A new back, without the Avalon Hill logo. Based on the public domain parchment_paper_landsca_ from openclipart. The font used is Black Chancery.
SVG source on my site.

It would seem to me that we may as well be using the font that we already use all over the map Maiandra GD. I did a quick substitution, and it looks pretty good

Actually I'm thinking of replacing Maiandra GD with Black Chancery in all headings and similar, partly because Maiandra GD feels too modern, and partly because Maiandra GD costs $39.00 per user if you want to be legal (and unlike AdvCiv we can't claim abandonware).
Don't know what to do with the numbers on the commodities (also Maiandra GD) though. Monotype Corsiva (the main font on the map) also costs money (though it is included in some M$ Office versions), but as there are several similar free fonts it should be simple to replace it with one of them once the SVG map is done.

Also, from the top of my head, what about shrinking and rotating rotating the background and use the image as a logo (I don't really like the fact that the current one only says "Civilization").

Yeah, for the Celt map (what I am working one), it took all of 30 seconds to replace the font on the SVG map. I need to go through my lists and find what we thought was left to do on the SVG map so I can put that one to bed.

Thanks for letting me in on your thought processes here, you are definitely going the right way.

I've created this backside for my own cards.
I have no need for a name on the backside, and I personally just dislike the parchment-version.

The images showns here are used for my 'picking starting position'-cards
I've used slightly different (a little darker) images for the trade cards.
Just to keep them different from these cards.

Just printed and cut em yesterday. I will add some pictures soon.

I'm not looking so much for the name as for a recognizable logo that can be reused on other components (map, rulebook and website comes to mind).
While your back looks quite nice, it does not fit that purpose very well.

As I'm no graphical artist myself, the best I could come up with was the existing public domain parchment coupled with a specific font and the name of the game.

I'm still open for better logo suggestions in my branding thread!

OK, I can look at that. First I want to know a def. name/branding. It's hard to keep changing these things.

Well, a definitive branding is impossible prior to having a definitive logo, as the logo will be the basis of the branding.

As for definitive name, there is only two options
1. Civilization: The Expansion Project (CivProject)
2. Dawn of History (DoH)

And then there is lots of options for tag lines.

But further discussion on that issue should really belong to the branding thread.

Here is a 300dpi version of the image I use for the Card Backs...

For me, I don't like the clip-art parchment in the first place (like the current ones)

besides, I wouldn't put the name of the game this way on the back.

But sorry, I haven;t got the time yet, to look through all the unfinished civproject things yet. hope te do that soon.

Apparently there is jut no pleasing some people.

I like the text oriented this way because the card layout on the map matches this orientation. If you make the card layout sideways then the other way looks beter. This orientation is also more consistant with the original cards and the parchment AH used makes the scroll on these OK too. I didn't like the scroll that well so I cleaned up the edges. Since it was presented as an endorsed image from the site I kept to it instead of replacing it with something else.

My position is this: The card backs I'm using are the best ones currently in print out there. Having a blue and green text color allows the deck to be divided between east and west. They seemed like the least offensive colors to use. Red and Blue just didn't look right.

Have you made any progress with the counter art embelishments?

No, I was on Crete for the past weeks. Now, All work pushed forward came to me, so back home I still didn't have time. I've had enough time to think though, so I have some plans.

For Now, I've just enough time to just check the forum, hope to have some free time in the coming week

I've worked on trade-card backs for myself and I've used my very own tradecard backs.

This is not to say, this should be official, but I just don't like the parchment in the first place.

I have some reason for this, and I'll explain:

trade is something generated whenever the first cities are build and last until the end of the game. We could choose for different approaches on the subject.
All trading is communication, and the base of all trading (even before the first trade was ever made) is communication between two nations/tribes.


I would say 'communication' should be the subject on the back of the cards.


Parchment is developed mcuh and much later than the first trade was made. Actually invented/developed when libraries became that important that papyri were too little available. This is in a much later stadium.

In my backs I've chosen for the base of communication: drawing/painting and thus took a cave-painting. In my opinion that's a great option for backs.

We could also choose for a combination. say a mixture of a cave-painting, writing on papyri, parchment, clay tablets, rock tablets

I could try for something, but still I'd prefer just the basis of communication: a cave painting.

It's also recommendable to take a chaotic back instead of a solid color because of the shining through when you hold a card against the light.

Then the name of the game on the back. It's something to choose for, but when we are in this stage, where we still don't have a name for sure 100%, maybe it's better to leave the name off of the back. I'd rather choose for some sort of sign (like the AH symbol)

Maybe a hand is a good sing that tells the origin of mankind. intelligence and creativity. We could put that symbol (in a more stylish form) on more places