Sepia Card
A card game inspired by cuttlefish camouflage and deception
Pratt Institute
Student Project - Individual Work
Feburary - May, 2026
Sepia Cards is a card game inspired by the camouflage and deception abilities of cuttlefish. Cuttlefish can rapidly change their colors and patterns to hide, communicate, or mislead other animals. Similarly, the cards in the game change color under heat, making their true identity uncertain. Players must use observation, bluffing, and strategy to determine which cards can be trusted and which are deceptive.
Inspiration
Cuttlefish use color not just for camouflage, but for deception. They can change their appearance to signal different identities—males may display both male and female patterns at once to avoid rivals while attracting a mate, and females can mimic males to reduce harassment.
As highly intelligent creatures, cuttlefish skillfully use color and their surrounding environment to manipulate perception and achieve their goals.
This shifting of identity informs the game design: like the cuttlefish, a card’s color is not fixed, but unstable and open to interpretation, creating uncertainty, strategy, and deception.
GAMEPLAY INSTRUCTIONS
Three players begin the game by drawing one identity card. The color on the card becomes their assigned color: purple, blue, or red. After identities are assigned, each player draws three starting hand cards.
During each turn, a player may either draw one card from the deck or exchange one card with another player. The goal is to collect three cards of their own color and reveal them to claim victory. However, some cards are deception cards that change color under heat and do not count toward winning. The true cards remain unchanged after being heated.
When a player reveals three matching cards, the other players may choose to challenge the claim. If the challenge fails, the challenged player wins the round, and the challenger must discard two cards. The remaining two players continue the game. If the challenge succeeds, the challenged player discards one card, and the game continues with all three players.
Moray eels are natural predators of cuttlefish. During identity selection, a player may secretly draw a Moray Eel card, which reveals a hidden Moray Eel pattern under heat. A player who collects all Moray Eel cards immediately wins the game.
