Barony: Royal edition

Pledge Manager closing and production almost finished!
29 days ago – Wed, Jan 15, 2025 at 07:26:14 PM

Greetings, nobles!

We hope your holiday season was a restful time with family and friends. This is a short update to let you know where we are at with Barony as 2025 dawns!

Pledge Manager closing

As mentioned in our last update, it is now time to close the pledge manager. This means that in a couple of days, cards will be charged (if you had anything further to pay after the Kickstarter campaign closed), and no further add-ons or pledge adjustments will be allowed. Please login to BackerKit if you haven't already, and complete your pledge.

Addresses will still be editable for a while yet. If you need to change your delivery details for any reason, you will still be able to login to BackerKit and make those edits. I will update everyone when addresse changes are going to be locked down.

Production nearing completion

We are hopeful that production of Barony will be completed within a month. Yes, we like to move quickly around here :) This is the main reason we need to close the pledge manager - so we can begin prepping container ships and fulfilment. This does not mean you will have your games in a month, but hopefully the process to getting your games to you from the factory will have begun :) My February update should fill you in on all these details. Stay tuned!

A new campaign coming soon!

• Farm Hand... a brand new title that has got everyone squawking!
• Small Fjords... a new, small edition of a modern classic... now with a solo mode!
• And, Tango... a trick-taking game for two!

Many thanks, everyone! If you have any questions, please ask. I will update you again, soon.

- David
Grail Games

Happy Holidays and Pledge Manager Reminder
about 2 months ago – Wed, Dec 18, 2024 at 05:43:49 PM

Seasons greetings!

This is a quick update to all nobles across the barony, wishing everyone happiness and safety over the upcoming holiday period. As our next update will probably be in mid-January (with news on the completion of production and the first steps towards fulfilment), I wanted to share this now before many of you get busy with family and friends! Happy Holidays :D

Don't forget the pledge manager!

Thanks to all who have already completed the pledge manager. If you wish to make changes between now and the next update, you may. If you did not receive an email invite from BackerKit, please try and login via the site directly, or ask for the email to be resent.

If you know someone who missed the campaign and wants to complete a late pledge, they can do so via this link: https://barony-royal-edition.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders

A quick note about the Heroes expansion

A couple of people have asked if they need to add this on to their pledge or whether it is included within the game box. The answer is it is included within the game box :) Do not add this to your pledge unless you want an extra copy for some reason. Just as during the campaign, we have it available separately for people who own the original version of Barony and Sorcery and only want the "new" content.

Until next time...

Thanks everyone! I will update you again, soon. Below is a newer photo of a sample of the game that is being printed for you as we speak (minus a few of the later stretch goals and components for two more players). I can't wait for you to have it :)

- David
Grail Games

Pledge Manager is going live this week!
2 months ago – Tue, Dec 10, 2024 at 02:57:44 PM

Greetings, nobles!

We hope you have been doing well in the past two weeks. Thanks again for your support of Barony! Hopefully you are as excited to receive it as we are to get it produced and sent to your door 🙂

Pledge Manager going live

After every Kickstarter campaign we run a pledge manager for at least a month. The pledge manager is for backers to add-on extra games, or simply to confirm your pledge. It's also how we collect your shipping addresses.

We have just launched the "smoke test" for Backerkit, which means 5% of you will get your Backerkit pledge manager email invite. Assuming that goes well, the rest of the emails will go out by the end of the week. (These emails will be going to the email address you have attached to your Kickstarter account. Be sure to check spam folders and the like!) Note that if your Kickstarter account is linked through an Apple ID, it might not deliver the BackerKit survey email. Please submit a ticket (see below) in this case.

The BackerKit system is pretty straight forward but we do have a quick guide below for anyone who's never used it before. If you have any questions or issues using the pledge manager, contact BackerKit support or submit a customer support ticket through our website here: https://www.grailgames.games/contact

For those new to Backerkit we've created a quick walkthrough:

> Welcome Screen

This is where you'll be able to select the country to which your game will ship, or switch your Pledge Level (If you backed at $1 for Example).

Just click on "Switch Your Pledge Level" and you can select any of the pledges from the drop-down menu. Or, click "Get Started" to continue as is.

> Questions

Since we don't have any open questions we need from you, this section is largely just a reminder that your Kickstarter items are already in your cart. You'll be able to add more copies in the next step. 

> Add-Ons

In this part of the Pledge Manager, you'll be able to add additional items to your pledge. For the most part this is just extra copies of Barony, but some regions have other Grail titles to order, too, depending on availability.

You'll see your shipping fees here which may increase if you add extra games onto your pledge. Shipping is weight-based so the costs will be dependent on the weight of your items.

Note that if you backed for 1 copy of Barony and you would like to order a second, you will get a better deal if you change your pledge to the Emperor Pledge (in the first step - you can click “back” within BackerKit to return to that screen).

PLEASE NOTE If you don't have a country selected before this screen (as often happens if you are doing a Late Pledge), shipping defaults to show "Rest of World" prices. Once you enter your address on the next screen it will fix itself.

If you live in a country where VAT is applicable you'll also see VAT fees here. Please note that VAT is based on the amount charged for the items and shipping.

> Shipping

Finally, there is the “Shipping” section where you'll have to fill in all your details so we can ship your games to you as soon as everything is printed and ready! All there is left to do is click “Next” and confirm your Pledge.

Late Pledge

You've missed the campaign and still want to join in? Or have a friend who'd like to pledge? Anyone can join us in our Late Pledge - I will post a button linking to this on the campaign page when the full mailout happens in a day or two.

Closing of the Pledge Manager/Late Pledge

The pledge manager is due to close its doors in mid-January. I will update everyone (and you will receive warning emails) in the lead up to its closure.

But the surveys will still be editable for a while after that, so if you move, etc., you will be able to use the link in your emails to return to the pledge manager and edit your address, etc., if needed.

You can also return to your pledge manager before it closes any number of times to change your items if you change your mind :) Cards will not be charged for extra items & shipping and VAT until we close the pledge manager in January.

Mini production update

As I mentioned previously, the factory has approved the print files and we are now awaiting production to commence. Games are expected to be printed by the end of January.

That's it for this update, have a great day for everyone!

- David
Grail Games

Thank you!
3 months ago – Tue, Nov 19, 2024 at 07:04:00 AM

Wow! Thanks everyone for supporting Barony: Royal Edition on Kickstarter! It's been a wonderful 3 weeks and we have gotten to know so many of you :D Thanks for your support, positivity and feedback. I can't wait for you to have the game on your shelf and (of course), being played on your table!

Stretch goal update

We have decided not to try and squeeze in any more content or upgrades at this time. Altogether we unlocked 13 stretch goals with your help!! Because we want to deliver as soon as possible, and don't want to blow the budget, we will stop here. In fact, we have already passed on the print files to the factory for checking - we want to move towards fulfilment as quickly as possible :)

So what happens now?

Here is a copy of the campaign timeline from the Kickstarter page...

It usually takes 2 weeks for Kickstarter to pass the funds across to us (minus their fees, etc). Over the coming days we will spend time having all the files approved and ensuring all is as good as can be. Then the game will enter the printing queue!

Within a month we intend to launch the pledge manager. This will be on BackerKit and all backers will receive an email invite once ready. The pledge manager is how we collect your shipping addresses. It is also an opportunity for you to add-on extra games to your pledges, should you wish to. The pledge manager will stay open for at least a month (and your address info will remain editable until sometime after that).

We will do our absolute best to ensure production is finished before the busy holiday period in China in February. Then it's on to fulfilment!

When to expect updates

We promise to update backers at least once a month until the games are delivered. (We usually update on the third Thursday of every month.) Sometimes this will occur more often (such as when the pledge manager opens, or when shipments begin). I assume our next update will be in 2-3 weeks, summing up our progress and sharing info about the pledge manager.

We will also be checking comments and KS messages regularly, so if you have any questions or concerns, please let us know!

All the best! We thank all our barons and baronesses for their fantastic support!
- David
Grail Games

Not long to go!
3 months ago – Mon, Nov 18, 2024 at 04:07:55 AM

Greetings, nobles!

Thank you to all who have decided to join us on this voyage towards the throne! We only have a little over 24 hours remining in the Barony: Royal edition campaign, and I wanted to give a summary of what has been happening since my previous update!

Two stretch goals fall!

The addition of a cardboard insert for the box has been unlocked, but the stretch goal following that has fallen, too - it all happened so fast!

Yes! Now we will be able to add a touch of gold to the box top design. This will make the box more representative of the royal board game that sits within it!

A new stretch goal announced... and fallen!

On top of this, with the influx of supporters today, I can also announce this next stretch goal... Hang on!! This stretch goal has been unlocked already as well?!?! Thank you!! :D

A sixth component box will now be added to the game, to hold all the other pieces (except for the resource tokens). These include the start player marker, the magic tokens and the control tokens (used when playing with the Sorcery expansion).

Will there be more stretch goals...?

I am working hard to see what else we may be able to squeeze in before the close of the campaign. Thanks to everyone for making this Kickstarter so successful. Because we want to hit our timeline and budgets, I am unable to promise anything just yet, but I am working on a few possibilities. 

Also...

We received a lot of feedback - a lot - on the questions raised in the previous update on how the back side of the wooden pieces could look. We believe the combined design (showing the building details as well as the player crest to help those with sight needs), will be the best way forward. Our graphic designer is working now to finalise the designs.

I knew that we would get differing opinions, but we will do our best to end up with a product that is going to please as many backers as possible, while maintaining playability and as much visual appeal as we can. It's a juggling act, but we will do our best not to drop the ball :)

We currently have 51/100 of the German-speaking backers needed to unlock a digital, professional translation of the rules in German. As this seems unlikely, we will keep this stretch goal going over the next few weeks and see if any late pledges or retail pledges can get us over the line :)

Don't forget that the game is language-free, so if you can use the EN/FR rule book, players of any language will be good to go.

What's next?

Our next update will be at the close of the campaign and it will outline the next steps for Barony. I will keep you informed at every step of the way - from the campaign's close, to the delivery of the games to your door. We have our procedures firmly in place and I will be surprised if we can't get Barony to you earlier than originally planned.

If you are new to the campaign, please skim through all 12 of the updates that came before this one to see what your game will include, and to catch up on all that's been going on :) If you do have any questions or comments, please let me know!

Thank you! I'll see you on the other side...
- David
Grail Games