October Update - Asia Shipping, Factory Samples, Tabletopia Update
6 months ago
– Mon, Oct 13, 2025 at 08:50:14 AM
H friends,
We're getting closer to manufacturing, so I figured it was time for a short update on where we stand. The big news is that all digital files have been submitted to the manufacturer other than a few German language variants. I've got one thing to polish up that they've asked me about, and then we should be good to manufacture the samples. While I'd rather just print the game and get it out, I don't want there to be any mistakes so we're going to make a copy of everything and ensure it is perfect.
I'll provide a new timeline once the samples are made, but for now the pledge manager will remain open. There is one more issue we're ironing out that i'll discuss below, but once that is cleared up we will be ready to charge cards.
Asia + New Zealand Shipping
We had a lot of questions about the cost of shipping to Asia and New Zealand, and after reviewing everything determined we could indeed make some changes and cover some subsidies to bring those prices down. If you haven't completed your survey because of the high cost of shipping in those areas, be sure to go back and see where we stand now.
Despair and Abhorrence Pledge Manager Issue
It looks like there may have been a pledge manager setup issue regarding English copies of Despair and Abhorrence; we're working on straightening that out and I'll have more about that next time.
Tabletopia Update
The Tabletopia mod of the base game is complete, and half of the scenarios have been implemented. Once the rest are added, we'll release the game to the public. My hope is to at least get Grim Dynasty added to the game as well, but that depends in part on if the Tabletopia team is interested. Once game is ready I'll drop another update.
More Tariff Talk
You may have seen a new threat from President Trump to hike tariffs on China up to 100 percent, but for now we're just going to move ahead. It's impossible to predict what this tax burden is going to look like at any given time, but he couched this in terms of something he might do, which in the past has usually meant he won't. All we can do is hope we're not in store for more chaos, so fingers crossed. We'll have more information on what this will mean for American backers as we get closer to shipping.
That's it this time, I expect the next update should have information about the finished samples. Once those are done and in my hands I'll do a serious of videos to show them off.
Smoke Tests Are Out!
7 months ago
– Fri, Sep 12, 2025 at 07:48:37 AM
Hi gang,
The smoke test went out last night to about 10 percent of the total backer pool, so check your email for a BackerKit survey. We haven't had any issues overnight, but we're waiting to get more surveys back before we send it to everyone. So far so good.
I'll post another update once the surveys go out and pre-orders open.
Edit: if you go select your add-ons and the suggested shipping price seems absurd, be sure to continue on and enter your shipping address. This will happen if you backed at a pledge level that didn't come with physical rewards at the time of the campaign, including the past backer tier. There is a popup that you have to click through that explains this as part of the survey, but some people click without reading.
To fix your shipping, just keep going through the process. Once you enter your shipping address before you confirm your order, it will show you the corrected shipping cost.
Pledge Manager / Preorders Opens Next Week
7 months ago
– Fri, Sep 05, 2025 at 02:41:29 PM
it's been a long ride, but we've submitted the pledge manager for approval to BackerKit! That means that as soon as monday, we could get the green light to start the smoke tests.
Not familiar with BackerKit? The smoke test is when we send out surveys to around 10 percent of backers just to see how things are going and try to catch any errors. Usually, they go off without a hitch. When that happens, we typically open the presale store and pledge manager within 48 hours of the smoke test.
I'll send out an update when the smoke test goes out, but don't be concerned if you don't get an email right away. With any luck, you will all have access to the pledge manager next week. This has been a monumental process based on the unique nature of the campaign and our system for providing discounts to past backers, and it definitely took much longer than expected. That said, I am optimistic this will go smoothly, and we've had a ton of help from our partners at Back Office by Naylor Games and the folks at BackerKit.
Expect another update next week!
Tabletopia Update
We're in the final stages of the core game being available on Tabletopia! I was able to go through the mod so far and it's getting close to a release. At the moment we're going with standees of the villagers using the artwork instead of miniature renders due to performance issues. That said, I am really happy with how they turned out and may just stick with them. Here's a picture of how the 3d standees look in Tabletopia.
Alternatively, here are the monsters which use the 3d sculpts instead of the art.
There is still some cleanup and programming of missions, but this should be launching relatively soon and free to play without the need for a Tabletopia subscription.
Pledge Manager and Manufacturing Update
8 months ago
– Wed, Aug 06, 2025 at 08:45:02 PM
Hi friends,
I had hoped to have the pledge manager open by now, but we're still one issue away from getting approval from BackerKit to send out the smoke test. For those curious, we're cleaning up part of the survey that wasn't giving an option to choose between English and German. I apologize for this update being a little more than a month since the last one, but I have been hoping every day for the last week to fire off some surveys. Since we aren't there today, it seemed like a good time for a short update.
This has taken far longer than I had hoped, but I also very much want things to go smoothly once the pledge manager has opened, but admittedly, we've caught more than one issue along the way, which makes me feel good about not rushing things. BackerKit and my friends at Naylor Games have been a big help, and I think we're going to have things ready to go in a few days.
Manufacturing Update
Things are also plugging along behind the scenes, although a little slower than I had hoped. The initial estimate was to have all of the moulds done by mid-July. As of this morning, the factory is giving me a date of August 15th. They've sent some samples and photos, and the damaged mould repairs are almost completed. For the most part, all that's left is clearing up some mould lines and minor imperfections.
They've also started on the moulds for the packaging. One of the frustrating aspects of this process was learning that none of the moulds for the packaging from the original Kickstarter could be found, so we're making those from scratch.
We're also making a small change to the Traps packaging based on some feedback. (note this sample is black plastic, but we're using transparent in production.) The portal piece highlighted below is pretty infamous for falling out and rattling around the box if you do anything other than lay this box flat. We're to make this part of the tray a little deeper and a small cutout to lift the piece with your fingers to see if that helps any.
Roadmap
We're still plugging along and getting pretty close to mass production. I still have a few things to clean up in the digital files but things are coming together! There are two things I do want to mention, though.
First, we're still a little in wait-and-see mode on tariffs. I had hoped for some sort of resolution this month, but it's looking more and more like they will just kick the can down the road. If that's the case, we're just going to add a tariff surcharge for American backers based on the tariff rate shortly before we're ready to ship and hope things don't spiral out of control while the games are on the boat.
Second, I'm having the factory send me one of each item we're manufacturing as a sample to review before we start mass production. You may not have noticed from any of the Youtube videos that previewed the game, but the sample box for Grim Dynasty Reborn was too large, the cardboard was too thin, and it lacked the correct finish. The end result was a box that fit together far too loosely and was an awkard size compared to the core game. This will probably add a few weeks to the process, but I would rather have a copy of everything in hand to be sure it's right than just hope for the best.
Tabletopia Update
I'm expecting to have a launch date or at least a rough timeline on when to expect the Tabletopia mod to be available. The Tabletopia team is doing the conversions in-house, and I believe they have most of the assets ready. For now, the game will use 2D tokens instead of miniatures in an effort to keep systems requirements low. Once things are live, I'm going to look at how feasible it will be to get lower-poly miniatures added.
That's all for now. I'll drop back in once the smoke test goes live and the initial surveys are out!
MP Update + Finalizing Discounts + Tabletopia and more
9 months ago
– Wed, Jul 02, 2025 at 09:34:15 PM
Hi friends,
I had hoped to have the pledge manager open by now, but the process has been more complicated than I realized. We are effectively setting up two distinct pledge manages; one for old backers and another for new. This has made an already complex process more of a challenge, but I'm working with Back Office by Naylor Games, and they are experts at this side of things.
I hope to have the pledge manager up soon, but after being overly optimistic with my last prediction, I'm not going to make one this time. My hope is that the next update from me will include news that the PM is open.
Discounts for Past Backers
Past backers of the prior Grim Dynasty campaign will get 50 percent off the Kickstarter price. We'll also take more off of the complete dice sets.
Tabletopia Update
We mentioned this during the campaign, but Village Attacks is coming to Tabletopia! We've submitted all of the files necessary for the mod to be created, so the ball is currently in Tabletopia's court. I don't have an estimate on how long this setup will take, but I hope to have an update next month.
For those not familiar, Tabletopia is boardgaming platform that lets you play a variety fo games online, for free. We'll have the core game available right away, and I'll look into whether we want to include any expansions after that once the game is live.
Tactician Die, New Banshee Moulds, and Other Factory Happenings
Our manufacturing partners have been chugging away behind the scenes, and they're currently wrapping up mould creation / repair. For those that don't remember, a few of the moulds were damaged over the years, while one - holding the Banshee monster - was lost entirely. According to the factory, they've completed most of the mould work and are finalizing the banshee mould currently. The expect to be completely finished with this process within a few weeks.
Unlike the print and play STL, the banshee will actually come in three pieces in the mould and then will be attached by hand. Here's a look at the new renders:
We have also been working on finalizing the tactician dice. Those of you who watched some of the preview of the expansion probably noticed the ugly, mustard yellow dice included with the prototype. The final product looks much better!
That's all for now. I expect the next update will come when the pledge manager is ready.
