Good day! We're feeling optimistic over here at Cephalofair and we get to check off lots of boxes for elements that are ready for the printer on Gloomhaven! We'll talk more about the progress below, but it feels good to finally start wrapping things up.

Some people ask why it took so long when it wasn't even a new product, but, from a production standpoint, it basically was. We built this game fresh from the ground up, and hopefully that shows in the final quality.

So, without further ado, let's get to it!

From Arch:

With drafts of nearly all components in hand, game design and graphic design teams have had their hands full in the past month with final component proofing and revisions. We’re thankful to our playtesters who have been particularly thorough in their ongoing reviews and feedback!

The flowcharts and punchboards are some of the more complicated components to produce. While the game design team reviews these, the graphic design team has been working on color correction and optimization for print. We’re looking forward to getting those boards out to the manufacturer within the next week so they can begin to build the custom tools that are needed to cut them. 

The scenario books and rule book are also well underway. The scenario books are currently being reviewed, while the rule book is just waiting on final component images to get dropped in before a final design and playtester pass.

We’re expecting to have all final game component files off to production by early October. 

That’s all for now! Back to work for me!

Our miniature manufacturer is preparing samples of our flight stands and base rings for physical product line testing. Our team has requested samples of these so we can make sure we're happy with the usability, design, and fit before things move further and faster with wider sculpt production.

We received and approved a few more digital modifications this week, but are still largely waiting for the factory designers to shift focus back to our project this month. We've been told they have several new artists and production team members being prepared to move back onto our production line and we're excited for this, continuing to communicate that we all hope to start seeing that progress soon.

As you saw last time, the layout of the roughly 300 pages continues. It looks like at this point the last thing we'll be waiting on to send this to the printers are the art pieces, which are about 2 months out from completion.

In the meantime, we are continuing to do high-level playtesting to make any tweaks to cards and stats that are needed. Then, when the full layout comes in, we'll do a thorough review pass on the book with the sketches and rough color art. Then it should all come together as the final art comes in so that we can drop those in and then begin work with the factory. And once that process has started, we'll be able to put together a much more thorough timeline.

For now, here is the latest designer diary from Danielle:

Greetings Mercenaries!

It’s time for our August update! Layout is moving along nicely, and I’ve contracted artists for about 70% of the book. I’m currently working with our layout artist to put placeholders within the rest of the book so I can get those pieces of art commissioned. The process of getting art takes time. I’ve definitely let all our artists know that we would like these illustrations sooner rather than later, but I’m determined to take the time to ensure that we are getting the best illustrations. So if that means corrections or edits that make it take a little longer, those are a necessary step. The Gloomhaven RPG is the first time we really get to show off so many parts of the world that just aren’t in the board game, or aren’t illustrated there. So we want to make sure that everyone’s first look is as creepy and beautiful as it is in our imaginations.

Once I start getting sketches in, I’ll share them, but that won’t be until next month’s update. Instead, have a couple of layout images from the ancestry chapter so you can get an idea of what the Skills look like in RPG layout as opposed to what they’ll look like on the cards. I’ll note that the 3-column design here is specifically so that each ancestry fits exactly on two page spreads, which makes my ADHD brain that craves organization extremely happy. The class Talents and Skills might not get the same column treatment, but the Skills will look the same for consistency. 

We are also beginning playtesting of the higher levels of character play. We feel we have a good handle on how the game plays at level 1, but we want to make sure nothing falls apart as characters level, or if a group has a mixed level party. So far, the playtesters are feeling really good about the game, and we’ve had some great feedback coming in from them already.

Finally, I’m going to be attending Spiel in Essen, Germany at the start of October. If you’re in the area, come by the booth and I’ll be running folks through demos much like we did at UK Games Expo. Come by and say hi, and maybe get a game in. I’ll also run folks through character creation using the materials we had available at Gencon.

Until next time!

Danielle

                                       

And that's about it. Sorry for the lateness on this one. You can find the latest scenario for the Frosthaven community-driven campaign here. And thanks to everyone who came out to the booth at PAX West and Grandcon! Catch you next time!