Important UDS information - PLEASE READ!!
about 3 years ago – Mon, Feb 13, 2023 at 08:55:56 PM

Fulfillment Timeline

We are getting closer. Please make note of the following schedule of events for UDS fulfillment. Starting in 48 hours...

• On Wednesday, the 15th of February, we will be locking all orders in Backerkit
• On Friday, the 18th of February, we will be charging your credit cards
• On Sunday, the 20th of February, we will be locking all shipping addresses

You will be receiving email updates from Backerkit. Please check your junk mail if you do not see notices from Backerkit.

If you wish to make any updates, or correct your address, or credit cards, please do so ASAP.

Warehouse Update

We've been told that Gamerati is in the middle of a large fulfillment project and they will not be able to start on our project until sometime next week. This timing works we still need to lock orders, charge credit cards, and lock shipping addresses.

And as always... Thank you!

UDS - Physical Merch is Done and will be shipping shortly!
about 3 years ago – Mon, Feb 13, 2023 at 12:19:51 AM

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE!

The physical merchandise is done and fulfillment should happen soon.

We are seeing a light at the end of this long tunnel. All physical items are complete and will be in the warehouse this week. We spoke with Gamerati last week and let them know they would be receiving the final shipments of physical goods shortly. They are aware that we want to get into the queue this week. Tomorrow I will be verifying with them the fulfillment timeframe and will let you know what that looks like. When we spoke last Monday, I was of the impression they were in a period where they'd be able to jump into fulfillment quickly. Again - Once I nail down a time frame I'll send out a brief update.

Thank you for your patience. I've been heads down trying to do all the things, and this thing took WAY too long. Your long-suffering is appreciated, but we regret the incessant delays.

Frequently Asked Questions

WHERE ARE MY THINGS?

This week the final items will all be delivered to the warehouse. I will reach out to the owner of Gamerati on Monday and will get more information about shipping timeline, and share that information with you once I have it. If I don't hear back from him on Monday, I will be heading to the warehouse on Tuesday to take pictures and video.

Why can't you just start shipping what's in the warehouse? Why are you waiting until the miniatures are done? I didn't pledge for miniatures.

When we started this campaign, we calculated the cost of fulfillment based on everything arriving at the warehouse at the same time. Our fulfillment house quoted us a shipping price based on a single job where they organize all the physical goods and then fulfill all the orders. Our contract is setup to start once everything is in place. If we were to split the shipment order, the handling costs would have increased beyond what our budget could handle. 

Why did this entire campaign take so long?

There's a long story behind the UDS campaign. It's been a story fraught with peril since the beginning. It's a story about wanting to 'save ZOE', managing mental health, leadership changes, supply chain issues, manufacturing workforce shortages, sales people not handling off accounts, train strikes, manufacturing costs tripling, quality issues, setting up local manufacturing solutions, loss of family members, dissolution of TFN, and a lack of resources. All that being said, it's not all negative. It's also a story about watching Ben build a game with a talented game design team, learning to manage overseas manufacturing partners, discovering new ways to manufacturing things, and learning about boundaries. 

Sure, but the last 6 months......

Yeah, the last 6 months have had their own share of "best laid plans..." It sort of started with ElfQuest. We had planned on using the same miniatures manufacturer we used for ElfQuest, but their costs to manufacture were 4x more than we'd budgeted, and we were concerned that they wouldn't be able to deliver on time anyway.  We pivoted and that took more time than we expected, and in the end, we needed to remanufacture some of the items.

You kept saying that things were nearly complete, what happened?

The last part of this process was getting the miniature bases reprinted. I just had to focus on getting it done, but re-manufacturing is one of several high-priority things I've been juggling, and I had to context-switch often, which added to the time it took. No excuses. These delays have created a lot of dissatisfaction.

This is an important ZOE product, so shouldn't it take precedence?

YES! It is VERY important. It's one of the 6 pillars we are focusing on. It's also one of several high-priority items I've inherited and which I am trying to get back on track. In this case each move we make seems to be 2 steps forward, 1 step back. There were manufacturing hiccups with the card game. the dice, and the miniatures. Actually, the miniatures was a misstep. Our budget was incorrect. We built the budget around the per-unit cost quote we received for ElfQuest, but that quote was for a much larger number of units. In the end, we needed to find a solution that didn't break the project. That solution took more time than we anticipated or wanted. And we regret that.

Couldn't you have just told us about that?

When we discovered the per-unit cost was problematic, a gaming-industry friend of ours pointed us towards one of their resources and we pursued that direction, since it seemed more cost-effective. In the end, we paid for it in time. It's an example of trying, in good faith, to make a sound decision, and later discovering the hidden costs involved. 

You just wrote about 6 pillars. What is that? 

ZOE does a lot of things, and it is broken into 6 pillars. Films, Games, Services, Entertainment, Merchandise, and Community. 

What other high-priority items are you talking about?

Over the last 6 months I have been focusing getting JQ4 produced (I hired a producer in November, and it's slated to shoot this spring), dissolving TFN (This has been an ongoing struggle and it took a lot of time working with the management time to sort out what to do), building out the ZOE streaming studios (We are partnering with Peter Adkison's Chaldea Studios!), closing out the Demon Hunters KS campaign, keeping ZOE moving forward (by planning the next movies), working out Gen Con plans, building partnerships with new producers, and work with the team to come up with new and fun merchandise. It really has been a challenging 6 months but there's a lot of amazing things on the horizon!. 

Well, that's fine, but I'm still really unhappy with all the delays. What are you going to do about it?

First, we are absolutely more than happy to refund your pledge! Your patience is appreciated, but it really has been a ridiculously long period of time, so if you'd rather get a refund, please let us know. No hard feelings.  For those who are willing to stick it out a bit longer, you should be receiving your goods shortly. And I will need to come up with a way to show my deepest and utmost regret for  how long this has taken.

UDS in the New Year
about 3 years ago – Mon, Jan 16, 2023 at 04:39:07 PM

Happy New Year!

Admittedly, it would be even happier if you had UDS in your hands, but I have some good news and some tentatively good news.

Here's where we are. All the UDS card game boxes are at the warehouse. All the miniatures are printed. The fold-out maps are printed. All the dice are at the warehouse. Everything is at the warehouse except 1 thing. We are missing some miniature bases. They weren't printed. 

The long and short of it is that we need to print the bases. I have been working with one of my best friends who owns a popular miniatures game company and he has set me up so I can produce the bases in sufficient quantities and quality at the level you'd all expect. I will be producing those bases starting tomorrow, and if all goes well, they will be complete by end of week. I will deliver those to the warehouse and shipping should begin shortly after that.

Once I have a few bases printed I'll post pictures. 

Updating your Addresses

If you reached out about updating your information, we will be reaching out to you to make sure you're setup and ready to go. If I were you, and my address changed, I'd be feeling a little concerned that we didn't track those changes. Have no fear - we will be sending out multiple notices about address changes, etc. In addition, we will be offering some additional items on Backerkit, should you wish to adjust your order. 

Organized Play

I spoke with Ben last week and they were very excited about our tournaments we are planning on hosting at Gen Con. YES... We are planning on Gen Con tournaments. There's rules specific to tournament, and we are excited to see how UDS works within an Organized Play model. As we move forward over the next few weeks and you get UDS into your hands, I look forward to hearing your feedback.

That's it for now. Thank you for your patience and for reaching out. It's been a crazy 3 months and there's a lot of wheels in motion. I'm crossing my fingers that come February, we'll have smoother sailing!

Maps and Mini's should be here any day now!
over 3 years ago – Tue, Oct 25, 2022 at 04:55:32 AM

Quick, Late-October update!

Maps have been ordered and should be arriving at the warehouse this week or next.

The miniatures are still in production, and have not yet shipped, but Nimble, Daggie, and Dumerathrax are done, while Whit and the <OTHER THING> should be completed this week. I expect them to hit the warehouse sometime in the next 7-10 days.

Once the miniatures hit the warehouse, we'll be added to the fulfillment queue. I will find out this week what the expected turn around time will be. Depending on their need, I may personally go down to the warehouse to help with fulfillment! (If this becomes a thing, I'll take pictures)

You have been VERY patient through this process. Thank you. I am horribly embarrassed that we have 3 campaigns which have stagnated in various levels of purgatory, all for different reasons. You've been patient and kind and amazing supporters of our projects. I appreciate all your kind notes and continued well-wishes despite these delays. What keeps me going is the thought that in just a few short weeks, people will be playing UDS!!!

When the maps or miniatures hit the warehouse, I'll send out an update. Until then.... Onward!!!

DICE HAVE ARRIVED!!!!
over 3 years ago – Sun, Sep 18, 2022 at 04:38:47 AM

In this Update

• Dice Have Arrived
• Miniatures are in manufacturing
• Next Steps

Dice Have Arrived

YES! Late last week the resin dice arrived at the warehouse. The metal, stone and resin dice are now resting peacefully, waiting for the day they end up in players hands so they can fulfill their purpose. The metal and stone dice sets are sublime. The Aluminum feel hefty, the Red Granite feel silky smooth, and the Opalite look especially raidant in the sun! As for the resin sets - each set's unique design will make your rolls stand out! I'm really happy with these custom dice! (I can't guarantee high-rolls, but I promise I didn't roll any 1's while testing them out!) I took these photos with my phone, so they don't do the dice justice, but hopefully it gives you a taste of whats to come.

Miniatures are in Manufacturing

The minis are being manufactured as we speak. I expect to see them land at the warehouse by the end of the month, if not before. I'm really impressed with the amount of details in these minis! Here's a photo of the some mini's for your viewing pleasure! (More to come as we receive them). For perspective, Nimble is ~37mm, the heigth of the combined diameters of a US Penny and Dime, whereas Daggie's heigth is ~32mm, which is about the diameter of quarter. These DO come with bases, which are shipped separately. 

Next Steps

We are holding off for a few more days before we order the maps as those goods are quickly manufactured.  Once the miniatures and maps arrive, the warehouse will receive the go ahead to begin the process of fulfilling the physical goods. 

Again - THANK YOU for your support! And please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions. Send your emails to [email protected].