We did it!
almost 5 years ago – Mon, Mar 16, 2020 at 02:41:51 PM

Together with 1,114 of you, we made this happen! Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts and the oceans of the alien worlds you'll create. We've poured three years of our lives and a whole lot of love into this project so far, with more still to come, but we couldn't have done it without all of you.

This is a game about community, hope, and togetherness in the face of a looming danger. That feels more appropriate than ever right at the moment. We could talk forever about what it's been like to see such a huge response to this thing we've created, but at some point we should probably sleep, so let's get to the details of what's coming next.

How did we do?

We ended up at $54,600 which is just shy of the sixth stretch goal. We're working on finalizing the last few details of the BackerKit setup and should have that ready soon for folks who want to support the project who didn't get a chance to back during the campaign, or for folks who want to upgrade their pledges. I think we can safely say that even though we didn't quite hit $55,000, once it comes down to it I think we'll pick up another $400 in the next few weeks via pre-orders and be able to call it six stretch goals.

What's next?

Sleep! We're going to sleep for a bit. Then we're getting right back to work.

Updates

We'll be posting weekly updates so everyone knows precisely what's happening with the project as we move forward. Collectively, the core design team has backed a few hundred Kickstarter campaigns and we know personally what a difference good communication can make. We're committed to making sure you all know exactly what's happening as it's happening.

The Book Text

We have a full set of playable rules, but we're filling in things like Guide advice, more information about the moves and setting, and all the other copy needed for the book. The sooner we can get the first draft of the text done, the sooner we can begin the editing process and the layout process. We're anticipating a book somewhere between 100 - 200 pages, so there's a lot of work yet to be done.

Artwork

If you've been following us at @DiMRPG on Twitter, you've been seeing the playbook art, the cityscape art, the coloring book art, the token art... which is all to say that there's a ton of art being produced for the book. Some of you at the higher level tiers will also have the opportunity to submit character or city descriptions for art to be included in the book.

Additionally, we'll be including an add-on in the BackerKit store for submitting a character you'd like to be turned into a coloring book page! Because of the timelines involved, these images won't be in the main book itself, but everyone who gets the coloring book will get to see your awesome creation.

Donations & Fulfillment

One of the things we're most excited about with the campaign is offering the book donations. Every book in your pledge has the option to be sent to you, to a person/organization you choose, or to an organization we'll choose. If you have an organization you want to send them to in mind, please let us know as soon as possible so we can reach out to them. The sooner we can identify which groups need/want copies and how many they'd like, the easier it will be to arrange getting them the desired quantity.

We'll be tackling shipping once we're closer to the fulfillment dates. We have a general idea of the size of the book, but don't have the specific numbers for the weight yet. We've done our best to estimate the cost of shipping and packing materials and priced it out accordingly. We'll keep you informed.

Fiction and StreamPunks rewards

We'll be working with our authors to develop Descent into Midnight-inspired short fiction pieces, and the StreamPunks crew to develop a mini-series of streamed episodes. As the details for those emerge, we'll make sure to keep you up to date. We're incredibly excited about seeing how they come together.

Thank you

Again, thank you. We're stunned by your interest, your generosity, and the amazing things you've already built in the three years of playtesting. We can't wait to see what your compassion and creativity call into being as we create this thing together.

All our love and gratitude,

-The Descent into Midnight team

Just 24 hours left!
almost 5 years ago – Sun, Mar 15, 2020 at 12:40:43 AM

This is it! We're down to the last 24 hours. On Saturday alone, we jumped up 110 backers, and hit our fifth stretch goal (200% funded)!

Thank you to everyone who helped make that happen. Now we're in the final stretch. Anything you can do to give the project a strong bump at the end would be amazing. We've already unlocked five streaming episodes from the StreamPunks, and we'd love to see another one, along with DOUBLING the bonus we're paying to our production team for Descent into Midnight.

After you tell your friends about the game, you can check out our three-part actual play with the fantastic Kat Kuhl, Orion Black, and Devon George.

• Character creation and world building
• Adventure part 1
• Adventure part 2

Thank you, from the whole team. Let's do this thing!

Final 48 hours!
almost 5 years ago – Sat, Mar 14, 2020 at 11:22:47 PM

We've entered the final 48 hours of the campaign, and we need your help to finish strong!

It's the final countdown! Please share why you're excited about the project with your friends, family, and/or anyone who will listen on Facebook, Reddit, Twitter, an RPG forum, Discord server, or whatever. Your words are infinitely more valuable and meaningful to the folks you know than anything we could say.

We've got FOUR stretch goals under our belts, and can't wait to see how many more StreamPunks episodes, bonuses for the production team, and short fiction pieces we can unlock.

Thank you!

Fiction and Speculative Aquatic Biology!
almost 5 years ago – Fri, Mar 13, 2020 at 12:03:24 AM

We've hit $45,000 and thus, our fourth stretch goal! Let's jump right into the update.

What have we unlocked?

This stretch goal unlocks a fourth episode of the streamed series the StreamPunks troupe will be doing together with QueueTimes studio. We'll see the world they create come alive and shift as the Harmony of the Guardians and the community builds to fight the encroaching Corruption.

It also unlocks our first short fiction piece, written by the incredible Aly Grauer. We can't wait to see what she brings to the table. Her work on Warda and Skyjacks: Courier's Call, as a performer and dialect coach, and as the author of On The Isle of Sound and Wonder.

If any of you are podcasters, streamers, performers, or just gamers who want to improve character voices, we can't recommend Aly's services as a dialect coach enough.

What's next?

Our next goal is at $50,000. That will unlock a fifth StreamPunks episode and double the bonus we're paying to the production team. We're closing in on 72 hours to go in the project, and we know with your help we can finish strong!

Speculative Biology? YES PLEASE!

I (Richard) came across the project below after someone retweeted it and I IMMEDIATELY backed it and messaged the team that we should ask about cross-promoting with their project. I grabbed the tier with the two previous volumes, the enamel pin, and a "pseudibranch" poster. Turns out one of the team had heard about us and backed Descent into Midnight already, too. Great minds think alike (about weird sea creatures)!

Pretty much everything we've seen of Almost Real: A Speculative Biology Zine (Vol. 3 - Aquatics) could be straight out of a world-building session in a game of Descent into Midnight.

If you aren't already convinced by the artwork above like I was, here's what they've got to say about it:

"Conceived in 2018 by Jay Eaton and assisted by Mia Hye Mardikian, Almost Real: A Speculative Biology Zine is a multi-volume, ~60 page anthology collection series of at least 12 different speculative biology prose and artwork entries, focused around the celebration of speculative biology while aiming to recapture the magic of publications like Zoobooks and interactive encyclopedia artwork entries. With our first volume introducing the concept of the zine and our second leaning into the concept of "themed" issues with its focus on flight, we plan to release an issue every year, and so far have been met with resounding success, enthusiasm, and support from those who want to explore what could be while rooted in science.

This issue we're descending from the clouds and into the waters below with the theme of Aquatics! Whether these are beings that live a completely submerged life, live in tandem with bodies of water, or creatures that draw symbiosis from other aquatic creatures, there's no shortage of creative, creepy, and cool designs our contributors have concocted. Aliens? Got'em. Hypothetical future evolutions of hominids millions of years into the future? Titanous algae on far-off planets created by wayward earthen space probes? There's a multitude of shapes and sizes in life in the oceans, and Almost Real's 3rd volume is no exception."

Third Stretch Goal Reached! Next stop: Short Fiction
almost 5 years ago – Wed, Mar 04, 2020 at 06:33:02 PM

We’ve now hit $40,000, and over 750 backers! Thanks to each and every one of you for your support!

What have we unlocked?

Firstly, with the money that we’ve set aside for fulfilling stretch goals, we’re paying a bonus to everyone on the production team, above and beyond the professional contracted rates we’re paying everyone to begin with. Community is what the game is all about, and we’re thrilled to put our money where our mouth is.

Secondly, we’re getting a third episode of Descent into Midnight by the StreamPunks in association with QueueTimes studio! We’re so excited to see what comes of the extra time they’ll have to tell that much richer of a story.

What’s next?

As with each stretch goal, we’ll unlock another streamed episode of the Descent into Midnight with the StreamPunks. With a fourth episode, we’re starting to get into the range of a short campaign, and you’ll be able to see the community they design grow and change as the Corruption tries to worm its way in.

Also, and we’re incredibly excited about this, we’ll be hitting our first short fiction goal! Aly Grauer, an incredibly talented author and performer, will be writing a story set in the universe of Descent into Midnight. Because every game of Descent into Midnight allows you to build your own setting and your own Corruption, the authors we’re working with will have an incredible amount of freedom to explore the themes of the underwater setting, the Corruption, community, hope, and the Echo.

You can find Aly’s work as a performer and storyteller on the Warda podcast, as well as on the Skyjacks: Courier’s Call episodes of Campaign: Skyjacks. In addition, if you want to see why we’re so thrilled to be working with her, you can check out her novel On The Isle of Sound and Wonder, a brilliant retelling of The Tempest that seamlessly blends a steampunk aesthetic, the strange and wonderful world of the fae, and themes of hope and redemption in the face of a terrible Corruption. I (Richard) recently finished the book and as a theatre person, can say that it’s my favorite version of the story, including the original.

A word from “Barky” The Bark Of A Mangrove Protects The Tree From Fire And Parasites

“The Mariana trench was certainly a wonder to behold. The light here is different than the portion of the Echo I’m from, but once you go deep enough, the cool darkness of the depths is the same almost everywhere.

Someday I’ll have to bring The Steam That Rises along with me to visit. She loves to explore hydrothermal vents, and the ones here in the East Pacific Rise are particularly lovely. I don’t share her taste for sulfides, but you’ll never see a lovelier, more brilliant yellow than her sulfuric carapace. There’s something curiously poetic about eating blooming darkness and creating light and art with it, don’t you think?”