readers who like inclusive, fashionable, expressive art.
- People who want tarot to feel close to everyday life.
- Anyone who loves witchy confidence without heavy occult gloom.
Who may not love it
- Readers who want antique, medieval, or ceremonial tarot art.
- People who prefer matte cardstock over glossy cards.
- Collectors who want a very esoteric or heavily symbolic deck.
Practical magic
Cards for work, money, and self-worth readings
The Pentacles suit feels grounded and usable here. These cards are good for career questions, routine-building, money choices, body care, and learning how to value your own effort.
Orica’s Golden Rule for reading Modern Witch Tarot
Read the scene like it is happening today. Do not trap this deck in dusty keywords. Ask what the person on the card is doing, avoiding, choosing, wearing as armor, or trying to become. Then bring the meaning back to the querent’s real life.
If a card looks confident, ask where confidence is needed. If it looks exhausted, ask what support is missing. If it looks glamorous, ask whether that glamour is power, protection, or performance. That is where Modern Witch Tarot becomes more than a pretty redraw.
Final thoughts
Modern Witch Tarot deserves its popularity. It is stylish, direct, inclusive, and genuinely useful. It respects the Rider-Waite-Smith system while making the people inside tarot feel alive now. For beginners, it is easy to learn with. For experienced readers, it is a reliable everyday deck with a strong voice.
I would especially recommend it if you want a deck for confidence, self-trust, modern relationships, creative work, and honest emotional check-ins. It is not the quietest deck on the shelf, but that is part of its charm. Sometimes tarot needs to sit beside you like a cool friend in boots and say, “You already know. Be brave.”
Related TarotFans deck reviews
If you like modern, expressive tarot art, you may also enjoy the Light Seer’s Tarot Review, the Mystic Mondays Tarot Review, and the Affirmators Tarot Review.
Modern Witch Tarot FAQ
Who created the Modern Witch Tarot deck?
Modern Witch Tarot was created by artist Lisa Sterle. It keeps the Rider-Waite-Smith structure but redraws it with modern clothing, phones, laptops, diverse bodies, and a bright contemporary witchy attitude.
Is Modern Witch Tarot good for beginners?
Yes. It is one of the easier modern decks for beginners because most cards follow familiar Rider-Waite-Smith scenes. If you are learning card meanings from a traditional tarot book, the images still line up well, while feeling much more current.
Why does the Modern Witch Tarot include Everything is Fine?
Everything is Fine is a bonus card that echoes the Ten of Swords mood with a modern, painfully relatable twist. You can keep it in as an extra message, swap it for the Ten of Swords, or leave it out if you want a standard 78-card reading system.
How many cards are shown in this TarotFans gallery?
The physical deck has the standard 78 tarot cards plus the bonus Everything is Fine card. In the review above, I focus on the deck’s reading style, beginner fit, artwork, and the cards that best show its modern witch voice.
Does Modern Witch Tarot follow Rider-Waite-Smith meanings?
Mostly, yes. The deck is very RWS-friendly, but the modern setting changes the emotional temperature. Many cards feel more direct, social, and real-life than antique or ceremonial.
What should I know before buying Modern Witch Tarot?
The deck is glossy and has a chunky feel, which many readers love but some small-handed readers may find slippery. Check the edition and seller listing carefully, especially if you want the guidebook, box style, or a specific printing.
