Mau and Pugmire July update!
almost 7 years ago – Sat, Jul 08, 2017 at 11:19:28 AM

Hi, Rose here, with an update from Eddy. :)

---

EDDY:

Hello from lovely Ireland! After a somewhat chaotic couple of weeks getting myself and Murray Pug to Eire (including a cross-country drive from Atlanta to San Francisco), I have an update on all things Pugmire and Mau!  

Monarchies of Mau

Kickstarter  

With the help of 1,970 of you, we raised $118,534 to make Monarchies of Mau into a reality! We'll be able to make not only the Mau book, but dice, a Guide screen, pins, a Kickstarter-exclusive shirt, an adventure collection, a fiction anthology, a book of pre-generated cats and dogs, and another Earplay adventure! Rich and I need to sit down and start talking numbers now that the Pugmire campaign is close to shipping and the Mau campaign is finished. Budgets are less exciting, but still an important part of the process.  

Monarchies of Mau Book  

The next step is starting work on the core book. This time around I'm building a team to write it, instead of doing most of the writing myself. As such, I'm planning to spend this month writing a comprehensive outline, polishing the writer's documents, hiring my team, and kicking things into gear. Again, this is less exciting "getting things made" phase of things, but writing should begin in earnest soon!  

PUGMIRE  

Shipping!  

The book, dice, cards, pins, and screen are all printed and are being shipped to our distribution warehouse, so last week the BackerKit was locked down. If all goes well, by this time next month many of you should already have your materials in hand. If you haven't filled out your survey yet -- there are 63 of you out there -- we'd love to get your stuff to you!  

(If you've having problems with the BackerKit survey, comments here won't be useful. Instead, click on Richard Thomas' face in the upper-right and use the "Contact me" button.)  

Other Projects  

• Writers are continuing to rewrite their stories for the Pugmire anthology.  
• Pan's Guide is back in the hands of Matthew Dawkins, who is addressing my comments before we have another chat about it. 
• I've been listening to lines for the non-interactive audio drama, and it's sounding pretty good!
• Earplay is getting the last round of audio polish. 

AND MORE  

I'll be at Gen Con next month! Some games of Pugmire and Mau will be run by the ever-impressive Wrecking Crew, and we'll have some demos of both at the booth. For those that can make it, I hope to see you there (even if I'm pretty jet-lagged)!  

Preview: The Precepts of Mau, Part 1
almost 7 years ago – Mon, Jun 19, 2017 at 11:27:47 PM

Hi, everyone. ^_^ Rose here, with a new preview.

Eddy:

To unify the six monarchies, the Ruling Council agreed to several edicts that all cats will abide by. These Precepts of Mau form the cornerstone of cat society, but the nuances of these precepts are far more complex then they first appear. In this first excerpt from Monarchies of Mau Early Access, I dig into some of these permutations.  

The Precepts of Mau  

When the six monarchies unified into the Monarchies of Mau, a standard of behavior was drawn up to guide and govern this conflicted society of cats: The Precepts of Mau. Four tenets are universally accepted by all six monarchies. These are the Accepted Precepts of Mau.  

Always Trust Your Instincts  

Cats were worshipped by the Old Ones, because cats acted in ways that were worthy of worship. While this argument seems circular, there’s an underlying implication that if cats stopped acting in ways worthy of worship, the Old Ones would stop believing in them, and may possibly take their gifts and offerings (such as magic) away. But cats cannot rely on their peers to tell them if they are being a “good cat” or not, as others might take advantage. Instead, they must draw inspiration from themselves, and their other lives. A cat’s instincts, both about herself and her friends, are the only pure, constant truth a cat can ever know.  

Always Pounce Upon Minions of the Unseen  

For millennia, cats have tried to protect Man from invisible dangers: Ghosts, demons, spirits, the possessed, people of ill intent, or even just bad things about to happen. They howled and hissed whenever unseen evil was near, and chased after invisible demons, but unfortunately Man never listened, and now Man is gone. Over time, the cats lost their ability to sense such things, but since the formation of the original six monarchies, these demons have tried to infiltrate and influence cat society, even causing an entire city-state (the now-extinct monarchy of Smilodon) to fall in a brutal civil war. These demons, collectively known as the Unseen, tempt and twist a cat’s passionate individuality against them, pushing them into taking drastic or violent action against threats, real or perceived. Thus, cats have once again taken on the duty to destroy the Unseen in all its forms. Of all the Precepts, this is the one that is least debated among the houses.  

Always Reward Loyalty  

In a society where many cats would seek to take advantage of a moment of weakness, true loyalty is a precious gift. Some cats would choose to exploit such devotion, but the six houses agreed that rewarding loyalty was the only sustainable path forward for their union. If loyalty comes with reward, then more loyalty will be offered, and as a result more cats will be loyal — not only to their superiors, but to the Monarchies of Mau and (more importantly from the perspective of the house leaders) to their specific houses. And, for the most part, it has worked — new generations of kittens have moved beyond the Machiavellian ways of their grandparents and offer loyalty and devotion more readily. Some even argue that it was the loyalty of the Old Ones that empowered cats to begin with, thus reinforcing this virtue.

Preview: The Precepts of Mau, Part 2
almost 7 years ago – Mon, Jun 19, 2017 at 11:24:43 PM

Hi, Rose here. ^_^ In this second excerpt from Monarchies of Mau Early Access about the Precepts of Mau, Eddy explains the ramifications of the last Precept, and talks a little about the Disputed Precepts.

Always Respect an Honest Duel  

Despite the idealism of Trillani von Mau in the creation of the Treaty of Unification, she understood that there will always be conflicts between cats. Some cats (such as those of House Korat) even argued that testing and confronting cats keeps everyone stronger and better suited to defend their honor, and all of the monarchies had some form of dueling going back centuries.  

As such, she introduced a formal dueling code to the monarchies, in order to standardize these conflicts and offer less violent alternatives where available. The formal code is lengthy, often printed as a small book, and the ramifications and edge cases of the code spans volumes of discussion and consideration. However, the core tenet of the dueling code is sacrosanct: if the duel was conducted honestly, then the results are to be respected.  

Let’s break this down a bit. A duel results when two cats have a disagreement that discussion can’t resolve (or that the cats refuse to discuss for some reason). The intended result of the duel, then, is to determine who is correct. If the duel was honest and fair, then the winning party is thereafter considered to be correct, and no one should speak otherwise — indeed, speaking out against the results of an honest duel could result in another duel!  

Not all duels involve weapons or violence, however. Indeed, while there are many different interpretations of the code, in general a duel can proceed if the two opponents and/or their representatives agree that a proposed duel is fair. Indeed, while older cats still show off their dueling scars, younger cats often prefer debates or games as more appropriate “duels” when they have a disagreement.  

Still, violent duels are not unknown. In general, the deeper the grievance, the more formalized and structured the duel becomes to be seen by others as “honest.” One old tradition used to force such a duel is for a wronged cat to arrive at her rival’s home. Once she is formally offered hospitality, the wronged cat seeks out a fragile object that her rival values, and deliberately shoves it onto the floor. As soon as the object breaks, the rival can honorably call for a duel.  

Disputed Tenets  

Several tenets, however, have been proposed by each of the houses, but not every house agrees with them. However, the houses still enforce some of them — which ones depend on the house in question. These are the Disputed Precepts of Mau:  

• Always pursue knowledge  

• Always operate with discretion  

• Always strike when least expected  

• Always act with honor  

• Always push boundaries  

• Always revere the past

Preview Enemy: Bone Bugs
almost 7 years ago – Mon, Jun 19, 2017 at 11:23:11 PM

Adventurous cats will find many enemies as they explore the world left to them. Some are misunderstood, some are bizarre, and a few are both. Here’s one example from Monarchies of Mau Early Access – the creepy and weird bone bugs. If you aren’t sure what some of these things mean, back the Kickstarter and download Monarchies of Mau Early Access for more information!  

Bone Bugs (CR 0)  

Small, silver insects often infest bones scattered in the wilderness. Through strange magic, the bugs animate the skeletons and use them to attack anyone who disturbs their homes. The skeletons very rarely assemble or move like they did in life. For example, a skull might be where a leg should go or a ribcage might assemble as some kind of hideous wing. The skeletons also reconfigure themselves during combat into new, even stranger forms.  

Defense: 13 (dense bone)  

Stamina points: 13  

Speed: 30 feet  

Proficiency Bonus: +2  

Abilities: Strength +0 (10), Dexterity +2 (14), Constitution +2 (15), Intelligence -2 (6), Wisdom -1 (8), Charisma -3 (5)  

Attack: Slam (+2 melee, 1d6 piercing)  

Secrets: Resistant to piercing and slashing damage, Darkvision  

• Reconfigure: At the end of their turn, Bone Bugs reconfigure their remaining bones into a new form and regain 2 stamina.

The Roll of Excellent Cats expands! Up next: Interactive Audio Drama!
almost 7 years ago – Mon, Jun 19, 2017 at 11:18:00 PM

Hi, Rose here. ^_^

Having passed $110,000 of contributions, we will continue the Roll of Good Dogs and Excellent Cats PDF (working title). Ready-Made Characters for Monarchies of Mau and Pugmire, using the backer NPC characters featured in both core books, that we will send to all backers who pledge for a reward tier that includes a Monarchies of Mau PDF. We will now add 6 Good Dogs drawn from both books.

Up next, at $115,000 of contributions, Eddy will work with Dave Grossman (Secret of Monkey Island, The Wolf Among Us) and their colleagues at Earplay to make several episodes of an interactive Monarchies of Mau audio drama that you can play on your mobile device! All backers who pledge for a reward tier that includes a Monarchies of Mau PDF will get access to this volume at release.

After that, at $125,000 of contributions, we will add a third adventure which will be compiled with the first two adventures in the Monarchies of Mau Adventures book. We'll send a PDF to all backers who pledge for a reward tier that includes a Monarchies of Mau PDF.

Thank you for your support! Almost to the finish line!