Happy February. 

 

I’m just getting over a cold, but I figured I’d take the time to update the entire crowdsphere, as a lot has been decided regarding future plans. By this point, every correction has been made regarding distribution. This leaves a few lingering rewards.

 

This one is frustrating, as I had to rely on other people. While the Fantasy Grounds and Foundry modules are available, Shard and Roll20 continue to be elusive. Shard has stopped answering my emails despite them reaching out to me in the first place. Thankfully, DEM is throwing its full weight (light that it is) towards World Tree, a fantastic platform we have a lot of faith in. (https://www.worldtreerpg.com/). While I still believe a Roll20 module lies in our future, I fear the Shard module likely won’t happen. This is pretty much out of my hands as Shard handles their work internally.

 

Affinity’s last reward is an audiobook. I had a contracted engineer develop this project three years ago, but a series of unfortunate events followed, resulting in him quitting the project and keeping his advance. While I have much of the audio files on hand--Mark Meer, Jon Cor, and others are fully recorded--I still have dozens of minor roles left to record and, of course, an engineer to put it all together. I found another individual last year, but after nearly ten months, there has still been no progress on this front. I’m reaching desperate levels to have this finished, as it is a passion project. I would hate to have this collapse with so much already in the can, but with little money left in the budget, I’m getting concerned. While I could technically do it myself, I fear the quality would not be to a level I’d want it to be. 

 

The last of the William Miller / BeDumb adventures for the 2023 UM5 crowdfunding is nearing completion. The previous adventure, The Banshees of Barkerville, turned into a surprising hit, selling more than any of the previous BeDumb adventures. As mentioned in an earlier update, William and his wife were expecting; I’m happy to report a healthy baby Casper came into the world on January 16th. 

 

With a name change still pending, last month I posted a poll available to anyone regarding the future of this campaign guide. 2023’s crowdfund offered two; Threshold was released late last fall, a hybrid artbook and RPG under a single SKU. I really enjoyed the creative process and wished to repeat it. 

 

                However, I was unwilling to recycle most of the art, which I was forced to do with Threshold. My goal was to create an entirely new and original setting. I got into a jam session with Nick Greenwood last week, where we hashed out some ideas. Nick couldn’t help himself and came at me with some sketches a few days later.

 

                These have greatly affected some of the ideas going forward in this alternative-history biopunk setting. 

 

                The Poll was put up to ask a simple question: did backers just want the original RPG campaign setting as promised, with its original limited art budget, or were people open to the idea of a much larger project with a physical narrative art book, digital campaign guide, and an increased art budget that would come via crowdfunding. As mentioned, this occurred previously in 2020 with Affinity, which began as black and white 100-page PDFs before transitioning to three 220+ page full-colour leather books in a box set. 

                

                From the poll, 58% of voters opted for the expanded illustrated novel and campaign guide, leaving 42% preferring the original reward. I had previously decided that I would favour an overwhelming majority, and a 58/42 ratio is certainly not that, in my personal opinion. However, it does indicate that some supporters are interested in the expanded content. 

                

                Therefore, I am going to do both.

 

                …sort of. 

 

                Nick and I are going to work on the original campaign guide for an early summer release. Unlike Threshold, this will be the campaign PDF only and not be a hybrid art book project. 

 

                Then, likely this September, we will launch a Kickstarter for a physical, 10”x10” narrative art book and expanded campaign guide that will include additional artwork. That way, backers can enjoy their original reward, and then everyone will have the option to support a larger production if that is your choice. 

 

With a second print run of Affinity in the works, we decided that our next crowdfunding campaign, which will be returning to Backerkit in MARCH, will allow backers a chance to purchase either the standard three-book slipcase or a second printing of the exclusive and very awesome looking leather-wrapped clamshell set.

 

       The campaign will also fund three new adventures and the second novel in the series. More information will follow before we send out the launch page, probably in a week or two. 

 

While we were initially planning on releasing this as a crowdfunding campaign, we’ve opted to instead just release the Xenobestiary straight to DTRPG, likely also with a late February or March release date. I asked our discord community if we should include ALL our monsters, including the fantasy ones, and the response was a big affirmative. 

                The Xenobestiary will feature rebuilt and retooled monsters from every previous DEM publication, along with a bunch of new ones. For example, the antagonist section from UM5 has been expanded from 38 to 58. The mecha entry has nearly 40 entries; the alien section boasts 50. These will be presented in the newer 2024 D&D format and following a couple months after the new Monster Manual should help matters. 

By now, almost all our rewards have been received. 2025 is going to be a very touch-and-go year for DEM. We’ve been hit with some huge bills, and recent WOTC controversies haven’t helped matters. 

 

                So, the best way to support DEM in 2025 is to talk about us. 

 

                Share posts and post reviews. We have a lot of listings on DTRPG that lack reviews. I would especially love reviews and feedback on our recent publications like Threshold and Oktober’s Arcane Almanac. 

 

                Please and thank you.