So…
Things have gotten a little crazy here in the US over the last week, and I don’t know about all of you, but my need to work on game worlds and settings has been amped up. Not necessarily to retreat from the real world, but to recharge and to have a less confusing place to take a breath and get my thoughts together. Being lucky enough to create these worlds is how I do engage, but I’m sure a fair number of you also are feeling like playing and GMing.
I didn’t draw all these over the last week, it took months, but here’s a couple of pics of my Pugmire characters wall in my office:
Some people like to look at dogs being cute on Facebook when stressed, I like to draw dogs in a fantasy game. What can I say?
Next, we have a bit of good timing in that if you are looking for some game books to read as your stress-buster, as I just ordered the PoD proofs for W20 Kinfolk, W20 Shattered Dreams, Promethean: the Created 2nd Edition, Beast Ready Made Characters, the V20 Dark Ages fiction anthology Cainite Conspiracies, and the b&w version of The Endless Ages Vampire the Masquerade fiction anthology. (Which we added to the existing color PDF and PoD versions as a lower cost option.)
This means we are going to have weeks where we release these books as the PoDs are cleared all the way up to the Christmas holidays. Woohoo!
And let me remind you that if you do want to order physical book PODs from DTRPG, or Deluxe and Prestige books from IPR, or shirts and stuff from our RedBubble store as gifts for yourself or any loved ones that you count in shipping time if you want them before Christmas day. The calendar is blurring past.
Finally, a very good bit of good news: I am overjoyed to announce that Mighty Matt McElroy is joining Onyx Path full time as Operations Director as of next week. Matt has been a good friend to Onyx since the idea began rattling around in my head, and has been pivotal in helping the company get started with his experienced advice. Now he is coming onboard to oversee all the various working parts of Onyx Path and to make sure they are all working well together and communicating.
As we continue to grow, Matt’s knowledge of how the tabletop RPG business works through various sales venues, including getting books into stores, will be vital for us to be able do so without busting our already challenged teams of creators. (He also takes over a bunch of the internal company stuff I was doing so that I can concentrate on our company goals and creative direction again). Here’s the official press release: https://theonyxpath.com/onyx-path-publishing-welcomes-matt-mcelroy-as-operations-director/
Please join me in welcoming Matt along for this craaaazy ride!
BLURBS!
KICKSTARTER!
We’re exploring card game Kickstarters, packaging, and components, for Prince’s Gambit.
ON SALE!
Until late Tuesday the 15th, we have a 20% off sale at RedBubble! Use code “perfect20-TheOnyxPath” for 20% off on our t-shirts, other apparel, and merchandise. http://www.redbubble.com/people/theonyxpath
Looking for our Deluxe or Prestige Edition books? 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/
With a howl, W20 Kinfolk: A Breed Apart will be on sale on DTRPG Wednesday in both PDF and PoD formats! Awooooo! http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/194952/W20-Kinfolk-A-Breed-Apart
Born to Run
The Garou are born of two kinds: humans and wolves. These are their Kinfolk — those “of the blood.” These special people — whether of two legs or four — carry in them the hope of the Garou: the promise of future generations. Although Garou are born to Kinfolk, nobody knows they’re different until they undergo their First Change. Until such a blessed (or cursed) time, they are just like their more mundane Kin. Most live as humans, suffering the foibles of humanity, all the while hoping they’re secretly special, that they harbor the wolf within. Even though that wolf will never howl for the majority of Kin, they’ve still got a vital role in the war, aiding the effort from behind the lines.
Kinfolk: A Breed Apart contains:
- Overview of the Kinfolk, both kenning and callow, including some of the Fellowships founded by Kinfolk to aid the Garou cause — and to protect themselves from their cousins’ Rage.
- Character creation for playing Kinfolk, including new Skills, Backgrounds, Merits and Flaws, as well as special Kin rites, Gifts, and fetishes.
- Guidelines for running Kinfolk chronicles, as well as in-depth information on the Kin-Fetches, the unique spirits used by Garou to watch over their distant cousins and warn the tribes if one of them should undergo the First Change.
NOTE: If you have already purchased the Advance PDF, you will be automatically updated to the final PDF and receive a link to enable you to purchase the PoD at a discount designed so that your total price matches our usual PDF and Print combo offer.
Exalted 3rd Edition Charm Cards! In PDF and PoD physical card sets! Back on sale this week on DTRPG!
There are a lot of cards, and we have to offer them alphabetically through three sets:
Set 1: Archery – Investigation http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/192228/Exalted-3rd-Edition-Charm-Cards-Set-1
Set 2: Larceny – Resistance http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/192229/Exalted-3rd-Edition-Charm-Cards-Set-2
Set 3: Ride – War http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/192230/Exalted-3rd-Edition-Charm-Cards-Set-3
You’ll need all three sets to have all of them.
You can also order them by individual Charm type on the site.
For sale in PDF, ebook, and physical book editions at DTRPG.com: The Endless Ages fiction anthology! Vampire: the Masquerade fiction featuring all-new, original, stories written to evoke the distinct feeling of each of VtM‘s four editions! http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/193199/V20-The-Endless-Ages-Anthology
Celebrating 25 years of personal horror, the eighteen stories in Endless Ages range in style and aesthetics from the very first edition of Vampire released in 1991, all the way to the latest books put out for the 20th Anniversary Edition.
“The Becoming” has stories grounded in the lonely struggle for morality. “Gothic-Punk” stories focus on sensuality and the conflict between young and ancient vampires. “Signs of Gehenna” shows what happens to Kindred society as it teeters on the edge of apocalypse. Finally, “Modern Nights” juxtaposes all of these concepts to present a comfortable illusion of status quo in a world of conspiracy.
NOW the long awaited opportunity to own Mage: the Awakening 2nd Edition as a physical book is at last at hand! http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/181754/Mage-the-Awakening-2nd-Edition
You are a mage, one of the Wise. You see, know, and explore what others can’t imagine, from the depths of the human soul to the hidden corners of reality. Armed with your spells, driven by an addiction to Mysteries, you delve into the secrets of the world. Knowledge has a price, and the dangers are many.
This book contains:
- The complete guide to playing a mage in the Chronicles of Darkness.
- Reimagined Paths, Orders, and powers to create your Awakened characters and their allies, including an updated version of the most comprehensive free-form magic system in gaming.
- Five example settings across the world, from Los Angeles to Salamanca, each with a central Mystery.
- A brand-new look at all the strange places of the Fallen World, from the Lower Depths to the Emanation Realms, and what mages might find within.
Now available from DriveThruRPG in PDF: Mage: The Awakening Condition and Numina Cards.
Part of the new Mage: The Awakening 2nd Edition rules, Conditions add an additional layer of consequence and reward to certain actions in the Chronicles of Darkness.
Various things within the course of a game can cause Conditions. These include exceptional successes, supernatural abilities, and really any situation where the Storyteller thinks they can be used to heighten the drama of a game.
Also available in this deck are brand new Numina cards featuring these rules from the Mage: The Awakening 2nd Edition rulebook for ease of reference at the table.
CONVENTIONS!
Onyx Path will be at Mid Winter Con 2017 in January in the lovely city of Milwaukee. Come brave the cold wastes to game and cavort with us! Please keep an eye out on the MidWinter site for announcements as to our very special beta test and Play With The Creator special events! http://www.midwintergamingconvention.com/
Matthew “Gentleman Gamer” Dawkins and Dapper Dave Brookshaw will be representing Onyx Path at Dragonmeet in London on Saturday, Dec 3rd, so if you are in the area and want to have a chat with either of those gentlemen, please do pop by and say cheerio!
And now, the new project status updates!
First Draft (The first phase of a project that is about the work being done by writers, not dev prep)
- Exalted 3rd Novel by Matt Forbeck (Exalted 3rd Edition)
- Trinity Continuum Core Rulebook (The Trinity Continuum)
- Trinity Continuum: Aeon Rulebook (The Trinity Continuum)
- M20 Gods and Monsters (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
- V20 Dark Ages Jumpstart (Vampire: the Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition)
- M20 Cookbook (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
- M20 Book of the Fallen (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
- GtS Geist 2e core
- VtR Half-Damned (Vampire: the Requiem 2nd Edition)
- Kithbook Boggans (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)
- WoD Ghost Hunters (World of Darkness)
- CtD C20 Jumpstart
- Ex Novel 2 by Aaron Rosenberg
Redlines
- Scion: Origins (Scion 2nd Edition)
- Scion: Hero (Scion 2nd Edition)
- BtP Beast Player’s Guide (Beast: the Primordial)
- CtD C20 Anthology (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)
Second Draft
- The Realm (Exalted 3rd Edition)
- Dragon-Blooded (Exalted 3rd Edition)
- Cavaliers of Mars
- Wraith: the Oblivion 20th Anniversary Edition
- VtR A Thousand Years of Night (Vampire: the Requiem 2nd Edition)
- BtP Building a Legend (Beast: the Primordial)
- V20 Beckett’s Jyhad Diary (Stretch Goal Content)
Development
- W20 Changing Ways (Werewolf: the Apocalypse 20th Anniversary Edition)
- Changeling: the Lost 2nd Edition, featuring the Huntsmen Chronicle (Changeling: the Lost 2nd Edition)
- Signs of Sorcery (Mage: the Awakening Second Edition)
- SL The Wise and the Wicked (5e – Scarred Lands 2nd Edition)
- SL Ring of Spiragos (Pathfinder – Scarred Lands 2nd Edition)
- Ring of Spiragos (5e – Scarred Lands 2nd Edition)
- SL Dagger of Spiragos (Pathfinder – Scarred Lands 2nd Edition)
- Dagger of Spiragos (5e– Scarred Lands 2nd Edition)
- Arms of the Chosen (Exalted 3rd Edition)
- EX3 Jumpstart (Exalted 3rd Edition)
- CtL fiction anthology (Changeling: the Lost 2nd Edition)
Editing:
Post-Editing Development:
- Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition
Indexing:
ART DIRECTION FROM MIRTHFUL MIKE:
In Art Direction
- Dark Eras Companion
- Beckett’s Jyhad Diary
- V20 Lore of the Bloodlines
- SL Wise and Wicked Update
- Prince’s Gambit
- C20
- M20 Book of Secrets
- W20 Pentex Employee Indoctrination Handbook
- V20 Dark Ages Companion
- Pugmire
In Layout
- Necropolis Rio
- Beast Condition Cards
- Beast Conquering Heroes
Proofing
- Secrets of the Covenants
- Mummy Novel
- CofD Hurt Locker
At Press
- Ex 3 Screen – Finished at the Printer.
- Ex 3 core book – From RichT: manufacturing continues. Still need two bound samples with covers, coming soon I’m told. Still coming! And still coming!
- Kinfolk – on sale Wednesday on DTRPG.
- W20 Shattered Dreams – PoD proof ordered.
- V20 Endless Ages – PoD proof ordered.
- V20 DA The Cainite Conspiracies – PoD proof ordered.
- Beast RMCs – PoD proof ordered.
- V20 DA Tome of Secrets – Out to backers and errata collecting.
- Promethean 2nd – PoD proof ordered
TODAY’S REASON TO DRINK: Oh, lots of reasons. Pick one!
I’m praying that we can see the Rio book before the year’s end. It isn’t likely, but I’ll pray.
I’ve been curious about Rio as well just because on the projects page it’s listed as a 104 page book. So it seems like it’s been in layout for a really long time. I haven’t said anything because other titles are moving so quickly, but I am curious about how far Rio is from moving forward.
At this point, you know that that’s not a curiosity I can satisfy. When Mirthful Mike used to provide more detailed notes on what was happening with the books, some people in our community used those details to attack his professionalism and dedication to the projects. So he has dropped those details from his updates, and I respect his wishes as to how to handle these things. Obviously, you’ve been reading these updates for long enough to know that if something sits for longer than average at a stage, then there is some sort of holdup. We’ll get things rolling again, and it’ll come out as soon as we can release it and still uphold our quality standards. As we’ve grown, we continue to make the moves we need to in order to keep our projects coming: bringing on Rollickin’ Rose and now Mighty Matt McElroy are hires done specifically to handle our ongoing growth, and Mirthful Mike has been training several freelance graphic designers to do layout to replace the previous extra designers we lost these last couple of years. And the entire reason to have our Extended Media teams operating independently is to avoid putting more pressure on our existing creators.
Rich I’m sorry if my post bothered you. You have shared details on projects before in very high level ways at a variety of stages in the timeline. I specifically didn’t inquire about direct dates or reference any level of detail because I know you won’t provide that, but statements on the l level of “We’ve been involved in some more development on this than the normal. It’s going to be awesome but still has some more time, or we’re pretty close”, if all I was hoping for, and it was a soft hope. You specifically gave the it’s very close comment on secrets of the covenants a few weeks ago. I am definitely not asking for the kind of detail Mike used to provide, and know any comment here may go without response and I really don’t mind not getting a response when the details aren’t something you want to comment on. Having a comment that was literally just saying I’m curious get this strong a response feels kind of strange.
I could have just said “Nah! No news for you!”, but thought you and other folks might appreciate the whys and wherefores of the info I provide here. Sorry if the amount of that was jarring. 🙂
Whenever I inquire about status all I’m hoping for is very high level, and I know that is only going to be forthcoming sometimes. I do my best to keep my asks super vague because I know estimates, and specifics have caused issues before, which is really unfortunate. My approach is always doesn’t hurt to ask, but be prepared for no details right now or silence. It just felt like more expectation was read into my post than that and if I did communicate more than that I’m really sorry.
No apologies are necessary, I just added more to my reply because I thought you and other readers would enjoy hearing more of the reasons behind why we do things like we do. While I’d love to talk more in these comments about the things above the project progress list, I understand that folks are excited and want their favs as soon as possible, preferably sooner. 🙂 And are going to ask questions about them. Not a problem.
It’s good to hear that new design/layout talent is being brought on, as (to my blind outsider eyes) it seems that the largest jam books seem to run into is there. Here’s hoping your team can grow and keep its standards just as high while still expediting things a little!
(And sorry if I or any other fan comes off as demanding, we just are all really excited for new content.)
Right now, yes, there’s a jam. Other times, it’s at other stages of the process. I’m not sure you need to apologize for your questions, I just want ya’ll to be aware that there are reasons why there’s only so much I’m going to blab about. 🙂
Do we know Exactly what might be holding up Changeling The lost 2e? Is that a writer issue? Sorry, I’m just super excited to get that book into my hands.
No, not a writer issue. As part of Rose’s new full-time duties as Development Producer, she is working with developers, particularly of core books, more closely to enable a smoother movement through the later steps of the project, and those discussions take more time than our previous process.
So what exactly is the difference between Second Draft and Development? You’ve likely explained it, but I can’t find the explanation.
The writer does the 2nd draft based on the notes they receive from the developer during the red line phase. The development phase is when the developer brings all the second drafts together – remember, we have multiple writers on any given project, usually – and makes sure they all work as the developer intends.
Mortal Remains: Beast seems to have fallen through the cracks; last I heard it was in post-editing development, but it’s not there (or indeed anywhere) this week. For that matter, it’s been a couple of yonks since we were updated on the PoD for A Feast of Blades, at which time it was in proofing and inputting errata.
Mortal Remains: Beast is between the text phase and the layout phase. Neither discipline had it on their list this week because of that. Feast of Blades PoD is still coming, now that we have resolved the problems occurring with the PoD printer. Sending it to them when things were just spinning in place in their system made no sense, but as you can see from the sheer number of PoD proofs coming at me in the next weeks, things have been worked out on their end.
Not to sound pushy, but the EX3 physical copies have been waiting for two bound samples for over a month now. Any idea what’s holding them up?
The gilding of the pages is the principal bottleneck. The old-school gilding company can only handle so many books at a time, and our @4K of EX3, and the amount of gilding for a book its size, has slowed things down.
What does an Operations Director do?
In a totally not smart ass answer way: he directs the company’s operations. Part of Matt’s responsibilities is to be the hub in the midst of all of our efforts and to make sure that all of our projects are moving forward in a way where we are working together and not smashing into each other. We have a lot of projects and some are licenses from WWP, some are joint projects with other creators, and some are our own. Then, we are getting them to our community through a fair number of different venues at this time: DTRPG, Kickstarters and BackerKit, Indy Press Revolution, RedBubble, convention appearances, and distributing them into stores is coming for some of our more recent books. We’re exploring Amazon, app stores, and online RPG sites. There are just a ton of moving parts that all need to work together. A big descriptor of the job is that Matt will be watching and helping every project be created and then put into the sales channels that we determine are best for it.
-sigh-
Still no progress on the Exalted products, not even the ones meant for PDF. This is going to be a painful release cycle.
I heard the Jumpstart was at WW for approval? Any news on that?
Which EX3 projects are you thinking are just for PDF?
I’m thinking he probably means the books like the Jumpstart and Arms which are just going to be PDFs on Drivethru and by extension PoD. Neither are going through the more time intensive process of a traditional print run are they?
The traditional printing process doesn’t hold up the pdfs, so that has nothing to do with it.
Maybe the PoD approval might hold up a pdf, but even if that did happen it would be that long.
Getting the PoD version done does hold up the release of the final PDF as we like to release them together, but otherwise you’re right. In fact, since each version helps us perfect the version that comes after, we made the call to release in stages from Advance or Backer PDF, to Final PDF and POD, to traditional printing. So the PDFs have to be finalized so that the trad versions are as mistake free as possible.
No, they are not, so that might be the answer.
I see my doggie right in the center of the first image. He’s fabulous!
Very fun to draw! Thanks for submitting his pics!
Really excited for Secrets of the Covenants; I want to launch a new Vampire game at some point here in the near future and that is going to be a brilliant resource.
The V20 Dark Ages Companion is just below that on my list of future purchases; I’ve been slowly updating the Transylvania Chronicles to run with V20 and Companion should be very helpful with the modifications.
So very much looking forward to Secrets of the Covenants. It’s rather desperately needed for our club-based CoD chronicle.
I just wanted to say thank you for taking the time to go through and answer all of our questions, no matter how rediculous they may seem at times. As you alluded to, sometimes these games can be a way for many of us to escape or at the very least make sense of the world we live in. Because of that, we often become very passionate about them, even to the point of being a bit overzealous. The point of all of this is that all of you are still gracious enough to put up with it and still put out quality products. I have no doubt that with the continued growth OP has been going through we will only see better things. Thank you for the transparency and willingness to engage us in the process.
My pleasure, and thanks!
That gangrell looks familiar 🙂
How is Wraith coming these days? Any news?
RichD is still pulling together the final text. Thanks!
2 questions, the first was asked on drive thru rpg by another user but: would the charm cards have the charms from miracles, or is it strictly from the core book?
is there any intent in producing charm cards per book: i.e.1 for the core and 1 for say the dragon-blooded or will there be no additional charm cards released?
Right now, these are just the Charms from the core. (Of course, saying “just” when referring to 800+ Charms sounds weird!) Where we go with the card idea after these depends on how well they sell, to be honest. I think they’re incredibly useful for keeping track of your Charms, and would like to do continuing sets, but if the community doesn’t agree, then it’d be a no go to do more.
Hey Rich
I was wondering if we could get an update on secrets of the covenants?
It seems to be taking quite a bit of time. Is it due to the size of the book or amount of content?
Here’s where it is in the progress list:
Proofing
•Secrets of the Covenants
Please see my response to Victor earlier in the comments for a longer commentary on why that is all the info available. Short version, the info on the list is as transparent as our crew is comfortable being, and we’re gonna stick with that for now. Thanks!
That doesn’t really seem like a fair response. You are in the public eye as a content producer. Some people will be critical and there are trolls to contend with every day.
If your response to criticism is to hide, perhaps there was some legitimacy to the criticism… and there will always be trolls, it’s the Internet, I would assume a thicker skin with as long as you guys have been doing this.
I can understand reluctance in the development phase. If a project is just too big to fit in 1 book and you’ve already promised it, you let your fans down.
But this is proofing. I would have imagined at this phase there should be no sweeping changes. But I don’t know how the process works up there so I can accept if I’m completely wrong on that.
Anyway, just one of many excited for the book.
So first off, what is it you find unfair? That I won’t answer your question out of deference to the wishes of my creative team? As a “content producer”, I think it would be far more unfair to do real harm to my team vs you not having your curiosity satisfied. The thickness of my skin has nothing to do with it. Nobody making these books deserves abuse for the process of doing their jobs in the best way they can, and they certainly do not have to “suck it up”, or “grow thicker skins”, or keep taking abuse because if they don’t they’ll be accused of hiding because there might be “legitimacy to the criticism”.
If there’s some other reason you find it unfair, like maybe it’s unfair that nice posters don’t get more info in these updates because of a few bad apples, I am sympathetic. But again, the worst that happens to you nice posters is that you don’t get all your questions answered in as much detail as you’d like. In a weekly progress report that already shows more info transparently than most RPG companies, and certainly more than anything old WW ever did. The worst that happens to our creative folks is that the constant questioning of their abilities sours them on the whole business and we lose more creative people from this hobby we all love.
I’m really happy you are excited for the book, I’m excited that we are getting close to getting it out to you. And that “we” isn’t the royal We, it is the whole team, everybody who contributed the time, and talent, and effort, that it takes to create one of our books. Each of those people makes the very thing you are excited about; is it so much to ask that they be given the room to do the very thing you need them to be doing so you get your book?
Your second paragraph is why I say that. To allow a few people to ruin a good thing seems like a shame.
And yes I think legitimate criticism is part of the creative process. I would hate to see the product quality decline because of fear. You guys took a big leap with requiem, and originally some backlash. But came back strong with supplement content.
So my criticism of the lack of information on the release of the first piece of content for your largest product (at least for many years vampire was) in 3 years, isn’t to make you mad. Just to point out fans have been waiting for a long time and watching a product sit in proofing for 2 months is frustrating.
You don’t have to defend the long wait, I know Rose was injured and it took time to heal. I get that completely.
Your right old WW had very little in the way of feedback. But the flip side was regardless of quality they were throwing out consistent content.
I’m fine with the quality over quantity approach but when you are this close to release maybe fire up the Ole hype train and toss some excitement at us.
Yes, it is a shame. It is also cause and effect illustrated. Even on the internet, action creates reaction. In this case, lousy stinking nasty personal attacks cause the subject of those attacks to no longer put themselves in a position to be attacked.
Legitimate criticism is not what I am talking about as the cause of the pull-back on more detailed info. Tell me you’re frustrated by the lack of movement, and I sympathize. Tell me that a mistake was made in one of our books, and I want to fix it. Tell me our designer sucks because the project sat in layout longer than you personally think it should, and that is an attack and there is no need for that.
“Regardless of quality”. That is exactly correct. I’ll spare everyone reading my usual soapbox about how bad ultimately that release treadmill was for all involved, including all of you, and let those words stand as testament to that time period.
The BLURBS! section is where we have the hype in this blog. Even in my “essay” section each week. The progress list, though, is there to provide our community with clear facts on where in the creative process a project sits and is, in fact, a spot designed as the opposite of hype. If you, as a person, get hyped-up over where something is on that list, that’s cool but not the intention, and if you get frustrated, then that’s the price we all pay for the transparency of showing where things actually sit in the process.
How far down the pipeline would EX3 Lunars and Sidereals be. I really want those two.
We were seeing some open development articles about Hunter 2E a few months ago; but the project never landed on the list of upcoming books. Did that project get pushed back or is the first draft still getting worked out?
I’m just curious and was excited by the new developer’s interest in fan response. She seemed like things were moving quickly on that book.
She’s working on the outline currently. More news when we have it, thanks!