A New Year's Work
over 7 years ago – Thu, Jan 19, 2017 at 05:37:47 AM

Happy New Year! The work continues apace—words written, pictures drawn, mechanics tested and refined—and we’re continually proud of what we’re putting together for you all!

Project Update: January

We’re getting the ball rolling on all our individual pieces at the same time, to ensure that we hit our desired delivery date. A big part of our efforts are focused on the text for the main book, which we’re fleshing out, refining, and polishing. Meanwhile, we’re starting to look at layout styles for the book so we can put the text into place ASAP. We’re currently hoping for a Q1 release of the book’s PDF, but we’ll see how things go in the coming months.

At the same time, we’ve begun work on the Book of Rooms. We’re coming up with a list of possible rooms (our test is whether or not it freaks us out to read an example), and fleshing them out as we go. Each room is going to be on a two page spread, complete with its own art.

And we’re storyboarding the Book of Lore. Since this book is going to be a tight amalgamation of art and words, we’re taking special time to make sure everything is going to sync up perfectly.

The Book of Mirrors is going to require lots of attention to work out, so while we’re starting the ball now, it’s probably going to be one of the later books to be fully completed. Stay tuned, though, for more news about it and its mechanics.

We’re also working on the two decks, the Deck of Objects and the Tarot of Servants, and getting the art rolling for those. We’ve learned from past experience that the art can be one of the bigger slow-down points in production, so we’re putting that at the front of our attention.

Finally, we have some more awesome art to show off for the core book, from Kring:

Into the House 

We’ve still got a ways to go, but we’re going to keep you all well-appraised of our status, so as soon as we have cool stuff to share with you, we will. We’ll always be grateful for all the support you showed us, and we can’t wait to hand over what we’re working on! Thank you all!

Laying the Foundations
over 7 years ago – Sun, Dec 18, 2016 at 02:59:27 PM

Here we are—after an absolutely amazing Kickstarter, with a metric tonnage of support, ready to put our noses to the grindstone! We’ve been putting together our plan of action to tackle everything you’ve helped fund, and we’re excited to share what we have in store with you. 

Project Update: December

First of all, we want to explain a bit about our overarching plan. Because we successfully funded the slipcase for all four books (which is INCREDIBLE), we need to approach this Kickstarter a little differently than others. We don’t want to ship out one book at a time, and then a slipcase separately, both because that wouldn’t be great for you, and because that makes no sense for us as publishers. Instead, we need to ship out the slipcases and all four books together, at one time.

So what that means is we have to plan on sending all four books—the core book, the Book of Rooms, the Book of Mirrors, and the Book of Lore—to the printer at the same time. That way, they can all be included with the slipcase and shipped out all together.

What does that mean for you? Only that if you got all four books, you’ll get them all at once with your slipcase, instead of piecemeal! We’re still planning on hitting our promised date for all four books. Barring any unexpected surprises, you should still be getting all of your physical books on time.

But it does mean that we will probably finish some books in advance of their actual printing. We will be sending out the PDFs for each book as soon as it is finished. That means you might get a PDF a little while before you get a physical book, but all of it should be before the promised date.

If you have any questions about all of this, please leave them in the comments or drop us a line at [email protected].

We’ve already gotten the ball rolling on the books, sketching outlines, planning initial sections, and so on, so stay tuned for more information as we keep working! 

Backerkit

We have had a number of people requesting to up their pledge level. Never fear, you will most certainly be able up your pledge in Backerkit.

Backerkit is a service that we use to best track and collect information from your pledges. You’ll be sent a survey, asking you exactly what level you pledged at, what your physical address is, and so on. Your survey will be linked to the email address of your Kickstarter account, so you can expect it to be sent there.

In that survey, you’ll be allowed to pledge more, if you want to change or modify your pledge for more books. And nothing in the Backerkit survey will be set in stone until we lock it, and we’ll give you plenty of warning before we actually do that.

We’ll also be using Backerkit throughout this Kickstarter to get you your digital files, though we’ll talk more about that when we get there.

We’ll be sending out the Backerkit surveys in late December or early January, so be looking for them then. Again, we’ll let you know with a Kickstarter update when those go out.

Thank you!

We want to take this opportunity to once again thank you all so much for your support. An amazing 1,745 people backed at an absolutely incredible total of $129,820. That means we unlocked an absolute parade of stretch goals, including: 

• The Book of Rooms, with a full 45 rooms to use in your games, or inspire your own. 
• The Book of Mirrors, with 6 different playsets to take Bluebeard’s Bride in different directions. 
• The Book of Lore, with a gorgeously illustrated version of the Bluebeard fairy tale. 
• The Deck of Objects, with 55 cards, containing many different mysterious objects you can put in your game. 
• The Tarot of Servants, with a full deck of 78 different cards to use as inspiration when creating new servants in your game. 
• Art prints of the gorgeous chapter pieces. 
• Digital materials including Roll20 overlays and PDFs of the decks. 
• A slipcase for all four books. 
• Metallic ink accents to make the core book even more gorgeous.

That’s fantastic. It’s wonderful. Looking at that list is always so invigorating and amazing for us.

Thank you all, so so much, for your support! We can’t wait to deliver on these amazing pieces!

Through the Final Doors
over 7 years ago – Sun, Dec 04, 2016 at 04:37:41 PM

And there it is—the final doors swing open, and now we step through into what lies beyond. Together.

The Bluebeard’s Bride Kickstarter is over. And, thanks to you, it has been an incredible success. Absolutely amazing.

Our game, born from a workshop in August 2014, has blown up into something even bigger. Four books. Two decks of cards. Art prints. Digital materials. Dice and silk-print sheets and rings and tokens. Twenty three stretch goals unlocked.

Over 1,700 backers. Over 2,500% funded. Over $128,000.

Astonishing, and wonderful.

Thank you for coming with us on this journey—for standing by us every step of the way as we, together, opened up door after door. For helping to make Bluebeard’s Bride into the unbelievable success that it is, replete with so many awesome and exciting new additions.

Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts.

We’re out for the holiday, so we’re planning on putting out a new update after Thanksgiving with more details on exactly what our next steps are, updating our anticipated timeline, and telling you what you need to know to get your books and add-ons squared away. So keep your eyes peeled for that.

But for right now, we’re going to go out and celebrate, because this is just marvelous. Thank you for helping us to make this book an incredible reality. Thank you.

The Finest of Materials
over 7 years ago – Tue, Nov 22, 2016 at 03:50:47 PM

Here we are, with about 8 hours left, and still going strong! We’ve got another stretch goal knocked out—our 23rd—and we’re going to reveal the 24th! 

Inkings in Metal at $125,000

Because we’ve reached $125,000, we’ll be using metallic ink in the core book and the limited edition version of the core book. It’ll be an accent to the pages, adding to the art and the exquisite aesthetic of the whole book. The metallic ink accents are in addition to the color art and color usage inside of the book, all of which together should make this book an art object well-worth a place of honor on your bookshelf.

There is no additional cost to anyone for this metallic ink—all you need to know is that whatever core book you get will look all the better for us having made it this far!

And now, our 24th stretch goal… 

Stretch Goal #24: The Groundskeeper’s Tour at $150,000

We’re very proud of the actual plays and interviews we’ve done, both prior to this Kickstarter going up and over its duration. They’ve done a great job of showing off how the game is played, how it works, why you would want to play, and what play actually looks like. But we know very well that you can never have too many resources to help you out when you’re learning any game, especially resources specifically designed to teach the game. So that’s what we want to do as a special, ultimate reward for all of you—we want to give you the best possible resources to help teach the game.

If we unlock this stretch goal, we will produce a beautiful tutorial video. Follow Sarah as she takes the Bride through Bluebeard's mansion. There tutorial will feature two tracks: 

- A clean playthrough of the game where you can enjoying all of the wonderful rooms and horrific twists. 

- A version of the game with confessionals and Groundskeeper advice spliced in throughout the game, allowing you to see what moves Sarah and the Sisters are making.

It will both be a fun and enjoyable actual play, as well as a great learning tool, breaking down the exact process and elements it takes to run the game and help you to see it all in come together in action.

We’ll be making the videos available to everyone who backed the game at any level.

The Door Is Opening

This is it! We’re in the very last parts of the whole campaign!

We’ve come so far, so very far, thanks to all of you. The campaign is 2414% funded, which is absolutely amazing. We’ve unlocked 23 stretch goals, adding on whole new books, fleshing out decks of cards, and expanding the breadth and depth of this project more than we could’ve hoped.

We are so grateful to all of you for being so amazing and supportive, and for being so excited about Bluebeard’s Bride. We never could’ve gone this far without you.

So let’s end this Kickstarter with panache! Please, in these final hours, share out the Kickstarter to everyone who might be interested, and stick with us as we open the final door!

Backer Q & A
over 7 years ago – Mon, Nov 21, 2016 at 08:25:01 AM

As we move into the last hours of the Bluebeard’s Bride Kickstarter, we wanted to put together a post to fully explain everything you need to know, to make sure you get exactly what you want. 

How do I get all the books?

If you want all the books and the slipcase without any extras, back at the Archives ($140) level.

If you want all the books and the slipcase with all the extras, back at the Final Room ($210) level.

What PDFs come with my pledge?

If you pledge $10 you will only get the PDF of the core book. 

If you pledge $20 or higher you will get PDFs of everything: 

• Core book
• Book of Rooms
• Book of Mirrors
• Book of Lore
• Deck of Objects
• Tarot of Servants

How do I pick my add-ons after upping my pledge?

You don’t have to pick your add-on items right now; you’ll select all your add-ons in the Backerkit survey for the project.

Backerkit is a service we use to keep track of exactly what everyone pledged for. It also allows you to add more items to your pledge, even after the Kickstarter is over.

Sometime after the Kickstarter ends, we’ll send out Backerkit surveys to everyone, and using them you’ll be able to select your exact reward tier, and all the add-ons you want. For now, if you want to make sure you get those items, just add the appropriate amount to your pledge level. You’ll select the actual items in the Backerkit survey. 

If you want to add the books to any other pledge level, just increase your pledge by the appropriate amount.

The Book of Rooms - $30 The Book of Mirrors - $30 The Book of Lore - $30

What is there to add-on? 

The core book! This includes all the rules you need to run the game, in a beautiful 8” x 8” hardcover book. It’s $50 + shipping ($5 US, $7 Canada, $10 anywhere else) for a hardcover copy. If you want the core book, then back at The Study level or higher.

The Book of Rooms! This includes all 45 rooms unlocked over the course of the Kickstarter, each laid out with art and text so you can easily draw from the book as inspiration during play. The book comes in the same 8” x 8” hardcover form as the core book, and costs $30. You can add it on to reward tier by upping your pledge $30 (you’ll be able to determine exactly which add-ons you’ve selected later on, in Backerkit), or, if you want to get both the core book and the Book of Rooms, then back at The Kitchen level or higher.

The Book of Mirrors! This includes all six playsets unlocked over the course of the Kickstarter: Dark Carnival, Condemned Asylum, Boarding School, Vacant Hotel, Bluebeard’s Legacy, and Correctional Facility. Each one will give you a new way to play Bluebeard’s Bride, with all the necessary tweaks and tools. The book comes in the same beautiful 8” x 8” hardcover form as the other books, and costs $30. You can add it on to a reward tier by upping your pledge $30 (you’ll be able to determine exactly which add-ons you’ve selected later on, in Backerkit), or, if you want the core book, the Book of Rooms, and the Book of Mirrors, then back at The Mirror Room level or higher.

The Book of Lore! This is a customized, gorgeous version of the fairy tale of Bluebeard, complete with multiple endings to match the core game of Bluebeard’s Bride. The book will come in the same 8” x 8” hardcover format as the other books, and costs $30. You can add it on to a reward tier by upping your pledge $30 (you’ll be able to determine exactly which add-ons you’ve selected later on, in Backerkit).

The Deck of Objects! A deck of 55 cards thanks to the Kickstarter’s success, each one detailing a different mysterious object found within Bluebeard’s manor. The deck will give you fast and effective objects for your game of Bluebeard’s Bride. Each card comes with its own art and description. You can get the Deck of Objects by adding $20 to your pledge, or by pledging at The Bedroom level or higher.

The Tarot of Servants! A deck of 78 tarot-size cards, including all the major and minor arcana, done in the style of Bluebeard’s Bride. In addition to just looking gorgeous, the tarot will come with rules on how to use the cards to rapidly create servants for Bluebeard’s manor. You can get a copy of the Tarot of Servants by adding $30 to your pledge, or by pledging at The Wine Cellar level or higher.

Art prints! Prints of the gorgeous full page chapter images in the Bluebeard’s Bride core book. They come in both 6” x 6” and 12” x 12” sizes. You can get a 6” x 6” art print by adding $35 per print + shipping to your pledge, or a 12” x 12” art print by adding $50 per print + shipping to your pledge. Shipping is $5 domestic, $10 international for any number of prints.

And there are still more pieces of Bluebeard’s Bride awesome, including dice, the silk-print bride sheets, the rings, the tokens, and more!

Can I get the Limited Edition core book in the slip case? 

Yes, but only if you pledge at the following levels and add on the remaining books: The Wine Cellar, Mirrored Wine Cellar,  The Laboratory, or The Chapel.  

How do I get the play materials?

Play materials are available if you back at the following levels: The Final Room, The Wine Cellar, The Smoking Room, The Laboratory, The Chapel, and The Ballroom. If you do not back at one of those levels, we can't guarantee that all of the materials will be made available for future sale.

What will be available after the Kickstarter campaign is over? 

Before we lock down Backerkit, you will be able to change your pledge there. After we deliver everything from the Kickstarter Bluebeard's Bride, the other books, and the decks will be available for purchase on the Magpie webstore, Drivethru RPG, and select other stores. Prices post Kickstarter may vary. 

Will the Limited Edition books be available after the Kickstarter ends?  

Yes, while supplies last.