Esper's Emporium of Esoterica

April 2021 - 2nd Update (plus a teaser)
about 3 years ago – Tue, Apr 27, 2021 at 06:23:44 AM

Hello everyone! I want to touch base with you all to give a quick update. Progress on the Emporium continues daily, and things are looking quite good overall. The master InDesign file has started, which excites me so much. In other words, I'm seeing something that resembles a final product coming together bit by bit. Some sections still need work. There are edits and revisions to come. But just getting this far makes me really happy.

The artwork at this point is basically down to just spot pieces to fill in gaps in the formatting. I have all the monster and NPC stat blocks done, and things like feats, spells, and magic items are getting close.

The paragon is entering its fine bits of playtesting (I believe just 2 more playtest sessions to go!). And one of the paragon's subclasses has received what I hope is its definitive name: Myth of the Sovereign (previously Myth of the Prince, before that Myth of the Scion).

The adventure I will have to keep shrouded in mystery for now. But I will leave you with a teaser image of the cover. And the adventure's name (which some may recognize ;)) ... Blood Lament

I will see you all later on in the next update, in which I'll give another stat breakdown.

As always, thank you so much for your support, and may your adventures be many!

Esper

APRIL 2021 - Update
about 3 years ago – Sun, Apr 11, 2021 at 07:38:27 PM

Hello everyone! Welcome to the April update, I hope you all are doing well. I’ve been working overtime on the Emporium every day, really trying my best to bust things out and keep this ship cruising along.

I’m in the home stretch with the monster stat blocks, actually having recently added some more to fill in some general NPCs that I think will help round things out and give some support to the named NPCs. I also increased the number of art pieces a bit, and the artists continue to create amazing work. The paragon class is also in the home stretch of playtesting, just fine-tuning things, running encounters, and theory crafting builds. Beyond all that, there are steps and bits of progress all over place.

Below are some updated estimates, followed by some more art previews. As always, thank you so much for being a part of this incredible journey. It has proved a big learning experience for me!

Art pieces: 179/192 (93%)

Monster stat blocks: 150/155 (97%)

Paragon Class: Final development stage (95%)

Subclasses: 4/5 (80%)

Races: Mid development stage (40%)

Magic Shops: 3/10 (30%)

Spells:  65/80 (81%)

Feats: 15/30 (50%)

Magic Items: 36/40 (90%)

Cursed and Flawed Items: 10/30 (33%)

Skill Encounters: Mid development stage (33%)

Traps and Hazards: 28/60 (46%)

DM Advice: Early development stage (20%)

Arena Combat: Final development stage (90%)

Map Pack: 12/15 (80%)

Adventure: Early development stage (25%)

Graphic Designer: Weekly video calls in which we figure out the layout. We're well into Late development stage of layout (80%)

Editor: Weekly edit suggestions and correspondence. Mid development stage (60%)

Estimated product delivery: June

I will see you in the next update, brave companions!

Esper

March 2021 - 2nd Update
about 3 years ago – Sun, Mar 14, 2021 at 01:08:04 PM

Wow this is incredible, thank you everybody once again for joining forces to help me realize a lifelong dream! 

For those who are interested in more concrete info, here's the data and ETAs at the moment. Bear in mind this is all somewhat fluid, as creative projects tend to be, but this is the best data I have.

Art pieces: 159/190 (83%)

Monster stat blocks: 115/150 (76%)

Paragon Class: Final development stage (90%) 

Subclasses: 4/5 (80%)

Races: Early development stage (20%)

Magic Shops: 3/10 (30%)

Spells:  61/80 (76%)

Feats: 12/30 (40%)

Magic Items: 33/40 (82%)

Cursed and Flawed Items: 10/30 (33%)

Skill Encounters: Mid development stage (33%)

Traps and Hazards: 28/60 (46%)

DM Advice: Early development stage (20%)

Arena Combat: Final development stage (90%)

Map Pack: 12/15 (80%)

Adventure: Early development stage (20%)

Graphic Designer: Weekly video calls in which we figure out the layout. We're well into Mid development stage of layout (75%)

Editor: Weekly edit suggestions and correspondence. Mid development stage (50%)

Estimated product delivery: Late May or early June

Take care everyone, I'll keep updating from time to time.

Esper

March 2021 Update
about 3 years ago – Fri, Mar 12, 2021 at 12:18:14 AM

Hello everyone! It's my birthday today, but I'm still working on the Emporium of course! I hope you are doing well and taking care.

So, as I've been describing in the past couple updates, this project has turned out to be quite complex. There is no way to deliver by April without rushing things. That said, I am working on it every single day and making a lot of progress. Also, I have increased the art budget, so we ended up with that final stretch goal in the end! And wow, there is some really cool art being produced. In fact, I recently hired an additional couple artists to add a bit more.

It is really hard to estimate, but I would say something like 80–90% of the artwork for the whole book is done. The monster stat blocks are around there or just slightly less. The paragon is in the (hopefully) final playtest and fine-tune stage. The spells, feats, magic items, skill encounters, traps, and other various sections are at different levels of doneness, but like everything, they are progressing all the time.

Basically I live in a whirlwind of this book haha. It's a ton of work, but I love it. Thank you all for your understanding. I'm still hoping for a spring release. I just don't want to rush the book, so it gets the attention and development it needs.

All the best!

Esper

February 2021 Update
about 3 years ago – Sat, Feb 20, 2021 at 12:43:33 AM

Hello everyone! I hope you are surviving the blizzards and other various existential threats around the world. I continue to be hard at work on the Emporium, every single day, writing, editing, drawing, art directing, and many other tasks.

I have hired on 3 additional artists to help finish out this final stretch of the art. Things are looking great overall, though as I mentioned before, it is going a bit slowly due to the sheer complexity of the project. But the sun never sets without progress having been made that day. 

Here is a sample spread from the monster section. This still needs revision, but it will give you an idea of the direction things are heading.

What do you think?

Also, the paragon class just got another huge update.  It is now at v.6 (technically 6.1.1 as of writing this post). This was a big revamp based upon a lot of playtest feedback. I've worked on the class obsessively, with the following objectives:

* Reduce how complicated the class was to play, and improve its flow in game 

* Give the class a little more to do during combat (for those who want such abilities) 

* Improve the myth of the prince at 1st level

* Make the class streamline more with the 5E system 

* Sacrifice features that were mediocre or part-good/part-janky, and replace them with fun, effective options 

* Take the evocative themes of the class even farther and even more wondrous  

My highest hope is that this version brings the paragon into his true form. Yes there will be ongoing revisions, but I feel the paragon is honing in on the target of greatness.

Take good care, my brave companions! Thank you for your continued support and any feedback/comments.

Esper