So, I finished making the
Timescape
expansion by
Azoic
. After a lot of research and messaging some of the creators of a lot of the different homebrews, I was finally able to make an expansion worthy of hitting the table without embarrassment.
For the Cards:
I have found the best way to make the cards is to use 65#
Linen Coverstock
for one side (I used it for the card backs) and 24#
Linen paper
for the other side (I used it on the face of the cards). This paper is textured and looks and feels very similar to the real cards once sprayed!
After printing them I used a glass with a light under it (light table) so I could line up the card backs and fronts. Then I would tape one side so it would open like a book.
Next, I opened it up and used spray Glue lightly-- I tried 3 kinds, Super 77,
Elmers
and some other brand....the Elmers worked best. After spraying it, I would carefully press it together and roll it out on a marble top with a marble rolling pin.
This stuff dries quick so it does not need to set long.
After it had dried I took a thin piece of sheet metal I cut to the width of an Azoic Talisman card as a guide and taped it to my metal ruler so all cards would be the same width. For some reason Azoic puts 7 cards per sheet but only 6 really fit (like in strange Eons). This created problems for the regular adventure cards. What I had to do was make card backs in strange Eons and glue the odd sized fronts to these. Therefore, The Timescape cards are slightly skinnier than regular Talisman cards. They are still the right length since I could manipulate the Adobe file to the correct length...but the paper is only so wide. So, Azoic, is it possible you could make your file available for Strange Eons so it would be easier to print? Since it is your original work, I wonder if you have reasoning for having the 7 card wide pdf file?
There are lines for cutting the cards, but using a guide creates a much more consistent cut!
Important: When cutting your cards, always use the BACKS as your visual. If the front is slightly off it will not be noticeable but the backs will be very noticeable.
After the cards had all been cut and inspected you can spray them with a matte finish. I used
this
. I also tried brushing on
Deft Gloss Clear Wood Finish
which was really nice and they shuffle better, but a pain in the butt....so I prefer the spray since I put all my cards in card sleeves anyway.
Now, these cards will be a little thicker than the original cards. If this concerns you, what you can do (this actually comes out super nice) is using 3 pieces of the 24# linen paper and gluing these together. It will be much closer in thickness than the other ones and have a better natural feel. But gluing 3 pieces of paper together is an added step....more work. You could probably use a regular sheet of 24# paper as the middle sheet after I have thought about it. Or better yet you could use 16# paper, since it won't be printed on, bleed-through will not be a problem. This should bring the cards EXTREMELY close to originals.
For the Board:
You need
this stuff
for taping your paper to the board. You also need and old game board you no longer want or some foamboard or similar.
I had the paper to cover the boards printed on 24# linen paper. This stuff looks very nice when mounted to the board.
Cut your boards to the proper size you want using a very sharp utility knife and put a piece of the book binding tape down the middle on one side where the board will fold in half. Using Spray glue carefully mount the printed paper onto the board.
Have it printed so you have overhang and can wrap the edges around the board you are using and use the book binding tape to mount it to the back of the board you are using. I glued thin rubber mat to the back of the board and covered the edge with the tape and paper so it looks very clean, almost like a real game board.
When it is all complete spray it down with the clear coat to prevent any flaking and wear.
For the character cards and Alternate endings:
I used regular
67# white coverstock
. I printed all the backs on one piece of paper and all the fronts on another piece.
After they had printed I lined them up on my light table and glued them together with Elmer's spray glue. My first runs when testing out this concept I used thin double stick tape--and this worked very well and is a cleaner, less messy alternative.
Again, I used a thin sheet metal guide cut to the appropriate width and length to cut the cards once they were glued together with an exacto knife and a metal ruler.
They look very nice once complete!
Tips:
- Always use new, sharp exacto blades for cutting cards and paper.
- The backs need to be cut and aligned perfectly but the fronts do not. For the most part all of my fronts looks great anyway (Except for the Adventure cards and spells for the main deck because the file is sized weird)
- You can use regular paper and coverstock but the linen stuff looks way nicer, is more durable and is textured. If you go to Staples they will print the files for you on this paper for a small up-charge.
- For rounding the corners, if you wish, it is easiest to use a VERY good, sharp pair of scissors and do it by hand. The corner rounders don't really work that well and the small size is hard to find.
