Clandestine Preorders

The Pledge Manager Goes Live Today!
about 1 year ago – Thu, Jan 30, 2025 at 07:07:58 AM

Great news! As promised last week, the pledge manager for Clandestine is going live!  Check your e-mail (or possibly your spam folder) for an e-mail from Brookspun Games (via BackerKit) shortly inviting you to complete your pledge manager for Clandestine.  A small portion of you will get your link momentarily and the rest of you will get your link later today or tomorrow.

As a reminder, in the pledge manager you will:

• Confirm your pledge level (with the opportunity to upgrade it, if desired)
• Add any desired add-ons
• Provide your address for shipping (we're still on track to ship this fall. If you need to change you're address later, you'll have plenty of time to do so)
• Pay for shipping fees and any applicable taxes/VAT (based on your shipping address)

In the last update I mentioned cards would be charged as you complete your entry in the pledge manager, but after some feedback, I've decided that cards will get charged at the end of March.  I'll be sure to give notice via updates as we approach that point, but want to make sure you're aware this is a change from what I shared in the last update.

Changing Your Pledge Level

I know a number of you backed at the Initiate ($1) level and have been awaiting the Pledge Manager launch to choose your version of Clandestine.  In order to change your pledge (regardless of what level you pledged during the Kickstarter campaign), when you launch your survey, you can either click here to choose a new pledge level:

...or if you're already working on your survey, you can click here to change your pledge level:

Pledge Manager Questions / Issues

If you have any issues completing or updating your pledge in the pledge manager, BackerKit has great support - please check with them first as they have a team that can respond quickly.  If you're still running into issues, please feel free to message me directly via Kickstarter and I'm happy to help - just may be a bit slower to respond than the BackerKit team would be.

Transcendent Backers

REMINDER: For those that backed at the Transcendent level, please check your Kickstarter messages for a special message from me about getting your prototype of Clandestine to you.  A few still have yet to provide the information needed so I can get your prototype of Clandestine sent your way.  You'll still need to complete your pledge manager for your production copy, but the prototype version will be managed through our Kickstarter communication.

Retailer Backers

REMINDER: For those that backed at the Retailer level, instead of a pledge manager invite, you'll receive a message from me in the next week or so to process your retailer order via Google Forms.  Please be on the lookout for that message.

Quick Recap

• Look for your pledge manager e-mail today/tomorrow from Brookspun Games (via BackerKit)
• Complete your pledge manager before March 31st (cards will be charged then for shipping/VAT and any upgrades to your pledge or add-ons which weren't collected via Kickstarter)
• Retailer or Transcendent backer? Look for a KS message from me soon
• Still on track to deliver this fall - in the meantime, have fun playing some of your other favorite games!

I'm excited to reach this point and look forward to sharing updates on the rulebook and additional final design details in my next updates.

Take care and stay tuned for more fun updates soon!

--Jason

Jan. 2025 Update - Pledge Manager Launching Shortly
about 1 year ago – Fri, Jan 24, 2025 at 02:13:44 PM

I hope your new year is off to a great start!  As promised last month, the pledge manager for Clandestine is nearly ready to launch.  This week we were working with BackerKit on a small pesky issue and appear to have that resolved.  We expect BackerKit to complete their formal review early next week and give us the green light to launch shortly after that.

We'll first launch the pledge manager for a smoke test (to about 5% of backers).  Once we confirm everything is working as planned with that small group, pledge manager surveys will go out to everyone - likely mid-to-late next week.   

Pledge Manager Details

In the pledge manager (run by BackerKit) you will:

• Confirm your pledge level (with the opportunity to upgrade it, if desired)
• Add any desired add-ons
• Provide your address for shipping
• Pay for shipping fees and any applicable taxes/VAT (based on your shipping address)

Cards will be charged when you complete the pledge manager, however, you have until at least the end of March to complete your pledge manager entry so you can pick a time that works best for you financially to complete your pledge.  

After the pledge manager closes at the end of March, you'll still be able to adjust your shipping address - if needed - until manufacturing is nearly complete this summer.  We'll give you plenty of notice before addresses lock for shipping (and reminders about the pledge manager over the next couple of months).

Transcendent Backers

For those that backed at the Transcendent level, please check your Kickstarter messages for a special message from me about getting your prototype of Clandestine to you.  Several of you have responded and have received your prototype, but a few still have yet to provide the information needed so I can get your prototype of Clandestine sent your way.

Retailer Backers

For those that backed at the Retailer level, instead of a pledge manager invite, you'll receive a message from me in the next couple of weeks to process your retailer order via Google Forms.  Please be on the lookout for that message.

Legacies

Thank you to those who completed the survey regarding interest in adding a copy of Legacies (my first published game).  Based on the response to that survey, I will NOT be doing a reprint of Legacies at this time.  I do anticipate a reprint, but it seems like it's more likely to happen sometime next year.  For the limited number who were interested, I have an extremely small number of copies of Legacies left from the original run.  If you're interested AND in the US or Canada, please send me a direct message through Kickstarter and we can see if I can get a copy to you via a direct order.

Additional Clandestine Progress

Over the past few weeks, in addition to preparing the pledge manager, we've had some great progress on a number of items:

• The solo mode artwork for Clandestine has been finalized meaning we now have 100% of the art for the game (I'll share those soon once we finalize the graphic design for the solo society paths.)
• The contract with Panda has been signed for manufacturing
• The Bone Vessel Mini files have been sent to Panda for review (as the mini will take the longest of all of the components)
• Solo mode testing and final development have continued
• Rulebook fine-tuning continues (note: in the next update I'll likely include a link to the near final draft of the rulebook for feedback.  If that's something you'd like to review and/or chime in on, please be sure to keep an eye out for that!)

That's it for now.  Be on the lookout for the pledge manager invite from BackerKit in the next several days and feel free to share any thoughts or questions in the comments or directly to me via Kickstarter message.

Thank so much and stay tuned for additional updates!

--Jason 

Dec. 2024 Update - Pledge Manager, Mini, and Conventions
over 1 year ago – Sun, Dec 22, 2024 at 08:22:26 AM

For many (myself included), holidays are just around the corner with the new year to follow. Before heading into those busy times - hopefully spent with friends and family and/or doing things you love to do - I wanted to let you know how Clandestine is coming along since the campaign wrapped.  A lot has progressed over the last couple of weeks with the pledge manager, solo mode (graphic design & art), development/playtesting, and more.  See below for some of the highlights.

Pledge Manager setup in progress

I'm actively building out the pledge manager in BackerKit and opted to wait to launch it until January.  With the hecticness of the holidays, I realized it would be better to launch it after things calmed down for many in the new year (and when the BackerKit support team is actually back in the office...).  

In the pledge manager you'll be able to enter your shipping details, upgrade and/or add items to your pledge if desired, and pay for shipping costs and relevant VAT/taxes.

As I finalize the pledge manager, I've got a One Question Survey I'd love it if you'd take!

Note: Transcendent backers have already received a message and e-mail from me about getting their Clandestine prototypes.  Retailers will get a message from me around the same time the pledge manager launches regarding their next steps.

Bone Vessel Mini

Believe it or not, of the several hundred components you'll be getting with your copy of Clandestine, the one that takes the longest to produce will be the Bone Vessel Mini (to store your energy tokens and pass between players at the end of each turn).  This week we finalized the files for the mini and sent them over to Panda for an initial review.  

I shared some details about the mini in Project Update #9. As a two-piece mini, we recognized it needed some extra stability to keep the vessel together while passing it from player to player.  We also wanted to make sure it's easy to disassemble to return to the box for storage.  The pictures below shows the solution we're using to meet both of those needs. (Insert your own joke here about your absent-minded friends who - if their heads weren't already screwed on - they'd be certain to forget them...)

Clandestine and 2025 Conventions

For those of you looking for conventions in warmer weather as winter takes hold in the US, FlingCon will have a prototype of Clandestine available for demos on Friday and Saturday during the convention (Jan. 23rd - Jan. 25th).  If you want a place to check out Clandestine, avoid the snow, and have tons of gaming fun - head to FlingCon in January to accomplish all of the above!

The other confirmed convention you can find Clandestine at in 2025 is GenCon in August where Brookspun Games will once again have a booth w/ demos.  We will also schedule a number of Clandestine full gaming sessions at GenCon for those wanting to give it a play before receiving their copy a few weeks later.

If there are additional conventions that you'd like to see Clandestine demoed or showcased at in the meantime, please feel free to list them in the comments or send me an e-mail through Kickstarter and I'll see what I can do.  

Other updates & next steps

In addition to the above, the solo mode art and graphic design is coming along nicely.  Development and fine tuning of cards and values continues. And final clean-up of game components (like the society paths) have been keeping us busy.

Our update next month will coincide with the launch of the pledge manager.  In the meantime, I'm wishing you all a very Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!!!

Thank You!!! From the Shadows Into the Light...
over 1 year ago – Thu, Nov 21, 2024 at 01:15:43 PM

Thank You

647 of you rallied together and were intrigued by Clandestine's campaign - helping us bring Clandestine fully out of the shadows and into the light. Thanks to each and every one of YOU, Clandestine will make its way to your gaming table next year.  I continue to be eternally grateful to this community - gamers, designers, playtesters, artists, collaborators, backers, and so many others who helped turn this idea from the fall of 2019 into the product and experience it is today. Your support fuels my passion and creativity to bring thematic, challenging, and fun experiences like this to gamers' tables around the world. Thank you so much!

What's Next

Pledge Manager

The post-campaign pledge manager will launch next month in BackerKit and remain open until roughly the time manufacturing begins. During that period you'll be able to provide your shipping details and make any final payments for shipping (and where relevant, VAT or sales tax) depending on where your pledge will be shipped.

In the pledge manager you'll be able to upgrade your pledge, if desired, at the prices you saw during the campaign - even if you backed at the Initiate ($1) level while the campaign was live. You'll also have the ability to add add-ons if desired, or even additional copies of the game.

Transcendent Backers

For Transcendent backers (a special thank you!!!), I'll reach out to you soon through direct Kickstarter message to coordinate delivery of your signed Clandestine prototype.  You'll be one of the lucky few to have a playable, physical version of Clandestine while waiting for the final product to be produced and delivered. 

Play Clandestine Online

For those that are eager to try Clandestine online, a scripted version is available on Tabletop Simulator (Note: Tabletop Simulator is a paid platform - usually $20 one-time fee but sometimes Steam has it on sale).  Additionally, if you join the Brookspun Games Discord channel, I plan to use that channel to communicate and host some plays online.  

Monthly Kickstarter Updates

As for Kickstarter Updates, I'll continue to share an update at least monthly (occasionally more frequently when key timelines like the closing of the pledge manager draws near).  In the meantime, please feel free to share any questions or comments with me either here via Kickstarter comments/messages or on the Clandestine page in Board Game Geek.  I'm committed to delivering a fun, high-quality game to you and look forward to answering any and all questions you may have as I work with my manufacturing & logistics partners to get Clandestine produced and on your table in 2025.

Thank you once more for being such a wonderful and integral part of this incredible journey! May each and every one of you always be the most intriguing player at your table.

--Jason  

Blue Army ❤️ Followers! + Final Hours
over 1 year ago – Thu, Nov 21, 2024 at 06:46:04 AM

As we enter the final few hours of the campaign, I couldn't think of a more perfect update than to introduce you to the fifth society in Clandestine - the Blue Army!   

If social media existed during the world of Clandestine, you can guarantee the Blue Army would have amassed epic amounts of followers! (just like all of you following and supporting Brookspun Games - who can usually be found sporting our blue polos)

Let's take a peek behind the curtain of the... Blue Army!

Make no mistake, friends - there can be no real freedom that we do not win for ourselves.  Take arms and rise up!

With the Blue Army in play, you'll likely be thrilled to see them regularly adding more followers to the board with their secrets, strengthening the available actions for everyone.   That is until you see the ease with which they're able to move those followers around the public track, thwarting your plans and positioning them in front of their own society. 

The advantages of the Blue Army include their ability to seed the game board with many more followers and to lure followers from public spaces to regularly make their Fundraise & Discover actions even stronger.  Additionally, the Blue Army has the only unique action on one of their society chambers - Revolt.  The Revolt action allows them to perform a PUBLIC regroup and then take an additional action using a public leader (and a chaos token because - they just made a whole mess of all of your public plans...).

The Blue Army has the most potential to set the overall pace of the game.  When using their secrets to add followers to the board, actions become stronger for everyone, accelerating gameplay.  With their ability to move followers around the public track pretty regularly, they're rarely stuck taking a low strength Fundraise or Discover action so they can advance well toward their Ascension needs on any given turn.

Empires have risen and fallen, and tyrants have come and gone, but the people will always remain. So says the Blue Army, a shadow regiment of soldiers, from conscripts to generals, who are working to secure the city's independence as its own sovereign state.

My favorite aspect of the Blue Army is the way they can maneuver and even add followers around the public track with regularity.  There's a great satisfaction of knowing you're unlikely to be "stuck" when you need to gather gold and there are no good Fundraise actions available or if you need just a little more strength for your Discover action to get the one relic that fits perfectly with your strategic plans.

Final Hours

Throughout the campaign I've shared many of the aspects of Clandestine's gameplay, components, and even some of the history and inspiration behind the design.  I hope these updates have given you the insight and information you've been looking for about Clandestine.

After the campaign, you'll get a rousing thank you update from me as well as a summary of what to expect over the next few months in terms of updates, pledge manager details, and other key steps between now and the time Clandestine arrives on your doorstep.  

Be sure to continue to follow along with my updates here as well as on Board Game Geek where you can participate in any rules questions, strategy analysis, or other topics that appeal to you as you await your copy and - before you know it - begin your first plays of Clandestine.  

Looking forward to pivoting into the next phase of our journey together in just a few hours...

--Jason