It might come as a surprise that the classic deck of cards we use for poker and blackjack comes from the same deck of cards as the tarot decks. The cards were originally used for esoteric purposes, but grew to become popular parlor games over time. The decks used for free tarot readings are all slightly different – there are decks for cat lovers, decks that feature Star Wars characters, and even decks featuring Gummy Bears. Cultures and interest groups all over the world have created their own tarot card decks.
While there are obviously similarities, there are some big differences between decks that you should be aware of before getting your free tarot reading. One of the major differences is the change in suits. In most decks, there are major and minor arcana. In the minor arcana, there are four suits, which contain wands, cups, swords and coins. This can vary from deck to deck. Some decks have replaced the coins with pentacles, and other decks the wands become more baton-like. Even though the coins are replaced by pentacles in certain decks, these can be interpreted differently from each other. Some believe that between coins and pentacles, wands and batons, these differences do not matter, but others still believe each of these differences should be interpreted differently.
Card numbers are another difference you might see during a free tarot reading. Some decks only contain 72 cards, and others as many as 78. This might not change your reading, but can be disconcerting if you are used to dealing with a larger deck and then find you are not getting consistent results with a different deck of cards.
There are some decks out there that are question-specific decks, in which the person receiving a reading must ask a question and draw from the deck to receive an answer. This is usually just a preference with the reader, who might set aside a certain sort of deck for just answering questions. It is a personal choice, and cannot be interpreted as good or bad.
Another kind of difference seen in tarot card sets is the use of either Greek or Roman gods in the deck names. This is also a matter of preference, but some readers swear by a certain type of card over the other. The choice is ultimately personal, and it can help you decide what kind of psychic you would like to use.