After last week’s in-depth meeting notes extravaganza, this week is pretty much going to be very focused on our upcoming Dragon Blooded Kickstarter that starts next week on Tuesday the 27th at 12noon EDT in the US!
The reason I want to devote this week’s blog to the DB KS is that it’s no big secret that we once had the biggest Kickstarter in TTRPG history with our Exalted 3rd KS. It was the hardest, most exhausting, the most amazing in the love and energy and devotion of the Exalted community, and at the same time it was the most contentious KS we’ve ever run.
And it’s also no secret that we screwed it up big-time in a bunch of ways, and most obviously in the amount of time it took to get the KS material out to backers, from the books to excerpts to just about everything.
Many of the changes we have made to how we run our Kickstarters came from the brutal and painful lessons we learned during that KS.
And because we dropped the ball (and kicked it over the fence in a lot of cases) during that earlier KS, I think we lost a lot of the Exalted community’s faith and trust. Which is both understandable and entirely on us. We may never get that back, but we’re hoping that this last year’s worth of changes to how the Exalted 3rd line is moving forward is demonstrating how seriously we take working to build new trust with that community.
We have promised projects starting to arrive in a far more timely manner, and we have new projects about to be injected between our “fat splat” books that recognize that a new line needs new books. Plus, we have our monthly EX3 creatures and antagonists providing a regular dose of Exalted goodness!
My hope with this blog today is to put it out there that we are running this upcoming Dragon Blooded Kickstarter in ways to insure that we don’t repeat the same mistakes and that we’re serious about making sure THIS Kickstarter is one folks can enjoy and engage with, without worrying that they’ll see repeats of the issues from the first one.
– First, we committed to having the text completely finished and through editing before putting together Dragon Blooded‘s Kickstarter. A huge part of the wait for first EX3 KS book was rewriting and finishing the text. Not an issue here. Similarly, our page backgrounds and layout are already designed and ready for use.
– Second, backers will receive updates throughout the length of the Kickstarter that by the end will provide the complete Dragon Blooded text so that there will be no surprises with what’s in the book. If you hit a “no-buy” spot in that text, just cancel your pledge. No harm, no foul – it is what we want you to do, and this philosophy has worked great in our last few KSs. We don’t want anybody regretting staying in our KS campaigns.
– Third, while we didn’t get all the art for this Dragon Blooded KS yet, as there are some art rewards that backers can be a part of, we have bought a huge amount already that you’ll see most of during this Kickstarter. In addition, if you have been watching the quality of the art for Miracles, Arms of the Chosen, and the monthly releases, you can see that we have evolved our roster of artists and they are doing great work. Art is still a subjective thing, of course, but having a few books under our belts and directly art directing them has given Mirthful Mike and myself a pretty consistent visual quality to what art we’re getting.
– Fourth, backers will be able to benefit from having our Kickstarter Manager, James Bell, running the Dragon Blooded KS. James has run the last three KSs we’ve run and has encountered most of the snags and bumps a KS campaign can throw at you. He’s funny, loves the projects, and is laser-focused on each KS as he runs it. (In contrast, I was running and building Onyx Path, overseeing the business end by myself, and supervising all our other game worlds when I ran the Exalted 3rd KS early in our first years).
– Fifth, we’ll be using BackerKit as our interface for after the KS, and there’s just no way to describe how much more efficient and accurate their set-up is for us, which means backers will get their PDF sets, their Add-ons, and their Stretch Goals faster and with fewer mistakes. For the first Exalted KS, I had to open an Excel spreadsheet for each and every Reward Tier and go through each backer’s Survey Response in order to count up Add-ons by hand. It took a lot of time and so would often get interrupted. Not even possible the way BackerKit is set up – it’s an amazing difference.
– Sixth, our Ex3 development team of Robert Vance and Eric Minton have been fantastic with answering questions with humor and a clear sense that they really know Exalted and love it on our “Ask the Devs” thread on the EX3 forum, and they’ll be as involved in the Dragon Blooded KS with the same positivity and enthusiasm.
So generally, we’ve got a depth of knowledgeable folks able to set up, support, and run this Kickstarter that we just didn’t have back with the first EX3 Kickstarter. We’re all really excited to get started next week, and I hope this post helps explain how we’ve evolved and improved how all our Kickstarters, and especially Dragon Blooded, will be run.
One more brief note about Exalted 3rd‘s first KS: we just sent the extra Deluxe EX3‘s and EX3 Screens, and such over to our friends at Indie Press Revolution to put up for sale, and I hear that the Exalted 3rd canvas map of Creation has already sold out, and the Ultra-Deluxe EX3 with the First Age glyph-etched golden metal cover has only a few copies left!
Wow, that was fast! Links to IPR are below in the BLURBS! section.
Even though this whole post this week was all Exalted-y, just remember, Onyx Path is still all about:
Many Worlds, One Path!
BLURBS!
KICKSTARTER:
Our next Kickstarter is slated to be EX3‘s Dragon-Blooded starting at 12noon EDT in the US, Tuesday March 27th!
As we try and find ways to enable our community to more easily play our games, the Onyx Dice Rolling App is now live! Our dev team has been doing updates since we launched based on the excellent use-case comments by our community, and this thing is both rolling and rocking!
The devs have added a whole bunch of new game lines’ dice and rolling bg’s and got caught by a bug Apple needed to fix, so be sure to update your app and soon that should be fixed.
There’s been tweaks to all elements of the UI, you can now preview every die type in the store, and you can use multiple die types per roll! Here are the links for the Apple and Android versions:
http://theappstore.site/app/1296692067/onyx-dice
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.onyxpathpublishing.onyxdice&hl=en
Three different screenshots, above.
(The Solar Anima special Dice above)
Promethean: The Created and Demon: The Descent dice on a Demon: The Descent tabletop
Hunter: The Reckoning and Mage: The Awakening dice on a Mage: The Awakening tabletop
ON AMAZON AND BARNES & NOBLE:
We’re delighted to announce the opening of our ebook stores on Amazon and Barnes & Noble! You can now read our fiction from the comfort and convenience of your Kindle (from Amazon) and Nook (from Barnes & Noble). Our latest fiction offerings are a classic Scarred Lands fantasy book, and our latest Chronicles of Darkness anthology: the Huntsmen Chronicles for Changeling: The Lost 2nd Edition!
If you enjoy these or any other of our books, please help us by writing reviews on the site of the sales venue you bought it from. Reviews really, really help us with getting folks interested in our amazing fiction!
Our initial selection includes these fiction anthologies:
- Vampire: The Masquerade: The Endless Ages Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
- Werewolf: The Apocalypse: Rites of Renown: When Will You Rage II (Kindle, Nook)
- Mage: The Ascension: Truth Beyond Paradox (Kindle, Nook)
- Chronicles of Darkness: The God-Machine Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
- Mummy: The Curse: Curse of the Blue Nile (Kindle, Nook)
- Beast: The Primordial: The Primordial Feast Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
And here are six more fiction books:
- Vampire: The Masquerade: Of Predators and Prey: The Hunters Hunted II Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
- Werewolf: The Apocalypse: The Poison Tree (Kindle, Nook)
- Werewolf: The Apocalypse: Songs of the Sun and Moon: Tales of the Changing Breeds (Kindle, Nook)
- Vampire: The Requiem: The Strix Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
- Werewolf: The Forsaken: The Idigam Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
- Mage: The Awakening: The Fallen World Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
Andand six more more:
- Vampire: The Masquerade: The Beast Within Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
- Werewolf: The Apocalypse: W20 Cookbook (Kindle, Nook)
- Exalted: Tales from the Age of Sorrows (Kindle, Nook)
- Chronicles of Darkness: Tales of the Dark Eras (Kindle, Nook)
- Promethean: The Created: The Firestorm Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
- Demon: The Descent: Demon: Interface (Kindle, Nook)
And even more books are now on Amazon and the Nook store!:
- Scarred Lands: Death in the Walled Warren (Kindle, Nook)
- V20 Dark Ages: Cainite Conspiracies (Kindle, Nook)
- Chronicles of Darkness: Strangeness in the Proportion (Kindle, Nook)
- Vampire: The Requiem: Silent Knife (Kindle, Nook)
- Mummy: The Curse: Dawn of Heresies (Kindle, Nook)
OUR SALES PARTNERS:
We’re working with Studio2 to get Pugmire out into stores, as well as to individuals through their online store. You can pick up the traditionally printed main book, the Screen, and the official Pugmire dice through our friends there!
https://studio2publishing.com/search?q=pugmire
Looking for our Deluxe or Prestige Edition books? Try this link! http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Onyx-Path-Publishing/
Here’s the link to the press release we put out about how Onyx Path is now selling through Indie Press Revolution: https://theonyxpath.com/press-release-onyx-path-limited-editions-now-available-through-indie-press-revolution/
You can now order wave 2 of our Deluxe and Prestige print overrun books, including Deluxe Mage 20th Anniversary, and Deluxe V20 Dark Ages! And Screens…so many Screens!
And you can now order Pugmire: the book, the screen, and the dice! http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/manufacturers.php?manufacturerid=296
Wave 3 of our extra Kickstarter projects is now on sale at IPR!
Here are the direct links for the Chronicles of Darkness: Dark Eras Prestige Edition: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Chronicles-of-Darkness-Dark-Eras-Prestige-Edition.html
Chronicles of Darkness: Dark Eras Storytellers’ Screen: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Chronicles-of-Darkness-Dark-Eras-Storytellers-Screen.html
Deluxe Exalted 3rd Edition: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Exalted-3rd-Edition-Deluxe-Edition.html
Ultra-Deluxe (Orichalcum) Exalted 3rd Edition: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Exalted-3rd-Edition-Ultra-Deluxe.html
Exalted 3rd Edition Storytellers’ Screen: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Exalted-3rd-Edition-Storytellers-Screen.html
EX3 Chibi Bookmarks: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Exalted-3rd-Edition-Chibi-Bookmarks.html
Deluxe W20 Shattered Dreams: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/W20-Shattered-Dreams-Deluxe-Edition.html
W20 Shattered Dreams Storytellers’ Screen: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/W20-Shattered-Dreams-Storytellers-Screen.html
Plus price adjustments on M20, Book of the Wyrm, Anarchs Unbound and a
few other projects!
DRIVETHRURPG.COM:
When you need a Changeling 20th character and a way to get started with C20: here are the C20 Ready Made Characters in PDF and physical book PoD versions! Available starting this Wednesday on DriveThruRPG.com!
Coming NOW as both PDF and physical book PoD on DTRPG, we reveal The Secret of Vinsen’s Tomb, a Jumpstart adventure for Pugmire. www.drivethrurpg.com/product/232337/The-Secrets-of-Vinsens-Tomb–A-Pugmire-Jumpstart
A cat living in Pugmire disappears, but neither the police dogs nor the cats of the Cat Quarter know why. When zombies attack the heroes, however, all signs point to an invasion by the Monarchies of Mau. But how does this intrigue tie into the lost tomb of the first king of Pugmire?
The Secret of Vinsen’s Tomb is a Pugmire story for three to six characters. This jumpstart contains all the rules and characters you need to play — just grab some dice and go! You can also use this adventure with the full version of Pugmire.
The Secret of Vinsen’s Tomb contains:
• An evocative and mysterious setting that’s both family friendly and deep enough to create compelling stories.
• A summary of Pugmire’s traditional fantasy rules system. It’s designed for streamlined play, with an emphasis on cooperation and action over competition and violence.
• A complete adventure for a Guide to run for three to six players. Also useful for Guides running a full Pugmire game of first or second level characters!
• Six ready-to-play characters, so you can jump into the action.
Can your good dogs discover the secret of Vinsen’s Tomb?
Also available NOW, are two physical PoD spell card packs and PDFs for Pugmire: the Artisans‘ and the Shepherds‘ spells.
Ask the darkness, and it shall answer: the Beast: The Primordial Player’s Guide Advance PDF will answer your questions now that it is live on DTRPG.com! http://drivethrurpg.com/product/236135/Beast-Players-Guide
The Beast Player’s Guide expands on the material presented in Beast: The Primordial, with additional information on the Families and Hungers, what it feels like to be a Beast and experience the Devouring, and how to commune with the Dark Mother. You’ll also find two new Families and two new Hungers!
The book also includes a plethora of new Atavisms, Nightmares, Merits, and Birthrights, as well as systems for creating smaller, subservient versions of the Horror, new forms of Inheritance, and details on the mysterious Obcasus Rites.
There are some things that even a Demon fears – Night Horrors: Enemy Action for Demon: The Descent arrives now as an Advance PDF on DTRPG.com! http://drivethrurpg.com/product/236133/Night-Horrors-Enemy-Action
“Fighting the Machine is like fighting the ocean. You literally cannot hurt it. Doesn’t matter how much poison we dump into the ocean. We’ll only kill the things in it. We’ll never kill it. Same with the God-Machine. Kill angels, traitors, stigmatics, cultists, cryptids, whatever, you’ll never hurt the Machine Itself. No, that doesn’t mean we stop trying. You stop trying, you drown. Screw that.”
—Mr. Bliss, Guardian Inquisitor
Night Horrors: Enemy Action includes:
• Dozens of Storyteller characters, including Unchained, angels, exiles, cryptids, and stigmatics, for use as antagonists, allies, or just inspiration
• Multiple plot hooks and story seeds for your Demon: The Descent chronicles
• A brief look at cults in Demon, including the Ten Thousand Names of God, a secret society fueled by the God-Machine
With a howl of RAGE, the W20 Changing Ways PDF and physical book PoD charges at you now on DTRPG.com! http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/229183/W20-Changing-Ways
Changing Ways is an in-depth look at what it means to be a werewolf, both on a personal level and as part of a pack. It digs deep into what it feels like to have bones re-knit after breaking, the range of senses available across all forms, and the sudden heady rush of the Gifts and Rites bestowed by spirits. It also provides a look at what life is like for lupus and metis werewolves, characters who have had experiences alien to any person. It shows the many ways that werewolves organize in packs, and how those packs are designed as groups of warriors, rather than aligned to the behavior of wolves.
Changing Ways contains:
• A detailed look at what it means to grow up as a lupus or metis werewolf, and how that colors a character’s perspective.
• More information on what it feels like to be a werewolf, a creature that changes in both body and mind.
• Frameworks and organizations for packs, along with new tactics and systems for forging the pack as part of play.
Appearing now on DriveThruRPG are the PDF and PoD physical book versions of Arms of the Chosen for Exalted 3rd Edition! http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/226224/Arms-of-the-Chosen
Take up the panoply of legendary heroes and lost ages, and awaken the world-shaking might of their Evocations. Before the dawn of time, the Exalted wielded god-metal blades to cast down the makers of the universe. In an ancient epoch of forgotten glories, Creation’s greatest artificers forged unimaginable wonders and miracle-machines.
Now, in the Age of Sorrows, kingdoms go to war over potent artifacts, scavenger princes risk everything to uncover relics of the past, and the Exalted forge great arms and armor on the anvil of legend. These treasures are yours to master.
Discover the mystical power of the five magical materials and the secrets of creating your own Evocations. Wield weapons of fabled might and don the armor of mythic heroes, making their puissance your own. Claim Creation’s wonders: the miraculous tools of the Chosen, living automatons, flying machines, hearthstones, and more. And unleash the mighty warstriders, titanic god-engines of conquest and devastation, to once more shake Creation with their footfalls.
We unveil Vampire: The Requiem 2e‘s Half-Damned as PDF and PoD versions now on DTRPG.com!
http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/227500/Half-Damned
I love her, she’s family, but I don’t love what she is.
– Antonio Ramírez, dhampir
This book includes:
• An exploration of what it means to be one of the Half-Damned, dhampir, revenants or ghouls.
• Mechanics for creating Half-Damned characters.
• Information for creating and running chronicles using the various Half-Damned character types, both with vampires and alone.
• Information on Half-Damned antagonists for vampire chronicles.
A Land Where Legends Walk
Drawing enthusiastically on Greek mythology, the revised and re-imagined Scarred Lands nonetheless retains its place as a modern fantasy RPG setting. This is a world shaped by gods and monsters, and only the greatest of heroes can expect to be counted among them. The most populous continent of Scarn, Ghelspad, plays host to vast unexplored regions, hides unsolved riddles from ancient cultures, and taunts adventures with the promise of undiscovered riches hidden among the ruins of older civilizations.
Yet the myths of the Scarred Lands are relatively recent events. The effects of the Titanswar still ripple through the world, and the heroines and villains of many of these stories are part of living memory, if not still living.
The Award-Winning Fantasy Setting Returns
Scarred Lands has been a favorite fantasy setting since the release of the Creature Collection for the d20 System in 2000. In subsequent years, over 40 titles were published for Scarred Lands, making it one of the most fully supported fantasy RPG settings ever and the premiere product line of Sword & Sorcery Studios.
Available in both 5th Edition and Pathfinder compatible versions! PDF and PoD formats available NOW!
http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/193014/Scarred-Lands-Players-Guide-Pathfinder
http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/197803/Scarred-Lands-Players-Guide-OGL-5e
CONVENTIONS!
And now, the new project status updates!
DEVELOPMENT STATUS FROM FAST EDDY WEBB (projects in bold have changed status since last week):
First Draft (The first phase of a project that is about the work being done by writers, not dev prep)
- M20 Gods and Monsters (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
- M20 Book of the Fallen (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
- C20 Novel (Jackie Cassada) (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)
- Deviant: The Renegades (Deviant: The Renegades)
- CofD Contagion Chronicle (Chronicles of Darkness)
- M20 The Technocracy Reloaded (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
- M20 Victorian Mage (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
- Dystopia Rising: Evolution (Dystopia Rising: Evolution)
- Spilled Blood (Vampire: The Requiem 2nd Edition)
- CofD Dark Eras 2 (Chronicles of Darkness)
- Night Horrors: Shunned by the Moon (Werewolf: The Forsaken 2nd Edition)
- C20 Players’ Guide (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)
Redlines
- Guide to the Night (Vampire: The Requiem 2nd Edition)
Second Draft
- WoD Ghost Hunters (World of Darkness)
- Tales of Good Dogs – Pugmire Fiction Anthology (Pugmire)
Development
- Signs of Sorcery (Mage: the Awakening Second Edition)
- GtS Geist 2e core (Geist: the Sin-Eaters Second Edition)
- Night Horrors: The Tormented (Promethean: The Created 2nd Edition)
- Hunter: the Vigil 2e core (Hunter: the Vigil 2nd Edition)
- Fetch Quest (Pugmire)
- They Came From Beneath the Sea! Rulebook (TCFBtS!)
WW Manuscript Approval:
Editing:
- Ex Novel 2 (Aaron Rosenberg) (Exalted 3rd Edition)
- Exalted 3rd Novel by Matt Forbeck (Exalted 3rd Edition)
- Monarchies of Mau (Monarchies of Mau)
- Handbook of the Recently Deceased (Wraith: The Oblivion 20th Anniversary Edition)
Post-Editing Development:
- Changeling: the Lost 2nd Edition, featuring the Huntsmen Chronicle (Changeling: the Lost 2nd Edition)
- Dragon-Blooded (Exalted 3rd Edition)
- Pan’s Guide for New Pioneers (Pugmire)
- The Realm (Exalted 3rd Edition)
- Kithbook Boggans (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)
- Scion: Hero (Scion 2nd Edition)
- Trinity Continuum Core Rulebook (The Trinity Continuum)
- Trinity Continuum: Aeon Rulebook (The Trinity Continuum)
Indexing:
ART DIRECTION FROM MIRTHFUL MIKE:
In Art Direction
- Ex3 Monthly Stuff
- Scion Hero
- Changeling: the Lost 2 – Contracted.
- Trinity Continuum
- Ex3 Dragon Blooded
- Boggans – Contracted.
- Monarchies of Mau
- Wr20 Guide for Newly Departed – Reading through the notes and the text then figure out how to tackle it.
Marketing Stuff
In Layout
- Scarred Lands Community Content – Over to DTRPG.
- Scion Origin
- Wraith 20 Screen – Front approved… now waiting for errata phase to assemble all the charts.
- Fetch Quest – Taking some time this week to tweak the card design.
Proofing
- Book of Freeholds – Making the Cover and sending to WW this week.
- Pugmire – Pan’s Explorer’s Guide (or whatever)
- Cavaliers of Mars – Art is in progress… but the layout is done and solid enough for Rose to proof.
- Ex3 Hundred Devils Night Parade – Four new ones at WW for approval.
At Press
- Beckett Screen – At shipper.
- Scarred Land PGs & Wise and the Wicked PF & 5e – At fulfillment shipper. PDF and PoD physical book versions on sale at DTRPG. Dice are in, Adventures on their way.
- Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition) – Books and Screens created and are en route from printer to fulfillment shipper.
- Prince’s Gambit – Being sent to the US.
- V20 Beckett’s Jyhad Diary– Deluxe edition files sent to printer.
- C20 Ready Made Characters – PoD proofs on the way.
- Scion Dice Packaging – At fulfillment shipper.
- Wraith 20 – Backer PDF out, and errata is coming in.
- Ring of Spiragos – PoD versions at KS fulfillment shipper.
- Beast PG – Advance PDF on sale at DTRPG.com, errata done.
- DtD Enemy Action – Advance PDF on sale at DTRPG.com, errata done.
TODAY’S REASON TO CELEBRATE: Just last weekend was St. Paddy’s Day. I had a great corned beef dinner and white birch beer dyed green with my kids. How great is life? I can celebrate that way, and also fondly remember the years and years at WW where StPat’s Day was an actual company holiday, and we’d gather for breakfast down the street from the pub in Atlanta so we could be there when the doors opened at 11am. And by we, I mean almost the whole freakin’ company, who drank until after nightfall.
Shunned by the Moon! Finally! Yes!
Is the Changeling Ready Made Characters part of the Kickstarter?
Yes, it was a Stretch Goal. This is the officially released version that anyone could get on DRPG.
I’m not asking this as a dig at you guys or anything, I just want to know if we can expect to see work on the Exalted essay collection stretch goal from the first Kickstarter any time soon? I’ll be honest, I was one of the people turned off by the first Kickstarter and by how complex the system was, but I feel like reading some writing by fans and developers about how much Exalted has changed and what a difference it has made in the world of RPG’s would be a good inspiration and get people like me to give it another chance. (One of the reasons I backed and was so excited for the KS was because of how much I loved the setting and the passion I saw amongst the forums at the time.)
Soon, yes. The Essay Book was the most back-burnered of the projects because while we really wanted to jump right in on it, it isn’t a game book. We put the KS projects and new EX3 projects first in our priorities. Now we should see it appear on the project progress listings very soon.
I’m kinda curious… who all will be writing essays for that?
Howl for Luna and the fools that know not her light!
There are many of them, as this book will show!
Super excited about the DB Kickstarter! I can’t wait to see what’s in store there.
Bummed that the canvas maps are already sold out though, I never even realized they were on sale. Is there any other way to get those? Will there be a reprinting, or maybe be available through the new KS?
We have no plans to reprint it, although you never know.
I wasn’t aware of a canvas map of the Realm, only of Creation.
Is it real or a refuse ?
The map of creation from the first KS is what I’m talking about. Not a new one.
Ok, thank you.
any chance of a pdf or image file of the map of creation?
I missed out on the map but was able to buy a high-quality print directly from the artist.
Can you pass on those details please? I would love to have a map.
What size was it?
Have you considered a print option for the exalted 3 core (same as pod but with better binding) as a stretch goal or addon for the DB Kickstarter?
I have the pdf but I am reluctant to buy the pod since multiple reviewers state it falls apart because of the size. Buying from Indie press revolution is not an option because of their international shipping rates.
I understand, but since we need to run one KS primarily to afford printing the Dragon Blooded book, we can’t just tack-on an entire other book, and a huge one at that. As for the PoDs, I have to assume that there is a larger than normal chance that the binding will break, and we have folks saying it does, but we also have folks saying that theirs is fine and my “work” copy that I use for reference is still in great shape.
You don’t really use the PoD much in practice from my experience. Mine is in relatively good shape (a few pages have fallen out), but it’s too heavy to pass around the table for the most part. I keep it pretty in my bookshelf while I’m using the PDF when I play.
My group has 3 POD copies which we ordered as soon as they were available. We’ve had no problems with any of them. We’ve been actively using them for our ongoing game of almost 2 years.
That is good to know. Did you use the standard or premium variant?
Gotta admit, I wasn’t part of the original Ex3 KS, so I only heard about all the trouble it went through, but at the very least, Minton and (especially) Vance have earned my trust that they’ll try their level best with DB.
An instant backing on my part, hoping you guys will be up to my hype :-p
Thanks so much, they really have been great. I guess Hype should have been point that we changed #7. You weren’t part of the original KS, but there was a lot of use of verbiage we used that was designed to play along with all the excitement, and which we thought people understood to be hype. We’ve learned since then to avoid getting too verbose with descriptions or replies and to keep the wahoo-factor toned down.
This will sound harsh, but it is my opinion: One of the reasons that put people off were the complete secrecy from devs’ part to reveal details from their work. We had to wait patiently for years while the devs eventually started to treat the community as garbage and fled the forums.
The new developers brought interest back because they have shown genuine passion which I think was lost on the previous developers (I’m sure they had it at first because of how hard they worked in the beginning, but that passion seemed to turn to bitterness as things progressed). I think that OPP’s new more open development system of putting out books is a great thing to maintain hype while we’re waiting for the products. The Ask the Devs thread is also a nice bonus, unlike the previous ones that were hidden away on rpg.net before those devs retreated.
I am especially thrilled to see Handbook for the Recently Deceased on the Timeline. I have absolutely loved what I’ve read in Wraith 20th so far, and it’s exciting to know Handbook is that far along.
I also have a quick question about the C20 Player’s Guide. I know Maggie Carrol Developed book of Freeholds. Would you be able to share who the lead dev (or devs) are on the Player’s Guide?
That would be Maggie and Pete Woodworth.
Thanks. That’s awesome to hear.
Onyx Dice are nice! However, please check out the reviews that I and others have left. We don’t know where to report bugs or to file feature requests. Some basic things aren’t there, while others are not explained well or don’t work at all.
It’s a great app, but I want it to be better so I can spend more money on it. 🙂
The devs watch the Facebook page if you’d like to make comments there.
The Dragon Blooded Core isn’t going to be as massive a tome as the Exalted Core will it?
My gaming group doesn’t really go in for using laptops and tablets at our table, and the sheer size of the Exalted Core has us leery of playing 3e
No, we have no intention of it trying to match EX3’s size.
Oh nice, you scheduled the start of the DB Kickstarter to be right after my next payday. How thoughtful!
We’re always there for you. Thanks!
Is there a likelyhood that we’ll see print-on-demand posters for Wraith 20th Anniversary Edition on DriveThruRPG once it sees full release? I’d be especially happy if some of the older designs could be made available, if that’s possible. There’s a poster from 1996 that reads “There’s a storm that’s always screaming under the skin of the world. Sometimes it comes looking for you…” which I would be pleased to have a chance to order.
Thanks for letting us know. We’ll put your idea on our “let’s see” list of possible little projects to add to our bigger schedule.
I was one of the ones that weren’t very happy with the core’s art. But I admit that it has been improving. As Rich said, it is a subjective thing, a matter of taste, but what I felt in EX3 was that the selection as a whole lacked the old dynamic and awe-inspiring imagery as before.
But now, Mike and Rich, your work is really appreciated. Keep up the good job with the art of this edition. I’m OK with the change in style, what’s really important for me is that it has the spirit of Exalted, and I can see it more and more in the new illustrations.
See you in the KS! 😀
As we reconceptualized Exalted in order to bring it into the 3rd Edition, I really felt that the 2e artwork had swerved into a couple of favorite artists and beyond them, the rest were a visual style that was too much the same and not really the scope that was my intention with 1st edition. One way to say it was that the slick style had pushed out anything gritty. I think Exalted needs both and that 3rd needed to return us to a wider spectrum of visual styles. In order to accomplish that, we had to take some risks visually in order to find the looks and artists that could actually work with us. Normally, you wouldn’t have seen any of that, but the nature of Kickstarter and my feeling that our long-waiting backers needed more concrete proof that work was being accomplished meant that we put up all the art in our first PDF, rather than wait for revisions. Considering the situation at the time, I think that was the only way it made sense to proceed, but that led to a lot of the pieces we were working to change getting called out as awful travesties for existing right then in the PDF. It was not all bad though, because a lot of good catches were made by our community that opened our eyes to the artistic practices of some of the new illustrators that we were trying out, and I don’t think Mike or I would have caught them ourselves as we were working on a different frames of reference.
My group had a full circle pledge of deluxe EX3 books that we’ve hardly opened because of the way the KS was handled. Most notably the way backers were treated on across multiple forums by OPP staff and mods. I’ve been watching the other KS campaigns from the sidelines and I’m happy to see that attitude has left/improved and so have the KS campaigns. Kudos where kudos are due. I am really excited for my favorite splat book to bring me back into the game.
Thank you for the kudos and for noting the changes we’ve made. See you at the DB Kickstarter!
Is there any reason why I feel like we don’t really know anything news about scion ?? It’s been a while really, even in the kickstarter update.
Not sure what you’re looking for. We release Neall’s backer Updates monthly, the Monday Meeting Notes are weekly and show the phase of production each book is in, and the TextOnly version of Scion: Hero went out to backers recently. Plus, you can talk directly to Neall in the Ask Neall thread on our Scion forums. What else are you looking for?
As someone who always felt Solars were the least interesting type of Exalted, I’m excited for this and eager to back stuff again after sitting out Abberant/Trinity.
Glad to hear it! Look forward to seeing you there!
(Our just-completed Kickstarter was for the Trinity Continuum core rules and the Æon setting; Aberrant only just started its production process.)
sorry if this should be obvious but how long will the DB Kickstarter run for, i should be getting a good amount of money round about the 20th April, will i still be able to join the Kickstarter by that point?
It should run for 30 days. Then after that we’ll have a BackerKit site up for it, which will allow some access to the KS projects.
Oh hey, is the Dragon Blood book going to be a Deluxe or a Prestige?
I gotta be honest, I like the Prestige books better. The Deluxe editions are always just too bells-and-whistles-y for me. I like just having a good, sturdy, better-than-PoD book.
It’s a Deluxe to match the Deluxe EX3. The whole “set” thing.
This makes me Happy 🙂 (Yay!)
Though I’m sorry for your sake, JetSGW 🙁
I am excited to see my favorite Exalted splat coming out. Creation is gonna get a little more full soon. 🙂
Also the KS will be running during my birthday, so I should be able to get it! NICE!
So does Guide to the Night contain a part clarifying that in the core rules, vampires do not regain a Willpower point during daysleep?
Really looking forward to the DB Kickstarter. I particularly like that we’re getting the text early, as I can use it in ongoing games. I understand that the companion volume The Realm is also text complete. Are you planning to offer any way of getting the text of that early as well, or are we going to have to wait through art direction, layout, proofing and all of that stuff?
What order will the fat splat books for Exalted come out this time around? Just wanna get an idea of where Abyssal is in the ladder.
The next is Lunars, then Exigents. After that, we’ll have to see how things prioritize.
I am surprised that you are not doing it like the previous editions, with Abyssals and Sidereals after Lunars..Are you doing Exigents after Lunars because they are the new stuff that might be confusing in this edition?
There’s really no set pattern. We try and put out the “fatsplats” in the most helpful order for the most people, so that’s why Lunars was moved up as next after Dragon-Blooded, and Exigents is after that. Exigents, in addition to being the first of the new Exalted types to get a book, should also contain info on the thinking on how to design an Exalted – so that folks who want to will be able to work up their favorite other types of Exalted until we can bring out that fatsplat book. Thanks!
I love exalted, I still play ex2. I want to play ex3 I own a pdf. But I don’t want to wait another 3+ years for Db, then another 3+ years for lunars and so on. I’m 40 and do not want to be in a retirement home arguing with my half blind friends about how many successes are on dice none of us can read.
With DB writing finished, backgrounds and layout formats set, and a new and excellent roster of artists who understand our setting, it won’t be three years until DB is done. The Devs are already pulling together the writers for Lunars, so that is following DB much closer than DB followed EX3. As for the dice, I hear you. I think anybody who can make those 1 foot around dice is going to make a fortune in aging gamer nursing home play.
I’m glad to hear you at last acknowledging that there were problems with how the Ex3 kickstarter was handled, but do you have anything to offer those of us who don’t like the end result of that kickstarter? Are you willing to acknowledge that, for some of us, Ex3 simply isn’t a game that we would have backed had we known what the end result would be? Are you going to do anything to fix the myriad problems with the Ex3 corebook?
One of the reasons we have moved to using the KS methodology we’re using now is so that we have finished text available during the KS for backers to peruse before the KS closes. That way, you can see right there whether it is the book you want and need and thus you can keep, raise, or cancel your pledge. EX3 was certainly one of the previous KSs that led to that decision. We want backers to be happy with the project they are backing. That being said, we didn’t pretend during EX3’s KS that the text was locked in stone, and have stressed repeatedly that a KS project is a work in progress and that some elements might change if we think that change will improve the project in our opinion. Obviously, your opinion is different in EX3’s case. No project is perfect for all people, and our current dev team is already addressing some of folks’ concerns by how they are handling the writing in Dragon-Blooded, and by some of the new upcoming projects we have slated for EX3.