Just wanted to check in before June wraps up. We’ll have a longer update at the end of the week, but here’s where things stand: We’re finishing up the backer draft of Wages right now and plan to distribute it to you all later this week (🤞). This version will include everything except the ODC Prison Complex, which is fully written and in rough layout, but not quite in a shareable state yet.
A few things to note:
Some maps, diagrams, and illustrations are still being finalized and won’t be in this version.
The draft has been edited, but not proofread, so expect a few rough edges.
We’ll include a link to an online form where you can submit errors, typos, or feedback, so we can roll it all into the final draft.
We'll talk more about surveys, charging cards, and distributing PDFs for everything else in the next update!
Thanks again for your patience and support, we're getting close. As always, if you have any issues, please reach out to Tyler at [email protected].
This month we’ve been making steady progress on the campaign extras that all backers will receive digitally and that will be packed into every box set.
Progress is steady, with Dai taking the time he needs to make sure every component looks just right. His work is elevating every part of this project, ensuring the final box set will be something we're proud to own; not just as a game, but as a beautiful RPG object that’ll stand the test of time. Here's what's been completed this month:
GM Screen is Ready
The moody, atmospheric front.
The GM screen is complete and ready to rock. Here’s what you’ll find:
Quick-reference list of all the NPCs from the adventure.
The weather table, to keep the pressure on as the storm rises through the ruins of Ma’at.
A “loot the body” table, for dusty discoveries in forgotten corners of the necropolis.
The useful, stylish back.
Character Sheets Are In
The character sheets are modelled after expedition intake forms: a nod and wink to the premise of the mission itself. Your players are just joining a totally routine, xenoarchaeological dig on Ma’at. Nothing to worry about. Totally safe. Please disregard the boxes marked “Stress” and “Wounds.” I’m sure they won’t be necessary ;-).
The box set version will be printed in full colour, but we’ll also be sharing a print-friendly black-and-white version for home use to prevent the annihilation of your ink cartridges along with your PCs.
In sun burnt orange
Stories from Ma'at
I'm curious to know if any of you brought Burning Gods to the table yet. Or started smuggling campaigns using the Barge Bazaar? If you've slotted it into your campaign, run a one-shot, or kicked off a whole new adventure, I’d love to hear how it went. Hit reply or drop a comment and let me know what your crew got up to.
What’s Next
Looking ahead to next month: we’ll be finishing the remaining components which are the box, the dice, and the poster. I know out of everything the poster is the piece Dai is most excited about. Which makes me very excited to see what he comes up with and to share it with you all.
Until next month, play games, have fun, and stay frosty. Sincerely,
Hi all! Another late update this month but we are getting very close to the finish line. I am working on putting all the final details into layout and design for the book and poster. I have also started layout and finalizing the writing for the bonus pamphlet. Then after a copy-editing pass we will be getting printing done. Here is a WIP of a floor spread that is pretty close to the final look:
Thank you for bearing with me with the delay in schedule, I'm excited to get the final product in everyone's hands!
Brief update this month but work on PK49 is slightly delayed. In case you missed it, I had some family emergencies that required travel last month and this month I had some more family obligations come up. And on top of that I got sick which knocked me out for over a week.
So that in mind, please see the revised timeline below.
Final Notes
That's it for this update! Really, sorry. Was hoping to get this out this month but wasn't able to. As always, thank you for your support and patience. Looking forward to getting this one out to you.
We'll keep it brief. The plain text manuscript is done and we're over halfway done with layout. Pretty soon we'll be calculating shipping and printing proofs to make sure everything looks right on paper. Can't tell you guys how excited we are!
Greetings crew, this month I took a few days of PTO and focused on getting layout *almost* to completion, plus I a few more illustrations finished up. Something I hadn't planned on at all was 3 of the 4 factions having not only a main ship, but also a secondary Class 0 vessel at their command. One I'll keep as a surprise, but here's a sneak peek at Wulco's prototype racing ship:
Yeah. I played a lot of wipEout on the PS1 in my youth
Wulco are evil scum and don't deserve to own a ship this nice, it sure would be a shame if the player crew had to steal it...
For this coming month Jettila is finishing up spot art, and we'll be hammering out a concept for her short supplemental zine. In the next weeks I'll be ordering test patches/stickers before putting in the full order, and plan on having layout finalized before the end of the month.
Hi all, I’m back with power and internet to bring you the good news: Editing is done! We handed the finished manuscript to Spider00x, our layout artist, just over a week ago, and it’s a beast.
At about 82,000 words (240 Google docs pages), I’m guessing Devil’s Due will probably end up at around 120–128 A4-sized pages. Unless I’m missing some other big releases (let me know if I am), I think that might place it as the third-largest Mothership product working its way toward release so far, behind Wages of Sin and, presumably, the totality of Outer Rim Uprising. Based on word count, Devil’s Due is a little bigger than Hull Breach Vol. 1, and it will likely be larger than the upcoming Dying Hard on Hardlight Station: NS-1365 Anthology Edition!
As the layout work is underway, we’re still busy pulling in the last art pieces from our contributors and doing what we can to plug any minor art gaps or oversights that made themselves known during editing. Then, after all that, will come the digital proofs and proofreading, including a lot of cross-references to properly verify. As a teaser of what will be included, here are some lists pulled from three of our indexes (Roll Tables, Vehicles, and Organizations). Did I mention the book has five indexes??
I appreciate the support during what I’ll call my weather-related setback, and we’re happy to keep this production train chugging along. We’re not certain how long the layout process will take, as we’ll be reviewing sample spreads, giving feedback, and signing off on design choices throughout, but we’ll be sure to keep you all updated as we go!
I waited and waited and waited, and patience paid. Last Friday, June 20, I received the test print of Not Enough Scoundrels!
Just a couple of formatting options to change: some table subheader rows were too dark for black text, and a few graphical bits escaped the ERASE option in their effects. These would be minor to an untrained eye, but this will increase readability and ease of use.
Then it was the hunt (again) for proofread errors over the weekend. I won't bore y'all with the details, but the folk who reached out with the Google Form were very helpful, so thank you!
The final piece I am waiting on is sorting the UPC graphic out with Violet Ballard of RV Games to pop on the back cover, and then I am pressing PRINT.
But it's not just zines, Chris!
Right you are! I have also spent the last month sorting out the postcards, vinyl stickers and patch orders. The final patch designs had to change a bit in order to remain legible, but nothing drastic.
Production Mock-ups.
I was also glad for those Google Form proofread surveys because they helped catch a couple errors on the deckplans, so I updated those for the postcards and printables, as well.
With the zines in production, I'll take time in the coming weeks to add bookmarks, and include all the hyperlinks in the PDF, as well as create a plaintext copy of the zine. All of these will be available with the final files.
Timeline
Everything is getting sent to the RV Games warehouses, and is set to arrive by mid-July. While that's under way, the surveys are going out so folks can pop on Add-Ons from the campaign and the RV Games distribution catalogue, enter their addresses and pay for shipping charges.
As usual, here’s your monthly update to the Project Timeline:
July 2025: BackerKit Surveys for shipping collections
August 2025: Fulfillment Begins
I better knock on wood, because we're still on track to stay on schedule for August fulfillment.
Updates will be sent alongside the backer surveys, and still, you can expect your monthly scheduled update on Monday, July 21st.
