Happy Monday—How About a New Stretch Goal?
25 days ago
– Mon, Sep 16, 2024 at 04:26:57 PM
Hello, family—
It’s our final week for this campaign, and if the past is any guide, we can expect to see the pace quicken as people realize it’s their last chance to get in on this exciting campaign—especially the cool limited-edition OGoA items you’re funding.
Good news: you’ve unlocked yet another stretch goal! The new audio files from Old Gods of Appalachia voices Cam and Steve, plus the amazing Yuri Lowenthal (voice of the Railroad Man), are now going to become a reality. Because these will be added to the existing sound files you can already download (see page 264 of the Old Gods of Appalachia Roleplaying Game corebook), this goal makes the game better and more immersive for everyone!
With that goal under our belt, it’s time to talk about what’s next. But first:
Let’s Crush This Final Week!
The final week is often really exciting—in our past campaigns (we’ve run nearly 30 of them over the years) the final week has accounted for up to a third of all backers! Think of how many stretch goals we can unlock—how much bigger and better your rewards can become!
But that only happens with your help.
Campaigns really take off when the backers spread the word. If you want more lore, more background, more atmosphere and creepiness, more exclusive details from Cam and Steve, and more adventures and options for your game—in short, more stretch goals—you need to help make it happen!
Here are some posts you could share right now to help spread the word:
There are loads of other posts on our accounts—give them a scroll and share a few of them!
Now, How About a Poster Map?
Come Hell or High Water features full-length adventures, along with detailed locations and sites (some written by Cam and Steve themselves!) you can use in adventures of your own making. The book, of course, will have loads of maps of these hollers, towns, mines, buildings, and other locations. Let’s do those maps justice!
We want to add a poster map to the book. It’ll be a large, double-sided poster that displays several of the key maps from the book at a larger scale—and, like the game in general, it will be beautiful to behold.
We’ll unlock this map at $650,000.
With your help, we’ll be able to unlock this quickly as we move into the fast-paced closing days of the campaign and move on to even more exciting stretch goals.
Meet Tim Earley!
As you may know, the books funded by this campaign will include bits of color, inspiration, and atmosphere from a diverse selection of Appalachian and horror creators. In our past updates, we’ve introduced several of these contributors, including
Cherie Priest,
Lee Mondelo,
Alder (Ash) Van Otterloo, and
Jeff Mann. Today we’re introducing
Tim Earley!
Tim Earley is the creator/lead writer of the tabletop roleplaying game,
Holler: An Appalachian Apocalypse (Pinnacle Entertainment Group, 2023). He's the author of five collections of poetry, including
Poems Descriptive of Rural Life and Scenery, winner of the 2015 Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters Award. A recipient of writing fellowships from the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown and Hawthornden Castle in Lasswade, Scotland, Tim currently lives in Asheville, North Carolina, where he teaches online classes in Appalachian literature, British literature, and fantasy literature for the University of Mississippi. When he's not writing or gaming, he's running in the woods, among the bears. Check out more of Tim’s fascinating life and works
at his website.
Thanks again for your support!
—Team MCG
More Content from the Creators! Now Let’s Talk Audio.
30 days ago
– Thu, Sep 12, 2024 at 12:30:53 PM
Hello, family—
Stretch goal unlocked! Thanks to your support, we are expanding Come Hell or High Water with additional content written by Cam Collins and Steve Shell (the creators of Old Gods of Appalachia) describing canon locations you know and fear from the podcast.
Speaking of Cam and Steve: the Old Gods of Appalachia Roleplaying Game corebook includes not just hundreds of pages of text describing the game and the world, but also audio files you can use in your games. (You can find the link on page 264 of the corebook.) These clips add atmosphere and a sense of authenticity to your game, as Cam and Steve themselves narrate descriptions of select creatures, items, and locations one might encounter in the game.
For our next goal we’d like to expand this selection of files, giving you even more audio options to immerse everyone at the table in the unique atmosphere of Old Gods of Appalachia. Cam and Steve will record additional snippets, giving you descriptions of unsettling creatures you might encounter, unique Appalachian artifacts you might come across, and creepy locations you might find yourself in. These will be added to the files linked in the corebook, so everyone who plays the game will have access to them.
And here's a late-breaking bonus: Steve and Cam reached out to Yuri Lowenthal, who has also agreed to contribute to this audio. Expect to hear the dulcet tones of the Railroad Man among these audio files!
We’ll unlock these additional audio files at $610,000.
Like the goal you just unlocked, this is another contribution directly from the podcast creators—an exciting new addition that any Old Gods of Appalachia fan would love. Be sure to tell your friends who love the podcast! The more people we reach, the sooner we unlock this goal—and move on to even more!
You can find some sharable posts here:
On the topic of interesting contributions, we’ve been profiling some of the Appalachia and horror creators who are contributing brief bits of color, inspiration, and atmosphere to these supplements. In our past updates we’ve introduced
Cherie Priest,
Lee Mondelo, and
Alder (Ash) Van Otterloo. Today we’re introducing
Jeff Mann.
Jeff Mann has published three poetry chapbooks, six full-length books of poetry, three collections of personal essays, a volume of memoir and poetry, three novellas, six novels, and four collections of short fiction. With Julia Watts, he co-edited
LGBTQ Fiction and Poetry from Appalachia. The winner of two Lambda Literary Awards, he teaches creative writing at Virginia Tech. You can
discover more at Jeff’s website.
Thanks again for your support!
—Team MCG
While we have you. . .
We at MCG make lots of fun, engaging games beyond the
Old Gods of Appalachia Roleplaying Game. (If you aren’t familiar with our many other works,
check out our website—we think you’ll like what you see.) And the creativity of our small staff isn’t limited to what the company publishes. Many of our team produce cool projects outside our MCG work.
If you’re a fan of mystery and sci-fi, for example, you might check out the hit Station 151 podcast—our awesome Art Director Bear Weiter, who makes the
Old Gods of Appalachia Roleplaying Game so creepily beautiful, is one of the creators. Their new season is about to drop—you can find a trailer, and more information, at
the Station 151 website.
And if your interests go back into history just a bit, check out
The Mason of New Orleans and
The Angel of Ecbatana, two novels by MCG’s COO Charles Ryan. Take a trip into the 12th Century filled with intrigue, astonishing plot twists, and relatable characters you'll miss when the book ends. Charles is currently crowdfunding an upgraded edition of the first novel (including an audiobook), along with the sequel.
Check it out!
All Your Gods Expands. Now Let’s Get Cam and Steve Involved!
about 1 month ago
– Tue, Sep 03, 2024 at 08:56:07 AM
Hello, Family!
Once again we find ourselves thanking you for your support and enthusiasm. You’ve amazed and humbled us since this campaign launched, and over the weekend you did it again: you unlocked another stretch goal, this one making All Your Gods Are Dead even bigger and better.
We’ve expanded Dig Your Own Grave, and now All Your Gods Are Dead. Would it surprise you to learn we also have our eyes on expanding Come Hell or High Water? This one’s a little different, though, because it isn’t just down to Shanna and MCG’s amazingly creative design team. Cam Collins and Steve Shell, the creators of Old Gods of Appalachia, are contributing directly to Come Hell or High Water.
They’re already planning to write up a couple of specific sites straight out of the podcast’s stories, starting with the Walker House. Like all of the sites we’re detailing in this title, it’ll include maps, descriptions, and highlights of things, people, and other beings you might find there. We expect you’ll find details you’ve never come across before—stuff that’s never been shared outside of Steve and Cam’s collaborating imaginations.
With this stretch goal, Cam and Steve will add another site to their contributions. What will it be? They’ve discussed the Clutch and the Tabernacle of the Elder Covenant as a couple of options. Ultimately they’ll make the call, but if you have some thoughts we’d love it if you shared them in the comments.
We’ll unlock these secrets at $575,000. And since you hit the last goal over the weekend, we're already well on our way to this one!
Tell your friends!
Seriously, family, what Old Gods of Appalachia fan doesn’t want a tour of the Walker House, the Clutch, the Tabernacle—or who knows what other legendary sites—straight from the minds of Steve Shell and Cam Collins? With your help, we can hit this goal quickly—but only with your help!
Speaking of contributions, we’ve been profiling some of the Appalachian and horror creatives who are contributing brief bits of color, inspiration, and atmosphere, to these supplements. You can read about
Cherie Priest and
Lee Mondelo in earlier updates. Today let’s introduce you to
Alder (Ash) Van Otterloo.
Alder (he/they) was born and raised in the Appalachian foothills, then made his home for eighteen years as an adult in Eastern Tennessee. He currently resides in the Pacific Northwest with a pack of wild forest changelings, their chosen family, and a frankly shocking number of stinging nettles. Alder is the author of CATTYWAMPUS, A TOUCH OF RUCKUS, and THE BEAUTIFUL SOMETHING ELSE. You can see what Alder’s up to
on their website.
We’re looking forward to what Alder—and all the contributors—bring to your alternate Appalachian experience!
Thanks again for your support!
—Team MCG
Stretch Goal Hit!
about 1 month ago
– Sat, Aug 31, 2024 at 01:05:03 PM
Hello, family—
What’s better than a three-day weekend? A three-day weekend in which we unlock a new stretch goal, of course!
Today you took us over the line to unlock the expansion of All Your Gods Are Dead. We're excited to bring more creatures, NPCs, artifacts, cyphers, and other goodies to your game table. Thanks so much for making it happen!
Our next goal is a real scorcher, family—it's truly special, and you're going to love it. But as was just pointed out, we (including the MCG team) are enjoying a pleasant holiday weekend. We’ll be back Tuesday morning with news about this goal. For now, thanks for helping us tell the world about this campaign, and we hope you're enjoying the weekend as much as we are!
Thanks again for your support!
—Team MCG
Your Own Grave Digs Deeper—and That’s Just the Start!
about 1 month ago
– Wed, Aug 28, 2024 at 11:00:29 AM
Hello, Family!
Want to try out a deeper, darker character full of secrets and new, interesting gifts? Perhaps you'll become a Ruint Speaker who Talks the Ears off a Jackrabbit. Or a Ghostly Explorer who Whistles in the Woods. Maybe you've Seen Some Shit or are someone who Would Steal the Nickels off a Dead Man's Eyes.
To get you to these ideas—and a seemin’ endless clutch of others—what about a whole new way of coming up with background and connection options? A choose-your-own-adventure-style manner of discovering more about where your character came from and what they went through before they got to this place. They might have been a hometown hero who made a bad deal, or somebody who lost it all and is still trying unsuccessfully to get it back.
That’s the sort of stuff you’re going to find in Dig Your Own Grave. And congratulations: you’ve unlocked our first stretch goal, and Dig Your Own Grave is getting bigger. Welcome to day two of our journey. We’re just hittin’ midday (Appalachian time), but the good news has already started!
Which begs the question: What’s next?
What do you do when The Taxman comes a-knockin' at your door, nearly pounding down the house, that rasped voice saying again and again, “I've come for what I'm owed”? When the rot witch grabs your ankle and spreads her melancholia and decay even through your bone armor? When the Whistler in the Woods hears your footstep break a branch, and that eerie, tuneless sound gets closer and closer and closer and you turn to run, only to find that you cannot?
Hopefully you have your Mawmaw's fiddle with its mother-of-pearl inlay that plays a tune only the bravest and best dogs can hear. And maybe a friend or two, one who found an old and powerful ring between a couple of floorboards and another who's got a bag that seems to produce almost exactly what you need, whenever you need it.
The creatures and NPCs in All Your Gods are Dead are powerful, dangerous, and sometimes willing to make a bargain or two. But you're, well, not equally powerful—that would surely be overstating things—but almost as powerful, thanks to a whole slew of new cyphers, artifacts, and weapons that you can discover, craft, buy, and barter for.
Unlock our next stretch goal and you’ll get even more. Just as you did with Dig Your Own Grave, take us to this stretch goal and we’ll expand All Your Gods Are Dead by at least 16 pages, with more creatures, NPCs, artifacts, cyphers, and other goodies to help the game master run an amazing campaign. We’ll hit this one at $500,000.
Now that the frenzy of the first day has settled just a bit, it’s up to all of us to keep getting the word out. You can find great art, info, and inspiration on MCG’s social media. Give them a share, or inscribe your own words about why other gamers should check out this campaign.
Lee Mandelo (he/him) is one of the several Appalachian and horror creatives bringing brief bits of inspiration, atmosphere, and color to these books. Lee is a writer, scholar, and sometimes-editor whose work focuses on queer/trans and speculative fiction. His recent books include debut novel
Summer Sons, a contemporary gay Southern gothic, as well as the novellas
Feed Them Silence and
The Woods All Black. Mandelo's short fiction, scholarship, and criticism can be read in publications including
Reactor, Post45, Uncanny Magazine, and
Capacious; he has also been a past nominee for various awards including the Lambda, Nebula, Goodreads Choice, and Hugo. He currently resides in Louisville and is a doctoral candidate at the University of Kentucky. Further information, interviews, and sundry little posts about current media he's enjoying can be found at
leemandelo.com or @leemandelo on socials.
Thanks again for your support!
—Team MCG
