9 February 2022 Handiwork Newsletter

Hello everyone! We have some fantastic updates for you from the worlds of Jon Hodgson Maps, Handimonsters and BEOWULF!

BEOWULF NEWS

First up, let’s talk about the BEOWULF Annual 2022. This is a compilation of the Digital Packs and other bonus releases, all collected together for your convenience in a gorgeous print book.

It has a variety of resources contained within, including new Followers, Gifts, and Burdens, advance on Hero creation, resources for magical items and weapons, plus much. much more!

We’re expecting stock to arrive with us this week, and we’ll share photos as soon as it arrives!

Get the full-colour perfect-bound book (with free PDF) here: here

Or pick up the PDF directly: here


Trials of the Twin Seas Cover Reveal

We’re delighted to announce a new product for BEOWULF: The Trials of the Twin Seas. This adventure anthology will collect our digital adventure releases (including the Triple Serpent, see below) in a print edition. We’re going to use this opportunity to make additions and revisions to our adventures, so they’ll be improved and expanded from their original versions. We’ll bring the Trials of the Twin Seas to Kickstarter soon!

The Triple Serpent

Written by Gareth Hanrahan, the Triple Serpent is our final digital adventure that was unlocked during the original BEOWULF Kickstarter. It’s a complex adventure based on mythology from Gar’s native Ireland and we’re sure you will enjoy it!

If you’ve missed any of the already released BEOWULF adventures, grab them here.


Character Queue

Waelwulf was our latest Hero to be featured on Character Queue! With him, the series is coming to at least a pause, but we’ll have a new series of feature articles to reveal next week.

Handimonster News!

We’ve got some awesome fan feedback to check out, and then we want to remind everyone about the Handimonster Annual.

Scenery Monsters

Jared Rascher has an interesting analysis of our brand new scenery monsters over on Twitter. A creation of Jon’s imagination, scenery monsters come with simple mechanics and easy adjudication so you can some colour to a scene without a lot of overhead.

Handimonsters Annual 2022

Speaking of lots of material with low overhead, this book collects our Handimonsters output from the previous year, giving you a wide variety of 5e monsters.

You can order the full-colour perfect-bound book (with free PDF) from our website: here

Or you can get the PDF directly: here

Jon Hodgson Maps

We have a brand-new VTT scenery map pack to celebrate:

This set of bridge .png files can be arranged in any number of ways in the VTT platform of your choice, to create endlessly varied river crossings. There are long and short stone bridges, broken down stone bridges, rope bridges, wooden bridges, a ford and stepping stones.

These all work on a background that is compatible with the Northern Wilderness Construction set. There are tokens to create pebble banks, and grassy river banks, and two widths of river. In total there are 17 pngs of bridges and 13 tokens to create the scenery underlying your bridge. As a bonus there are also 4 premade maps using these assrts and some bonus items from the Northern Wilderness Construction set by way of example.

Get it now: here!

Handimonsters Annual 2022

We’ve been hard at work bringing our patrons at Handimonsters.com brand-new 5e monsters every single week of the year. And now, since we have such a horde of wild and wonderful unique beasties, we’re going to publish them in an annual!

It will be a handsome, full colour softcover book, 64 pages long, available direct from our webstore, and of course in PDF from DrivethruRPG. Every monster gets its own page, with it’s own unique stat block, abilities and actions, along with its own stunning piece of art. Since we’ve built this horde up over a year, they’re all unique killer, and absolutely no filler!

Our monsters are designed by Jacob Rodgers (Adventures in Middle-earth 5e, The Ruins of Symbaroum 5e, BEOWULF Age of Heroes) and illustrated by Scott Purdy (Pathfinder, Numenera, BEOWULF Age of Heroes)

We’ll have more information on how you can get your hands on one very soon. And be sure to swing by www.Handimonsters.com to check out the free stuff and subscribe!

HANDIWORK NEWSLETTER, 17 December 2021

Wow, what news we have for you. More details on the forthcoming Handimonsters 2021 Annual, a sneak peek at a|state accessories and lots of details on BEOWULF Age of Heroes!

BEOWULF: Age of Heroes

We’re almost done getting all the BEOWULF rewards out, BEOWULF hits the top ten best sellers, and Digital Pack Seven is almost ready, and you can order the Art Book in both PDF and the Print Edition.

Kickstarter US Shipping Wrapping Up

It’s been a big task getting the books to the US during the global shipping crisis, and a challenge while we waited for them to get through customs, and of course fulfilling any successful kickstarter has a lot of moving parts, but we’re almost there! We’re wrapping up the last few backer orders and starting to get the preorders into the process. Most backers have got their rewards now and we anticipate the great majority of those still in progress will arrive before the end of this coming week.

BEOWULF hits the Top Ten!

We were delighted to learn that BEOWULF Age of Heroes was in the top ten best selling Historical RPGs of 2021! Find out more at Geek Native.

Digital Pack Seven Coming Soon!

Our next BEOWULF Digital Pack will release before the end of the month. It will bring some new Followers and some new Gifts and Burdens to the game, present some more monsters to challenge your Heroes and more!

Art Book Available Now!

The BEOWULF Art Book in PDF form is now available for everyone. If you are located in the US and backed the BEOWULF: Age of Heroes kickstarter, then check your email/spam folder for a free coupon for this PDF as a thank you for your patience.

The BEOWULF Art Book print edition is a compact and beautiful 32 page booklet in full colour. It’s 210mm x 210mm square, and packed to the brim with BEOWULF art and commentary.

The free PDF will be sent to you via DrivethruRPG coupon within 24 working hours of ordering, and the print book will be dispatched in the new year 2022 – it is at print right now. We are sending books from both the UK and the US, so it should arrive very early in the new year.

Please note: If you are a US-based BEOWULF backer we have sent a discount coupon for you to use on this book as a thank you for your patience during the global shipping crisis.

a|state Video Review of Accessories, Late Pledge Window Extended

We’ve received the very first samples of the Compass and Coins from our friends at Campaign Coins – check out the video:

We’re keeping the pledge manager open just a little bit longer… we realise how busy this time of the year is and we want to make sure everyone who’s interested has a chance to put an order in.

Handimonsters 2021 Annual, Preview of Mad Man Jack

The pre-order for the Handimonsters annual will open in the new year!

A full colour 64-page softcover book covering a range of monsters that we released during 2021 along with bonus material, this print edition will cost £10.95 ($15.99 US), plus shipping. Preorders open next week, and we will print in both the UK and US for fast delivery.

A devilish sort of fellow, Mad Man Jack is quite dangerous, with his abilities to leap over moderately sized buildings and do horrendous damage with his claw-hand. Fortunately, he’s only found in cities. You’re not planning to visit one any time soon, are you?

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Newsletter – 2 December

Howdy! We’ve got some late-breaking news for you and lots of fun stuff for BEOWULF, Handimonsters and a|state. Let’s get into it!

a|state

The pledge manager for late pledges is closing on 15 December, just a few days away! This is your last chance to get in to the ground floor of The City, after this you’ll be able to preorder the game at retail pricing.

Step inside a baroque urban nightmare, the world of a|state. In The City you’ll fight off threats to your canalside home, trying to make this grim and haunted place safer and better, somehow.

a|state brings a new, hopeful approach to the much-loved Forged in the Dark ruleset. Your ability to Care counts as much as your ability to Fight.

Create Troublemakers such as the deft and deadly Ghostfighter, the caring and curious Lostfinder, the persuasive and passionate Activist, and the striking and stealthy Sneakthief. If they can trust each other they might have a chance.

Defend your corner from selfish authorities, angry gangs and heartless industries, and deal with the spiralling consequences of your own actions as you struggle for a better tomorrow. 

Bringing the wine-dark visual vibes of Dark City and The City of Lost Children, a|state delivers Dickensian anti-Thatcher sparks and knives sci fi.

Pledge for it now!

Handimonsters

We have just officially announced the Handimonsters Annual! This collects the monsters that we have released over the previous year into a stunning professionally-printed full-colour softcover book! We will soon be opening this up to preorder, with our current plans being to ship from both our UK and US warehouses, in order to give you the best possible rates on shipping.

BEOWULF: Age of Heroes

US shipping has resumed after the Thanksgiving holidays. We expect another week or so of mail processing. Packages are coming from our warehouse in Georgia and travelling via Priority Mail so we hope that almost everyone will receive their packages in short order (some packages, like APO/FPO, necessarily take longer).

For your patience, we will be sending all US Backers a PDF of the BEOWULF Art Book, which features our favourite BEOWULF art pieces, commentary from the artist and notes for including the imagery and situations represented in your BEOWULF games.

This book will also be available in print, at a vastly reduced price to US Backers.

We recently announced a forthcoming Kickstarter project to collect the already-released digital adventures in a printed format. We’re also decided that we will be collecting the material from Digital Packs 1 to 7 in a book format. This project won’t be a Kickstarter, but a preorder that will release very soon.

Links

Sign up for our newsletter and you’ll get extra offers, insights and snippets of info.

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Handimonsters Annual 2021

We’ve been hard at work bringing our patrons at Handimonsters.com brand-new 5e monsters every single week of the year. And now, since we have such a horde of wild and wonderful unique beasties, we’re going to publish them in an annual!

It’ll be a handsome, full colour softcover book, in the region of 64 pages, available direct from our webstore, and of course in PDF from DrivethruRPG. Every monster gets its own page, with it’s own unique stat block, abilities and actions, along with its own stunning piece of art. Since we’ve built this horde up over a year, they’re all unique killer, and absolutely no filler!

Our monsters are designed by Jacob Rodgers (Adventures in Middle-earth 5e, The Ruins of Symbaroum 5e, BEOWULF Age of Heroes) and illustrated by Scott Purdy (Pathfinder, Numenera, BEOWULF Age of Heroes)

We’ll have more information on how you can get your hands on one very soon. And be sure to swing by www.Handimonsters.com to check out the free stuff and subscribe!

Newsletter – 23 November

What a bunch of news we have for you today! There are updates on Forest Dragon games, Handimonsters, a|state, and BEOWULF: Age of Heroes.

BEOWULF: Age of Heroes

Digital Pack 6

We have released our sixth set of digital add-ons for BEOWULF. This is the first one backers are not getting free as part of their pledges. It’s packed with PDF articles, maps, VTT tokens, and music.

Purchase it here.

BEOWULF US Fulfillment

Packages continue to wing their way across the country and our warehouse will continue to pack and ship backers’ rewards, with a bit of an interruption for Thanksgiving. We hope to have our shipping done early next month.

a|state

Late pledges for a|state are closing soon! Our kickstarter for this early 2000s British RPG classic smashed all expectations, and there’s a small window left to make a late pledge.

In a|state you’ll band together to try to make a life in your corner of the endless City better, bringing the ability to Care to Forged in the Dark games.

As you’d expect from Handiwork, there’s a host of useful and beautiful accessories available to check out at the late pledge page.

Handimonsters

This week we released our last Dungeon Construct of the year, the Throne Mimic for Handimonsters. Enchanted with the power to draw creatures to itself, it then grabs and devours them. You can get it and over 50 other monsters at www.handimonsters.com!

We are also hard at work at assembling the annual, a print compilation of our first year of Handimonsters that will collect all of our beautiful art and tricky monsters into a physical form. We’ll have more to talk about here soon.

Forest Dragon Games

Let’s take a quick look at the Forest Dragon Farmer. In the game, you collect crops by growing them. This requires a Field, some Seeds, and a Helper. Each of them need to match (for example each of the above cards have a green plant symbol, so this is a matching set). Keep making sets in order to win the game!

Links

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Newsletter – 16 November 2021

Huge Excitement! News on Forest Dragon products, Handimonsters, a|state, and BEOWULF: Age of Heroes!!!

BEOWULF: Age of Heroes

… the curved prow such course had run
that sailors now could see the land,
sea-cliffs shining, steep high hills,
headlands broad. Their haven was found,
their journey ended.

BEOWULF: Age of Heroes has landed on the western shore! Fighting valiantly through hordes of ‘customs’ (whatever fell creature they might be), it won its way and arrived in good condition to the House of Wares here in America:

From here, it must be sorted and divided, packaged appropriately, and sent on to each individual’s destination. That process began this week and will continue (with some interruptions next week due to American Thanksgiving) until everyone of our American backers has their rewards! We know you’ve been incredibly patient while this was sorted out and we appreciate the patience.

Other BEOWULF news

With our original BEOWULF project within sight of being completed, let’s talk about what’s coming next. We have dozens of BEOWULF digital releases and many requests to provide their content in a physical format. In order to deliver the highest possible quality product with the best ‘bang for the buck’ we will launch a kickstarter next year for a hardcover book – an adventure anthology of the digital adventure releases. We’ll also take the opportunity to revisit each adventure for opportunities to update, expand, and link them together. And who knows? With an extra successful campaign, we might be able to add new material as well.

The contest to win a copy of the Whale Road poster runs until tomorrow at 14:00 UK time. Learn more here.

a|state news

The new edition of a|state is taking pledges right now, as we finish up work on the core text. Set in a dystopian city of mysteries, it is up to your gang of troublemakers to build up a secure corner in the city where your friends and families can be safe while you poke and prod at the authorities and their cruel and strange agendas.

Pledge today to join us in The City. You’ll never forget what you find there, though you won’t be remembered.

Handimonsters

Wow! Look at that… literally dozens of monsters for your 5e games and you can get all of them, just by signing up for Handimonsters! And that’s not even a complete set!

Sign up today at Handimonsters.com and get this incredible deal now.

We will produce a print release of our first year monsters, the 2021 Handimonsters Annual! It will be available to order very soon.

Forest Dragon products

We are doing final playtesting on two Forest Dragon products: Forest Dragon Farmer and The Pieman’s Apprentice! Forest Dragon Farmer is our game of (slightly) advanced strategy as farmers compete to produce the best crops. But when the harvest is in and the time comes to celebrate, the folk of the lands of the Forest Dragon enjoy their pies.

In the Pie Man’s Apprentice, players try to help the Pie Man bake the best pies. Everyone’s got their own favourites, so win extra points by making your friends and neighbours happy!

More news on both games will be coming very soon!

Links:

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Handimonsters Poster

Just for fun, here’s a poster that shows off some of the Handimonsters that are currently available. Handimonsters is a weekly Patreon that produces 5e monsters every week. You can sign up for as little as $3 a month. You’ll get access to all the monsters shown above (plus more that didn’t fit) and, as long as you’re subscribed, you’ll get a new monster every week. Sign up at www.handimonsters.com!

Our bonus level included not only the statblocks but transparent images for virtual tabletops, in both a portrait (pog) format and a top-down view of the monster. We include a digital art print so you can show off the monster to your players without accidentally revealing any game info, and we also include a printable paper mini to put out on the table for face-to-face games.

Newsletter – 9 November 2021

We’ve got news for you on Forest Dragon Farmer, Handimonsters, A|State and BEOWULF: Age of Heroes!

BEOWULF: Age of Heroes

BEOWULF has surpassed another milestone in its quest for America! The books have cleared customs and should be ready to ship to the warehouse. We are hoping for another update to come soon, indicating that they’re on the way but we also know that there are challenges in this aspect of shipping too so we don’t want to speak out of turn.

We really appreciate our customers’ understanding and good will and we are preparing a little thank you for your patience. More news very soon.

BEOWULF: Age of Heroes products:

Main Rulebook

Accessories

Digital Releases

Dice Trays on Sale!

We are having a special sale for our flexible dice trays. Full-colour printed with beautiful art (including a whole series of BEOWULF images and designs) they’re easy to transport and easy to use. As more and more opportunities arise for us to see each other, make sure your dice stay organised: Dice Trays

These are some of our most popular products, with our best selling designs, and they’re only sale right now (sale lasts until Wednesday morning, 0930 GMT)!

A|State Pledge Manager Open!

The A|State Pledge Manager is open and production on add-on items is underway! If you’re interested in joining us in The City, please get in as soon as possible.

Game Development Progress

We have begun the editing process on the completed sections of the manuscript as development is wrapping up. Production is ongoing for the add-ons and it’s all coming together for a timely delivery .

We anticipate PDF release in December, and remain on track for a June 2022 release.

Handimonsters

We are getting closer and closer to our anniversary. We have plans for a special product to celebrate and hope to have an official announcement later this week. Meanwhile, here’s a Dungeon Construct, the Knightmare:

Sign up at handimonsters.com and get access to dozens of monsters immediately. New monsters every Monday!

Forest Dragon Games

We’ve released a preview version of the Forest Dragon Farmer rules. Check out the website for more information and to download the rulebook!

Links:

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Newsletter – 2 November 2021

We’ve got news for you on BEOWULF, Forest Dragon Farmer, Handimonsters and A|State.

A|State Pledge Manager Open!

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The A|State Pledge Manager is open and production on add-on items is underway!

About the Game

If you’ve been interested in a|state this is your opportunity to join us in The City. Take on roles like the Ghostfighter, the Lostfinder, the Activist, and the Sneakthief to defend your part of the city from selfish authorities, angry gangs and heartless industries, and deal with the spiralling consequences of your own actions as you struggle for a better tomorrow. And there’s lots of amazing things for a|state being worked on right now.

Add-ons: Received Prints and Production Notes

We’ve received the print run for The Three Coins, a roleplaying game that exists in the City. We also have production notes and diagrams from our friends at Campaign Coins, showing us how they’re going to produce the compass and the coins.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Astate_rewards-1024x500.jpg

For details on these items, go to the Pledge Manager and scroll down – each add-on has a section all about it!

We remain on track for a June 2022 release.

Handimonsters

Our first anniversary is fast approaching! We have a plan for a special product to celebrate and should have an official announcement in about a week. Meanwhile, we ended our Legions of Autumn releases this year with the Soulseeker:

We’re taking the rest of the month to round out some of our monster collections, in anticipation of our exciting news, coming very soon!

When you join www.handimonsters.com you support us and our work, plus you’ll gain access to our entire backcatalogue of 5e monsters and receive a new monster every Monday!

Forest Dragon Farmer

We’ve received some very good news on Forest Dragon Farmer that has unlocked the potential for us to offer a level of production quality that we just didn’t have access to with earlier card game releases. We’ll have a big announcement for you, very soon!

BEOWULF

Will you be visiting family and friends over the upcoming holidays? Maybe you’ve got one special relation that you’ve always wanted to introduce to fantasy roleplaying but the logistics of putting together a big game would never work out? BEOWULF: Age of Heroes is designed for one player and one gamemaster. You can download the free introductory scenario The Hermit’s Sanctuary or order it Print On Demand. As long as you’re familiar with 5e, you can run the adventure by itself.

Orkenspalter TV recently featured BEOWULF in a review/skit. We asked a fan who’s a bit more proficient in German to give us the scoop and here’s what we heard back:

The scenario [The Three Ogre Brothers] reminds one of classical faerie tales, and would work well in other settings…

…Now we come to our favorite rule: The Hero always gets a spear – regardless of where one is. Either it’s given to them, there’s one lying around, or it’s improvised…

Beowulf is rich with fascinating, lively (or living), genre-setting mythology; the text is authentic and the pictures create such a fantastic atmosphere, that you just have to try it. We give it an 8.5 out of 10.

What a fun review!

As for our American shipment, the transportation fog remains strong. We know that the shipment arrived in Miami some time ago, and we have a mysterious message regarding paperwork dated in October, but things are still unclear. We know that there’s a tremendous backlog right now, and we’re still hoping for a bright ray of clarity to shine on us any day now. Or we’ll take a surprise truck visit.

Links:

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