Updates
Check out the latest news and keep up with progress
PROJECT UPDATE
Alex - Rowan Rook & Decard
CREATOR
24 days ago
Project Update: Week 2 Fulfilment Update - Fulfillment expands
TL;DR: if you’re in the UK, Europe, Africa or the Middle East, your packages are beginning fulfillment.
if you’re in the Australia, New Zealand or India/Pacific region, your addresses are locking down this week. You should already have an email from BackerKit.
Everyone else: books are landing in port.
–
It’s only been a week, but there’s plenty to say!
Freight deliveries for the USA and Australian warehouses were/are (world is big, time is… complex) due into respective ports today, and will then move onwards to warehouses by road & rail.
Expectations remain that they will both arrive at their respective destinations by the end of the next working week 13th of February, if not sooner.
Here’s the current timeline:
UK/EU/ROW
Addresses have been locked (thank you) and lists have gone to our UK warehouse. As of today 50% of UK Backers have been picked & packed & parcels sent to couriers, and we’ve seen some evidence that they’ve started to arrive.
EU Backer lists are sitting with the warehouse team and work will begin on those once UK fulfillment ends. We have added an extra step to this process to double check that packages travelling into the EU have the correct duties and taxes pre-paid.
It will take about another 2 weeks to fulfil all these orders, and the last orders to these territories should ship before the end of Feb.
You’ll get a tracking code by email, and we will also update your order in Backerkit so you know when it’s shipped. We’ll also update you again when fulfilment is done.
Americas & Canada
USA freight is due to port in Charleston today (5th Feb). We are awaiting confirmation that the ship has docked and customs processes have been cleared prior to onward movement.
After a few months of back and forth with both UK and USA warehouse teams we’ve decided that fulfilling Canadian Backers out of the USA remains the most reliable and cost effective approach.
We will continue to wait until we know that books are in the warehouse before we lock addresses and get your fulfilment started.
As of today, we are predicting Address Locking will begin next Friday (13th Feb) with fulfilment starting the following Monday for USA & Canadian Backers
Australia/NZ/Asia-Pacific
Australian air freight was delayed by the brief closure of air space over Iran, which annoyed our freight partners quite a lot and they apologised profusely (which is generous, given they aren’t in charge of air routes, Iran or anything to do with that set of processes). Anyway, it was due to land at the airport today (5th Feb) whence it will head to the warehouse.
The warehouse team is ready and prepped for fulfilment on this one as soon as it shuffles into the warehouse bays. In preparation for this we have already sent the Lock Addresses email from BackerKit. Our partners at Aetherworks always do their own address check before packages go out; that’s expected early next week, and then parcels will be sent out.
Royal Blood Add Ons
For those who have also purchased add-ons of Royal Blood alongside your Voidheart order.
These remain in transit across the USA to the warehouse. These are also due next week, and I remain confident that we’ll be able to fulfil these in a single shipment.
These remain in transit across the USA to the warehouse. These are also due next week, and I remain confident that we’ll be able to fulfil these in a single shipment.
Asia-Pacific orders will be ready to go out alongside your main Voidheart order.
Due to our shipping timelines on the 2 projects, and different processes between the 2 projects, there are 2 EU backers who will receive split shipments of Voidheart Items and Royal Blood items. We will reach out directly to those 2 Backers affected to confirm the details and timeline for parcels.
Otherwise, no-one else needs to worry.
Generally
Thanks enormously for all your support, folks - we couldn’t do this without you. We’d love to see pictures of your parcels as they start to arrive - you can tag us on Instagram, Bluesky or Facebook, or pop links in the comments here.
As ever, there’s always a risk things will get dinged, damaged or lost in transit. If that happens to you, we want to put it right, so get in touch by emailing [email protected] if anything goes wrong with your parcel.
xoxo
– Alex, and everyone at RR&D
PROJECT UPDATE
Alex - Rowan Rook & Decard
CREATOR
about 1 month ago
Project Update: End Jan VHS Update - Fulfillment starts NOW
TL;DR: if you’re in the UK, Europe, Africa or the Middle East, your addresses are locking down this week. You will have an email from BackerKit after this.
Everyone else: books are in transit.
–
Freight deliveries for the USA and Australian warehouses left the UK mainland last week and are already en route.
Expectations remain that they will both arrive at their respective destinations between the 1st & 7th of February.
For those who have also purchased add-ons of Royal Blood alongside your Voidheart order. These remain in transit from China directly to our fulfilment locations, but Australia and USA warehouse either have them, or are doing border control processing as I type. We’re increasingly confident that we’ll have stock in the USA & Aus ready to go out alongside your main Voidheart order.
Once things start moving in earnest, we’ll know if there are any UK or EU backers who may have to wait a few more days or receive a split shipment. We will confirm this in the next update.
Here’s the timeline:
UK/EU/ROW
We’re almost ready to send our warehouse team fulfilment data. The last hurdle is getting all of your addresses locked in BackerKit. That email will be coming to you after this update.
Once that’s done, items start flying out the doors at the end of the week.
It will take a few weeks to fill all these orders. You’ll get a tracking code and we will also update your order in BackerKit so you know when it’s shipped. We’ll also update you again when fulfilment is done. The last orders to these territories should ship before the end of Feb.
Americas
Ship to America is on the water, making landfall around the Carolinas around the 9th February, thence to hit road and rail to the main warehouse. Once we know we’ve cleared USA border controls and the roads to Tennessee aren’t looking like a scene from Ice Road Truckers, we’ll lock addresses and get your fulfilment started. More soon.
Australia/NZ/Asia-Pacific
Delivery left the UK last week, and the air team are dealing with all things logistics & imports. We’re waiting on an update after this week’s Australian extra day of holiday (how sophisticated!), but should be clearing in the warehouse this week.
Once we know we’ve cleared Australian border controls and it’s all been inspected for brown marmorated stink bugs (absence, not presence), we’ll lock addresses and get your fulfilment started. More soon.
Generally
Thanks enormously for all your support, folks - we couldn’t do this without you. We’d love to see pictures of your parcels as they start to arrive - you can tag us on Instagram, Bluesky or Facebook, or pop links in the comments here.
As ever, there’s always a risk things will get dinged, damaged or lost in transit. If that happens to you, we want to put it right, so get in touch by emailing [email protected] if anything goes wrong with your parcel.
We’ll write again once we’re ready to lock other addresses - hopefully in a week or two.
xoxo
– Alex, and everyone at RR&D
PROJECT UPDATE
Alex - Rowan Rook & Decard
CREATOR
about 2 months ago
Project Update: VHS Update - Fulfillment Begins
TL;DR: if you’re in the UK, Europe, Africa or the Middle East, your addresses are locking down this month. Please check if they are correct!
Everyone else: your books are moving towards you!
On Friday the Voidheart Symphony books landed at our UK warehouse from the manufacturer in Turkey. After a brief pit stop with His Maj’s Customs & Border team (who only held it for an hour, so I don’t think they ran a full session) it has been declared ‘good’ – or at least ‘not illegal’, which is perhaps the best we can hope for these days.
As we’re sending this out, the warehouse team has begun the process of picking & packing our freight deliveries for the USA and Australian warehouses.
The final timelines for these movements are both still TBC, with boats and airplanes being as inscrutable as the eldritch horrors we call ‘trains’. But we’ve got our sights set on shipping both of those out of the warehouse before the end of next week.
Our expectation is that they will both arrive at their respective destinations between the 1st & 7th of February.
Some of you have also purchased add-ons of Royal Blood alongside your Voidheart order. These are currently in transit from China directly to our fulfilment locations. As we get closer to the time when we want to fulfil your orders for Voidheart Symphony we will work out if it’s better to delay a few days and fulfil together, or if we want to split your order into 2 packages. Right now, we’re just waiting for ships to do their slow, inexorable thing. Rest assured we will let you know the decision before we send packages out so you know what to expect.
Here’s the timeline:
UK/EU/ROW
The first UK & EU backers packages will go out this month, starting with the smallest orders and working up to the largest packages over the following weeks. There will be another Backer email sent out shortly before addresses are locked for these areas. Look out for that email, or update your address NOW!
It will take a few weeks to fill all these orders. You’ll get a tracking code and we will also update your order in Backerkit so you know when it’s shipped. We’ll also update you again when fulfilment is done. The last orders to these territories should ship before the end of Feb.
Americas
Things are coming together nicely. The freight shipment to our US warehouse partners has being packed and is booked onto a ship in 10 days time. That should make landfall at the end of January and then hit road and rail to the main warehouse for early February. Once we know we’ve cleared USA border controls and the truck team knows which direction Tennessee is (not always a given), we’ll lock addresses and get your fulfilment started. More soon.
Australia/NZ/Asia-Pacific
The pallet is already packed for shipment to our Australian fulfilment centre – they'll be handling everything Asia-Pacific-related through the AusPost system. These will go onto an aeroplane in the next week or two and, customs willing, will be at the fulfilment centre by the end of January.
Once we know we’ve cleared Australian border controls and it’s all been inspected for illegal fruit and bugs, we’ll lock addresses and get your fulfilment started. More soon.
Generally
Thanks enormously for all your support, folks - we couldn’t do this without you. We’d love to see pictures of your parcels as they start to arrive - you can tag us on Instagram, Bluesky or Facebook, or pop links in the comments here.
As ever, there’s always a risk things will get dinged, damaged or lost in transit. If that happens to you, we want to put it right, so get in touch by emailing [email protected] if anything goes wrong with your parcel.
We’ll write again once we’re ready to lock other addresses - hopefully in a week or two.
xoxo
– Alex, and everyone at RR&D
PROJECT UPDATE
Producer Chant
CREATOR
3 months ago
Project Update: BOOKS ON THE MOVE
Hi rebels!
Last time we spoke, I said manufacturing was nearly complete and we were almost ready to start transporting books.
THAT HAS HAPPENED.
The timeline proceeds as previously planned.
I’ve received my advance copies, and they look fantastic. I knew Mina had made something really special here, but at points I audibly gasped at how nice these books are. And I’m easily pleased, but even Mina, who is much more discerning, is delighted.
The photos below don’t entirely capture their majesty, but let’s save some surprises until they’re in your hands, eh?
NON-VOIDHEART PDFS
For those of you who ordered Heart, Spire, or Royal Blood in the Voidheart pledge manager, those PDFs are coming to you today. Please refer to the last update for how to access them if you don’t receive an email from Backerkit containing direct links.
If you have an account on www.rowanrookanddecard.com and you’d like these PDFs added there, please email [email protected] and tell us the PDFs you need added, and the email address attached to your account. We’ve got limited customer service cover next week, so this might take a few days.
SOME THOUGHTS ON TIMELINES
If you backed the Royal Blood crowdfunder, you’ve already seen a version of these, but it bears saying here too. Voidheart Symphony is being delivered later than we initially thought it would be. Voidheart isn’t the only project where that’s happened, and I’d like to address why it happens and what we’re doing to get better at planning our projects.
The major reasons are an absolute insistence on high standards for production, and the decision to keep working on our books until they’re delivering everything we want. Most often this means more content, and sometimes it also means additional rounds of editing or testing. We’ve also got to acknowledge that, as a small team with (in some cases) some quite serious health issues, our ability to recover from delays is limited.
What this means in practice is that, in future, we’ll be starting out with longer timelines on our books - even when we think “oh, it’s just some revisions! It’ll be straightforward!”. Leaving room for good ideas, “yes, and…”, and “f*** it, we can do it better” (genuinely, that’s what one of the rows on the project timeline planner is now called) is a vital part of how we work, and we’ve got to be proud of that, and ground our project management in the knowledge that we will keep working until the book’s as good as we can get it.
So, in short: longer timelines at the outset, fewer revisions to them. That’s the plan.
AND FINALLY…
This may be my last message to you. From here on out, I’m handing over to Logistics Alex, who will track Voidheart’s delivery to our warehouses and oversee the fulfilment of your orders. I think he’s even more excited than I am to get these books to you so you can start playing.
I’ve had a wonderful time making Voidheart Symphony for you, and I hope you’re every bit as happy with it as the team is.
Take care of each other.
- Chant
PROJECT UPDATE
Producer Chant
CREATOR
3 months ago
Project Update: YOUR PDFS ARE HERE!
Right now. They’re in your digital downloads space on Backerkit. You should also receive an email from Backerkit containing a direct link to them, if you haven’t already.
IF YOU DON’T RECEIVE THE EMAIL
First, check your junk/spam folders, and if all else fails, download your files directly from Backerkit:
- Go to backerkit.com
- Click your profile icon in the top right corner of the homepage
- Go to Your Pledges and Surveys
- Find Voidheart Symphony and click on it
- Then go to View Order, under Surveys on the right hand side of the page
- Click on Get Your Digital Downloads, near the top of the order page
- Download your files
IF YOU DON’T HAVE ANY FILES
The most likely reason for this is an error when Backerkit attempted to charge your card. If this happens, you should have an email from Backerkit to say so, and a request to update your payment information.
Once you’ve done that, you should find your digital downloads are available immediately, or at least within 24 hours.
If you fix your payment and the files do not appear, or if your card has been charged and you haven’t received your downloads, please email us at admin (at) rrdgames (dot) com, and we will help you straighten everything out.
IF YOU DON’T HAVE ALL THE FILES
That probably means I have made a mistake. The good news is that it's easily fixable.
Once you’ve checked your Backerkit order and confirmed what you were supposed to receive, drop us an email at admin (at) rrdgames (dot) com and Jim, our endlessly patient and helpful customer service wizard, will (patiently, helpfully) let me know and I will make whatever adjustment I need to.
IF YOU HAVE FEEDBACK
We’ve added all of these products to our errata form here:
The form is great for gathering up stray typos, rules queries, etc., which we will address in PDF updates and later print runs of the books.
However, if you’ve got an urgent problem (like you can’t open the file, or it’s showing up… wrong…) email admin (at) rrdgames (dot) com.
NON-VOIDHEART FILES
If you’ve ordered other books as part of your Voidheart pledge – Royal Blood, or the Spire or Heart bundles – I’ll be circulating those files shortly. At the moment I anticipate next week, but if I can do it sooner I will.
AND FINALLY…
Our printer’s working on finishing touches, and all processes should be wrapped up this week. As a glimpse into the future, please enjoy this brief video of the core book cover:
That’s all. Enjoy the PDFs. (Please enjoy the PDFs, we really hope you like them; Mina and I are terribly proud of these beautiful creations, and also terribly anxious about sending them out into the world because that’s who we are, as people.)
- Chant
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