Manaforge - A Game of Crafting Magic Items

Post-Kickstarter Status #9: Freight Shipping
over 6 years ago – Thu, Nov 09, 2017 at 07:34:01 PM

Hello everyone! I thought I'd post an update on the progress of the freight shipping for Manaforge.

First, the good news: Manaforge is on the move! The shipment of games is expected to arrive in U.K. port around mid-November. Once it arrives, I expect it will take a few days to clear customs, a few days to be ground-shipped to the fulfillment warehouse, and a few days for the boxes to be opened and inventoried. This means that everything should be settled around the end of the month. Yay!

Now, some bad news: Once the games are ready to go, they need to be scheduled for packaging and outbound shipping. This is not a quick process; start with several hundred boxes that need to be packed and addressed, mix in a large scoop of other games that need to go out at the same time, and sprinkle a handful of the holiday shipping rush, and you have a recipe for delays.

My target is for all backers to have their games before Christmas. I will do whatever I can to help reach that goal, but ultimately I can't guarantee that all of the packages will get there in time.

Thanks for your patience with me as I figure out how this all works! This has definitely been a learning process for me, every step of the way, and I can easily say that I will be better equipped to deal with all this the next time.

Post-Kickstarter Status #8: Manufacturing Complete
over 6 years ago – Wed, Oct 11, 2017 at 11:16:02 PM

Hello everyone! Just some bits of good news!

I have received word from the factory that the batch of 1000 copies of Manaforge is completed! The games are manufactured, assembled, wrapped, packaged, and waiting to be shipped off to the fulfillment center. Yay!

With that phase completed, the next step is the freight shipping. From what I'm told, the games are set to go out sometime this week. Next stop, the U.K.! This process is supposed to take about two months, though I'm hoping it's less than that. One interesting note is that Manaforge is not the only game that is part of this shipment; two other games from the same factory are also getting sent to the same fulfillment center. Hopefully bundling the games together in this way will reduce the cost to each publisher.

I have also started the survey lockdown process. Backers can no longer change their orders, and credit cards have been charged where necessary. I'm happy to say that I'm up to 99% completed on this! Out of 370 backers and pre-orders, I'm down to just 3 people that need to provide information. I'd like to get that number to 100%, so if you're seeing this, ordered a copy of Manaforge, and haven't provided your address information, please do that now. (If you're having trouble, please contact me and we'll work it out.) I'd hate to not be able send you something that you paid for.

That's it for now. I will post again once the games are moving.

Thanks!

Post-Kickstarter Status #7: Still Alive
over 6 years ago – Tue, Sep 19, 2017 at 01:26:01 PM

Hello everyone! Just a quick update after surviving the storm!

Hurricane Irma

Wow, that was a nasty hurricane. While it didn't do any significant damage to my home, it did knock out the power for a couple of days and the internet connection for nearly a week. But everything's restored here now, and we're back in contact with both the manufacturing and shipping companies, so all is well.

Manufacturing and Shipping

The latest communication from the factory in China says that we're still on target for the games to be ready to go out by the end of September. From there it should be roughly two months to get to the fulfillment center, and after that they will start going out to backers. I've been talking with the shipping company, making sure they're up to speed and relaying logistical information like product dimensions and weight. This is unfamiliar territory for me, but so far what I'm hearing says that everything is on schedule.

Pledge Lockdown

Since I'm (hopefully) getting close to the freight shipping phase of this project, I'm also going to need to lock down the orders very soon. I expect I will do this before the end of the month. Locking down means that no more orders can be placed, and the orders cannot change. So you won't be able to change your pledge or add on more games after that point. I will also be closing the pre-order store, so if anyone has any friends that are on the fence about ordering their own copy of Manaforge, now is the time for them to make up their minds. :)

As part of the lockdown, I will also be doing any necessary credit card charges. For those of you who pledged exclusively through Kickstarter, you've already been charged and there is nothing more to do. But if you initially pledged a dollar for pledge manager access and selected a game later, or decided to add on more games after your first, those charges need to be performed.

Note that the lockdown does not affect your ability to change your shipping address. That will come later, when I do an address finalization step just prior to starting the game fulfillment. So if you anticipate moving within the next month or two, you will still be able to update your information.

Also note that I cannot lock your pledge down if you have not completed your survey. Even if you pledged $1 or selected No Reward, my system still notifies me when people have not completed their surveys. And I need to get as close to 100% lockdown as possible well before game copies start moving around. So if you haven't completed your survey, please do so now.

Thanks!

Post-Kickstarter Status #6: Production Proof
over 6 years ago – Sat, Sep 09, 2017 at 09:13:42 PM

Hello everyone! Got a couple of updates for you.

Pre-production proof copy

This past week has been very exciting! On Tuesday, I received my proof copy of Manaforge! This is the first copy of the game off of the manufacturing line. It didn't take me long to tear the plastic wrap off of this one and open it up. This copy of the game is important because I needed to approve everything in here before the main manufacturing could begin. And boy, did I approve this quickly!

This copy of the game had three surprises in store for me, all of them good:

- The dice look great! The engraving and black ink stand out from the material color of the dice, making them very easy to see and understand. Some of the icons are not centered on the dice, but apparently that is a by-product of the engraving process and isn't something that can be controlled. The blue 'water' color and the gray 'wind' color are a little closer than I would have liked, but in good lighting it won't be an issue, and the dice are always distinguishable by their gem sides anyway. The dice are also a good size and weight; a single die is slightly on the light side, but six of them (the amount a player typically plays with) fit well in the hand and are easy to roll.

- The first player 'anvil' marker looks fantastic! Even though I'd seen photos of the prototype versions, I hadn't seen any of the finished product before this. The token is small but light and easy to grab. The silver color is lighter than I was hoping for (I was aiming for more of a metallic dark gray iron look), but I'm still very pleased with it.

- The player mats came out much better than I was expecting. For my prototype, the mats were thick glossy paper, good looking but floppy. The player mats in this copy are very solid and thick chipboard monsters that should hold up well to punishment. And although I didn't ask for it, the corners are rounded, which in retrospect is a fantastic idea; the corners are the easiest thing to damage on something like this, and having them rounded just adds to the durability.

The rest of the components are comparable to my prototype copy. The game box is slightly thicker, and it's cool to see the gem tokens on the sheet before they are punched:

Finally, this copy of the game has a box insert, something I've never had before. It's nothing special, as far as inserts go, but it should go a long way towards keeping the components comfy. (And it gives me space to play with for when I start doing expansion sets for this game! :)

Manufacturing timing

So, there's a little bit of bad news to go with this. In my original timeline, I was hoping that the manufacturing would be completed by the end of August. At the moment, it is looking like the games will be manufactured, packaged, and ready to be put onto a boat at the end of September instead. Getting and approving the proof copy was a necessary step towards getting the game done, but it put in a bit of a delay that I was not expecting. As it stands now, rather than shipping games out at the beginning of November, it looks like I'll start the fulfillment shipping at the end of November instead. I should still hit my target timeframe, but it will be close, and I don't have any more room for delays. I firmly believe that all backers will have their game copies in hand for Christmas; the question is how much sooner than that I can have them out by. I will keep everyone updated, especially once the freight shipping phase of this adventure starts.

Hurricane Irma

Being located in central Florida, I'm keeping a close eye on the monster storm that is currently sitting just off the southern tip of the state. We're basically as ready as we're going to be; we are stocked up on supplies and braced to ride it out. Fortunately, there's nothing the storm can do to interrupt Manaforge at this point; the manufacturing is in China and the fulfillment center is in the U.K.  With all the game files approved and in manufacturing, my game needs very little intervention from me for the time being.

And that's it for now! I will post again after the storm passes and I have more of an update on the manufacturing progress.

Thanks!

Post-Kickstarter Status #5: Manufacturing News
over 6 years ago – Sun, Aug 27, 2017 at 11:57:26 PM

Hello everyone!

So, it's been pretty quiet here over the month of August. I've been waiting for the manufacturing to be completed, but apparently it's been slow going. Instead of the games being ready in early August, I've been assured that they will be completed by the end of the month. I'm a little disappointed by the delay, but overall it's not a big deal; I'm still on target to have the games delivered in November.

While I don't have any pieces in hand, I have been getting some photos of the prototype components from the manufacturer:

Overall, I think these are looking very good. I especially like the dice; while the other photos are very similar to my prototype version from Print & Play Games, the dice are new compared to my prototype stickered dice.

I'm hoping to get word that the games are ready over the next week. I'll definitely be posting again when the games are safely on a boat and on their way to the fulfillment center.

Thanks!