AI Image Generation
Chitmunk generates AI card art directly in the editor. Write a prompt, pick a size, and the image drops onto your canvas. Rare includes 100 credits per month; Epic 500. The 7-day free trial includes Rare credits, so you can try it before subscribing. Prompts can include {{Column Name}} tokens to generate unique art per CSV row in a single batch — handy when you need 60 monster portraits from one spreadsheet. This guide covers writing prompts that work, sizing for card art slots, CSV-aware batch generation, and managing your credit budget so you don't burn the month's allowance on one re-roll.
Under the hood: AI art is powered by FLUX (Black Forest Labs), running on Cloudflare Workers AI.
Your Illustration Budget
Each subscription tier includes a monthly illustration budget. One AI illustration equals one card-sized image at 1024 × 1024 pixels — the most common size for print-quality card art.
| Tier | Illustrations / month | What that means |
|---|---|---|
| Rare | ~20 (100 credits/mo) | Illustrate a small deck or iterate on a few hero cards |
| Epic | ~100 (500 credits/mo) | Illustrate a complete deck with room to iterate |
A typical card game has 50–150 unique cards. Even if you generate 3–5 versions of each card to find the perfect look, a Rare subscription covers several complete games per month.
Your illustration budget resets at the start of each billing cycle. Unused illustrations do not roll over.
Image Sizes
Smaller images use less of your budget; larger images use more. The budget is measured internally in credits, and one card-sized illustration (1024 × 1024) is the reference point.
| Image size | Relative cost | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| 512 × 512 | ¼ of a standard illustration | Quick drafts, thumbnails, exploring prompt ideas |
| 768 × 768 | ¾ of a standard illustration | Smaller card components, tokens, icons |
| 1024 × 1024 | 1 illustration (reference size) | Standard card art at print quality |
| 1536 × 1536 | ~2.25 illustrations | Large cards, box art, detailed scenes |
| 2048 × 2048 | 4 illustrations | Maximum quality — game boards, posters |
Tip: Start with 512 × 512 drafts to experiment with prompts. Once you find a look you like, regenerate at full size. This lets you iterate quickly without using up your budget.
Getting Started
To generate your first AI illustration:
- Open the AI generator: Click the AI Image button in the tool strip to add a new placeholder and open the Acorn Cauldron, or select an existing image element and click Generate with AI in the Properties panel (right-clicking the element and choosing Generate AI Image works too).
- Write a prompt: Describe the image you want. Be specific about the subject, style, and mood.
- Brew: Click the Brew button. The illustration appears on your canvas when complete.
If you open the generator from an existing image element, the finished image is placed directly into that element.
Writing Good Prompts
The prompt is a text description of the image you want the AI to create. Be specific about the subject, style, and mood:
A fierce red dragon perched on a rocky cliff, fantasy illustration, dramatic lighting, detailed scales, dark stormy sky backgroundTips for better results:
- Be specific: "A knight in silver armor holding a glowing sword" works better than "a knight."
- Include style keywords: "digital painting," "fantasy illustration," "pixel art," or "watercolor" guide the artistic style.
- Describe the background: Mention what is behind the subject to avoid random or cluttered backgrounds.
- Keep it consistent: Use the same style keywords across all cards in a deck for a cohesive look.
CSV-Aware Prompts
This is where AI generation becomes truly powerful. If you have spreadsheet data loaded, you can use template syntax in your prompts — the same {{Column Name}} syntax used in text elements.
A {{Type}} creature called {{Name}}, fantasy card game illustration, detailed, vibrant colorsWith your data, this prompt generates unique art for every card automatically:
- "A Dragon creature called Fire Drake..." for the first row
- "A Construct creature called Stone Golem..." for the second row
- "A Rogue creature called Shadow Thief..." for the third row
The more specific your prompt is to each card, the better the results. Use multiple columns to give the AI rich context.
Batch Generation
When you have spreadsheet data loaded, click Brew and Chitmunk generates art for every row in one batch, in sequence, with no pausing between cards.
While It Runs
A progress bar shows which card is generating (e.g. "12 / 60") along with its name. Click Cancel at any time to stop — cards already generated are kept, the rest are simply skipped.
Gallery View
When the batch finishes, the Gallery shows every generated image in a grid. Review the results at a glance, then either Accept All to apply them to their cards, or select specific cards and click Regenerate Selected to re-roll just those without re-running the entire batch.
Best Practices
- Draft small, finalize big: Generate at 512 × 512 to iterate on prompts, then regenerate your final picks at 1024 × 1024 or larger.
- Check a few cards before you commit to the whole deck: AI results vary — brew one important card first, and use Regenerate Selected in the Gallery to redo any card that didn't land.
- Leverage your spreadsheet data: Use multiple CSV columns in a single prompt for contextually rich, unique art per card.
- Save your best prompts: Once you find a style that works, keep those style keywords consistent across your entire deck.
Tip: AI-generated images are stored in your browser just like uploaded images. They persist across sessions and are included when you export or save to the cloud.