I’m officially part of the Azuki team.
Crazy.
I honestly never thought I would say those words.
I've been part of the Garden for almost five years now, and somewhere along the way, @Azuki became a much bigger part of my life than I ever expected.
I came into this community like a lot of us did. I collected, made memes, created edits and art, spent countless hours in Discord and on X, and just tried to find ways to contribute.
Over time, that turned into building.
BBB. Community events. @GRDNCaretakers. @TheGateIKZ. Countless tools and projects for the community.
I never had some grand plan for where any of it would lead. I just loved being part of the Garden and wanted to make cool things that added something to it.
Then earlier this year, I got the opportunity to start working with Azuki as a contractor, helping build the app and tournament software behind @AzukiTCG.
And now, that opportunity has turned into something I never imagined when I first joined this community.
I'm officially joining Azuki full-time as a Software Engineer.
What makes all of this even more surreal is how much Azuki has already given me along the way.
I've made lifelong friends here. I've traveled, competed, created things I'm incredibly proud of, and shared experiences with people from all over the world.
Most importantly, I met my fiancée, @calistawu, here.
Azuki quite literally changed my life.
And now I have the opportunity to help build its future as part of the team.
Somehow, my love for TCGs, building, creating, and this community all found their way to the same place. I couldn't have planned it if I tried.
I'm incredibly grateful to everyone who has been part of this journey. To @Zagabond, @JCM1117, @_Tomugi, @dgtlemissions, the entire @AzukiTCG team, and this community, thank you for the support, the trust, and the opportunity.
The Garden has given me more than I ever could have expected when I first joined.
Now I get to give back to it in a whole new way.
We keep building. ⛩️
Become an Azuki TCG judge and earn this exclusive stamped full-art Rei card.
Judges also receive full-art Ed and get paid to work premiere events.
Can you pass the test?
Find out: https://t.co/PQ8mZlkMZD
How We’re Building Azuki
I first encountered Pokémon through its cards.
I had just moved to America at 7 and barely spoke English. My neighbor Pablo showed me his Pokémon cards. I didn’t know any of the characters, but I was really drawn to the art. Later, watching those familiar characters come to life in the anime made me a lifelong fan. I collected the cards obsessively.
While writing this, I just remembered that Pablo actually tried to steal my Ninetales one time… but that’s a story for another day
Anyway, I think about this beginning a lot as we build Azuki.
Azuki began in 2022 with illustrated characters released as digital collectibles. What drew me in was the idea that art discovered online could be the beginning of a world. People chose these characters as their online identities, found friends, and built some dope things together.
Today, our main focus is the Azuki trading card game. After launching set 1 in North America, we’re expanding to Latin America and Europe with our second set, Fractured Domains, releasing November 20.
We’re also publishing the AZUKI manga. Arnold Tsang’s story follows Shao’s search for her sister and introduces the Garden, a magical world of relic hunters. Someone you first notice on a card can become a character whose story you want to follow.
The game and manga should deepen each other while standing on their own. You don’t need to own a digital collectible to enjoy either.
Our digital collections remain part of Azuki’s creative identity and community. The people who collected them helped make this work possible, and I want them to recognize themselves in what Azuki becomes.
My job is to keep the team focused and build a business that lets us keep improving the game and telling these stories for a very long time.
When Pablo first showed me those cards, I had no idea how much Pokémon would mean to me decades later. I hope someone discovering Azuki today gets to feel that, too.
PS- keep your Azuki portrait rares in sight. Don’t let a Pablo catch you slacking 😂
Rooting your opponent's entities and manipulating your top deck to play weapons. Azuki TCG's Game Director breaks down new strategies in the Earth and Lightning decks.
Water, Fire, Earth or Lightning: which will you choose?
Fractured Domains (AZK-02) releases November 20.
Imagine scrolling through some slabs and locating the actual one piece
I think @PSAcard just slid me the first auto cert for @AzukiTCG
Already could not feel more blessed that he even signed this for me, then this happens.
Am stunned and shocked, will not untap on next untap phase.
A closer look at the stamped Miharu card, illustrated by Azuki's Art Director Arnold Tsang.
Top 16 players at the NorCal Regional on December 5th earn this prize card and an invite to Azuki Invitational II.
Register now: https://t.co/afN72mEDG8
The "Tsukikage" was the first alt card I made for @AzukiTCG during q2. It was a neophyte sorta experience and I was humbled and got intimidated a lot since I've done a lot of art gigs esp for visual game dev but never for this type of tcg. Thankfully, Tomugi is such a great teacher!
I was told that this is one of the favorites among the batch prints over at the printers! The physical holo foil version looks unbelievable!
I'll be sharing the art process in the coming days.🫡
Still so proud of this piece! ⛩️🔥
My Yamada’s Little Helper card for @AzukiTCG is one of my proudest works and a dream come true.
It was such a wonderful learning experience, and I’m truly grateful to the Azuki team, the Garden, and everyone who supported this artwork. ❤️🔥✨
Finally revealed! My new artwork for @AzukiTCG, featuring Qingyue!
This scene shows her walking through the mystical water gate ⛩️🌊
Thank you so much for this wonderful opportunity.
I’m so grateful to share this artwork with you all 🙏✨
New artwork has been announced!🔥🔥🔥
I absolutely love her expression❤️🔥
I’m deeply grateful to the @AzukiTCG team for giving me such a wonderful opportunity once again!!!
Azuki TCG now has three regional leaderboards: North America, EU/UK and LATAM.
Compete against players in your region for exclusive prizing each season.
Update the app and confirm your country in the Rank tab.
Learn more: https://t.co/nbrw2n8jnF
I've been in the Azuki community for almost 5 years now, and I'm proud to call a lot of the artists here my friends.
It's so cool seeing where they started and where they are now. And now I get to play and work on a game with their art in it. Pretty wild.
The gameplay gets us hooked, but the art makes us feel something. Knowing the people behind it makes it even more special.
You can now search by artist in the @AzukiTCG gallery.
Go check out your favorites and show them some love.
!IKZ ⛩️❤️
The new Azuki TCG card gallery is live, including every card in Fractured Domains (AZK-02). Filter by set, promos, highest rarity, keyword, type and more.
Try it now: https://t.co/ROwtS6Fre2