Machines of War Collector Set

Tanks • Battleships • Warplanes

The Machines of War Collector Set brings together three decisive forms of 20th-century military power: tanks, battleships and warplanes.

Each deck focuses on a different theatre of war. Tanks trace the evolution of armoured land warfare, from early experimental designs to heavily engineered machines built for breakthrough and defence. Battleships represent industrial scale at sea, where armour, artillery and range defined naval dominance for decades. Warplanes chart the development of aerial combat, where engineering competition reshaped reconnaissance, bombing and air power across successive conflicts.

Each deck is a collection of 54 carefully selected images, recording machines built under extreme pressure, where innovation moved quickly and design decisions carried immediate consequences. These are working technologies shaped by conflict, production demands and the realities of large-scale war.

Taken together, the set reflects how machines of war chart innovation under duress. Engineering decisions shaped strategy. Strategy shaped outcomes. Those outcomes shaped the lives of millions.

This is a collection for those drawn to detail: the mechanics of design, the logic of supply and the systems behind production and deployment. It reflects how wars are made possible through industry, planning and coordination as much as through combat.

Collecting brings these machines into a single framework. Each deck stands alone, with each subject adding to a wider collection of military history and engineering.

Explore each deck:
Tanks Playing Cards
Battleships Playing Cards
Warplanes Playing Cards

These are playing cards designed for the table and for the shelf. Play them with family and friends, or keep them as carefully made objects.

To learn more about the history, engineering and context behind these machines, visit the Bird Playing Cards blog.

If you are interested in starting or expanding your collection, explore the full range on our art playing cards page.

Add the Machines of War Collection to your set and continue building your collection of military history and engineering.