We're closing in on the final 24 hours of the campaign as I prepare this post. Within this final day, I wanted to review some important topics, most especially our current Stretch Goal situation. Let's get to the review!
We're in the Final Days countdown for this Crowdfunding campaign. The World Below: Buried Treasures finishes the crowdfunding campaign TOMORROW - March 19th at 2:00 PM Eastern Time. There's still time to add a few more delvers to our group, but we're definitely getting closer to the end of the Kalm season. With that in mind, I wanted to touch on some of the basics over these final four days to make sure everyone has the information they need to support this project in the way that works best for them.
Whether you're just setting out for to gather food or a seasoned bug tamer returning from selling your wares, these are some good topics to review over this week to make sure we all end up where we want to be.
(An aside, if you're a new backer, make sure you check out our Final Week Countdown / Resource Update. It has links to the manuscript previews, youtube videos from Matthew Dawkins, and other helpful information.)
Refresher Course
Note for New Backers: Please check out the updates listed above. There's a lot of information there that will be important to know about before the end, like which books are included in our pledges for this campaign and what additional Add On options exist. Plus, you can read the entire draft manuscript before the end of the campaign and any pledges are processed.
Note for Since-the-Start Backers: It's probably a good idea to review that stuff as well. Never hurts to make sure you haven't missed anything!
We've had, and will have, new backers join in during these last days. I want to take a moment to highlight some key Update posts that new backers may want to check out (and existing backers may want to read as a refresher!).
MANUSCRIPT PREVIEW - As noted, the complete draft manuscripts for both books are available for you to review prior to the conclusion of the campaign. If you're a backer, you'll have access to these preview manuscripts after the campaign. Remember, though, there are still some minor edits, development and proofing that need to be done, but you can consider it most of the way there and a good representation of what you'll get in the final book. Making the manuscripts available for review before the campaign ends ensures that everyone knows exactly what our goal is - making these books - and are on board with our aims for this project. Thanks for your support, we're all in this together!
PLEDGE TIERS -This update breaks down your best starting point for figuring out which Backer Reward Tier to choose to help support this project in a way that works for you.
The main reward offered in this campaign is, of course, the main goal of the entire proposition: the finished PDFs and a discounted Print-on-Demand hardcover for The World Below Delver's Guide and Secrets of Kalm and Kaos. The first decision you need to make is whether you're just looking to add the mostly character-focused Delver's Guide, or the Setting and Storyguide-supporting Secrets of Kalm and Kaos, or make it a two-book reward pledge and get both? While one book is tagged "Player's Manual" and the other is "Storyguide's Handbook," I think reading through the manuscrips you've see that there's a lot of excellent material with a ton of useful overlap in each book, and most like both are worthy of being added to your digital shelves.
With that decision in mind, we've got three key reward tiers to choose from:
LANTERN IN THE DARKNESS
This is the pledge path to select if you're only interested in The World Below: Delver's Guide book. The PDF will be fulfilled by our partners at DriveThruRPG.com - when it is ready, you will receive a link to add it to your DTRPG library at no cost and be able to download at your leisure. In addition, you will get a special code to order the discounted Print-on-Demand hardcover version as part of your pledge reward.
LORE OF THE LABYRINTH
This is the pledge path to select if you're only interested in The World Below: Secrets of Kalm and Kaos book. The PDF will be fulfilled by our partners at DriveThruRPG.com - when it is ready, you will receive a link to add it to your DTRPG library at no cost and be able to download at your leisure. In addition, you will get a special code to order the discounted Print-on-Demand hardcover version as part of your pledge reward
PATHS THROUGH THE VAST UNDERGROUND
This amazing reward tier includes both The Delver's Guide PDF and the Secrets of Kalm and Kaos PDF, along special discount codes to order each of these rewards as Print-on-Demand books.
And another key option:
KALM SEASON
Not ready to commit, or just looking to offer general support? This pledge role is for you. This does not include any of our primary rewards, but allows you to select some digital optional Add Ons, as well as participating in the post-campaign Pledge Manager as a backer. You'll also be able to read the draft manuscripts of The Delver's Guide and Secrets of Kalm and Kaos that we post throughout this campaign.
ADD-ON OPTIONS - The other half of our Reward Tiers update, including information on the second step of pledging. There are a few Add On options that you can add as part of your pledging process, including the World Below corebook as well as pre-ordering the other Earthane Cycle game corebooks, At the Gates PDF and Monster Kingdoms PDF. Since these is still in the pre-order phase, you'll get the draft manuscript for those until the Backer PDF becomes available. Other games using the Storypath Ultra system are also avaialble to add on in PDF form.
Choose Wisely
Choosing the correct Reward Tier for your desired rewards, and then filling in any "gaps" with add-ons, ensures that you'll be claiming all of your desired rewards as a thank you for supporting this project and bringing this world to life.
Remember, your PLEDGE AMOUNT is equal to your REWARD TIER + ADD ONS. You will also be able to select Add On options in the Pledge Manager after the campaign, but remember that only funds added during the campaign count towards Stretch Goal funding targets.
Also to note, only those who participate during the campaign are able to have Stretch Goal rewards added automatically to their rewards lists. If you're waiting to pre-order at a later time, it's better to pledge to the Kalm Season tier now and then simply upgrade your pledge later to include these bonus rewards.
Tomorrow I'll be posting one further "Final Day" update, covering What Happens Next and outlining what to expect once the campaign ends.
But until then, let's review our Stretch Goal success story!
Over the past 28 (or is it 29?) days as we've worked through this campaign, we've not only funded the book but unlocked four fearsome Stretch Goals! That's right - we've unlocked our latest goal even as I was putting this update together!
THE ADVENT OF THE SILT - The team will create a West Marches-style adventure for The World Below, focused on exploration and cave delving. A PDF version of The Advent of Silt will be added as a bonus reward to all backers receiving either the Delver's Guide PDF or the Secrets of Kalm and Kaos PDF as part of their pledge rewards.
WORLD BELOW SHIRT DESIGN - A new World Below shirt design will be made available on Onyx Path's Redbubble sore for a limited time only. Backers will be notified when this design becomes available.
WORLD BELOW DIGITAL WALLPAPER - All backers supporting this project will receive a digital wallpaper for their computer desktop featuring artwork from the Delver's Guide or Secrets of Kalm and Kaos books.
THE ADVENT OF THE SILT EXPANDED- The adventure scenario will be expanded to include opportunities for base building and resource hunting. A PDF version of The Advent of Silt will be added as a bonus reward to all backers receiving either the Delver's Guide PDF or the Secrets of Kalm and Kaos PDF as part of their pledge rewards.
With our main four goals unlocked and set up, let's sneak a fifth and final goal on there to keep us focused on the finish line! I don't know if we'll be able to unlock this, but it'll certainly give us something to dig deep for as we get towards the end.
At $16,000 in Funding - WORLD BELOW STREAMING OVERLAY
WORLD BELOW STREAMING OVERLAY - A set of overlays for your online game will be created, for your use when streaming your World Below session. This reward will be added to the rewards list for all backers.
We're in a good position and unlocking this is certainly possible, though it's aptly named since we will have to really Stretch to get there before the end! Still, we've done amazingly well so far, so let's see where we get before the conclusion! For my group, 98% of our games are played online - we are really only able to get together twice a year in person, and those meetings take about 3 months of scheduling. So any extra tools to jazz up online play are appreciated by me!
YOUR REWARDS!
That's right! You backed this project to help make and publish the Delver's Guide and Secrets of Kalm and Kaos PDFs and Print-on-Demand hardcovers. Our primary reward - the big thank you that we'll send out in appreciation for your support - are PDFs and discount links for the hardcovers! BUT AS A BONUS, you may also have a digital wallpaper, a new adventure for your group, an opportunity to expand your wardrobe, and maybe a streaming overlay for online play?
NOT MUCH MORE TIME
Unfortunately, we seem to continue to move forward at a regular pace, and our campaign will some come to the inescapable end. We've achieved our primary goal of funding the books, but there is still one possible Stretch Goal reward that is almost within grasp! It's certainly within reach, but won't be easy, so let's keep at it!
So, as every update concludes: let's keep the enthusiasm rolling! Keep spreading the word and letting others know about this project. They've got this final day to jump in and share the Stretch Goals we've achieved!
And every backer who joins in as we approach the end is not only able to enjoy the additional rewards already added by the early fans and backers, but also help reward those early backers by maybeunlocking thatfinal bonus reward!
Remember, only the funds generated during the Crowdfunding campaign go toward achieving these Stretch Goal targets, so the time to act is now! Together, we can bring this game to life and make great things happen!
THE WORLD BELOW: BURIED TREASURES enters OVERTIME MODE on Thursday, March 19th at 2:00 PM Eastern.
We will finish up as soon as our backer train ends after that point! So let's see if we can't hit a final Stretch Goal and then keep that train running for an extra 10 or 20 minutes!!
