Smoke Test Sent - Expansions
over 2 years ago – Fri, Nov 19, 2021 at 08:39:21 PM

Hello Dragonbonded!

Today the smoke test from Backerkit was sent. It took a bit longer than expected (even for us) but today, 5% random backers are receiving the smoke test and the rest will receive their surveys tomorrow. If you received your survey today and notice anything odd with the pledge manager, please let us know so we can check and make the proper changes in case needed.

As promised, today's update focus on the add-ons and expansions. You can find complimentary info of the cards/game design aspect in this link from a previous update too.

Let's dig a little deeper and talk about:

• Lords of Vaala - NEW Upgrades
• Scourge of Valerna - NEW Add-on stretch goal
• Armies of Nature & Light - NEW Add-on stretch goal
• Creatures of Valerna
• Legends of Valerna
• Armies of Blood & Dreams
• Collector's Box of Holding

Lords of Vaala *NEW upgrades

MORE CARDS

We've got great news, the base game now includes 106 Cards. We reviewed the Denizen Cards (called Upgrade cards before), and decided to include 3 per region in the board, which brings a total of 36 Denizen cards. You will be able to find units from Nahuac and Ysval and more options as a General to customize the armies you raise.

Due to the addition of options, we worked with River Horse to adjust the rules slightly. The recruit glyph allows the player to gain a Denizen card from the lineup with a matching homeland region, but the General can choose to spend 1 power to gain a Denizen card from an adjacent region instead (sending emissaries to recruit). Likewise, after collecting power with the Harvest glyph, the General player may spend 1 power to recruit a Denizen card from the lineup with a homeland region that matches any region controlled by that player (calling to arms).

DRAGONBONDING NEW RULES

While the campaign was live, some of you raised your concerns about the Dragonbonding mechanic. We read all your comments and ideas, wo after careful inspection, River Horse came with a simple solution that entirely corrects the aspects that were perceived negatively:

A Dragonbonded team wins only if one of the bonded players reaches 10 power (they win as a team, but their power is not combined, they cannot spend power tokens from their teammate).

Basically, we changed the victory condition of having 15-power combined as a team and instead we stick to the original victory condition (a single player with 10 power).  Bonding still grants you some advantages such as enabling your unique Dragonbond ability or losing an enemy to gain an ally instead, which plays in your favor in the resolution phase. The scenario where the losing player seeks a bond with the player in the lead is still possible but we don’t perceive that as a bad thing necessarily, that means every player has a chance of winning. And the chance of Dragonbonding should be kept in mind during the planning and resolution phases; whether it is something you really want to avoid, seek, or feeling impartial.

Dragonbonding is triggered only after resolving a glyph, so combat won’t trigger a Dragonbond because one of the players has to retreat. Also, the end of the game is not triggered with a Dragonbond.

Dragonbonding is the essence of the setting, and we want it to be meaningful in gameplay. We are aware that some players were playing without Dragonbond due to different reasons; that is ok because the most important thing is to have fun but we would prefer to have Dragonbond as part of the rule set you choose to use. We have been playing with this change and we are delighted with the results.

IMPORTANT REMINDER

Remember that as a backer each copy of Lords of Vaala in your pledge also includes a copy of Armies of Blood and Dreams. This promotion is only valid for Kickstarter backers (late pledges can still get Armies of Blood and Dreams at a discounted price, but not free). All copies in the first print run (for backers, late pledges and even distribution copies) include 3 promo cards for being an Early Dragon Supporter of the first printing!

Scourge of Valerna *FINAL STRETCH GOAL

The time has come for the final push! If at least 500 copies of Scourge of Valerna are taken, we will unlock this NEW expansion! (If less than 500 are taken, the pledge manager won't charge you for this add-on).

The generals you are receiving in the base game (and some expansions) belong to the realms of Allaria (Elyse, Onatella, Eldai) and Tyveria (Adrael, Sagriv, Baryen). In Scourge of Valerna we have 2 new generals coming from 2 different realms: Nahuac and Ysval. Which means new player boards, art in action cards and combinations.

Eirándi of Nine Thunders 

A hunter from the Nahuac Coalition, Eirándi has a dry wit and a violent streak, but also a very caring and stalwart heart. She will gladly die to protect not only her realm, but all life in all realms. To her, the apparent paradox of “killing to preserve life” is as natural as the relation between predators and prey.

Oryan Yssan

The eldest child of Ysval’s Holy Duk and next in line for the throne of the Holy Alliance, Oryan cares little about titles or politics, dedicating all of his time to rescue and protect children affected by war. He hasn’t forgotten how his youngest brother was sent to Tyveria as a child serf by the Empire’s cruel Blood Geas.

Now, you could be wondering, why do we have a lot of generals and just 2 dragons? Here's where the Vaala (magic) comes. In the story, Eirándi and Oryan met two dragons from different broods when the Eye of Kadmos happened. Remember that Ferellon belongs to the Fulgen and Nagasha comes from the Magnifex. Each brood have a different believe, meaning and way of living, we are happy to introduce to you to: 

Tetzcoatl 

Tetz from Brood Coatl is a curious and talkative dragon, relatively young for his species’ standards, but already very wise and strong in rune magic. He will often ask weird questions or impart little-known facts in the middle of a fight, right before crushing his prey with a casual sweep of his feathered tail.

Rakzor 

A brutal predator of exor Brood, Rakzor is one of the toughest and fiercest members of the toughest and fiercest dragon family. Very few living beings can match his strength, and so he sees other creatures as nothing but prey, either to feed him, sharpen his hunting skills, or maybe - just maybe - give him some sport before he hunts them down.

So, what will be in the box? 

• x4 Miniatures
• x46 Cards (x22 Action Cards with new art, x20 Vaala Cards, x4 Character Cards) 
• x4 Player boards 
• x1 Rules leaflet
• x1 Punchboard, including tokens for the new units, wound, power, etc. 

Armies of Nature and Light *FINAL STRETCH GOAL

Similar to Scourge of Valerna, this one will be unlocked if 500 copies are sold! Valerna is divided in several realms that we have talked (or not) about. Adrael and Elyse come from the well known realms of Tyveria and Allaria, but what about the realms close to these two? 

We have shared some insight about the Jewel Desserts of Nwoda or the underwater land of Sikaria, you already identify a Qirin Warden from Allaria or the big wild Skorpikons from Tyveria... but this time, let's focus in the units of Nahuac and Ysval.

Nahuac 

A nation built on cooperation, selflessness and respect for nature, the Nahuac Coalition is the oldest and most traditionalistic realm in Valerna. They fight for the land and for life itself, sending their totemic troops - like the Ocelinn jaguar warriors, the stealthy mun kisuut bat-kin, and the mighty Bendavee lizardfolk - into battle against any who would threaten the peace of their ancestral realm.

Ysval 

The smallest and youngest realm in Valerna, Ysval was founded by repentant fanatics from a dark cult, who turned their dark arts to the light, and redeemed themselves by the holy magic of healing, protection and inspiration. Rustic coastal warriors, zealous knights of the light and friendly campfire comrades - Ysvalians are all this and more. Their troops have high defense and can strengthen themselves with holy blessings.

So, what will the box include? The Nahuac and Ysval units, 36 miniatures in total (6 from each). 

• Nahuac has Ocelinn Stalkers as Infantry, Bendavee Protectors as Cavalry and Mun Kisuut infiltrators as Ranged. 
• Ysval has Hammerguard Knights as Infantry, Reinknight Shieldhearts as Cavalry and Pints as Ranged units. 

Creatures of Valerna 

We mentioned this one in previous updates and we have been talking about this, but let's refresh our memory. Creatures of Valerna is a Player vs Environment expansion, including an event card called "A Year of Monsters" and 6 creatures with unique abilities that will spawn in different territories that, if defeated, you will collect Power.  The box will contain 6 new miniatures with the Fai Hydra, Waada, Manticora, Fataar Giant, Fai Goblin and Blood Husk. 

One extra thing, is that these monsters are also ready to join your RPG table. Each creature will include 5e Statblocks so you can add them to your adventures! 

What does the box include? 

• x6 Miniatures
• x7 Cards (x1 Event Card - A Year of Monsters, x6 Monster Cards) 
• x6 5e RPG Statblocks
• x1 Rulebook 

Legends of Valerna 

What's better than having a game for 4 players? Having one for 6 players! Add one or two extra players to your gaming experience with the terrific creature Kadhah, a monstrosity that haunts the maghyri (and other players) and will doom them around Valerna. The 6th player is the Fell Knight, a mercenary that will partner up with the best bidder and to give extra bonuses to the player forming an alliance with them (each turn the alliance may change to a different player). 

Legends of Valerna also includes the alternate Generals from Allaria and Tyveria, Onatella Pai and Sagriv, the Shiv Alchemist. Both characters include their unique Vaala Deck, Character Cards, and miniatures. 

This box includes 2 small expansion modules as well:

•  Heroes - Dragons can bond with these or Generals can recruit them.
•  Draconic offerings - Dragons hoard treasures in the board and take them to their lair. They can spend them for bonuses or Power. Generals can seek the dragons' lairs and retrieve the treasures and collect power.

In short, what does the box include? 

• x4 Miniatures
• x40 Cards (x20 Vaala Cards, x2 Character Cards, x12 Action Cards, x6 Hero Cards) 
• x2 Player Boards (Kadhah and Fell Knight) 
• x1 Rules leaflet
• x1 Punchboard with all tokens to play with - Alliance and Doom Tokens, Wound, Power, etc. 

Armies of Blood and Dreams 

In this box you can find the unlocked alternate generals, Baryen and Eldai of Fion. Each character comes with a miniature, a character card and the 5 unique Vaala Cards. 

Upgrade your carton token units from Allaria and Tyveria with these miniatures, you will get 3 units from each realm: 

Allaria 

• x6 Qirin Wardens - Cavalry Units 
• x6 Oathguard Duelists - Infantry Units 
• x6 Gnome Tinkerers - Ranged Units 

Tyveria

• x6 Skorpikon Reavers - Cavalry Units 
• x6 Bloodfangs - Infantry Units 
• x6 Shiv Alchemists - Ranged Units 

But that's not everything, we unlocked the Wargame Stretch Goal and this box is a standalone game too! The game is a lite version of the upcoming wargame. Inlcudes wargame cards and a punchboard with tokens to play the game.

What does the box include? 

• x38 Miniatures 
• x44 Cards (x10 Vaala Cards, x2 Character Cards, x32 Wargame Cards) 
• x6 Dice (x3 1d6, x3 1d10) 
• x1 Rulebook - Gamma Rules for Wargame 
• x1 Lorebook
• x2 Punchboard (One for Allaria's and one for Tyveria's components). 

Collector's Box of Holding

We know you are all excited with the big box able to store everything from Lords of Vaala, and since we think there are nothing like "enough minis" we are adding the Neutral unit minis, the Ellari Rebels from Allaria and the Crimson Crow from Tyveria. 

The Collector's box will also include x100 Wood Tokens (x20 Wound, x64 Power, x12 City and x4 Dragonbonded Tokens) and x100 snap bases in case you choose to paint your minis and identify them with colored rings.

Add-ons

You will also be able to add any other extra add-ons you like, such as: 

• x110 Sleeves to cover all your Dragonbond, Lords of Vaala (one pack needed for the base game, another pack for 1 or all expansions)
• An extra set of Dice (x5 d10)
• Dragons of the Red Moon Dice (RPG) 
• x1 Rubber Mat of 100cm x 50cm - double sided, one side will have the original board and the other the full color one. Recommended for playing with miniatures instead of cardboard units. 

Attention Mexico doing Local Pick Up - Make sure to select "Local Pick Up" in the country section instead of "Mexico", add which state you would like to use - Guadalajara or Mexico City -, but make sure to set the country in "Local Pick Up". 

NEW PROJECT FROM OUR TEAM - DRACO FORGE 

Dragonbond is full of surprises, there's a realm below Valerna's surface where those corrupted by Vaala habited, the Daimoi (plural of Daimos), the demonic and brutal overlords of the Hollowdepths (the underworld of Valerna in Dragonbond).  Each Daimos is a representation of their twisted ideals. What is worse, their realms are just as terrifying. The deeper one reaches into the Hollowdepths, ever closer to the abyss, the more dangerous things get. Dangers that will make you wish for dragons lie within.

CLICK HERE AND SUBSCRIBE TO BE NOTIFIED ON LAUNCH

Draco Forge finished the previous project Dragons of the Red Moon, it was a huge project with 5 waves fulfilling resin dragons and this time, the resin miniatures from demons will be limited to just 200 each (600 in total). Subscribe to be one of the first ones backing the campaign and getting this amazing miniature of 150mm tall! We are preparing a big surprise with the Daimoi and we will let you know more in the next update! For now, this is it! Let's make the Dragonbond universe grow! 

Pledge manager surveys going out next week
over 2 years ago – Sun, Nov 07, 2021 at 02:20:41 AM

Hello Dragonbonded!

We have been fine-tuning the pledge manager and waiting for some assets to be ready. We are launching next week! We will start with a smoke test to make sure everything is working properly so 5% of you (random) will get their surveys 24 hrs before the rest. If you already know Backerkit or other pledge managers, you can skip the following section and scroll down to "Development and Progress" section. If you are not familiar with Backerkit please keep reading. 

What to do when receiving your survey? 

• Backerkit is a pledge management system that helps backers manage their pledges and creators to securely collect all the needed info for fulfillment.

In a nutshell, here's what you will be doing in the pledge manager:

1) You can choose to upgrade your pledge and indicate the country of origin (for the system to calculate shipping costs).

2) Answer questions such as choosing the language for your rewards or opting to subscribe into our mailing list to receive loyalty rewards and news about Dragonbond releases.

3) Include add-ons (optional buys) such as expansions, sleeves, oversized rubber mat, or digital items such as STL bundles or PDFs for the Print & Play files, RPG books, and more.

4) Let us know your shipping address, to calculate shipping fees (and VAT for Europe) proceeding to payment.

5) Place your order for us to finalize production count. 

Development and progress 

Development continues and we want to share with you the amazing design for the sleeves.  

You'll want to add this to your pledge even if you do not usually sleeve your cards!

In the Planning phase of the game, players form an action stack (face down) before going to the Resolution phase. We included a see-through window so it is easy to see who played the last card and play can continue. This is also handy for storing or setting up the game by easily recognizing the back design of the cards.

The pack of sleeves will be available in the pledge manager at $15USD; with one set you can sleeve all the cards in the base game, and with a second set you can sleeve all the expansions. But these are also very nice for other card games. 

The expansions will be waiting for you and the Lords of Vaala: Scourge of Valerna and Armies of Nature and Light will be unlocked if a minimum of 500 copies are taken. This is the final "stretch goal" for the campaign, can we count with your support?

We are progressing with the development of miniatures and files. Here's a preview of one the miniatures from Armies of Nature and Light: the Ysvalian hammerguard knight 

Also, in the Pledge Manager there will be 1 copy of hand-painted resin miniatures of Aureus, Kuxcoatl and Baastherox by MIMI Painting Studio, the team that paints our minis. We are happy to announce that MIMI Painting Studio offered their services to paint some sets of the base game in the same quality as the ones shown during the campaign and in the image below. As some of the miniatures enthusiasts might be aware of, the cost associated with professional display paintjob is not low, this is why the painted sets will be very limited.

As we mentioned in previous updates, the world of Dragonbond expands and with it the visual guide. This previous month we worked on Tyveria. Here's an exploration of the unclaimed blood from Tyveris and her throne. 

The history of Tyveria is inevitably linked to that of its namesake - Empress Tyveris, the first maghyr and the creator of blood sorcery. Formerly a champion of the Null Wars, Tyveris killed her lover to fuel her own transformation into a maghyr, and to help mortals win the war against the Null. Afterwards, she was nearly worshipped as a witch queen, and became Blood Empress by conquering the lands East of the Primalian Mountains. Her offspring carried her name, and then everything under their rule carried it too.

But Tyveris’ descendants couldn’t match her power or presence, and the Tyveria ruling house fell when the Blood Empress died at the hands of her own kadhah spectre. For the following centuries, the ‘Empire’ was reduced to a nation-sized power struggle of warring city-states, with the Imperial House being so in name only, its rulers known simply as Prince-Regents, not daring to claim the Blood Empress’ sanguine legacy.

Quills, or bookies, are the smallest of the three halfling breeds, and also the brightest, having the most organized, calculating minds of Valerna.

Quills have a privileged memory, being able to recall everything they have experienced almost to perfection, especially regarding numbers, words, and offenses. This makes quills the best librarians, clerks, bureaucrats and criminal bosses in Valerna, tough to deceive and even tougher to outsmart. It’s not uncommon to see frightened peasants make way for a bookie mobster, flanked by tough enforcers, or to find a quill in charge of an arcane library or magic academy.

While quills are rarely given positions of authority — since they live mostly in human-ruled lands — they make the best burgomasters, mayors and aldermen, keeping their towns and neighborhoods orderly, clean and functional. Sometimes they use sensible organization, at times ruthless intimidation, at times both — but quill public officials are a very useful, and very underused, resource across Valerna.

That's it for now, expect your survey next week (I won't let Will stand up until it is done) and let's unlock those expansions! 

—Thanks for dragonbonding with us!

Start 3D-printing! STL files fulfilled on MyMiniFactory
over 2 years ago – Wed, Oct 20, 2021 at 02:30:10 AM

Hello dragonbonded!

Today you should have received an email from MyMiniFactory to redeem your STL files for 3D printing. 

All pledge levels include the Print & Play files for the core game (preliminary version already fulfilled via DriveThruRPG and final version to be fulfilled in November) and also the STL files for the core game and Armies of Blood & Dreams.

MyMiniFactory is our chosen platform for fulfilling STL files, it is NOT the pledge manager for the physical rewards and to upgrade pledge levels. Our pledge manager is Backerkit and we expect surveys to go out next week where you will be able to upgrade your pledge level or let us know your mailing address to send the physical games.

Pledge manager for physical rewards & Digital fulfillment timeline

Here's the short-term calendar for your convenience:

•  Completed in September: Print and Play files (preliminary version core game) sent on DriveThruRPG 
•  Completed today: STL files for 3D printing sent on MyMiniFactory 
• October: Backerkit surveys (next week)
• November: Base Game FINAL version Print & Play PDF files
• December: Expansions Print & Play PDF and STL files
• February: Translated versions of the Base Game & Expansions Print & Play PDF files

The email from MyMiniFactory mentions LAIR, which is our team and brand focused on 3D printing. We received some tickets struggling to redeem your STL files for 3D printing and one of our backers solved the mystery! 

Remember, MyMiniFactory is our fulfillment platform not the final pledge manager, you can choose to get the expansion STL models here or wait until Backerkit. All physical rewards will be covered in Backerkit next week.

**If you are into 3D printing or RPG, please keep reading, otherwise, you can skip the next section and scroll down to see the Development updates**

Dragonbond Tribe - 3D printing & RPG

Ever since Dragons of the Red Moon in 2019 we have been big supporters of the makers community and have included 3D printable files at a very affordable price in all our campaigns. 

You might recall that our original plans in this campaign was to offer the STL files for the core game and Armies of Blood & Dreams only, without expansions. But many of you wanted to get the STLs now and PnP files for the expansions that we decided to release them at a very low cost for you, even though we had different plans for those models —we hardly say no to our backers who share the enthusiasm for Dragonbond. 

As many other 3D creators, our plan was to release a monthly subscription model (similar to Patreon) to share new Dragonbond content (STL and RPG) with you on a monthly basis. We were invited to TRIBES, a feature from MyMiniFactory that allows designers like us to introduce monthly releases. (If you are familiar with Patreon, it is very similar but already connected to your MyMiniFactory account for instant access to the monthly files).

Our first monthly releases involve some of the monsters in the expansions (that's why we originally didn't include the expansions as STLs in this campaign).  But in Tribes we are also releasing new content such as alternate poses, RPG stats (5e), an intro pack with the dragonriding models, new heroes of Valerna and an impressive demon named The Tyrant. And you can also join as in the merchant tier to get the commercial license to sell any Dragonbond 3D prints, including models from Battles of Valerna and Great Wyrms of Drakha.

COMMERCIAL LICENSE FOR SELLING 3D PRINTS

Files in this campaign are for personal-use only. 

If you would like to sell prints you can find our Commercial license tier on Tribes, as long as you are merchant, you are allowed to sell 3D prints of Dragonbond models and even the RPG content we release below 40-pages. Every month you also get new models with their RPG content. 

You cannot sell the STL files or any casts of the miniatures, not even with a commercial license.

Each month we are delivering new models with their RPG statblocks, narrative hooks and new races, classes, and rules for Dragonbond RPG.

Every 3 months we start a new season and we also release a new RPG adventure that features the models released in those months.  

This month, we are exploring "A kingdom of swirling dreams" with the Fai Hydra, the Fell Knight and 3 different poses of the mischievous Fai Goblins. 

Remember you also get the intro pack during the first month that you join our tribe. But most importantly, that we have limited early bird seats to get a lifetime discount as a triber with files for personal use.

•  $2/Month to get the monthly RPG content
• $4/month for the limited early bird with the monthly RPG content and STL files (personal use)
• $15/month to get the monthly RPG content and STL files with commercial license

 Click here to join our tribe!  

By supporting us on Tribes we can continue expanding the universe of Dragonbond and you can be part of the development of the RPG and 3D models.

Development updates

 We already finished all miniatures from the expansions and started file verification of the miniatures with the manufacturer. Here are some previews of the final sculpts of the alternate generals. 

From Tyveria, Baryen, the Bloodscar, a honored celebrity of the fighting pits with a mysterious origin. 

 There is no magic in what I do. My drive is my magic. - Baryen 

From the lands of Allaria Great Onatella Pai, a ruthless gnome crimelord infiltrated in the Allarian Senate.

"Even when I lose, I always get something out of the deal." - Onatella Pai 

 Also from Allaria, Eldai of Fion, Fai Hunter commander of the Nightmare Wardens, unfazed by the dark magic of the Fai Woods. 

“Tracking the unseen is what they teach you first. After that, it’s easy." - Eldai of Fion

As mentioned in the previous update, the expansion for Nahuac and Ysval might become a reality in the pledge manager with your help. It will need enough orders to come to life and, if the goal is not met, the add-on will not be charged by Backerkit. 

In the meantime, we have not stopped development and here's an advance from Nahuac:

Erandi of Nine Thunders, a bloodthirsty child of war turned protector of the land. 

Art is also being produced for the Action Cards:

Rakzor of Exor Brood, a heartless assassin bonded to a bleeding heart knight. 

As the Dragonbond universe expands, so our realms and how the life in Valerna is, our art team has been working hard developing the visual guide and here you can read some insight about Tyveria:

The most important product of Tyveria is tyvalite ore, which can be refined through blood sorcery, and only through blood sorcery, into tyvalite steel - an alloy that’s hard as iron yet pliable as leather.

The ore itself is a black iridescent rock, originally discovered in the Primalian Mountains and assumed to be useless. However, through alchemical experimentation, shivs discovered the ore could be ground into a dust that, once smelted and added to other minerals - like iron or saltpeter - had Id-channeling properties, allowing the fabrications of better weapons, armor and explosives through blood sorcery.

As soon as the Blood Empress realized the possibilities of tyvalite refinement, she ordered her people to dig as many tyvalite mines as they could into the primalians, and made sure that the secrets to refining the ore remained in Auga Tyveria and its blood sorcerers. The tyvalite trade became the basis of the Empire’s industry, with armor and blades made of tyvalite for Tyverian armies, tyvalite powder for shiv concoctions, and raw tyvalite ingots for bulk export at exorbitant prices.

As the Tyverian Empire expanded, more tyvalite yields were found, and Tyverian miners carved a trade road through the realm’s territory, which carried tyvalite from the mines in west and central Tyveria to every city in the realm. The ore is traditionally transported by lines of nehangi, a breed of tame giant ants, which form fast, enduring and reliable cargo trains. A single tyvalite train can cover several kilometers of land at once, and is always a stunning spectacle, with its endless nehangi line and cloud of vespidai guards. Most of the mines are owned and managed by citizen collectives, who pay a direct tax to the Emperor in blood, tyvalite and/ or gold. Transport and security remains the direct responsibility of the local maghyr, which is also ‘paid’ for this service in the form of a percentage of the yield.

That's it for now, next update will come with more information about the expansions, manufacturer progress, more information regarding the lore and visual guide, but most of all, about the Pledge Manager in Backerkit which is almost ready, we are just tweaking last details, expect the email next week!  

—Thanks for dragonbonding with us! 

Preliminary PnP fulfilled, previews, and painted minis
over 2 years ago – Tue, Sep 21, 2021 at 12:20:33 PM

Hello dragonbonded, we are back! 

I would like to start with an apology for the silence in the past weeks. Some of you are aware of the Covid situation our family went through because Pam and I explained in a few threads at the comment section before the campaign finished. 

The past month has been the most challenging in our work lives because we had to juggle between messages, emails, and calls for both, work and hospital, combined with the rush of activity from the end of campaign, which we are deeply grateful for. Your support and the last days of the campaign, was the only positive thing in the hard times we were going through.

Our family members are now at home recovering and we have regained peace of mind to focus again. Thanks again for your patience and for all your support! 

Development hasn't stopped. We are a large team and the game development + pledge manager setup has kept going. Only the communications, which Pam and I are in charge of, was not as usual, but we are back. So let us share what's happened in the past weeks.

PRELIMINARY Print & Play PDF files sent

Only 10 days after the campaign funded we sent the preliminary PDF PnP files to all backers from tiers $15 and higher.

This are not the final files! But we wanted to share them in case you are eager to play and even share feedback in our Discord

You should have received a redeemable code via email from DriveThruRPG; if you did not, look in your SPAM folder or send us an email to [email protected] with the subject "Missing LoV PnP" and Ana or Pam will help you out!

Note that shortly after we first sent it, we uploaded an update because the Arcane Harvest card from Allaria had the wrong icons. We also included the latest version of the rules and Example of play.

For your convenience here's the timeline with the digital rewards:

• September: Base Game preliminary Print & Play PDF files (SENT)
• October: Access to our MyMiniFactory store for your Base Game & Armies of Blood & Dreams STL files
• November: Base Game FINAL version Print & Play PDF files
• December: Expansions Print & Play PDF and STL files
• February: Translated versions of the Base Game & Expansions Print & Play PDF files

The final version of the Print & Play PDF files will include an A3 or A2 version of the game board, plus any modifications of the rules or game content. The cards will be arranged to print, cut & fold so the front and back are alignment is more convenient.

If you have printed the game and played already, feel free to rate, post pictures or start forum threads in BoardGameGeek's entry of Lords of Vaala. 

About the final stretch goal

Even though we didn't reach the $250.000 stretch goal that could allow us to accelerate development to unlock the new expansion as an add-on, we have figured out how to bring it to life.

In a few weeks, you will receive an email to access a personal survey on Backerkit, the chosen pledge manager for this project. 

You will be able to let us know your mailing address to send physical rewards, pay for shipping and VAT, choose your language version, AND include any optional buys (add-ons).

This expansion will be set up as a stretch goal add-on, meaning that to make it a reality we will need enough orders for it; if the goal is not met, this add-on won't be charged by the platform. 

We have received dozens of requests for this expansion in social media, Discord, personal messages, Kickstarter comments  (maybe near a hundred). So we believe we can easily achieve 500 orders, but we will need your help.

We are still thinking about the best name for this expansion that introduces new dragon broods and realms with their own player boards, action cards (new art) and characters + vaala cards. If you have any ideas, feel free to share in the comments! (You can learn more about the realms of Nahuac and Ysval, and the draconic broods Coatl and Exxor in the World Primer). 

Here's a special preview:

And of course, the miniatures will receive the same special treatment as the ones from the base game and other generals, with more table presence for generals and younger version of the dragons to fit in the box.

Answers to a couple of frequently asked questions:

• If this becomes a reality, you will also unlock the add-on Armies of Nature & Light for players who prefer to use minis instead of cardboard tokens. 
• The Big Box of Holding will be able to hold these expansions as well.
• If this add-on is unlocked, their digital files will be added to the add-on for the expansions Print & Play files.

Art & Sculpt previews

Enough reading! Time for some updates with images instead of words.

And here's another entry from our Dragonbond lore guide and visual guide:

Maghyr sorcerers lead every Tyverian army, save for a few smaller or emergent battalions. In battle, they feed on the blood spilled by both allies and enemies, using it to feed their dread powers. A single maghyr blood sorcerer can turn the tide of battle in an instant, draining opponents of their blood and using it to impale the survivors, or stopping their enemies’ hearts and strengthening the blood of their allies with a single hand wave.

Speaking of lore guide, we are getting ready for an extensive Dragonbond release in 2023 and we have plans to release a Playtest document to invite our dragonbonded community in the development with feedback. If you are a fan of fantasy RPGs with 5e, let us know! We would love to hear from you.

Painted minis

During the campaign, we had collaborations with very talented painters, we would like to share some of the Lords of Vaala painted miniatures with you.

Angel Giraldez YouTube channel / Instagram - Warm Colors (color scheme)

Simon Sikora / Zumikito Miniatures Youtube channel / Instagram - Want To Improve? STOP Using Colors.

Steven Oaks (Instagram)

Alan Castellanos / Bicefalo Art Studio - Instagram / Other social media links

And last but not least, MIMI Painting Studio (Instagram) who painted the miniatures used for the campaign graphics.

We are exploring with MIMI Painting Studio the possibility of offering some limited copies of pre-painted copies of Lords of Vaala and Dragons of the Red Moon. These would be available in the Pledge Manager.

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We are very glad to be back. Thanks again for your patience and support, for funding this fantastic game which we all feel extremely proud of.  If you are at Gen Con you can visit Hall E to check Lords of Vaala. We don't have a booth this year but we are running demos of Lords of Vaala and our other games with the help of heralds from the Envoy program.

We will be back soon with more development previews and news. We are getting closer to the pledge manager!

Your free expansion became a standalone game!
over 2 years ago – Thu, Aug 26, 2021 at 07:43:24 PM

Hello dragonbonded!

You did it! Thanks to your support and suggestion, we were able to unlock one of the most exciting Stretch Goals in this campaign:

Note: the dice included in the wargame starter are different to the dice from Lords of Vaala (except for 1) in case you are still interested in getting the extra dice add-on.

With 5 hours left, we can still get closer to the stretch goal that will allow us to accelerate development for new dragon broods and realms.

It's important to note that even if we don't reach $250.000, the closer we get to it, the easier for us to find a way to make it happen in the pledge manager in another way. 

You can upgrade your pledge level if you want any of the add-ons (but you will still be able to do this in the Pledge manager, which will open in October and close in March).

We also introduced a new pledge level at $145 to include the Big Box of Holding + deluxe components. The box will be designed to store the base game + all expansions revealed in this campaign (including the new realms and new broods). We are considering the option with the factory to include everything already stored in the box for those who plan to go all-in in this pledge level, which most likely affect shipping fees positively (fewer separate items and weight).

But we would like to remind you about the best way to help, by spreading the word in social media for new backers to join while also getting a collective pool of points that will count toward the last stretch goal: Community goals.

Please help us spread the word about this project delivering 2 games for just $49! 

 Join us in our last livestream for the campaign!

We are playtesting the new captains expansion (just unlocked in the Legends of Valerna add-on!) in a 4-player game with Alessio, Jack, Daniel, Gabo and me. Livestream is live now:

 We will be back with another update after the campaign ends! 

But before wrapping up this update, we would like to share this video from Room and Board which featured Lords of Vaala as a great game to back! The idea of featuring campaigns ending soon instead of just launched is very fresh! If you liked it, give the channel some love by subscribing, we loved the pace and energy!

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That's all for now! Let's have the strongest possible end of campaign and get as close as possible to the new add-on. Join us now in our game session being livestreamed and help us spread the word about this project and complete community goals!

—Thanks for dragonbonding with us!