iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

I'm theorizing this style for key-art on spell cards. I can't paint 250 cards to full quality, but these took like 30minutes each and that feels reasonable. I think they'll need color but I kinda like the loose feel. #solodev #gamedev #charcoal #tcg #art #cardart #indiedev #noai #handmade #humanmade

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

A little experiment with a fairly unconventional art style for card-frame art. Probably not good enough as is, but its giving me some ideas. For the next playtest, it will do. #art #acrylic #pouredpaint #abstractart #cardart #cardgames #noai #humanmade #handmade #gamedev #solodev #indiedev

a specialized playing card for a card game featuring some physical poured paint art as the background

an acrylic poured painting with lots of white bubbles, teal streaks and pinks and purples mixed in

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

Oh no. This thing goes infinite with itself. Took a month to get the cards from the printer and I haven't even fully unpacked the box when I noticed this. 💀 Do you see it? #gamebalance #tcgs #gamedev #solodev #indiedev #cardgames #noai #ttrpgs #rpgs #homemade #handmade

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

Species cards are cooking (print guide included). These are for co-op / solo dungeon crawling. Next step is all the paper art. Front, back and "key art" (key art will fill that big blank area). In case you missed the joke here: Devils are Nimby's. #cardesign #ttrpgs #indiedev #solodev #tcgs

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

Roughly 40 hours for a single piece of card art. I've scrapped so many pieces of art over the years for this project, but this one stays. Player card back, full process. You can understand why I'm hostile to AI. #art #painting #noai #handmade #humanmade #cardart #tcgs #indiedev #solodev #gamedev

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

Full color cards for the first time on this project. Feels nice. Now I need to wrangle my friends to play. #cardart #cardgames #noai #indiedev #solodev #gamedev #prototype

A handful of playing cards with some displaying the front and others displaying the back.

Another handful of cards displaying the fronts and backs.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

Paper prototype arrived! It feels like Christmas! This is 4 copies of the player card library so I'll need to sort, split and sleeve them. Rulebook is small enough to fit in a deck box now and the custom dice are going to be seeing their first test run. #playtest #noai #gamedev #solodev #indiedev

A prototype card game arriving from the factory still in production packaging.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

Needed to spill over some rules text to the back of a specialty card...and found the perfect use for one of my old paintings! Waste not, want not...right? #art #watercolor #cardart #cardgames #gamedev #solodev #indiedev

Card back with a small blurb of rules text explaining the various levels of fatigue. Features a depressed goddess-like character with her hair turning to stone and her body becoming a galaxy.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

I still haven't nailed the "reflections reflecting reflections" part of this card back. Harder than I thought. #art #illustration #chrome #scifi #tentacles #skulls #watercolor #postercolor #cardart #indiedev #gamedev #solodev #cardgames #tcgs

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 14/05/2026

Watercolor with salt is one of those things that seeing it in person is always better. Believe it or not this too is for the card game. Colored backgrounds for card faces Physical art just hits different #art #watercolor #cardgames #indiedev #solodev #handmade #gamedev #noai #boardgames #abstract

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

Been working on this project for 8 years (learning as I go and too stubborn to quit) and in that time I've added Easter eggs to honor a few close friends into the game. I lost touch with a few and encountering the specific cards makes me feel sad, now. I miss 'em. Anyhow, cat tax. 😮‍💨

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 02/05/2026

Is there an easily recognizable symbol to represent "or"? I see the logic symbol "V" but i don't think that's widely recognizable. Been struggling to find a symbol I can use on a split card to show that you get to pick the top or bottom, not both. #math #logic #design #gamedesign #symbolism #gamedev

a prototype playing card in a protective sleeve. The card features two abilities the player can choose one or the other of.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

Is it the weekend yet? I'm tired, boss.

A grey cat sleeping on a blanket covered in cartoon cats.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

Tentacles are feeling maybe a bit too comic-ish but I'll reassess once all that blank canvas is covered. Putting big effort into this card back! #art #painting #cardart #tcgart #solodev #gameart #indiedev #scifi #fantasy #dungeonpunk #cyberpunk #design #skulls #tentacles #handmade #noai #humanmade

Skulls wrapped in metal tentacles that are super reflective chrome showing some of the blue sky in their reflection.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

Continuing that skull piece. Old school 80's chrome takes a long while. Recording the whole process so when I'm done I'll share that with you guys. It's important this card game is genuinely made by hand by a real human. #noai #art #skulls #synthwave #cardart #carddesign #indiedev #solodev #handmade

Old school chrome effect on a metallic tentacle wrapping itself around the top of a skull.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

A bit of a deviation from my card game but here is a puzzle toy I designed a while back. It's meant to be a relaxing experience like a jigsaw puzzle. The final version i still need to get cast but this early prototype had 12 images to solve (the final one has over 30!) #puzzles #desktoys #prototype

A pile of cubes with various designs creating pixel images

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 19/04/2026

Usually keep sketches separate from paintings, but this time I sketched directly on my aquabord; so this sketch will be gone as soon as I start painting. Saved here just for posterity. This is going to be a cardback! #art #sketch #handmade #skulls #gameart #cardgames #solodev #indiedev #gamedesign

A sketch of two skulls and metal tentacles coiling around them among a pile of bones.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

One piece of feedback I got was to unsplit my split cards. So that's what I did. Those new cards also got tiny modifiers if you match the element and need to give the card a little extra punch. #tcgs #cardgames #boardgames #indiedev #solodev #gamedev #homemade #gamedesign #carddesign #cardbattle

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

Took a small hiatus but I've been developing a multiplayer variant of the game. It's fairly clean as far as components go. All things considered I think I'm going to do some hand painted frame art before I print. Kind of tired of looking at black boxes. #indiedev #solodev #cardgames #tcgs #homebrew

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 03/09/2025

Newest Playtest is finally here! 9 precon decks and then all the monster cards. Testing a dry erase accordion board and some doodads. Now to recruit some players to break the game! #tcg #cardgames #solodev #indiedev #gamedev #gamedesign #carddesign #irlgames #ccg #playtesting #ttrpg #dnd #rpg #play

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 22/08/2025

In the quest for FEWER cards in my final product, I'm folding 140 split cards into a pile of 119 split cards. This means 3 things on the front and 1 big thing on the back. This might already be unreasonable. Won't be sure until i test them. #indiedev #solodev #tcgdev #gamedev #cardgames #carddesign

a blank playing card with multiplr fields and activated abilities on it.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 21/08/2025

So now we're in the "wake up, check my place in line, remain sad" part of development. Gave away my last print to a friend moving away so I have nothing in hand at the moment. That feels...odd. Like I'm naked or something. #boardgamedesign #playtesting #cardgamedesign #indiedev #solodev #gamedev

a screenshot of an "order status" receipt showing position is queue at 373.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 13/08/2025

A month since the last playtest print and tonight I'm ordering another with critical balance changes. But hey.. THIS ONE will be it. This time it's balanced and I can finally dedicate myself to all the art. Right?! Pic Unrelated. #playtest #indiedev #solodev #cardgames #boardgames #gamedev #tcg

A cat sunbathing in a similar colored cat bed on a shelf.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 07/08/2025

I'm on a warpath to slim down unnecessary cards/content from my game to save on printing costs and it makes me look at videogames with a pinch of ire. I wouldn't need to be doing this if I was making a video game! Pic unrelated #gamedesign #prototyping #gamedev #boardgames #solodev #indiedev #tcgs

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Reposted by George Lubinski

Cody R. @canthealz.com · 28/07/2025

Well said!!

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 29/07/2025

Solo playtesting today. Almost died a few times! A bigger challenge than I expected but really rewarding.

A large table with multiple cards and game pieces carefully laid out into groups and arranged for play.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 28/07/2025

First real group playtest done for this update. Group found many typos, but enjoyed playing. That's a win! Mechanics are solid. Testing continues but it's time to turn these sketches into full paintings. #playtest #cards #cardgames #indiedev #tcg #homebrew #ttrpg #handmade #solodev #gamedev #

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 24/07/2025

After about a year of working (on and off) on a new playtest update, I finally have something tangible in hand. Now to playtest and see how many tiny details I goofed up before dropping almost 300 bucks. Hah. #playtest #cardgames #indiedev #gamedesign #wip #solodev #deckbuilder #tcg #boardgames

A small pile of game supplies on a desk. Multiple stacks of playing cards in factory sealed paper. Plastic bags with multiple score pads and manuals.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 12/04/2025

Most major changes to my game are done on spreadsheets so I can't really post them to share. But .. I fixed a major math error today in the tarot card spreadsheet that I'm relieved I found before sending the game to print. Yay #cat #purr #happy #solodev #cardgames #boardgames #diy #indiedev #gamedev

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 03/04/2025

And another sketch for a card back. The "deck of fables" will look nice with this as a back. I'll add the borders and everything digitally. Want to get that new playtest version printed this week. #art #sketch #illustration #traditionalart #gamedev #indiedev #solodev #noai #handmade #cardgames

Quick Sketch of a king looking to the side

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 03/04/2025

I think this is a decent card back for a tarot deck. A sketch is appropriate for a test card. #art #sketch #irl #illustration #fate #tarotart #tarot #gamedev #solodev #indiedev #conceptart

A pencil illustration of fate cutting someone's string.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

Woops forgot a whole game mechanic from the tarot card. Your character needs to sleep! So what happens when they do?! Spent the morning tweaking font sizes, colors and box layout. Overall happy for now #art #design #carddesign #tarot #tarotart #gamedev #solodev #indiedev #noai #boardgames #cardgames

a tarot card face featuring multiple game mechanics include sketches of a bird, a koi fish and a pair of hands unsheathing a katana.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 30/03/2025

Cleaned up last night's new design. This feels much more crisp. I've only finished 22/78 item sketches, though. So this Sapphire ring has a blank box. Just means I'll be sketching a lot more very very soon #art #design #gamedev #indiedev #solodev #cardgames #tcgs #tarotcards #tarot #games #irl #noAI

two example tarot card faces featuring multiple randomized game mechanics mixed in along with various animals and a sketch of a laser rifle.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 30/03/2025

Whole game is built around these tarot cards. a full 78 card deck is included. Tons of game systems are hooked here. Animal art is temporary as it will be replaced with proper tarot art, but they are needed for testing. Decent first pass? #art #design #gamedev #solodev #indiedev #tarot #cardgames

three example faces for tarot card design that hook multiple gameplay mechanics inside. black and white first design for use with playtesting.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 29/03/2025

I wanted to put off the tinkering but I just had to fix it. I think this layout is decent for class cards. You collect one of these each time you level up (up to a max of 9). There are 100 of them. 9 classes with 9 levels and 27 multiclasses. #art #design #gamedev #indiegamedev #solodev #cardgames

three card faces for "class" based cards. The images are in black and white and contain information for 3 different classes. Two of which are starter level 1 classes and one which is a multiclass option at level 5.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 28/03/2025

Interesting challenge this card. Class cards have a boat load of information on them and that doesn't leave much room for them to look pretty. This is functional enough to be used in the next playtest. I'll need to do some work later to clean it up. #gamedev #indiedev #cardgames #design #solodev

a rudimentary playing card face showing all of the necessary stats for the RPG class "Artificer".

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 26/03/2025

...or maybe its better with the icons tucked in? The tweaking never ends, i swear. This is why its taken me years to finish this game. #art #design #gamedev #indiedev #details #cardgames #tcgs #rpgs #solodev

a screenshot of a playing card face for an RPG card game.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 26/03/2025

And now player cards are getting cleaned up. Sad I can't keep the old hand drawn frames but I'll just need to make new ones. New layout should be easier to read / lighter on the visual clutter. Game has a lot of text, so I'm working around that. #art #design #indiedev #gamedev #solodev #cardgames

two image files comparing the face of a playing card. To the left an older version with a hand drawn frame and on the right a newer frame that is not hand draw, yet.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 26/03/2025

New layout design for GM cards. Every card covers 3 monster levels and 3 monster rarities. Trying to make a complex card appear much simpler here. Left is old. Right is new. Once it plays nice in hand I'll hand draw/paint a proper card frame. #cardgames #art #design #indiedev #gamedev #boardgames

two example card faces which cover 9 options on one card.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 23/03/2025

Today's doodle went a little harder than I planned. Last sketch for the game's tarot deck. Playtest quality, still. #art #sketch #doodle #mythology #folklore #spirits #dragons #gamedev #indiedev

Pencil paper and eraser featuring a sketch of an Asian style dragon or spirit

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

Happy Valentine's Day, bluesky. Here, have a bunny! 🤗 #watercolor #art #handpainted #handmade #irl #Valentine's

A watercolor painting of a bunny rabbit.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 26/01/2025

Wanted to share what it would cost to have my card game printed. In mass production this cost can be halved or maybe a bit more ... but it looks like it won't be cheap no matter what. This is part of the design process when our hearts break. #gamdev #boardgames #cardgames #ttrpg #indiedev #homebrew

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 11/01/2025

Starting the year off with a little red goblin.

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George Lubinski @perfectpencil.bsky.social · 08/12/2024

A particularly bright toy for the next #dnd season. Programmable lights too. Wild stuff. #ttrpg #dice #bling

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