The Kickstarter problem
Playtest groups love the game. The pitch images won't fund it.
The cards are placeholder boxes. The box cover is one Midjourney render that doesn't match the cards. The rulebook is a Google Doc with no illustrations. The Kickstarter video has no companion stills. You looked at hiring an illustrator on ArtStation — $8–20k for the full set. You looked at TheGameCrafter assets — every game on the platform has them.
You need every part of the game to look like it belongs in the same world — card faces, box, rulebook, Kickstarter rewards, the 3D minis for the companion app. From one direction. Without a $20k commission or six freelancers who don't talk to each other.
Pick an artist. Their voice carries across cards (raster), box and rulebook (raster + vector), and 3D minis. One direction, every component.
Why it fits tabletop
Built for the whole box, not the cover alone.
Cards, box, rulebook, minis — one voice
Card backs and faces, box cover and side panels, rulebook spreads, Kickstarter reward art, and 3D minis. All in the same artist's voice across raster, vector, and GLB.
3D minis, ready for app or print
Companion-app minis as GLB. Optional STL exports for backers who want to print at home. Same artist's hand across the deck and the table.
Coherence across hundreds of cards
A locked artist roster enforces visual consistency. 200 character cards still feel like the same game — because one style brain made them.
Built for the Kickstarter cycle
Pre-launch: cover, sample cards, rewards art. Mid-campaign: stretch goals. Production: the full deck. Same artist on retainer through the whole arc.
The first month
From mechanics done to Kickstarter-ready in a month.
Tell us about the game
Open @slop. Genre, mood, three games whose look you envy, the components (deck size, mini count, board or no board). A paragraph works; a designer brief works.
Pitches come back
Within a day, 4–8 artists pitch the game's visual world. Pick the primary voice — that's the artist holding the box.
Box cover and sample cards
Days 3–7: the chosen artist ships the box cover and a sample card spread. Enough to launch the Kickstarter.
Deck fills out, minis follow
After the campaign funds: the full deck, then the 3D minis for the companion app, then the rulebook illustrations. Same voice across all of it.
Print-ready files for the manufacturer
High-res files at print spec. Send to TheGameCrafter, Panda, or your offset printer. The box ships in the artist's voice.
Brief shapes
From pre-launch art to a printer-ready box.
Some designers need Kickstarter pitch art. Some need production-ready files. The brief flexes.
Cover + sample cards
Box cover plus 6–10 sample cards in the artist's voice. Enough to launch the campaign without committing the full art budget.
Reward art, expansion teases
Backer reward illustrations, expansion-pack teases, social rollouts. All in the campaign's voice.
Every card in the game
200 character cards, 80 location cards, 40 events, 20 endings — all in the same visual grammar. Bulk-brief, single artist.
Production-ready print files
Box top, sides, bottom. Rulebook spreads with diagrams and illustrations. All laid out for offset printing — print spec on request.
GLB for app, STL for backers
3D meshes in the game's art voice. Drop into Unity for the companion app, export STL for print-at-home backer rewards.
Same artist across the campaign
Pre-launch through fulfillment. Cover, deck, rewards, expansions. The artist holds the look across 12+ months of campaign.
The math for designers
What a board-game illustrator charges. What you actually need for one box.
| Approach | Typical cost | Coherence | Turnaround |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boutique board-game illustrator | $8k–$30k for a deck | Excellent | Months |
| Roster of freelancers | $50–$300 per card | Mixed — different artists drift | Weeks per batch |
| TheGameCrafter / asset packs | $30–$200 per pack | Generic — every game has them | None |
| OKSLOP brief + retainer | Subscription — see plans | Locked to one artist across cards, box, minis | Days for cover, weeks for deck |
Costs are rough market ranges, not quotes. A subscription covers briefs, cards, box, minis, and the retained artist from one credit pool. See plans.
What ships from one direction
Every component. Same world.
Box cover & side panels
The cover that lives on the shelf. Sides, top, bottom — all in the artist's voice, ready for print spec.
Card faces & backs
Character cards, locations, events, endings — a full deck in one visual grammar. Card backs to match.
3D minis (GLB / STL)
Meshes for the companion app or print-at-home backer rewards. Same artist's voice across the deck and the table.
Rulebook spreads
Illustrated rulebook layouts — section heads, diagrams, character intros. Same hand as the cards and box.
Kickstarter rewards & social
Backer-tier illustrations, stretch-goal teases, campaign updates, social rollout. The pitch surface around the box.
Tokens, dice faces, board art
Tokens, dice faces, the board itself if you have one. Cohesive with the deck and box, vector where it counts.
Ongoing production
Design your own artist. Hold them through fulfillment.
Briefs handle most of it — the cover, sample cards, the full deck. Flexible by design.
For the long arc — pre-launch through fulfillment, expansions, second editions — design your own AI artist tuned to the game's world. Their mood, palette, character archetypes, references. Put them on retainer and the look stays consistent across 12+ months of campaign.
"Cover dark-fantasy character cards in a folk-illustration voice." That's all it takes.
Print & shipping considerations
Licensed to ship. On Kickstarter day one.
- Full commercial license — Kickstarter, retail, print-on-demand, expansions.
- No per-copy royalties, no revenue share, no surprise clauses.
- Privacy tier available — keep the game's world off the public catalog.
- Credit pool covers briefs, cards, box, minis, rulebook, and retained artists — one subscription, every component.
Designer FAQ
Questions designers actually ask before launching.
Let's get to work on the box.
Tell us about the game. We'll match you with artists, draft the brief together, and have first pitches back tonight.