Dwimmermount Headed for Roleplaying History
Last night we reached the basic funding goal for Dwimmermount. If you were one of the backers whose support made this possible, you may wish to emulate Steven Marsh who commemorated having been the one whose pledge took us over the $10,000 threshold with a hearty Bwah-hah-hah!!!
If you haven't backed this project yet, there's many reasons still to join us.
- Get cool stuff! The most fundamental reason to pledge is that you want the Dwimmermount mega-dungeon in hard-back + PDF, map, tracker, artwork, and/or miniatures that our backers will receive before anyone else. Before our Kickstarter reached its basic target, there was always a chance that we wouldn't be able to afford to provide these rewards. There are still many reasons that any project might fail, but thanks to the faith of those who have pledged to date, we can be sure that lack of funding will not hold us back. We're working hard to make good on your trust, and backer Brennan O'Brian's comment about why he feels we've earned it meant a lot to us.
Here's a preview of the cool stuff our Archmage backer will receive, from the first of seven Dwimmermount sessions at the Brooklyn Strategist. These are not yet the miniatures Sandra Garrity will sculpt based on your characters, and although the miniature on the right was painted by the night's illustrator-in-residence Chris Hagerty, the ones on the left were done by Tavis, aged 12.
- Go on an adventure! If you've been reading Grognardia you know that it can be fascinating to follow the posts and session summaries covering James' Dwimmermount campaign and how they parallel the development of his thinking and the growth of the old-school renaissance. This Kickstarter campaign marks a milestone in this process. Becoming a backer gives you not only a view from backstage but a chance to lend a hand in that development. Some of our higher-tier backer rewards offer unique opportunities to put your mark on Dwimmermount, like creating a character for one of the rival parties or helping to specify one of the scenes that will be illustrated in the book. We're working to create similarly special stuff for the lucky, as well - those who happen to be at one of the Dwimmermount events with an illustrator-in-residence, or to be chosen by a roll of the dice from those interested in playing via G+ with James, will likewise contribute to its legend. If you've been a backer of one of Autarch's Kickstarters before, you know that we're also committed to providing ways for every one of us to be involved in the process of bringing this project to life. Want to run Dwimmermount at your home game and give us feedback, or at a convention and help spread the world? Want to share the ideas you got from reading about Dwimmermount and how they blossomed in your own campaign? We want to hear from you, because our goal is to release Dwimmermount in a way that reflects the participatory, open-ended way it took shape. And wanting to make that release the best it can be means listening to what gamers need.
- Help reach the next bonus goal! Part of the crowdfunding adventure is figuring out together what is possible, and making it visible for the world to see. If Dwimmermount can raise $20,620, by matching the Kickstarter success of Joe Wetzel's fantastic Dungeonmorph dice we will have shown that it wasn't a fluke and that roleplayers really do want support for the kind of old-school megadungeon play in which Dungeonmorph is so useful. Autarch owes a debt to Joe for leading the way with Kickstarter, and to James for bringing it to our attention. For Bonus Goal #1, we'll pay it forward by setting a similar example for the gaming community. Dwimmermount can never claim the legendary status of the original mega-dungeons, where gamers and writers and designers adventurering together laid the foundations for all the role-playing that has come since. What we can do, however, is to prove that fans and researchers are fascinated by the original materials used in playing even such a recent mega-dungeon as Dwimmermount.
If we reach Bonus Goal #1, we will make the notes James used to run his original Dwimmermount campaign, and the maps and drawings created by his players, part of roleplaying history. Scans will be made freely available to the public online by the Play-Generated Maps and Documents Archive, and the original documents will be preserved for scholarship by Science Fiction and Fantasy Research Collection at Texas A&M University.
If your support as a backer of this project helps us reach the $20,620 mark, you'll get a PDF of all of these original materials as well as new play-generated documents and preliminary sketches from the process of Dwimmermount's publication!
You'll also get an invite to the party at the annual meeting of the Popular Culture Association/American Culture Association in Boston at the end of the Kickstarter funding period, at which we'll be celebrating the achievement of this bonus goal and talking to attendees who are interested in play studies to help encourage more academic interest in the kinds of rediscovery of the roots of gaming that Grognardia champions.
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Mar 2, 2012 -
Apr 14, 2012
- 4 created · 19 backed
- Tavis Allison 590 friends
- Website: autarch.co
Pledge $5 or more
15 backers
Neophyte: Backstage access! Watch Dwimmermount blossom from James' campaign notes, and help its development by downloading the latest drafts from autarch.co and playtesting them with your group. If you like what you see, you can increase your pledge at any time to get the finished product in which you will be named as a supporter.
Estimated delivery: Apr 2012Pledge $10 or more
257 backers
Zealot: Two copies of the PDF! All the above, plus as soon as Dwimmermount is completed you'll receive it as two fully illustrated electronic books. The first PDF is compatible with the Labyrinth Lord rules used in James' original campaign; in the second, Autarch has provided stats and economic context for its Adventurer Conqueror King System. Both the LL and ACKS versions will have your name listed in the credits for your backing level.
Estimated delivery: Jun 2012Pledge $25 or more
149 backers
Zealot-Phantast: PDF versions of map booklet and megadungeon tracker! All the above, plus purely electronic versions of the unique rewards of a Practitioner and Philospher formatted for on-screen use or DIY printing. These PDFs will be included in all levels above this one; choosing those rewards will let you enjoy the convenience and quality of our professionally printed map booklet and mega-dungeon tracker as well as the versatility of having them electronically.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $40 or more
288 backers
Beholder: Hardback + free shipping to Canada & the US! All the above, and as soon as the Dwimmermount hardcovers arrive from the printers, you'll get a print copy for your table as well as the e-book for reference. (Please specify LL or ACKS version of the hardback, or add $30 to your pledge and receive both. Add $5 per book for shipping to Europe, $10 to other continents.)
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $60 or more
201 backers
Practitioner: Separate map book! All the above, and you'll receive a softcover booklet presenting each of Dwimmermount's wilderness, dungeon, and fortress maps as a two-page spread for reference and annotation in play. (Please specify LL or ACKS for hardback, or add $30 for both. Add $5 per book for shipping to Europe, $10 to other continents.)
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $100 or more
34 backers
Philosopher: Megadungeon tracker! All the above, and get a wipe-erase vinyl mat designed for recording your party's progress through the levels of Dwimmermount and updating how the dungeon's factions react. (Please specify LL or ACKS for hardback, or add $30 for both. Add $10 for shipping to Europe, $20 to other continents. To get just the tracker added to a lower level reward, select that one and pledge $40 extra.)
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $130 or more
71 backers
Wilderness Philosopher: Outdoor hex map! All the above, plus a large vinyl mat printed with numbered hexes and a watercolor depiction of the area surrounding Dwimmermount - which can also be used to represent other wilderness areas in your game, like the original Outdoor Survival board but with wipe-erase functionality! (Please specify LL or ACKS for hardback, or add $30 for both. Add $10 for shipping to Europe, $20 to other continents. To get just the outdoor hex map added to a lower level reward, select that one and pledge $30 extra.)
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $250 or more
2 backers Limited (18 of 20 left)
Adept: Immortalize your adventures! All the above, and we'll work with you to ensure that one of the illustrations in the finished product will depict a scene from your party's explorations of Dwimmermount at one of our events, via G+, or with your home group. (Please specify LL or ACKS for hardback, or add $30 for both. Add $10 per book for shipping to Europe, $20 to other continents. To get just the illustration added to a lower level reward, select that one and pledge $150 extra.)
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $450 or more
0 backers Limited (10 of 10 left)
Major Adept: Signed handbound book! All the above, and each of the creators of Dwimmermount will personally sign your copy of a custom-made leather hand-bound limited edition. (Please specify LL or ACKS. Add $10 per book for shipping to Europe, $20 to other continents. To get just the limited edition added to a lower level reward, select that one and pledge $200 extra.)
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $750 or more
0 backers Limited (4 of 4 left)
Exalted Monster: Create a Dwimmermount invader! Get all the rewards of a Major Adept, and we'll work with you to create and play a monstrous character that will be published in Dwimmermount as a member of a rival adventuring party, with a character portrait by one of our featured artists including the signed original artwork. (Please specify LL or ACKS. Add $20 for shipping to Europe, $40 to other continents. To get just the original art added to a lower level reward, select that one and pledge $300 extra.)
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $800 or more
0 backers Limited (4 of 4 left)
Exalted Adept: Create a Dwimmermount explorer! Get all the rewards of a Major Adept, and we'll work with you to create and play a human character that will be published in Dwimmermount as a member of a rival adventuring party, with a character portrait by one of our featured artists including the signed original artwork. (Please specify LL or ACKS. Add $20 for shipping to Europe, $40 to other continents. To get just the original art added to a lower level reward, select that one and pledge $350 extra.)
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $2,000 or more
0 backers Limited (4 of 4 left)
Monstrous Magister: Miniature figure of your invader! All the benefits of an Exalted Monster, plus Sandra Garrity will sculpt your monstrous character as published in Dwimmermount; you'll get a set of all the miniatures Sandra sculpts, and in addition to your original character art, you'll get the miniature of your monster hand-painted by an artist chosen by Sandra. (Please specify LL or ACKS. Add $20 for shipping to Europe, $40 to other continents. To get just the miniatures added to a lower level reward, select that one and pledge $1,200 extra.)
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $2,100 or more
0 backers Limited (4 of 4 left)
Magister: Miniature figure of your explorer! All the benefits of an Exalted Adept, plus Sandra Garrity will sculpt your human character as published in Dwimmermount; you'll get a set of all the miniatures Sandra sculpts, and in addition to the original art, you'll get the miniature of your explorer hand-painted by an artist chosen by Sandra. (Please specify LL or ACKS for hardback. Add $20 for shipping to Europe, $40 to other continents. To get just the miniatures added to a lower level reward, select that one and pledge $1,300 extra.)
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $10,000 or more
0 backers Limited (1 of 1 left)
Archmage: Ultimate Dwimmermount miniatures! You will be honored with both the Magister and Monstrous Magister rewards, a complete set of painted miniatures, and a dungeon befitting their splendor: a special selection of Dwarven Forge's Master Maze pieces enabling you to build enough of any of Dwimmermount's levels to fill the entire vault of a Sultan gaming table. (Sultan not included, as you'll want one custom built by Geek Chic to fit your space, but we will film a video of us building each level in the Brooklyn Strategist's Sultan to guide your own setup.)
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012
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