Frequently Asked Questions
„From whispers to echoes, from shadows to light — here lie the answers you seek.“
Patreon
How Does a Patreon Membership Work?
(Membership & Account Info)
- You enjoy my content and want to support The Sunless Archive? Take a look at the membership options and their benefits on my TSA Patreon page and choose a tier that suits you.
- If you don’t already have a Patreon account, you’ll be asked to create one before completing your payment — this only takes a few seconds or minutes.
- You can choose between monthly or yearly billing for your membership.
- During checkout, you’ll also have the option to set a custom pledge amount, higher than the base price of your chosen tier. This allows you to support me in a way that reflects how much my work means to you.
- After completing your payment, you’ll receive a Welcome Message with all the important details about your membership, as well as access to the exclusive benefits tied to your tier.
- You can upgrade or downgrade your tier at any time if you’d like more or fewer benefits.
- And yes — cancellation is simple and straightforward.
- You may also join as free member. However, free members access to posts and content is limited.
🔗 For more info, check out the Patreon Help Section
Member Benefits
1. When Are New Assets Published?
I publish at least one new asset every week — meaning you get at least four per month.
If I’m unable to publish assets for any reason, I will pause billing so you won’t be charged during that time.
2. What’s Included in an Asset?
Each asset typically includes:
• A high-resolution token, character, or creature illustration (ideal for sheets, handouts, VTT, etc.)
• An interactive print template for paper miniatures (if applicable)
3. Which File Formats Do You Provide?
• All token, character, and creature illustrations are provided as PNG files in high quality, with transparent backgrounds (alpha channel).
• Interactive paper miniature templates (for characters or creatures) are delivered as PDFs.
If you encounter any issues with quality or compatibility, feel free to reach out anytime.
4. What Can I Do With the Assets?
Want to create character sheets for your RPG group — heroes, villains, NPCs, or monsters?
Looking to add dark fantasy illustrations to handouts or decorate your campaign materials?
Need printable paper miniatures or standees for grid-based tabletop games?
Are you a game developer searching for atmospheric placeholder artwork for your non-commercial prototype?
Would you like to use a special avatar as your profile picture on social media?
How about unique material for printing and crafting — for decoration or even your own scrapbooking projects?
Or do you simply want to admire the art?
Then you’re free to use all assets you’ve acquired for non-commercial purposes only — whether printed for TTRPG play, assembled into miniatures or standees, or used digitally in your VTT session.
Have ideas for other creative uses, or want inspiration on how to integrate these assets into your RPG campaigns? Then stop by the TSA Discord Community Chat!
Legal Use
5. Can the Art Assets Be Used Commercially?
No. All content provided by me (TSA) is licensed solely for private/non-commercial use and may not be copied, distributed, or used to train AI models without my written permission. All rights are reserved by me (TSA).
For collaboration requests or commission inquiries, please contact me here.
6. What May I NOT Do With These Assets?
You may not use any assets provided by me (TSA) for commercial purposes — including personal financial gain or anything that harms me or the project. This includes:
• Reselling my assets (even modified)
• Using them in commercial products (e.g., merchandise designs)
• Training AI image generation models without explicit written permission
If you’re unsure about usage rights, email me at here to stay legally safe.
Being a Member
7. How Do the Votes Work?
All voting takes place exclusively on Patreon and requires a minimum of 5 active members to trigger. Eligible tiers may participate.
If a vote ends in a tie, I will hold a runoff vote for eligible tiers (if possible).
If the runoff remains undecided, I reserve the right to select a winner based on my own judgment.
8. How Do “Whisper Votes” Work?
During each Whisper Vote, three silhouette options are presented. Voting happens over three rounds spanning three weeks. Depending on your membership tier, you may cast up to three votes (one per round) for your favorite. In the fourth week, the winning motif is revealed and becomes Exclusive Member Content for active patrons.
9. What Is “Exclusive Member Content” (EMC)?
Exclusive Member Content (EMC) refers to assets that will not be available for purchase indefinitely and remain accessible only to current members or those with special archive rights.
10. Can I Purchase TSA Assets Individually?
Regular assets become available for individual purchase or in bundles after the Early Access period ends.
If you join later and your tier’s archive access doesn’t include older assets, or if you just want a specific piece without joining, you can buy it individually.
All single assets and bundles will be available via Patreon. You can also browse www.sunlessarchive.com for certain products.
Note: EMC assets may never be offered for sale — they are exclusive to members only.
11. What About Archive Access?
New members gain access to previously published content based on their chosen tier:
• Tier 1: Past 3 months of regular assets
• Tier 2: Past 6 months of regular assets
• Tier 3: Past 12 months of regular assets
• Tier 4: Full archive access (all regular assets ever published)
Due to Patreon no longer offering first-of-the-month billing, I can’t offer full monthly bundles to everyone who joins mid-month.
To compensate, I make all assets available as singles or packs once the Early Access period ends.
12. Why Is Archive Access Limited?
This is a decision made for fairness to early supporters, exclusivity, and long-term sustainability.
Giving unrestricted access to countless of past assets to someone who joins 3–5 years after launch wouldn’t be fair to those who helped build the archive from the start. It would also be open to abuse.
I know many creators offer full access regardless — but for now, I’ve chosen otherwise.
However, all non-EMC assets will eventually become available for purchase or as low-res watermarked freebies after the Early Access period.
This policy may be adjusted in the future upon reaching certain goals.
13. What Is „Early Access“ and How Does It Work?
As a member of The Sunless Archive, you gain exclusive early access to all new assets — long before they become publicly available.
You will be able to view and download each new creation 3 months ahead of its general release.
14. What Are „Fifth Week Votes“ and „Fifth Week Asset“?
I publish a new asset weekly — at least 4 times a month.
In months with a fifth week, members at higher tiers can vote on what the fifth asset should be. This Fifth Week Asset will be released as regular asset.
15. What Are Seasonal/Annual Specials?
On special occasions, I will publish additional Exclusive Member Content reserved for certain tiers. These will not be available for purchase later and are meant to reward loyal supporters.
16. What About Discord?
Once you’ve signed up for a Patreon membership, your Discord access and role should be assigned automatically.
17. Can I Just Support You Without Becoming a Member?
Yes, absolutely.
I’ve created a Supporter Tier („Silent Spectator“) where you can support me monthly — or for as long as you’d like. Instead of a fixed minimum amount, you can set your own custom pledge.
Of course, you’re always free to cancel anytime — that way you can make a one-time higher contribution if you prefer.
Alternatively, I will offer Supporter Packages containing promo material or exclusive extras — purchasing them is another great way to support my work, either once or repeatedly.
Contact
18. How Can I Reach Out To You?
Can’t find an answer to your question? Can’t message me via Patreon? Have a request not related to Patreon or TSA? You can email me here. (I speak German & English.)