Chant (Hollows Producer)
CREATOR
about 1 month ago
Project Update: Post-Campaign Update 5: Presidents, Kings, and other Wretchedness
Hello backers!
This month’s update is rich with new material, but also we’ve got to talk about politics a bit. We’ll do that first and get it out of the way.
US ELECTION, EH?
Originally there was going to be a somewhat tongue-in-cheek statement here about how the election results might impact international trade. Now the results are in but it's too soon to really know the effect on tariffs etc.. so we know there will likely be some impact, but not what form it will take.
In other words, we’re not quite ready to announce delays to Hollows but that might change between now and the next monthly update.
How cryptic.
RIGHT, BOOK!
Grant has written even more setting, and given that he’s moved on to writing campaign frames for long-term Hollows play I think he might be finished. The rotten cherry on the mouldering cake of The Isles’ setting is this description of its current monarch:
KING EOTEN - A pockmarked, decrepit giant of a man doing his best to drink himself to death before the Isles falls to a foreign power. Father of six awful progeny, half of whom are poised to claim the throne with appropriate timing, forgery, assassination or social pressure. In his sober moments, Eoten laments the loss of the empire and the slow destruction of his country; otherwise he sleeps fitfully, or shambles about Allhallow Castle in a dressing gown, or tries to have sex with one of his sisters. If he were to turn Hollow, the ramifications on the Isles would be tremendous; those in the know believe it’s simply a matter of time before the spiritual heart of the Isles falls to ruin.
The fish rots from the head, as they say.
We’ve now completed all the rules and all the setting, which is basically the bones of the book and the meat on top. We’ve got a few bits of gristle and sinew to attach, and some organs we still haven’t found a home for, but we’re bloody close to finished – which is exactly where we expected to be, but we’re still proud.
WRETCHED DOMAINS
Or, formerly, “the box of Hollows scenarios.” Manuscripts are flooding in faster than Chant, then Grant, can review them – along with art for them. Every Wretched Domain is a separate pamphlet, and has a very distinct visual style to reflect the unique ugliness of the Hollow it describes. Very rarely, as a producer, do I get to work on something that ranges from the gothic grandeur of Felix Klaer (superstarfighter)’s illustrations…
…to the bleakness of Daniel Vega’s Professor Armageddon for Kieron Gillen’s endless war.
It’s a rare treat, but Hollows is a rare beast.
LOST IN A FOREST
There’s one more piece of Wretched Domains news. One of our authors, Cassandra Khaw, won’t be able to complete their contribution in time for inclusion in Wretched Domains. The Hollow isn’t cancelled, just postponed. If Cassandra’s able to deliver it, we’ll release it in some form. We’ll make sure backers who purchased the box of Hollows at least get a digital version.
Fortunately, we’re surrounded by talented TTRPG designers, all of whom are poised to make Hollows weird in entirely new ways. We’ve therefore drafted in RRD staffer Jinn Hermiston to answer the question “what if an entire forest could hold a grudge?”
Nobody writes rural horror like Jinn, and that’s probably quite a good thing.
In the next couple of days, we’ll be removing Cassandra’s Hollow from pledge manager and putting Jinn’s up for pre-order. We’re sorry for any disappointment, but also absolutely shaken by what Jinn’s delivered, which is to say they’ve hit the brief perfectly. 10/10 unpleasantness.
OUTRO
Time to play us out with Sam Lamont’s bold experiment for the map of The Isles:
That’ll do for now, I think. Stay safe out there.
- Chant
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