Get Hyped for the Imminent Release of the Redsky Core Rules
about 2 years ago – Fri, Aug 05, 2022 at 05:42:18 PM

Hi backers!

Brandon here with our monthly update, and wow it has been an intense month of work for us. Our efforts have not been fruitless because, as I speak, we are putting the finishing touches on our first deliverable: the Redsky Core Rules.

The Core Rules are about to drop

We need a couple more days to put the finishing touches on it, but I can safely say that this document will be released on Thursday, August 4th. Here's a quick accounting of what's inside:

• Our original Element system to replace character alignment
•  5 original sentient species, in addition to our take on Humans
•  4 original Redsky classes plus our revamped Fighter and Rogue
• Highly developed and modular social and exploration systems to add to your games
• Tweaks to the 5e combat engine, including sprinting and parrying
• Significant overhaul of how 5e equipment works to allow for more choice and complexity
• Over 90 Eldertech artifacts (known by some as "magic items") to find and use
• Over 60 unique monsters to throw at players

All of this adds up to a total conversion kit for 5e to play in low-or-no-magic settings. We're just putting the finishing touches on our Eldertech and monsters, which is why we need a couple of extra days. The document will show up in the inbox of the email you used for Kickstarter or Backerkit. There's no need to sign up anywhere!

A reminder: the Core Rules does not include most of the extensive lore and artwork to bring the world of Redsky to life. That will be coming soon with the Redsky Core Book.

What about the Core Book?

With the Core Rules taken care of, we'll be moving towards finishing our main goal: the Redsky Core Book. We estimate that we'll be sending out the PDF and going to print by September. We're in the final review stages for all this lore and layout! By mid-August, we're going to be sending out chapters to beta readers before we send the book to print.

How will the timetable work between the hardcover and the PDF of the Core Book? We'll be sending out the PDF to all of you shortly after it's done, so you won't have to wait on shipping times to get playing. The hardcover will take a bit longer, as it will take 6-8 weeks for the book to ship from our supplier to the distribution center. It will then be routed to you! We'll have more concrete information about our adventure modules and virtual tabletop systems as well in our update next month, so stay tuned for that!

Don't forget to check us out on Facebook and Instagram, where you can get snippets of lore and dev updates from us more frequently. Thank you all for your support and patience. Without you, none of this would have been possible. 

- Brandon and the Redsky Team

Countdown Sequence Initiated: Standby For Dragons in Spaceships
over 2 years ago – Sun, Jun 26, 2022 at 09:10:07 PM

Hello everyone!

We hope your Junes have given time to relieve some stress. 

The team is here with another quick update. We’re happy to share that progress is going strong!

There are three things to focus on. 

We have upcoming content releases. There is also good news about our art and merchandise. And by popular demand, we have another sneak preview of the work on your core book’s formatting. 

But first, we are proud to present you with the last Redsky environmental piece to come in. And what a piece!

Core Rules Coming This July!

So, here's the latest info on the core book’s shipment date. The international coordination is still evolving for our physical rewards. "Supply chains" are words we're sure many are getting tired of thinking about. Luckily, those issues don't stand in the way of digital distribution! We'll be ready to release the Redsky Core Rules PDF next month (July)!

Please note that we're still working on the Core Book. The Core Rules PDF is the digital, condensed version of Redsky, and doesn't include the art and lore of the Core Book. The PDF will be distributed to all backers, regardless of the level of your support! You can use it to explore the rules and run your own magic-less 5e campaigns before the full Redsky release.

Thankfully, this digital stage of release is also a window to catch any last-minute typos or inconsistencies. We will be slowly defrosting the Discord over the summer. A full server channel will be dedicated to quick fixes before everything goes to official print.

We would also like to give one last quick shoutout to all of our playtesters. Your feedback has helped us greatly refine and improve the Redsky system. The characters you created to explore Dema will empower the whole community. Your heroes have equipped hundreds more to craft their own adventures. 

A side note to any playtesters reading this: we will be closing the feedback forms at the end of June. If you have not filled out a feedback survey yet, please do so by logging in to our website and visiting our Playtest Docs page.

Monsters Are Real! The Merch Has Landed!

One of Dema’s biggest draws is our original range of monsters with sci-fi DNA. We go beyond the classic trolls and goblins with our brass automata and maldormacs. We’re thrilled that as of this month, all the commissioned monster art is in! Take a look at one of these beasts your party will have to smite:

On the physical side, we received the complete orders for your Redsky official dice and standees! They’ve come in gigantic bags that currently live in the devs’ homes. Even better, the GM screen is now finalized! The physical form is fully prototyped, and will go into production alongside the Core Book when it's ready. The illustrations on the GM screen are some of the best artwork we’ve commissioned. To know they’ll be in your game spaces within months is a privilege. 

Want a peek into the development of all this artwork and the experience of being an art director? Catch some of Matt’s new interview with one of our favorite collaborators Fesbra here!

The Main Course is Almost Out of the Oven

We have less than 50 pages of the core book to go before everything is fully formatted! Feast your eyes on one of the latest pages Brandon has crafted:

The lore team has just finished the major edits for the Human species lore entries. They’ll be wrapping up the last sections by the end of the month. Ken is on track to create the full stat blocks of all the creatures and combatants of Dema included in the book.

For those who’d love to catch those pesky glitches in the Simulacrum, the team is in the first stages of creating PDFs of Dema’s lore for beta reading. We'll be running sign-ups for beta readers next month. We would love help from a select few readers to catch things like typos, errors in the timeline of world events, or other bits of content to tweak in the last few weeks before the full digital PDF release. We’ll let you know when the time comes, and we can’t wait to hear what you think!

It's full-speed ahead until our final milestones are locked in. Luckily, no major obstacles have sprung up that required earlier notice. Expect us to check back in again in a few more weeks with the latest.

Happy strigoi hunting!

Two Big Milestones Reached! Steady As She Goes, Captain
over 2 years ago – Wed, May 25, 2022 at 08:08:47 PM

Hello backers,

Thank you for the overwhelming understanding since our last update. Happily, in the weeks since, we’ve hit two amazing milestones that show production is blazing ahead through all complications.

All Art Commissioned!

After more late nights and email threads than we ever expected, every missing piece of art we needed for the Redsky Core Book has now been commissioned! The artists painting and drawing as we speak are among the best in the industry. They include collaborators who’ve worked in the past with much larger companies like Ghostfire Games and Wizards of the Coast. Take a look at this scene: one of Dema’s many types of monsters is ending this quest a bit earlier than the adventurers expected:

The journey it’s taken to gather more than 150 pieces of unique artwork has been wild. Hundreds of hours of cold calls, look dev, revisions, and other parts of the process are now done. We are especially humbled by the efforts of one specific artist to complete a jaw-dropping piece under extremely strained conditions. We cannot wait for you to see it when the time is right. The day will come when we can fully tell their creative story. Until then, the devs are showing all our artists’ creativity off to gamers and pop culture fans around the world.

All Merchandise Ordered and Shipping to Us!

Perhaps nobody on the team has had to send as many business logistics emails as Matt and Brandon. Well, their work’s paid off. As of this last week, every physical backer reward has been created and ordered in bulk! The shipments are currently en route to the United States. Take a look at the six elemental pin designs we’ve received:

The material looks and feels even finer in person! Just so you know, we won't be shipping the merch until the Core Book arrives, so we can ship all your rewards to you in one convenient package.

The hardest part of production left is formatting layout and editing text for the Core Book itself. All hands are on deck. We’ve completed dozens of additional Core Book pages since the last update. Here's just some of the gigantic amount of lore as it will be presented:

There’s a universe in these pages. A universe you helped create. However far we go from here will be as a community. We’d especially love if you followed Redsky’s Facebook and Instagram accounts for even more updates and behind-the-scenes info you can't get anywhere else. We especially love creating the hundreds of bite-sized lore spots for those who don’t have the time they’d like to browse the team’s dozens of blog entries.

Wherever you’re reading this from, the devs wish you all strength and safety in these interesting times. You are not alone. Your work and hobbies matter. The work you’ve empowered us to show you here is proof.

- Ken, Matt, Brandon, Alex, and Tyler

There Will Be A Release Delay, But You'll See Here Why It's Worth It
over 2 years ago – Sat, Apr 23, 2022 at 10:22:45 PM

Hello Friends!

So, we have some bad news, and some great news.

To break the bad news first: the Redsky 5e shipping date will need to be pushed back by up to several months, possibly even until August-September 2022.

Solar Studios needs extra time to ensure we deliver you the quality of experience you deserve. We wanted to tell you the moment we knew there was no other choice.

Here’s why, and we hope you understand.

Chill Out, 2022

We don't have to tell you the entire world has changed since last summer’s Kickstarter. As we warned in our “Risks and Challenges” section of the backer page, a brand-new team launching a brand-new IP could face unexpected bumps in the road during these unprecedented times.

Believe us, we are also sick of life as we know it seeming to change wildly every 4 months. Compared to Summer 2021, it turns out those bumps now include the global disruptions caused by the 2022 war in Ukraine and Covid combined. It may seem like everywhere we look, uncertainty looms. Prices are rising. Unease is building. You are not alone in wishing for a moment to catch your breath.

We have been working very hard in the midst of all this, and we want you to see Dema's tabletop adventuring potential in all its glory. We have about 200 pages of the Core Book formatted, and a little over 100 more to go. Click the following link to take a look at this 8-page preview of the book’s layout (and remember, this is a work in progress!):

Redsky Core Book Preview

Hundreds of pages of this quality or even higher, all in your hands. 

Editing and formatting 130,000+ words of text also benefits from having at least a few extra weeks of time. Our beta readers will be hard at work making sure your core book is as free of typos and errors as possible.

For us, there are 2 main factors affecting our company's timetable.

Number 1 - Supply Chain Headaches

The supply chain disruptions roiling East Asia are affecting all international production and shipping. Our suppliers are doing their best to adapt to the fight against Covid’s resurgence in multiple regions. 

For you, the team wants your shipping costs to be as low as we can make them. That will take time that we do not have if we try sticking to a July delivery.

If we can make sure everything is complete earlier than September, you will get the Redsky Core Book faster than expected. 

After all, we were able to send out the Early Access preview of Tyler Gamba's novel Arise several months ahead of schedule last year. If there is a way, we will find it.

Number 2 - Artists Impacted

 Solar Studios was forced to stop working with multiple key, beloved artists based in Eastern Europe as a direct result of the Ukrainian conflict. They are in our thoughts as we hope for their continued safety. Until the day comes when their irreplaceable skills can shine again, the search for new artists for images going into the Core Book has continued. 

And we will find them. We know they’re out there. Matt and Tyler have gotten chances to collaborate with incredible talent like Janna Koppenwallner, Fesbra , and Romain Kurdi in the online art world. 

Need proof? Here's one of these new images that will be in your copy of the Redsky Core Book!

 There will be many images at a quality like Bartra. And there is so much lore behind what you see. We’ve restarted the Lore Spotlights on the blog just out of excitement. We want you to get hyped for this universe you’ve helped create.

So, What's The Great News?

The great news is here for your pleasure throughout this article: Redsky 5e itself is coming out amazingly! We hope you agree the extra effort we’re putting into your book’s quality is worth it. We are confident that we can meet and possibly blow your expectations away for a brand-new team compared to the much larger studios we admire.

So confident, in fact, that though it is also delayed, we will still be sending out the full digital PDF version of Redsky 5e to all qualifying backers well before the physical copies ship. Digital fulfillment costs nothing compared to physical, so fingers crossed for July 2022 or earlier.

All of this takes huge amounts of time and logistics. We are not asking for your infinite sympathy for the team’s stress during the work crunch. In the end, just your solidarity by believing in this project as customers and members of the Redsky community is enough. 

Redsky has been an incredible source of meaning in the devs’ lives. We are nearing the finish line, even though crossing it is going to take a little more time. We hope you check out this short article full of even more great artwork if you need another reason today to Keep Going.

You Will Be Regularly Updated As This Process Unfolds 

To sum up, since we cannot currently guarantee several important parts of the fulfillment of your pledges at the quality you deserve, we are delaying shipments of pledge rewards. We won't stop until everything is the best it can be. Digital pledges will be released as soon as possible. The results of our efforts are looking even better than we'd dared hope, so please check out the preview.

Stay strong in the weeks ahead. Backers around the world, wherever we are going, we’ll go together.

-Brandon, Alex, Ken, Matt, and Tyler

The Finish Line is On the Horizon! Spring Has Sprung and the Work Continues
over 2 years ago – Thu, Apr 07, 2022 at 02:22:16 AM

Time for another Redsky 5e development update! The updates will probably be coming along at a faster pace as we draw closer to the launch date. The team has been hard at work and has a lot of exciting news.

How The Work Is Going

Tyler just finished drafting the last lore entry! This means there's just a bit more editing with Alex before the book's chunky lore section is finished! With just the lore weighing in at almost 90k words, the cultures, history, and personalities of Dema are the best toolkit possible for creating your own Redsky campaigns. From the metropolises of Mundi and Yaras to the far-off mythic locations of Parime and the World Tree, every spot on the map can fuel your imagination. We know you have a story to tell in Dema. We can't wait to hear it. Check out how our artists Ramazan Kazaliev and Brian Valeza have brought two iconic locations to life as art that will feature prominently in the core book:

On top of that, all of Redsky 5e's physical merch has been finalized! Brandon and Matt have locked-in prototypes of dice, standees, GM screens, etc. with all our manufacturers. Each item is at a level of design and material quality that we would be excited to receive as Kickstarter backers ourselves. All that remains now is to place orders. While unforeseen supply chain issues due to Covid and other current events are still complicating business worldwide, we remain determined to keep shipping costs as low as possible for all backers.

Brandon and Matt have also been hard at work polishing Redsky 5e's page and chapter formatting. The steps it takes to arrange pictures and layouts have a huge amount of detail and patient tweaking involved. Sometimes the best-feeling structure for important details can mean the difference of a fraction of an inch in font size or spacing. Both guys have risen to the challenge. We can't wait to show you sneak peaks as we get things print-ready, so stay tuned!

Alex has been reaching out to Discord admins, GMs, and other content creators to get as many eyes on the ongoing Redsky Playtest 2 as possible. We're happy to welcome a flood of new late-pledge backers to our small but mighty community. We have just partnered with Dungeons and Dummies, who livestream DnD sessions with veteran GMs and players. Check out an episode on their Youtube channel here.

Grizelda is Almost Done!

Speaking of awesome projects that will give you a new way to look at the hobby, have you checked out Grizelda's Guide to Ghost Hunting? With amazing new ideas for all things specters and haunts, this 5e expansion will give you hundreds of ways to introduce the occult and offbeat into your games. They are in the final hours of their wildly successful Kickstarter - which Matt had a wonderful hand in. Check out their page and take their fundraiser over the top!

The Shieldwoods and Escape From the Red Desert

Last, but by no means least, Ken is enjoying all the love his hard work on the Shieldwoods adventure has been getting. As far as the Shieldwoods Incident goes, we are beyond thrilled GMs and their players enjoyed the multi-ending, decision-based narrative focus of the module's style. We labored to bring you an experience that can detect any last-minute flaws in our gameplay mechanics. Be on the lookout for Playtest 2 surveys! Anybody who signed up on our website will be getting an email soon with a survey link. We're dying to know how your tale in Snow’s Edge unfolded! 

Ken and Tyler are also hyped to work on the next adventure in one of both the dev's and community's favorite locations: the Red Desert!

Race your Eldertech-powered landships through the unforgiving wasteland as you outrun nightmarish monsters and marauders. The only respite will be to reach one of the scattered waystations where only those who truly wish to be unfound eke out a living. A simple job gone spectacularly wrong will leave your party using every ounce of ingenuity and willpower to leave the crimson sands alive. The next adventure in the Red Desert will be leaner than the sprawling Shieldwoods Incident, with a focus on higher-level play, Eldertech, and survival.

That's it for now, we'll check back in for another update soon. Keep going, everyone.