This is Rick Heinz! Reaching out to all Tarot Deck Backers!
almost 2 years ago
– Tue, May 14, 2024 at 11:36:01 AM
Rolls up sleeves. Pours Coffee. Puts on Metal. Cracks Knuckles.
Hey everyone! Rick here officially! So. We have... a project. You guys backed the Red Opera because you enjoy the lore, metal, warlocks, and well... obviously Tarot. Obviously, it's been a bit. Me, Pat, and STF's Eldritch Editor Court have been thinking about how to best handle this, and we have ideas. But rather than leave everyone in the dark while we sort through some logistics, here's what Storytellers Forge is looking at.
(I suppose, I should say, that if you aren't familiar with Storytellers Forge our website is www.storytellersforge.com and it's the company that Pat, Court, and I started after we finished writing The Red Opera. We recently just finished a campaign called The Black Ballad and got it in everyone's hands so we are happy to dive in and work on our brainchild and take it in new directions).
Step #1: Sorting through information. Kickstarter can be finicky to work with, and we aren't the original creators of this crowdfunding campaign, but rather, the I.P. So, we want to see it through. It's something we undertook together, and everyone personally wants to see it finished. The Backer Reports have expired and I've reached out to Kickstarter to see if I can get them. I can see some orders, and who grabbed what, but not any actual usable info (like emails! Addresses!). I might get more info out of Kickstarter in general, but they tend to keep some strict security protocols around this. There may come a time where we ask everyone to just fill out a google forms sheet for info. BUT I am pleased to say have all the files for The Red Opera and Tarot Deck now, so it's just a manner of getting them sorted and logged into our systems. Light Stone is helping with the transfer of information, and if I run into Kickstarter roadblocks with expired backer reports, he'll be the first person I email for more verification. (The expired reports have nothing to do with any creator, for some reason, you only have 2 months or some crazy timeline before they go poof and you need to reverify everything).
Step #2: Inviting Everyone to a Q&A Session. May 26th, 7 PM Central on the Storytellers Forge Discord. It will be townhall style, and we want to ask a few questions. A link to our discord is here: https://discord.gg/7f7R5jNXkf and we will be creating roles and a channel for Tarot Deck Backers so this way we can get information quickly when needed. If you don't use discord, please email us at [email protected] so we can start taking down your information.
Step #3: Delivering The Easy Stuff. I've got some parts in mind, but I'm at the mercy of warehouse and mail. As soon as I have the various individual Red Opera copies and merchandise we are just going to direct ship those to backers. I know, I know, it's split shipping stuff and it's much cheaper to bundle them all up, but it allows us to at least cross some elements off a list. Then it moves into the larger hurdle: The nearly finished.
Step #4: Forsaken Pacts. We at STF want to take Forsaken Pacts and expand it further, do some rewrites, and take a new shot at layout with art. Using it as a basis-of-design for a future Red Opera: Reforged (glares at upcoming D&D revisions). The storyline for Forsaken Pacts is still the same: Everyone plays as detectives working for The Collectors to settle disputes between Patron and Warlock before time runs out. But... we can enhance it with new style guide methods we learned writing The Black Ballad. Also, all super backers who had their characters featured for backing this project are still there! Don't worry! Your stories will be brought to life! Then, we are going to officially publish Forsaken Pacts and everyone here will get a digital copy.
Step #5: The Tarot Deck. The big kahuna. The elephant. The main squeeze. I'm... looking into how to get this done, but it's not a quick fix. I've officially got all the files and I'll be gearing up some of the creators over this summer with the STF Art Director to make some tweaks, and then we have a few different options. This is part of the reason we want to invite everyone for some polls and see what they want in a Tarot deck because there are some new options available that didn't exist a few years ago. There are also other products STF has that might work as a replacement for a Tarot deck if you're a particular backer that just wants to close the proverbial books on this and move on. There are options.
Step #6: Closing This Down. In the end, after we get Forsaken Pacts out and substantially fulfill this Kickstarter to our ability, we are letting this page live on. We've tons of plans for The Red Opera, but we want to use our own platforms. Heck, rumor has it there may be new music coming down the pipeline! Regardless, when we close out here, I'll send a report to Apotheosis for any people who picked up Sirens or Apotheosis Merch so they can add them into their logs and get those out when that project is ready.
That's all I got! Discord and email are the best ways to reach us because there is more than just me helping push this across the finish line.
Feel free to ask any questions here though, because I'll be checking this as often as I check The Black Ballad project ones (which is basically every day).
Hopefully this update gives everyone something to work with while we work with logistics behind the scenes getting all the parts and pieces in place.
Have a great week everyone and remember - Don't be afraid to ask questions! I'll do my best to answer!
-Rick
Important Update!
almost 2 years ago
– Mon, May 13, 2024 at 03:32:50 PM
Dear Backers, friends, and fellow gamers,
This has been quite a journey. I am incredibly pleased to announce that Rick Heinz and I have come to an agreement about how to best move forward with numerous projects, including The Red Opera: Deck of Endless Possibilities.
In the spirit of collaboration and mutual respect we have worked together to find a solution which is in the best interests of you, the backers, and all of those who dedicated themselves to our mutual projects. Rick and his team will have additional information rolling out shortly, but from here on out, Rick Heinz and Storytellers Forge will be responsible for all things The Red Opera related, so that he and his team can bring that world to even greater life. This includes managing The Red Opera: Deck of Endless Possibilities Kickstarter and this Kickstarter page, as well.
To be clear, this does not include, Sirens: Battle of the Bards which is still being worked on by Satine and me, and all updates related to that project will stay on that page and will continue to be managed by she and me.
I am incredibly excited to see what Rick and his team does with the wonderful world of The Red Opera and look forward to cheering him ever onward!
-Jamison Light Stone, Apotheosis Studios
BUCKLE UP -- BIG UPDATE!
over 2 years ago
– Fri, Jul 07, 2023 at 04:20:55 PM
Backers,
It's been over a year and you still don't have your Tarot Decks. The TLDR of this update is thus: I, Jamison Stone, Founder and CEO of Apotheosis Studios am going to fix that, no matter the personal cost to me.
Here is the longer explanation:
The truth of the matter is that after my company Apotheosis Studios was attacked, we not only lost all our team members we also lost over $100k worth of professional contracts, some of which were going to be paid out to us mere days after we got attacked. When this money never came, and the entirety of my professional team quit, everything fell apart. Luckily what has broken can be mended--rebuilt stronger, and wiser.
I had been careless, thinking my company and I were invincible -- this was grave hubris, especially because it was my (and my beloved wife's) actions that left us vulnerable to those attacks. We have learned, in so many ways.
According to our tax returns, in 2021 my company made a considerable amount of profit from a multitude of income streams, with the vast majority of our profit brought in directly from work Satine and I did independently of the work my team had done (i.e. this Kickstarter project, which was a financial loss even before the attack.)
I, as CEO, choose to invest my personal profit into my team and projects, in the hope to grow my company and the positive impact we could have on both our customers and our staff. I, however, in my lack of expertise and was spending money as fast as it came in, expecting our cash flow to sustain our expansion as we continued to grow. This was a grave error.
I have learned this lesson about cash flow powerfully -- among many other lessons. I am grateful for these debts and lessons, they were hard-earned, and have been well integrated into my being, albeit painfully.
Because of all of this, the tarot deck was profoundly delayed, but now that it's completed, my company does not have the funds to pay for printing. A deck that was promised by me, and funded by you -- Unacceptable. Despite the attack, this was horrible mismanagement on my part as CEO and I not only will I never make that mistake again, I will fix this, personally.
First off, in the past year, Satine and I have been working tirelessly behind the scenes, alone, finalizing the deck itself, the player booklet, the one-shot, the tarot cloth, the GM screen, and more. We have paid out all of our former team members and have, ourselves, brought (and in the case of the one-shot and GM Screen, are still bringing) these items to a finished product WE are proud of regardless of what we were provided with.
The fruit of that work is that we have finally finished key parts of the project and are ready to print the Tarot Deck, and yet Apotheosis Studios itself does not have the funds to pay for this due to my grave financial miscalculations.
To fix this I have just last week sold my personal car for cash, and am using the ENTIRETY of that cash to pay for and print the tarot deck for all of you.
I, Jamison Stone am I man of my word, and I will stand by my promises, even if I stand there alone. Luckily, I have the honor to stand in that truth with my beloved wife and partner, Satine Phoenix.
I will be providing many more details including printing timelines, shipping information (you will not get charged for any additional shipping), and much more in the coming weeks and months.
Please remember that printing and shipping take time, but rest assured I personally will guarantee all Apotheosis Studios products will be delivered as promised, even if, like this Tarot Deck, I have to liquidate personal assets, like my car, to fulfill my promises.
For those asking for a refund, the answer is a compassionate "No." I will not answer that question again. This is Kickstarter, we went into an agreement, I am sorry if you regret the choice you made. Despite that, I will fulfill my end of the agreement, and I deeply apologize for the delay and the mistakes I personally made which contributed profoundly to that delay. I have learned from those mistakes and will NEVER make them again.
If some of you are still upset with me, I understand and appreciate that -- I am disappointed, too. I have made mistakes, and they have negatively affected you. Know that I am liquidating personal assets to make good on my promises. I apologize for the delay and deeply regret my mistakes. I also am making it right, and I have sold my car for cash to pay for it.
If that is not enough for you, and you still somehow harbor rage in your heart, I don't know what else to say to you. Over the past year, I have gotten personal attacks, death threats, and people (even Kickstarter backers here) telling me I should kill myself.
To those people, I will not respond to you other than to say this: I suggest you get professional help so you may heal your internal wounds. Telling others to die or kill themselves is not healthy and you are only showing me you are in deep, personal pain and suffering.
I am sorry for your pain, but my actions are not the cause of that pain. I encourage you to hire a coach or a therapist to help you find out who, or what is hurting you so deeply.
I believe that if we do not live in a world where we can atone and learn from our mistakes we are all doomed. Luckily, I choose to live in a world where healing and learning are not only possible but actually the point of why we are all here -- To love, to learn, and to grow.
Expect more from me soon -- and honesty and openness from me always.
Jamison Stone,
Your (mostly) friendly neighborhood Founder and CEO of Apotheosis Studios
