Good day! And a happy new year! It is a new year, and we are very much looking forward to concluding all outstanding elements of this project—the RPG and the miniatures—in 2026. We don't have specific timelines yet, as previously discussed, but as production gets closer, we will keep you updated on what we can confidently report.

One question that has been popping up more in the comments is when we will be reopening the pledge manager? We’ve still got some behind-the-scenes work to do before that is ready, but our intent there is to not reopen the pledge manager until the next wave is actually in production, so you’ll hear more news on that as we get closer to actual production on the RPG. Now let's get on to the updates!

We made a good amount of progress leading into the holidays and are proud to say the Gloomhaven core box has completed 100% of it's digital modification approvals, and we expect red wax sample to wrap up this month there as well.

Our full attention is on the remaining models across summons (Gloomhaven & Frosthaven) and the Frosthaven core box. For these few remaining models, our work is really done and fully submitted, we're just waiting on those models to be completed in their next steps at the factory side.

We're also now able to start engaging the factory on larger mass production steps such as molding timelines and production proofing ahead of mass production. January is an important month to give our factory our attention, ahead of Lunar New Year, so that's our plan and course of action internally here at Cephalofair.

Thanks to everyone who took a look at the full text preview PDF and provided feedback. It was greatly appreciated! We'll be using all of that feedback, along with our own internal editing review to make final changes to the RPG text. Once that is done, we'll implement the table of contents, index, and fix all page references. Meanwhile, we'll be finishing up art integration in the book as well as graphic design of all additional elements, like the cards and packaging.

One of the big elements we've been working on with the packaging is the deluxe edition box. We showed you an early mock-up of the box during crowdfunding, but now that card counts and page numbers have been finalized, we're getting down to the exact dimensions on how it will all fit together.

The current RPG deluxe box render (above) is our latest rendering of the intended production based on final component counts and assembly instructions. Most notable from previous renders is the addition of a second folding wall/lid to the front side of the box. The side wall (front) will fold up and connect magnetically to the side wall of the “cigar box” storage space at the top of the box. The top lid/latch will then fold down and similarly attach to the closed side wall, also magnetically. This is something we determined will give greater structural integrity and prevent components from sliding and forcing open the folding lid if it simply came up and over.

The “cigar box” top is something we intend to be a usable storage space for players (gloom masters especially) who would like a special place to keep other game components (board game map tiles, miniatures, standees, tokens, etc) handy for their current/next RPG sessions.

Beneath the “cigar box,” we have a shelf for the Mercenary Company pad, the Character Sheet pad, and the GM screen.

Beneath this will be a shelf for the full Rulebook.

And finally, two shelves for card tomes, which contain all of RPG system cards, which you can see below:

These two tomes contain four trays of RPG components, including:

IMPORTANT “WORK IN PROGRESS” PRODUCTION NOTES:

Class ability decks: To pre-emptively answer your question, yes, these are designed to fit sleeved cards. Our intent for these Class Ability tuckboxes is that they will be large enough to hold your sleeved class and ancestry cards required to play your character, providing you with a storage compartment for your character during an ongoing campaign.

Class modifier decks: As an intended bonus for backers, there will be two additional general player modifier decks than we originally communicated, meaning the deluxe edition can now accommodate up to six players in addition to the gloom master. These general decks (standard 20 card array) will also come in tuckboxes and enough room for both sleeves and advanced modifier cards as your character levels up and unlocks more cards via perks and temporary effects.

Elemental bookmarks: We are exploring with our factory having dedicated wells for the elemental bookmarks, and there appears to be enough room within the card tomes/trays to do so. We’re also taking careful consideration here to track needed changes to the bookmark size/length to ensure they won’t cover important gloom master facing information/charts/tables on the inside of the GM Screen.

Card tomes: The “card tomes” as originally conceived and depicted here, are essentially just that: two giant closing books of cards in card wells. The goal here is an internal vacuum formed plastic card trays with sturdy gameboard/cardboard exterior covers. 

The class advanced modifier decks nest in card wells below their respective class ability deck tuckboxes, with the ability tuckboxes firmly clicking into place above them to act as a lid. The two sides of the tome would then clamshell together snuggly.

We still need to vet with the factory whether this approach will work well with the ability tuckboxes staying in place and in good condition above their modifier deck counterparts. If not, we may explore additional lids to cover the card tome contents or pivot to four individual trays rather than two clamshell books.

Regardless, we and our factory feel confident in our ability to test and execute on whichever method ends up providing the best player usability and recognize this is our biggest area of uncertainty in production as we move forward with pre-press sampling. 

This week we are providing our updated production specifications, as well as these 3D renders with accurate dimensions, to our factory and allow them the necessary time to review and make the needed determinations on their part. This will occur concurrently with all our other efforts outlined above.

Our shout-out for the community spotlight this month is Boardiacs, who has a great series of Youtube videos on painting Gloomhaven/Frosthaven miniatures. Particularly impressive to me are Andreea's paints of all six Buttons & Bugs miniatures, which are, as I'm sure you are aware, very tiny. But the level of detail is remarkable, and you can watch even watch the videos at extra high speed as shorts.

That's going to do it for this month. Expect more fervent, continued progress on both projects in our update next month. Catch you then!