Object

Deck of Playing Cards (Enterprise Poker Deck)

A stacked deck of fifty-two rectangular cardstock playing cards, edges softened by repeated shuffling and cutting. Crew fingers fan, flick, and brush corners as Riker readies the pack on the table; Data deals with mechanical precision while players glance at faces and push chips. The deck functions as a tactile focus for wagers and bluffing—cards are swept aside or revealed to decide hands, then hastily abandoned when a Class Eleven alert yanks the players from the table.

5 appearances

Purpose

Serve as the instrument for social card play—shuffling, cutting, dealing, and resolving rounds of poker among the senior officers.

Significance

Anchors the poker ritual that exposes interpersonal tension and hierarchy: Worf's cold raise, Pulaski's gamble, and Data's literalist dealing all crystallize around the deck. The sudden abandonment of the cards at the emergency amplifies the tonal shift from domestic friction to operational duty, using the deck as a narrative pivot between leisure and crisis.

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

5 moments

S2E9 · The Measure of a Man

Poker: Logic Meets Instinct

The deck is the tactile engine of the scene: Riker shuffles and deals, O'Brien cuts, cards are fanned, exchanged, and finally turned over to reveal hands. The cards make abstract probability tangible and serve as the physical evidence of Riker's bluff and Data's miscalculation.

Before: In Riker's possession being shuffled and prepared on the table.

After: Dealt across the table; individual cards revealed face-up as hands are shown.

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S2E9 · The Measure of a Man

Bluff: Probability vs. Instinct

The deck is handled as the central instrument of play: Riker shuffles and deals, O'Brien cuts and reshuffles, the cards are fanned, passed, and ultimately revealed to expose Riker's busted hand and Data's winning hand. The deck structures timing and information flow throughout the scene.

Before: Shuffled and held by Riker on the table, ready to deal.

After: Some cards discarded in folds; surviving cards shown face-up to reveal outcomes and then presumably collected or reshuffled for subsequent hands.

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S2E20 · The Emissary

Worf's Cold Raise — Quiet Assertion at the Table

The deck structures the game's rhythm: cards are dealt, folded, and revealed; Worf lays down his winning hand (full house), then collects and returns the cards to Data who shuffles and prepares the next deal before the emergency call intervenes.

Before: In play on the table, recently shuffled and being used for seven‑card stud.

After: Gathered by Data for reshuffle and redeal; tossed aside as players abandon the game to respond to the emergency.

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S2E20 · The Emissary

Poker Night Interrupted — From Raise to Red Alert

The deck is shuffled and dealt by Data to regulate the game; cards are revealed to resolve the hand (Worf's full house), then hastily thrown back onto the table when the emergency call interrupts play, stopping ritualized progression.

Before: In Data's hands being shuffled and dealt into active play; cards arranged for each player's seven‑card stud hand.

After: Cards are dumped onto the table mid‑hand as players spring to their feet, leaving the deal interrupted and cards scattered.

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S2E20 · The Emissary

Worf's Fifty — Klingons Never Bluff

The enterprise poker deck is shuffled, dealt, and used as the procedural focus of the game: Data deals with mechanical precision, cards are laid to resolve the central contest, then thrown aside when the Class Eleven call requires an immediate exit.

Before: In active use: shuffled and dealt by Data, cards distributed to players as part of seven‑card stud.

After: Cards are dumped onto the table in haste and left abandoned as the players stand and head for the door.

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