Export Section#

Exporting cards produced by CLS Renderer is controlled by the export section and its subsections, each one controlling a different export target. These targets are:

  • bulk - this target exports cards to individual images

  • pdf - this target exports the cards to a pdf, useful print and play

  • tts - this target exports the cards into an image suitable for Tabletop Simulator

The export section and subsections use property: value format. These properties are common to all export targets:

  • destination: FOLDER-PATH - destination folder for exporting cards. Default value is [] which uses the same folder as the layout folder.

  • name: NAME - the name to use when generating the files. Each export target handles the name differently due to each target saving different kinds of files.

  • include-bleed: TOGGLE - whether to include the bleed area when exporting cards. Default value is yes for bulk export targets and no for all others.

Additionally the export section acts like the defaults section, but for export targets

export {
    name: cards
    bulk {
        name: card[card-index].png
    }
}

In this example the pdf and tts export sections will export cards as cards.pdf and cards.png while bulk will number each card.

The bulk Export Target#

The bulk subsection contains properties for exporting cards to individual images.

  • name: NAME - the name to use when saving the individual images. If no macros are present in NAME the variable [card-index] will be added to the front. Default value is [card-index]card.png.

The pdf Export Target#

The pdf subsection controls the exporting process for PDF files.

  • name: NAME - the name to save the PDF as. The file extension will always be converted to .pdf. Default value is [] which gives the pdf the same name as the layout file.

  • margin: X-MARGIN(, Y-MARGIN) - the page margin. Cards will not be put in the margin. If Y-MARGIN is left off X-MARGIN will be used for both. Unit is one of in or mm. Unit for both must be the same. Default value for both is .25in, most printers lose accuracy when closer than this to the edge of the page.

  • border: WIDTH - the width to draw a border around the cards with. If 0 no border will be drawn. A value of 1mm will be appear on screen but not when printed. Unit is one of in or mm. Default value is 0.01in

  • page-size: SIZE the size of the page. Default value is letter. Must be one of:

    • letter - which is 8 1/2 by 11 inches or

    • A4 - which is 297 by 210 millimeters

  • orientation: ORIENTATION - the rotation of the page, either portrait or landscape. The default value is portrait.

The tts Export Target#

The tts subsection is a specialized export target for Tabletop Simulator, which expects cards laid out in a grid. Tabletop Simulator also puts specific limits on the size of the image, namely that it must be 2-10 cards wide, 2-7 cards tall, and at max 4096 pixels wide. These are enforced by the CLS Renderer.

  • name: NAME - the name to save the image as. If no file extension is present the extension .png will be added. Default value is [] which gives the image the same name as the layout file.

  • size: WIDTH, HEIGHT - size, in cards, of the generated image. WIDTH must be between 2-10 inclusive and HEIGHT must be between 2-7 inclusive. Default is 5, 7; a WIDTH of 5 is the max a US poker sized card at 300 dpi can have and keep under the 4096 pixel limit.

If there are more cards than can fit in a single generated image, the CLS Renderer will generate multiple images with a number appended to the front, eg 1cards.png and 2cards.png.