UDS TTRPG RELEASED!
about 1 month ago – Wed, Apr 17, 2024 at 08:37:50 PM

The UDS Roleplaying Game PDF is OUT!

That's right! If you purchased the RPG digital download, you should have a link to the PDF in your inbox! Look in your junkmail if you don't see it!

Ben and Nathan did a bang-up job on this. It's a beautiful thing, with lots of great art, a fantastic new world and a fun, fast, lightweight gaming system! This 110 page PDF contains everything you need to GM an adventure or campaign, build characters and teams, and create stories across the multiverse!

In the upcoming weeks we'll be running livestreams for the UDS TTRPG and card game. I look forward to hearing your feedback.

I intend to manufacture physical versions of the TTRPG. We will have some copies at Gen Con and once I get a box, we'll get them in the ZOE store (Or as I like to call it, Zombiestorepheus). 

T-Shirts Need to Ship - Update your Address!!!

If you are expecting a T-shirt and you've moved anytime since you received your UDS goods, or you moved and have not updated your address since we ran the UDS campaign, let us know because I'm about to submit the T-Shirt order to Printful, the vendor who will be POD'ing our shirts.

Last month I wrote that I was about to ship these off. I didn't. I will be submitting these orders shortly, so please, please get me an updated address if you ordered a shirt and moved after you received your other UDS merchandise!

You should have also received a link to the UDS map PDF's, so all the digital goods should be in your hands now! Please let me know if you are having issues accessing anything.

Thanks for your patience!

Rennie

UDS - End of Year update!
5 months ago – Sat, Dec 30, 2023 at 03:40:21 PM

2023 and that's a wrap (or close to it)!

Well, after a painful period of starts and stops, I'm really happy to say that we are wrapping up 2023 with the delivery of -almost- all of the UDS to those of you who submitted the surveys. Here's the status on (I believe) everything.

•  COMPLETED SURVEYS HAVE BEEN PROCESSED. As of 12/29/23 there are 5 packages waiting to be fulfilled. These will be going out in the next 7 days. 
•  ALL CLAIMS HAVE BEEN PROCESSED. As of 12/27/23 all submitted claims for Waves 1-3 have been processed, and will be going out in the next 7 days. Any claims for packages shipped after November 1st need to follow the process listed below in "Claims for Lost or Damaged Shipments". Be aware that all packages sent after November 1st, 2023 included tracking information and were insured.
•  DECLINED CARDS. There are a few cards which were declined, meaning we can't send out the packages. Declined payments were informed via email, but you should also check your credit card statement. Stripe is the processor, so please verify the transaction with your bank.
•  INCOMPLETE SURVEYS. There are still50 incomplete surveys. I will be manually sending out emails to each one of you but please check your junk mail! If you didn't receive it, please log into Backerkit to verify that you are checking the correct email. You should also be able to process your claim once you log into Backerkit. For support, please send email to [email protected].
• SHIRTS. These will be going out in early January. We are using Printful to do all our printing and shipping of the shirts. Ben had to teach me how to set it up and I'm sort of a moron so it's been a little problematic for me. BUT I have it sorted now. The biggest issue was that I have to rebuild all the original designs because Prinful no longer uses the T-shirts we originally selected. There are multiple colors and multiple sizes and I need to recreate designs for each of those derivations. Ben was gracious and showed me how to make this all happen. 
• The Crochet Patterns. If you purchased this item, the link should have ended up in your inbox last month. I uploaded them to Backerkit for distribution, so let me know if you didn't get the link. (I may have not done distribution correctly). Once you finish one, please send pictures!
• The Maps. Ben uploaded these digital items to Backerkit last month (for distribution), but I held off releasing them until the original writer approved the final product. I've been informed that the maps and the text that goes with the maps are separate so I'll release the maps immediately. I'm hoping <crossing fingers> that the additional content will be available next week. 
• The RPG. The RPG  is complete and all it needs is the map of Gemshaven. I've told Ben I'll be delivering the map the first week of January. I've been using Inkarnate to create the map and it looks amazing, but I under-estimated the time it would take to design. (I had told Ben it would take me 4-8 hours. I've spent over 75 hours on it already). Once incorporated, the RPG will be uploaded. The Beta of the game should already be in your hands.
• The Digital Template. This one is late. LATE. I had thought it would be a relatively easy asset for the designer to get into your hands, but I agree with him that we should give you a tool that is easy to use, and uses the official assets. Turns out that it takes time to create a layered file with the right content. I'm not sure when this will be ready, but I've pinged him and will hopefully have good news in the next week. (They are on holiday)

CLAIMS FOR LOST OR DAMAGED SHIPMENTS

All  packages which were sent out after November 1st have a tracking number and are insured. This includes Wave 4 and fulfillment of claims for Wave 1-3.

IMPORTANT:  ZOE must process any claims within 90 days of the shipping date, so please get those claims for damaged or missing packages to us ASAP, and no later than 76 days from shipping date. We need time to gather the paperwork and submit claims. We cannot guarantee we will be able will be able to process claims if you submit them more than 76 days after the shipping date. We will not accept claims submitted after 90 days from the shipping date.

Please contact [email protected] if you have issues with your shipment.

WHAT'S NEXT?

There are a few outstanding UDS items.

• The next shipment wave and all claims as of December should be going out the first week of January. 
• The RPG PDF and Digital Template is still pending completion.
• The Shirts should be going out in 1-2 weeks.
• I will verify that links to the Digital Maps, Crochet patterns and Digital maps were sent out.
• If you have a claim from Wave 4, you must make it within 76 days from when it was shipped. 
• Please log into your Backerkit account if you have questions about your shipment, or if you didn't submit your survey yet!

And like I enjoy saying.... ONWARD!

- Rennie (CEO of Zombie Orpheus Entertainment)

COMPLETE YOUR SURVEY. Also - Crochet Patterns are a GO & Wave 4 is on its way!
6 months ago – Thu, Nov 09, 2023 at 04:00:47 PM

COMPLETE YOUR SURVEY

There are 3 reasons you have not yet received your Ultimate Dungeon Showdown rewards

• YOU DIDN'T COMPLETE THE SURVEY. (There are 53 of you) Please verify that you have. An email may have gotten caught in spam. 
• IT WAS LOST IN TRANSIT OR MISDELIVERED. These things happen. Please fill out our UDS claim form with any lost or damaged items. Please include photos for damaged items. The form explains it all.
• IT'S IN WAVE 4. We just sent out 35 packages. These are the individuals who filled out their surveys in the last couple of months before November 3rd.

Despite what you may have seen over the last few months, we really do want to get this game into your hands. Let's make it happen!!!

GET READY FOR SOME ZOE CRAFTINESS!

I just uploaded the Crochet Patterns for those of you who ordered them. You should be receiving a link in your inbox, if you haven't already.  It's taken WAY too long, but these are sure cute. There are 6 patterns in all and they are really, REALLY professional. Woofter Creations did a fabulous job.

Once you finish one, please send pictures! 

WAVE 4 IS ON ITS WAY!

I'm thrilled to say that we just sent out Wave 4 consisting of 35 packages. If you have not yet received your rewards, please log into Backerkit and verify your status. You may not have filled out the survey.

WHAT'S NEXT?

There are a few outstanding items.

• I will be uploading the Digital Maps and the Digital Template next. 
• There are claims to address. This will happen next week
• Since we boxed up Wave 4, 4 more surveys have come in, and there are 53 more surveys which have not yet been completed. 
• The RPG is nearly ready to be released. We are waiting on the Gemshaven map. Once that's ready, the book will be ready to release!

And like I enjoy saying.... ONWARD!

UDS Update! (Wave 4 about to go out)
7 months ago – Sun, Nov 05, 2023 at 10:02:35 PM

Greetings, everyone. Here's a quick summary for those of you who just wanna know the high-level info, and the TL;DR is below.

• Wave 4 of UDS is going out in the next few days (by 11/10).
• We are caught up with our other fulfillment obligations and are focused on UDS
• It took 90 days to stabilize, get our shipping processes sorted and get everything back on track.
• The RPG is nearly ready for release. Art is the final part. (I'm the blocker)
• The other digital goods are ready to go
• We have integrated with EasyShip for our current and future fulfillment requirements.
• All UDS claims (For damaged goods or missing items from a shipment) should be filed here: https://forms.gle/F2e9VHocvkN7yxdW8

Wave 4 of goods (finally) going out!

Although we had most of our UDS physical goods sent out, the move from Gamerati was more onerous and problematic than I realized when I wrote the last update on August 10th. We had one major obligation to fulfill (Before UDS) and it took several weeks to get it complete, but this week we're pretty much (finally) wrapped with it.  All the UDS and ZOE merchandise was mixed up and in disarray when I moved it, and it's taken some time to organize things, reorder missing items, and figure out how to deliver on past promises. As of this week, we are finally at a spot where we feel like we are not behind the 8-ball. We've had to play catchup with our ZOE merchandise backlog, as well as another major fulfillment project, alongside UDS. We're very, VERY sorry for the delay, but things should be moving faster now! Our fulfillment manager, Joseph, has a good system in place and with our EasyShip integration, we should be able to turn items around fairly quickly. In addition, the new system makes it easier for you to track the status of the packages because we now have a much more transparent process.

Backerkit Shipment Status

Gamerati had no way to update Backerkit with status of shipments, so we've integrated with EasyShip which does have integration. As we continue fulfillment you should be able to track when the shipments go out and which carrier is used. 

We did manually update the status of shipments, which may create confusion. For most shipments, the physical goods have been delivered, and those orders were marked as "Fulfillment Complete", but many of those items also include digital goods, which have not yet been delivered. If you are still owed digital items, and your order says "Fulfillment Complete", DO NOT FEAR! I will make sure you have access to the digital maps, templates, manuscripts and RPG and any other digital artifacts. Once we get those uploaded, I'll send out another email and you will have access to them

The RPG is -ALMOST- complete

We sent out the beta version of the RPG to you to get feedback. It's waiting on one more final piece of art, which is on my shoulders to complete. I am slowly plodding to complete it and I have it on my schedule to wrap up this week.

UDS CLAIMS

We received 20 claims for either damaged or missing items from a shipment. If you received a damaged item, or a missing item, please file it using the UDS Claim Form. We have not fulfilled these claims yet, and would like to get them all handled at the same time, but I will be working with Joseph this week to get a handle on what we should do next. We have fulfilled 938 orders and have 34 more that need to get sent out later this week. There are 54 remaining which have not filled out their surveys. After we send out this wave this week, I'll be working with Joseph to focus on handling claims.

I've written this before, but I do appreciate your patience. Our fulfillment manager and I have finally built a fulfillment process that seems sustainable. It is now integrated with ZOE's ecommerce platform and should allow for easier (and quicker) turn around when orders come in.

If you need any support, please send emails to [email protected] and if you do not hear back quickly, route an email to [email protected]. 

Thanks!

Rennie Araucto, CEO, Zombie Orpheus Entertainment

UDS UPDATE - Post Gen Con, Claim form, New warehouse, etc
9 months ago – Thu, Aug 10, 2023 at 05:07:31 PM

In this update we address:

• Claims
• Fulfillment issues & Next Steps
• Miniatures
• Gen Con
• The UDS RPG

Let's get right to the update

CLAIMS

If you had issues with your order, and either received broken items, or didn't receive what you ordered, and you filled out the claim form, THANK YOU. If you have not filled out the claim form, please do so. You can find it here: LINK to UDS Claim form

We have not begun handling your claims. We know it's late and it's problematic. Please see "Fulfillment Issues", for information.

FULFILLMENT ISSUES & NEXT STEPS

A couple of months ago, Gamerati, our fulfillment partner, informed us that they will no longer be doing fulfillment for us, and that we need to find another partner and move our merchandise. This was unexpected, and we had to pause fulfillment efforts until we moved our goods. Not only was this horribly inconvenient and impactful to our customers, but it was incredibly challenging for me, personally, because I was also overseeing JQ4 production, trying to get another incledibly late, non-ZOE Kickstarter fulfilled, do day-to-day manage of ZOE, and to top it all off, I was in the middle of moving my household to California.

Thankfully, we found another place to take our 7 pallets of merchandise (and 100's of SKUs), and hired someone to oversee fulfillment of current and future product sales. On the 27th of July I personally hired a 16' truck with a lift and single-handedly moved 7 pallets of merchandise to our new warehouse location. (I certainly burnt 450 calories doing it!) Our new fulfillment team is taking care of another non-ZOE project and should be wrapped by next week. After that, they will continue fulfillment of all the UDS product, begin handling claims, and will be fulfilling website store orders as well.

I am personally sad that there's been so many hiccups. From the COVID-related merch delays, to Ben leaving, and now the Gamerati transfer... it just hasn't been easy. BUT we are getting closer. Thank you for your patience.

MINIATURES

There were claims of broken miniatures. Broken miniatures break my heart. We've found a new formula for producing miniatures that are more resilient. BUT I am also working on a better solution for you. In the meantime, if they are broken, please submit a claim form (see above!) I want to make it right. You WILL be receiving un-broken miniatures.

GEN CON

Gen Con came and went and UDS garnered a LOT of interest. I'm sad that our tournament didn't do so well... but we just didn't promote it well enough to get more interest. We did sell many copies of the base game and new producers expressed interest in being part of a new booster-pack expansion! Next year we'll be putting more effort into building momentum towards the tournament. In the meantime, we have been working with various stores to get UDS into their hands. 2023 and 2024 will be a year of growing interest and fans of UDS!

The UDS RPG

We released the Beta version of the RPG to those of you who ordered it. Once we get feedback, we'll apply the changes and release the final version. I want to see it out by End of Summer. In addition we'll be preparing the maps and text files for supplemental locations throughout the multiverse. I met with Nathan, one of our lead writers, at Gen Con, and he apologized for the 30,000 word document he submitted for the Wizardium. WHY APOLOGIZE? It's AWESOME and the fans will love it!!!! I can't wait to release it to you.

That's it for now. A few of you sent emails to support. Thank you for the emails. There's only 1 of me, and it's been a challenge to keep on top of things, but I'm slowly getting through and you should hear from me soon, hopefully... 

Rennie Araucto.

CEO, Zombie Orpheus Entertainment