Vol 27: Alchemy & Ambushes

SPOTLIGHT

If you were to measure Alchemy’s success in units of Tolkien, its recent exit from long beta as a free VTT was The Adventures of Tom Bombadil: curious and charming, but not shaking the foundations of Middle-earth. Their launch of Blades in the Dark? That was The Hobbit: a clean, confident outing that brought plenty of people to the door. Now, on the eve of Daggerheart, what will we get? The Lord of the Rings, with the beacons lit and the whole hobby turning its head? Or The Silmarillion: impressive and adored by the faithful, but not quite built for everyone wandering the Shire? One can only wait but a few sleeps, with second breakfast close at hand, for the next chapters of the adventure.

NEWS & RELEASES

Caked Up

Set your alarm, bake a cake (or buy some Pop-Tarts), and join the festivities on Daggerheart’s Birthday Livestream, this Wednesday, May 20th, at 4pmPT. It’s an all-hands celebration coupled with some new announcements. (Can’t wait until then? Here are some Hope & Fear spoilers, without context.) 

Rezendes Roundhouse

Already watched the spoilers? Want to see Elise muscle up? She comes out swinging on Luck of the Draw, pulling no punches as she swipes Rowan’s favourite Class.

Alchemical Magic

Alchemy VTT’s Daggerheart module goes live the day after Daggerheart's birthday, and they were kind enough to share with us a sneak peek of the Cards and Card Builder experience, along with the custom soundtrack from the Enhanced edition. Here’s Product Designer George Affonso on the overall project:

"I’ve been in love with Daggerheart since the open betas, so being asked to lead the design for this implementation was incredibly exciting for me. 

One of our biggest priorities was sitting down with the people behind it. Getting to chat with the game designers was invaluable in helping us shape the best experience we could for players. One of our biggest goals was making the digital experience feel as smooth and collaborative as the game does at the table, with tools that support the story without getting in the way of it. There’s a lot more coming, and we’re incredibly excited for players to see where we take it next."

Alchemy also released general in-game and out-of-game video tutorials to re/familiarize everyone with their ropes and pulleys—and the intense effort and craft that's gone into the platform over the last year. [Ed: We noticed the homebrew segments for custom and licensed material.]

Dagger Dividends

As part of the celebratory jam, Heart of Daggers announced that creators on the platform will retain 100% of earnings for the week. They’re also giving away a couple of Hope & Fear pre-orders.

Birthday Buffs

While “optimization” isn’t typically associated with birthdays, consider it a gift that Demiplane sheets load 90% faster and Owlbear Rodeo has added effortless map alignment.

Adversary Appraisal

Over on the sub, Hosidax and crew have added Monster Monday—celebrate and critique Adversaries like you’re a fashion vlogger at a Marc Jacobs runway.

Cons & Couture

If you’re stateside, Origins Game Fair in Columbus, Ohio is looking for GMs to run Daggerheart at the upcoming con. If you go, wear one of these stylish windbreakers from Jack Panic.

CROWDFUNDING

Cash of Cthulhu

As the trades say—Woof! Call of Cthulhu 1912 hauled 2x their Kickstarter ask, landing close to $100k to bring Lovecraftion horror to Daggerheart. This is the biggest raise outside of Drakkenheim, and opens the Daggerheart doors to Cthulhu fans worldwide. 

Heart of Darkness

Hot on Cthulhu’s heels are the demons of Dudley, UK, who are readying Demonheart for launch this Tuesday, May 19. This is a big boi—450 pages, 7 Domains, 66 subclasses, and possibly a 12-ft wall-mounted tapestry. Crank some Sabbath or Slayer and start your prayer circle.