WE DID IT!!!
almost 8 years ago – Wed, Jun 08, 2016 at 09:33:26 PM

$11,919 and 549!

That first number is what we raised to bring Threadbare to life-- almost double what I'd dreamed of when we started!

And that second number? That second number is the number of people I count as my friends and investors, now. Thank you, every single one of you, for believing in this game, and for putting your trust in me to bring our toys to life!

Next Steps

A lot of stuff will be happening "behind the scenes" in the next few weeks, but I'll be sure to keep you apprised as we move forward. I'll be coordinating with 7 stretch goal contributors you funded to hammer out schedules and commitments, and get things rolling!

Shout Outs

Also, I totally forgot to post a couple of bloggy shout-outs this morning!

The first is from She's A Super Geek, with a playthrough recording of the toys flying through the sentient Toynado!

The second is a new podcast, "It's Like D&D," with a lengthy roundup of a bunch of new RPGs, including Threadbare (starts around 10:30).

$400 to the Senate of Toys! Next stretch goal: Open license!
almost 8 years ago – Wed, Jun 08, 2016 at 05:59:01 PM

Wow! With less than 12 hours to go, we are closing in on the $11,500 stretch goal for a Senate of Toys!

I guess that means I should announce the next stretch goal!

$13,000: Open. Gaming. License.

At "Lucky $13K," Threadbare will be released with an open gaming license, including some of the artwork, settings, adventures, and all the custom moves and forms from the Expanded Content we hit at $10K. It won't include the crafting tutorials, though you'd be able to make your own.

Some things you'd be able to do with the Threadbare license:

• Port it to your favorite system. OSR Threadbare? Sure. Threadbare: FATE? Why not! Savage Worlds? OK!
• Create custom rules hacks, like the "optional combat module" I've been asked for. It's not the game I want to make, but if you do: go for it.
• Publish and sell your own Threadbare adventures, moves, settings, character forms, rulesets, frameworks, etc.

There will be some kind of logo and branding to use with the open license ("OpenThread" "ThreadFree"? I'll think of something) but I'm really excited to see what the community can do with it.

More Stretch Goals?

Hey, if we blow past $13K, I'll keep adding stretch goals, but I won't get a chance to announce all the details as they come up. So here's the teaser for you:

• Sock and softie tutorials ($14,000).
• A "New in Box" horror framework for toys that awoke trapped in the original packaging! ($15,000).
• A "toy hospital" setting ($16,000).

$10,000!! Let's elect a SENATE!
almost 8 years ago – Tue, Jun 07, 2016 at 12:51:12 AM

$10,000 Funded!

Hooray! Thank you all so much! That means we've unlocked a ton of custom moves and character forms for you to play! 

$11,500: Senate of Toys is Next!

Our next stretch goal is $11,500, funding the Senate of Toys, by Elsa Sjunneson-Henry!

The Senate of Toys puts your Threadbare heroes in the midst of the delicate social and political maneuverings at the heart of a community! Act as diplomats to negotiate and maneuver among the leaders of the land and get what you need.

This will be a great adventure framework for players and groups who love social/political campaigns!

Partnering with BackerKit

I've decided to use BackerKit for the pledge manager and pre-orders. That means you'll be able to add-on extra copies after the project finishes and your friends can pre-order if they missed out on the campaign!

I'll let you all know when the BackerKit invitations are ready for you, but I wanted to let you all know now that that's the platform we'll be using for fulfillment.

Thanks for Spreading the Word!

Thanks for spreading the word about the campaign, and also for letting your artist and layout friends know! I've had a few good contacts as a result, and I'm very excited about moving forward with the next stages of the project.

Final Week! Progress, Senators, and Podcasts!
almost 8 years ago – Sun, Jun 05, 2016 at 12:07:35 PM

We're in the final week of Threadbare's Kickstarter, and I am so excited about how well it's gone! Thank you to everyone who shared the link with your friends, talked about it on social media, played it at conventions, and generally have shared your enthusiasm for this project with the world! It's made a huge difference, and I thank you so much for coming along for this amazing journey!

Playtest Progress

At Gamex over the weekend, I ran a couple of playtests of a new adventure I'm writing for you all, which was excellent and gave a lot of great feedback to work with.

My playtests also revealed a pretty major weakness in the game-- you can't successfully play a character who is both dumb and friendly! Most of the friendly moves rely on Smarts. Which is cool, but let's face it-- intelligence doesn't always mean you're great at building strong friendships. We discovered this weakness when a player put -1 in the Smarts for his otherwise very likable and friendly dinosaur.

So, I'll be looking at that as well this week.

I also got some useful feedback on Jury Rig/Finding Stuff. If you've struggled with that in the playtest, know that you're not alone. Those are Very Important moves in Threadbare, and I know they need some work to make them flow more smoothly.

New Stretch Goal!

I know we're kind of languishing around $9K, and we're in the final week of the Kickstarter, so I thought it'd be good to post the next stretch goal!

At $11,500, Elsa Sjunneson-Henry will write The Senate of Toys! 

The Senate of Toys puts your Threadbare heroes in the midst of the delicate social and political maneuverings at the heart of a community! Act as diplomats to negotiate and maneuver among the leaders of the land and get what you need.

Elsa Sjunneson-Henry is an author and disability advocate living in New Jersey, she's the creator of DEAD SCARE and The Fate Accessibility Toolkit, and has written for numerous tabletop RPG's. When she's not busy attending games conferences as either a speaker or a disability access coordinator, she's walking the streets of hell's kitchen with a white cane in hand.

+1 Forward Podcast

The new +1 Forward Podcast by The Gauntlet did an interview and short playthrough with me! The recording went live yesterday, and is about 25 minutes long. If you're looking for another "how does it play," give this one a listen!

$9K: Achievement Unlocked!
almost 8 years ago – Tue, May 31, 2016 at 03:01:07 PM

Woo hoo! We've unlocked the $9,000 stretch goal, which means Crafting Tutorials for Doll Head Dice Bags and the Mekka Castaway!

Up next, at $10,000, we have expanded content with lots of NPCs, upgrade moves, and new character forms. I know something like "Buncha Little Guys" can be used for playing a set of building blocks, but wouldn't you love to have something unique to that type of toy, too?

Awesome Video Review

Backer Gareth H. Graham posted this 3 1/2 minute video review of Threadbare-- it's a wonderful shout-out, and much appreciated!

Gamex this Weekend

I'm in Los Angeles this weekend at Gamex, running Threadbare on Saturday at 2 and 8 PM. I may be able to do a pickup demo game somewhere during the weekend, but I know from experience that I won't have a lot of time to post updates to the project. So, have a great weekend, and I'll see you all on the other side!