u/jfp96

I'd long wanted a couple of Goat Detox decks just to have around and play with friends, but with some cards being prohibitively expensive, I looked to proxies. This guide is a result of my trial and error in making this a reality for anyone else who might wanna do something similar. The following method was inspired by this post on r/DuelMasters as well as this guide for creating Pokémon proxies with MPC. I'm not saying that this is the absolute best, easiest, or most efficient way to do this, but it is a viable way, and I've been happy with the results so far and have also ordered sets for Yugi-Kaiba Detox and Squirrel Format; I'm considering ordering a cube in the future. I've uploaded my proxies for these three sets (plus YDK files and card lists where applicable) if you'd like to check them out for yourself.

Before proceeding, please note that this method will result in proxies that are the standard MTG/Pokémon size, NOT the smaller Yu-Gi-Oh! size. The way I see it, I'm only playing with these cards as self-contained sets; I'm not using them alongside real cards and certainly not trying to enter tournaments with them, so the size difference really doesn't bother me. These are just for fun and NOT meant to replace authentic cards in any official capacity.

Step 1: Gather card artworks. Once you know what cards you wanna proxy, download the artwork for each of them. The best source I've found is user Gold3nB3ear on DeviantArt, who has posted high quality images for virtually every card in Goat Format and a bit beyond that. Any missing images should be relatively easy to find on DeviantArt, although if you prefer alternate artworks for any cards, you may have to look elsewhere.

Step 2: Generate the card images. Yu-Gi-Oh Carder by lauquerm is the best card generator that I've found, as it gives you near total control of the final image and offers lots of cool options. Of course, you can go nuts and change existing cards or create fully custom cards, but since these proxies will be ordered via MPC, I would strongly advise that you leave the Copyright and Sticker fields blank, as these could result in your order being denied and having to to regenerate all of your cards. (You may even want to write "PROXY" or something similar in the Set ID, Password, or Corner Text field, but I haven't found this to be necessary.) I've found that it's easiest to copy card text from Duelingbook, but because we're focusing on Goat Format, I would refer to this page that lists all of the pre-errata effects for the cards that were nerfed later on. Definitely double check the cards as you're doing this; if I'm doing a bunch at once, it's easy for me to forget to change the level, attribute, ATK/DEF, etc. between each of them. When you download each image, the standard 813 x 1185 resolution is totally fine.

Step 3: Edit the card images for MPC. Unfortunately, MPC does not offer a Yu-Gi-Oh! card size, so we have to optimize the images for a 63 x 88 mm card. To do so, I use LunaPic and follow this procedure for each card:

• Upload the card image; make sure that the dimensions match 813 x 1185.
• Go to Edit -> Resize Image; change the width to 744 and the height to 1038.
• Go to Borders -> Border Tool; apply a black, 36-pixel border to all sides.
• Go to Edit -> 4x AI Ultra Resolution; this will result in a final image that's 3264 x 4440.
• Download the image; repeat these steps for all other cards.

This is a bit tedious, but if you're handy with Python, I imagine there's a way to automate this!

Step 4: Order the cards from MakePlayingCards.com Once on the site, select Custom Game Cards and size 2.48"×3.46" (63×88mm). For the card stock, I use S33, but S30 is also a viable and slightly cheaper option. The 55 card option aligns nicely with many Goat decks if you include the side deck, but if you're using Fusions or Tokens, you may need to size up. The other options are up to you, but I've been happy with MPC card game finish, no booklet, and shrink-wrapped packaging. After this, you must enter the exact number of cards in your deck; failure to do so will result in blank cards, and if you mess this up, you have to start over. For Customize Front: Image & Text, select Different Images, drag and drop the finished PNGs (this can take a few minutes), and drag however many of each card you need into each blank slot. You'll notice that the black borders we added are not visible; these will be cut off in the production process. Skip Add Text to Front. For Customize Back: Image & Text, select Same Image, upload the image for the back of the cards, and drag it into the empty slot. You can use whatever you want, but do NOT use anything with the Konami and/or Yu-Gi-Oh! logos. I was able to get one order through with the official card back (sans logos), but for every other order I had to use something else. Feel free to use whatever you want, but I've included a few card backs that may work in the upload linked above. Skip Add Text to Back, and finally Preview & Add to Cart! If there is an issue with your order, MPC may email you, but they've been very accomodating in my experience.

That's it! Only other thing I'd suggest is getting some card sleeves and maybe a box if you don't already have. If you end up doing this, let me know if it works for you. If you have any suggestions to streamline this method or for an alternate way to get proxies, feel free to share :)