January Update (now with more jamming!)
over 2 years ago – Mon, Jan 24, 2022 at 06:15:17 PM

Happy new year everyone! I'm sure we can all agree that 2021 was a tough one. But it was also the year that Stealing the Throne happened, so it'll always have a special place in my heart...

Current status

• Holidays are the best. I took a really lovely, relaxing break over Christmas and the New Year. Totally worth it. Saw the new Matrix Resurrections, too, and that got me thinking about Stealing the Throne hacks...
• Ancient Hero playsets. After my break, I've picked up the keyboard again and I'm making some solid progress on the Ancient Hero playsets. It's fun to be back!
• More #StealingTheJam entries! We're up to ten entries so far, including a couple of new playsets (!) - so much cool stuff to check out!

#StealingTheJam extended

The punchline first: #StealingTheJam will now run until March 31st 2022, the end of my birthday month. That's a couple more months to join in the fun, making hacks, supplements, and playsets for Stealing the Throne! We've got ten already - could we get to 15 do you think?

Why the extension? #StealingTheJam was originally scheduled to end a week from now, and that was making me a bit sad. I'm having so much fun checking out what everyone is creating, and I know there are a few more cool hacks in the works. Plus I know some people have only just discovered it's happening. I was reflecting on this when it dawned on me: there is literally no reason why I can't extend the jam. And so I have! 

Is this a very long jam? Yes. Do long jams suit me? Also yes. I hope they suit you too!

Two new indie Thrones

In the last update I spoke about four #StealingTheJam entries: three fascinating hacks, and one super useful toolkit. Since then, two Stealing the Throne hackers have submitted Throne playsets to the jam, and I couldn't be more excited about them! Throne playsets were a new addition to the game, made possible by this Kickstarter, and I've always been interested in seeing what other people do with the format. Now Unnecessary Games and Rrok Anrolle (aka Thomas Minser) have generously granted my wish!

THE CURSED ONE, by Unnecessary Games

The Cursed One has had a thousand masters, a poisoned chalice that kills (or worse) everyone who possesses it. Are you absolutely sure you want to steal it?

I really love what Unnecessary Games has done with the Background prompts on this playset: five of them are rumours about very specific Curses that the Throne bestows (on its owners, or its enemies, or both? I guess you'll find out, and probably too late!), making for a truly frightening Throne. The lists of Thieves and Rivals are also super interesting: a member of the Galactic Council working for the thieves? A woman who will inherit the Throne (and surely suffer a grim fate) as a rival? I'd love to find out how that plays out!

Oh, and one more thing: The Cursed One has art! A fabulously ominous piece by Fabio Gagliardi, which I believe was commissioned expressly for this playset. So cool!

THE FUSION KNIGHTS, by Thomas Minser

You know what Stealing the Throne doesn't have? Combining mecha. Until now, that is!

The Fusion Knights brings us two combining Thrones: The Valorous Knight and The Tragic Knight. Arch enemies, they clashed in an epic duel which tore them asunder and scattered their component mecha across the galaxy. Which of these Valors or Tragedies will your thieves try to recover?

I love how Thomas has experimented with the playset format here, giving us a huge cast of twenty-four characters, and ten mecha hidden in ten different locations to steal. I bet the getaway is ridiculously fun, each thief retrieving their own mech during the heist and then finally building the combined Throne... The Valors and the Tragedies all have excellent names, too; I think Integrity Gale might be my favourite.

So, those are two excellent new Throne playsets - what would you do with the format?

(We've also got three excellent new hacks to talk about, but I'll save that for next time. Why not beat me to it, and check out Save Our Souls, Sealing the Fate, and Stealing the Crone right now?)

Next steps

• Ancient Hero playsets. My top priority for the next month is getting drafts for the two Ancient Hero playsets in good order.
• Hacking? As I predicted might happen, I spent part of my break thinking about a Stealing the Throne hack. Maybe, if I can find the time...

> Operator, I need an exit. _

- Nick

December Update (zines arriving and jam submissions!)
over 2 years ago – Fri, Dec 24, 2021 at 05:05:30 PM

It's December 23rd, and you know what that means...  

Obviously.

Current Status

• Zines are arriving! I've had reports of zines as far away as Canada, France, Belgium, the US, Finland, and even a couple in Australia. Keep on sharing those photos, folks - each and every one brightens my day!
• First submissions to #StealingTheJam! We're up to 35 participants and 4 entries to the Stealing the Throne game jam already, which is ace. Come and join the fun, check out the entries, and maybe make one of your own?

#StealingTheJam

Stealing the Jam is in full swing, and I'm really excited to say that we've got 4 submissions already (plus the original game)! These four consist of three hacks and one supplement, and I think they’re a wonderful window into what's possible with the engine. I'm going to highlight each of them here, but I'm also really excited to see what else comes out of the jam. If you're thinking about joining in, it runs until the end of January 2022, so there's still plenty of time! (Personally, I'm hoping we see a few Throne playsets before it's done!)

(Pictured: me, watching cool game designers transform Stealing the Throne!)

STEALING THE STONES, by Joshua Fox

If you thought stealing a thousand-year-old giant mech was ridiculous, how about stealing Stonehenge?! Stealing the Stones is the original Stealing the Throne hack, and still the only one I've had the pleasure of playing. Aside from the fun of the game itself (and it's ridiculously fun), there are a number of interesting twists on the engine here, including a recruitment montage which would work great in just about any heist. Plus: rules for Merlin!

NEAR CARBON BLADES, by Craig Duffy

Craig was super quick out of the gate, releasing the first Stealing the Throne supplement before #StealingTheJam even began! It's a series of cool prompts for the planning phase, designed to generate backstory detail about the Throne, your crew, and the threats they'll face. Just flip a card to generate a random prompt, and see where it takes you! I love this so much - particularly the hearts - and look forward to incorporating it into my own games.

HEALING THEIR OWN, by Alex Rinehart

Officially the first submission to #StealingTheJam, Alex's hack imagines a crew even more badass than the thieves: the trauma team sent in to rescue an injured thief who got left behind on an earlier job. One of my favourite things about game jams like this is the emergent interactions you get between entries, and Healing Their Own is a prime example: if you've just had a thief go out in a blaze of glory in Stealing the Throne, why not play a follow-up game of Healing Their Own to rescue them? Mechanically speaking, Healing Their Own also adds a countdown to the job, which I’m keen to borrow for other hacks!

BREACHING THE HOUSE, by Léon Othenin-Girard

Breaching the House is the biggest drift from Stealing the Throne so far. It's about an Intrusion into a strange House searching for answers, inspired by Susanna Clarke's Piranesi. It absolutely oozes atmosphere (one of the Houses: "The Labyrinth of Statues, at the mercy of the tides"), and Léon has flipped the card mechanic so that the deck belongs to the Intrusion and your hands to the House. It's a super interesting design, and I can't wait to try it out!

AND MORE TO COME...

Over on discord, a bunch of other cool jam entries are brewing. Here are a few teasers: 

• Logan Timmins is working on Stealing the Crone, a hack where you play Grandkids helping their mischievous Grandparent escape their retirement home! (I adore this one so much!)
• Marren is toiling away on Stealing the Scone, where players take on the role of daring pigeons preparing for their most perilous heist yet: freshly baked scones from the café down the street!
• ZeeNovos is poking at two different hacks. In Stealing What's Grown, you're a group of hard working prize veggie growers who need to steal seeds from the usurpers who have taken your spots for the last two years. In Stealing the Bones, you're a group of thieves who desperately need a wish granted, and in order to get it you have to rescue a magic-user's resurrected familiar.
• Unnecessary Games is working on The Cursed One playset: in a thousand years, The Cursed One has had a thousand owners. Will you be the next? (The first playset in the jam, which is very exciting!)
• The Dice is working on Save Our Souls, where you break into the domain of a Dark Power to steal back your stolen soul.

So, which one of these hacks would you play first?

Next Steps

• Christmas break! It's been a big year, from Kickstarter planning at one end to delivery at the other, all in the middle of a pandemic. I'm really proud of what we've done here, and I think we’ve all earned a little rest!
• Drafting Ancient Hero playsets. Once the Christmas holidays are over, my top priority is the Ancient Hero playsets. I've already had some seriously cool input from those two generous backers, so I'm looking forward to putting figurative pen to figurative paper! 

(What do you reckon the odds are that I'll end up spending some time over Christmas at the game design drawing board?)

- Nick

It's time: shipping complete!
over 2 years ago – Mon, Dec 13, 2021 at 12:03:48 PM

As of yesterday, all of the zines have shipped! That's a whopping 406 packages, all in the hands of the Royal Mail. Read on for some more details, but that's the big news! 

Just the facts

• Zines have shipped! If you completed your BackerKit survey, your zine is on its way, and should be with you before Christmas. Exciting times!
• #StealingTheJam has begun. The game jam has begun - come and make cool Stealing the Throne hacks and supplements with us!

Help spread the word!

Now that the game is out in the world, let's spread the word! Here are five things that you can do to help:

• Post pictures to your social media. Lots of backers have been doing this already as their zines have arrived, and it never fails to make my day!
• Tell us about your games! I absolutely love hearing about your heists, and I'm sure other folks do to. I've noticed a trend, too: I don't think I've seen any clean getaways yet. Will yours be the first? Tag me in so I can share your exploits!
• Ratings, reviews, and comments. Five star ratings help keep the game in the charts, so new people can find it. If you liked it, pop over to the itch.io page and leave a rating! Reviews are also amazing, but itch has a weird quirk where only the creator sees them. If you'd like everyone to see them (and why wouldn't you?!), drop them in the comments on the game's page as well.
• Podcasts, actual plays, and blogs. Are you on a podcast, actual play, or blog that's interested in featuring Stealing the Throne? If so, please give me a shout - I'd love to talk with you.
• Join #StealingTheJam. Join the game jam to make hacks, supplements, playsets, and other Stealing the Throne mods. We've got 29 participants and 4 cool submissions already, plus lots of chatter on the discord! I know there are more excellent games on the way...

The shipping adventure

As of December 10th, all of the zines have been shipped. According to my post office, I beat Christmas shipping deadlines no matter where you are in the world, so that means you should receive your zines before December 25th (fingers crossed!). Christmas is always a busy time for international shipping, so please do give it until then for them to arrive. If you haven't receive your zine by Christmas, drop me a message and we'll sort it out.

(Just a quick reminder, particularly for folks in the EU, that any customs fees or import duties are your responsibility - unfortunately, I just couldn't figure out any feasible way I could cover them. I haven't had any reports of fees so far, so with luck there won't be any, but I do want to be transparent about this!) 

Anyone want to see pictures? This was my first time shipping anything on this scale - it was a learning experience, but I'm pleased to say that everything seems to have go smoothly. So far, at least! 

There are sixteen stragglers who haven't yet filled out their BackerKit surveys. If you're one of those people, please do it as soon as you can - I can't send you your rewards if you don't. You can find out what to do if you've lost your survey email in the November backer update. 

A small Kickstarter bonus

When you receive your packages, you'll notice a couple of cards inside. These are a little bonus I cooked up for generous Kickstarter backers (and con attendees). I absolutely loved Galen Pejeau's work on the Throne icons, and wanted somewhere else I could feature them... 

If you're lucky enough to play Stealing the Throne in person, you can use these cards to mark who is the Throne and who is the Thief in each scene. I did something very similar at Dragonmeet, and I think it worked pretty well!

(You may recall when you filled out your BackerKit survey, I asked you which Throne you were going to steal first. That's how I decided which Throne card to include in your package!)

Of course, they double as business cards, with a little advertisement for the game on the back. If you don't think you're going to get any use out of them, why not give them to a friend who might be interested in the game, or drop them off where other gamers might see them? If you leave one somewhere cool, send me a pic!     

What's next?

• Throne playsets for Ancient Hero backers. Now that the zines are out, it's time for me to return to Alpha Regalis and The Solemn Antic and give them the attention they deserve.
• Stretch goals. There are two stretch goals outstanding: the solo rules supplement, and an annotated galactic map. As soon as the Ancient Hero playsets are sorted, they're next!
• More hacking! More about #StealingTheJam in the next update, but it's already underway so come and join the fun! 

(Me, after I dropped the last of the zines at the post office.)

- Nick

November Update (PDF release and game jam!)
over 2 years ago – Mon, Nov 22, 2021 at 09:50:31 PM

Folks, it's November and it's all happening!  

(This is me battling Kickstarter fulfilment logistics.)

Current Status

• Final PDF released! You should soon receive an email from BackerKit, with a link to your Stealing the Throne download key. This key unlocks your access to the finished game in PDF!
• Join the Stealing the Throne game jam! From December 1st to January 31st, we're going to make some cool Stealing the Throne-inspired stuff. Come and join the fun!
• Printing is under way! I've sent the final files off to the printer, and they should be hard at work making your zines. I'm picturing giant printing presses like in the movies: "Extry! Extry! Read all about it! Giant robot stolen by crew of dashing thieves!"

Digital zine released!

You should shortly be receiving an email from BackerKit with the subject line "New Digital Content for Stealing the Throne on BackerKit". That email contains a link to your unique download key, granting you access to the final, complete Stealing the Throne PDF zine (plus separate PDF versions of the Throne playsets for printing).

Go! Go now!  

To access the PDF files, just copy the download key link from BackerKit and paste it into your browser window. You'll need an itch.io account - if you don't have one already, they're free and quick to set up, and they give you access to a world of amazing indie tabletop game design. Why not take a look at some other games by the Stealing the Throne crew: Galen Pejeau, Jane Hermiston, Melody Watson, Sam Tung, and me? This game and this game feature mecha art by Si Sweetman too.

If you didn't receive an email from BackerKit, don't worry. Here are some things you can try:

• Check your junk folder!
• Make sure you filled out your BackerKit survey, and that your payment details are correct. If you lost your BackerKit invite, you can recover it here.
• Log into BackerKit directly, and go to your Digital Downloads to find the key.
• If none of that works, drop me a message!

When you've had a chance to read the game (or, even better, play it!) I would absolutely love to hear your thoughts. You can find me on twitter and discord as usual, and ratings and comments are always welcome on the game's itch page. And if you run a podcast or actual play stream and you fancy talking about the game, reach out!

Game jam! Game jam!

To celebrate Stealing the Throne making its way into the world, it's time for a game jam! 

A couple of months back I mentioned that I think Stealing the Throne is extremely hackable - it's a simple, expandable framework for epic heist games. If making something like that sounds fun to you, then this is your chance: come and join Stealing the Jam! For two months beginning December 1st, we'll be making all sorts of things inspired by Stealing the Throne: new playsets, supplements, expansions, even entirely new games. 

There are some cool hacks in the works already - what's yours going to be about? 

Next Steps

• Wait nervously by the door for boxes from Mixam. 
• Steal the secrets of Royal Mail Click & Drop. This is my first time shipping on anything like this scale. The shipping materials are all ready to go, but I need to crack the last few arcane secrets of Royal Mail Click & Drop so I'm ready to send out your zines.
• Play Stealing the Throne at Dragonmeet on December 4th! Are you going to be at Dragonmeet? If you see me, say hi! Fancy playing some Stealing the Throne? There'll be sessions running at Indie Games on the Hour! 

Exclamation mark!

- Nick

It's time: locking orders, charging cards
over 2 years ago – Wed, Nov 10, 2021 at 12:08:50 AM

Stealing the Throne is moving into production (!) so it's time for important updates. 

(If you make it all the way to the end of this update, I promise to provide proof!)

Just the facts

• Cards will be charged on Monday November 15th: On Monday I'll give the go-ahead to charge cards for shipping and any add-ons you've ordered via BackerKit. Please make sure your payment details are correct before then.
• Addresses will be locked on Monday November 15th: I'll also lock down delivery addresses on Monday November 15th. Take a moment to double-check that the address you provided in your BackerKit survey is correct, to make sure I can get your zines to you.
• To the 25 BackerKit hold-outs, please complete your surveys: There are 25 backers who still haven't filled out their BackerKit surveys. If you're one of them, please do it now! That goes double if you're one of the 12 print backers who have not yet responded. If you don't fill out your survey, I can't get you your zine!

So what's happening now?

The big news first: I've just ordered the print copies of Stealing the Throne! 

While Mixam are printing the zines, I need to finalise some details so that I can get ready for shipping. That's what this update is all about.

1) First, I need to charge your cards. This is how I'll collect postage, plus any funds for add-ons you've ordered through BackerKit. I'm going to hit the button to charge cards on Monday November 15th, so please take a moment to ensure that your payment details are all correct in BackerKit. 

2) Second, I need to lock delivery addresses. This is so I can generate the reports I need to produce shipping labels and get your zines into the postal system. I'll hit the button to lock addresses on Monday November 15th, so please do make sure yours is up-to-date in BackerKit. Especially if you've recently moved!

"When am I going to get my zine?" I hear you ask. The short answer is, I'm not entirely sure! This is my first time shipping out anything like this project, so there are a bunch of moving parts I need to figure out - exporting reports from BackerKit, importing reports to Royal Mail, printing shipping labels, filling out Customs forms, a whole bunch of stuff. Suffice it to say, I'll keep you updated on progress, so you'll know when things are headed your way.

Complete your survey!

There are currently 25 backers who have not filled out their BackerKit surveys. Of these, 12 are print backers. If you do not fill out your survey, you won't get your rewards! 

It only takes a few minutes, so please go ahead and do it now. If you've lost your survey email, or didn't receive it in the first place, you can follow this link to generate a new one: https://stealing-the-throne.backerkit.com/. Just enter your Kickstarter email address, and a fresh survey email should arrive in your inbox.

If you're having any difficulties with this, please reach out to me, either via Kickstarter messages or on twitter. I'll do what I can to sort things out!

Dragonmeet on December 4th

Are you going to be at Dragonmeet? The roleplaying convention in London on December 4th? I am! If you see me wandering around, please do say hello. I'm also going to facilitate a few sessions of Stealing the Throne at Indie Games on the Hour, so if that sounds like it might be fun, drop by and join in!

(If you haven't been before, I can heartily recommend Indie Games on the Hour: two hour pick-up sessions of a wide variety of indie games, kicking off every hour on the hour. Come along and play something cool!)

Surprise!

I promised proof, and here it is: the proof! (Or dodgy phone pictures of it, anyway!) 

The final zine may vary slightly from what you see here, particularly in terms of colours on the cover - there are enough of you wonderful backers that the zine will be offset printed, which produces a slightly different result to the digitally printed proofs you see here.

In any case, I've been flipping through this thing again and again over the course of the weekend, and folks, I'm very excited about it! I cannot wait to get it into your hands.

It's really happening!

- Nick