Happy Grunnlovsdagen, Norway!
almost 6 years ago – Sun, May 20, 2018 at 12:30:47 PM

Haakon has left me at the helm today because it's May 17th, and that's Norwegian Constitution Day, as you all know. So he will be off celebrating all day, probably drinking too much beer, and almost certainly laughing at jokes about Sweden. They're all friends now though, so I'm sure that's fine.

To continue the theme of Haakon in costume, which we touched on in the last update, he confided in me last night of his sadness at not being able to afford the appropriate attire for today's festivities. If this campaign does well enough, Grunnlovsdagen 2019 could be an even more joyous occasion for the man. Here's what he has his eyes on...

 IT'S LINEN CARDS, EVERYONE!

I almost went full Rick Sanchez and used a bad word in that headline. Conscience stopped me at the last minute. Stupid conscience. But anyway, we did it. Everything is going to be OK.

 Next Stretch Goal: Card Dividers

I'm a big fan of card dividers in games with lots of cards that stand up in the box. Villagers will certainly benefit from them quite a bit, helping make setup go faster. One little thing that bugs me about dividers is that they're normally made from the same material as the actual cards, and with use they can get quite dog-eared. We could go for plastic dividers, but Villagers isn't a plastic kind of game, so instead we're aiming to add some nice solid punchboard dividers insead. Six of them to be precise, with full colour print, on 1.5mm board. This stretch goal will be included in the base game.

The image doesn't show the proper thickness of the dividers, or any text or graphics that might be on them - Haakon prepared the visual in a hurry last night, but we'll update it soon.

Making the dividers from board instead of cardstock is more expensive of course, but we're approaching a price break from the manufacturer based on the number of games we'll be printing, so things balance out more-or-less. Still, this stretch goal will take us a little longer to reach than the others, but it will be worth it! After this, we're back to some brand new cards for the stretch goal pack...

Best wishes,

Dave & not Haakon

Day Two: Electric Boogaloo
almost 6 years ago – Sun, May 20, 2018 at 12:28:03 PM

A great second day is drawing to a close, in which we knocked out not one, but two stretch goals! The most recent casualty is the alternate art Basic Villager cards. As soon as he can catch his breath, Haakon is going to draw brand new versions of the Hayer, Miner, and Lumberjack. The rumour is that the alternates will be gender swapped, but I couldn't possibly comment.

And now for something...

Since the dawn of time, humanity has sought to impose its will on the primal might of nature; forming it, controlling it, and yet so often, only to be destroyed by it. Just as the first humans harnessed elemental flame and bent it to their will, so do we, the creators and supporters of the Villagers Kickstarter campaign, take the humble playing card in our weak and insignificant hands, and summon the naked fortitude to look upon it and say, "No. A mere aqueous varnish playing card coating will not avail us. Not today, and not ever."

Brothers. Sisters. Humans. We bring you...

...a stretch goal for linen finish cards.

There's literally nothing you can say to make it exciting, and you can't say I didn't try.

Much love,

Dave & Haakon

Another Day, Another Stretch Goal!
almost 6 years ago – Sun, May 20, 2018 at 12:26:21 PM

Good morning, villagers! It appears you were busy while I was sleeping, and we're now going to be the proud owners of a mystery First Player token!

You've been putting forward your suggestions for what it could be in the comments section, and while I haven't done an official count yet, it seems to me that the cockerel / rooster idea might be in the lead. We'll make the final call by the end of play today, so by all means cast your vote.

 You're Basic!

Those Basic Villagers are a bit basic, don't you think? Let's liven them up a bit by having Haakon draw alternate art for the Miner, the Lumberjack, and the Hayer, making them all double-sided and double the fun. Our fourth stretch goal unlocks at £25,000 - do you think we can do that today?

The Saints March In & New Stretch Goal Revealed
almost 6 years ago – Sun, May 20, 2018 at 12:24:42 PM

Fellow villagers,

What do you know - we've unlocked another stretch goal! The Scoundrels have been joined by their counterparts, the Saints. That's a total of 20 new cards added to the free stretch goal pack we'll be including for everyone who pledges for a copy of the game.

So that means we've revealed our next stretch goal. If we raise £20,000 we'll include a chunky wooden First Player token to the stretch goals pack, to be used in place of the card that comes in the base game.

Our factory can produce a custom cut wooden token with full colour heat transfer printing on both sides, but we want you to help us decide what it's going to look like. Current ideas include a pig, a cockerel, or a scarecrow, but what do you think? Come over to the main comments section and let us know...

Funded in 3 hours!!!
almost 6 years ago – Sun, May 20, 2018 at 12:22:03 PM

Well that was an interesting afternoon. Before we launched the campaign I was quietly confident that we'd fund at some point in the next 29 days, but I would never have guessed that we'd blast though our funding goal in a mere 3 hours. You caught us well & truly off guard with that one.

Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou!

So where does that leave us? Oh yes...

Stretch Goals

Stretch goal #1 was dragged into the village square and publicly executed at £10,000, so we now have some Scoundrels to add into the mix!

These crafty characters add a take-that element to the game for those who like that sort of thing, but you can leave them out if you prefer a gentler game. The fifth Scoundrel is a little shy, but he'll show his face sooner or later...

Hot on the heels of those rascally ne'er-do-wells are another bunch who make up our next stretch goal. These are much more amenable folk, the sort of people you'd have no problem taking home to meet your parents. Well, the Prophet has this weird thing about staring into flames for hours on end, but he's a lovely guy. Ladies & gentlemen, we bring you the Saints mini expansion...

Once we've enlisted these fine folk, we'll set our sights on an upgrade for our start player token - currently a lowly card with "First Player" on it...

Thanks again everyone, you've exceeded our expectations by many a country mile!

See you in the comments,

Dave & Haakon