Here is the artwork I illustrated for the Azuki TCG! 🎴✨
Illustrating for a TCG has been one of my dreams since I started my artistic journey!!! I'm incredibly grateful to Azuki for making this dream come true.✨✨
Thank you so much for this beautiful opportunity!
#AzukiTCG
I’m so happy to reveal my artwork for @AzukiTCG ⛩️
I drew a scene of Lady Emberheart casting a spell 🔥✨
I had always hoped to draw artwork for Azuki TCG one day. It finally came true 🙏🏻❤️🔥
More amazing artwork is coming soon 🤍
Azuki TCG is now stocked through PHD Games and GTS Distribution. These two distributors put Magic, Pokémon, One Piece, and other major TCGs on shelves across the US.
Want us at your shop on launch day? Tell your shop to preorder through PHD or GTS.
A BTS look at the hand drawn art of the Matsuri IKZ promo card art - illustrated by Arnold Tsang (@steamboy33).
Every card in the Azuki TCG is hand drawn by artists.
we r taking the @AzukiTCG competitive scene very cereally, meaning lit tournaments with sick prize cards (like the top 8 shao we made b4)
we'll make a more official post once all the details r locked in. the prizing will consist of the $100k we previously committed + prize cards + sealed products. but tentative competitive roadmap plan is:
- a number of regionals this year with an invitational tournament and nationals next year. the first regionals will be with @CoreTCG later this year
- season end rewards for winning-est and more active players (u can find the leaderboard is in app) will be done after nationals next year. basically we want to reward ppl who play a lot
Announcing NieR:Orchestra Concert 12026 [ YoRHa ]
An immersive performance bringing together a full orchestra and chorus led by Maestro Eric Roth, NieR vocalists J’Nique Nicole and Emi Evans, stunning visuals on a giant screen, and a new narrated story: https://t.co/8im2MADkxq
Is core stock essential for TCG production?
People who have a familiarity with card manufacturing may know the term 'black core.' Actually there's all kinds - blue core, purple core, yellow core. You can observe if a card has a core if you tear it on a bias as depicted in this photo. If you see a small interior colored line in the paper - that's a core. But what is its purpose? And what is it?
A core is a dyed adhesive that the mill or a converter adds to the interior of the paper to change its properties. Some benefits of a core are:
- It creates a light block barrier, making the cards highly opaque
- It accentuates the cards rigidity, helping with snap and shuffle. The adhesive layer helps to pull back the card to the original shape so it doesn't stay bent
Critically - cores can increase rigidity of thin substrates. MTG and Pokemon cards are quite thin, but the core helps them retain their shape and snap despite this thinness.
So if you're a TCG brand is core stock essential? In this Corndog's opinion: NO. And there's actually quite a few benefits from staying away from core stock:
- Core stock is thin, again like MTG or Pokemon. Many consumers associate thick, substantial cards with a premium experience, and core stock cannot be too thick.
- Simply choosing a thicker stock addresses the performance issues naturally. Thicker substrates with long grain fibers already have sufficient snap and taber.
- There are only 3 mills globally that specialize in core stock production. A new customer can expect to wait 18 months for their order due to high interest in the TCG market, and it's extremely expensive with high minimums.
Indeed - because what I believe is all the trouble with core stock, the market preference shifting to thicker more premium cards, and issues obtaining it some of the greatest / most popular new TCGs on the market like the Gundam Card Game don't have it, and the fans and players don't seem to miss it at all.
Depicted below: non-core stock (left - MYA Cards, Elestrals). core stock (right - Pokemon, Ward TCG)
Presale goes live in 1 hour.
As the sale hits milestones, exclusive promo cards unlock and are added to every order. Collect all 4!
https://t.co/00gbXvLPCA
The first official set of Azuki TCG goes on presale tomorrow at 10am PT.
Look for the Shao portrait rare, illustrated by @steamboy33.
https://t.co/R5NMwqt7sq
It’s hard to put into words how incredible it is to witness this piece of art come to life from the ground up. The elegance, simplicity, and aura of @steamboy33 art never fail to inspire me. I can’t wait for people to pull this card and see it in its full glory!!
People always asked who my favorite Overwatch hero was. I'd say "I love playing Pharah" or "I like drawing Genji." The truth is, it's always been Tracer - one of the earliest characters I designed, and the foundation for everything that followed.
I see Shao the same way.
Tracer embodies the spirit of Overwatch: bright, hopeful, heroic. She became the visual DNA of the world: electric orange, sleek white, futuristic grey. Shao embodies the spirit of Azuki: bold, sharp, elegant. She defines its visual identity: punchy red, striking black and white.
But Shao is more than just aesthetics - there's a whole story we haven't explored yet. One I've been working hard on and am eager to share soon.
I still remember designing Shao in our PFP editor over 4 years ago and bringing her to life in our first announcement trailer. It felt right for her to be the first Portrait Rare in the Azuki TCG.
When @_Tomugi first came to me about creating the most sought-after card in Azuki TCG, it felt daunting. We wanted something unmistakably ours - the kind of card where, like the manga rare in One Piece TCG, you instantly know what it is.
We set out to hit 3 things:
Stand out among the best TCG rares
Feel unmistakably Azuki
Look awesome
Early concepts didn't quite land, especially on the second point. How can we make it uniquely Azuki? So we worked with @Zagabond to find an idea that brought us back to our roots: the PFP.
Azuki was born from a collection of PFPs, and what better to represent our identity than the thing that gave us our identity in the first place? But this wasn't about dropping an OG PFP onto a card. It had to feel intentional and crafted.
The OG collection used bold lines and simple colors to pop at a small PFP scale. With TCG, we're still working small, but we have more to play with in terms of materials and finish. We set out to create a holofoil treatment that feels uniquely ours - something you don't typically see in other TCGs.
If you've seen the digital version of the Shao Portrait Rare on https://t.co/ZSyeZdHCji, you'll notice a holographic pattern layered across the entire card. We call this the "Red Bean Soup" pattern. It represents the in-between void that characters pass through when traveling between gates in the Garden - something we'll explore further in the Azuki manga.
It was important to us that this wasn't just visual, but rooted in the story itself.
I'm excited to share this new expression of Shao with the world. She's such an important character to me and to Azuki. More of her story is coming soon.
AZUKI TCG GIVEAWAY ⛩️🔥
To enter:
1. Follow @AzukiTCG and @JCM1117
2. Like and retweet 😊
3. Comment ur fave azuki tcg card
(card gallery on https://t.co/REh4e2qHbb)
Drawing on 3/19. 8 different winners; winners must respond within 24 hrs. Will check for retweet and follow!
sign-ups are live for tuesday night locals at the azuki office
Entry is $10. Prizing will be based on attendance, capped at 16 players, going up to 2.5 alpha boxes worth of boosters.
Proxy is legal until official set 1 release.
Participation and winning will count towards the end of season rewards (there is a leaderboard in app)