It Rises Again!

It’s been a very long time. So long that I didn’t know if I would ever return. Often, I was sure I would, but most of the time, I felt… free of the burden of publishing. Through all that, though, I didn’t know what I would write I ever began creating content again. Let’s see if I can sort that out. Oh, and I have a massive announcement; Maybe I should get to that.

So, the awesome stuff, aye? It’s where I want to begin!

Today, as this article is published, I will have also put onto the DriveThruRPG (DTRPG) store the Campaign Setting I have been working on, both here and privately, for over a decade. It’s been polished and sanded, crafted and forged into something I am very proud of – even though there were significant lengths of time when I wasn’t convinced I would complete it. Is it perfect? No. It’s not. I’m a one-person organization, and even though I had an editor and proofreader (Thank you Anya and Steve!), and a few playtesters to help with balance, what I have made is the culmination of my personal effort and it’s unlikely to be as market-ready as people who have a large team and millions in resources. I say this not to diminish the product, but to be open to the truth as the perfectionist I am. Nothing is ever perfect, but it can be finished.

I believe that now is the time to put the pen down and allow it to breath, to put it out there and let people see it, and enjoy it. For years my friends have asked me for a copy, but there were … complications that required ironing out. Those compilations are gone. I am excited to debut not only the Coldforged Campaign Setting (available as PDF, as well as Standard and Premium Hardbacks through DTRPG – LINK BELOW) but also the coming separation of the crunchy bits from the fluff so that people can purchase only what they need if they so choose. It’s not an easy separation, so it will take time and it will be more expensive to purchase both – I want people to buy the main book – but not terribly so.

Here is my Storefront:

https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/477716/coldforged-a-5e-campaign-setting

I am so excited. I am beyond thrilled. This finally existing and being real is a dream come true.

But there are always hiccups.

A new version of D&D coming out fairly soon – some people, including myself, already have access to it. . Even so, I the book is done when it’s done, and I can’t let the churning of the universe stop what I am proud of completing. I will be revising my rules-based content as the final books are published and the the new edition is fully available re-aligning it with the revised game engine, but that’ll be some time in the future – though I do hope to have it completed in under a year. That is a problem for future me to tackle. This same complication applies to the next book I want to write: A bestiary of creatures from around Tysis to compliment my encounter tables and adventures. The new Monster Manual won’t be available until Feb, so I don’t know how the CR and XP will function, but I can still begin the process, writing the fluff around them and buildin preliminary stat blocks. Who knows if this is something that will even come to pass, honestly. A single book was tough enough. Maybe the monster book shouldn’t be 350+ pages. Maybe.

This – look at that – brings me to the next topic I wanted to write on, which is what I plan do going forward on this site. I believe the focus will be making some cool monsters and getting them ready to go when 5.5e launches fully, and that means using this space to spitball and workshop monsters and their fluff, look for interesting mechanical angles and lore directions that I will need I need simply as a DM for my own Coldforged games, but also reaching into the fun and interesting depths of the setting for cool monster. I may also use it to hone the subclasses and other bits I made throughout the last few years – The polish is never truly done.

The launch of Coldforged is exciting, but it’s going to take time for me to get completely up to speed. It might be the new year before I start publishing articles regularly again ( except I have an article about that coming out soon… ). I hope to have them more planned out and professionally produced before they are released to the world, but I am a one person show. I hope that I have grown in both my editing and writing skills enough that I can produce a good, solid, polished article or two every week and not be afraid to put it out in front of a broad audience. The last time I tried I got berated on my spelling and grammar, an indellible mark forever in my mind.

Which finally brings me to the last point: I am going to be poking around under the hood here to see if I can’t make some more organizational sense out of the site. There is a lot of content here – almost a decade if I remember correctly – and not all of it is relevant, but I still want to be able to go back to it if I need to, but I don’t want irrelivant topics cluttering up menus and navigation bars. These include the MK II Warmachine and Hordes content, old and revised D&D articles, and video games I’ve long since
forgotten how to play. Beer, Metal, and History content also need their places to go and shine even though they are long past being updated. It’s a lot of rebuilding. If you know some tips and tricks,
feel free to reach out! If you can help construct this website, even better!

And with that, I’m going to close this one out. If you read the book, give me some feedback, and I hope something in it sparks wonder and adventure, even if its not within my Setting. Until next time.

— Jonathon LeClare (Seething Ginger)