Before the Shatterlands became what it is, there were years of unraveling — and Afterglow doesn't skip over it.
The main lore chapter "Becoming the Shatterlands" is a collection of short stories drawn from real sessions, scattered across the years when the world was starting its spiral. Fear, uncertainty, distrust, anger, loss — each story carries its own emotional fingerprint, and each one is anchored by a single image meant to freeze that moment in amber.
Mary Bennett is the artist carrying that entire chapter on their shoulders, and the work speaks for itself. Every image lands exactly where it needs to — you read the story, you look at the illustration, and something locks into place. You don't just understand what the character is going through. You feel it.
This is no small ask for a single artist. The scope is significant and the schedule has been demanding. Mary has exceeded expectations at every turn without missing a beat.
Seriously — go check out their portfolio. The talent is obvious, and I'm grateful to have them on this project.
Gary Con kicked off Thursday at the Grand Geneva Resort in Lake Geneva, and we have been running Afterglow hard. Two sessions down and third one coming fast!
Watching players scheme their way through the facility in ways I never saw coming, then seeing their faces when something unexpected crawls out of the shadows — that's the whole game right there. The shocked expressions alone are worth the trip.
If you're at the Grand Geneva this weekend, keep your eyes open. There are surprises scattered across campus — you'll know them when you find them.
To everyone backing from home: the game is real, it's hitting hard, and we cannot wait to get it into your hands. Thank you for making this happen.
There's a specific kind of excitement that hits when a notification from Kuzacht comes through — and it hasn't worn off yet.
Kuzacht has been behind the vast majority of Afterglow's chapter spread layouts, and the work demands to be experienced up close. We're talking bring-a-microscope levels of fine line detail. Every proof I receive, I can't help myself — I zoom in as far as I can and just sit there. The density of thought packed into every inch is genuinely staggering.
And it's not just technical precision. When tasked with illustrating the Whispercoil — the spine-mounted device central to the Coil-Bound PC — Kuzacht didn't just render my concept. They interrogated it. What would this device actually need to function? How does it interface with the body? How does a Coil-Bound even sleep with this thing on their spine? My original sketch looked like the Hungry Caterpillar. What came back was something phenomenal.
Artist Spotlight: Dennis | Goldy Designs & CreativesInstagram: @goldydesigns22
Dennis brought an extraordinary level of output and dedication to Afterglow — both in volume and consistency. The range on display is what sets this collaboration apart.
Flip through the Pets & Companions chapter and you'll see Dennis's distinctive comic art style woven throughout. But that's only part of the story. Dennis also captured the rougher, in-the-moment sketches — the kind a Ranger might scrawl in a field journal while documenting a new creature before the memory fades. Then, in the same breath, delivers the polished, detailed mechanoid illustrations that make the less-threatening corners of the Shatterlands feel hauntingly real.
I have zero reservations about working with Dennis again — and I fully intend to keep doing exactly that.
Honestly? I'm still processing it. Afterglow: Adventures in the Shatterlands is going to be a real, printed, professional thing — and that's because of you. Every backer, every share, every "hey you should check this out" to a friend at your game table. That's what did it.
This has been a long road for New Terra Studios, and crossing that line feels surreal in the best possible way.
But we're not done. Not even close.
Every new backer from here on out means more resources to make Afterglow better — more art, more content, more weird AGI-apocalypse goodness crawling out of the Shatterlands. The campaign is still live and every bit of momentum matters.
And if you're heading to Gary Con next week — come find us. We're running demos, and I want to put this game in your hands and watch what happens. It plays even better than it reads.
Tell your people. Share the campaign. Let's see how far we can take this thing.
