Hero: Tales of the Tomes

What story will you tell?

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Falron the Cruel — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes.

To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit www.talesofthetomes.com

#speedpaint

King's Blacksmith — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes. The warm orangey glow was a lot of fun in this one.

To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit www.talesofthetomes.com

#speedpaint

Morgana the Life-Binder — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion. Watch as I struggle to draw her dress about 6 times 🥴

To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit www.talesofthetomes.com

#speedpaint #fantasyart #cardgame

The last time this happened was 1000 years ago.
#gamenight #cardgames #herotalesofthetomes

The Judicator — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes.

To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit www.talesofthetomes.com

#speedpaint #fantasyart #cardgame

Watcher at the Gate — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes. I really liked how the candles came out on this one! To learn more abou... TikTok video by Jimmy Ellerth

Watcher at the Gate — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes.

To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit www.talesofthetomes.com

#speedpaint #fantasyart #cardgame

www.tiktok.com/@jimmyellert...

Man, after playing Sworn for a few weeks and now diving back into Hades 2 with the new update…it’s like night and day. It’s good to be home.

Prince Liam — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes. Prince Liam is the bratty half-brother to Sarah and I had a lot of fun making i... TikTok video by Jimmy Ellerth

Prince Liam — the bratty half-brother to Sarah! I had a lot of fun making his expression as annoying and punchable as possible 🤣

To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit www.talesofthetomes.com

#speedpaint #fantasyart #cardgame

www.tiktok.com/@jimmyellert...

Bell Ringer — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes. Really liked the concept for this one! To learn more about Hero: Tales of the ... TikTok video by Jimmy Ellerth

Bell Ringer — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes.

To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit www.talesofthetomes.com

#speedpaint #fantasyart #cardgame

www.tiktok.com/@jimmyellert...

Sword Bearer — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes. To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit ... TikTok video by Jimmy Ellerth

Sword Bearer — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes.

To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit www.talesofthetomes.com

#speedpaint #fantasyart #cardgame

www.tiktok.com/@jimmyellert...

King's Steed — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes. To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visi... TikTok video by Jimmy Ellerth

King's Steed — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes.

To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit www.talesofthetomes.com

#speedpaint #fantasyart #cardgame

www.tiktok.com/@jimmyellert...

Myrddin, Father of Runes — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes. To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the On... TikTok video by Jimmy Ellerth

Myrddin, Father of Runes — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero.

To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit www.talesofthetomes.com

#speedpaint #fantasyart #cardgame

www.tiktok.com/@jimmyellert...

Ebonhand Assassin — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes. To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King v... TikTok video by Jimmy Ellerth

Ebonhand Assassin — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes.

To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit www.talesofthetomes.com

#speedpaint #fantasyart #cardgame

www.tiktok.com/@jimmyellert...

Nightgore — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes. To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit htt... TikTok video by Jimmy Ellerth

Nightgore — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes.

To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit www.talesofthetomes.com

#speedpaint #fantasyart #cardgame

www.tiktok.com/@jimmyellert...

Executioner Gethin — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes. To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx Kin... TikTok video by Jimmy Ellerth

Executioner Gethin — one of the mini-bosses called upon by the Onyx King in the upcoming expansion to Hero: Tales of the Tomes. www.tiktok.com/@jimmyellert...

To learn more about Hero: Tales of the Tomes and Reign of the Onyx King visit www.talesofthetomes.com

#speedpaint #fantasyart #cardgame

Thanks to everyone who made this year’s #PAXUnplugged so special 💜 so many of you came up to the booth to show your support and love for the game and it meant the absolute world to me. Philly was amazing as always, and the fans at PAX continue to make it my favorite show of the year! See you soon.

It’s time for #PAXUnplugged! 🎉

If you see this, post a witch! 🧙‍♀️ (Why not 3? 👀)

If you see this, post a knight! 🪓🟩

Jimmy at a convention, looking at the "sold out" sign at his booth after a successful show.

Thanks for reading if you've made it this far. The fans who've joined the journey over the years make all the hard work worth it, and I can't wait to share everything I have in store for down the road.

-Jimmy

A spread of the 5 heroes from the base game Hero: Tales of the Tomes. The hero cards are fanned out on a red tablecloth.

A fanned out hand of cards featuring some of the key cards from the fantasy card game Hero: Tales of the Tomes.

Using different companions, equipment, and spell cards, players will fight to eliminate everyone else at the table. Leveling up eventually stops at level 8, when Heroes unlock their devastating ultimate abilities — which are always sure to lead to incredible stories and comebacks in the game.

An action shot seeing the fantasy card game Hero: Tales of the Tomes in action.

The gameplay is intense and exciting, inspired by all the card games I've loved over the years like Magic the Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh, and Hearthstone - but without any of the barrier for entry or baggage of needing to know how to get started or build a deck.

A hand reaching for the book-box containing Hero: Tales of the Tomes.

Not a collectible card game or deck-builder, everything for Hero comes in one book-box and is meant to make it easy to just grab a few friends and sit down to enjoy a game.

An example layout of what a setup might look like while playing the fantasy card game Hero: Tales of the Tomes

Ok ok, but enough backstory. What's the actual GAME? Hero is a multiplayer card game where each player controls a unique Hero character, leveling up every round, getting stronger & unlocking new abilities. All the players draw from one shared communal deck, battling until only one is left standing.

A product shot of the mini-expansion for Hero, Lost Heroics 1. The front of the box shows a magical blonde haired woman with a large purple hat. She carries a scroll that she holds close to her face and wields a long wands that glows with pinkish magic.

A promo shot of the expansion for Hero, Reign of the Onyx King. The game box and cards are laid out on a ted tablecloth, surrounded by candles, books, and a sword to set the scene.

Of course I wasn't going to stop there. I had so many ideas for more cards, heroes, and expansions. In 2020 I launched a mini-expansion adding 3 new heroes, and just this past August we had our BEST Kickstarter ever, launching the standalone expansion Reign of the Onyx King.

Jimmy, creator of Hero: Tales of the Tomes, at his convention booth

Jimmy, creator of Hero: Tales of the Tomes, at his convention booth

Jimmy, creator of Hero: Tales of the Tomes, at his convention booth

Jimmy, creator of Hero: Tales of the Tomes, at his convention booth

Up until this point I had gone to a few conventions with nothing more than a promise and a prayer, but now that I had the game printed, I started begging friends and family for free labor as I went to as many conventions as I could, selling the game and introducing it to new fans around the country.

Promo image for the Hero: Tales of the Tomes Kickstarter in 2018

Jimmy in front of cases of the freshly shipped Hero: Tales of the Tomes.

Once everything was ready there was only one thing left to do…launch the Kickstarter! I funded the game in August 2018 and had the games in my hands the following Spring.

A collage of the artwork from Hero: Tales of the Tomes.

Over 14 months I created all the illustrations for the game, grinding away night after night until everything was complete.

Sketches of various pieces of artwork in their early versions.

While running games I also had a lot of art to get done...with the game expanding from a simple 60 card deck to over 150 cards needing illustrations, there was a lot of work to do. First I sketched everything out. This helped me get the idea work out of the way and get straight to illustrating.