What is The Burning Dawn?

The Burning Dawn is a player-versus-player card game with a strong emphasis on combat. After years of playing a wide variety of card games, our goal has been to create something mechanically familiar while addressing the recurring issues we’ve seen in others. In recent years, many popular card games have leaned heavily into casual multiplayer experiences, often sidelining those who prefer structured, tournament-style play. The Burning Dawn aims to fill that gap.

What are the inspirations?

The Burning Dawn draws inspiration from the aspects we loved most about Magic: The Gathering and the now-defunct World of Warcraft Trading Card Game by Upper Deck. Combat will always remain at the heart of its gameplay. We also take cues from our years spent in MMORPGs, where exploring worlds and living stories is central to the fun. Our hope is that players can bring their favorite characters—whether original creations or inspired by digital worlds they’ve adventured through—into the tabletop space. The vibe is: “I loved my character in that game—let’s bring them to life here.”

Why AI?

The Burning Dawn is a passion project, built for the joy of play rather than profit. All mechanics are fully human-designed, while AI tools—ethically sourced and run locally—are used only to provide placeholder art. All models used rely on strictly opt-in datasets that protect the intellectual property of artists. Should the project ever expand, all AI-generated art would be replaced with original works by human artists. For now, The Burning Dawn exists as a free, print-and-play experience for anyone who shares a love of competitive card gaming.