Check out the latest on the TTRPGkids works in progress to stay up to date on upcoming releases! This Dev Log will mostly cover work on A Construct’s Nature since it is *very* quickly approaching fulfillment, and it will also cover general status on other projects like StoryGuider and Greeting Games!

Jump to:

• A Construct’s Nature
• Greeting Games
• StoryGuider (launching soon!)
• Other projects

A Construct’s Nature

I’ve mostly been working on fulfilling A Construct’s Nature (and associated stretch goals and add-ons), and it is just about ready to start fulfilling! I’ll be kicking off the orders for physical copies starting next week, and digital materials will be following soon after.

Since last week’s update, I have finished the following!

• Get final sound files for slideshow from VA/editor
• Add sound files to slideshow (so far completed Ch 0, 1, 2)
• Set final charge shipping date with confirmation from Backerkit team

Adding Audio

I recieved all the updated sound recordings (i.e. touch ups, spliced in SFX, and edits based on final wording/layout), and it is AMAZING to hear a full read through of the game. Here’s a few clips from chapters 0-2, if you want to give them a listen! There shouldn’t be any major spoilers in here, but it does have some material from the game, so if you don’t want ANY spoilers whatsoever, you have been warned!

Continue to the next chapter with outro music (Chapter 0):

Picking your path with Clump, quiet forrest (Chapter 1):

Meeting an interesting stranger (Chapter 2):

I’m excited for this, not just because it is really cool for me as the writer, but because I think this can really help folks enjoy the material in different ways. Non-readers can listen along, like with an audio book, and there’s a human-voice alternative to using a screenreader. Plus, reading tone, music, and SFX can all be part of the whole storytelling process too, just like illustrations can be (and very much are in this game).

That said… adding the audio has been… a process. There are a ton of extra steps to the project because of this, and just loading the audio files into the slides has been time consuming as I wait for my computer to do each one and then need to time the sounds and the animations. I do feel that it will be worth it though, and I’m geeked to share the final product with you.

If you didn’t get the slides when you backed OR you missed the campaign, make sure to follow the TTRPGkids Backerkit page or the TTRPGkids newsletter (or socials, found at the bottom of my linktree) to get an update when they’re available!

Shipping Notes

Because this is a POD (print on demand) fulfillment method, it is going to take a few weeks from shipping kick off for books to get to folks. To make sure product starts getting to people within June, I’m charging cards this week for shipping and will put in orders throughout next week! I will also be shipping the limited edition boxed sets now (since I had to order everything for those in advance and kit them up at home), and then the international card sets, so they may be getting theirs a bit early.

If you were late to filling out and locking your orders in, we can still work out shipping, but it will need to be handled by email discussion. If that’s the case, just let me know! My email is hello@TTRPGkids.com.

And now… LESSONS LEARNED.

Because shipping prices are weird sometimes and it can be both a lot of work to calculate specifics and be very nerve-wracking (i.e. not wanting to calculate shipping too low and loosing everything raised or not wanting to screw up on regulations), I’m planning on moving to a POD code model for next time. This means backers can buy the digital version of the game at the regular digital cost and then get a code that lets them print (at print cost) and ship themselves. That way, folks can decide later if they want to pay the extra for printing and shipping, and they’ll have control over when they do that. This should also save me a lot of time. The first project I’m trying this out on is going to be StoryGuider, which launches later this year.

Next Steps for ACN

Still open on the list for ACN are the following:

• Complete stretch goal EDU games (will fulfill in June/July – more details next time)
• Charge for shipping (will be between 5/28 – 5/30)
• Start shipping physical copies (as soon as charges complete)
• Distribute digital copies (as soon as all digital goals met)
• Set game live on DTRPG, itchio, and IPR (after all backer rewards kicked off)

Greeting Games

The Greeting Games campaign is still on the back burner for now, but as soon as ACN is fulfilled, this is the next priority for work, and I’ll be kicking off artists in June. In the meantime though, voting is taking place to choose which idea from the Redwyrmling will make it to the printed card! The week 2 poll ends today and the week 3 poll just went live. You can find both on the Greeting Games community page here, and, if you missed the campaign but want to get notified for making late orders, follow the TTRPGkids Backerkit account and/or the TTRPGkids newsletter to stay updated.

StoryGuider

My late summer project is StoryGuider, which is a collection of 36 choose-your-path style adventures for little kids! Right now, this one is solidly in pre-launch, so follow along on Backerkit to get ready for when we make the game… and you can find the pre-funding campaign here on itchio to get a nice bundle of TTRPGkids games on sale and support the project ahead of time.

As a note, if you’re only interested in the digital version of StoryGuider, this is your best bet cost-wise. You’ll have the download key for the digital version of StoryGuider, which will get all updated content from the crowdfunding campaign, provided funding is reached.

While it is in pre-launch though…. I have been setting up the foundation for it and doing a lot of prep work. As of right now, we have someone lined up to help with translation into French if we hit the stretch goal for that, and I have a team of artists that I am REALLY excited to hire for the full book set! Some art has been coming in already, and it looks AMAZING.

Other TTRPGkids Projects

Amidst all this, I’m still working on everything with the blog AND it is convention season – I’ll be at both Origins and GenCon if you want to say hi! I’ve also just signed up for GameHole Con, and it will be my first time there, so any tips on what to check out in WI, let me know!

I’m also getting ready for summer with kiddo and have visits to the game store and some fun new TTRPGs to try out while break is going on – they all fit well with the kiddo’s current Legend of Zelda obsession, so there is a lot of enthusiasm brewing from the 6yo. For me, this summer will likely be a bit of a test to see how I can balance work time and kiddo time with personal time (this is not something that comes easy to me), but I’m hoping it will be OK… and I am definitely looking forward to getting outside and having the windows open more.

Until next time…

Thank you for checking out this update, and I hope this overview of my work is either a good resource for your own project planning or that it’s a nice “keep-up-to-date” spot for what’s going on with TTRPGkids! And, if you have any feedback about how the dev log is set up, please let me know – I’m new to doing this, so I know it’s going to be a bit of a learning process to fine tune it to what I want to share and what people are looking for, and I appreciate the advice.

If you liked this post, make sure to subscribe to the TTRPGkids monthly newsletter to stay up to date on the latest reviews, tips and tricks, game and podcast list updates, and more! Thank you for playing tabletop RPGs with your kids and sharing this awesome hobby with the next generation!