UC KS Watchdogs (A strategy for tracking delays)

[kevork]

Confirms that as I suspected it was just a typo.

Yeah, I got the timeline from what was listed via this link: https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/backings and with Alex's experience, I wouldn't have been surprised if he was able to make the April 2023 deadline. With the unforeseen circumstances we are now facing, I don't mind waiting if it means we will eventually get the decks. More communication would be welcomed.

[*]P52 Nazo Nazo (Apr '23) - Puzzle boxes are complete and behind the scenes, I am aware that Alex is in China and some movement is being made. Unclear when these are expected to fulfill.[/color]

Is that what happened, Alex had to go to China?

So this may not be accurate. I'm trying to see what I can find out. I suppose it doesn't really matter as long as Alex is okay!

[rousselle]

Welcome to the month of May, where April showers have produced May... showers, as well.

Here's what's arrived at the ol' rousselle mailbox in April from the Watchdog list:

VARIUS (Originally anticipated January '23), Oath Redemption Story vol. 2 (February '23) and vol. 3 (March '23).

So, with 3 falling off the list, and only one KS project originally being anticipated for May fulfillment (plus, I'm adding the next two Redemption decks from Lotrek to the list)... my list stays even with a total of 14 projects being eagerly anticipated in May.

Y'all, please post your own lists of anticipated decks that I'm not including here, please! In the meantime, here's where my list stands:

• Stories (March '20) -- On April 21st, David posted: "I expect that order fulfillment will begin early next week and backers will start receiving shipments by the end of April." To be fair, there was only one calendar week left for the month of April, so I'm not shocked that we haven't heard of shipping having started yet. Let's hope May is the month when we start to see some traction.
• Oath Patreon Year 1 (Fall '21) -- As of a recent post to Patreon, "we will be ready to ship before the end of May."
• The Literary Tarot (April '22) -- A few folks have started posting that their decks have arrived. Many others are reporting having seen a tracking number (for a label created on April 20th) but no action since then. It looks like many of the US backers should start receiving their decks soon.
• Oath Patreon Year 2 (Fall '22) -- As of the same recent post to Patreon mentioned above, "the rewards for year 2 should be ready end of June to early July 2023."
• Decolonized Tarot (October '22) --Shipping appears to have commenced very recently; no reports yet of seeing decks in the wild, but a tracking number or two have been mentioned.
• Caution: Playing Cards Sticker Pack (February '23) -- A couple folks posted in the comments section that they received their stickers. Alas, I have not. DMs to Jaren have not yet been answered. Not the biggest issue in the world, but I'm guessing mine got lost in the mail. >shrug<
• Oath Royal Silk (Purple) (February '23) -- A recent-ish post says that these were about five days' worth of work away from completion... but, not five days in a row. So... who knows?
• Escape Velocity (March '23) -- Cartamundi discovered a quality control issue late in the game, and has revised their estimated completion date to May 17th. Everything else is ready to go when the decks are.
• Damokles (April '23) -- A recent update suggests fulfillment is on track to commence in mid-May; Patreon Patron's can expect their Damokles combined with their Patreon shipment for Q1.
• Romeo & Juliet Tarot (April '23) -- RJ noted a couple weeks ago that "Things are taking a little longer then expected but printing has just finished. I'm working on figuring out a way to transport the cards from China to the USA."
• Neptune's Graveyard (April '23) -- I had ordered gilded decks; Will reports that most sets have shipped, but sets with gilded decks will be delayed for a few while the gilding process is completed.
• Oath Silk Redemption Deck (April '23) -- This looks to be the Teal/Gold Silk deck. Timing of shipping has not been mentioned recently, that I recall.
• Oath Redemption Deck vol. 4 (April '23) -- This may be the Frost Silk Deck, which is already printed according to the recent Patreon post. "Unfortunately, we have to wait a bit as our gilding provider will have the decks ready for pickup on the 22nd of May."
• Successor (May '23) -- It would appear that shipping has begun. A couple folks are reporting in the comments section on KS that they've received their decks, and I, for one, have received my tracking number.

So, that's a total of 14 non-retail playing card-related projects that were originally anticipated to be fulfilled at some point up through May '23... for me, at least. I'm not backing as much as I used to, so my list is certainly much smaller than many others. What are you all seeing? Please add the projects you are tracking to this watch list thread.

As I point out every month: being on this list isn't a bad thing. It just means that the project is nearing (or has passed) the originally anticipated fulfillment month, and this list serves as a mechanism for keeping track of how fulfillment is going.

Here's to another month of cards. May your mailboxes be happily full, and your collections overflow with playing card goodness!

UPDATE:

The "Caution: Playing Cards Sticker Pack" rewards just arrived today (roughly a day after posting this update to the list.) They arrived Postage Due, and I can't determine why, but I'll ask the post office and pay the fee. It's not that big a deal, but it does make me wonder what the intercourse happened. >shrug<

[PiazzaDelivery]

To add:

• Under the Moon (Jan '22) -- EU and ROW shipments starting on 15th of May, USA/CA on the 22nd.
• Artist Playing Cards (Nov '22) -- Fulfillment has commenced.
• Monte Carlo Diffractor (Apr '22) -- Not sure what to say about this one. 5 months of silence following an update that updated absolutely nothing, just excusing the delays without explanation, not even an outlining of what's been done in that timespan. Complete shambles, I consider my pledge lost and VXD's reputation shot.

[Strag]

Have to concur on VXD. Had to audacity to come on here and push his eBay sales. but hasn't had the decency to update his campaign that is over a year late since December!

[rousselle]

"I like new cards in Juuune... How about you?"

Time to check in with the ol' Watchdog list and see which non-retail playing card (and related) projects have found their way into the rousselle mailbox since our last monthly update:

The Literary Tarot (originally anticipated to fulfill in April '22) arrived just one year later than expected, Caution: Playing Cards Sticker Pack (February '23), and Successor (May '23). Props to TGW who appears to have improved his processes and delivered on his originally proposed schedule. Let's also give props to Randy Butterfield, who delivered his Ireland Decks (June '23) ahead of schedule!

So, with 3 falling off the list and 3 KS projects originally being anticipated for June fulfillment and one never even making the list because it arrived early... my list stays even (again) with a total of 14 projects being eagerly anticipated in June.

Y'all, please post your own lists of anticipated decks that I'm not including here, please! In the meantime, here's where my list stands:

• Stories (March '20) -- I have received my tracking number, and as of today, USPS indicates that it's been picked up and has started the journey to my mail box. Per Dave in the comments section: "We’ve shipped about 2/3 of the orders so far. More to head out this week…"
• Oath Patreon Year 1 (Fall '21) -- As of April 20th in a post on Patreon, "we will be ready to ship before the end of May." While there's been no word since then (except for a cryptic post that says when there's silence, he's busy working on something mind-blowing), he *has* shipped out the first version of The Golden Rule.
• Oath Patreon Year 2 (Fall '22) -- As of the same April post to Patreon mentioned above, "the rewards for year 2 should be ready end of June to early July 2023."
• Decolonized Tarot (October '22) -- In a recent update, it was noted that "bare bones packages" have mostly been shipped out, while people who also ordered the book have sill more waiting to do. It hadn't yet been submitted to the publishing house to get it produced, but that step should be happening soonishly.
• Oath Royal Silk (Purple) (February '23) -- That April 20th post mentioned above says that these were about five days' worth of work away from completion... but, not five days in a row.
• Escape Velocity (March '23) --As of May 23rd, Cartamundi had finally finished printing the replacement decks, and now Montenzi is awaiting word on when the project will be shipped to fulfillment centers.
• Damokles (April '23) -- As of May 29th, "If there are no issues, shipping should start in mid June."
• Romeo & Juliet Tarot (April '23) -- RJ posted on May 24th that most of the fulfillment was completed, with only about 14 packages left to ship out. In the comments section, many are noting that their decks have arrived, while a couple others (myself included) don't appear to have received their decks or their tracking numbers yet.
• Neptune's Graveyard (April '23) -- I had ordered gilded decks; Will posted recently that orders with gilded decks should ship out by the beginning of next month.
• Oath Silk Redemption Deck (April '23) -- This looks to be the Teal/Gold Silk deck. Timing of shipping has not been mentioned recently, that I recall. Is this intended to be the "Redemption Story vol. 5?" Don't know. Is this the one Lotrek was teasing in his last post about how silence must mean he's working on something even more special than usual? Don't know that either.
• Oath Redemption Deck vol. 4 (April '23) -- This may be the Frost Silk Deck, which is already printed according to the April Patreon post. "Unfortunately, we have to wait a bit as our gilding provider will have the decks ready for pickup on the 22nd of May."
• Land of Stories Tarot (June '23) -- Shipping has already commenced, and some backers are already reporting having received theirs, so mine shouldn't be too far away at this point.
• Fantasma (June '23) -- In a post in early May, Gio said these decks were on target to be fulfilled in June.
• Apple Pi (June '23) -- Jackson similarly posted that these decks are likewise on target for June fulfillment.

So, that's a total of 14 non-retail playing card-related projects that were originally anticipated to be fulfilled at some point up through June '23... for me, at least. I'm not backing as much as I used to, so my list is certainly much smaller than many others. What are you all seeing? Please add the projects you are tracking to this watch list thread.

As I point out every month: being on this list isn't a bad thing. It just means that the project is nearing (or has passed) the originally anticipated fulfillment month, and this list serves as a mechanism for keeping track of how fulfillment is going.

Here's to another month of cards. May your mailboxes be happily full, and your collections overflow with playing card goodness!

[PiazzaDelivery]

• Monte Carlo Diffractor (Apr '22) -- Not sure what to say about this one. 6 months of silence following an update that updated absolutely nothing, just excusing the delays without explanation, not even an outlining of what's been done in that timespan. Complete shambles, I consider my pledge lost and VXD's reputation shot.

Just a copy and paste of what I had last month. You could probably keep this up there for the foreseeable future. It doesn't seem like they have any intention of continuing on with the project, let alone showing the backers a sign of life.

[PiazzaDelivery]

OH and by the way, VXD's other outstanding campaign, Frozen Metal and the Cube, is more than 3 years overdue. Last Kickstarter login was in April and both comment sections are pleading for updates.

[kevork]

Here are the ones that arrived to my mailbox since my last update on April 23rd:
Artist Playing Cards (Nov '22), Cthulhu by Overhand (Jan '23), Eve: Limited Edition (Mar '23), The Curse and the Crooked (Mar '23), Sardines (Apr '23), The Successor Playing Cards (May '23), The Land of Stories Tarot (Jun '23)

• Nightdreams & Daymares (Jan '23) - Final phase of production.
  
• Under the Moon (Jan '23) - Henry is currently packing these up for US. The orders are highly complicated so each package is averaging him 6-10 minutes per. Some in EU and US have already received their packages.
  
• Cafeto (Mar '23) - No updates since initial funding on Oct '22
  
• Mortal Steel (Mar '23) - Perhaps I had misunderstood, but it looks like this deck is being designed further post-KS. Nothing in production yet.
  
• Escape Velocity (Mar '23) - Cards were reprinted and manually packed to avoid issues. Everything should be ready for shipment to the fulfillment centers by June 21st.
  
• P52 Nazo Nazo (Apr '23) - Alex has communicated through the last update on June 3rd! No clear timeline but we are assured this project chugs along.
  
• Empty Collector's Box for Composers (Apr '23) - Collector's box was expected to be cut in May. Last update was in April.
  
• Damokles (Apr '23) - Estimated fulfillment to begin mid-late June.
  
• Butterfly Playing Cards Workers Edition (Apr '23) - Foiling did not register properly and the misprinted decks are being sold as "seconds" for those who want decks to use to practice with. Final decks yet to arrive but production continues. Yay for Ondrej's high standards!
  
• Wine Cards (May '23) - Cards have been shipped!
  
• Yule & Ostara - Wheel of the Year (Jul '23) - Surveys were sent June 12th. Timeline continues according to plan.
  
• Eminence Exquisite (Aug '23) - Production for the cards are about 2 weeks out from being finished. Once they finish the production, they will ship them by sea freight, which will be about another 4 weeks. Estimated August.
  
• Clear Skies: Resistance (Sep '23) - Cards have started printing and add-ons being created.
  
• House of Seven Gables (Oct '23) - Tuck boxes were approved and production continues with NPCC as planned.
  
• House of Whispers (Oct '23) - No updates since project funded.
  
• Lord of the Rings Two Towers (Nov '23) - No updates since project funded.
  
• Ragnarok Remastered (Dec '23) - Project just funded. Stay tuned!

[Eric Lee]

On a related matter, Shop Pay has now got a dedicated app for all the online retailers which use Shop Pay. This is a sizeable group as it includes: GW, S17, SoCal, PCD, Oath, KWP, AOP, D&D, 1st, Legends, HoPC, Deallez, Wounded corner, etc. The best part is that it tells you when your package is shipped and gives you the tracking number all in 1 app. No need track multiple shipments anymore.

This is really worth downloading if you do online shopping for your decks.

(Not sure how many are going to see this, but this is probably a good place for this post, rather than start a new one. Mods, if you feel that this should be in a new thread, please let me know.)

[rousselle]

Welcome to July 1st! It's that time once again when we look to see which non-retail playing card (and related) projects have found their way into the rousselle mailbox since our last monthly update:

Stories, the oldest item on this list (originally slated to ship in March of '20) arrived in all its glory. I am happy to remove this from the list and I wish David all the best as he rebuilds. Natalia, it can be done! Meanwhile, Neptune's Graveyard (April '23) also arrived, as did the Land of Stories Tarot (June '23), right on time. Arriving today, July 1st, and therefore by the skin of their proverbial teeth count as June arrivals, Damokles (April '23) and Fantasma (June '23), to make this a truly tasty month for Kickstarter-backed playing card projects. That's 5 projects dropping off the list! Woo-hoo!

AND... the Divination project (July '23) arrived a couple weeks before it's target fulfillment month. Woo-hoo!

So, with 5 falling off the list and 1 KS project originally being anticipated for July fulfillment and one never even making the list because it arrived early... my list falls by 4 to a total of 10 projects being eagerly anticipated in July.

Y'all, please post your own lists of anticipated decks that I'm not including here, please! In the meantime, here's where my list stands:

• Oath Patreon Year 1 (Fall '21) -- As of June 7th, "Royal Silk is almost done, Patrons is completed (for year 1) [....] The burden of Royal Silk which was holding everything back will be completely lifted in a few days and we will proceed very fast with the rest of the decks." No word regarding Patreon rewards since then.
• Oath Patreon Year 2 (Fall '22) -- Also as of June 7th, "Golden Rule Patrons Edition will start printing next week."
• Decolonized Tarot (October '22) -- Per the May 30th update, it was noted that "bare bones packages" had mostly been shipped out, while people who also ordered extras (like me) still have more waiting to do. As of today, no further updates, and nobody in the comments section has mentioned receiving anything (except one person who says they received a tracking number a couple weeks ago or so.)
• Oath Royal Silk (Purple) (February '23) -- Ummmm.
• Escape Velocity (March '23) --As of June 20th, the decks were ready to be shipped to the fulfillment centers.
• Romeo & Juliet Tarot (April '23) -- in Mid-June, RJ posted that he has run into a string of harsh life rolls in the preceding month, including losing his job and his long-term relationship. We all know he went through something similar many years ago, and it breaks my heart to read that he's dealing with so much stress again. Anyway, someone posted just a couple days ago that she received her decks, so I guess he's still managing to get them out as best he can. I, for one, don't mind if mine is the last one he sends out if it means others will get theirs sooner. Robert is a stand-up guy, and I hope things get better for him soon.
• Oath Silk Redemption Deck (April '23) -- The Teal/Gold Silk deck. As of that June 7th update noted above, extra copies were put up for sale, and shipping appeared to be very close at the time of that post.
• Oath Patreons' Redemption Deck IV (April '23) -- Silk Frost edition was teased on June 7th and additional copies were said to be available to be purchased soon thereafter, but no word yet on when they'll ship.
• Apple Pi (June '23) -- Jackson had posted about a month ago that these decks were on target for June fulfillment. I'm sure we'll hear from him soon with an update.
• Tough Luck v2 (July '23) -- Last project update was at the end of April, showing that production was underway for most items, but that's about the extent of the information available at the time.

So, that's a total of 10 non-retail playing card-related projects that were originally anticipated to be fulfilled at some point up through July '23... for me, at least. I'm not backing as much as I used to, so my list is certainly much smaller than many others. What are you all seeing? Please add the projects you are tracking to this watch list thread, and maybe even update the document that BDawg set up for us in a prior thread. (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... sp=sharing) And, yes, I should go update that, myself. Later. I have another deadline to hit, first. But, soon!

As I point out every month: being on this list isn't a bad thing. It just means that the project is nearing (or has passed) the originally anticipated fulfillment month, and this list serves as a mechanism for keeping track of how fulfillment is going.

Here's to another month of cards. May your mailboxes be happily full, and your collections overflow with playing card goodness!

[Timmargh]

My list is as follows:

• Oath Patreon Year 2
• Horsemen - I've messaged Tony several times but to no avail. Previously, his sister got in touch to let me know that he was unwell, and I was hoping that she would repeat this, but no luck so far. For me his well-being is obviously far more important that the status of the project.
• Oath Royal Silk (Purple)
• Fantasma

I also have a non-playing card Kickstarter that was due September 2014!

[kevork]

Here are the ones that arrived to my mailbox since my last update in June:
Under the Moon (Jan '23), Mortal Steel (Mar '23), Escape Velocity (Mar '23), P52 Nazo Nazo (Apr '23), Empty Collector's Box for Composers (Apr '23), Damokles (Apr '23), Butterfly Playing Cards Workers Edition (Apr '23), Eminence Exquisite (Aug '23), Clear Skies: Resistance (Sep '23), Wine Cards (May '23), House of Seven Gables (Oct '23), Lord of the Rings Two Towers (Nov '23), The Land of Stories Tarot (Jun '23), House of Tudor (Oct '23), The Conjuring (Nov '23), TCC Fashion (Oct '23), Incubo (Nov '23)

Even with Cartamundi's shutdown, it's nice to see campaigns still going strong.

• Nightdreams & Daymares (Jan '23) - After months of silence, we now got a reassuring update today that production continues. Best wishes to his family.
  
• Cafeto (Mar '23) - No updates since initial funding on Oct '22. I'm writing this off as my first campaign that will not see the light of day.
  
• Yule & Ostara - Wheel of the Year (Jul '23) - I was shipped the wrong order but Anthony is remedying the issue. Others should be receiving their decks, if they haven't already! Some delays present if you ordered a booklet but things are moving along.
  
• House of Whispers (Oct '23) - Production update on Oct 1st. All components will be completed as deck production waits for Cartamundi's move.
  
• Ragnarok Remastered (Dec '23) - New estimated timeline of late January 2024.
  
• ONDA V2 (Nov '23) - At the mercy of Cartamundi shutdown. Expected arrival in Q1 2024.
  
• Groundskeeper (May '24) - Next scheduled update December 1st. Production moving along.
  
• Arabian Nights (Mar '24) - I received the art book for the project. Cards have yet to be printed but an update was provided to backers Nov. 14th.
  
• Spirits (Feb '24) - Production continues smoothly and WJPC is already printing the cards. Excellent communication every step of the way.
  
• Animal Instincts (Feb '24) - Production going smoothly based on an update Nov. 7th. Surveys sent. If you missed the campaign, you can pre-order via backerkit here.
  
• Cirque Luciole (Apr '24) - Production expected to go smoothly.
  
• Scothardo (Jan '24) - Fulfillment may be earlier than expected. Decks may start shipping in December!
  
• Halloween Dreams (Mar '24) - Work began with PrintNinja (printing company) week of Oct 31st.
  
• Gothica (May '24) - Production expected to go smoothly.

Campaigns currently in funding period:

• Camelot (Jan '24) - 79% funded - 30 days to go
• Bag of Bones (Dec '23) - fully funded!
• Coffee Deck (Dec '23) - 66.7% funded - 7 days to go
• Beetle Backs (Jan '25) - fully funded!

Total KS projects backed: 85

[GandalfPC]

The make100/G deck by CARDISTRII and Cinderella Story by KraftiDor both AWOL at the moment.

[brownsl]

I have not gone through the KS projects I have pledged for to see which are still outstanding in a long time. I took next week off from work and maybe I will do that. I also want to calculate how much money I am out on these projects. I am sure it will depress me.

[Strag]

Let's not forget VXD and the Monte Carlo Diffractor debacle. He had no problem coming here to pimp selling decks but has since disappeared.

[Timmargh]

Plus the Horsemen campaign is dead in the water. Tony, or someone else, logged into Kickstarter recently but there's been no communication, publicly or privately.

[hsbc]

Tribe Tarot Deck has been MIA since December 2022

[rousselle]

Sorry I've let this drop. Things have been super busy for me in other departments, and I'm clearly not as engaged as I have sometimes been known to be. That said, I'll post an update to my own list soon, just to see how far things are coming along....

[bdawg923]

I removed everyone's access to that tracking google sheet with the campaign updates. Doesn't seem like anyone is using it. If someone wants it, I can transfer ownership, otherwise I'll delete it in a few days.

Edit: gave it to hsbc

[hsbc]

I removed everyone's access to that tracking google sheet with the campaign updates. Doesn't seem like anyone is using it. If someone wants it, I can transfer ownership, otherwise I'll delete it in a few days.

If it's between deletion and handing it over to someone, I'll take it If you'd rather just delete it though that's fine too of course

[Timmargh]

As some people may already be aware, the Horsemen Kickstarter is officially dead. On January 22nd Tony posted an update:

Firstly let me apologise for the serious lack of communication for the project, Personal issues have delayed progression along with health, loss of a parent and finally loss of my home of 45 years.

The project at first started well with some issues still caused by covid but the start of the troubles with the war in the Ukraine, the artist being based in Russia had the artwork prints which due to the postal restrictions we can not get from her.

The mini cards were printed in China and the video of them in production was posted, the stickers and coins were made and delivered. When we received the mini cards the printing was poor and the cards were returned for reprint, after a few months the Chinese supplier would not reprint them without second payment which was made and the cards reworked and reprinted, they were sent and after a few months never arrived, I chased the supplier but started to get no response for tracking or delivery information. Subsequently months have passed and we have no cards to show so I can only deemed these as lost.

Slip cases were printed by the supplier and sent to Cartamundi for use once the cards were printed. We have had many problems with the artwork meaning Cartamundi could not print from it and I spent many weeks revising and changing the artwork to suit, but this coincided with my personal problems.

Mean while a number of backers took it upon themselves to start contacting and chasing Cartamundi and posting remarks and leaving reviews for which Cartamundi took personally.

In December we received a letter from Cartamundi saying they were upset that customers had been contacting them and we had been blaming them for printing issues, this was not the case and never had we blamed them. They would not print the cards and are cancelling the order with immediate effect. They also said that they were going to charge us for Admin, Storage and disposal or postage for the Tuck Boxes and would return the balance of the funds.

We have tried to source another supplier but due to the tuck boxes have 'Printed By Cartamundi' on them we could not use them unless this was removed. The tuck boxes were a large percentage of the printing cost.

All things considered with regret we can no longer proceed with this project, its been very disappointing with so many issues and set backs from the start, at the time of writing we have received the balance for the cartamundi account and are looking on how to return the prorata balance back to the backers. As with kickstarters own statement 9% of projects never come to completion and as hard as I tried we were not able to complete.

We are currently looking at returning around 33% of your original backing via paypal, I will post the email address to make a claim shortly, any funds not claimed for after the 3 month claim window will be sent to a local charity. At no point have I taken any money from this project but have spent 100's of hours trying to make it work. The Designer was paid in full.

~

And then on February 4th:

Thank you for your comments Good and Bad its certainly something to reflect on.

Looking at what’s achievable from your comments,

If you ordered coins yes of course I can send you these,

I will compile a file of the artwork for download along with the Glicee print artwork for you to print yourselves, sadly the signed copies are in Russia and I am not able to get these.

I need to contact kickstarter as after 12 months (from the estimated completion date) they have locked me from downloading the details. Once I have these I can start the claim process and look at despatch options for the coins. Picture of the coins attached

I will keep updating with news.

Tony

~


I'm gutted for the campaign but especially for him; he was excited to get it started and even shared some designs with me for his next project, but these unfortunate events may have tarnished his name with plenty of people.

[GandalfPC]

Definitely delighted to join this occasion! The enthusiasm and depth of ideas are truly commendable. The detail shared is simply great!

Thanks all!

Should anyone notice a post like this please flag it for me - its a new spam bot.