Frequently Asked Questions (Patreon)

You are always welcome to contact me if you have any questions about me, my Patreon page or my artwork, but some questions come up very often. Here are answers to a few of them.

• How does Patreon work?

Rather than being a store or standard subscription model, Patreon is a way of supporting artists whose work you like. When you sign up for a tier you are pledging a certain amount of money each month to help support me so I can continue creating. In return, you get early access to all of my work, exclusive releases, input on map ideas and a discounted price.
From Patreon's official explanation:
"Patreon is a way to join your favorite creator's community and pay them for making the stuff you love....This means the creator gets paid regularly and you become a bonafide, real-life patron of the arts." More information HERE

• How much/how often will I be charged?

You will be charged a maximum of 5x your pledge amount each month, once for each of my weekly map sets. This payment will be processed at the end of the month. For example, if you select the $3 Adventurer Tier, your account will be charged $15 at the end of the month.
If you can't afford to pay the full price, you can limit your pledge. This will not limit how much content you have access to.
I release more than 5 new creations each month, such as asset packs, token bundles, adventure PDFS, & FVTT modules, but these are all bonus rewards for different tiers and are not charged.
Bonus rewards posts will have the following line at the bottom of them for transparency: 'You will not be charged for this post'

• Am I charged for everything I download?

No, you are only charged for new content (maximum 5 times per month). When you sign up as a Patron you have unlimited access to my back catalogue with no additional charges.

• Why are the tier prices different to your advertised prices?

Depending on where you live, Patreon may have converted my original $US prices into your local currency, and may also have added Tax/VAT. I do not have any control over the conversion rates or the amount of VAT charged, only the base $US price.

• Can I buy your maps/assets instead of becoming a Patron?

Yes, I sell almost all of maps and assets on my Roll20 Marketplace. They are all downloadable so they can be used on other platforms. Currently only the 140DPI VTT versions are available, but these are high enough quality for most home printers. Artwork is usually released on Roll20 1-2 months after the release on Patreon.
I also sell my Foundry VTT Modules on the Forge Bazaar.

• Can I download everything in one go?

I do not have a 'download all' button, partly to reduce piracy of my content and partly because  there is just too much of it to be feasible. However I do have bundles of my completed sets for each tier listed under 'Master Posts' on the Notice Board
I recommend getting familiar with my content and then downloading it as and when you need it, rather than downloading everything. This way you do not need to manage 100s of GB of content and can let me manage the file storage for you.
If you are a Foundry VTT user, you can also use Moulinette Cloud to access all of my content directly in Foundry without the need to download it in advance.

• I would like to donate some money, but I don't want to sign up for Patreon. Can I do that?

Yes! I have a Kofi page set up HERE where you can donate if you have enjoyed using my free maps or assets.

• How do you make your maps/assets?

All of my maps and assets are hand drawn and coloured in Photoshop. I use a digital display tablet (Huion Kamvas Pro 20) connected to my iMac. A lot of my floor and wall textures come from textures.com

• Do you take Commissions?

I am currently not taking on private commissions. If you are a publisher please email me at tomartos.creations@gmail.com to find out my availability.

• Can I use your maps in my streamed/recorded game?

Yes! Anyone is welcome to use the artwork they have access to in games they are streaming or posting online, whether you are a Patron or have purchased the maps/assets on Roll20. Please include a credit to me and a link to my Patreon page in the title card, description or wherever else is appropriate, and do not distribute the maps/assets or post high resolution images of them. Please see the Commercial Licensing Information page for more details.

• I am a 'DM for hire' Can I use your maps in my paid games?

Yes! Anyone is welcome to use the artwork they have access to in games that they charge for, whether you are a Patron or have purchased the maps/assets on Roll20. Please include a credit to me and a link to my Patreon page on your website, in advertising or wherever else is appropriate, and do not distribute the maps/assets or post high resolution images of them. Please see the Commercial Licensing Information page for more details.

• Can I use your maps/assets in my own products?

Patrons at different tier levels can use my maps and assets in their own published work, with certain restrictions and requirements. Please see the Commercial Licensing Information page for more details. Keep in mind that products or content you give away for free still needs to adhere to these terms.

• Can you remake the maps published in X official book/module?

Maps that are in published books and modules are the Intellectual Property of the original creators. I can't remake them for Patreon as I would be profiting from their IP. I can make maps that are in a similar style or world, but they would not be able to match the existing maps or descriptions without explicit permission from the IP holder.

• What size is this map?

Map sizes in both grid squares and pixels are included at the bottom of each post. Print size recommendations are also included.

• Where can I find X?

All of my content is organised and linked in the Notice Board post. If you still cannot find what you are looking for, try the search or filter options at the top of my main Patreon feed.

• What is the difference between 'Clean', 'Print' and 'VTT' downloads?

'Clean' files are unfurnished versions of the maps, so you can easily customise them using my asset packs. 'Print' files are 300dpi PDFs, optimised for printing. 'VTT' files are 140dpi JPEGs optimised for use in VTT software.

• How do I print the maps?

If you are printing at home, most print software has a 'Tile' or 'Poster' function that will split the images into smaller sections that you can print off and paste together. If you do not have this option, you can use online programs like Rasterbator to do this for you. Please note, to use Rasterbator you will need to use the VTT files, or convert the print ones as it only accepts JPEGs.

• Can I turn off the email notifications I receive from you?

Yes, you can change the notifications you receive from patreon in your profile settings:

• Go into your profile menu by hovering over the avatar/icon in the top right corner.
• Choose 'My Profile Settings'
• Go to the 'Email Notifications' tab
• Select/Deselect which notifications you do/don't want to receive.

Let me know if you think there are any other questions that should be added to this list in the comments below.