The Cube of Summoning

Another item destined by fate

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So much like the Efreeti Bottle, this was also not originally going to be made, mainly due to the difficulties of doing so, and it wasn't a "deck" item, but... a printer destined it to be built, so naturally... it had to be. But how, how could I make anything even remotely resembling a Jack-in-the-box???

The answer: You can't. Or rather, I can't. To get it to eject a one of six random selections at the turn of a crank, that is WAY beyond my abilities. But... what I CAN do, if I simplify it down a lot, is make a box that has the six results available to pull from it! So I found a box of bamboo skewers, which would have a long enough base to be able to stick the results to, and I could hack the long stem off to the needed height! Problem, solved.

Or rather, concept conceived. I started by just using some scrap cards from the many deck builds to slap together a general idea... a small slot in the middle to hold the... ehhhh, six sticks is *really* small, and not really impressive. Also very rectangular. However, if I double it to twelve, it's more squarish, I can just double each of the results, and it looks a bit more impressive. Ahhh, better. Now, on top of the sticks, since it's supposed to be a Jack-in-the-box, I thought to just put a little clown face at the top of those... y'know those little paper springs that you made as a kid (or maybe like me, still), where you take two paper strips and fold one over the other back and forth over and over to make a spring? Well let's make one of those! It won't spring up much, but it'll be springy! And I can use waterproof paper for the strength factor! I tried plastic strips for a moment, but a) glue wouldn't hold it well, and b) it would be too thick. So waterproof paper it is!

And then I had an epiphany! While I can't get a music box inside of there (at least not with my present abilities), what I could do, to at least give a crank *some* use, is put a little jingle bell on the other side, so that when you turn the crank, it will at least make a jingle sound! Yah I know it'll jingle if you shake the thing in general, but it's the principle of the thing. It was either that or glue the crank down and have little text strips beside it saying "pretend you crank this to open it". Having it turn a jingle bell is much better :D

And so, we started gluing together the box. <More to come as it's built>

Finished Month xx, 2025




Naturally you can still open the cube.
 A handful of bamboo skewers beside a set of twelve that are already cut to size, sitting on a cutting board. Beside them is also a template box made out of old playing cards.The concept for the lid that will go over the bamboo sticks, a little paperboard plate that will have a paper spring with a clown face, currently just drawn with pencil. The box is generally put together with the sticks inside, and the lid propped against the side of the box.

The results, printed in tiny text, cut out and glued to the bottoms of the bamboo skewer handles, and then covered in a layer of wood glue that is already beginning to glue clear, currently taped around the outside of the box for drying.A scribbling on a scrap of paper showing the idea for a crank on the outside turning a little jingle bell on the inside of the box, fitting between the larger outer wall and inner wall containing the bamboo sticks.