We have a finalized timeline for the digital and print releases of The Mouth of Mentius!
We met with artist, Faith Murphree, this morning and tacked down the following timeline for the dozen art pieces:
April: Faith releases the "spot art" and monster drawings
Early May: We finish our final playtests and final edits
Mid May: Faith finishes the full-page and half-page art
Late May: Layout is complete and digital releases commence!
Late June: Print editions ship!
We're excited about every step! The momentum you inspired is exhilarating. And it's pouring into Patrons of the Pantheon as Gina pieces together that awesome tome of ancient divinity.
Meanwhile, we have an urgent message for all the dungeon crawling fans out there:
Many of you have yet to reserve your copy of the dungeon monster cookbook for the upcoming Goodman Games megadungeon, Delicious in Whiterock!
If you're one of them, go to the teaser page and click the "Reserve Your Spot for $5" now.
The $5 you contribute goes toward your pledge, so you're getting Delicious in Whiterock for no extra charge! Here's a glimpse at the sketch of the cover by Stefan Poag, which will be a full-fledged hand-made painting:
We love the detail, the diversity of creatures and the downright weirdness of this image. And we can't wait to get it out to as many of you as possible, so don't forget:
As for the contents of Delicious in Whiterock, it includes 21 actual recipes for monsters from each main level of Castle Whiterock, along with tips on how to battle your future meals.
Grab your copy by reserving for only $5 on the teaser page now! Everyone who reserves and pledges for Descent of the Ancient Fane at the print level gets a copy. Be sure you do too!
Zinetopia ends on 2/27/26 in the morning. So now's the time to back The Mouth of Mentius- and grab the Stretch Goal Add-On, Patrons of the Pantheon, while you can!
The support for The Mouth of Mentius is nothing short of epic. Each and every one of our backers contributed to that. We're eternally grateful for that and hope you have a legendary adventure in this one-of-a-kind dungeon!
Dungeon Crawl Classics and D&D 5e 2024 will be the rules systems, and both will be in the same book. Old School Essentials doesn't really have a "Patrons" mechanic, so our focus is on the other two systems. By all means suggest otherwise if you'd like! But for now, The Patrons of the Pantheon's 48+ pages will include:
12 gods of the Pantheon (listed with Greek and Roman names)
3 Warlock Spells per god (D&D 5e)
Warlock details per god (D&D 5e)
3 Wizard/Elf spells per god (DCC)
Patron Taint table for each god (DCC)
Invoke Patron spell for each god (DCC)
3 Cleric spells per god (D&D 5e)
3 Cleric canticles per god (DCC)
3 Cleric spells per god (DCC)
An introductory passage covering the domain, personality and quests of each god (system agnostic)
Those who purchase the Add On get both the print version and the PDF. Here's the link for it again, for your convenience!
The estimated completion of this project is July 2026.
In the meantime, we welcome your responses, feedback and questions as this tome takes shape.
Thank each and every one of you for making it happen!
And as we hit our stretch goal, we've been discussing the scope of the Pantheon Gods Patron book. We've hammered out the details, and here they are:
#1 - It Will Be A Printed Book
Given the size of the material, as you'll see below, it's going to be big, at least 48 pages. So, why not make it a physical book?
#2 - A Book Requires An Add On
We'll create an Add On tomorrow, February 24, after we get some initial responses in from other team members and supporters about what's in the book, and create an Add On. In the spirit of The Mouth of Mentius, the backer-only price for this book will be $11
#3 - It Will Have A Lot In It - For Two Systems
Dungeon Crawl Classics and D&D 5e 2024 will be the rules systems, and both will be in the same book. Old School Essentials doesn't really have a "Patrons" mechanic, so our focus is on the other two systems. By all means suggest otherwise if you'd like! But for now, The Patrons of the Pantheon's 48+ pages will include:
12 gods of the Pantheon (listed with Greek and Roman names)
3 Warlock Spells per god (D&D 5e)
Warlock details per god (D&D 5e)
3 Wizard/Elf spells per god (DCC)
Patron Taint table for each god (DCC)
Invoke Patron spell for each god (DCC)
3 Cleric spells per god (D&D 5e)
3 Cleric canticles per god (DCC)
3 Cleric spells per god (DCC)
An introductory passage covering the domain, personality and quests of each god (system agnostic)
In this, we hope you will have created the foremost resource on the Greco-Roman Gods for DCC and D&D5e.
It will be available in print and in PDF, and we anticipate that it will release around July, 2026.
We welcome your responses, your feedback and your questions, as we're still hammering away to give shape to The Patrons of the Pantheon in these final days of The Mouth of Mentius.
Meanwhile, thank each and every one of you for your epic blessings, and may fortune be ever in your favor this week!
Zinetopia is all about a universe of collaborators coming together, beloved backer!
In that spirit, we seek out - and are sought by - other projects that align with ours. On this first Monday of the Zinetopia event, we present the first two that we connected with: A Familiar Tower and Our Flag Means Kiss.
A Familiar Towermay be many familiar to our Old-School Essentials fans, as its creator, Directsun Games, has been rolling out a puzzle-oriented series of dungeons. A Familiar Tower is the last installment, described as a puzzle-filled dungeon where the dungeon itself is the puzzle. With quirky, stylized art and a meticulous attention to detail, A Familiar Tower is a location-based adventure that you won't want to miss. We're fascinated by its multi-layered puzzle approach and look forward to inspiration and excitement within this carefully crafted wizard tower. Our second selection comes from a creator whose vision resonated with us on a couple of levels, Stevie Edwards of Our Flag Means Kiss. Stevie has created a GM-less queer pirate RPG, for solo play up to 4 players, with simple rules and a passion for storytelling. Our Flag Means Kissstood out for us because, fun fact, many in the Witch Pleas Publishing fan community have told us how much they enjoy Our Flag Means Death - with its later episodes described as one friend and fan as "some of the best hours of TV I've ever seen."
Also, The Mouth of Mentius is set on an island in the Mediterranean, a location ideal for pirates to visit. As we see it, the mechanics of Our Flag Means Kissmight allow the players to take it upon themselves to tell the full tale of their pirate crew before their arrival on Mentius, rife with romance and drama, as the Olympian gods would have it no other way!
That caps our first Zinetopia cross promo, backers! If you have any recommendations, send them over to us in the comments! Meanwhile, we hope you continue to enjoy this outstanding celebration of creativity and collaboration. Happy Zinetopia!
