320+ pages of new options and systems for survival-horror characters & campaigns.
Latest Updates from Our Project:
Biomes, Production Schedule, and More!
about 1 year ago
– Wed, Aug 16, 2023 at 03:26:00 PM
Hello Adventurers,
We have lots to share from the dark corners of The Gloaming Wild. Here's the latest on production progress, a peek into the thrilling biome system, and some new opportunities for your input.
Production Progress and Schedule: A Path Forward
First off, we extend our heartfelt thanks for your unwavering patience and support. Our team is in full gear, crafting every detail with care, and while the journey has been slower than anticipated, rest assured that quality remains our top priority.
To provide you with a clearer view of our path ahead, we're working on a production timeline that will highlight key checkpoints and milestones. This detailed roadmap will showcase when you can expect new downloadable materials, updates, etc.
The official timeline will be published with our next update, scheduled for August 28th or earlier. This timeline will also be available on thegloamingwild.com, and we'll post an update any time it changes, so you can always be in the loop on the project's progress.
Update Schedule: Every Other Monday
As we enter the final chapter for content creation, we are making a commitment to maintain a standardized schedule for updates. Starting on 8/28, you will receive an update every other Monday. Even if it is extremely brief, we will post an update and continue our practice of sharing at least 3 never-before-seen pieces of art in each update.
Dynamic Biomes: Living Environments
Picture swamps teeming with drowned secrets and lurking horrors, mountains reverberating with stories of valor and terror, and urban expanses cloaked in a chorus of enigmatic whispers. The biomes of Orzovia, each a realm fraught with peril and uncertainty, will challenge your players differently with each journey.
The biomes are taking shape, and we're thrilled to give you a sneak peek of what's to come! In our next preview packet, scheduled for August 28th, you'll find not one, but two complete biomes ready for you to explore. Below is the Table of Contents for the forthcoming packet.
Preview of the Table of Contents page for the next preview packet - Biomes.
Updated Taxonomy: Familiar Terms
As we finalize our designs of these vivid environments, we've decided to make a necessary change in our biome category names. While we had initially chosen specifically flavored environments tailored to Orzovia's world-building, The Gloaming Wild's primary purpose as a book has always been to be a tool first, setting second.
In an effort to facilitate a smoother experience for GMs and players, we decided to align our biome system's categories with the language of core 5e terrains (as listed in Druids, Rangers, and GM material). Here are the changes to the biomes from versions you may have seen listed in the past:
Tundra → Arctic
Bayou → Swamp
Farmland → Grassland
Taiga → Mountains
Forest = Forest
Coastal = Coastal
Urban = Urban
Biome Variants: Creating Your Environments
Venturing deeper into the world of biomes, we've recognized the vastness of each category. While many swamps share common traits, there are nuances that differentiate bogs from estuaries. To empower Game Masters like you, we're including tools for biome variants. These enhancements enable you to tailor the wilderness experience, making every terrain feel unique and full of surprises.
At the end of the each biome section, there will be notes on simple ways to alter the various tables for that biome to make the experience more specific to the GM's vision. For example, a GM could alter their swamp to better resemble a bog, mire, or estuary, if that better serves their story.
Stretch Goals: Your Voice Matters
We love the beauty of collaboration, and we're excited to have your input in shaping the tools and world we're creating together. We've introduced a new round of stretch goal options for you to vote on. Your voice matters, and we hope you'll share your preferences through our backer-only survey:
For all Tier 1 and above backers, you should already have the Survivalist Class preview. If you've had a taste of the Survivalist Class, let us know what you think! Share your feedback on the Survivalist Class here:
(If you haven't received the Beta Document from December or the Survivalist Class Preview, just shoot us a message, and we'll send it again ASAP.)
A Glimpse of What's to Come
Thank you for reading this far! We hope you are excited about the upcoming packet as much as we are. Please enjoy this new, never-before-seen artwork!
Way of the Dead Monk early sketch
Way of the Dead Monk sketch. Can you spot which zombie failed thier Stunning Strike save?
Quartermaster Fighter tinkers on ally's armor after a skirmish.
Beast Trainer Ranger and Wolf Companion in color
As we wrap up this update, we want to express our deepest gratitude for your steadfast support. The path we're treading is one of adventure, discovery, and creativity, and we're thrilled to have you by our side.
Stay tuned for the next update, featuring a production timeline, new artwork, and a closer look at biomes. Thank you so much for being part of this epic journey.
From our table to yours,
Jarrett and Kimberly,
Quartermaster Games
Backer Feedback & Results
over 1 year ago
– Sun, Jun 04, 2023 at 04:18:26 PM
Hello Backers!
First of all, thank you so much for your understanding and condolences following the last update. I'm so grateful to be able to work on this passion project and making it the best I possibly can for you all!
It was very exciting to be able to share new content with you all. If any backers have not received either of the preview documents listed below, please message us on Kickstarter and we'll get that content to you directly.
We hope you enjoyed reading through the first half of the Survivalist class. If you had the opportunity to play with the content, I hope you had a great experience using the material. Backers can give their feedback on the Survivalist preview material in a quick 4 question survey. You can give additional notes there too, if desired. We'd love to hear from you!
Looking forward, we are thrilled to have y'all involved in shaping some of the last bits of game design for the book! The first round of voting for the stretch goals is now closed, and you chose Circle of Thorns Druid and Oath of Graves Paladin as the final contenders.
In the poll linked below, you can vote for your favorite between these two subclass options. You'll also get to rank your favorites for another stretch goal - Biomes!
For now, we hope you'll enjoy this new, never-before-seen artwork for The Gloaming Wild. The Smuggler Rogue art is now in full color. Others are new favorites at various stages in the process.
Eagle Eye Ranger takes her shots
Circle of Elements Druid channeling nature's fury
Smuggler Rogue navigates Zelindran sewers.
The next update is planned for a week or two from now. We aim to have Backerkit info as well as new content and production timelines in that update.
Thank you again for supporting this project and for your patience as we recalibrate. We sincerely hope you're loving the content you've received thus far!
From our table to yours,
Jarrett & Kimberly
Overdue Update and New Preview
over 1 year ago
– Fri, Apr 28, 2023 at 08:01:20 PM
Thank You
Thank you all so much for supporting this project that has been nearly six years in the making. We are thrilled to show you more of the work and involve you in the design process for the stretch goals you all unlocked.
Why the Delayed Update?
I also must thank you all for your patience. For the past few months, factors beyond our control slowed our progress. I wanted to have more to show you all in this update, so I kept pushing it back. I am truly sorry for the delayed communication thus far.
Quartermaster Games is a family business. Unfortunately, December through last week was a tragic and trying for our family. Just before the conclusion of the Kickstarter campaign, I developed some ongoing health complications, which have required a great deal of time, doctor visits, and support from my wife and coworkers. Things aren't perfect, but I'm very thankful to be settling into a new normal now.
More importantly, since the conclusion of the campaign, we've lost four close relatives: an aunt, an uncle, and two grandmothers. For several months, my grandmother needed continuous hands-on care. The chaos introduced into our lives by the travel, elder care, and grief absorbed more of our time and energy than I ever anticipated.
I am truly sorry for neglecting communication with you all while I was navigating this turbulent time. Now that things are calm and progress is ramping up, you'll be hearing from us regularly.
State of the Project
With this trying season behind us and no foreseeable obstacles ahead, we're excited about the future. Luckily, prior to launching the Kickstarter, we had a massive head-start on writing, game design, and layout---more than 200 pages of finished or late-draft material, all formatted. Thanks to the volume of work already done, content is only a little behind our original timelines. The logistic and physical production aspects of the project are what have been most effected by the previously mentioned complications.
We are confident that we can deliver a digital release of the book in late May as we had originally planned, although there may be additions/revisions between that version and what we send to print. When/if that happens, we'll send out an updated version of the pdf to all reward tiers, along with a summation of the changes. That way you'll know what may effect your games without having to search for it yourself.
As soon as we are able, we will provide you with an updated timeline with estimates of when we expect certain phases of the project to occur--PDF release, shipping cutoff, printing, shipping, etc.
In the meantime, we hope you'll enjoy this new, never-before-seen artwork for The Gloaming Wild. As much as possible, we plan to show new art as well as some early glimpses of artwork that is currently in progress. These are some of our favorites at various stages in the process.
Beast Trainer Ranger and her ferocious good boy (in progress)
Smuggler Rogue navigates Zelindran sewars (in progress)
Cleansing Domain Cleric, using its iconic Hammerfist cantrip
Download The Survivalist Packet
After many years of design, testing, and revision, we are thrilled to present to you, the Backers, the Survivalist. This is a new playable class created for The Gloaming Wild. The Survivalist PDF includes everything a player needs to play a Survivalist character from levels 1-10, including each of the four subclasses: the Fraternities of Shield, Forest, Hunt, and Night.
Backers of all reward tiers should gettheir their packet in their Kickstarter messageswithin the next few minutes. Any Backers who did not get the message or who had issues getting the download to work, please send us a message on Kickstarter with a description of your issue and we will resolve the problem as soon as we see it.
Stretch Goals!
There are a few pieces of game design that have yet to begin. That's the part in which you get to participate! Over the next several weeks, we will collect your votes for the unlocked stretch goal content.
Sometimes, these surveys will also ask for your input on other aspects of the project. This week, we are voting on the unlocked subclass. We also want to hear your preferences for update length and frequency for the rest of the campaign.
This survey is being sent to all backersnow.
Contest Winner
While the Kickstarter was live, we had a giveaway to spread word about the project. We're happy to announce Kenneth Smith (backer #155), is our winner of the Walnut Dice Tray Giveaway! Kenneth, we'll message you with more details. Congratulations!
We plan on doing more giveaways between now and the final release. We'll announce those on our socials and in project updates.
Looking Forward
We couldn't be more thrilled to be sharing these details with you. We hope you enjoy the art and peak at the process. And we hope you have a blast with the new previews material, whether that be in a campaign or theory-crafting. There is much more to come and we can't wait to share it with you. Thank you again for your patience and your support. None of this would be possible without you; we want you to love it as much as we have so far.
From our table to yours,
--Jarrett, Founder & Design Lead
First Backer Newsletter
Our project was featured on First Backer Newsletter and we’d like to invite you to join its growing community of Kickstarter backers - You'll receive fresh Kickstarter amazing early bird offers and awesome freebies delivered right to your inbox. Click here to subscribe.
Our project was featured on First Backer Newsletter, and we’d like to invite you to join its growing community of Kickstarter backers. You'll receive fresh Kickstarter amazing early bird offers and awesome freebies delivered right to your inbox. Click here to subscribe.
Earl Access & More Rewards
about 2 years ago
– Wed, Nov 02, 2022 at 08:35:17 PM
Hello everyone! Thank you so much for supporting the campaign! We're nearly at our goal and we couldn't have gotten this far without you. Here are a few updates that we hope you'll find exciting:
Early Access Materials
We're pleased to announce that on December 1st this year, ALL backers who pledged at Tier 1 or higher will gain exclusive Early Access to The Gloaming Wild's beta materials. That's the week after the Kickstarter ends, so you barely have to wait at all to start playing with the content! The documents will include the following material:
Major survival systems - Afflictions, Foraging, Recovery, & Curses
20+ new subclasses
40+ new spells and feats
10+ new ancestries including Saint Bloodlines, Werewolves, Vampires, as well as Half-blooded Vampires and Werewolves.
Extra Rewards
We so appreciate your sharing our campaign with your friends. After all, there is safety in numbers as we venture into the unknown. We want to reward you for bringing your friends along for this journey!
