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5E Adventure: A Delve in the Cave

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I accidentally wrote a 5E fantasy RPG adventure! Wanna help me print it? This is a short campaign ... it ends on June 11, 2017.

I started playing fantasy RPGs in 1982 at seven years old. (Yes, THAT fantasy RPG.) I accidentally stumbled into a career publishing supplements and adventures for THAT game along with designing RPG systems of my own. Check out my Goodreads page or visit my website for more info.

On my recent trip to Texas for a regional game convention I scribbled out two pages worth of adventure notes for 5th Edition of the world's oldest and most popular roleplaying game (yes, THAT one) and ran a few players through it before we packed up and drove back to Atlanta.


Then I sat down and ended up typing almost ten thousand words (26 pages worth of text in the manuscript writing program I use). I was originally thinking of posting this online via the DM's Guild, but ...


It's kinda good. And I got a really talented cartographer to do the map and my illustrator I've worked with for more than a decade to draw the new monster type. It has a neat story, but is modular so it can be dropped into an existing sword & sorcery-style game or serve as the beginning of a more heroic fantasy campaign. The current plan is to assemble it as a 16-page saddle-stitched adventure module that's somewhat reminiscent of the old glory days of RPGs, but written in my voice with my own signature style.


I'd like to have a printed version to sell to folks in game stores, at conventions, and online. It's completely outside my product schedule and the budget for my little game company. So it's up to you (yes YOU) to figure out if that's gonna happen. If we reach our goal, we'll print at least a thousand copies and get it out to game stores. Otherwise we'll print smaller batch of products for backers to sell directly. No matter what, everyone will get what they pay for!

What's Already Done?
There is a complete manuscript that's already been through one rewrite and independent copyediting. Anyone who backs this will get a PDF of a fully playable version of this adventure within 48 hours of the campaign coming to a close! We also have a finalized adventure map and an illustration of the new monster that's a part of the scenario.


What Needs Finishing?The adventure needs typesetting and layout (which I can do myself and have already started tinkering with). And if we end up meeting the goal we'll need a piece of cover art, cover design, and maybe another piece of spot art to make a product ready for prime time. It will be published via the Open Game License through my company Signal Fire Studios . My products are sold into distribution and available in hobby game stores who choose to carry us.

Wait a minute, aren't you the guy who ... ?
Full disclosure: I have a mixed history with crowdfunding. While all three projects I've run in the past have funded and all three have sent out the primary product, things have been late and secondary rewards are something I'm still working to make good on. It's a long story mixed with bad luck and some poor choices on my part.

To mitigate that for this project I've got a few things in mind:

 • It's pretty much done. The manuscript is already written and revised. Whoever shells out a few bucks for this will get something they can use for their 5E game immediately, complete with map.

 • Reasonable goal, no crazy stretch goals. I'm not trying to make a lot of money off the crowdfunding, I just want to see if enough of you would like a cool 5E adventure to pay for us to make and print a nicer version than I initially planned.

 • Transparency. Anyone who backs the project will have access to an online spreadsheet that will reveal what I've paid for the project and when based on the actual funds received for it. I'm going to separate the funds from my normal company account so nothing will mingle until I hit a specific button to do so.

What's the Deadline?
I'm closing this in ten days ... June 11, 2017.

What do I get ... for how much?
• $1 - Veteran: You just wanna help make this happen, and it's really appreciated!

• $5 - Warrior: You get a digital (PDF) version of the adventure.

 • $15 - Swordsman: You get the digital (PDF) version and the final adventure once it's printed.

 • $50 - Hero: You get the digital and print edition and can help name and offer a signature descriptive trait for an NPC in the town of Shadowhaven that will be used in future adventures. (Limit 15)

 • $100 - Swashbuckler: You get the digital and print edition and can participate in an online playtest I will run via Roll20 with playtest credit in the final book. (Limit 7)

• $150 - Myrmidon: A combination of both the Hero & Swashbuckler rewards, and counts toward the limits for both. (Limit 7 possible)

• $200 - Champion: You get the digital and print edition and can name and help define the pregenerated characters with backgrounds tied to the town of Shadowhaven, who will also get a "headshot" illustration based on the description you help create! You will be credited as an Associate Publisher in the final product. (Limit 10)

Stretch Goals?

I said no "crazy" stretch goals. I have baked in a few that will be easy and fun to offer!

• $2,500: I'll write up a full description of the town of Shadowhaven (tied to the adventure), complete with adventure seeds, NPCs, and include a map.

 • $3,000: I'll create a short eBook that includes author notes, tips on running the encounters, suggestions on portraying NPCs, and more. I'll make it easy to have up on a phone or tablet to reference on game night!


Let's do this ... game on!

Organizer

Jamie Chambers
Organizer
Marietta, GA

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