Oh my—it's full of stars... ✨
over 5 years ago – Wed, Nov 11, 2020 at 08:15:36 PM

You, the backers, never fail to amaze us. The last few days have been incredible. We'd like to give a special thanks to everyone just joining us (welcome!), the folks who increased their pledges (now that we showed off the Big Box, deluxe trays, and Cave Paintings!), and the early adopters who've been here since the dawn of the project. You're all really cool! (And, yes, that's a legit Ice Age compliment)

Deluxe Trays and the Next 3 SGs

We've very close to the 450K EUR Stretch Goal which will unlock the deluxe trays! To further excite you, we'll reveal the next three SGs, which are focused on the expansions: At 465K, the cardboard components of the expansions will get linen finish; at 480K, the wooden Landmarks will get art screen printed on them; and at 500K, we'll add a new Landmark to Rivers & Rafts: the monolith. (Fans of 2001 can rejoice in this little homage to the landmark film.) 

Spoiler alert! This was the last group of 3 Stretch Goals before our grand finale. The last leg will contain 5 epic SGs—and honestly, each one is really cool. So, let's hammer these three out and dig into the final five! 

Social Goals

We are happy to announce two additional things you can help us unlock through social goals. One is a module of Eclipse Tokens, and the other is a set of new player aid cards that also function as initial player-order randomizers. If we can reach 1,200 followers/subscribers on three of the four listed social media outlets, we'll add both of these to the core game!   

Facebook

BGG

Twitter

Insta

Eclipse Tokens
One of our upcoming Social goals is a set of Eclipse tokens. During setup, place one of these tokens on each Eclipse icon on the round tracker. The first player to take the Ritual action each round immediately gains the bonus shown on the current round’s Eclipse token. This introduces new incentives—and little more pressure between players. (It plays well with the Canine Familiars module too) 

 
TTS Solo Mode 

The solo mode on TableTop Simulator is ready to go! Simply select the 1-player setup option, and the game will set up the Yellow player as the AI. Try it now, and see if you can defeat the Twin Chiefs of the Cardborg clan! 

☑ Solo Expansion Compatibility
We can confirm that the solo mode will be compatible with all of the expansions and modules. Some of them will have alternate rules, some will have no changes, and some will award the AI VP for systems they cannot participate in "intelligently." But the most important part is that you, the solo player, will get to enjoy what the expansions bring to the game against the AI system.
 

Last, but not least...

⬜ Big Box
We recently revealed a Big Box add-on. Check it out on the campaign page for details, if you missed it somehow. You can manually add 7 EUR to your current pledge to get the Big Box instead of the core box. Or you can wait till the Pledge Manager opens and upgrade your box there.

😁😁 Back with a Friend!
Remember, adding a second copy of the game to your order will qualify you for reduced shipping. Reach out to friends and family who may be interested in a copy so you share the savings together.

📺 New Media
Some more content creators featured Endless Winter recently. Check out their videos below!

—The Fantasia Games team 💙

Cave Paintings Expansion
over 5 years ago – Wed, Nov 11, 2020 at 02:54:37 PM

Did that draw your attention? (See what we did there?😅)

It's been an incredible couple days since we revealed the Big Box add-on and the deluxe trays. You've been extremely kind and supportive. Thank you! It means so much to us—and it keeps us going strong!   

Cave Paintings Expansion Overview 

Please note: the art and renderings shown below are works in progress. Many are simply conceptual placeholders for the final version—which will look amazing! ✨ That said, here's tour of what comes in the box, and how to play!

Each player gets a double-sided dry erase board and pen—with the coolest ❄eraser cap❄ you've ever dreamt of! 😂 The front sides of the boards are the same: they feature mammoth outlines. The back sides are all unique: each one features a different animal. 

Don't worry; this expansion does not require any artistic skill. All you have to do is fill dots and connect them with lines. But if you get inspired, there is plenty of room to personalize your board. The head is there for you to draw on; it has no mechanical effect. We recommend drawing a face on your animal at the start of the game to give it your own touch. Bonus points for googly eyes! jk 😜

During setup, a new Action Column is added to the side of the game board. It's the main way you will be able to take the "paint" action. The top action allows you to fill in dots on your dry-erase board; the middle action lets you draw lines to connect adjacent dots; and the bottom, first player bonus action is a fire (which helps you light up your cave's wall so you can paint with less Labor). 

There are also new Culture cards that get added to each Era's deck; a new Megalith tile (that you can either swap out with another one—or add as a fifth piece if you want to get extra creative with the layouts); and there is a new Terrain hex tile that gets added to the map. All of these allow you to interact with your cave board in various ways. 

This is the basics of play: When you perform  a "paint" action, it allows you to fill in dots on your board. There are three kinds of dots: ones that require Tools, ones that require Food, and others that require extra Labor. Fires give you ongoing dot-filling discounts. The other half of the task is connecting the dots. When you take this action, you may connect any two adjacent filled dots with lines (that loosely trace the outlines of the animal art). If you completely surround an area, it immediately triggers the action(s) shown within. There are three large one-time actions on each animal, and eight smaller actions that trigger when you first surround them and again during each Eclipse phase (when you resolve your Tribe cards). This can create a powerful collection of Eclipse benefits... Lastly, during the final scoring, you gain points for your single longest connected series of outer lines.

🧠 Strategically, Cave Paintings is an expansion that allows you to take actions in new, clever ways—and create powerful engines and well-timed combos. 

⚙ Mechanically, it's very much like a Roll & Write style game—yet there is no rolling! Instead, you place workers, manage resources, play cards, and unlock bonuses. 

🖊 Experientially, It's a lot of fun to draw and doodle on! Every board will come out differently in the end. 

We hope you're excited about this novel twist on Endless Winter. If you have questions, please comment below or on the Cave Paintings BGG Forums HERE.  

Next Up! 

The Tabletop Simulator mod for the solo mode is just about ready. We'll send you info about shortly. Besides that, we're getting very close to the custom trays Stretch Goal! And we'll be rolling out the next batch of SGs after that. 

—The Fantasia Games team 

WTF? Quick Update & a Kickstarter Recommendation💦
over 5 years ago – Sun, Nov 08, 2020 at 02:26:00 AM

Winter Time Fun! 

That's what WTF means, right? 😂

"This could be the best Eurogame of the year, mixed with deckbuilding and cave painting!  Cave painting?  Yes, indeed.  Gorgeously thematic through its gameplay and art by The Mico.  What is there not to love about this standout title."

More extensive coverage for our French-speaking audience!

⚓From across the seas of Kickstarter🐙💦

We would like to share with you a live project we think you might want to explore. As some of you may know, our developer/designer Jonny Pac 🤠 recently worked with the Funtails team on their hit Glen More II: The Highland Games. Now the Funtails team is offering a new Kickstarter: Feed the Kraken!

Feed the Kraken is a big-box social deduction game, where you plot and scheme to move a 3D-modeled ship towards a secret destination; this is done across a large-scale map, with detailed hand-drawn illustrations. If you love beautiful board games and the idea of a big-box social deduction game, this is certainly one to check out. Plus, they are offering some really fun add-ons, such as a plush Kraken that can sit on your head!

We backed it and look forward to playing it when it comes to shore. We hope you do too.

Please note: we usually do not accept cross-promotion on KS; we made this exception for our friends at Funtails since a part of our team has been working with them. 🤠 *wink* 

❄ More big Endless Winter news coming soon! Stay tuned for a special reveal when we hit our next milestone. Till then, enjoy your weekend! ❄

—Fantasia Games team 

THE TIME HAS COME: The BIG announcement you've been waiting for! 🤩
over 5 years ago – Sun, Nov 08, 2020 at 02:25:35 AM

Greetings! 

😁 We reached the amazing number of 6000+ backers and almost reached the 400K milestone! Now we are thrilled to announce our BIG surprise... 

Deluxe Trays for everyone!

We already have a very nice tray designed for the game—but we can go even further and upgrade it to a deluxe tray pack! It has one main tray and four individual player trays! 

On the way to that goal, we will apply linen finish to our main board, followed by a set of burial ground cap cards, with unique cave paintings of each tribe's representative animal. These cards sit on top of your buried card piles, making your play area look even more beautiful and organized. 

Here's a look at the concept for the deluxe player trays. Each of your game nights will be so much easier to set up. Just pass a tray to each player, and they'll soon be ready for action!
Please note: The main box tray will be revealed once the SG is unlocked. 

Big Box Upgrade
    ⬜ Together with Dan, our tray designer, and Joe, from Panda Manufacturing, we checked almost every possible option for a storage solution. It was a lot of back and forth between design, production, and logistics. But you spoke and we listened, and we became dead-set on meeting your needs. Now after days and days of wracking our brains, and careful preparation, we are happy to announce the BIG BOX you've been asking for!  
 

    ⬜ Please understand: from the start, we told ourselves that we don't want to make a profit on this upgrade. Despite not taking a cut, there are design, production, and logistics costs that prevent us from simply adding the Big Box for free—as much as we'd like to. Thus, we can only offer it as an optional add-on for €7 (approx. $8). 

⬜ Backers who select the Big Box will get it alongside the smaller expansion boxes. (Expansion material will not be shipped inside the Big Box, for a variety of technical reasons.) Backers who don't select the Big Box will get the Core Box and expansion boxes, as originally offered. 

    ⬜ The Big Box upgrade is a Kickstarter Exclusive and will not be available after the completion of the campaign. (Of course, retailers who back the project can order it, along with all the other Limited/Exclusive offerings.)
 

Time for Action!
    We hope that this add-on can satisfy everyone who asked for a storage solution that would accommodate all the expansion content in one convenient box. We just need a bit of a push to really make it happen. There are enormous amounts of $1 backers and Pathfinder tier backers—and we are so grateful for their pledges and support. However, we know that some of them wanted to see a Big Box before they committed to a higher tier level. So here it is! Now is a great time to consider a higher tier, add the Big Box upgrade, and give the campaign a nice boost to unlock the deluxe trays Stretch Goal!  

Shipping Info

Some people asked for more information for our shipping estimates. They might have missed the link when they scrolled by, so we'll point out where to look: If you press the Shipping image at the bottom of the main campaign page, a detailed shipping list will open. You can also simply access the Shipping link HERE. We chose this approach to keep our main page clean, and update the document whenever necessary.

What's Next
    The Big Box add-on is available now. You can add 7 EUR to your pledge in order to help the deluxe trays come to life faster! Or you can wait and add it in the Pledge Manager. In the meantime, we're returning to work on the Cave Paintings expansion exposé update and our upcoming social goals. Thank you for your support and patience. We hope you are excited as we are! 

—Fantasia Games team 

News - Deluxe Factory Samples - Media - Italian Edition
over 5 years ago – Thu, Nov 05, 2020 at 12:51:11 AM

Greetings! We have a bunch of good news and media to share with you. 

First up, for those of you who might have missed it: we added a rendering of the Rivers & Rafts expansion in action. Here it is! That just looks fun, doesn't it? 💦

There is more information about how Rivers & Rafts works in Update #4 and here on BGG

Next, our beloved manufacturer, Panda, sent us some images of the resin components. We are blown away from the results, and can't wait to hold them in our hands! (click the pics for close-ups)

Mark your calendars: This Saturday, November 7th at 3pm CST designer Stan Kordonskiy will play the game live with Jeremy Howard from MvM. They plan to demo the Canine Familiars and Ceremonial Grounds modules too. Be sure to check out the show! (Follow the video link below to set a reminder on YouTube.)

 French Video
We have a new video to share with our French backers! Be sure to like and subscribe to his channel. Thank you Nixx!

We laughed out loud with the video of Bower's Game Corner. Have a look and it will definitely make your day! His realtime reactions the KS video and page are priceless! 🤩

 Once again we were really flattered to hear the comments of Alex from BoardGameCo. 😅

Dean and Jon from one of our favorite channels, MeepleTown devoted the second half of their latest podcast to an in-depth discussions about their experiences playing Endless Winter—and why it's a game they've quickly grown to love! 

 💙  MeepleTown Podcast Episode 60

🟩⬜🟥 Italian Language Edition 🟩⬜🟥 

We're pleased to announce that we will be partnering with Little Rocket Games to bring you the Italian edition of Endless Winter. Note: You can easily change from the English edition to the Non-English edition by clicking Manage My Pledge. Then after the campaign, you can select Italian as your language in the Pledge Manager. Easy! 

What's Next

❄ We've extended the river of Stretch Goals on the main page to show you the next batch of goodies. 

❄ We will be doing a full expose on the Cave Paintings expansion. 

❄ The big announcement about the storage solution is coming soon. We just need to hear back from the manufacturer and logistics companies on some details. Thank you for your patience! 

We appreciate your feedback and enthusiasm. See you in the comments! 

—Fantasia Games team & partners