This blog includes affiliate links to products that I use or recommend. As an Amazon Affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Want to jump straight to the process? Jump to What I use or recommend to make cards or How to make print at home cards.
In this blog, I share how I make cards that look and feel almost as good as professional quality cards from my home workshop, using equipment that anyone can get access to and use.
I make cards like the ones shown above with the print at home toolkit I've put together - TTRPG Cards Made Easy. You can get access to print at home colored initiative cards for free by signing up to the DanDMadeEasy Newsletter. Custom cards, like for Dzunnun, Brunhilde and Wati (artist credit) in the image above, are in development - follow the Kickstarter page to stay up to date.
Quick navigation:
Why do I make cards? (the origin story)
I've always loved handling and shuffling cards - it just feels fun to me. It may be because of nostalgia – I played a fair share of Magic: The Gathering and Android: Netrunner in my adolescent and university years. Cards also play a heavy role in some of my favorite board games, including Dominion, Spirit Island, and Terraforming Mars.
I love TTRPGs - I've been hooked on roleplaying games in general ever since I first saw my cousin playing Baldur's Gate one Friday night, and when I first played tabletop during my university years, I found that it perfectly combined my passions for acting, expressing my creativity, and understanding and "gaming" systems - yeah, I'm what some may call a "power gamer".
I love making things at home. I love cross-stitching, making minis, and any form of craft, and one of the things I love most about crafting is having choice - I love it in board games, I love it in roleplaying games - this is why I love Dungeons & Dragons 3.5E and Pathfinder 1E and 2E - and I love it in the products I use.
Put all of that together, and that's what I love making custom print at home products that give others unparalleled choice in what they can create. You can currently see this best in my custom Spell Tome and D&D Character Journal.
A selection of print at home creations I've made
When I first played the Daggerheart beta playtest, where every character has a set of cards to represent almost every element of their character, including their ancestry, background, and each of their abilities, I was inspired to begin my quest to make it easier for the roleplaying community to create custom cards for their games.
What I use or recommend to make cards
You'll need a few things to make cards at home, and some optional things can help, too.
I've used almost everything on the list below myself, or it's a direct equivalent to something I do use. If I don't use it myself, I let you know why I recommend it.
Printer - Canon Maxify GX6050 (US - similar model) - ink tank printers like my Prisma have great print quality and are really economical - I've printed hundreds upon hundreds of full color pages, and only had to buy a single additional bottle of black ink for about £20! After about 18 months using Prisma as my main printer rather than my old HP Deskjet 2542, I think I'm close to paying off the upfront cost of the new printer in lower ink costs!
Paper/Card
Make sure you get the right paper size, and make sure you check your printer's specifications for max thickness!
I use 250 gsm paper. This weight gives a great card feel, especially after laminating cards. I'm in the UK, so I buy A4 paper in bulk from House of Card & Paper - I'm sure better quality options are out there, but I print a lot!
Cutting
My trusty old pair of scissors never fails - I'm sure you have a pair lying around!
Paper trimmer - Amazon Basics 3 in 1 laminator (sadly, only an A4 version is available). I use paper trimmers to save time, but I often use scissors for more precision with smaller items like cards or paper minis. If you want to primarily use a trimmer, I recommend getting one with a very clear guide marker that shows where the cut will take place. I've tried a few and they've never quite hit the mark for me, so I mostly rely on my scissors for the final cuts.
Laminating
Make sure you get tools for the right paper size!
Laminator - I use the Amazon Basics 3 in 1 laminator, which is full of functionality - as well as being a laminator, it includes a paper trimmer, hole punch and corner cutter! Sadly, a Letter version isn't available, but an Amazon Basics Letter Laminator is available.
Matt laminating pouches - for a real professional quality, much better for photos and videos, and so much better for cards than glossy pouches! You can even add text in pencil over matt laminate!
A4: I use Deskit A4 Matt Laminating Pouches. I was originally using Fellowes Matt Finish pouches, which may be slightly better quality and are cheaper per pack, but they're far more expensive per pouch, and I expect to laminate a lot of cards!
Letter: Scotch pouches have generally great reviews (untested - I don't have a Letter size laminator or card)
Glossy laminating pouches - cheaper than matte pouches, with a worse quality finish - I highly recommend that you use matte pouches above
A4: I used these as they're cheap - more premium versions are available, but if you want to increase quality, why not use matte pouches instead...
Letter: The Amazon Basics pouches are cheap and have great reviews - more premium versions are available, but if you want to increase quality, why not use matte pouches instead...
Holo effect
You can use holographic adhesive laminate to add a holo effect after you laminate your cards - I've used these ones. I'll update this as I try more - I'm currently eying these and will try them, as I like the broken glass effect.
Corner cutter (optional) - I have a few, one I got as part of the Amazon Basics 3 in 1 laminator (A4 only), I got a cheap one, and a more expensive Sunstar Kadomaru Pro. The latter two have a few sizes. I find the cheap one the most reliable to use.
Protecting, storing and displaying cards (optional) - I love Vault X products. They're great quality and they look great.
Card sleeves
I use Vault X exact fit for single sleeving - I got a 500 pack, because I'm going to be making a lot of cards!
I recommend Vault X soft for double sleeving or an easier fit - I got a 1000 pack, because above ;)
Deck boxes
My favorite deck box - Vault X Exo-Tec - magnetic lid, water resistant, looks and feels awesome and comes in different colors. I got the Electric Green version first because my Druid Dzunnun is getting a lot of attention at the moment. Toploading or sideloading versions are available. I went with toploading.
Great bulk option - Rayvol 5 Card Deck Box - 5 boxes in different colors, with 10 dividers total, so great if you have different sessions/campaigns!
Card Binders
My favorite 4 pocket binder - I use a Vault X 4 Pocket Zip Binder to store cards and other creations I use for my games in one place (I designed everything to fit in a standard card binder). I used to use a version with a strap, which is cheaper, but I don't want my creations to get wet, so I've paid for the added protection. This is a great alternative to a deck box for taking cards between games, as it makes it easier to find the card you're looking for.
My favorite 9 pocket binder - Vault X Exo-Tec 9 Pocket Zip Binder - water resistant, comes in different colors - I use this as a campaign book for my regular D&D games (work in progress)
I'm not a big fan of 12 pocket binders - I feel they're too wide
How to make print at home cards (the process)
Here's an overview of the process for making print at home cards. It's described in more detail in TTRPG Cards Made Easy products.
Jump to section:
Determine alignment (once per printer)
Prepare cards (custom cards only)
Determining double-sided alignment
What do you get when you take card sized images, place them in the same position on two pages in a document, and print the image on both sides? Usually, a mess!
This step ensures that printed card backs don't have white lines (left) and card back images remain centered
Most printers have an x offset. That is, they don't print horizontally on a sheet of paper at exactly the position the image is at in the corresponding document. That means that when you flip the paper over and print a second image in the "same position", you actually get a print that's not perfect.
With TTRPG Cards Made Easy, I provide different versions of card back image files for a range of alignments, and include a simple process for figuring out which alignment you should use. I also make card back images slightly bigger than card front images to account for minor alignment differences. While different printers have a different x offset, the same printer will print images pretty reliably with the same x offset, so you only need to follow this process once for each printer you use to print cards.
I print my cards with a +1 mm offset (right in the image above), where card back images are 1 mm higher on the back page than card front images are on the front page.
Preparing cards
This is the fun bit - taking your ideas and preparing custom cards to bring them to life. I plan to create different TTRPG Cards Made Easy products, including spell cards, ability cards, items cards, and even locations, I'm beginning with Character, Critter & Initiative cards.
Customizing cards for my D&D character Dzunnun and his preferred Wild Shape forms
In this step, you'll select the card fronts and card backs you want to use, and upload adornments to corresponding PDF files to customize your cards.
Each TTRPG Cards Made Easy product will include one or more unique card backs.
Standard card backs for Character, Critter & Initiative Cards - Player, Monster, Initiative, NPC - more may be made available as stretch goals on the Kickstarter
Each will also include one or more layouts, optimized for the types of cards they let you make. For Character, Critter & Initiative cards, there are 4 layouts. You can upload title banners for a card's nameplate at either the top or bottom of a card, and add banners, badges or icons to display all manner of identity, mechanical, and miscellaneous information such as class, profession, personality, level or CR, attacks, ability scores, and many more. At time of writing, there are currently over 5000 banners, so you have lots of choice!
You can make and print up to 8 cards per page.
The process works well with PDFs, but it would be quicker with a dedicated app. Hopefully, the Kickstarter will help fund development of an app that makes it even easier to make custom cards in the future.
Printing
When you print, make sure to configure your printer's settings appropriately, using the following or equivalent:
Paper Type: Card Stock
Print Quality: High
Paper Source: Rear Tray
Size: Actual Size
Print the card fronts, flip your paper on its long edge, and then print the card backs. With TTRPG Cards Made Easy, for each alignment, you can print any number between 1 and 8 card backs per page, so you can save on ink costs, so make sure you print the page with the right number of card backs.
We print using the rear tray because most printers can't print card stock in the cassette.
Printed card fronts for Dzunnun the Druid and his Wild Shape forms
Cutting and finishing
You have a lot of options for cutting and finishing cards. To keep things simple, I'll describe the approaches I use to make my cards. I use one of two approaches, one that's quick, and one that delivers pro-quality cards.
I select which approach to use depending on how I intend for the cards to be used:
I use the quick process for cards I don't intend to be handled during games (e.g. some cards I use in my campaign book)
I use the pro-quality process for cards I intend to be handled during games
Laminate (pro-quality cards only): After printing your cards, laminate them using matte laminating pouches without cutting them first.
Laminating tips:
I like to prop up my printed cards on both input and output ends of the laminator so the paper doesn't bend.
Make sure there's no debris in your laminating pouch before you laminate your cards.
Wait until the ready light on you laminator is lit before you laminate your cards.
Pass your cards through your laminator two or three times to make sure the laminate fuses well with the cards (make sure the ready light is lit each time).
I laminate my cards using an Amazon Basics 3-in-1 Laminator and Deskit A4 Matt Laminating Pouches (150 Micron). Make sure you get a laminator and pouches for your paper size.
We're using matte laminating pouches because this gives the best quality finish. As an added bonus, it makes it possible to add or update text on cards using a pencil and eraser.
Note: You can laminate your cards after you cut them instead. This may give a better quality finish in the end, at the expense of it being more awkward to laminate your cards, and being more likely cards end up stuck together. The cards I've made with matte laminate generally come out great even if I cut them after laminating them, so I go for simplicity and laminate them first.
Cut (both approaches): Cut your cards out with the front of the cards facing you (with TTRPG Cards Made Easy, card back images are slightly larger than card front images, so this will save you some time). I tend to just use scissors to cut my cards, but if you're confident using a paper trimmer, you can use one.
Cut corners (optional for both approaches): If you want to cut the corners on your cards, you can. I typically only do this for laminated cards that may be handled without being sleeved. I typically cut the corners on cards using the smallest cut setting (4 mm) on my corner cutter. Make sure your cards are firmly in the corner cutter before you cut them.
Sleeve (optional for both approaches, recommended for the simple approach): With your cards fully cut out, you can now sleeve them if you want to. If you're going with the simple approach and your cards aren't laminated, this can make it easy to shuffle them. Regardless of which approach you're using, it can also help protect your cards. I tend to sleeve cards that I make with the simple approach so it's easier to handle them if I want to. TTRPG Cards Made Easy cards are standard card size, 2.5" x 3.5", so make sure to get the right size sleeves. I prefer using exact fit card sleeves, but you may prefer looser fit ones.
Add text (both approaches if you have text to add to cards): There may be places to add text to your cards after you make them, for example blank title banners on colored initiative cards, or non-permanent info such as HP or AC on custom cards. If you left your cards un-sleeved, you can add text to your cards in pencil (even if they're laminated, since you're using matt laminate - this is not possible with glossy laminate). If you sleeved your cards, you can either add text using pencil on the cards themselves, or use a dry wipe marker to add text to the card sleeve.
You can add text to matte laminated cards in pencil and erase it with an eraser
Store/display your cards (optional for both approaches): To store or display your cards, consider using a deck box or card binder. I recommend using a deck box to store sets of cards that you expect to use as a pre-made deck, and a card binder to store other cards.
For example, when I'm playing in Adventure League games, I use a Vault X 4 Pocket Folder binder to store cards for my characters (custom cards for me, for the DM, and for the players), as well as info/initiative cards for the other players in the game, and for enemies.
The minimum kit I take to in-person games includes a Vault X 4 Pocket Folder Binder, in which I store info cards and corresponding 3D paper minis in the same colors. You can get both printable versions of cards and minis for free by signing up to the DanDMadeEasy Newsletter.
I'd use deck boxes to store set decks of cards for use in my games, such as monster, location, NPC, quest, or magic item oracles, vendor inventory decks, etc. Unfortunately, I don't have any of these to share images of yet, but I can't wait to bring them to my games!
I don't currently use deck boxes, but I plan to use them when I put pre-generated decks together, such as monster, NPC, location, and quest oracles. The deck box shown is a Vault X Exo-Tec Deck Box, which comes in a variety of colors and top-loading and side-loading variants.
Closing thoughts
If, 5 years ago, you'd told me I'd bring anything like TTRPG Cards Made Easy to the world, I wouldn't have believed you. I don't think I'd even have believed it's possible to make almost pro-quality cards at home.
But, a few years and many hours creating custom print at home creations for TTRPGs later, here I am. I say this not to brag, but to inspire. A few years ago my mindset switched. I decided to focus my attention on creating rather than consuming, and it's amazing what you can achieve when you make that simple switch.
I'm really excited to see how TTRPG Cards Made Easy can help adventurers bring more of their creativity to their games. If you are too, make sure to follow the TTRPG Cards Made Easy Kickstarter, and sign up to my newsletter for a bunch of free print at home creations, including colored initiative cards and matching 3D paper minis.
TTRPG Cards Made Easy: Characters, Critters & Initiative cards used for setting and tracking "mystery"/"hidden" initiative order
Commentaires