2025 Deck of the Year Awards

[Adamthinks]

One of the finalists in DOTY was Corrupted. I am afraid that that was an omen.

FWIW, Corrupted was one of my favorite decks of the year.

[BaconWise]

Rookie of the Year → Where new voices stand out.

One of the most anticipated categories of the year, and a true community favorite. It celebrates designers taking that step into the world of playing card design and making an immediate impact.

Shahnameh — Shabnam Adiban
A breathtaking debut that feels anything but new. Rich in detail, storytelling, and execution, this is the kind of first release that sets a lasting standard.

Passport — Michael Gallagher (Sinecure)
Clean, clever and an ambitious vision for a first campaign — A concept-driven design takes a lot to execute properly, and to see a great idea so effortlessly translated into a cohesive and memorable physical product is refreshing.

Fenrir — JinJade
Bold, atmospheric, and full of personality. A striking debut that showcases a strong and confident artistic voice.

Every nominee in this category deserves special recognition. Entering this space takes courage, excelling in it takes something more. Thank you for bringing inspiration to the community, and congratulations to all finalists — we can’t wait to see what you do next!

[BaconWise]

Deck of the Year → Where the year’s best rises above the rest.

This is the highest honor we give — where concept, craftsmanship, and impact all align to create something memorable. Every deck here has already proven itself as a standout, but once in a while something exceptional happens. This year, a rookie didn’t just arrive — they claimed the crown.

Shahnameh — Shabnam Adiban
A stunning achievement — and a rare moment. For a debut deck to rise above the entire lineup is almost unheard of, but the support was overwhelming and the work speaks for itself. A refined balance of artistry and detail that firmly places it among the best.

Cavaliers — Kings & Crooks
A powerhouse across the board. Cavaliers made its mark in multiple categories, and its consistency, craftsmanship, and bold identity carried it all the way to the top tier. A deck that clearly resonated with both voters and collectors alike.
Winner of a 10 Deck Credit from @shuffledink

Moonbound — Thirdway Industries
Another standout in a long lineage of excellence. As part of the @52plusjoker Club series, Moonbound continues a tradition of beautifully produced, highly anticipated releases — yet another success in an already remarkable run.

Three incredible decks. One unforgettable result. Truly well deserved. To all the finalists, congratulations — and to all the nominees across all 14 categories, we commend you for your excellence in playing card mastery as you continue to push the boundaries and surpass the community’s expectations.

[BaconWise]

Best Tuck → Where the deck begins before it’s even opened.

This category celebrates the first thing you see, hold, and connect with. It sets the tone for everything inside, blending design, material, and detail into something that feels as substantial as the deck itself.

Cavaliers — Kings & Crooks
A standout presentation that feels instantly iconic. The bold typography, rich color, and layered detailing give it a premium presence, capturing the spirit of the deck and shines as part of the entire Cavaliers series.

Atlantis — ARK
A beautifully immersive tuck that leans fully into its world. The structure and artwork work together to create something that feels more like an artifact than packaging.
Winner of €300 Credit from @boschiero_newton

Morpheus — Charmie Dreams The Cat
Dreamlike and intricate, this tuck draws you in with its rich illustration and layered symbolism. There’s a sense of mystery here that invites a closer look.

All nominees in this category are prime examples of fabulous first impressions. Congrats to all the finalists!

[BaconWise]

Best Jokers → Where decks get to have a little fun.
.
This category celebrates those intriguing little tricksters of the card world. It’s almost an anything-goes canvas for playing card creators, so it’s particularly inspiring to see the level of focus these extra cards get. Whether it’s in line with tradition, story, or humor, this is where designers really get to stretch those creative muscles.

Cavaliers — Kings & Crooks
A perfect fit for the curated style — full of charm and character, with a classic feel that stands out visually as a polished presentation.

The Parlour Royale — Stockholm17 + The Gentleman Wake
Undeniably representative of both designers in this collaboration. A perfect balance of luxury and playful, and something that makes you want to explore the story further.

Room 52x52 — SmoothWriting + TCC
This deck is rich with jokers, which already catches your attention. Energetic, a little chaotic, and a lot of fun — this card leans fully into the spirit of the Joker with a lively, animated feel.

All nominees in this category show just how much personality can live in a single card — proving the Joker is often the most memorable feature of the deck. Congrats to all the finalists!

[BaconWise]

Full winner list has been added to the original post of this sub - what a great year!

[kevork]

Saw you had posted this on FB too. Helpful to have them in one place!

[Honeybee]

Full winner list has been added to the original post of this sub - what a great year!

Hey Jamie, can we see the voting for the placegetters, like last year?

[Honeybee]

Shabnam will now benefit from emails like this one from Rare Playing Cards, now popping up in our inboxs. The pic is just the beginning of a great promo email

[BaconWise]

Here is a breakdown of this year's votes and a peek behind the curtain. We are always looking to improve the system!

https://www.dotyawards.org/2025data

[Adamthinks]

Yeah, those vote totals make it pretty clear what happened here.

[Honeybee]

Thank you to Jamie and the members of the academy for all their work and for posting the voting.

IF (Big IF) you can leave Shahnameh out
Then:
Cavaliers was a clear winner of DOTY
Thalassic was a clear winner of Best Fan

You cannot blame a creator for marketing (or simply alerting backers) but it would have been interesting to see how many Shabnam would still have won. She was certainly a big contender in some categories

Other observations:
Beyond Imagination would certainly seem to have got the magic community behind it as it dominated Best Magic Deck but had no thread on UC and I do not think it was a KS
Pied Piper easily won Best Extras (and had a couple of seconds behind Shahnameh)

[Honeybee]

I have done a bit of research on Beyond Imagination, the Magic DOTY, as I did not know it (I don't vote in categories that are not my field)
Did it really qualify to be a new deck in 2025 (Blue and White) or was it just a re-colour of the 2019 deck (Black and Gold)?

[Honeybee]

A little about the deliberation process
To ensure fairness, the vote totals have been adjusted to account for: spam; suspicious, double, or hilariously fraudulent emails; favoritism; or any other kind of unfair imbalances deemed appropriate to enforce by The Academy.

This is an interesting one

Could a person voting for the same deck in 6 out of 6 categories with no vote cast for any other deck - be ruled inadmissible under this?

[BaconWise]

A little about the deliberation process
To ensure fairness, the vote totals have been adjusted to account for: spam; suspicious, double, or hilariously fraudulent emails; favoritism; or any other kind of unfair imbalances deemed appropriate to enforce by The Academy.

This is an interesting one

Could a person voting for the same deck in 6 out of 6 categories with no vote cast for any other deck - be ruled inadmissible under this?

Yes, votes of that nature were disqualified

[Strag]

Based on what I see from distribution, for a public vote award system this seems to have been done as fairly as possible. Yes there was one runaway deck, but it seems earned even if it's not my own taste. Good to see overall balance in the awards.

[Honeybee]

A little about the deliberation process
To ensure fairness, the vote totals have been adjusted to account for: spam; suspicious, double, or hilariously fraudulent emails; favoritism; or any other kind of unfair imbalances deemed appropriate to enforce by The Academy.

This is an interesting one

Could a person voting for the same deck in 6 out of 6 categories with no vote cast for any other deck - be ruled inadmissible under this?

Yes, votes of that nature were disqualified

I am guessing then that Shahnameh would have otherwise won all 6 by even more
So every vote for Shahnameh as Best Fan, voted in some other category for a different deck and didn't just vote for her in a few other categories - really

[Adamthinks]

A little about the deliberation process
To ensure fairness, the vote totals have been adjusted to account for: spam; suspicious, double, or hilariously fraudulent emails; favoritism; or any other kind of unfair imbalances deemed appropriate to enforce by The Academy.

This is an interesting one

Could a person voting for the same deck in 6 out of 6 categories with no vote cast for any other deck - be ruled inadmissible under this?

Yes, votes of that nature were disqualified

I am guessing then that Shahnameh would have otherwise won all 6 by even more
So every vote for Shahnameh as Best Fan, voted in some other category for a different deck and didn't just vote for her in a few other categories - really

Yeah, that just doesn't make sense. I have the deck, I backed it. I like it. It winning best fan in particular calls out what happened here. There were a bunch of categories that it wasnt nominated though. Perhaps they all just voted on all of them and didnt skip any.

[Strag]

There is no objectively "fair" system for awards. You either put it up to a popular vote, in which case it's whomever can market themselves the best, make it so only those who produce decks themselves can vote (like the Oscars) in which case it's insular or you let a panel of "experts" decide in which case populists then think it's rigged or otherwise biased.

Accept it for what it is. This is at least much better than when it was given to those numpties from Deckin' Around and become a joke.

[BaconWise]

There is no objectively "fair" system for awards. You either put it up to a popular vote, in which case it's whomever can market themselves the best, make it so only those who produce decks themselves can vote (like the Oscars) in which case it's insular or you let a panel of "experts" decide in which case populists then think it's rigged or otherwise biased.

Accept it for what it is. This is at least much better than when it was given to those numpties from Deckin' Around and become a joke.

A very eloquent way to explain the drawbacks to either approach, Strag. We are going to make a public post to solicit feedback on this very topic in the near future. If anyone here would like to make a case for a different voting approach, we will definitely take that under advisement. Thanks for any input!

[Honeybee]

Yeah, that just doesn't make sense. I have the deck, I backed it. I like it. It winning best fan in particular calls out what happened here. There were a bunch of categories that it wasnt nominated though. Perhaps they all just voted on all of them and didnt skip any.

That is exactly what it looks like and yet Jamie said that such voting would have been disallowed

[Honeybee]

There is no objectively "fair" system for awards. You either put it up to a popular vote, in which case it's whomever can market themselves the best, make it so only those who produce decks themselves can vote (like the Oscars) in which case it's insular or you let a panel of "experts" decide in which case populists then think it's rigged or otherwise biased.

Accept it for what it is. This is at least much better than when it was given to those numpties from Deckin' Around and become a joke.

A very eloquent way to explain the drawbacks to either approach, Strag. We are going to make a public post to solicit feedback on this very topic in the near future. If anyone here would like to make a case for a different voting approach, we will definitely take that under advisement. Thanks for any input!

I think I have already made my views known via pm etc

If it remains in its present form I think it should become MPDOTY, most popular deck of the year and say "voted" MPDOTY as a deck that sold more could also claim to be MPDOTY. I won't bother voting myself as I do not think artists should have to be marketers too for their work to receive deserved credit. I am not saying that it is not good business but I would like to think that it is not how art ends up on our gallery walls or decks in my collection or our Hall of Fame (although undoubtedly there has to be some marketing, a minimum word of mouth for any of us to become aware of decks)

The fact that not all decks are KS decks or purchased directly from designers and thus leave a contactable backer, is a massive disadvantage for some decks

I would compare it to the medal awarded to the 'Best on Ground' in our AFL football Grand Final game. It is a publicly revealed panel vote. If it was a popular vote it is highly likely that only a player from the more popular team has any chance of winning.

ps Should the Magic Deck of the Year have been considered a new deck?

[Adamthinks]

Yeah, that just doesn't make sense. I have the deck, I backed it. I like it. It winning best fan in particular calls out what happened here. There were a bunch of categories that it wasnt nominated though. Perhaps they all just voted on all of them and didnt skip any.

That is exactly what it looks like and yet Jamie said that such voting would have been disallowed

Well, if they voted in the awards that it wasn't nominated for, like best magic deck, their votes would qualify. At least that's my interpretation of what Jamie wrote.

[Honeybee]

I see what you are saying, they voted 6/6 Shahnameh but also selected something in the other categories - all of them means ALL of them

[Strag]

Meh DOTY is DOTY, don't think changing the name serves any purpose.

But then you have to ask, why have awards at all? What is the purpose or goal of having awards?

Few reasons come to mind for me;
1. It's recognition for the artists who produce the decks. Winning an award is an amazing feeling and is a public showing of support.
2. It helps to promote and in some way legitimise the hobby itself.
3. It fosters discussion and debate, exactly as we are doing now, which in itself is a good thing. Talking about the hobby keeps it growing and also keeps this site active. That is no small thing and to my mind is very important.
4. It helps to market decks that have won awards.
5. It could even help the artists that win produce more decks or get work in other fields. Not a small thing to put on one's CV that an award was won.

In none of the above cases does it really matter too much what the methodology is, as long as that methodology has some basis in "truth" whether poplist or "expert" based. I have worked in industries where there are awards that are widely acknowledged to being "bought", that is whomever attends the awards dinner and buys a sponsorship or table at the event win undoubtedly win awards that are chosen by the organaisers and supposedly independent experts. THOSE awards are meaningless in my eyes, but they still get used in marketing and what have you.

[GandalfPC]

Once awards fail to represent reality they cease becoming prestigious - it is all about basis in “truth”

If the cream doesn’t rise to the top, its a flop.