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Post by TheRooster on Aug 24, 2014 6:39:09 GMT -9
Thanks largely to this forum, I've been inspired to continue designing papercraft products for RPGs and now I'm running a Kickstarter campaign to help launch our pre-printed and pre-cut 2.5D miniatures. These are similar to Eddnic's amazing models and I wish there were more people making them because I think they are the perfect blend of beauty, functionality, and cost. Our miniatures are printed on plastic trading cards and pre-cut so the pieces can be punched out. The pieces are also scored so folding them is easy. Punch the pieces out, fold them up, and pop them together and you have yourself a cool 3D miniature! If this sounds like something you're interested in, please check out our Kickstarter page and consider supporting us today! We sure would appreciate it! Brian
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Post by wyvern on Aug 25, 2014 1:09:30 GMT -9
Good luck, Brian!
Couple of thoughts after viewing your KS page. Maybe add a video showing how one of the minis makes up, and its base. The fact the minis come with bases hasn't been made as clearly as it might yet, perhaps. Also, on seeing these, people may be familiar with Eddnic's minis, and be aware the "internal" artwork is often duplicated, so you end up with two faces on a monster's head, for example, which I know puts some people off. A video could help show better that yours have "true" back and front artwork.
It may be worth thinking too of adding some of your downloadable products from the OBS sites as Add Ons on the KS page. Could be a way to bring in extra cash.
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Post by squirmydad on Aug 25, 2014 6:37:54 GMT -9
I'm highly intrigued, but I do second the need for a construction demonstration video. Is there a reason that your introductory level is at $50? It's possible you get more bites with some lower level pledge levels of groups of mini types; Say for $20 you get just Goblins; 2 each of all the Goblins presented in the basic set- Gaggle of Goblins. And then; Clutch of Kobolds, Grudge of Golems, etc.
What are the stretch goals?
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Post by wildagreenbough on Aug 25, 2014 11:50:35 GMT -9
The white edges on the minis are a point of concern for me as I think it detracts from the minis appearance. I also think that $50.00 is steep for an introductory pledge level and I agree with squirmydad that it would be better if some lower level pledges were offered.
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Post by TheRooster on Aug 25, 2014 12:07:58 GMT -9
Great feedback! As it turns out, I've been working on the assembly video today and just posted it. Also, great idea on adding the PDFs as rewards. These get printed 18 cards to a sheet, and the Standard Set is two sheets, one of which is printed twice. In theory I could make a lower reward level with just one sheet of minis. The trick is, shipping is the same cost whether I'm sending 18 cards or 180 cards. A $50 reward puts shipping at ~10%. A reward of $20 would mean the shipping is ~25% instead. At $10,000 that's a difference of $1,500 which is a problem. I get your drift though so I'll keep crunching the numbers to see if I can make a cheaper reward level work. The stretch goals are going to be more minis, added to the Standard Set for free. Something like this might make an appearance...
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Post by TheRooster on Aug 25, 2014 12:10:58 GMT -9
Good point on the white edges. I just realized I forgot to mention that I plan on getting these printed on either clear or black stock for production. Both of which will give better looking edges. These prototypes are obviously printed on white stock which makes the edges stand out.
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Post by wildagreenbough on Aug 25, 2014 13:52:43 GMT -9
Good point on the white edges. I just realized I forgot to mention that I plan on getting these printed on either clear or black stock for production. Both of which will give better looking edges. These prototypes are obviously printed on white stock which makes the edges stand out. That's good to know because the white edges would have been a real game breaker for me.
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Post by oldschooldm on Aug 25, 2014 14:46:12 GMT -9
I just realized I forgot to mention that I plan on getting these printed on either clear or black stock for production. Both of which will give better looking edges. Be sure to test print on those non-white stocks. You may be very surprised what it does to your colors. :-)
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Post by TheRooster on Aug 26, 2014 7:56:09 GMT -9
Good advice. Of course a white base will have to be printed first before the normal colors. I'm hoping to get view some samples with clear media this week.
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Post by TheRooster on Aug 26, 2014 12:01:47 GMT -9
If you're at all interested in how these go together, here are a couple videos showing the assembly process.
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Post by colonelshofer on Aug 26, 2014 17:06:47 GMT -9
Nice
TY
CS
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Post by cowboyleland on Aug 27, 2014 14:12:00 GMT -9
Looks good! I want a cut
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Post by squirmydad on Aug 27, 2014 15:56:07 GMT -9
I see you have instituted a lower pledge level of $25.00. While I dislike random mini selections I'm going to give it a go and see what I get. Thanks for adding this option.
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Post by wildagreenbough on Aug 27, 2014 18:25:09 GMT -9
I did the $25.00 pledge thing as well just to see how it goes.
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Post by wildagreenbough on Aug 28, 2014 6:12:49 GMT -9
Now there's a second $25.00 pledge and I can't decide which one I want. I think you should mention that the production minis won't have exposed white edges. I don't want to harp on about this, but the white edges were the first thing I noticed when I saw the test figures.
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Post by arcticdragongames on Aug 28, 2014 7:01:29 GMT -9
Good luck with your Kickstarter! Are there any print on demand publishers for the plastic "card stock" miniatures? I am researching all options for my game. I continue to study the Kickstarter process as I work on my game. Just in case anyone is interested, here is a forum with some people who offer helpful advice for Kickstarters. www.facebook.com/groups/TabletopKickstarters/
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Post by TheRooster on Aug 28, 2014 7:36:48 GMT -9
+wildabreenbough I added the part about the white edges in the FAQ after you first mentioned it. (Thanks for that by the way.) We had a lot of people asking for a $25 level who don't want pdf products, so we came up with something. One last thing, we're pushing social media hard today so if you're so inclined, it would really mean a lot to me if you could follow the link below and share on Facebook and Twitter. We're made it super easy. Just a couple clicks! bit.ly/DecksMinis
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Post by TheRooster on Aug 29, 2014 18:35:24 GMT -9
FrugalGM reviewed Decks Miniatures. He did a really nice, thorough job! I also wanted to see what these minis could take in the form of crushing punishment. It turns out they can take a lot! See for yourself.
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Post by kiladecus on Aug 31, 2014 22:19:28 GMT -9
I had a similar project I started a couple years back with card stock figures. Mine were modifiable (different arms, weapons and accessories).
As far as the white lines, do what I did with my Star Wars ships from a game set like this... Simply drag a permanent marker over the white edge to give it a more professional result.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
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Post by wyvern on Sept 1, 2014 4:05:15 GMT -9
As far as the white lines, do what I did with my Star Wars ships from a game set like this... Simply drag a permanent marker over the white edge to give it a more professional result. We had a discussion about these plastic fold-up minis earlier on the CWF (long before this KS; sorry, can't remember which topic now for a cross-link), and while this action is all fine and good, a) these minis are on plastic sheets, which don't always take marker painting (even with permanent markers) as well as "traditional" card and paper, and b) one major selling point is that no extra work is needed other than popping out these minis and folding them up. Losing the white edges would thus be a real bonus for this plastic variety, and as Wildagreenbough implied, having them could be a deal-breaker for some people.
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Post by TheRooster on Sept 1, 2014 7:31:11 GMT -9
Since I used a local digital printer for the prototypes, I had a very limited choice of media to use, there was only one! Regular plastic doesn't work well with digital printers so it has to have a special coating on the surface.
For large-scale production, I will have my choice of medias. That means I can find a shade that perfectly matches the minis. Like wyvern says, I want these to be incredibly easy to assemble. No painting, edging, cutting, or gluing at all!
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Post by wildagreenbough on Sept 1, 2014 13:24:12 GMT -9
I changed my pledge to $50.00 from $25.00, but I really would have liked to keep the PDFs from the $25.00 pledge. Is there a way that I could do this?
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Post by TheRooster on Sept 1, 2014 18:01:15 GMT -9
+wildagreenbough I'm sure we can work something out. First we gotta reach that goal!
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Post by TheRooster on Sept 3, 2014 8:20:08 GMT -9
I'm looking for some reviewers for my miniatures. Do you all have any recommendations?
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Post by eddnic on Sept 5, 2014 7:32:55 GMT -9
Great work! I have put a post in my blog for your kickstarter project. Surely, some of the visitors of my blog should be interested. Hope that you won't mind.
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Post by TheRooster on Sept 6, 2014 21:46:36 GMT -9
I appreciate it! I'm thinking that a $50 set with 61 minis is a bit too big of a step for starting a new niche in miniatures. I'm starting to think about what to offer instead. I'm leaning towards a nice big SOMETHING. Like huge or gargantuan size. I don't know what yet though. Do any of you have a suggestion? What huge or gargantuan creature would you like to see? Ideally something that regular mini collectors would want too.
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Post by wildagreenbough on Sept 6, 2014 21:56:38 GMT -9
Dragons are always popular. Giants perhaps, - Hill Giants, Storm Giants, Frost Giants. Ancient Spider Queens. Golems, - Clay Golems, Stone Golems, Iron Golems & etc.
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Post by cowboyleland on Sept 7, 2014 6:14:33 GMT -9
When I was thinking about inventing your business, I found a couple of web poles of people voting on their favourite D&D monsters. Google D&D March Madness for a few different years and you can see which of the really big monsters make it into the later rounds.
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Post by TheRooster on Sept 8, 2014 7:16:23 GMT -9
Great feedback!
I've heard that many people are sick of dragons. Especially with all of the Wiz Kids dragons that have just come out. I'm not sure what to think about that.
Another option would be to do furnishings: crates, barrels, tables, chairs, beds, treasure chests, campfires, braziers, pillars, statues, fountains, etc.
In any case, I'm going to start small and see if I can work up to larger sets.
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Post by dungeonmistress on Sept 12, 2014 7:35:39 GMT -9
In my opinion, one can never have enough dragons. It would be nice to see someone offer all the different types, sizes and colors of dragons that are found in the various D&D monster Manuals and Pathfinder Beastiaries.
Also, I like the idea of you offering furnishings and such. There is always a need for more dungeon dressing.
Good luck with your Kickstarter, I will be keeping an eye on your progress and cheering you on. I wish I could invest, but I have no money and even $25 is more than I can spare.
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