Matt Posted May 19, 2020 Share Posted May 19, 2020 Here we are in almost the last week of the Deluxe M20 Technocracy Reloaded Kickstarter, and like all KSs, we’re at that time where pledges start to slow. So we’re thinking about this KS, and our previous ones, and the roster that’s coming up. What works, what doesn’t, and what just makes us wonder. Like, should we continue to portion out sections of the complete text during the KS, so at the end backers have pretty much the text as it’s going to be before being formatted during layout. (Which makes it a lot easier to read in most cases!) We like that model, as it shows prospective backers just what they’re getting so situations where folks expected one set of information but got something else don’t occur any longer. And it shows that the text being finished won’t be a factor in the final project delivery to KS backers. Those are two pretty good things, in our estimation! But, does that kill the fun for folks? Like, is there value in being, well, surprised by your new book when it arrives? So far, we’ve been betting that the surety of information is more important to more backers than those who might miss a surprise, but we could be wrong. Similarly, if we say this is the text and if you don’t like it then you can drop your pledge before we finish, we see that as a valuable option for backers. We want folks who back to enjoy the Kickstarter and the material we’re releasing. We hope they enjoy the chance to help create one of these books by backing, or going further and taking one of those fancy, upper-tier rewards that let them add characters or be part of the art. Lunars art by Gunship Revolution Yet, we can only hope we’re pleasing folks as it is often hard to tell if our methods are not delivering our intention since the vast majority of backers don’t interact with KSs Comments section. Whether because of a general, well-earned, fear of Comments sections throughout the internet, or of KS Comments specifically, my impression from talking to backers is that they don’t need the stress. Who can blame them? It’s why I always try and suggest other ways for folks to communicate with us – even here, I’ll suggest adding to the Comments for this blog, but whenever I do I also get direct emails. And they usually start off with a variant of: “Hope you don’t mind my contacting you this way, but I didn’t want to get involved with any drama in the Comments.” Like I said, we tend to think a lot about how we do things, and particularly Kickstarters since they are one of our most public display of our processes. In some states, public display of your processes can get you arrested! To get back to the M20 Technocracy Reloaded KS, here’s some links to fun and informative programming that will be reposted in the Onyx Path Media section below: Tune in to hear words of wisdom from the Technocratic Union live on Twitch, Tuesday, May 19th at 9 PM EDT on the Onyx Path Publishing Twitch Channel. twitch.tv/theonyxpath Plus, Red Moon Roleplaying continue their actual play of Technocracy Reloaded right here: https://youtu.be/RtdW0znt7GU Please give them your support! And also, Travis Legge’s M20 Technocracy Reloaded actual play, featuring a stellar cast including the one and only Satyr Phil Brucato: https://youtu.be/ALnD1nwuTis TC: Aeon Jumpstart art by Aaron Riley Our Next Kickstarter: Of course, as we’ve been thinking about Kickstarters, we’ve been thinking about the best time to bring back the Legendlore Kickstarter. This was the KS we cancelled as we launched it right before the Covid-19 lock-downs, and we just didn’t think it could get the sort of attention it deserved. But as we have considered the situation now, it seems like our lines of communication are, if not perfect, working far more closely to expectations. I’m getting regular notices from backers of our previous KSs again, for example. So, without further ado, and not wanting to sit to long on Legendlore, we are going to Kickstart it next after M20 Technocracy Reloaded! Expect most of our approach to be similar, but knowing that we already have a wonderful group of backers from the first go, we’ll be aiming at putting the KS together in a way that doesn’t just make them go through the same things again, and that appeals to folks who didn’t back the first time. More on that as we have some actual examples! Lunars art by Yiyhoung Li Things We’re Doing To Try and Help During All This On Wednesday, we’re opening up Dystopia Rising: Evolution Community Content on the Storypath Nexus. This is a chance for anyone to work with the templates and art packs we provide to create new projects for DR:E. As a creator, it’s a way to both publish your ideas, and to get a little extra cash during these difficult times. That’s pretty much our feelings for any Community Content site right now. Plus, for players, the projects posted on these sites are PDFs that usually aren’t that big or expensive, and they very often are focused on useful additions to our official stuff. Adventures, deep dives into specific topics we’re not really set up to put together – just great ideas to add to your playing enjoyment. Just wanted to chime in here to remind folks that we released Chronicles of Darkness: Dark Eras 2 on DTRPG last week, and besides the big book itself in PDF and PoD versions, we released each chapter as an individual PDF. If you’re into a particular line and/or historical period, but can’t indulge in buying the full book, these individual chapters are a lot easier on the budget with the job situation being what it is. Also on DTRPG right now is the Shelter in Play Bundle containing about $180 worth of PDFs, including the Vinsen’s Tomb Jumpstart for Pugmire and A Light Extinguished, the Jumpstart for Scion 2e, plus a ton of other delightful games for playing while we’re all stuck in together – all for $10, and the proceeds go to two worthy charities! https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/312564/Shelter-In-Play-BUNDLE Our friends at IPR, Indie Press Revolution, are running sales of our books over on their site (link below in the sales partners area) and are planning to continue to do so for the foreseeable future. If you’re looking for our traditionally printed hardcover books and screens, Deluxe and otherwise, now’s a great chance! We made the decision last week that we wouldn’t be attending gaming conventions until we feel like our folks would be safe from Covid-19 if they attended. Considering that “con crud” is a thing that we expect to get after major conventions during a normal period, we just can’t send our people into a convention right now. Unfortunately, that includes our industry biggie Gen Con, which still has not announced whether it is postponed or cancelled. Regardless of their decision, ours is: we’re not going. Finally, speaking of conventions: Thanks for the support and interest in an online Onyx Path Convention I received in the blog Comments and elsewhere all last week. It was heartening, and a little scary, how many of you would enjoy virtually playing our games and meeting with us. Actually, all kidding aside, it was great to hear! No news yet, but you gave us even more to think about. In this case, expect that we’ll be acting pretty quickly on running something like a virtual convention. We want to commit, if we’re going to, before the enormity of it has a chance to sink in! So, thanks to your feedback, we’re a few steps closer to arranging a virtual venue where we can talk about and play in our: Many Worlds, One Path! Blurbs! Kickstarter! The M20 Technocracy Reloaded Kickstarter funded in 43 minutes and at with just over a week to go has passed 1800 backer operatives, is over 400% funded, and has achieved Stretch Goals consisting of a Storytellers Screen unlock, an unlock of more original Mage PDFs, Backers’ Exclusive T-Shirt, Wallpaper, and building the Technocracy Reloaded Player’s Companion PDF: sections on Constructs and Symposiums (and then expanded by a later SG), Digital Web 3.0, Technomancers’ Toybox 20 and the Q-Division bonus section, Unlikely Allies 1, 2, & 3, Mission Statement short scenarios, and the expanded Digital Web 3.0.2. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/200664283/m20-technocracy-reloaded Highlights of M20 Technocracy Reloaded include: An Operative’s Handbook that provides a detailed overview of life in the Technocratic Union, describing the organization of the Union, the Conventions, and the roles that sympathizers, extraordinary citizens, and Enlightened Operatives play in the overall structure of the Technocracy. An examination of Technocratic initiatives on a global scale. Devices, procedures, and hypertech used by the Technocratic Union that explores the Enlightened Science, allowing operatives to apply similar effects in the field, if they have sufficient understanding of the principles that allow these gadgets to function. A comprehensive list of citizens, cyborgs, operatives, progenitor creations, and allies to use as NPCs. Storyteller support that explores story seeds and metaplot to shape a chronicle for their needs. Next Kickstarter: We return to The Realm of Legendlore! Onyx Path Media! This week Impish Ian Watson returns to delve into the Trinity Continuum, specifically the recently announced Trinity Continuum: Anima, VtM Bloodlines, and the happy wonders of managing Onyx Path social media with the Terrific Trio! As always, this Friday’s Onyx Pathcast will be on Podbean or your favorite podcast venue! https://onyxpathcast.podbean.com/ Tune in to hear words of wisdom from the Technocratic Union live on Twitch, Tuesday, May 19th at 9 PM EDT on the Onyx Path Publishing Twitch Channel. twitch.tv/theonyxpath Join the Consensus and watch the stream. Plus, Red Moon Roleplaying continue their actual play of Technocracy Reloaded right here: https://youtu.be/RtdW0znt7GU Please give them your support! Come tune in to our Twitch channel for a schedule including: Vampire: The Masquerade – Blood on the Tamesis Vampire: The Masquerade – Chicago by Night Noir Pugmire – Paws & Claws Storytellers with Coffee Scarred Lands: Chronicles of Calastia Changeling: The Lost – Littlebrook Reunion Changeling: The Dreaming – The Last Faerie Tale Mage: The Awakening – Occultists Anonymous Scarred Lands – Purge of the Serpentholds Dark Eras Werewolf: The Forsaken Chronicles of Darkness – Tooth & Claw Deviant: The Renegades – A Cautionary Tale Good heavens, that’s a lot of games for you to watch! You can subscribe to our channel over on twitch.tv/theonyxpath to catch up with any episodes you missed! Come take a look at our YouTube channel, youtube.com/user/theonyxpath, where you can find a whole load of videos of actual plays, dissections of our games, and more, including: Changeling: The Dreaming – The Last Faerie Tale: https://youtu.be/fx_UEKY6moE Scarred Lands: Purge of the Serpentholds: https://youtu.be/9YC0qb29vjk Mage: The Ascension – Technocracy Reloaded: https://youtu.be/ALnD1nwuTis Hunter: The Vigil – Hometown Heroes: https://youtu.be/LJs8Q6KVu1o Changeling: The Lost – Littlebrook Reunion: https://youtu.be/SXYLA9rCjKk Vampire: The Masquerade – Blood City Chicago by Night: https://youtu.be/NmDv9Sq_wKA Chronicles of Darkness – Seattle by Streetlight: https://youtu.be/6CwozhRpUNo Do subscribe to our channel and click the bell icon if you want to be notified whenever new news videos and uploads come online! Did you miss 307 RPG interviewing Matthew Dawkins regarding everything from They Came from Beneath the Sea! and They Came from Beyond the Grave! to upcoming Vampire: The Masquerade books? Give them a listen here: https://307rpg.com/?p=265 Further to that interview, the 307 RPG Podcast released an episode all to do with the Archetypes in They Came from Beneath the Sea!: https://307rpg.com/?p=282 That’s not all! Vorpal Tales commence an actual play of They Came from Beneath the Sea! tonight over on their Twitch channel! Find them here: https://twitch.tv/vorpaltales Utility Muffin Labs, home of the 25 Years of Vampire: The Masquerade podcast, have released a glowing review of The Chicago Folios right here: https://utilitymuffinlabs.com/25-years-of-vampire-the-masquerade?author=51a88e2ee4b035d1810e13fe Occultists Anonymous are here with a new special Mage: The Awakening series: RV Mage 07: Reversion With Orphean mages no longer on the field of battle, the Pentacle mages work to undo the warping of the Gauntlet. The werewolves threatening the Supernal Being is going to make negotiations a little difficult.https://youtu.be/iUZKuh0G5sI RV Mage 08: ExcursionFollowing the Supernal shenanigans in downtown Richmond, Vicar, Drifter, and Amanita begin the search for further Orphean agents. An attempt to restore relationships with the werewolves goes as well as you might expect…https://youtu.be/YUcXnQwB-vM Please check these out and let us know if you find or produce any actual plays of our games! We’d love to feature you! Electronic Gaming! As we find ways to enable our community to more easily play our games, the Onyx Dice Rolling App is 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 awesome! (Seriously, you need to roll 100 dice for Exalted? This app has you covered.) 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). If you enjoy these or any other of our books, please help us by writing reviews on the site of the sales venue from which you bought it. Reviews really, really help us get folks interested in our amazing fiction! Our selection includes these latest fiction books: Our Sales Partners! We’re working with Studio2 to get Pugmire and Monarchies of Mau 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 We’ve added Prince’s Gambit to our Studio2 catalog: https://studio2publishing.com/products/prince-s-gambit-card-game Now, we’ve added Changeling: The Lost Second Edition products to Studio2‘s store! See them here: https://studio2publishing.com/collections/all-products/changeling-the-lost Scion 2e books and other products are available now at Studio2: https://studio2publishing.com/blogs/new-releases/scion-second-edition-book-one-origin-now-available-at-your-local-retailer-or-online Looking for our Deluxe or Prestige Edition books? Try this link! http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Onyx-Path-Publishing/ And you can order Pugmire, Monarchies of Mau, Cavaliers of Mars, and Changeling: The Lost 2e at the same link! And now Scion Origin and Scion Hero and Trinity Continuum Core and Trinity Continuum: Aeon are available to order! As always, you can find Onyx Path’s titles at DriveThruRPG.com! On Sale This Week! This week, the PDF and PoD versions of Oak, Ash, and Thorn the Changeling: The Lost 2e Companion bolts from the freakish Hedge on DriveThruRPG on Wednesday! Oak, Ash, and Thorn as a companion book to Changeling: The Lost Second Edition, expands on what’s in the core book. It contains: Expanded rules for freeholds and a selection of seeds for sample freeholds in four international locations. Rules for creating new court Bargains and an introduction to non-traditional Mantles, including free companies, traveling bands, and Lost dynasties, with a playable example of each. Entitlements, the titles of nobility that changelings assume to inherit mystical legacies from the Lost who came before them, including three full examples with accompanying tokens and Merits. Expanded rules for tokens, including two new types with examples, guidelines for creating your own, and a system for ripping out one’s heart to become unkillable. Also on Wednesday, we open the Dystopia Rising: Evolution Community Content section of the Storypath Nexus! Expect template and art packs you can use to create your own supplements to the DR:E tabletop RPG (and even get a royalty for your work!) Check it out for community-created supplements to further expand your fun with DR:E! Conventions! Though dates are subject to change due to the current COVID-19 outbreak, here’s our current list of upcoming conventions: UKGames Expo: https://www.ukgamesexpo.co.uk/ GenCon: https://www.gencon.com/ Tabletop Scotland: https://tabletopscotland.co.uk/ Gamehole Con: https://www.gameholecon.com/ PAX Unplugged: https://unplugged.paxsite.com/ And now, the new project status updates! Development Status from 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.) Exalted Essay Collection (Exalted) Under Alien Suns (Trinity Continuum: Aeon) Adversaries of the Righteous (Exalted 3rd Edition) The Clades Companion (Deviant: The Renegades) The Devoted Companion (Deviant: The Renegades) Saints and Monsters (Scion 2nd Edition) Wild Hunt (Scion 2nd Edition) Dead Man’s Rust (Scarred Lands) V5 The Faithful Undead (Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition) V5 Trails of Ash and Bone (Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition) V5 Forbidden Religions (Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition) Trinity Continuum: Anima Redlines Dragon-Blooded Novella #2 (Exalted 3rd Edition) Hundred Devil’s Night Parade (Exalted 3rd Edition) Trinity Continuum: Adventure! core (Trinity Continuum: Adventure!) Contagion Chronicle Ready-Made Characters (Chronicles of Darkness) Novas Worldwide (Trinity Continuum: Aberrant) Exalted Essence Edition (Exalted 3rd Edition) M20 Rich Bastard’s Guide To Magick (Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary) Second Draft Many-Faced Strangers – Lunars Companion (Exalted 3rd Edition) Kith and Kin (Changeling: The Lost 2e) Assassins (Trinity Continuum Core) Dearly Bleak – Novella (Deviant: The Renegades) Mission Statements (Trinity Continuum: Aeon) Development TC: Aberrant Reference Screen (Trinity Continuum: Aberrant) Across the Eight Directions (Exalted 3rd Edition) Contagion Chronicle: Global Outbreaks (Chronicles of Darkness) M20 Victorian Mage (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition) Crucible of Legends (Exalted 3rd Edition) Exigents (Exalted 3rd Edition) N!ternational Wrestling Entertainment (Trinity Continuum: Aberrant) Manuscript Approval They Came From Beyond the Grave! (They Came From!) Post-Approval Development Scion: Demigod (Scion 2nd Edition) Scion: Dragon (Scion 2nd Edition) Editing Lunars Novella (Rosenberg) (Exalted 3rd Edition) Mummy: The Curse 2nd Edition core rulebook (Mummy: The Curse 2nd Edition) Player’s Guide to the Contagion Chronicle (Chronicles of Darkness) Contagion Chronicle Jumpstart (Chronicles of Darkness) TC: Aberrant Jumpstart (Trinity Continuum: Aberrant) Trinity Continuum Jumpstart (Trinity Continuum) Masks of the Mythos (Scion 2nd Edition) LARP Rules (Scion 2nd Edition) Heirs to the Shogunate (Exalted 3rd Edition) The Book of Lasting Death (Mummy: The Curse 2e) Post-Editing Development City of the Towered Tombs (Cavaliers of Mars) W20 Shattered Dreams Gift Cards (Werewolf: The Apocalypse 20th) Cults of the Blood Gods (Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition) Hunter: The Vigil 2e core (Hunter: The Vigil 2nd Edition) Trinity Continuum: Aberrant core (Trinity Continuum: Aberrant) Deviant: The Renegades (Deviant: The Renegades) Monsters of the Deep (They Came From Beneath the Sea!) Legendlore core book (Legendlore) Pirates of Pugmire KS-Added Adventure (Realms of Pugmire) Tales of Aquatic Terror (They Came From Beneath the Sea!) Terra Firma (Trinity Continuum: Aeon) One Foot in the Grave Jumpstart (Geist: The Sin-Eaters 2e) Indexing Art Direction from Mike Chaney! In Art Direction Scion Titanomachy Tales of Aquatic Terror WoD Ghost Hunters – KS final art: One more piece coming in. Aberrant – Contacting and contracting. Signing off on sketches. Pugmire Adventure – All sketches in. Hunter: The Vigil 2e Mummy 2 Deviant – Dividing up among current artists. Legendlore – Back to KS prep. Technocracy Reloaded (KS) – Happening. Cults of the Blood God – Rolling along. Scion: Dragon – Waiting on art notes. Masks of the Mythos – Waiting on art notes. Scion: Demigod – Waiting on art notes. They Came From Beyond the Grave! (KS) – Sent out notes for fulls and splats for KS. In Layout Yugman’s Guide to Ghelspad Vigil Watch TC Aeon Terra Firma – Over to Josh. V5 Let the Streets Run Red – Working on it. Pirates of Pugmire Screen – Getting charts from dev. Proofing Trinity Aeon Jumpstart – New artist taking care of finishing missing art. Pirates of Pugmire – Errata input. TCFBTS Heroic Land Dwellers – Inputting backer errata. Lunars: Fangs at the Gate – Gathering Backer PDF errata. Scion Companion – Just waiting for two tweaked pieces, expected today. Contagion Chronicle – Corrections going over to Josh. Cavaliers of Mars: City of the Towered Tombs Duke Rollo Book – Finishing gathering backer errata. Buried Bones: Creating in the Realms of Pugmire (Realms of Pugmire) Magic Item Decks (Scarred Lands) Yugman’s Guide Support Decks (Scarred Lands) At Press Night Horrors : Nameless and Accursed – PoD proof on the way. Dystopia Rising: Evolution Community Content site – Opening on the Storypath Nexus this Weds! TCFBTS Screen and Booklet They Came from Beneath the Sea! C:tL 2e Oak, Ash, & Thorn – PDF and PoD versions on sale at DTRPG this Weds! Today’s Reason to Celebrate! Please welcome Aaron Voss to Onyx Path! Aaron is old White Wolf and was my print buyer in the years before the merger with CCP, and has expertise in every stage of the game book creation process, and is specifically going to oversee getting our projects printed and shipped (and help Mirthful Mike Chaney out where he is needed). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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