In attempt to better organize things for the Frozen Skies Kickstarter relaunch (as well as kickstart my forums) started a thread on the Utherwald forums to consolidate all the feedback, etc in one handy place.
http://forums.utherwaldpress.com/index.php?showtopic=2
Wednesday 21 August 2013
Wednesday 14 August 2013
Kickstarter Update: And She's Done!
The project has reached its conclusion, though I've had a positive response I am a little disappointed that the project didn't reach its target.
In retrospect there are probably a ton of things I could've done differently to make it more successful, the major one I believe that I probably should've spent more time promoting the project before it started. Yes we got up to 31% funded with £943 from 60 backers, had I promoted it heavily for an extra couple of months then its possible that could've been reached within the first few days.
But as I said, there is probably a ton of other factors.
So the question now is what happens next?
I think the obvious answer is get some feedback and learn from my mistakes, this includes asking on forums and sending out a survey later today. The other answer is look at ways to try and get Frozen Skies funded somehow, I know there is interest as has been proven and I'm stubborn enough to keep trying to get the book out.
So my options are as follows;
*Crowdfund via Paypal; Great for people who didn't want to use Amazon and/or Kickstarter, but may end up being a slower method of raising the funds needed.
*Try again with Kickstarter; I can get feedback and make a much better project, though my only concerns are how long do I wait before running it and whether my first project will count against me.
*Seek Alternative Funding; Been keeping my options open and seeing what else is out there that can be useful, though I don't know if anything will come of it.
So that is how things stand, thanks to everyone who has backed the project and I welcome any and all feedback you may have.
In retrospect there are probably a ton of things I could've done differently to make it more successful, the major one I believe that I probably should've spent more time promoting the project before it started. Yes we got up to 31% funded with £943 from 60 backers, had I promoted it heavily for an extra couple of months then its possible that could've been reached within the first few days.
But as I said, there is probably a ton of other factors.
So the question now is what happens next?
I think the obvious answer is get some feedback and learn from my mistakes, this includes asking on forums and sending out a survey later today. The other answer is look at ways to try and get Frozen Skies funded somehow, I know there is interest as has been proven and I'm stubborn enough to keep trying to get the book out.
So my options are as follows;
*Crowdfund via Paypal; Great for people who didn't want to use Amazon and/or Kickstarter, but may end up being a slower method of raising the funds needed.
*Try again with Kickstarter; I can get feedback and make a much better project, though my only concerns are how long do I wait before running it and whether my first project will count against me.
*Seek Alternative Funding; Been keeping my options open and seeing what else is out there that can be useful, though I don't know if anything will come of it.
So that is how things stand, thanks to everyone who has backed the project and I welcome any and all feedback you may have.
Monday 12 August 2013
Kickstarter Update: The Final Countdown
And we're close to the end.
The response to the project has been good and I thank everyone who has backed, though we still need that extra push to get it there. I've said before that £3,000 is nothing by Kickstarter standards and I stand by that, it has been raised before in about an hour or so. Even though there is less than 48 hours left I'm still confident that we'll get there. So again I ask everyone to share this project and encourage others to pledge, with a strong effort we'll get there and make Frozen Skies a reality.
Friday 9 August 2013
Kickstarter Update: The Home Stretch
We're quickly coming to the end of Week Four and the end is in sight, as ever a very big thank you to everyone who has backed this project and help spread the word.
Though a big push is still needed to get us to our target, so pester your friends and blackmail your gaming groups into backing, also share through social media and various gaming forums. Reaching our target within the time remaining is still doable, it can and will be done!
So promote like crazy over the weekend and I'll see you all on Monday.
Though a big push is still needed to get us to our target, so pester your friends and blackmail your gaming groups into backing, also share through social media and various gaming forums. Reaching our target within the time remaining is still doable, it can and will be done!
So promote like crazy over the weekend and I'll see you all on Monday.
Wednesday 7 August 2013
Kickstarter Update: One Week To Go!
Just a week left to go and we're almost a third of the way to the target.
A very big thank you to everyone who has pledge thus far, though I must continue to ask that you share and spread the word about this project. As I've said before, £3,000 is nothing by Kickstarter and we've got plenty of time to get there and get there we will.
Also a reminder that every backer gets £20/$32 worth of RPG maps from Fabled Environments even if they only pledge a couple of pounds/dollars!
A very big thank you to everyone who has pledge thus far, though I must continue to ask that you share and spread the word about this project. As I've said before, £3,000 is nothing by Kickstarter and we've got plenty of time to get there and get there we will.
Also a reminder that every backer gets £20/$32 worth of RPG maps from Fabled Environments even if they only pledge a couple of pounds/dollars!
Monday 5 August 2013
Kickstarter Update: Rogue's Gallery
As always a huge thank you to everyone who's backed thus far or helped out in other ways!
We're now up to 39 backers and 21% funded, but with just over a week left we've still got a bit of work to do. So please please please share this project, pester your friends and post in local gaming forums or social media groups. Every new backer further proves that there is interest and takes us a step closer to Frozen Skies becoming a reality. With an all-out effort we can get there and get Frozen Skies funded!
Anyway, over the weekend a received a question on one of the forums I visit and post on; "I pledged to this because it seems like a bargain and I'm interested in the combination of dieselpunk and an arctic background, but could you elaborate on what the typical PCs would be and what they'd do? You've discussed places of interest and legends, but I'm more interested in how it would work as a game, not just a setting. Thanks."
Good question.
In my head I view the PCs as being 'from the wrong side of the tracks' and make a living on the outskirts of society, either as outlaws (smugglers, bandits, air pirates) or as pioneers in a frontier land. Think of it a bit like the TV series Firefly.
What they do depends on the sort of game the GM wishes to run, though there are a few options;
*Dungeon Crawling With Guns:- There are old ruins scattered around and there is a Gold Rush of a sort but with relics and old artefacts.
*Criminal Pursuits:- Be a smuggler or be an air pirate, either way you're up against the law and other criminals.
*The Frontier:- Its the frontier with a vast amount of blank map space to fill, either dabble in a bit of colony building or try and find a path into wilderness beyond.
I hope that helps, but if people have any more questions then feel free to ask.
We're now up to 39 backers and 21% funded, but with just over a week left we've still got a bit of work to do. So please please please share this project, pester your friends and post in local gaming forums or social media groups. Every new backer further proves that there is interest and takes us a step closer to Frozen Skies becoming a reality. With an all-out effort we can get there and get Frozen Skies funded!
Anyway, over the weekend a received a question on one of the forums I visit and post on; "I pledged to this because it seems like a bargain and I'm interested in the combination of dieselpunk and an arctic background, but could you elaborate on what the typical PCs would be and what they'd do? You've discussed places of interest and legends, but I'm more interested in how it would work as a game, not just a setting. Thanks."
Good question.
In my head I view the PCs as being 'from the wrong side of the tracks' and make a living on the outskirts of society, either as outlaws (smugglers, bandits, air pirates) or as pioneers in a frontier land. Think of it a bit like the TV series Firefly.
What they do depends on the sort of game the GM wishes to run, though there are a few options;
*Dungeon Crawling With Guns:- There are old ruins scattered around and there is a Gold Rush of a sort but with relics and old artefacts.
*Criminal Pursuits:- Be a smuggler or be an air pirate, either way you're up against the law and other criminals.
*The Frontier:- Its the frontier with a vast amount of blank map space to fill, either dabble in a bit of colony building or try and find a path into wilderness beyond.
I hope that helps, but if people have any more questions then feel free to ask.
Friday 2 August 2013
Kickstarter Update: Myths & Legends Preview
Yet again a big thank you to everyone who's backed this project or supported it by spreading the word, you guys are really really awesome!
We're now getting towards the end of Week Three, but there is still a ways to go until the project is fully funded. So again I must ask you to continue to promote this project and harass friends and gaming groups into back this project, even if its just couple of pounds/dollars which will still get them a bunch of RPG maps. £3,000 isn't much by Kickstarter standards and can easily be reached in under an hour, so all that is needed is to continue pushing the project.
Anyway, over a week ago posted a preview of some Places of Interest from the book. Today I'll be posting another preview in the form of myths & legends related to those places.
Chapter Seven: Myths, Legends & Folklore
Alyeska has its fair share of myths and legends. Some stem from hearsay and drunken bar-room tales, while others are stories of ancient events retold countless times and thus kept alive, mainly as bedtime stories to scare young children. In truth, the Alyeskan Wilderness is a weirder place than most folk care to admit.
Whispers on the Wind and a Sleeper in the Dark
Throughout Alyeska the Chillwynd Marches are regarded as the strangest and most unsettling places in the Territory. The unnaturally flat plains, the ring of standing stones marking its boundaries and the Monolith which sits in the heart of the Marches, all go hand-in-hand to create an eerie reputation. The most common tale originating from the Marches is the fabled 'Whispers on the Wind'. Whilst simply dismissed as just the howling of the wind, many have claimed to have heard the dead calling out for help whenever the wind blows. A Professor Davidson once recorded the so-called 'Whispers' with the intent of deciphering them. It is said he was driven insane by what he heard, and the sole recording he made was destroyed.
The Chillwynd Marches are also commonly known for the disappearances which occur every year; camp sites are abandoned with no trace of their inhabitants ever found. Investigations and searches are carried out by the Air Police, however after a month, the missing persons are declared as 'vanished without a trace', and the report filed away. As a result of all the disappearances, lone prospectors have ended up banding together into large, well-armed groups for mutual protection whenever they work the Marches. Even safety in numbers offers little actual protection. The occasional soul still vanishes during the night, and there is one famous incident of an entire expedition disappearing.
Another tale linked to the Marches, but generally only ever told in hush tones, is that of a Windryder myth concerning the Monolith. It is said that a great being known as the Sleeper in the Dark, dwells beneath the ruins in deep slumber awaiting the return of the Elder Ones. When the Sleeper awakens, he will bring death and destruction across the world, sparing no-one as he prepares for the return of his masters. Little evidence has been found to support this myth, only a few translated glyphs which make continuous reference to a 'Sleeper'. Many have dismissed it as nonsense made up by the Windryders to scare people away, though some have become somewhat...obsessed with the myth.
Gorwell's Lost Gold
Twenty-five years ago a prospector named Lious Gorwell claimed to have found a gold mine deep within the Alyeskan Interior. Every few weeks the grubby prospector would sneak into Tay River with a load of crudely minted ingots. After a year of stashing his hoard in the town's bank, Gorwell vanished. To this day no one has found the mine, and it remains one of Alyeska's well-known legends.
Some maintain he fell afoul of some beast, others blame bandits. Regardless, Gorwell's gold remains in storage at the bank.
We're now getting towards the end of Week Three, but there is still a ways to go until the project is fully funded. So again I must ask you to continue to promote this project and harass friends and gaming groups into back this project, even if its just couple of pounds/dollars which will still get them a bunch of RPG maps. £3,000 isn't much by Kickstarter standards and can easily be reached in under an hour, so all that is needed is to continue pushing the project.
Anyway, over a week ago posted a preview of some Places of Interest from the book. Today I'll be posting another preview in the form of myths & legends related to those places.
Chapter Seven: Myths, Legends & Folklore
Alyeska has its fair share of myths and legends. Some stem from hearsay and drunken bar-room tales, while others are stories of ancient events retold countless times and thus kept alive, mainly as bedtime stories to scare young children. In truth, the Alyeskan Wilderness is a weirder place than most folk care to admit.
Whispers on the Wind and a Sleeper in the Dark
Throughout Alyeska the Chillwynd Marches are regarded as the strangest and most unsettling places in the Territory. The unnaturally flat plains, the ring of standing stones marking its boundaries and the Monolith which sits in the heart of the Marches, all go hand-in-hand to create an eerie reputation. The most common tale originating from the Marches is the fabled 'Whispers on the Wind'. Whilst simply dismissed as just the howling of the wind, many have claimed to have heard the dead calling out for help whenever the wind blows. A Professor Davidson once recorded the so-called 'Whispers' with the intent of deciphering them. It is said he was driven insane by what he heard, and the sole recording he made was destroyed.
The Chillwynd Marches are also commonly known for the disappearances which occur every year; camp sites are abandoned with no trace of their inhabitants ever found. Investigations and searches are carried out by the Air Police, however after a month, the missing persons are declared as 'vanished without a trace', and the report filed away. As a result of all the disappearances, lone prospectors have ended up banding together into large, well-armed groups for mutual protection whenever they work the Marches. Even safety in numbers offers little actual protection. The occasional soul still vanishes during the night, and there is one famous incident of an entire expedition disappearing.
Another tale linked to the Marches, but generally only ever told in hush tones, is that of a Windryder myth concerning the Monolith. It is said that a great being known as the Sleeper in the Dark, dwells beneath the ruins in deep slumber awaiting the return of the Elder Ones. When the Sleeper awakens, he will bring death and destruction across the world, sparing no-one as he prepares for the return of his masters. Little evidence has been found to support this myth, only a few translated glyphs which make continuous reference to a 'Sleeper'. Many have dismissed it as nonsense made up by the Windryders to scare people away, though some have become somewhat...obsessed with the myth.
Gorwell's Lost Gold
Twenty-five years ago a prospector named Lious Gorwell claimed to have found a gold mine deep within the Alyeskan Interior. Every few weeks the grubby prospector would sneak into Tay River with a load of crudely minted ingots. After a year of stashing his hoard in the town's bank, Gorwell vanished. To this day no one has found the mine, and it remains one of Alyeska's well-known legends.
Some maintain he fell afoul of some beast, others blame bandits. Regardless, Gorwell's gold remains in storage at the bank.
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