Templates

Beginner · 5 min read

Starting from a blank canvas can be intimidating. Chitmunk includes 135+ built-in starter templates across 24 component sizes that give you a polished card layout to build on. Templates span a wide range of genres: Fantasy, Horror, Sci-Fi, Party, Strategy, Euro, Nature, Social Deduction, Humor, Narrative, and more. Each template is designed for a common board game card type and comes pre-wired with CSV data bindings so you can plug in your own data immediately.

Opening the Template Library

There are two ways to access templates:

• First launch: When you open Chitmunk for the first time (or create a new project), you are prompted to choose a starter template or start blank.
• Design Catalog: From the Game Home dashboard, browse the Design Catalog section in the sidebar. The Templates view shows all available starter templates filterable by component size and genre.

The template library opens in a modal window showing a grid of template previews. By default, templates are filtered to show those matching your current component size. Click All sizes to browse all 135+ templates regardless of size.

Available Templates

Chitmunk ships with 135+ starter templates covering 24 component sizes: from poker and bridge cards to tarot, hex tiles, player mats, standees, tuck boxes, booklets, boards, tokens, and more.

Templates are not limited to poker-sized cards. You will find templates for hex tiles (terrain and resource tiles), tarot cards (character portraits and story cards), bridge cards (event decks and action cards), and board layouts (player mats and game boards). The template picker filters to your current component size by default, so switching your component type shows the relevant options.

Here are a few examples of poker-sized templates:

• Stat Block: A classic RPG monster or character card with name, illustration area, stat icons, and a description box. Great for combat-focused games.
• RPG Item: An item card with a title bar, large illustration area, item type badge, and a rules text box. Works well for equipment, spells, and loot cards.
• Simple Frame: A minimal card with a decorative border, centered title, and body text. Versatile enough for event cards, action cards, or prompts.
• Text-Heavy: Maximizes readable space with a small title area and a large text body. Ideal for story cards, encounter descriptions, or rules reference cards.
• Portrait Card: Dominated by a large image area with a thin title stripe at the bottom. Good for character portraits, location cards, or art-forward designs.
• Split Layout: The card is divided into a top image half and a bottom text half. A balanced layout for cards that need both strong visuals and detailed text.
• Numbered List: Features a title and a numbered list of items or steps. Useful for recipe cards, quest objectives, or ability lists.
• Resource Card: Designed for resource or currency cards with a large central icon, a value display, and a name. Clean and iconic.

Applying a Template

1. Open the template library.
2. Click a template card to see a larger preview.
3. Click Use Template to apply it.

Customizing After Applying

Templates are not locked or special: once applied, every element is fully editable. You can:

• Change text: Click any text element and edit its content, font, size, color, and alignment.
• Replace images: Select an image element and upload your own artwork or generate AI art.
• Move and resize: Drag elements to new positions, resize them, or rotate them.
• Delete elements: Remove anything you do not need.
• Add elements: Add new text, images, shapes, and backgrounds to extend the layout.
• Change colors: Select elements and adjust their colors to match your game's visual identity.

Think of templates as a starting point, not a constraint. The goal is to save you the time of building a basic layout from scratch so you can focus on making it your own.

Templates and CSV Data Merge

All built-in templates include placeholder text that uses {{Column Name}} bindings. For example, a template might have text elements containing {{Name}}, {{Description}}, and {{Attack}}. When you import a CSV file with matching column names, these elements automatically populate with your data.

If your CSV columns have different names than the template expects, you can easily update the bindings:

1. Select the text element.
2. In the properties panel, edit the text content to replace the placeholder with your column name (e.g., change {{Name}} to {{Card Title}}).

See the CSV Data Merge guide for full details on template syntax and data bindings.

Changing Component Type

Templates are available for many different component sizes: poker, bridge, mini, tarot, hex, square, domino, jumbo, player mats, standees, tokens, boards, booklets, tuck boxes, and more. The template picker automatically filters to show templates matching your current component type. You can also change the component type after applying a template, click the component selector in the toolbar and choose a different size. Your design elements will be preserved, though you may need to reposition or resize some elements to fit the new dimensions.

Save Current as Template

If you have designed a card layout that you want to reuse across projects, you can save it as a custom template in the template library:

1. Open the template library from the Game Home dashboard or during new project creation.
2. Click the Save Current as Template button at the top of the library.
3. Enter a name for your template and click Save.

Your custom template appears alongside the built-in templates in the library. It captures the current card type's design, including all elements, styles, and CSV bindings. Custom templates are stored locally in your browser and are available across all your projects.

Next Steps

• CSV Data Merge: Connect your template to a spreadsheet to generate unique cards.
• AI Image Generation: Generate unique artwork for each card using AI.
• Custom Fonts: Upload your own fonts to customize the template's typography.