Remaining Twin Seas fulfilment is begun!
about 1 year ago
– Thu, Feb 23, 2023 at 08:45:53 AM
Hello again!
Thank you so much for your patience - it really does mean a lot, because I know it's not been easy, and this campaign was supposed to deliver nice and quickly.
With the UK postal strikes, the crashing of the UK pound, then the cyber attack which shut down Royal Mail for 5 weeks, then the resulting backlog of post with the various links in our fulfilment chain, plus the delays for our cards printer, we've had a bit of a log jam in getting the remaining parcels out to you.
This also creates financial stress and significant obstacles for us too - that's not your problem, of course, but it's certainly a real obstacle for us, and one we're still working hard to recover from.
But the great news is that all obstacles have been cleared, and fulfilment is restarted! We have the UK pledges with Story Cards to go out - that's 25 parcels. Then we have the non UK, non US parcels to go. That's just 100 parcels. So I'm not anticipating this taking too long to get done.
The US books are on the water, and I'll keep you in the loop when we know more about those.
I'll update again as I have confirmation of various batches of parcels heading out.
And I think we'll keep this update very short and sweet so that there's no information lost in a great big list of stuff.
Thank you again for your support and patience on this one, it really has helped.
Discord
If you do need to ask us anything, or you just want to chat, then the very best place to do that is on Discord. If you’d like to join up, point your browser at www.discord.me/handiworkgamers. Give us a shout that you're a Twin Seas backer and you'll be upgraded to see the Twin Seas backer channel. And even if you're not a backer you're still very welcome!
If you'd like to follow us on social media:
Twitter: @gameshandiwork
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/handiworkgames
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/handiworkgames/
Thanks again!
Thanks as ever for all your support!
Jon, Jacob and the Handiwork Team
The Cards are here! Digital Pack 11 is out!
over 1 year ago
– Fri, Jan 27, 2023 at 06:04:21 AM
Hello!
Happy Friday!
Digital Pack Eleven
On Wednesday we sent out BEOWULF Digital Pack Eleven - check your spam folder if you don't have it in your inbox.
Story Cards
As you may know if you're a member of our discord, the BEOWULF Story Cards have arrived! It's been a long wait, but they're looking really good. I'm very happy about how the cards look.
The next step is to get these into the appropriately thematic cotton bags we'll supply them in. (We announced we weren't using plastic boxes some time ago, in favour of cotton bags looking cooler and not being plastic.)
We have those bags on hand, and I've recruited some extra help for the afternoon, so that will all happen today. We'll then get them down to our warehouse for early next week, and they'll head out to you.
If you're in the UK that'll hopefully happen quite rapidly. If you're outside the UK we're still awaiting the royal mail re-opening overseas dispatch fully. There's more detail on that topic in the last update, but subsequent to a serious "cyber incident" the UK mail are not allowing us to send out parcels to destinations abroad. But it looks like that will change next week. Fingers crossed.
For US backers we'll send the Story Cards in a delivery to our hub there, and they'll be added to your parcels.
US books are about to set sail - after the wait for space on transatlantic pallets that's all chugging along nicely.
Thanks one and all for your patience while we got these cards printed, and the wait for US books. I appreciate that you've pledged your hard-earned cash, and have had a longer-than-planned wait for your rewards. I hope, if you are still waiting, that once you get your goodies you'll be pleased.
Discord
Our Discord is the ideal place to chat with us, ask questions and get the latest news that isn't suited to an official update. We have a nice friendly community and it’s not too fast moving, so it’s easy to join in. If you’d like to join up, point your browser at www.discord.me/handiworkgamers And even if you're not a backer you're still very welcome!
If you'd like to follow us on social media:
Twitter: @gameshandiwork
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/handiworkgames
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/handiworkgames/
Thanks again!
Thanks as ever for all your support!
Jon
Twin Seas January Update 2
over 1 year ago
– Tue, Jan 24, 2023 at 09:14:20 AM
Hello! Let's have a quick round up!
Cyber Attack on Royal Mail
In the UK, the Royal Mail has been subject to a serious cyber incident, and all international mail has been stopped. This means we can't yet dispatch the EU and Rest of World rewards right now.
The latest news direct from Royal Mail is here. I check this daily, and I've remained optimistic that this would be cleared up much more quickly than it has been. I haven't felt the need to raise this with you, since it seemed like it going to be just a couple of days' delay. It appears to be developing into something more significant. It looks like things are now moving, and I'll let you know as soon as your rewards depart.
Story Cards
Good news just in - the story cards have been dispatched and should arrive with us tomorrow. I am out of office tomorrow, but there will be someone here to receive them. As soon as we get them into their cotton bags they'll be off to our UK warehouse to be sent on to you with your other rewards.
US rewards
Everything is in place for these to depart, and I'm awaiting confirmation of dispatch. I'll let you know as soon as I know the books are in motion!
Discord Updates
Recently over at our Discord I mentioned my frustration with both of these kinds of "any day now" delays. I understand you want to know the latest news, but I can't keep updating here every time there's a "not today" delay, which promises to resolve in the very near future - I want our updates to be meaningful and worth reading, and if we communicate too much we have to forgive folks who just don't read them.
So for micro updates on both the Royal Mail Cyber Issue, and the Story Cards arrival, I'll keep everyone in the loop over at our Discord. If you’d like to join up at our discord for more direct chat, point your browser at www.discord.me/handiworkgamers We have a backer exclusive channel - just give Jacob or I a shout when you land and we'll let you in.
Of course the big news will remain in these updates, as you would expect.
That's it for now!
Jon
Twin Seas Update January 1
over 1 year ago
– Wed, Jan 11, 2023 at 08:43:16 AM
Hello!
Happy New Year! I hope you had a good break. I had a week off, then during the traditionally insanely-busy catchup week at the beginning of the year:
I got some sort of flu bug AND wotc have announced the end of the OGL 1.0a. We think. More on that below. The flu was pretty cool*, and I worked through it. Could be worse!
*it was not cool.
So as always, I hold our monthly update until we have some news, so I'm not double updating every 3 days - and news we have.
• The US stock will be heading across the Atlantic in the next week, which is great news. Thanks for your patience on this - it's taken longer than planned to get this moving, but it's happening. Phew!
• EU/ROW parcels are about to start dispatch - more news on that when it's actually happening, so you can start to watch your mail boxes!
• Story cards are faithfully promised early next week. I've been in constant touch with our UK printer, and he's been having the worst time with machines breaking, parts needing to be ordered and so on. But we're close now. Yay!
Hermit's Sanctuary Weirdness!
Some UK backers received weird 64 page copies of The Hermit's Sanctuary before Christmas. These are clearly faulty - it's a 72 page book. And we'll be replacing them as soon as the new ones arrive tomorrow! This was entirely my fault - my apologies. Happily it's only a small number of copies.
The OGL
As you may be aware there are big changes coming to the Open Game License which currently allows us to use the 5e rules for BEOWULF. No one yet knows the precise details of the final new license and its terms. Things are basically on fire all around the internet right now, and we're watching carefully, and making some contingency plans if we are no longer able to produce BEOWULF. We're not sure if existing OGL 1.0a products like BEOWULF will be allowed to continue. We'd certainly prefer that to be the case, but we'll need to wait and see.
A lot of people are asking us if we'll be ok. Yes we will because we don't produce only 5e titles. But it's going to be tough. BEOWULF is our biggest selling line, and our longest running line. And hey. We really like it and think it's good. We'll be very sad if it has to go away, or at least change system.
Full transparency: planning our future has taken up some of my time, and taken time away from Twin Seas fulfillment. I wish wholeheartedly this was not the case. What can we do? Just gotta play the hand we're given, I guess.
Rest assured this won't affect anyone's physical rewards on this campaign. Quite how digital packs and the bonus adventures pan out remains to be seen. If we have to produce them rules-free, or for a new compatible system, then that's what we'll do. Bear with us.
Book Band
Here's a new one. Be warned this is both a slender and small volume, and it's not cheap. LuckilyWoden brought me some Yule Silver, so I was able to get it. I am yet to finish it, but it's very very good so far, if you're interested in the history of the poem. Tom Shippey is arguably THE Tolkien expert, and this sees him turn his attention to Tolkien's Beowulf studies, as well as adding his own. Good stuff.
New BEOWULF Tokens
We've been working with our Scottish neighbours, Warbases, to make some new BEOWULF tokens. We still love our metal tokens, but this pack of 8 thick MDF tokens are lovely too. If you'd like a set, you can grab them right now on our web store.
I think that's probably enough for today's update.
I'll be back with more info on when EU/ROW and US rewards are leaving our warehouses as soon as there's more news.
If you’d like to join up at our discord for more direct chat, point your browser at www.discord.me/handiworkgamers Give Jacob or me a shout out when you land that you're a Twin Seas backer, and he'll give you the keys to the super secret awesome backer channel. And even if you're not a backer you're still very welcome!
If you'd like to follow us on social media:
Twitter: @gameshandiwork
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/handiworkgames
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/handiworkgames/
Thanks!
Jon
Twin Seas Update December 2
over 1 year ago
– Fri, Dec 23, 2022 at 06:34:36 AM
Hello!
Let's have a quick round up of what's where and when before things slow down for the festive period.
So another batch of UK books has headed out this month - lovely to hear of those arriving, and everything that can be sent out to UK addresses, prior to getting Story Cards and a BEOWULF Age of Heroes restock is done.
The Story Cards are on press right now, which is great. I will of course let you know as soon as they arrive with us. We now know that the copies of BEOWULF Age of Heroes that needed to come to the UK from Germany are now in the UK! These have caused us some delay due to deeply inexplicable delays in getting them moving. Traffic of goods between Germany and the UK is very difficult right now, and I wish I had more to tell you on that. It's just slow and difficult, and it's been a bit of a trial...
But! Both of those delaying factors are soon to be resolved, enabling us to spring forth with renewed fulfilment vigor in the new year. Thank you all for your patience across these obstacles. It's been an unexpectedly awkward process, simply moving some things around. A few years back this would not have been any kind of problem.
In the new year, expect to see some fairly rapid movement on US, EU and Rest of World rewards.
The US dispatch is slightly different than all other locations, since we move books en masse to our fulfilment partners' US hub. We work in partnership with a couple of other small publishers to move large amounts of stock in one go - that looks like it'll be a january dispatch for Twin Seas across the Atlantic. Thanks for your continued patience as this takes a bit of time to make happen, and as covered in more detail in the last update we've had a few hurdles to cross.
Digital Content
So! So far we've sent you two digital packs. And you're getting a total of 6.
Digital Pack 11 is almost done - we're a whisker away from delivery, but it'll be a new year release. I think the team have been working very hard, and so I think they deserve their rest over the festive season.
In pack 11 we have a menagerie of Trolls, some exceptional woven borders for your Hero's clothing, battle maps and more!
Festive Tidings
I hope you and yours have a really restful and enjoyable festive season. Don't forget that if you're at a loose end over what can be a difficult time for many folks, we have a BEOWULF channel on our discord where you might find some some chat about nonsense if there's nothing else going on where you are. I'll try to stick my head in for a bit on Christmas Day.
If you’d like to join up, point your browser at www.discord.me/handiworkgamers Give Jacob or me a shout out when you land that you're a Twin Seas backer, and he'll give you the keys to the super secret awesome backer channel. And even if you're not a backer you're still very welcome!
If you'd like to follow us on social media:
Twitter: @gameshandiwork
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/handiworkgames
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/handiworkgames/
Thanks for all your support over 2022. I'll see you here again in the new year! (Unless story cards turn up before then, in which case I'll be back with photos! And much rejoicing!)
Take care,
Jon
