BackerKit Surveys are Coming!
over 7 years ago
– Sat, Dec 10, 2016 at 11:08:28 PM
Greetings Open Legend familia!
Sorry for going dark for a while there, been working hard with many irons in the fire. I have the SRD & Community License nearly ready, but given how long delayed the BackerKit store opening has been I decided to focus on finishing it.
The day has finally come, though I didn't realize I had to wait for a manual review process. I've finished setting everything up in BackerKit and handed the process over to their team where they review my setup and then email each of you a link to log into BackerKit and verify your address, purchase add-ons like our new GM's screen, Amaurea's Dawn maps, and Bane & Boon Decks, answer any customization questions that may be relevant, and increase your pledge if you'd like.
We will send an email with a special link to BackerKit surveys . It is important to respond to your survey as quickly as you can since we need this information for fulfilling your rewards.
You do not need to create a BackerKit account to fill out your survey, just click on the survey link, fill it out, and you’re all good to go! You will be able to answer questions about your rewards preferences, provide shipping information, and pledge for more add-ons if you'd like. You do not have access to this survey link yet, but it will be available soon via email, so be on the lookout!
If you decide later that you want to edit your survey response, you can go back to your survey and change it any time before we lock down the surveys for processing.
If you need to review your information or pledge status, you will be able to recover your survey here: http://openlegend.backerkit.com.
If you use your Facebook login for your Kickstarter account, the BackerKit survey will be sent to the email you used for your Facebook account. If you have another email address that you would prefer to use, please contact support at http://openlegend.backerkit.com/faq and we'll get you sorted out!
Limited Edition Core Rules Books
For anyone who doesn't follow us on social media, you may have missed out on the update to the Limited Edition Core Rule book, here's a sneak peek!
Open Legend T-Shirts
We will be doing Open Legend T-Shirts most likely somewhere other than BackerKit, but for now, you can fill out our interest survey to let us know which design you like best: http://bit.ly/2hqLuT4
Thanks for your patience, we can't wait to start delivering all of these wonderful goodies!
Brian
Backers Voting Results, Karinka Valurien Artwork, Bonus Creature, and Vision of a Thousand Eyes Art Book
over 7 years ago
– Sun, Nov 27, 2016 at 11:37:07 PM
Hey Everyone!
I've had a few people reach out and it seems that when I closed down the vote at the appointed time it might have made the final results hidden, so let's make it official for anyone who hasn't heard:
- Mini-Campaign Setting Winner: Shores of Valhalla
- Advanced Mechanic #1 Winner: Social Intrigue
- Advanced Mechanic #2 Winner: Mass Combat
Karinka Valurien-L'atelle, Guard to the Blood Speaker
A skilled Weave Dancer, Karinka is both bodyguard and lover to Blood Speaker Marishok. Like Radia Valurien, Karinka was born without sight. She is guided instead by an innate sense of supernatural auras, and uses a combination of this gift and her martial arts to protect the one she loves. Karinka has a deep respect for both of the twin leaders (Avass and Mashiok), and it was her appreciation of their impressive magical powers that initially led her to become a member of Mashiok’s Chorus.
Karinka was born on the Tooth and thus was taken in by the Weave Dancers early in life. Awed by the flow of energy around her, she at first resolved to stay with the Dancers instead of returning to her mother’s trade as an Arborist. Her later decision to join a Chorus and her subsequent promotion to Mashiok’s bodyguard was met with great support from her fellows, however, and she frequently returns to help train future Dancers.
Bonus Social Goal Creature Illustration
As mentioned in my previous update, our social goals unlocked a bonus illustration and we are going with the second place selection from a previous vote, the terrifying birdlike dinosaur abomination known as the Scaldback, a joint creative effort by Ryan Schapals and Crystal Sully, previously featured on the first Hyper RPG One-Shot Amaurea's Dawn show. You can expect to see that artwork revealed in a future backer update.
Vision of a Thousand Eyes Art Book
As a member of the RPG game creator community, I'm a very big supporter in excellence in the realm of fantasy art and am proud to have some absolutely incredible artists on my team -- today I'd like to recognize Randy Vargas and a project he's contributed to, many of the incredible pieces you will see in both the Open Legend Core Rules as well as Amaurea's Dawn were done by Randy and he, along with an illustrious roster of other incredible fantasy artists are being featured in Visions of a Thousand Eyes, an artbook with incredible high quality illustration. I think it'll make a great coffee table book and I've backed it.
If you're proud to support artists and their craft, check out their Kickstarter:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/delphindruelle/visions-of-a-thousand-eyes-the-ultimate-fantasy-ar?ref=1kwqf2
Much Love & Gratitude for Your Support!
Brian
What's Next for Open Legend? Backerkit, Social Goals, Voting, Rules Updates, SRD
over 7 years ago
– Wed, Nov 23, 2016 at 04:38:00 PM
Premier of Hyper RPG Miniseries
If you missed the Hyper RPG miniseries, I highly recommend checking it out, it was a great time with some amazing roleplaying by folks like ThatBronzeGirl, Ivan Van Norman, Anna Prosser, BaerTaffy, and Aureylian.
Check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAC9tK66ATI
Availability on Backerkit
For anyone who missed the opportunity to back the project while it was live, I recommend joining the mailing list here so that you get the email when we open up the Backerkit store:
http://openlegendrpg.us13.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=293192a8d23e66f86693b34bc&id=1a4ea47385
It takes a few weeks for Kickstarter to process payments and the folks at Backerkit have let us know we should wait about 2 weeks before opening the Backerkit store. We will send out another backer update to announce it officially and we will send an update to our mailing list for anyone who didn't make it in time for the Kickstarter but would like to order any of our products. The following will be available (mostly likely on Monday, December 5).
- Amaurea's Dawn hardback (new buyers OR extra copies)
- Core Rulebook (new buyers OR extra copies)
- Bane & Boon Decks
- Hand-drawn or Photorealistic Amaurea's Dawn Map Poster
- GMs Screen (image not yet available, but will be)
Reminder About Backer Votes (ending at midnight tonight)
Don't forget to cast your backer-only vote in the Mini-Campaign Setting and the Advanced Mechanic vote. This post for the backers eyes only, in order to vote, go here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/626049486/open-legend-open-source-rpg-and-amaureas-dawn-sett/posts/1744576
Social Goals Status (Final Count)
- Tweet Count: 16,223
- Facebook Event Invitees: 2,936
- Twitter Followers: 2,748
- Facebook Page Likes: 1,368
So that means we've unlocked one additional Social Goal, so we will be giving you folks an additional Amaurea's Dawn creature... :D
Status on SRD & Community License
The huge influx of people at the end of the Kickstarter and the questions that they naturally bring along with them has slowed my work on the official SRD and community license release, but I am nearing completion of those and will be releasing those as soon as possible. It will probably be mentioned on the main website, in another backer update, and on social media channels so keep an eye out.
Status on Website
Many people are looking for some of the behind-the-scenes rules changes to make their way to the website, these will probably happen shortly before the SRD / Community license release, which should be soon.
Tracking Changes
Many people have been unclear on where to go to keep up with the latest changes, we have started a Changelog on Github to track these, I will add a link to this from the main website as well on my next website update. But in the meantime, you can get a feel for the changes over time (and these will stop once we go to print) over here:
https://github.com/openlegend/core-rules#changelog
Sometimes, this will warn of future changes while they might not have been deployed to the main OpenLegendRPG.com website yet.
Thanks again for putting your money and trust in this project everyone, without your help I would never have been able to afford to continue investing every waking moment in this project.
Much Love <3
Brian
48 Hrs To Go, Legacy of Eight Teaser Fiction, and Zinnueth the Surgeon
over 7 years ago
– Fri, Nov 18, 2016 at 07:18:01 PM
Hello Again Open Legend fam,
As we head into the final two days (less than 48 hours) of the campaign I wanted to share a few teasers of things to come that you can get excited about!
Also, don't forget to tell your friends that time is running out and also, there are only about 20 remaining copies of the signed Amaurea's Dawn campaign setting books (the Ultra-rare Bibliophile backer tier)!
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Don't forget to tune in Friday Nov 18 @ 6pm EST / 3pm PST to the brand new Amaurea's Dawn Miniseries on Hyper RPG http://twitch.tv/HyperRPG featuring BronzeGirl, Anna Prosser, Ivan Van Norman, BaerTaffy, and Aureylian!
*******
There's good reason to be excited about the content you'll be seeing produced for all of this wonderful stretch goal content. We have a second chance at a mini-campaign setting at $110K. If we can hit that goal, we will see even more of the immersive fiction that you can expect from Open Legend, as we breath life into a 3rd incredible world.
Zinueth the Surgeon - by Ryan Schapals
Once a highly regarded researcher in the Superiori, Zinueth now operates in secret as part of the illegal Red Market. His passion led him to grow restless and his ambitions soon eclipsed even the grandest work of the Superiori. His descent began when he left the Superiori. He joined the circle of artists that worked in the Sculpted Garden, realizing that they had far less restrictions on their work than the bioengineers. He used his technical knowledge to cultivate unbelievable new flora.
He gained fame quickly when he engineered flowers that took flight like birds when they bloomed. These blooms would circle the boughs of their trees in an intricate dance of leaves. And when the sun went down they would land and rest on the branches once again. Still that was nothing compared to the humming briars he’s created, now known as choirbrush. And it didn’t end there. Next he bent and grew trees into the shapes of House Nivenilya’s greatest leaders. They even spoke and repeated quotes attributed to these historical figures. They still stand proudly in the Sculpted Garden along with all the other most ingenious expressions of botany in Amaranth.
But things took a turn for the worse when Zinueth could not shake the desire to work with living flesh, and so he set out to sculpt creations of flesh, beginning with himself...
The Legacy of Eight (Mini-Campaign Setting) - Teaser Fiction by Kyle Willey
The void of space was nothing compared to the darkness of the datacrypt. The defenders were on high alert, but their aeons of slumber had thinned their numbers and the ghosts they could conjure were but a figment of their former selves. The drones, however, had remained in good shape despite—or perhaps because of—disuse.
Thomas checked the ammunition count on his railgun. Just over five hundred stacks left, and at this rate he would run out before the fighting was through. The Korsakov circuits embedded in his back tingled, the result of negated magic dissipating. He cursed under his breath.
“We’ve got magic. Keep your heads up and your eyes open.”
The magus flew overhead, carefully watching the ceiling. In the darkness, Aureliana was almost invisible, floating nimbly between the descending spires of the crypt. Thomas, back on the ground, was sure that she was using some sort of magic to find her way. It was too far away to set off the Korsakov circuits, though not too far away to offend his Neocanter sensibilities. Her voice, barely more than a hushed whisper, broke in over the communications system.
“I can sense it too. Old stuff. Let me get a read on it — divination?”
The Archon making up the vanguard paused. Klaus had spent his youth in Eastrise territory, and he spoke with the sort of slow and casual speech so typical of them.
“Of course there’s magic. It may be pre-Spellscourge, but it’s still a datacrypt. Lord knows the things have always been about as creepy as you can be. But what would divination be doing here?”
“Springing a trap on us.”
As if Thomas had invoked conjuration magic, flying drones came out of the distance, their black and gold exteriors barely visible in the distance. Each bore an Imperial crest, a vestige from the ancient days when raiders would be punished by death or exile. But the Immortal Empire had long been replaced by the Successor Empire, and it was the power sponsoring the intruders.
“You had to speak!”
A beam of light crashed into Aureliana’s energy shield, sending it sparkling. She warded herself with a protective field, darkness absorbing the light in glimmering patches around her body.
The railgun burst into action, firing rounds at tens of thousands of meters per second toward the drones. Thomas saw the ammunition counter decrease, but knew that there was little he could do. The drones’ armor was thick enough that each took several dozen stacks of ammunition to disable.
The Archon’s plasma rifle spat off a burst of energy. Although it dissipated into the stale air before reaching its targets, one of the drones nearly crashed into a spire to avoid the incoming projectile. A laser repaid Klaus for his troubles, but the battle suit kept it at bay.
Aureliana’s shields held, and she attempted to suborn the drones. The interface was foreign and alien to her, but the Creation Matrix cared little for code and software. The faint background magic was drowned out by her efforts, and the furthest drone launched a barrage of rockets against its companions. A stray missile struck one of the spires, sending datastores and the metal housing surrounding them crashing to the ground with a roar.
A chime in his ear warned Thomas that he was out of ammunition. Diving behind cover, he consulted the diagram of the station.
“We’re close enough to hit the security hub! I’m deploying the Queen Anne!”
The antimatter missile hovered in space for a moment before hurtling into the darkness. The defense drones turned to target it, but the tiny projectile shot past without being damaged. Klaus saw a warning indicator blink on the surface of his eye.
“Decompression!”
Aureliana’s clothes morphed, a protective layer crawling over her face. It changed form to a more utilitarian jumpsuit, and the head pieces hardened to provide a large transparent viewplate. Thomas did nothing. The membranes implanted across his body would seal to protect him when the vacuum came.
The flash of light came first; even at the distance they were at the reflections coming off of the mind storage spires were blinding. Then a deafening roar came over the scene, followed by the screeching wind of explosive decompression.
The drones began to shut down, their limited autonomy not able to account for the amount of destruction that had been caused to the datacrypt. Digital messages sent out in Old Imperial, warned the unwary that the site was no longer secure, and that the security units were shutting down to permit rescue efforts.
Heading forward, the explorers found that the gravity for the station had been taken out in the blast, but on the metal floors of the crypt this was no issue.
In the blasted wreck of the security hub, however, the sight was magnificent and fearful to behold. The antimatter had torn a hole straight out to space, and even Klaus paused to look into the void, taking in the brilliant colors of the nebula just a few light-years away. Across all the spectrum, Thomas noticed that it was brilliantly sublime, a reminder of the powers that had shaped the universe.
“The Auspice is not far from here. Let us continue.” Aureliana’s voice was hushed; even the magus had been awed by the spectacle of destruction caught in the backdrop of the stars.
“Yeah, now that the security is down it should be a cakewalk. Hurry, Thomas, the sooner we get back the sooner we can give Jonas angst about forgetting to raise his shields.”
Without atmosphere around him, Thomas could say nothing. He made a mental note to bring a sealed helmet for his next mission, and was glad to see the massive airlock door leading to their objective ahead.
The door panel was unresponsive after so many millennia, but some quick tinkering by the Archon brought the system up and running again. The airlock opened with a hiss, as residual air leaked out into vacuum.
Once they were inside, the chamber cycled, and they were greeted by the sight of a massive open chamber. In the center a mausoleum stood, its inhabitant depicted in a statue atop countlessly redundant data storage racks. This was the final storage place of Hjalmar’s Auspice and its creator’s uploaded mind.
Thomas moved first, relying on his augmented senses to take in the surroundings. He grimaced at the thought that the datacrypt’s systems here seemed to be self-contained. Their actions would likely trigger a security response. He drew his lance pistol, listening to its hissing breath as it drew in hydrogen to fuse.
Aureliana stepped across the threshold and found the artifact they were looking for. The Auspice was little more than a disc in appearance, but as she touched it she could feel the power of divination in it: images of futures yet to come appeared in her mind, threatening to expose her to the madness of infinity. She pulled her hand back, moving it with telekinesis into a pouch so that she would not accidentally activate it.
As it left its resting place, the room’s lights rose. A sickly turquoise cast came over the surroundings as mists began to rise and swell. The recognizable form of Hjalmar came out of the mists, pointing an accusing finger at the interlopers.
“Well, now we just have to get out of here.”
The lights darkened, and the air was filled with the wails and screams of the ghosts. Thomas heard his Korsakov circuits scream with the power of deflected magic, and fired a lance of light ineffectively into the ethereal forms. Aureliana fell, the life draining from her eyes with a final screaming gasp as mist poured over her. He looked to find the Archon Klaus, but saw nothing.
As the mist rose up to cover him, Thomas sent the mental command for an upload to the implant in the base of his spine. He awoke in a clean white room, a drone hovering over his head with curiosity. Time to try again.
