June Update
almost 2 years ago
– Sun, Jun 30, 2024 at 12:22:06 PM
Slayers!
Hope everyone is doing well and having a great start to your summer!
Now to June’s update.
The Pledge Manager is planned to close during July!
For those who have not been able to complete it yet, we will be unable to ship your game without a completed survey as this is how your shipping address is recorded (and updated if needed).
Please let me know if you need your link again.
Late Pledges/Preorders
If you missed the campaign or know someone who did, Book of Skulls is available for preorder from the link below!!
https://bookofskulls.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders
I am thrilled to announce that the final files have been submitted to the manufacturer!! I am now pending their confirmation of dates.
It feels fantastic to have submitted the final files but also quite strange as the game I have worked so hard on over the last 5 years is finally “done”.
Well, I say done, there is still plenty to do, however, submitting to the manufacturer is a major milestone.
Work has restarted on the App as, now that the printed text, cards, etc are completed, we can migrate this data into the App.
Whilst the App is being worked on, I am finalising any lore which is exclusively in the App, this is the “bonus”/non-gameplay material such as Slayer backstories and a huge amount of additional information about Eragoth and the world it takes place in.
Work will also begin on the soundtrack during the summer.
As all files have been submitted to the manufacture this of course means all of the Slayer artwork is complete. This month, I am introducing two Slayers, Tamriel & Kane who are intrinsically linked to each other.
It is believed that Tamriel is not of Eragoth. He was found washed ashore as an infant in the wreckage of a ship that had met its doom on the Eversea.
From an early age, Tamriel was fascinated by the Valrriath people and has spent most of his life studying their tomes and spells, most keenly that of shapeshifting.
During an expedition, the urn of the ancient spirit of Azeal, protector of the Valrriath, was uncovered. Upon opening the Urn, Tamriel worked tirelessly to restore the dormant spirit by fusing it with his own body.
After many experiments using the Valrriath texts, Tamriel succeeded in the restoration of Azeal and was able to transform himself into the great protector.
Although revered amongst his Scrollkeeper brethren, Tamriel is considered mad by most due to his soul-fusing experiments.
Tamriel’s offers two options in combat; such as either dealing regular damage with Dune Crush and supersizing their elemental damage with Elemental Boost or to summon the mighty ancient spirit of Azeal who can deal huge amounts of damage along with causing their foe to recoil in battle, unable to move.
An anomaly amongst the Slayers, Kane is but a conjuration, an experiment of Tamriel’s.
Enlisted into the Scrollkeepers of the Fifth Order, Kane’s training has been in the art of summoning, with which they can now summon three beast spirits, that of a panther, a bear, and, a dragon.
It is not known from where these spirits originate; some theorise that they are summoned from a spirit forest where the remaining Valrriath now reside.
Kane has been created for a specific mission; to join the King’s plight, there they must learn more of the mysteries of the Necrogate and the dark magics that the Skeleton Witch possesses to better understand the oncoming perils.
Without their beasts, Kane’s durability in combat is limited, however, they can summon a prison of fire to trap their enemy.
In combat, Kane may offer modest damage and have the lowest HP of all Slayers, however, their beasts each sport their own HP which gives a huge advantage as Kane cannot take damage whilst a beast is active.
That's it for June, see you for the next update!
Best Wishes
Andy
May Update
almost 2 years ago
– Fri, May 31, 2024 at 04:03:08 PM
Slayers!
Hope everyone is doing well!
For those going to UK Games Expo over the weekend, I hope you have an awesome time. Some of you have been asking whether I will be there. Unfortunately, it isn't possible this year, however, I will be there next year with Book of Skulls (and maybe something new....)
I can't believe this picture is 2 years ago already!
Now, to the May update.
Again, a huge thank you to everyone who has already completed their Backerkit survey.
For those who have not been able to complete it yet, we will be unable to ship your game without a completed survey as this is how your shipping address is recorded (and updated if needed).
Please let me know if you need your link again.
Late Pledges/Preorders
If you missed the campaign or know someone who did, Book of Skulls is available for preorder from the link below!!
https://bookofskulls.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders
Unfortunately, the full sample from the manufacturer was snagged at their Customs and returned for reprocessing.
I am assured that it will be with me very soon so I am anticipating to have it in the next week or two.
I have been working daily on the finishing touches, therefore, once I have approved the physical components, I will send the manufacturer the final files and production can begin.
From there, we pick up work on the App. As I have been tinkering with additional content, it made sense to pause some of the App work until all text was finalised.
There is also a heap of additional lore that is only available in the App, this lore is an expansion and is for those who want to delve deeper into Eragoth. This will be completed in the coming weeks.
We will start to give updates on the App closer to the fulfillment date.
I will also start working on the soundtrack, I have hours of demos to go through as I hone in on what I want the sound to be for Eragoth. Really excited to start recording!
In addition, I will start making the accompanying video guides (for those who prefer videos over rulebooks) in late summer so they are ready for fulfilment.
So, it will be a busy summer!
I wanted to finish this month’s update with a short Slayer introduction. This month it is Dio.
It will be no surprise that he is our bard! The Demons will not stand a chance against his powerful voice!
In his heyday, Dio would perform nightly at the King's theatre.
Since the fall of darkness, Dio has taken his song to the battle camps keeping the morale of Eragoth's troops afloat.
During his travels, Dio met the Alryn leader, Erothorn, who shared his knowledge of traditional Alryn vocal calls to awaken the Spirits of the Forest.
Erothorn trained Dio to use his powerful voice to not only affect his audience but also his foes!
In combat Dio plays as an all rounder who can guard, heal, attack and shackle. He also boasts the second highest HP making him a great option for any team.
That is all for May, see you for a big update in June!
Best Wishes
Andy
April Update
almost 2 years ago
– Tue, Apr 30, 2024 at 01:01:41 PM
Slayers!!
Hope everyone is doing well. Here is the April update
Starting off with a personal update, I am very happy to share that my wife and I welcomed our first baby in April. After some initial complications, life is slowly adjusting to this new chapter, however, this has understandably affected my workflow over the past couple of weeks.
That being said, I am very happy to advise that I was still able to prepare and send all files to the manufacturer to commence a full production test of Book of Skulls: Slayers of Eragoth!!
So, what next?
I am expecting to receive the full test in May as well as the final Slayer artwork. Upon receiving the full test sample, I will be able to make a final check on all components.
Upon receiving the Slayer artwork, the character cards, box art and lore book will be updated with their final artwork and I will be able to start formally introducing our Slayers in the monthly updates/social media.
I will then be able to confirm to the manufacturer to go ahead and produce. Then we turn our attention to finishing the App and recording the soundtrack, but that is for another update...
To finish this month’s art update, all characters have been drafted and, with a couple of expectations, are all are progressing to next stage.
Some of the characters also have their colour pallets established. Below are some examples of the current sketches and colour sketches.
A huge thank you to everyone who has already completed their Backerkit survey. We will be unable to ship your game without a completed survey as this is how your shipping address is recorded (and updated if needed).
Please let me know if you need your link again.
Late Pledges/Preorders
If you missed the campaign or know someone who did, Book of Skulls is available for preorder from the link below!!
https://bookofskulls.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders
That's it for this month, see you for the May update!
Best Wishes
Andy
Book of Skulls: Slayers of Eragoth - March Update
about 2 years ago
– Sun, Mar 31, 2024 at 12:32:44 PM
Slayers!!
Hope everyone is doing well. Here is the March Kickstarter update.
For me, the majority of the last month has been spent adding the final touches to the designs, arranging files and lots and lots of proofreading.
Pledge Manager
A huge thank you to everyone who has already completed their Backerkit survey. We will be unable to ship your game without a completed survey as this is how your shipping address is recorded (and updated if needed).
Please let me know if you need your link again.
Late Pledges/Preorders
If you missed the campaign or know someone who did, Book of Skulls is available for preorder from the link below!!
https://bookofskulls.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders
Manufacturing
Moving on from the cards and game boards of last month, this month was focused on some of the punchboard items and finding a solution for the slider that fits on the top of the card.
I am very happy with the punchboard items (Status Emblems & Spirit Emblems shown below). They have a good thickness for durability and ease of use.
From last month’s update, the main piece outstanding was finding a solution for the clip that fixes to the top of the Slayers card, this is used to track a Slayer's Rage. Thankfully, we appear to have one now that is both easily moved and more importantly, does not damage the prototype cards.
We will keep working on this, however, it looks like we have the solution!
Art
I am really happy with how the character art is coming along, here are some more WIP sketches of some of our Slayers! Here is Rose & Hellena, I will introduce them properly when their artwork is complete.
That's it for this month, see you for the April update!
Best Wishes
Andy
Pledge Manager is live! (Feb Update)
about 2 years ago
– Sun, Feb 25, 2024 at 03:35:24 AM
Slayers!
Hope everyone is doing well, here is the February update. It is a big one!
Pledge Manager is live!
Those who backed in the campaign will receive an email from Backerkit shortly.
Please note that it is vital that you complete the Backerkit survey as, without it, we cannot ship your game.
The Pledge Manager is your hub for managing your order. From here you will be able to:
- Provide your preferred shipping address.
- Pay shipping fees*.
- Pay any outstanding tax and VAT associated with your region.
- Purchase additional copies of the game.
- Purchase any further optional add-ons.
*Shipping costs have been updated in line with estimated 2024 rates from GamesQuest.
Note for Apple ID users: If you used your Apple ID to log in to Kickstarter, the BackerKit surveys will not be able to be sent to your email address. Please send an email to me at [email protected]. Please send this email from the same email address you used to set up your Backerkit account (or if you haven't yet set this up, the email address you intend to use).
Late Pledges
For anyone who missed the Kickstarter campaign but would still like to back the game, a late pledge option is available via the Backerkit Pledge manager.
A link to this is at the top of the Kickstarter page under "LATE PLEDGE".
If you know anyone who missed the campaign and would like to back a copy, please feel free to share the link to the Late Pledge page and we can welcome them to Eragoth. All rewards and and prices are the same as during the campaign!
Manufacturing
I received manufacturing samples of game boards, a few of the big cards (Slayers, Demons, puzzles etc) and regular sized cards (poker size for items and actions etc).
First, a quality of life upgrade for the game boards, there will no longer be 2 boards per map, instead, the maps are singular and are simply folded when put back into the box. I am really happy that we were able to do this.
The reverse side of all maps is black.
For the cards, I have redesigned the upgrade & legendary item cards using some assets that I hadn’t yet used. Both front and backs have been updated.
Upgrade item have the same back (in green) as Legendary Items (below).
Legendary item (formally Divine item) have the same layout as Upgrade Item.
The colours are also more vibrant.
For all character cards (Slayers, Demons, Guardians & Conjurations), the layout has been optimised making better use of the space. As a result of this, the cards are a couple of mm smaller whilst still keeping the integrity of the text.
One component that is not there yet is the slider that goes along the top of the Slayer’s card to track their Rage. The sample received could scratch the cards due to tiny raised areas on the sliders which are part of the moulding process. We are working on an alternative.
That is it for this month, see you in the next update or on social media
Best Wishes
Andy
