What's going on my favourite eco-punks!? It's Laurie, back with what is likely the final regular project update! Don't worry though, you won't get a chance to miss me too much, but let's start at the beginning shall we?
Fulfilment Complete
It's with immense pride that I report that all finalised pledges have (according to my knowledge!) been sent out across the world. Most of you already have your copies, we've absolutely loved seeing your pictures of it having arrived! If any of you haven't received their copies yet but haven't messaged us, now's the time, we'll help you track them down and make sure they arrive.
Honestly this is a huge moment for us, the culmination of three years of hard work transforming this game into a high quality TTRPG: running playtests, making art, perfecting layouts, advertising it, talking to people, talking to shop owners, fixing mechanics, squashing endless, endless typos and mistakes and misleading wording, and constantly being surprised by the stories people create with it... and now we're here. Why We Fight isn't just a finished game, it's a game that exists in the hands of those who believed in it enough to help us make it real. It's a game we're proud of, and as someone who helped us get it here, we hope you're proud of it too.
We received the following picture from one of our retailer backers, Firestorm Books, an anarchist co-op bookstore in Ashville CA, and it's absolutely made our week. So here it is, Why We Fight, out in the world in all its glory.
We're not done yet! One-Shot Adventures Incoming!
So we've fulfilled the main product you're all here for, but that's not all we've promised! I'm thrilled to say that the Why We Fight One-Shot Adventures we commissioned are all finished and we're in the process of transforming them into PDF formats and beautifying them! They're all great, and we're very excited to get them out to everyone as each of them are quite different in their own way - the main thing we wanted when commissioning them, actually! We felt that by getting other writers on board, we could see what other stories could be told within the Why We Fight framework and system, and the ways they might be told that we wouldn't even think of. Needless to say, we were so impressed by what came back, and I'm excited to get them out to everyone!
Natural Selection - The Assemblage & YWF Crossover TTRPG!
We're also nearing completion of the Assemblage & Why We Fight cross-over RPG, an ambitious little project I've been working on with the boundlessly talented Nat Mesnard, author of Assemblage, our partner-project for Pocketopia almost a year ago (crazy how fast time flies!!).
Titled 'Natural Selection: An Asymmetric TTRPG of Ecological Encounter', it is a team-based 2-8 player game where one side plays The Expedition, a Community Alliance team of scientists and explorers tentatively charting and studying the unique flora and fauna of a previously inaccessible island, while the other plays The Assemblage, unveiling and representing the variety of strange and otherworldly species that have evolved and thrived in never-before-seen ways.
Navigating and studying these strange ecological phenomena, will the Expedition make it home with their fascinating discoveries? Or will the perils of the wild unknown, the Crises that strike, or the curious creatures drawn to the strange sights, sounds and smells of their Base Camp leave them stranded, and become a new part of the ecosystem itself?
If you backed Assemblage as well as us, you'll be receiving this game FOR FREE, but if not don't worry, we'll both be selling the PDF to folks who want in on this amazing adventure after it's delivered. Honestly, after the initial playtests, we're feeling like we've stumbled onto something pretty special and different to your average RPG with this one, so watch this space!
We'll still be responding!
Just because the main campaign is over doesn't mean we'll stop keeping an eye on things, so if you've questions or queries, feel free to use the comments or discussions section of the Backerkit and we should reply within a week. If ever you want a reply quick, there's always our email ([email protected], or if it's urgent, [email protected]) or our Discord! There's plenty of Why We Fight fans there, come and say hi!
Okay, happy belated new year, folks, I hope this one is everything you want it to be! Thanks again for being a part of this amazing campaign, we hope to see you in the next one!
Hi folks! Rhi here Some of you have already received your parcels and may have just received a notification that it has shipped! This was an error created by us misunderstanding how something in the Backerkit back-end worked. You are not getting a second parcel, I'm sorry!
Those of you in the EU will now have shipping numbers, in adding those shipping numbers, we have accidentally marked all orders as shipped... US/CA orders, I'm afraid to say this is not the case for you... But they are getting ready!
US/CA/MX orders are experiencing a small delay due to our shipment being damaged in transit. We've been working with our fulfilment partners on this, and your orders will begin shipping ASAP. You should receive a second email with a tracking number as soon as we have these! Please ignore the email you just received.
Apologise folks, our brains are frazzled and we made a mistake. On the plus side, all UK and EU parcels have been shipped out and should be with you shortly!
Final heads up, the SDR team are taking a holiday from the 23rd of Dec to the 5th of Jan - if you need to contact us, please use our email: [email protected] and we will get back to you when we can!
All the best and happy holidays, Rhi, Laurie & Rob
Hey Solarpunkers! It's Laurie, back again a mere two weeks after the last one!
You're probably going to have to get used to me popping up in your inbox for a bit since I'm going to be updating folks on shipping progress and whatnot across the next two months, BUT! Today I arrive with some exciting news for EVERYBODY!
Why We Fight Final PDFs Available for Download!
You heard me right, folks! Remember those Backer Preview PDFs? Well in that same Digital Rewards area, you can now download the Core Book and Direct Action PDFs!
Both of these downloads are a .zip file containing the game in Spreads format, Pages format, and a printable PDF of the Character Sheets displayed in the back of the books. Please note that these PDFs are currently NOT the accessible versions we promised, but these will be updated once they're available. If you were looking forward to / counting on those accessible PDFs, worry not! I shall announce the files update like this in a future (probably next!) project update.
Meanwhile, some of you may be practically quivering at your keyboards ready to ask me: Laurie! What about our DTRPG and itch.io codes!? Where are those!!!??!?1?! Worry not friends, these things are coming. You see, I had a choice, do I make sure the DTRPG and itch.io pages are fully up to date and ready for everyone to be able to use, are verified by their mods and all the codes are properly output so we can distribute them to everybody... OR do I release the PDFs through Backerkit now so you can enjoy your game while I work on the other places in the meantime? So here we are. PDFs for everyone, courtesy of Backerkit! The other download stores will come soon, trust me!
This also means that if anyone has any issues with the PDFs for any reason, we can sort those out quickly, so if you find some errant broken link or other oddity, let us know!
Shipping Update!
UK, EU & ROW Shipping began today! Yes friends, that is no hyperbole, that is FACT! This means unless something goes horribly wrong, all UK Backers should receive their orders before Christmas! Whether you celebrate it or not, consider it my gift to you.
Want to make my Christmas warm and fuzzy? Email us or show us in Discord a picture of you with your book(s)! Making games is not something you do to get rich (haha), we do it to create things people love and enjoy, and every time we get a picture of people loving our games, we're inspired to keep at it. We won't share it without your permission, but it'll make us very happy either way!
EU folks, I'd love to promise something similar, but honestly? Post-Brexit EU customs are a fickle mistress and it's basically impossible for me to guarantee much more than "within the next four weeks". Some of you might get your packages next week! Others, the first week of January. Postal services are overwhelmed across December, and customs agents all the more, BUT! All packages will be tracked and we will update your Backerkit account with the tracking info as soon as possible so you can watch it wind its merry way across the English Channel and towards your door.
To everyone else that isn't on the American Continent, the elusive denizens of "Rest of World", your package will similarly be leaving the UK within the next week or two. When it gets to you largely depends on where you are, but if you're on the opposite side like Australia, you're best off expecting January and being pleasantly surprised if it arrives earlier.
American Continent Backers! Don't worry, I haven't forgotten you. The books took longer to cross the Atlantic than we expected, but they are now in the US and will arrive at our fulfilment centre in the next few days. Fulfilment may begin late next week at the earliest, so you MIGHT get your package before Christmas if things go smooth, but honestly, you're better off expecting late December and early January.
All the stuff we said to the EU folks about tracking numbers still applies to everyone else, so check that first if you start wondering where your package is. Otherwise, you can always get in touch!
I'll probably be back in touch next week when I confirm that US Continent packages have begun to be shipped out. But otherwise, have a great time with those PDFs! We're so proud of them, and we hope you love them as much as we do.
Hey Solarpunkers, it's Laurie back just in the waning hours of November with your update!
I'm thrilled to say that I have ONLY GOOD NEWS! Don't you just love it when that happens? We sure do. But wait, not only does this news only come in that, pure, tasty 'good' form, it also comes in PICTURE FORM! Whoa. The modern age, am I right?
Why We Fight fresh off the printers!
Friends, I bring to you this wonderous proof of our beautiful game in its various stages of coming off the press!
Here we have Direct Action:
And the Core Book:
And finally, them all packaged up and ready to be sent!
I'm thrilled to say that as of writing this they have ALREADY been sent, and should be arriving in the UK tomorrow, and the US a couple of days later. We're in the process of packaging up the various extras and accessories that will be going with them so they can be sent out to the distributors, and upon them arriving, fulfilment will be beginning! That means you have exactly one week to make sure your address is correct and adjust it if necessary. After that point, you'll get a last chance warning from Backerkit and addresses will be locked and sent to the distributors.
If you're one of our Silver or Gold bundle backers, here's a look at what you'll be getting! (Ps. You'll only be getting three dice, six are shown to show off all of the pips!)
So when will I get my goodies?
You can expect to receive everything within December! Because we're going to be starting distribution at the beginning of the month, it should mean even the furthest destinations such as Australia and New Zealand should still get theirs, just at the end of the month, rather than the beginning. Simply, if you haven't got your package by January, it's worth getting in touch.
I believe there will be tracking on the packages, but just to meter expectations, those tracking numbers need to be generated when sent, added to the shared distributor excel sheet of info, and then individually uploaded one by one to the Backerkit account of each person. We'll try to keep on top of this as much as we can, but for many folks who live in the same locale as the fulfilment people, your order may arrive before we've managed to get your tracking number up.
Please be patient! We're a company of three people, and it'll be Rhi and I alternating this task while trying to stay on top of everything. Use [email protected] if you need us! Replies during the first two weeks of December may take longer than usual, but I promise we'll get to you.
Dragonmeet
Are you in the UK? Going to Dragonmeet this weekend? Well so are we! The entire SDR trifecta will be getting our Lond-on at stall 0-27, and we might, if the great Gods of customs and imports allow it, have preview copies of Why We Fight Core and DA for you to come and see! These WILL NOT be for sale, nobody is getting any copies earlier than you, dear backer, but if you're there come and geek out with us over the books!
Dragonmeet will actually be the first time WE see them, so honestly, stop by if only to become infected by OUR raw, uncontained excitement from that cool and natural high: new book smell.
Right, I'm being dragged back to packaging dice, patches and stickers, so it's farewell from me, friends! Hope to see you at Dragonmeet, and if not, can't wait to get some pictures of your freshly opened packages sometime in December!
Hey solarpunkers! It's October and we're back with a small update on our progress over the last month, along with some clarity on shipping costs and the timeframe to be expected. Warning! We are locking orders on November 1st! Pledge adjustments must be made before then!
So Much Art, So Little Time
Rob has been working his butt off this past month drawing, colouring and rendering the final art pieces necessary for the book, while coordinating with the printers to ensure our work aligns with their specifications, and the colours will print correctly. You can check out the full, updated core book by downloading the new file version, which also contains the other changes made (which I talk about below).
Fun fact: The perfect angel of a chihuahua-sized assistant in this image is Rob's dog, Betty! She is sadly not with us anymore, so we're glad to have such a wonderful tribute to her in the book.
Fine Tuning and Fulfilment Preparations
Rhi and I have meanwhile been talking endlessly with various stages of shipping and fulfilment, which seems to be changing by the day at this point. We've also been running play tests both on and offline to try to find those last parts that people might trip over, especially in the Core Book. That's the great thing about a game with huge amounts of potential content, there's huge amounts of ways it can be interpreted!
Riding on the success of our 'Quick to make yet high impact' Bastion system tests, requests came quickly for rules around making your Community Alliance Hub, and ways it might be useful to draw upon that pre-established community. This, along with some streamlined wording of various mechanics to eliminate remaining uncertainties, has added a pretty robust form of long-term play that allows you to explore and build upon the world without it needing to be a full-blown campaign. It's been fun to see it play out!
Meanwhile, we're about ready to lock orders, since we've got final word on our fulfilment options and choices and no costs will be changing from here, so this is your final call if you want to purchase any add-ons or change your pledge in any way! We will be locking orders on November 1st. For those few who have yet to complete their surveys, please try to get them done by then, or else you may end up with delays or even extra costs if it takes too long.
UK & EU backers: There will be no changes to your expected shipping costs, we hope to have your packages arrive either very late November or very early December.
US, Canada, Mexico & South American backers: You're all getting your stuff sent to you via our US fulfilment centre, but this means you're sadly victim to the US tariffs. Since the percentages on China have just been upped to ridiculous levels, we've decided the best option all round is to remove the only Chinese manufactured item: the dice. This means we can avoid charging anybody any extra for the shipping, and keep expected costs as they are. We are unable to adjust the pricing down, mainly because we're subsidising the increased cost as it is, but if you really really want those dice then please reach out and we can have your order sent to you from the UK and invoice you the difference. Honestly though, with everything going on, this would be a great time to go to your local brick and mortar game store and buy some dice from them. Times are hard, support your local community!
Everyone else: Most 'rest of the world' packages will be unchanged in their costs and will be sent from the UK. Unlike the other areas, it's really difficult to say about the time it'll take for your packages to get to you, but you can expect it to take between 1 to 2 weeks extra time.
All of this is completely dependent on nothing going wrong with printing, shipping, UK or US customs, or anything else. The expected times are precisely that, but don't worry, we'll keep you all updated as we go.
Last of all: PDF copies!
You'd think this would be easy mode, right? So it'd basically be done once the content is in? Naaah, don't be silly. We are of course going the extra mile and including a fully screen reader functional version for accessibility thanks to the excellent services of Chris Hopper. This will be alongside multiple versions (spread & single page) of the standard PDFs, and will all be available via itch, dtrpg and direct download via Backerkit. Creating these will take a bit of time, so honestly, you can expect these to become available around the same time that packages will begin turning up. We'll do our best to get them to you earlier, though!
Okay that's everything for the time being. If anyone has an uncle in shipping or something just... I don't know, tell them not to break anything until January, okay? Smooth sailing through the Suez and all that. For me? Thanks.
Catch you all in November friends! ~Laurie, and also Rhi & Rob
