Obsession: Characters Expansion (with Metal Coins)

Wrapping Up Fulfillment: Missing/Stolen/Delayed Pledges
over 1 year ago – Sun, Dec 08, 2024 at 12:22:14 PM

Pledge Issues 

Quick note that anyone who is having delivery issues with their pledges, please email me at [email protected]. I would ask that you don't use the KS comments, Facebook, or other social media messaging sites because if I don't aggregate all the messages in one location, I will disappoint you with a slow or missing response...I am not able to interact on 10+ different platforms regularly, and it is better if we communicate via email to get a fast resolution. 

Also note that I generally choose to replace pledges very quickly. I will not play a game of endless tracking, fighting with postal services, customs, or couriers, or expecting you to wait until a failed delivery is returned. I do not want any backer to be frustrated. However, my European distributor (Spiral Galaxy) is out of coins, so replacing European pledges if needed will be delayed by about 3 weeks as they receive additional coins from me at the end of this month; I just expedited them from the US. 

There are the outlying locations where games are still making their way to you (Brazil, the Middle East, South Africa, etc.); please be patient on those. I will start to update those locations in a separate post.

Thanks!

Dan Hallagan, Kayenta Games

URGENT: Non-EU Backers Getting Hit with Customs Fees (I will reimburse)
over 1 year ago – Wed, Nov 20, 2024 at 06:54:16 AM

Attention Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, Lichtenstein and Andorra Backers

Hello all! Pledges are arriving, and everyone seems to loving their expansions and meaty coins, but a small number of backers are not loving the extra fees. 

My plan to pay VAT for all backers hit a snag. There was a miscommunication with my European warehouse, and so the countries listed above (non-EU backers) are having to pay fees.

IMPORTANT: I will reimburse all customs fees that backers are asked to pay.

Please email me at [email protected] to get that cleared up. I apologise!

Dan Hallagan, Kayenta Games

Fulfillment Update, Neglecting My Beloved Northern Neighbours
over 1 year ago – Mon, Nov 18, 2024 at 03:59:12 PM

Canada Facts and Update

Are you aware that Canada is #1 in per capita Obsession pledges? The top three are:

• Canada
• US
• UK

And I have neglected #1 terribly. Oh, I've been having conversations in the comments, but not everyone reads the comments! 

We have all been on the receiving end of transportation hijinks, but Canada wins the prize. Not only did they, along with the Americas, have to navigate two hurricanes and a longshoreman's strike (their inventory comes from the US), but on the very day that Canadian fulfillment was to begin...guess what? The Canadian Postal service went on strike.

Good news, my Canadian friends! With the great help of BoardGameBliss, I have instantly moved from Canada Post to Canpar, and fulfillment continues delayed only by hours. You should be receiving your shipping notifications this week.

Other Regions

US & Europe: Everything has shipped in the US and Europe. The US finished mid-week last week, and Europe finished up today with the last 200 pledges.

ROTW Note: VFI completed their portion of the Kickstarter weeks ago, but VFI handles distant locations by shipping to a fulfillment partner hub in most countries. Given these extra steps (ocean freight, two companies, customs, etc.), some rest of the world shipments are still making the slow journey. 

Alas, Brazil, I apologize profusely, but the container ship with VFI's games for Brazil has not left China yet (they aggregate Kickstarters and reliably get packages into what is my most challenging country...which happens to have a passionate gaming community). I will update when it does.

GUARANTEE: Keep in mind that I guarantee that you will receive your pledge in perfect condition. I have a spotless record in this regard, and I have already navigated porch pirates, crushed boxes, missing coins, wayward servants, and more. In the end, you will get your pristine pledge.

Can I Fit Everything into the Main Box?

Yes!

BoardGameGeek Rating

As a one person company, grass roots and word of mouth means everything. Obsession's success is largely because of deep grass roots. If you haven't given a rating for Obsession on BoardGameGeek (talking about the base game...you obviously haven't had a chance to take Characters for a spin), I would ask you give a real rating when you get a chance. Helps out a ton!

Thank you!

Dan Hallagan, Kayenta Games

A Concise Summary of the Tile Issue, New Meeple University Videos, and Exciting Fulfillment Update
over 1 year ago – Thu, Nov 07, 2024 at 12:08:57 PM

No, my dog lover friends, the cats have not vanished. While I was dealing with strikes and pirates and delays and production mistakes, I did neglect them. They have been waiting. 

I know 'unleash the hounds!' is a saying, but now I must unleash the cats!

Characters Tile Thickness Issue

As soon as I learned that 1.8mm stock was used to print the Characters' punchboard (the Obsession standard is 2.5mm), I moved quickly to disclose it. In doing so, I was not as clear as I should have been. 

This section covers everything you need to know, concisely giving bullet points describing the problem and the solution. It is intended to be a reference for everyone going forward.

SUMMARY

• All improvement tiles for the Obsession family of games are 2.5mm thick.
• The improvement tiles in the Characters expansion are 1.8mm thick. I missed this during my review of the Mass Production Copy (MPC).
• These three improvement tiles (two copies of each) are the Business Room, alternate West Terrace, and Pony & Trap developed by Tony Boydell of Snowdonia fame.
• The Business Room and alternate West Terrace have been printed before. If you are wondering why I am printing them now, watch this video (rather humourous). 
• Only the Pony & Trap promotional tile is new (front and back shown for each tile).

• If one evaluated the content in the Characters expansion, this punchboard probably represents < 5% of the content. My only reason for saying this is to reassure people that my mistake, while needing fixing, is a very small part of what I think will be a ton of great (and well-produced) content.
• My policy is that I am obligated (happily so) to fix any mistakes. This was seen in the creation of the (now obsolete) Useful Box (see here) in 2021 to primarily fix a significant typo on the Housekeeper's Room and correct a very badly stitched improvement tile bag.
• There are two issues with the thinner tile: 1) when in your tableau, it is noticeably thinner, and 2) when reaching into your bag, it might be perceptible when pulling a tile. 
• To see a video showing the thinner tiles and explaining more detail, go here.
• Otherwise, there is no impact on gameplay.
• I have printed 15,000 copies for the Characters expansion, 7,500 for the Kickstarter and 7,500 for global retail. All these copies are currently deployed around the world.
• To fix those copies, I need to print (at least) 15,000 replacement punchboards.
• To print, transport, package, and ship 15,000 punchboards to each backer and each retail customer is a massive logistic and financial problem. Logistically, I do not have visibility to international retail sales, which will happen over time. Financially, if I could somehow get that information, the average cost of shipping and labour (even when using international hubs) is well over $10 USD per shipment. You can do the math. That expense is something that I can't manage. 
• If this were a major issue, I would get a loan and proceed without hesitation. Given that there is no impact on gameplay, I devised a different plan.
• I have long had a Universal Rulebook (all rulebooks combined) project scheduled, and it is fully underway. 
• That project will produce a free PDF online once it is finished, and a spiral-bound, A4 sized physical copy that will be crowdfunded. That Kickstarter was already planned for Spring 2025 (about the time when I would be getting my replacement punchboards).
• This physical rulebook will fit inside the 2nd edition box (it's going to be close, but that's my plan).
• I believe that most people who own the Characters expansion will want a physical Universal Rulebook that eliminates all the loose rulebooks you have to struggle with now. 
• My plan is to package a replacement 2.5mm punchboard with the Universal Rulebook (at no additional cost to backers), which will allow me to avoid a large percentage of the cost described above and stay around to make you exciting future content like Parlour, a Victorian trick-taking, tableau-building card game complete with new art (scheduled for Fall 2025):

• If someone who does not own the Characters expansion gets the Universal Rulebook, no harm, no foul. They will get at least one promotional tile they don't have.
• For those Characters owners who do not want the physical Universal Rulebook, they can contact me at [email protected] after the Spring Kickstarter project (at which time I will have replacement punchboards), and I will send a replacement to you at no charge.

Meeple University Instructional Videos

I love the content produced by Stella and Tarrant at Meeple University. I engaged them to make two videos, one for the Characters expansion, and a separate one for the Cooperative Mode (which needs its own video). Enjoy as you wait for your pledge to arrive!

CHARACTERS

COOPERATIVE MODE

Fulfillment Update

As you have no doubt seen, backers are reporting that shipping emails have started flowing in both Europe and the Americas. After all the obstacles, the shipping should wrap up within the next 10 days. I would ask that you be patient; both Quartermaster Logistics and Spiral Galaxy are managing a large amount of orders, and I have no visibility to what is being processed. 

As stated before, it is impossible for you not to get your pledge. If anything happens and you fail to get your pledge, I will replace it from my office in Utah. I have not failed to get everyone their pledges in over five years of Kickstarters, and I am not about to start.

Thanks!

Dan Hallagan, Kayenta Games

Universal Rulebook and Characters Punchboard
over 1 year ago – Fri, Oct 25, 2024 at 01:51:51 PM

Announcing the Universal Rulebook Project

I have always thought it in extremely bad taste to discuss a future crowdfunding project while still fulfilling the current one. I had no intention of doing this, but I made a mistake, and my Spring 2025 Universal Rulebook project is part of the solution.

Please watch this video (SORRY, video is public now): 

To summarize: 

• During my review of the Mass Production Copy (MPC), I missed that the six-tile punchboard had been printed on the wrong thickness of cardboard.
• Your Characters Expansion otherwise is perfect, and it is fully playable.
• I need to reprint the 15,000+ punchboards with the correct 2.5mm thickness.
• I will be doing this as part of my launch of the Universal Rulebook in Spring 2025 because the $150,000+ total cost for replacing the punchboards directly (printing, ocean shipping, warehousing, boxes, labour, and postage) would jeopardize Kayenta Games.
• Because I will be 'piggybacking' the postage for the Universal Rulebook, I will likely pay the VAT again (or discount the rulebook even more than planned). I don't have the exact costs yet, but it will be aggressive (as it was with the Characters expansion).
• If you are not inclined to back the Universal Rulebook, I will be making arrangements to have spare punchboards.

I apologize for the issue and promise it will be corrected.

Fulfillment Mini-Update

All games/coins are off the boats! 

MY BEST GUESS: The Americas expect to begin fulfillment in about 10 days. Europe is on the same timeline. Emails to confirm addresses should start in about a week. Don't hold me to this exactly or there will be a warehouse strike with lightning and pirates. But I am hopeful!

Dan Hallagan, Kayenta Games