Though relatively unknown today, Whist was the most popular of the card games played in the Regency and Victorian eras, featuring in the works of Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Jules Verne, and in my book A Season of Shades.

A standard deck of cards is all you need to play. See my Young Lady’s Primer on the Playing of Whist to learn how.

After getting an itch to bring this part of my story to life in a more visual, interactive way, I have created a playable Whist table within Second Life, to be released in September 2025. It’s the first bit of (virtual) merch from my shop, The Emme Porium.

Design

The Emme Porium Whist Table features fully original mesh based on antique Victorian card tables and chairs, created in collaboration with Peach Boucher and no beans!.

Whist is ideally played in your mahogany-paneled drawing room after a formal dinner party. But for those of us without such luxuries, the table’s appearance is switchable to match your current decor. Click the golden “EdV” badge on the side of the table to bring up the color switch menu and select from the following:

• Four wood color options (Gray Ash, Mahogany, Walnut, White Oak).
• Four table felt color options (Blue, Green, Red, Yellow).
• Eight seat fabric color options (Black, Blue, Green, Orange, Purple, Red, White, and Yellow).

All parts of the table and chairs are also tintable using edit tools.

These are just a few of the color combinations you can create:

Gameplay

Sit on one of the chairs and click the “W” button in the center of the table to start a new game. The table will shuffle and deal the cards, and keep score as you play.

(Note: If you add the experience “The Emmeverse” on your land parcel, then the cards hud will attach automatically when you sit without asking you every time.)

Don’t be worried if you’ve never played Whist before. You will pick it up very quickly. Also do not worry if you have fewer than four players. The ghosts of four Victorian characters stand ready to play with you, represented by four hats:

• Lord Topham
• Lady Featherington
• Elizabeth Bonnet
• Monsieur Boulere

By default, the hats go easy on you, randomly picking eligible cards to play. Within the EdV badge menu, you can switch the hats to hard mode, which will make them play much smarter and more aggressive strategies. And if you are truly bored, you can also watch them play each other.