Stegosaurus Pro Instructions

🦕 Stegosaurus Pro: The Concept

Stegosaurus Pro is a "word game" magic trick. You present a box of "Jumbled" letter cards and a list of words. The spectator picks a word, finds the letter cards that spell it, and you are able to divine the word instantly.

The trick relies on a binary system hidden within the cards.

1. The Core Method: How It Works

There are only two types of letter cards: "1" Cards (Yes) and "0" Cards (Null). The spectator lays down 5 cards to spell their word. The position of the card determines its numerical value.

The Values:

  • 1st Card: 16

  • 2nd Card: 8

  • 3rd Card: 4

  • 4th Card: 2

  • 5th Card: 1

The Calculation:

  1. Look at the 5 cards laid out.

  2. Ignore the "0" cards.

  3. Add up the values of the "1" cards based on their position.

  4. CRITICAL STEP: Add 1 to your total.

  5. The final number corresponds to the numbered word on the Word List card.

Example: You see: 1 - 0 - 0 - 1 - 0

  • 1st Card is a 1 (Value = 16)

  • 2nd Card is a 0 (Value = 0)

  • 3rd Card is a 0 (Value = 0)

  • 4th Card is a 1 (Value = 2)

  • 5th Card is a 0 (Value = 0)

Math: 16 + 2 = 18. Don't forget the rule: 18 + 1 = 19. Look at Word #19 on the list. That is their word.

2. The Marking Systems

You can tell if a card is a "1" or a "0" from both the front and the back.

A. Face Up Marking (The Blue Box) Look at the blue rectangle design in the top-left corner of the background art.

  • Dark Blue Rectangle: This is a 0 card.

  • Light Blue Rectangle: This is a 1 card. (Note: Older versions used O for 0 and V for 1, but the background shade is much subtler).

B. Face Down Marking (The Letter 'L') Look at the logo on the back. Specifically, look at the letter 'L' in the word "Jumbled".

  • Curved 'L' corner: Represents a Zero (0).

  • Sharp/Tick 'L' corner: Represents a One (1).

3. Routine Phases

Phil recommends a multi-phase routine that gets progressively more impossible.

Phase 1: The "Game" (Face Up)

 

  • Procedure: The spectator picks a word and lays out the 5 cards spelling it face up.

  • Method: Openly look at the cards, spot the light/dark blue backgrounds, do the math, add 1, and reveal the word.

  • Presentation: Treat this as a demonstration of how good you are at this specific word game.

Phase 2: The "Memory" (Quick Glance)

  • Procedure: Spectator lays the cards out face up while your back is turned. You turn around, glance for 2 seconds, and turn back around.

  • Method: Memorize the binary pattern (e.g., "1-0-1-0-0") during the glance. Turn away, do the math in your head (don't forget to add 1!), and reveal the word dramatically.

  • Presentation: Claim you have a photographic memory.

Phase 3: The "Psychic" (Face Down)

  • Procedure: Spectator finds the letters face up, but then turns them face down on the table.

  • Method: Read the backs of the cards using the 'L' marking system. Calculate the total + 1.

  • Presentation: You are reading the "aura" of the cards or using X-ray vision.

  • Tip: Have them place cards face up first to check spelling, then flip them face down one by one.

Phase 4: The "Reverse" (Negative)

  • Procedure: Ask the spectator to find 5 cards that do NOT have their word's letters on them. They lay them face down.

  • Method: Read the backs (the 'L' marks), but flip the binary code.

    • Treat a 0 as a 1.

    • Treat a 1 as a 0.

    • Calculate the total and add 1.

  • Presentation: This is the most impossible phase as the letters aren't even on the table.

4. Important Tips

  • Add One: The trick will fail if you forget to add 1 to your final total.

  • Orientation: Ensure the cards are the right way up. If the spectator rotates a card 180 degrees, the marking system reverses.

  • Foreign Languages: If you perform in a non-English language, there are downloadable images available on the product website. You can save these to your phone gallery to use as digital "Word Lists" in your local language.

Word Lists

Here is the link to my spreadsheets for the international word lists:

International Word Lists Spreadsheet

And the master list for English:

English Word List Spreadsheet

And here are the downloadable images to use as different language word lists on your phone:

International Word List Images