Welcome back to one of our final Misery Mondays!

We've seen... just about everything now. Everything but the boxes the decks are coming in.

Our Standard Edition features the Blade Smith with extended art over his frame. This is the box that will contain the guidebook and deck on their own. You can see the Square add-on image from the Dice campaign, which is right around the corner, here!

This is also closer to how cards will be cut. Enoch would like a bit less of the black border to show, and his wish is my command, I think. Now, this is a flip open, magnet close box like we did for the Alleyway Oracles which is the new standard for Pub Gob decks and divination bits.  This means there is a whole fun flap inside the box once you flip it open.

I have opted to use this space, which faces you when you open the box to get your deck, a reminder. That this is a deck, a tool, of kindness. That while it deals with hard, heavy things, it is meant to be a hand that leads us in the dark, not one that damns us, demeans us, or horrifies us. 

This means the last things for us to see, are indeed the Deluxe Edition, and the journal. Hopefully we have our template for the deluxe box in time, but if not I can mock it up decently well, I think. The Deluxe box is kind of like two of these boxes connected by a bigger spine, it's really wild, but it will be really cool.

We're on our way out now, friends...
See you next week for our final update on the progress of the deck! From there on, we're looking at the Oracle Dice project, then when it's complete and we know how many decks to order, we'll be heading to manufacturing and beyond.

7DA
your pub gob

Welcome back fellows in Misery,

This is the Card disk-- the Black Seal Tarot Card Stand from the Deluxe Edition. It is a simple black acrylic disk with a slit in the center to hold a card. It's 4" across, and just right to prop up a single card. When you have a card to think on from the Misery Tarot, or indeed any deck, you can turn the disk to face that card with angry knives if it's something you are confronting, struggling with, or need to overcome.

But if you need to embrace something, or it is a sign of you coming up, overcoming, growing, then turn the disk. Face it with opened manacles, with the vessel of blood, of hope, and the nails to rebuild. These two sides to the disk offer different approaches from the suits of the deck, and will help you focus your morning mantras or meditations on what must be fought, or what must be taken and run with.

Originally this was meant to be an etched an ink filled sigil, but long story short, the pricing I was quoted at ended up being for UV printing. Enoch was unfamiliar with things that would have been needed for the engraving elements, and I realized if we UV printed, it would let Enoch use full ranges of color. So we've gone with it, and I think it looks awesome. This was also the final thing Enoch did for the project, so the Misery Tarot is now complete on the artist's side.

Next week we'll be seeing the standard edition box, then the week after the Deluxe edition box (I just saw the prototype of the box and it looks amazing.) With the Deluxe, we'll see the journal and all the items tucked among its space.

Can't wait to share the last bits as we head into the Oracle Dice, friends. See you shortly,

7

Hello Travelers in Misery,

Today I wanted to share the tarot card stand-- the Black Seal tarot stand-- but it is literally the ONE THING that Enoch has not completed solely because we don't know what the design allowances are for manufacturing it. Enoch has been asking me for more work for 2 weeks now haha.

So-- let's take a look at the Art Print choices from Enoch... and the Commemorative Mug!

The art print choices ranged from the Exhibit to Blades, Wire, Rot, Nails, and Blood. We considered doing a print from each suit, but we realized quickly we wanted two from the Exhibit, and I wanted to make sure the prints had a good range of color and composition. The Making, for example, surprised me. I was looking for our final print and realized that it made such a beautiful solemn composition on its own, and it's the only one to be this tragically monochromatic. It gave me a clear sense of melancholy I really loved.

I'm so in love with our choices, and think this is a great look into the deck itself. Creatures large and small, victims, people making their own choices. There's a lot to love here, and we did an amazing job in bringing this to life. Just truly amazing.

And then, yes, there's the mug. Enoch illustrated us a lovely little look downstairs into the basement, where Enoch was locked with The Creachur. During our final hours livestream, backers joked that I was keeping Enoch down in the basement to illustrate the deck, and I threatened Enoch with a creature that I would release to harm him should he fail my deadlines. Throughout the stream, we had Enoch likely to die, then likely to live, then likely to die-- until it was joked that I should have a Enoch Was Spared commemorative mug. And thus the mug came to life. 

If you want one, you can add it to your order still for $15-- feel free to ask Backerkit support to help you add an item to your order.

I think the design is actually quite fun, so I hope you'll all consider grabbing one with the 32 other folks who have one in their order! It's just a fun way to think about a project and the people behind it, and I guess probably many workplace violations. Don't worry, I'll let Enoch out for sunlight soon.

7DA
your pub gob

Welcome back Misserians,

Last week, I shared the Oracle Dice instead of the Guidebook cover + book layout. I've been working on this a bit, I'm actually more excited to share the box which I've also been working on at the moment, but here we are and I should be sharing the guidebook. Very well!

Enoch helped put together a gorgeous texture to use on the guidebook covers, then we folded The Victim and The Penitent over them, I darkened a little, added our elements, and just like that, we have the back and front covers! Since these will be in the box, I'm not putting a barcode or anything on them, so it gets to be fairly clean which is lovely.

The book layout isn't quite ready, I'm still debating a few elements colors, etc. And please note the lines you see in the background gradient won't print like that, I don't know why it keeps showing lines haha. But the gist of font faces, colors, sizes are in line with my goals for the book.

Enoch is putting together a design element to put in the corners that will hold a plaque in some wire for the page numbers, and a cross bar that can signify the end of a section, especially for spots where the text doesn't fill the full page.

Next week I should be sharing the card disk and the art prints, but I'm not sure if we'll have the specs for the disk even by then-- manufacturer is really dragging their feet on the templates for that and the box. So I might show the box ideas or the journal early-- hard to say!

From here until May 1st when the Oracle Dice project launches, we're playing fast and loose with the final items!

See you next week for the random grab bag of fun things! : )

7DA
your pub gob