Hello all, now that Port-O-Bowl has completely wrapped up, it's time to talk about the next project.
I have put together and launched a "teaser page" for Port-O-Bowl's succ...
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Giando Sigurani | Star Pharaoh Foundry
about 2 months ago
The last physical orders have shipped, thanks to JC SPark (Back her project today!)
Hello! Just like the last update, let me start by posting these 3 beautiful columns representing Backerkit's backend for the 3 types of physical orders (2 team, 8 team, an...
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Giando Sigurani | Star Pharaoh Foundry
3 months ago
The Light at the End of the Tunnel (Last few orders + Star Player Pack 2 + Port-O-Bowl's successor!)
Hello backers and followers, let me start off by sharing screenshots of the backend of my fulfillment tracker on Backerkit.
As you can see, just about everything has be...
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Giando Sigurani | Star Pharaoh Foundry
6 months ago
The Final 5 teams! Port-O-Bowl is now COMPLETE! 40% sale on MMF too.
Hello Backers and Followers!
Now that I've finally gotten the update about shipping out of the way I can talk about what I've been up to besides all the printing and shippi...
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Giando Sigurani | Star Pharaoh Foundry
6 months ago
The shipping delays for physical orders explained (and what I'm doing about it)!
Hello backers and followers,
I have been meaning to write this post for several months, but until recently I didn’t have all the material I needed to show the depth of the ...
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Giando Sigurani | Star Pharaoh Foundry
8 months ago
Slight delay on shipping, 2 new teams (Elven Union and Bloodseekers), Accessory development
Hello backers and followers!
As I said in my last update, all the digital backers should have received their items, including items I hadn't yet made when the project ended. I...
Port-O-Battle takes a lot of the same form factor of Port-O-Bowl such as the cross pegs and magnetizable board and adds new features such collapsible terrain and much more dynamically-posed minis. PoBowl taught me a lot about what details still show up in small 15mm scale minis (which is a LOT), so I've committed to making small but still highly-detailed minis. This Imperial Trooper is knee-high to a Star Pharaoh but still looks great!
You can see the notches in his bullets and the bolts on his rifle!
I am very excited to add more material to the campaign before its launch in May. I plan on having at least 6 Strike Forces and 2 Combat Zones. Here is a quick preview of some of the things I have so far.
Hello! Just like the last update, let me start by posting these 3 beautiful columns representing Backerkit's backend for the 3 types of physical orders (2 team, 8 team, and complete set):
Printing and delivering has been quite the ordeal, and I have learned a lot. First of all, that everyone who backed this campaign is awesome, patient, and understanding - THANK YOU to all those who had to wait a lot longer than anticipated to receive their orders of Port-O-Bowl. The second thing I learned is that unlike book or comic book printing, there does not exist a robust or reliable network of print makers who can produce and deliver quality product with consistent lead times. The industry is still in its infancy stages, and there are a lot of hiccups that are being discovered on the way to great and fast 3D prints for everyone who wants them.
With one notable exception: JC Spark, who I mentioned at the very start of the campaign was responsible for handling EU orders. The last 2 shipments for Port-O-Bowl were in both the EU and UK, and she and her wife produced the orders I needed so quickly and with such professionalism it made my head spin. And she didn't even charge me until it shipped! Let that be a lesson to the rest of you contractors: You've got Luxurink Games to measure up to now.
JC Spark's new campaign launched today, and in an effort to show my appreciation, I think I should link it here. Please consider following or backing JC Spark's campaign for the 2nd book in her campaign, Space Time:
Hello backers and followers, let me start off by sharing screenshots of the backend of my fulfillment tracker on Backerkit.
Backerkit columns for 8 team sets
Backerkit columns for 2 team sets
As you can see, just about everything has been shipped. In the U.S., I only have 2 more orders to do. The U.K. and EU have just 1 order each, which I have placed and hope to hear back about soon.
While I have been doing that, I've been slowly making more Star Players for Port-O-Bowl, hoping to deliver a Star Player Pack 2.
It's slower going than expected, because I started working on the successor to Port-O-Bowl, and got excited by the new challenges. I will finish the pack, however, I promise it! Here are some of the new players you can expect in Star Player Pack 2!
Left to Right: Jordell, Helmut, Dribl, Drul, Estelle
As for the successor to Port-O-Bowl, what do I mean by that?
Well, I had a lot of fun coming up a with a travel-sized game system, and I think it would be a shame if it were relegated only to fantasy football. So I got thinking: If I were to implement my travel sized system for another game, what would I need? Well, for wargames, one is often dealing with terrain, multi-story buildings, walls, lines of sight, obstacles, and all the options and challenges these things bring. So naturally, I began with making terrain that slots into the cross peg system that allowed for such stability for Port-O-Bowl players.
Black Orc Blocker for scale/testing purposes
Strike Forces not included.... yet.
I designed the terrain first, which is why they're surrounded by Port-O-Bowl players :)
You may notice that even though the grid is, well, a grid, the terrain is at an odd angle. Well, I've spent many hours designing an innovative peg system that allows terrain to be slotted in at just about any angle. Also notice that it has a 2nd floor! Despite there being a 2 story building, it still collapses flat so it can be stowed away in a travel box.
But that's not all. I also slightly redesigned the grid to allow for thin walls that can actually go in between field agents, known as "In-Between Terrain."
Finally, it's time to introduce the players. For this successor project, I'm calling the teams Strike Forces and each individual a Field Agent. Well, just minutes ago, I just finished the first strike force. In true Port-O-Game fashion, I started with humans, as humans v. Orcs is the classic matchup.
Meet the Human Troopers.
I am using the same design rules I used for Port-O-Bowl, though this time I'm using armatures and animation tools to give field agents more dynamic poses. Such poses were a problem for Port-O-Bowl, a game where you could have a dozen players crammed into as many squares. But for its successor, where positioning isn't grid-based but measurement-based, and where you will never find more than 2 or 3 agents near each other, these field agents have a little more room to breathe.
Now that I've finally gotten the update about shipping out of the way I can talk about what I've been up to besides all the printing and shipping for physical backers.
I've completed all Port-O-Bowl teams! All 30 teams are now available to play. Without further ado, here are the last 5 teams.
Ogres
Left to Right: Knoblar, Ogre1, Ogre2, Runt Punter
Bloodseekers
Left to Right: Bloodspawn, Bloodseeker, Kgor, Lineman
Imperial Nobility
Left to Right: Lineman, Thrower, Blitzer, Bodyguard, Ogre
Black Orcs
Left to Right: Black Orc 1, Black Orc 2, Goblin 1, Goblin 2, Troll
Old World Alliance
Left to Right: Human lineman, Human thrower, Human catcher, Human blitzer, Ogre, Treeman, Dwarf Lineman, Dwarf Runner, Dwarf Blitzer, Dwarf Trollslayer, Halfling
I've compiled the complete set with all 30 playable teams into a giant mega-collection on My Mini Factory.
It has all 30 teams! Not star players though, as new ones are added all the time, so they come in packs
The full set is normally $129, but there is currently a Black Friday sale going on for 40% of everything in the Star Pharaoh Foundry store, so that brings the price down to $77. Check out the Star Pharaoh Foundry store on My Mini Factory and specifically the Port-O-Bowl collection - there are only 2 days left until the sale ends!
Physical backers: I am currently going through physical backers orders as I stated in the last update. But I am also working on creating a portobowl.com website that will allow people to place physical orders for the new teams, and even full sets. That is going to take a lot more work, but I will keep people posted.
Until the next update, it's back to printing and shipping for me!
