The first manufacturer proof is here!
about 4 years ago – Mon, Mar 14, 2022 at 08:25:42 PM

Hello backers! 

I've anxiously awaited the first proof from the manufacturer and it is finally here!

To make it a bit easier to see the differences between the original prototype and the manufacturer proof, I've made a video! It's over 6 minutes long and for brevity I have included the differences in text below. 

• The box itself is much bigger, but not big enough to fit all of the pieces. The manufacturer and I have discussed that the height needs to be increased by 4mm in order to fit everything I crammed in there comfortably. 
• The information on the back of the box has changed from vertical to horizontal, and now has a real barcode.
• The linen cards look and feel great! Some cards have font that decrease legibility and need to be adjusted slightly. 
• The plastic tray cradles the game pieces perfectly, but require another finger hole to make it easier to remove one of the card decks.
• Numbers need to be added to the Health trackers, but they are extremely sturdy and well made.
• There is a page alignment issue in the rulebook, and the pages need to be adjusted. Paper is extremely high quality, I was very surprised. 
• Custom die looks great and stands out from a generic d10

Now that the first proof has arrived, I have to make some adjustments ASAP in order to finalize the game and get manufacturing the go ahead! I am still in talks with shipping, and it seems to be going along smoothly. 

As for the non-game rewards, The pins have been approved and are being manufactured! I will also post an update when those arrive. The T-shirts and plushes are still being proofed; as I am still looking at the best possible companies for production. Sticker sheets are complete. I will show samples when the pins arrive. 

That's it for now! I've got my work cut out for me in the coming weeks. Talk soon!

Anthony

Manufacturing and Box Improvements
about 4 years ago – Fri, Jan 28, 2022 at 06:29:38 PM

Hello Backers! Things have been very busy on my end and you deserve some updates. The highlights of this update have to do with:

• Manufacturing
• Logistics
• Game and Box Improvements

This update is word heavy, so get ready to READ!

Manufacturing

Over the last several weeks, I have been going back and forth with the manufacturer on confirming all of the crispy details of the artwork. The files have been 99% confirmed and quotes have been paid. The production will be done by LongPack Games. You may have seen them at PAX Unplugged this year; they had a booth and I am very happy with their track record. I have been in talks with other independent game designers with games of similar size and print runs, and they all recommended LongPack (Check out Hero: Tales of the Tomes by Jimmy Ellerth!). 

Progress has been slow but very steady. I was able to get the designs in just in time before Chinese New Year, BUT I do not expect to see a proof until after their staff returns. Rest assured I will let you all see it as soon as I get to! 

Logistics

After I receive the proof, I can give the go ahead to start full production on the game! Time estimates put that around late February. Fortunately I have connections with mainland shipping, and will soon negotiate how to get the palette of fresh games from the manufacturer to my doorstep! I am wary of the recent supply chain issues, but rest assured it will be taken care of well once I actually RECEIVE the games. I work in shipping already, and turnaround for fulfillment will be very quick. Dry stuff, I know and I'm sorry!

Game and Box Improvements

As I mentioned before in manufacturing the games, part of it involved a lot of back and forth between myself and their design team. Aside from a few hiccups (that were extremely my fault, such as working with proofs in the imperial units of measurement while they work in metric, resulting in a margin of error of less than a millimeter!) otherwise most of the communication regarded changes that ultimately improve the quality of the game even further!

In order to fit the custom plastic tray into the box and all of the parts comfortably, I've had to redesign the size of the box. The sides now sit slightly longer, and I have updated the art to compensate. Since then I have also improved the box art in general, and even added some secrets into the telescoping bottom!

This also requires the plastic tray to be thicker, which should help shelf life.

The cards received a surprise upgrade as well! After doublechecking and triple-checking the budget, I found there was enough to justify the card quality changes.

• Cards now have a linen texture. They feel better to touch and are easier to shuffle, and implies they are "older" which works better with a game about alchemy and potions, right?
• Cards are now "black core." A little tough to explain, but most playing cards are made up of several layers of stock that have varying degrees of thickness. Black core cards are fully opaque (light doesn't shine through) and more importantly are sturdier. This should help the cards last much longer when played with (I still sleeve playing cards, but these quality of life improvements are still important).

************************************

As for NON-game backer rewards; it is going to sound very similar to what I stated above, but those are also being developed at the same pace. Pin designs are being sent to the manufacturer, as well as confirming designs for the plushies and t-shirts. Fortunately I have experience in making these items already, so the work required is streamlined. I already have a t-shirt proof and it is looking great!

************************************

Thank you so much for your patience. Things are well underway.

One More Thing

I will announce fairly soon more opportunities for backer participation! There are still 18 cards that will be added to the game after all, and I want you all to help decide what you want to see in the additional pack!

I decided on this theme; where the cards will all be inside a "collectable booster pack" specifically FOR Kickstarter backers, voted on BY backers! I need to stress that this game is self-contained and these packs are supposed to evoke the fun of opening promotional items, not turn this game into a collectable card game with rarity, and I feel like I need to be VERY specific in mentioning this!

That's All for Now! Please reach out to me if you have any other questions, and I will do my best to get back to you. Thank you for reading everything if you did, and if you didn't that's fine too. It is a LOT of information to cover. 

Thank you again, 

Anthony

200% FUNDED! The project is complete!
over 4 years ago – Sat, Nov 20, 2021 at 12:03:18 PM

Thank you again. 

It doesn't matter how many times I say it; PotionSlingers will be a real, physical product and I have you to thank for it. I tried my best to make a game that you will love, and throughout the long 30 days of this project I have been working nonstop to make it worth the support I have received from you all.

This update is a bit wordy, but is worth the read, I promise!

The Kickstarter project has ended and the final funding goal met 14k, or 200%. This also means the last stretch goal has been met, and the game can be made that much better. I want to touch on the rewards really quick: 

I have been talking with the manufacturer the last couple of days, and was able to secure a couple upgrades to the game itself.

• The cards now have a linen texture to them, which look and feel great. They really make the game feel a little more antiquated to match the theme!
• The box now has a reinforced plastic tray, that let all the game pieces fit really snug inside! They are also form fitting based off of the game design itself, and should make it easy to put away/set up.
• Inside the rulebook will be a 2 sided removable poster! Remember when game strategy guides, comic books, and other magazines came with a sick-as-heck poster in the middle of the booklet? Well reminisce no longer, because I made room in the booklet for one!

But that wasn't part of the FINAL stretch goal! I am now adding EIGHTEEN more cards to the game, in a booster pack that will come with the box! Keep an eye out for more updates, cause I will be revealing most of them throughout fulfillment, and I guarantee they will be wild (I will absolutely field more active participation related cards as well)! Now this game has a whopping 162 item cards and 9 characters! I am pretty sure nothing else could fit in the box if I tried!

The campaign is over, but I still have a lot of work to do! I will keep you updated as the game progresses. The next part of the process will require a survey, so I can have all of your information when I need to ship any physical reward pledges out, so please fill them when you see it! I want you to get your copy!

Love, Anthony

It's almost over! Here's a full overview of all the extra goodies! <3
over 4 years ago – Sat, Nov 20, 2021 at 07:26:02 AM

The Kickstarter is almost at its end, but the hard work is far from over! I want to thank you all again for believing in this game as much as I do; without you it wouldn't be possible. I worked extra hard during the campaign to stuff it to the gills with MORE cards as a way of saying thanks!

Oh! Speaking of, here is the result of your votes! I asked you what your favorite type of cards were, and it seemed like from almost a 3 way tie and RINGS won! Surprising no one, I designed a card to be added to the game!

Sort of? Okay I admit it is weird, but it definitely fits the vibe of the game. The way it works is, YOU must personally draw a ring yourself on the card in order for it to work! Otherwise, it is much less effective a card. The flavortext is real too. I promise if you send me a picture of your ring while you play the game I will confirm that the card is better, because that is inherently weird and I love the idea of being able to interact with you post development. Thank you again to everyone that told me their favorite!

I want to look back at all the cards I was able to squeeze in since the campaign started, and I realize I may not have shown them all off! I present all in one place, the 5 stretch goal cards!

Some of these cards are pretty nuts. I haven't gone outside of the mechanics like this in the main game, so when you try one of these out for a spin; get ready!

Once more I would also like to thank and show off the three cards guest starring in the game alongside a couple other cards that represent other magical realms!

These were a real challenge for me and I am so glad it worked out! Trying to get ahold of other designers AND design cards myself that evoke the feeling you get when you play THEIR games is super tough! 

It's worth touching on these two again as well. 

The Early Bird Special was a functionally unique card designed specifically because you helped fully fund in the first 9 hours, kicking down my door while I was barely awake! 

 With the introduction of a HAT, I may have gone insane. Game design is easy to go hog wild in, y'all.

Well, that's it! 

12 super neat cards I made sure were designed throughout the campaign! Yep! All 12 new cards are there! Go back and count them (ignoring the 2 other guest cards)! I haven't saved one more for the last 24 hours, and you can stop reading because this update is over!

Love? Anthony

Oh wait, I did make one more ha ha you caught me here it is:

I couldn't help it, no one asked for this, and no one could stop me either.

Ask me about how many layers deep this card is in referencing classical antiquity sometime. I promise I will go on a really long rant about it. You'll hear from me again once the project has ended, but that won't be the last of me either; stay tuned!

What is your favorite card type?
over 4 years ago – Thu, Nov 11, 2021 at 07:33:43 PM

It's getting down to the wire; about a week left in the campaign! 

I still have a couple more SURPRISES before this thing kicks off, but first I want to go over the card types in the game (stick around, your input might just change how the game ends up being printed!)

These are the backbone of the entire game. Sure, there are now 9 characters to choose from, but the game runs completely on these different card types!

(Yes, I know I added a hat in this game too. More on that later!)

I love card games. I love card TYPES in card games. I play a ton of games involving cards, primarily deck and tableau builders, and these often have a wide range of cards to play at different times during a player's turn! When designing PotionSlingers,  I wanted to make it accessible by limiting the amount of card types in the game, but without sacrificing gameplay complexity. After a lot of boiling it down, I ended up with the four MAIN card types! You could argue it is really potions or non potions, but the way the three other cards behave are very independent of each other!

But which ones are YOUR favorite? Let me know by the next couple of days by "voting" in the comments section of the kickstarter page, down here! 

Depending on the results, I might feel inclined to add another Kickstarter EXCLUSIVE card into the game!

What am I talking about, I am EXCITED to add an extra special card. BUT as I stated earlier in the campaign, these cards are FIGHTING to get into the game! Which one do YOU think?

Make sure to write it in before November 14th! I have other stuff to spoil soon after!

Love,  Anthony