Update
almost 7 years ago
– Mon, Jul 03, 2017 at 11:15:44 PM
Hi folks,
I'm Alan Bahr, Associate Producer at Nocturnal Media. At this point, I'm sure you've all heard the terrible news about Stewart's passing. I can't imagine how hard it's been on everyone (I can only speak for myself), but now comes the point where we have to push forward, past the pain, sorrow, and confusion, and this update is the first step down that road.
I'm popping in to make sure you know a few things.
The first being that someone from Nocturnal is here and we're not ignoring this Kickstarter.
Secondly, Steve Wieck (Stewart's brother) and I are sorting out the various Nocturnal projects that are outstanding (this is one), and we're figuring out what we need to do to keep things moving.
Expect a detailed plan of action in the near weeks (likely early next week, maybe a little later). Our every intention is to fulfill the outstanding Kickstarters, but our plans to do so might require some re-calibration before we proceed.
If you have any concerns, don't hesitate to reach out to me at my email: [email protected], and I'll do what I can to help.
Be aware, at this point, anything more concrete than "We're making plans, decisions and figuring out how to move forward" is unlikely, so please be patient with us.
- Alan
Chapter One is Complete!
almost 7 years ago
– Wed, Jun 14, 2017 at 12:42:02 PM
Well, 99% complete! Copy editor extraordinaire Drew Wendell will go back through it one more time to normalize language with the final text of the entire book, but he's given this first chapter a polish so that I can share it with you.
I've created a Dropbox folder where I'll put PDFs of the text as it's available. Please make comments if you notice anything amiss. It's a process that has worked very nicely with our translation of Aquelarre.
Please do not share this link with others. This text is provided for backers only.
For those who prefer to avoid hyperlinks, here's the address:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/meqguex13b2mzpc/AAAxcnA4kMmCKm8eOhGG1X0ca?dl=0
What's Next?
The rulebook is entirely translated and edited and Drew is in the process of polishing it to the form seen in this first chapter. He'll then make a final pass. But before that he'll take a slight detour so he can go back to the rulebook text with fresh eyes. And that detour is to a first pass at the text for the GM Screen as José has completed the translation of that.
Meanwhile, José has been at work on Justice of Angels.
And What's Now?
There are two small-format RPGs funding on Kickstarter now that might interest you! Tiny Wastelands will be published under our Gallant Knight Games imprint, while Clink is published in association with Sigil Stone Publishing. Both of these project creators have outstanding track records on Kickstarter, so please take a look!
Hellywood Status Report
almost 7 years ago
– Mon, May 08, 2017 at 11:54:15 PM
Apologies for the delay between updates. There's been a lot of activity in the background despite the foreground silence!
The Hellywood rulebook remains in editing through most or all of May. The copyediting process turned into a major ordeal because of colliding late translation projects. Our project for the Spanish RPG Aquelarre has also run very late due to to translation delays, but that project has picked up steam in recent months and the text is now finished. That means the copy editor who we'd tabbed for Hellywood was still busy with Aquelarre.
Finding a copy editor for a translation is a different kind of search than for something originally written in English. All good copy editors are exacting, but there's a different level of patience and concentration required for a translation.
We found our editor, though, and as he dug into the material he found that preserving the tone and voice of the original French game would require a good deal more time. Hence the end of May deadline, one that just in the past few days the editor has confirmed as solid.
After a break due to other work that was previously scheduled, translator José Luis Porfirio is working on the text included in the GM Screen. That material is about 25k words long and José expects to finish in the next 1-2 weeks. Therefore, the screen will catch-up with the main rulebook and ship in the first wave of product.
That's an important step as the translation of Justice of Angels is going to require several months more after the GM Screen and will definitely need to ship later than those other items.
The delays with these two translation projects (Aquelarre and Hellywood) has led to a decision to complete the translations of games in advance of seeking Kickstarter funding. This partly defeats the purpose of seeking the funding in the first place, but we're willing to sacrifice this financial security in order to deliver an on-time product.
This has already worked to good effect in our recent project for the Spanish RPG Innocents. This is a much smaller game than either Aquelarre or Hellywood, which limited that financial risk, but the process itself was far more satisfying. That game has already been delivered to backers.
I'm sorry that Hellywood continues to run late, but the rulebook and screen are on firm footing now. Both of these should be available in PDF by the end of June.
Translation Complete + Free Cards!
about 7 years ago
– Mon, Feb 27, 2017 at 03:00:18 PM
Great news! The translation of the Hellywood core rulebook is complete! The book is now in copy editing and then quickly to layout. The hoped-for March delivery of a PDF will depend entirely on how much clean-up is required to get the "translated English" to "native English". Nevertheless, this is a huge step toward fulfilling your rulebook.
What about the FREE CARDS? Read on...!
I'm pleased to announce that many of you have free bonus cards coming your way! We have a project currently on Kickstarter for Cold Shadows, a narrative espionage tabletop roleplaying game. We offered the Storypath Cards deck Path of Shadows as an add-on in that project and also included stretch goals to unlock as many as 18 additional cards we're calling Path of Cold Shadows. Backers of Cold Shadows unlocked ALL those cards and as an additional apology to you for the delay in this project, we're going to give those 18 new cards to Hellywood backers who added Path of Shadows to their rewards.
If you have not yet added Path of Shadows but would like to now, then please go to your Hellywood pledge manager page. If you need help finding your page, then use this recovery link. Alternately, you may wish to support Cold Shadows and add Path of Shadows there to push that project to even more stretch goals (it's hit two dozen already!).
If you already have Path of Shadows as a Hellywood reward, then you do NOT need to do anything in order to collect the additional 18 cards!
Finally, those of a classical literature or Arthurian bent may wish to consider supporting our live project for an Arthurian Library. The project includes both text and graphic novel editions of the classic Le Morte d'Arthur by Thomas Malory. It also includes a splendid encyclopedia of all things Arthurian called The Arthurian Concordance.
Thanks for your support for all our projects!
Translation Update
over 7 years ago
– Wed, Jan 04, 2017 at 02:02:41 PM
When last I updated you on the translation, we were aiming to have the enormous and information-dense Chapter Two finished by the end of November. Unfortunately, that slipped another month, but the good news is that it won't slip any further because I've just heard from José that he's completed the chapter.
Rulebook PDF Schedule
The Introduction thru Chapter Three are now finished, and *much* smoother sailing is ahead. José's prior estimate had been 2-3 months for the remainder of the book following Chapter Two, so that puts us into February/March territory, which means I remain focused on getting the PDF to you in March. That will require some fast copy editing, but I know Roderick (who edits much of the Nocturnal material) is up for the challenge. Plus, he can start on some of the completed sections of the book now.
Other Product Schedule
The translation dates above apply only to the Hellywood rulebook and not to Justice of Angels or the additional material unlocked as stretch goals. Therefore, I'm exploring shipping physical rewards in two waves.
Wave #1
The first shipment would include the rulebook plus whatever add-ons could be completed in the same time frame. This will likely be the map, dice, poker deck, and Path of Shadows.
Wave #2
Everything that doesn't make Wave #1!
Print Schedule
The Hellywood rulebook will go to press about two weeks after we release the PDF, so hopefully in early April. I want to give that little bit of time between PDF and press so that your hundreds of eyes can spot any errors we missed. This would mean a printed rulebook to you in early Summer, but there's a long line of dependencies to get there, starting back where we began with the translation schedule. On that, I will continue to update you!
Happy New Year!
In addition to looking at two shipments of physical goods for Hellywood, I can offer these as extra consideration for all of my very valued Kickstarter supporters:
Download a free copy King Arthur Pendragon 1st edition. it's a free download all of January 2017:
If you'd like a more recent narrative-oriented game to start the New Year, then I'm pleased to offer games by Ben Dutter, all available for 20% off if you use these coupons codes. Here's information about these games with links to FREE Quickstarts.
Belly of the Beast
Hunt the Wicked
Vow of Honor
