Hello Cogs!

I don't know the correct metaphor, but the campaign has ended! In a triumphant fashion!

Thanks to the support of more than 1,930 backers, Onyx Path will be able to develop and print deluxe hardcover editions for Alchemicals: Forged by the Machine God!

Not only did we come really close to 2000 backers, we extended the campaign with a last minute Backer Train taking us into Overtime!! That was cool! It's still a recent feature, but we love testing out new bits and seeing how much more fun we can have with our campaigns.

There's more to celebrate! Not only did we fund the project in the first day, we also unlocked SIXTEEN Stretch Goals. From standard Onyx Path milestone markers to an expanded Companion full of more options for your game!

It came down to the last few days but we managed to hit every Stretch Goal we'd posted and then unlocked ONE MORE STRETCH GOAL in the final minutes of the campaign!

That's right - the backer train at the end took us just past $160,000 and one more special addition to our Alchemicals Companion! Eagle-eyed backers noticed a quiet $160,000 Achievement listed in the Community section without any further details. Well, I don't like to promise things that we may not hit, so didn't really flesh it out until the final minutes, but we managed to add one final expansion...

[ACHIEVED] At $160,000 in Funding - ALCHEMICALS COMPANION: Might of the Machine-Titans - A collection of high-Essence Alchemical Charms designed for colossi, along with the terrifying Collapsing Point of Judgment style, a martial art that only colossi can master.

This Alchemicals Companion PDF was expanded via Stretch Goal achievement, with each achieved goal unlocking a new section in the book, and will be added as a bonus reward to all backers receiving the Alchemicals: Forged by the Machine God PDF as one of their pledge rewards.

[ACHIEVED] ALCHEMICALS COMPANION: The Lost City of Tekun - The disappearance of the metropolis Tekun is a mystery to the Eight Nations — but now, the truth is revealed. Cast though the Seal of Eight Divinities, the lost city has survived deep in the vast underground caverns of Creation. Its people still preserve the Octet’s culture and faith despite their isolation from the Machine God, a flickering light of hope amidst the many perils of the deep.

[ACHIEVED] ALCHEMICALS COMPANION: The Forge of Legends - Additional Storyteller advice and plot hooks for Alchemical campaigns, whether in Autochthonia or Creation.

[ACHIEVED] ALCHEMICALS COMPANION: Beyond the Eight Nations - An expansion of Autochthonia’s reaches and those who dwell within: tunnel folk societies, Alchemical outcasts, and gruesome horrors born of the Blight.

[ACHIEVED] ALCHEMICALS COMPANION: God-Machinery of Exalted Power -A panoply of Alchemical Charms and submodule upgrades, as well as Light-Sharpening Blade style, a martial art that makes use of beamklaves.

[ACHIEVED] ALCHEMICALS COMPANION: The Ever-Spreading Blight -Quick Character traits for Apostates, those Alchemicals corrupted by Autochthon’s Blight, and the lesser gremlins that stalk the Realm of Brass and Shadows.

[ACHIEVED] ALCHEMICALS COMPANION: Industrial Assembly of the Chosen -Quick Character traits for Alchemical heroes from across the Eight Nations — and Creation.

[ACHIEVED]ALCHEMICALS COMPANION: Ramos-Autrama, Riven by War - Once, Ramos-Autrama was not one city, but two: one from Yugash, and one from Sova. In the wake of the bitter War of Ashes between the two nations, the two war-torn metropoli found themselves forced together by Autochthonia’s theotectonic movements, isolated from both nations. Now, only the intervention of foreign powers keeps the city’s divided populace from turning on each other and restarting the war.

[ACHIEVED] ALCHEMICALS COMPANION: Servants of the Machine God - Quick Character traits for a variety of machine spirits found in the Realm of Brass and Shadow.

[ACHIEVED] ALCHEMICALS COMPANION: Gods from the Machine - Expanded information on the Eight Divine Ministers, the Third Circle souls of Autochthon, as well as the Alchemical machine saints who serve the Divine Ministers in pursuit of their agendas.

[ACHIEVED] ALCHEMICALS COMPANION: Locust Crusades and Grasshopper Diplomacy - A Storyteller guide for playing out the first contact between Autochthonia and Creation and the myriad scenarios that might unfold once the Seal of Eight Divinities has been broken.

[ACHIEVED] - ALCHEMICALS COMPANION: Might of the Machine-Titans - A collection of high-Essence Alchemical Charms designed for colossi, along with the terrifying Collapsing Point of Judgment style, a martial art that only colossi can master.

That last one was an amazing surpise!

I'm so happy that we were able to unlock the last section for the Companion! I'm really looking forward to seeing how Danielle and the team can expand on the options we've already got, and then add more fun stuff for our characters to do! And if bigger is better, then that last one really makes things awesome!

And all of that is, of course, on top of our main purpose here - the creating of the actual book itself! This is the real reward - everything else is a bonus!

So a huge congratulations to Danielle and Chazz and Vance and the team on this project, and to all of the backers who've joined in to make this possible. I'm happy about the goals we hit and rewards we introduced, but I'm also always amazed and excited about having more than 1000 backers join in during this campaign, and we nearly doubled that dream target! Exalted fans are always a delight, and I'm happy that I get to share in the excitement and enthusiasm in my own little corner of the project!

So, thank you to all the backers who supported us and made this happen. And an extra thanks to everyone who participated online, either in the Community comments section of the campaign, and on social media around the web. Thanks to everyone who talked about the project on the Discord and thanks to the Onyx Path team who answered questions and provided insight.

So, as noted in today's earlier update, starting in January I'll be sending out updates once a month and whenever we've got a new goal, survey, or other item to cover. If you have any questions or need clarification on something related to the campaign, feel free to get in touch. I may take a bit to answer as I recover from these past four weeks and take some time off until the New Year, but I'll eventually have an answer!

I'll also see if I can sneak a compiled draft manuscript out to you maybe in the final week of the year. Nothing changed, just smashed together in order.

If you've got questions about the rules or setting, or just want to discuss this game with other fans (as well as the Onyx Path writers and developers!), you can check out these Onyx Path discussion zones:

Backers make it better! That's the real Alchemy happening here.

The Discord is particularly lively, and I loved seeing the thoughts and jokes as the chapters came out bit by bit. 

BackerKit will begin collected pledges and processing payments later tonight, so be ready for that.

 I hope everyone has a great holiday and year end and I'll be in touch quickly in a few weeks and then for real in January!
 
High fives all around in the comment section and on the Discord, and you'll hear from me again in a month-or-so when I've got the pledge manager set up and ready to roll out!