The Art of Trading Card Design in Inkscape

[@diddlydude30]

It's amazing just watching this card being made from nothing. I wish I could draw card templates like this.

[@ShardTCG]

Inkscape is a great program to do it with 👍

[@diddlydude30]

Great ideas in this one. The symbols on the orbs look really good. The textures you've made from scratch are great details to add to the trading card.

[@ShardTCG]

Attention to detail is where it counts. Thanks.

[@patknez]

Thank you very much for this tutorial and the breakdown. Working on a template for my son without illustrator and just photoshop was a challenge and I really benefited from your knowledge.

[@ShardTCG]

I'm glad you found it useful. Also, it is awesome that you and your son have a fun project together. Good luck making great memories with each other.

[@unleashedtcgs]

Now this is a good thumbnail

[@ShardTCG]

Thank you. I made 3 versions of this thumbnail and I am FINALLY happy with it.

[@unleashedtcgs]

Yeah it's good! @@ShardTCG

[@MadsRosenlund-ym5kp]

Thank you so much. That is so cool!

[@ShardTCG]

Thanks. I hope it helps.

[@deadlessdoggy4914]

I'll have to give Inkscape a try. I used to use the paint program and change the image properties to make the TCG backs for fun but seeing how it's really done, I'm honestly inspired to have another go at it. It's an amazing design and it's very informative.

[@ShardTCG]

Glad to hear it. Give it another go. I've never looked back since I got inkscape.

[@YavuzBavuz]

Very cool and easy to follow, thanks for the info!

[@Sol-Gem]

You are the reason I keep rethinking my designs. Round 4 of redesign incoming! Thank you for all the inspiration and ideas!

[@ShardTCG]

Haha, I best stop making videos till you get your final design settled. Thank you for the praise.

[@Sol-Gem]

@@ShardTCG I'd appreciate it if you uploaded 10 more today before I dive into the drawing board again!!! lol

[@stevenswanson9519]

Thanks for the tutorial I learned a lot. Just an addition: Inkscape has a "Path effects" tab that has a mirror function, could be faster than the manual way.

[@ShardTCG]

Yeah, I've seen this on a video ages ago. I couldn't remember how to do it. Trust me to be awkward 😅 I'll have to look it up again, thank you.

[@finnyfax2115]

Now thats a cool card design.

[@ShardTCG]

Thanks.

[@Xammblu_Games]

Hello! Do you know what version of Inkscape you used for this recording? I can't find that Snap to Border icon anywhere.. Ty for the great content!

[@ShardTCG]

I think my version is currently 1.0.1. I could be wrong, though. Hope this helps.

[@Xammblu_Games]

@@ShardTCG Perfect! It sure does. I tried 1.3 and 1.2, time to go back a little further!

[@nathant29]

I'm so sad I make the cards onto the actual card and I don't do it online

[@ShardTCG]

And yet you came to watch the video anyway. I appreciate it.

[@Svefred2]

Thank you for the video! Why do you use 825/1125 px? I thought it was 822/1122 px for a standard sized card?

[@ShardTCG]

These are the gamecrafter size guide for uploading to their site.

[@C.T.Michael]

I've always wanted to make a TCG but I don't t have the time to make the art for each card. Should I just use ai?

[@ShardTCG]

There is a stigma associated with AI art. There is nothing stopping you from using that art, but just know that you will likely attract some unwanted company.

[@C.T.Michael]

@ShardTCG Yeah, that's true. I feel like it would take a huge weight off my shoulders, allowing me to focus on developing the rules and working on the balancing of the game.

[@ShardTCG]

Yes, definitely focus on those things. But aesthetics do matter, and it is a balancing act. Focus on the rules and mechanics of your game first, then worry about the art.

[@thecondemnedccg7531]

Oooh...never, ever, ever put green on top of red. I had a guy at my prerelease who was colorblind. If I had my cards set up like yours, he wouldn't have been able to play. Beyond that, you've got good design concepts here. I use GIMP for making my card frames, and I do a lot of similar things. One thing that I do for lining up areas of the card is set up guides around the cut line, the safe zone, and the 50% vertical and horizontal. I can orient a lot around those parameters. One other important point to mention is the importance of balancing rules text with card art, and making sure that both are legible. It's very easy to have fantastic art but almost unreadable cards, a la Yu-Gi-Oh. But if you swing too far in the other direction, you have this wall of text on the card and no space for art. I opted for a roughly 40-40 split for both, with space above and below each field. This gave me room for a middle row, card name, as well as copyright/artist credit at the bottom. It's a good general rule of thumb, but feel free to adjust as needed for your game.

[@ShardTCG]

Love this, thank you. I just thought of red and green as complementary colours when it comes to creature designs. I completely forgot about colour blindness. Fortunately, I changed the colour of the digits back to a safer combination on the SVG download.

[@unleashedtcgs]

WAIT NOOO YOU ARE IN THE OTHER CORNER

[@ShardTCG]

I had to get out of the way of the tabs

[@UndergrowthTCG]

Excellent video as always! Iv just posted a new video on my tcg I'd love it if you'd check it out if you have time, especially as this video is about designing a template, as I show off the final cards templates for mine all custom made by myself 😊😊

[@ShardTCG]

Brilliant. I'll check it out when I'm free. I'm just watching TV with the wife, right now.