Hey everyone,
It's been about a month since the last update, so although the PDF isn't quite done yet there's still plenty to share.
Writing Progress
I've been bus...
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Lone Colossus Games
about 2 months ago
October Update, What's Next?
Hey everyone!
I hope you've been enjoying the preview of Chapter 1! I've got another quick progress update for you, and a survey on what project you'd like to see me work on nex...
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Lone Colossus Games
about 2 months ago
Chapter 1 is Ready! Plus a brief timeline update
Hey everyone!
The title says it all - chapter 1 of Tome of Intangible Treasures is (basically) complete, and I've shared it as a digital download for all backers. You should be ...
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Lone Colossus Games
2 months ago
September Update
Hey everyone!
Today's update is fairly short: I'm still waiting for that Chapter 1 PDF to share with you, but I'm told it should be ready within a week or so and you can be sure...
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Lone Colossus Games
4 months ago
August Update + Poll for Art Poster
Hey everyone!
It's been about a month since the last update, and with Gen Con taking up my time the rest of the week I wanted to get the next one out ahead of that (I'm not ther...
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Lone Colossus Games
5 months ago
July Update
Hey everyone,
Just a quick progress update for you this month! Things are proceeding as expected with no real delays to speak of so far.
Writing Progress
Chapter 1 (Boons, Bles...
Hey everyone, It's been about a month since the last update, so although the PDF isn't quite done yet there's still plenty to share.
Writing Progress
I've been busy proofreading while waiting for final layout to finish up. Chapters 1-3 are complete with their final final text, and chapter 4 will be done soon as well. Not a lot to say here other than that!
Layout Progress
Layout is largely complete for the entire book, and space has been blocked out for all the artwork. I wanted to make sure that each NPC had their portrait next to their lore info, and that took a bit of work to figure out and make sure that it looks nice. Similarly, the pact entities in chapter 4 have taken a bit of work to keep the layout style for the lore and stat blocks consistent while also making room for their artwork as some stat blocks are much longer than others, but I think the final results will be worth the wait!
Here are some screenshots of spreads from chapter 2 to help tide you over while you wait for the full release.
And for those wondering about the final length, the book's page count looks to be coming out to around 200 pages.
Dice Progress
A couple months ago I mentioned that I was close to being able to share some pictures of dice - well, I finally have them! These are not the final samples, and the dice manufacturer is not completely set in stone yet, but I wanted to share pictures with you so you can see where they're going. It turns out getting dice to look like an artist's mockup is quite tricky, but I think we've captured the essence of the "Mysteries of Magic" name quite well with these.
Round-edged samples have a lower cost, so that's how these have been finished (the final dice will be sharp-edged). The first image however should give you a bit of an idea how these will look as sharp-edged dice as that's the way they come out of the molds.
The next sample will be trying out a translucent resin for the dark blue color, which should make the dice look just a little less like candy, and keep some of the gold interior coming through on the lowest face. Additionally, the symbol that replaces the 20 will be rotated 180 degrees so that it can be made a bit larger. These samples have been taking about a month to complete, so hopefully by this time next month I'll have some more pictures to share.
Dice Packaging I've also been looking into packaging for these dice, as I don't think the plastic bag they use by default is going to work well. There are a couple of options depending on the manufacturer I go with, but either way the dice will come in a box with a foam insert to keep them (and their sharp edges) safe.
Timeline
While layout is taking a bit longer than I'd hoped, we're still way ahead of the originally planned schedule for digital release, and easily on track for the physical release. Completion of layout is almost entirely out of my hands, so once I've finished up my last task with proofreading chapter 4 and getting those edits into the text, it'll be on to making the Shard VTT version. Layout completion is necessary for the Roll20 conversion to begin, but the Foundry conversion should be able to start as soon as I've got the Shard version done.
I won't give any solid dates here for any of this as it's still up in the air a bit, but let's just say "pretty soon" for digital release, and that I expect printing to begin before the end of the year.
We're getting very close to digital release and the start of printing now, and I can't wait to get you the full PDF soon! - Josh
Hey everyone! I hope you've been enjoying the preview of Chapter 1! I've got another quick progress update for you, and a survey on what project you'd like to see me work on next.
Writing Progress
Last night I got word from my editor that she finished her pass on the remaining text I was waiting on, and I'll be working my way through that over the next few days to get it all ready for layout. I've also gotten through about half of Chapter 1 for proofreading, and found a few wording things I want to change just for consistency's sake but all pretty minor stuff. Keep an eye out for the rest of layout to be wrapping up in the next month or so!
What's Next?
With work on Tome of Intangible Treasures wrapping up, I'd love to get your input on what my next project should be! I've got quite a few ideas, so I've put together this Google Form survey for you to give your feedback in. There's a more detailed description of each project idea at the bottom of the form, but here's a brief summary (titles for all these projects are TBD/not final):
Dark Fantasy Monster Book. Pretty much what it says - a monster book (probably for 5e) with a lot of dark fantasy options.
Book of Rituals/Tome of Intangible Treasures 2. A followup on Tome of Intangible Treasures with more boons/charms/pacts and a Heliana's Crafting compatible ritual system to enchant yourself with these abilities using pieces of slain foes (including some new ones in the book).
Book of Trainings/Tome of Intangible Treasures 2. A followup on Tome of Intangible Treasures focused on providing a lot more training options and training-related content.
Deck of Encounters. A Gloomhaven/Scythe Encounter Cards style, system-neutral (probably with a 5e guide) random encounters deck.
Red Earth: A Tactical/Post-Apocalyptic/Science Fantasy/Mission-Oriented TTRPG. Mechanically inspired by games like XCOM, Edge of the Empire, Shadowrun, Blades in the Dark, and Draw Steel, and thematically inspired by the Broken Earth Trilogy, DOOM, Darksiders, and darksynth/horrorsynth music.
Golden Sun Inspired TTRPG. Pretty much what it says - a TTRPG/setting inspired by the setting of the Golden Sun franchise (might be powered by or compatible with Fabula Ultima or an entirely new system).
Gamehole Con
Also, I'll be a vendor at Gamehole Con in Madison this year! I don't have a booth number as I'm in the Demo Row, but stop by and say hi if you're there!
I'll see you in the next update, either with the next finished chapter or the completed PDF! - Josh
Hey everyone! The title says it all - chapter 1 of Tome of Intangible Treasures is (basically) complete, and I've shared it as a digital download for all backers. You should be be getting an email from BackerKit about it shortly. This version has been copy edited, but not proofread. This means that you might see some minor typos here and there (though hopefully even at this stage that will be rare). There might also be some incredibly minor layout tweaks happening between now and final release, but this is intended as the final layout and near-final text for this chapter.
If you happen to catch typos or have any questions as you're reading, feel free to send me an email at [email protected] or hop in the Discord server and drop a message in the #TomeofIntangibleTreasures channel! There will be proofreading happening before the book is finalized, but I didn't want to make you wait any longer to have an early look at this chapter :)
Brief Timeline Update
With current editing timelines, I'm hopeful that the entire PDF should be done by the end of October - which means we're ahead of schedule on the digital side! However, this definitely depends on how long proofreading takes. Once it's done, I'll be locking orders so that I can start distributing it to backers and pre-order pledges (but I won't be charging cards for late add-ons and shipping just yet - that will come later when we're closer to shipping). I'll give everyone a couple of weeks with the book while we work on finalizing print files to make sure any obvious errors that somehow slip past the multiple rounds of editing can be fixed before we print, and then it'll be on to manufacturing!
Dice
As a side note: I've been working with a factory on dice design for a few months, so progress is happening on those as well, but I'm waiting to share any images of dice until I see a version I'm reasonably happy with. The samples take a while to make (and communication can be somewhat slow), so if there are delays that happen in fulfilling physical orders it's most likely to come from delays in getting the dice finalized. This is my first time making dice as part of a project, and I hadn't quite anticipated how long it would take to have samples made (it also turns out factories are very hesitant to make suggestions on how to turn mockups into reality, which definitely leads to some trial and error. Thankfully I have a dice maker friend who's helped me out with some consulting from time to time). If I do dice in the future I'll probably be working on samples before even launching the campaign just to make sure the dice aren't likely to be the last thing done.
Anyway, I'm happy with how this chapter turned out and I'm really excited to finally be able to share it with you!
Thanks as always for your support, and enjoy the early look at chapter 1! - Josh
Hey everyone! Today's update is fairly short: I'm still waiting for that Chapter 1 PDF to share with you, but I'm told it should be ready within a week or so and you can be sure that as soon as I have it, you'll have it.
The poll about poster images wrapped up a week or two ago as well, and it looks like the scene of the adventurer communing with a primal spirit won, so that is now the official image choice for the art print!
Writing Progress
Writing is 100% draft complete! I got the final balance edits this weekend, and am almost done finalizing that part. After that, chapters 3 and 4 need to go to copy editing, and then there'll be proofreading to do once that's all done.
Art Progress
Art is 100% complete as well. I got the last few pieces back in August, and that's that!
Reminder to Complete Surveys
Thanks to the 98% of you that have filled out your surveys! That is a really great percentage to see at this stage. If you are one of the (currently 28) people who have not filled out your survey, be sure to do so soon! The longer you wait the higher the likelihood that I can't fulfill your order. If you're not sure if you've filled out your survey, you can check (or request a new link) here: https://tome-of-intangible-treasures.backerkit.com/sign_in
As a reminder, if you use AppleID, that will typically block emails from BackerKit and prevent you from getting your survey, download, and shipping notification emails. Be sure not to use that as your email in BackerKit to avoid that issue.
What's Next?
Since this project's work is now mostly out of my hands, I'm starting to think about what the next project should be! Once I've gotten Chapter 1 out to you all, you can expect to see a poll asking what your favorite ideas are out of the several I've got in mind.
Injuries and Vile Deeds is on Roll20 (coming to Foundry)
In preparation for getting Tome of Intangible Treasures's VTT conversions done as quickly as possible once the book is ready, I've been working with others to get Injuries and Vile Deeds out on Roll20 and Foundry as a sort of practice run. TheRoll20 version is already available, and you can grab that now on their marketplace if that's your preferred VTT. Work on the Foundry version is just starting, so I don't really have a timeline on that yet, but know that it's coming as well :)
Thanks as always for your support, and I can't wait to share Chapter 1 with you when it's done! - Josh
Hey everyone! It's been about a month since the last update, and with Gen Con taking up my time the rest of the week I wanted to get the next one out ahead of that (I'm not there as a vendor this year, but I will be playing a ton of RPGs and wandering around. I'll have a T-shirt with the Lone Colossus logo on it two of the days, so if you see me feel free to say hi). As with last month, things continue to proceed as planned and I haven't run into any notable delays yet.
If you're interested in having a say in which illustration from the book gets used to create the art print poster reward, be sure to check the bottom of this update for the poll for that! These art prints will be a limited run, with just a bit more than needed to fulfill backer orders, so be sure to add one to your survey if you want one!
Reminder to Complete Surveys
Thanks to everyone who has already completed their pledge manager surveys! If you're part of the 3% of people who haven't, make sure to fill it out as soon as possible! The only times I've ever had backers not get their rewards it was due to them not filling out the survey. If you can't find your link in your email, you can go here to request a new one. If you use an Apple email or some other form of anonymized email, the emails from BackerKit are often blocked by the email provider/sent to spam. If you still aren't getting your link after requesting a new one, try using a different email address.
Writing Progress
I have just a handful of trainers left to write, and then the draft of everything for the book will be complete! Chapter 1 (boons, charms, and pacts) has finished its balance edit and is now in copy editing. The remaining chapters are now in balance editing (the trainers themselves have no mechanics, so they aren't part of that edit).
An adventurer communes with a primal spirit - by Quang Ho
Art Progress
Unless during layout we determine I should commission more artwork, we're down to just 10 pieces left to be completed, and at least half of those should be done in the next couple of weeks!
Fyrthlam, Courtier of Summer - by Rowan Holloway
The Unending Chorale - by Fernando of AbyssalBrews for their stretch goal pact entity
Layout Progress
Work on layout continues, but we're not quite ready to share the first chapter just yet. Depending on when editing finishes up, you might get the chapter after final edits occur - just depends on how long it takes to finalize layout choices. In the meantime though, here's an unfinished example of what Jelke (the layout artist) has been working on for chapter title pages.
Work in Progress of the Chapter 1 title page. Magic circle design by Todd Ulrich
We're getting closer and closer to the release of the first chapter, and I can't wait to share it with you when it's ready! In the meantime, I'm starting to post artwork and teasers for the book on Pinterest (which also get shared in my Discord server as they're posted), currently at a rate of ~1/week, but probably more frequently after I find a bit more time in my schedule.
