POWERFUL MAGIC NEEDED!

[TheDerpsterKoder]

Hi guys
I was wondering if any of you would know of any really powerful magic.
What I mean by powerful is that it gets great reactions, is easy-ish to do with some sleight of hand if any ( so like a mentalist effect or something) and is very visual if it is a card trick (so like something like a omni deck or invisible deck or loops or something like that)
I don't mind spending some money to buy it but it would help if its cheapish (Not the quality cheap though, just the price xD)
Whats your recommendations?
btw any good books other then RRTCM or expert at the card table?

 

[jakeherndon24]

Well powerful magic is sort of an interesting phrase, as a good magician can make Ambitious Card look just as incredible as most other tricks. If I had to give you one trick in particular though, it would have to be Torn and Restored Transposition off of this very website. Definitely one of my favorites and there's so much room to add your own touches and to adapt it to your style.

 

[WitchDocIsIn]

Yes, I know a ton of them.

The wording of your request, though, shows that you're still pretty new.

The thing you need to remember is that the reactions you get do not come from the trick. It comes from the performance of the trick - therefore, it's you, not the trick.

I know a lot of very easy, very strong material - but someone who doesn't understand the theatrical skills involved in presenting good magic won't be able to get powerful reactions from them. A good performer can take a fairly simple trick, like the Poker Player's Picnic and squeeze amazing reactions out of it. A poor performer cannot.

 

[Maaz Hasan]

It all depends on the presentation. You can turn simple effects into major reactions easilly.

However,of you do want some very powerful effects check out Odyssey by Calen Pirelli, and pair it with Reflex by Patrick Kun or Divorce by Justin Miller.

You could also get Dimension from E (don't have it but it looks great).

Check out Angle Z by Daniel Madison (one of my favorite effects ever, And so easy to perform) and also check out regeneration by Blake Vogt (don't have it, But it is amazing). Also check out TnR transpo by Greg Wilson. I can name a few more, But I think you are good right now.

 

[ProAma]

presentation matters way more than tricks dude. you need to go read Maximum Entertainment if you are new.

 

[TylerScottIllusionist]

I agree with everything that everyone else before me has said: presentation and showmanship trump everything else. I always say the magician should make the effect and the effect should not make the magician. I know that's hard to rationalize with all the Instagram magic and fake reaction videos out there but the actual workers are good showmen above all else. So make a plan of what you would like to present and then buy effects that go along with that presentation.

But I will also honor your request with some pretty easy to perform material (under $100) that always gets great reactions for me:
1.

2.

3.

I also get great reactions out of my own material that I released that I feel is pretty easy to perform as well. As far as books go that have great visuals I recommend Art of Astonishment Volumes 1-3 by Paul Harris, Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic, and Magic The Complete Course by Joshua Jay.

Hope this helps!

 

[VagueTheory]

Easy, cheap, and powerful......

PRACTICE!

OK, I'll quit being a smart butt. Many of the replies here are on the right track. Presentation is key. You don't want to just rely solely on gimmicks or "buying the newest thing" to get the best reactions (if you plan on continue to progress, anyway). Derren Brown's books make this a key point. He stresses the importance of having the audience relate to your tricks/effects. In "Absolute Magic," he gives an example on how if he was to make someone's ring levitate, his patter will be for that person to remember the importance, meaning, and intrinsic value of the ring. When the audience member gets emotionally invested into the patter, he'll make it levitate. This suggests to the audience that the owner of the ring's emotions caused the levitation. That's his whole book in a nutshell, teehee.

Compared to that, how would a "Hey, lemme make your ring float" presentation look? Derren's presentation will blow it out of the water!

Consider that when structuring routines. It has changed my way of thinking completely, and for the better.

Now to directly answer your question, I do not own this, but I've read good things about Cody Nottingham's "Rift" card through window. I bought his "Code Red" DVD and it's full of great thinking so I think you'll have a product worth spending money on. It's around $25 bucks or something like that.

 

[DisasterTheory]

I cannot say it much better than others have already said. Presentation is everything. I have literally gotten a powerful reaction from people with a "trick" that wasn't even a trick. I literally just took a double headed quarter out of my pocket and said "okay watch..." I did some hesitation and pretended to concentrate....and slowly turned the quarter around. I did it as a joke, but they truly thought I did something astounding. So as baffled as I was, I just left it at that.

The truth is, the audience will feel what you make them feel. They will inevitably have the perception that you feed to them. You feed it to them through presentation.

 

[Timewise64]

I agree with all that has been said! Although I recently started working with Loops and Magician's wax. The first time I made a table fork move, the kids watching me actually 'Jumped' and yelled "You made it move"! That was really fun as we were setting around a campfire at night....they were a bit uneasy, a little scare if always good too...

 

[TheDerpsterKoder]

Yes, I know a ton of them.

The wording of your request, though, shows that you're still pretty new.

The thing you need to remember is that the reactions you get do not come from the trick. It comes from the performance of the trick - therefore, it's you, not the trick.

I know a lot of very easy, very strong material - but someone who doesn't understand the theatrical skills involved in presenting good magic won't be able to get powerful reactions from them. A good performer can take a fairly simple trick, like the Poker Player's Picnic and squeeze amazing reactions out of it. A poor performer cannot.

I think I should just clarify, I've been doing magic for almost 3-ish years and I've read quit a few books on performance and patter and such. What I meant by powerful magic is that is very visual/up close/personal like a omni deck or loops or double cross by mark Southworth or something like that, like in the persons hands type and not like a typical pick a card find a card type trick, even though that can be made powerful by a good performance, I'm more looking for something like I already specified to add to my repertoire hence my request for books 'cause in my experience they usually have a lot more to give for your money. btw thanks for all the responses. Do any of you have any books to recommend other then RRTCM, complete course to card magic by Joshua jay and expert at the card table?

 

[DisasterTheory]

Color Changing Aces usually works well for me. While it is fairly visual in the fact that you show them the ace immediately before putting it in their hands (both times), it's not as visual as say...a snap change or shapeshifter. What it does accomplish are a few things. 1. It's a very simple classic. 2. It happens in their hands. 3. It's pretty powerful to the spectator because they believe there was absolutely no possible way to do it. 4. There are no gimmicks.

 

[Ejwhite25]

Mark wilson and paul harris are great , TNR Transpo is a definite for good reactions

 

[Maaz Hasan]

Mark Wilson's Complete Course is great for all around. If you have the Royal Road, you can milk any effect in there and make it crazy and in the hands, so that shouldn't be too much of a problem.

Expert Card Technique has a lot of info in it.

Look into some of Marlo's works.

If you are looking for super visual card effects, a lot have been listed up there, but also check out Sans Minds. They specialize in visual magic. Also, look into some of the stuff Murphy's has been releasing recently. Ticket by João Miranda and Julio Montoro blew my mind.

 

[WitchDocIsIn]

You're still looking to externalize the power of the routine.

With that mentality you'll just continue looking for new shiny stuff that other people think is powerful.

Chances are, if you've been studying for 3 years seriously, you already have all the material you'll ever need. What you need to do now is take that material and personalize and perfect it. That's when it gets really powerful.

The routine I'm most known for is one I started doing around 3 years into learning magic. Now, nearly 7 years later, I have it to a point where what was a 3 minute routine that got bemused smiles and the occasional, "Wow that is weird!" is a 12 minute powerhouse routine that amazes every audience.

If the trick itself is the powerful thing, then the magician performing it is interchangeable.

 

[DisasterTheory]

You're still looking to externalize the power of the routine.

With that mentality you'll just continue looking for new shiny stuff that other people think is powerful.

Chances are, if you've been studying for 3 years seriously, you already have all the material you'll ever need. What you need to do now is take that material and personalize and perfect it. That's when it gets really powerful.

The routine I'm most known for is one I started doing around 3 years into learning magic. Now, nearly 7 years later, I have it to a point where what was a 3 minute routine that got bemused smiles and the occasional, "Wow that is weird!" is a 12 minute powerhouse routine that amazes every audience.

If the trick itself is the powerful thing, then the magician performing it is interchangeable.

That was very well put. The one I named for example, was one of the first card tricks I've ever learned (color changing aces). Over the years I've found better ways to present it and it has become more and more powerful to the spectator every time. All I've ever done was change the patter and changed it from happening on a table to happening in their hand. Usually that is all you have to do to make something you already know/do more powerful.

 

[Maaz Hasan]

Just to back up what @ChristopherT and @DisasterTheory are saying, here is a current example.

About a year and a half ago, I developed a color changing deck using a very specific sleight. I thought it was perfect. As I learned more, I realized it was trash, especially since the patter was absolute garbage. I then started focusing on a patter. This made the effect 10 times better. I then simplified it. I was trying to cram everything into it, but I didn't need to. I even got rid of the specific sleight I thought was sooo important. This made it look so much more natural. I then tried to make it seem as natural as possible. This elevated the effect to a new level since I wasn't doing anything weird. Finally, I wanted to see how powerful I could make it. I thought "let me give them everything I can". It was already visual since it was a color changing deck, but by rearranging the handling, I was able to give them the deck before I really did anything in their minds. At this point, the effect was really good, but the presentation sucked. I then started developing it to make it as clean as possible. I got it to the point where I have the tiniest reset needed, and it is super natural. I also was able to justify everything. Finally, I developed a full on patter to keep the audience engaged.

So in short, I started with a very limited, table only, weak patter, clumsy effect. However, by working on it, I made it an easy to do, in the spectator's hands, perfect for almost all close up situations, clean, super powerful presentation that gets amazing reactions. I am still developing this effect. It has been a year and a half of work, and look where it has got me.

You can pretty much apply this process to any effect you know. You can make any effect boss by just working on it. You don't need to do everything the way it is shown in the book.

 

[Lord Magic]

I think I should just clarify, I've been doing magic for almost 3-ish years and I've read quit a few books on performance and patter and such. What I meant by powerful magic is that is very visual/up close/personal like a omni deck or loops or double cross by mark Southworth or something like that, like in the persons hands type and not like a typical pick a card find a card type trick, even though that can be made powerful by a good performance, I'm more looking for something like I already specified to add to my repertoire hence my request for books 'cause in my experience they usually have a lot more to give for your money. btw thanks for all the responses. Do any of you have any books to recommend other then RRTCM, complete course to card magic by Joshua jay and expert at the card table?

Complete Idiot's guide to street magic by Tom Ogden. Works amazingly and is quite good for amateurs too.

 

[HectorE1]

I agree with what everybody has said so far, but to answer your question and request my go to is usually a bill Transpo, it gets good reactions happens in the spectators hands it's not cards so it has an organic on the spot feel... hope this helps...