Customized tokens via AI generated images – between nightmare fuel and fantastic images

Hands down: I have no talent for art. However, I do love tokens. Customized Tokens especially. I tried to make some tokens with Paint 3D, but the outcome was never quiet satisfying. Recently I stumbled upon the topic of AI generated images and tried to use the program ‘Stable Diffusion’ [1]. I must say, I was surprised how good some results were. I decided to share my experience in the following article.

AI generated images translate words or sentences into images. Basically, you need to construct a syntax which translates to a picture you desire. The software I used was Stable Diffusion. Figuring out how to shape the picture might take some time, but with a little practice you’ll get the hang of it. My first few images really were nightmare fuel [2], but with time and practice I found some really fantastic images.

If you are interested, I recommend just go for it. There are several software tools for free, a quick web search provides you with plenty of alternatives.

Let’s use an example. You decided to play a Cat tribal deck with Cat Ninja Scout (NDR-062). You dislike the official tokens and commissioning art is quite expensive. So you take a shot at AI image generation.

Abb1. Interface Stable Diffusion with syntax: “tiger + ninja suit, dark lighting painted like andy warhol”

Not every picture is a home run, but after a few iterations you might get a decent result. If you are disappointed with the direction, you can add or alter words just as you please. Eventually you end up with something cool and unique.

Abb. 2 : Stable Diffusion – syntax: “tiger + ninja suit, dark lighting painted like andy warhol”

The first syntax is decent, however maybe another art style suits your expectations better. Note that the algorithm sometimes just ignores words. If you are going with ‘painted like xy’ just might end up with the modified version of a very famous painting.

Abb. 3: Stable Diffusion – syntax: “tiger ninja suit, dark lighting painted like franz marc”

Making tokens out of those cards is actually quite easy. Just use a search engine to find a print company in your country that does individualized cards with the format 63 mm x 88 mm. I found a company in Hamburg that prints cards on front and back as playing cards in the given format. This is how it could look like:

Abb. 4/5 – Token without/with text [3]

And that’s it. It is really that simple. To give you an idea on how to get started, I will add several images with the syntax I used [4]. Those syntaxes were really a trail and error approach. Don’t be disappointed if the first few trails lead to unsuited pictures.

If you have further questions or cool AI Images you created yourself hit me up on discord (StreetkidND#3601), or comment this article.

Heiko

Abb. 6 Stable Diffusion – syntax: “frog + business suit painted like caspar david friedrich”

Abb. 7 Stable Diffusion – syntax: “pikachu eating falafel at a german restaurant in expressionist style”

Abb. 8 Stable Diffusion – syntax: “squirrel sleeping, vulcano erruption background, painted like hokusai”

Abb. 9: Stable Diffusion – syntax: “two vampires kissing under an umbrella at the beach with sunglasses and a basket full of avocados, at night, anime style”