Ticket to Ride Crafting Guide For “The Emerald City” Expansion. This instruction manual is specifially designed to give step-by-step instructions and tips for crafting a home-made professional-quality version of the fan-made Ticket to Ride™ expansion The Emerald City
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This instruction manual is specifically designed to give step-by-step instructions and tips for crafting a home-made professional-quality version of the fan-made Ticket to Ride™ expansion The Emerald City.
Many of the tips and techniques shown here may also be applied to other projects. Please send all queries to [email protected]
PRINT...the map and box artwork on large-format sheets of paper* (see below)....the token sheet on an 8 1/2” x 11” sheet of heavy paper or sticker paper....the rule booklet front and back on 1 sheet of glossy A3 or 11” x 17” paper.See page 12 for instructions on printing cards and tickets.
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GATHER SUPPLIESART SUPPLY STORE: a few sheets of 1/16” thick chipboard, illustration board, or something similar; artists’ tape (acid-free); extendable craft knife; acid-free spray adhesive (3M or Elmer’s); glossy clear-coat spray; newspaper (to protect from over-spray); straight-edge; & a ruler FOAM SUPPLY SHOP: 1” and 1/2” thick charcoal acoustic foam, 11.5” x 11.5” eachHOME DEPOT: black faux-leather contact paper
*A note about paper: These instructions are made with basic heavyweight matte paper in mind and requires that you use a spray adhesive to mount the artwork and a glossy clear coat to finish. This is the most cost-effective method to crafting this project, and will allow colors to be very sharp and vibrant. Alternatives are listed below, factors ranked on a scale of 1-10.
If you’re using adhesive vinyl, ignore the “GLUE” instructions and instead peel away the backing when you see this step (you will need to score the backing in places in order to peel away partial sections where necessary - see pg. 13).
CUTout triangular sections from the corners of the box art.
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ALIGNbox on top of face-down artwork, using the cut corners as guides.
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GLUE & FOLDthe first trapezoid-shaped side of the box art to the the side of the box. Wrap the triangles that extend beyond the edges around the sides of the box.
PREPThe first thing you’ll need before you start crafting a custom foam insert for your box is a stencil for you to lay over the foam while you cut. Use leftover board to
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11 1/2”2 3/4”
3”
3 5/8”
1 1/2”
2 1/2”
1 3/4”
1 1/2”
CUTout this stencil.
ALIGNthe stencil over top of the 1” thick foam.
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CUTthe foam along the outside and inside edges of the stencil with slow, smooth strokes, attempting to cut all the way through in one pass whenever possible. On the inside, only cut out the three boxes marked in red. If necessary, fl ip the foam over to gently finish cuts and separate corners from the other side.
PUNCHout the three boxes and set them aside for later.
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CUTMake two cuts about 3/4” deep into the narrow piece of foam separating the two card bays. Do not cut all the way through.
CUTMake shallow cuts along the lines with a straight-edge, about 1/4” deep.
The Insert continued...
FOLDthe narrow band separating the card bays where the incisions were just made.
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CUTacross the exposed inner slice, leaving a very thin strip about 1/4” thick. Unfold.
CUTalong the sides, 1/4” or less below the upper surface. You’ll be hard pressed to do this with a straight-edge, so just do it by eye. It doesn’t need to be perfect. Make the cuts at least 1/2” deep all around to cross the other cut lines so that you can
The Insert continued...CUTa 1/4” thick slice from the surface of the three pieces that were cut out previously. Cut around the sides first with your blade extended as long as possible. If there’s any foam still attached, then cut through the center. Set the three slices and three “stumps” aside for later.
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PREPanother stencil, exactly 1” smaller than the first one.
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10 1/2”5”
MARKthese lines with a pen.5”
CUTUse both stencils to cut the outer and inner edges of a square 1/2” in width on the 1/2” thick foam. Then, using the lines marked on the new stencil, make four cuts into the material about 1/4” deep (about halfway through the foam).
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FOLDthe foam in half where you made the incisions.
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CUTout the exposed inner slice, leaving a very thin strip about 1/4” thick. Do this for the other side as well. Unfold.
And that’s all the pieces. Now to put it all together...
SUMMARYThe foam insert will house two decks of cards, tokens, and the game board, keeping all components securely in place inside the game box. Get a reference for how it’s put together in the take-apart view to the left.
TTR CRAFTINGThe Insert you’ll need: all that foam we just cut up (including the “stumps,”)
the lower box piece, spray adhesive, and newspaper (or similar).PART 2
}FLIPthe main foam piece (A) over and place it on newspaper. Use the “stumps” leftover from the holes that were cut out of it originally and plug the holes back up.
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GLUEthe entire bottom of the foam (the “stumps” are there to keep the spray adhesive from getting on the interior of the card bays), and then place the glued foam piece into the box (D) right-side-up. Discard the “stumps.”
GLUEthe three 1/4” slices (C) next, then place them into the holes in the foam (A) inside the box (D) to line the bottom of the card and token bays.
Finally, glue the bottom of the border piece (B), and place it into the grooves on the outer edge of the main foam piece (A) in the box (D).
Yeah, don’t try to do these yourself. Feel, texture, shuffl lability, and most of all consistency is too important to do at home unless you have the proper equipment and know-how.
Ticket to Ride™ cards are “Bridge-Sized” playing cards that you won’t be able to print at a standard print-on-demand site like ArtsCow, so the files have been set up for order through Superior Print-on-Demand’s template at www.superiorpod.com.
Choose “Custom Bridge-Sized Cards,” and you’ll need a deck of 90 cards. Set the front and back files for each sheet (should be 5 sheets - 3 for Tickets and Bonus cards, and 2 identical sheets of Monorail cards), and then press upload. Their uploader is a bit cumber-some, and does NOT have a status bar. Your browser will appear frozen for the duration of the upload, so be prepared for to just sit there for a while. Eventually, you will reach order summary page where you can complete the order.
TYPEwww.superiorpod.com into your browser’s address bar.
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UPLOADall ticket and card files to the superior POD website under “Bridge-Sized Cards.”
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PURCHASEyour deck of cards from people who know what they’re doing.
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www.superiorpod.com
Ticket to Ride™ The Emerald City is a fan-made expansion to the Days of Wonder, Inc. board game series Ticket to Ride™ created by Alan R. Moon. All rights to the Ticket to Ride™ name, gameplay, mechanics, and imagery reserved by Days of Wonder, Inc. The game is distributed for non-commercial use only, and may not be redistributed or manufactured for commercial profit. Please send all questions, feedback, and comments to Jason Subers at [email protected]