funded Reaper Bones 5: Enthusiasm and Commentary thread

[Ratmaster2000]

Personally, I think NO updates and what will be unlocked is going to KILL momentum and stifle the Kickstarter. Really, who will pledge when there is no clear reason to. Everything unlocked and 8+ hours of no reason to unlock more?? I know they need sleep, that is why Reaper Bryan was point man on the kickstarter, he would get up as I recall at all hours to make sure the wheels stayed on the bus! It had been suggested since fulfillment of bones 4 that reaper needed a new frontman, which MAY have prevented this. just MHO. 

[YronimosW]

Especially considering how many people were saying in the last Bones V thread that they weren't going to join this Kickstarter, or were going to spend less, this opening day was phenomenal!

 

Surely Reaper has broken some sort of record with this one?  (At the very least, they seem to have broken Kickstarter earlier today!)

 

I don't seem to recall that letting the Reaper staff get a little well-earned shut-eye hurt the last Kickstarter very much, nor any of the ones that Reaper Bryan worked on:  I'd wake up the next morning to see that the rest-of-the-world had boosted the total up to some outlandish degree, and then Reaper would update everyone on what surprises got unlocked overnight along with what new goodies we started the day with, and the pledging would go crazy all over again.  I'm pretty sure that even on the first few Kickstarters, we let them sleep a little, and everything worked out OK :)

[corbie]

Got in just under the wire for Wave 1 of the US core sets as Backer #1201! After semi-panicking over the checkout lag. This is my first Bones KS since II and really my first since getting into the hobby in earnest. (Jumped in on Bones II during my last unsuccessful attempt at TTRPGS. I say "last" because I've finally been playing regularly for a couple years now.)

 

Anyway, so far I'm planning on grabbing:

• the core
• both dragons
• the dragonborn set

And maybe:

• the mammoth

I'd also be in on the Dungeon Dwellers set if I didn't already have most of them in some form from freebies and my own purchases. I agree it's a great set for beginners, though!

 

Regarding the core set, I'm most excited about the puppers (both dread and draconic varieties) and, surprisingly, the kids. The creepy little girl with the goat is a good fit for one of my favorite Adventurers League NPCs (Elisande!!!). Also happy to see two of my favorite Dreadmere iconics from this year getting the Bones treatment, even though I already have them in metal.

[Ratmaster2000]

1 minute ago, YronimosW said:

Especially considering how many people were saying in the last Bones V thread that they weren't going to join this Kickstarter, or were going to spend less, this opening day was phenomenal!

 

Surely Reaper has broken some sort of record with this one?  (At the very least, they seem to have broken Kickstarter earlier today!)

 

I don't seem to recall that letting the Reaper staff get a little well-earned shut-eye hurt the last Kickstarter very much, nor any of the ones that Reaper Bryan worked on:  I'd wake up the next morning to see that the rest-of-the-world had boosted the total up to some outlandish degree, and then Reaper would update everyone on what surprises got unlocked overnight along with what new goodies we started the day with, and the pledging would go crazy all over again.  I'm pretty sure that even on the first few Kickstarters, we let them sleep a little, and everything worked out OK :)

But that is exactly my point, we in the US are going to sleep BUT ROW are just waking up, so they are seeing everything unlocked and nothing new to entice them, so whats the incentive to bid more? 

[Darsc Zacal]

I’m only interested in 35 out of the 110 minis in the core so far.

 

No interest in the Dungeon Dwellers expansion, I already have dozens much more interesting adventurer minis from Reaper, although I could see this being a good set for someone just starting out collecting minis for the RPG’s.

 

In the addons I like the dragons, the dragon bust, the troll bridge, the War Mammoth.

The Mouselings I’m not too sure about as I have so many already. I suppose these must be the larger sized ones we were told about, so I am curious to see the difference of myself.

The catapult... I don’t know. I just bought the Wizkids one for $5 Canadian that looks very similar to this. Reaper wants $6 U.S. for theirs. If I knew Reapers was substantially bigger than I might consider it.

 

It’s only day one though. And we know from the preview pics theirs still a lot to come.

Just biding my time.

 

Edited October 2, 2019 by Darsc Zacal

[YronimosW]

I don't know, looks like that total keeps climbing, so the ROW don't seem too discouraged yet... if at least some of them are like me, they're throwing money at what's already been unlocked rather than what will be unlocked, anyway, so maybe it works out even in the end.

 

Those kid adventurers are great!  :)  Seems like most of the long-running games I've been involved in have seen high-level adventurers take on a mentor role for a young sidekick, and those kids look like they fit that role exactly.  Those townsfolk kids are bound to get a lot of use from me, too:  I tend to run horror-themed scenarios, and creepy kids as supporting characters fit right in with those kinds of stories....

 

The Yokai monsters and boulder-guys look like they'll be a lot of fun, too.

 

There's a lot of other cool stuff going on there - it's great to see a good set of cat-folk at last,  the halflings and plague doctors are some great sculpts, I always like townfolk and other NPCs and the selection here is fantastic, I liked the undead giant and trolls but not enough to get them as add-ons, but as part of the core set they're perfect, it's great to see those hooded elf rangers in a variety of poses (I've been using these guys for all sorts of things - hooded cultists, bandits, elves, drow....), the wolves and stick-men and Grave Kings and golems are great monsters, I could certainly use some of these mid-sized dragons more than the larger dragons Reaper usually deals in, and the adventurers as always are welcome:  I can't really argue much with a good supply of inexpensive Player-Character and NPC minis.  I might have to curate my collection of adventurer models a little better and sell off some extras, but with this sort of variety, I certainly have a good selection to choose the best from....

 

I'm sure I can still find good uses for the wolves and rats, too.  They're good sculpts, though not particularly exciting monsters, but useful, and I never seem to have enough, especially when I need them.  Overall, I can't really say I feel like there are any "losers" in the core set or in the newbie-friendly "Dungeon Dwellers" expansion - these work fine for me, and ought to be fantastic for those who missed the first few Kickstarters.  A good set of basic, stock, old-favorite minis like that expansion would make a nice gift for a new RPG gamemaster!

 

To be honest, I need more goblins, orcs, and undead like I need a hole in the head:  I've got mountains of those, but rarely use more than a fistful at a time in an actual game.  Still, these aren't bad sculpts, especially those orcs, so maybe I'll let some of my less favorite mook monsters of these kinds go on auction to clear up some space; and, again, these sorts of old standby-monsters fit nicely with that expansion in the context of a gift for a budding tabletop rpg GM - I may just bundle a bunch of my old extra monsters up for exactly that purpose. 

 

I like the bridge with goats a lot even as it seems a bit like an extravagance that I really ought to decline, but the old fight-at-a-bridge-over-a-chasm cliche comes up frequently enough that I think I can justify it in this case.  The Mouselings seem like a no-brainer as a gift:  seems like the ladies in my gaming group really like them, and at that price, why not?

 

 

On the other hand...

 

That catapult and the war mammoth seem like great items for "table" top wargaming to bulk up armies with siege engines and such.  That's not my thing, but they're great miniatures - I really have to resist the temptation to find excuses to get them anyway.  Similarly, I've never run a game that uses dragon-men, but they're nice sculpts, and I know they've been a popular request, so I'm glad to see those as Options for those folks who do want and need them.  The fantasy dino-people are the one thing I don't quite understand:  I'd be just fine using generic lizard-men for that purpose, so I'm glad to see these are an option, for those who do want and need them.   I've got way too many giants and humongous dragons from the previous Kickstarters; I'll be skipping those optional ones, but for those who collect these, or missed the ones from previous sets, these look great.  The busts are not my thing, but there were a lot of folks excited about them, and I'm excited for those who have the option to add the dragon bust now!

 

So, all of the stuff I feel kind of ambivalent about is either optional, or makes a great gift for folks who don't do the Kickstarters and/or don't have a miniature budget - perfect!  :)

 

 

Great stuff so far - I can't wait to see what unlocks tomorrow.

[Glitterwolf]

Going on vacation in 20 minutes, just checked to see what happened before I go.

Dragon Wolf!

And those Asian Anthros are cute, not sure if I can use them though.

Dinomen! More for the Lost World!

[OneBoot]

4 hours ago, TaleSpinner said:

 

Izzy just gave me permission to post her concept art:

 

 

 

It makes me everlastingly happy that she included Sir Forscale in the picture!

 

3 hours ago, Pineapple said:

Can't expect them to literally be on call around the clock.

 

43 minutes ago, Ratmaster2000 said:

But that is exactly my point, we in the US are going to sleep BUT ROW are just waking up, so they are seeing everything unlocked and nothing new to entice them, so whats the incentive to bid more? 

 

I'm of two minds about it (ie I agree with both points). Yes Bryan posted at all hours and kept the unlock excitement constant, but it wrecked him for the entire month. Yes I'd also really love to see all the unlocks right when they happen (my sleep schedule more closely matches someone from Australia than the western USA lol), but health is more important.

 

I think the best compromise would be to post a few extra goals before turning in for the night; they greatly underestimated the growth that would happen during the ROW day! Plus that would give current and potential backers an ambitious number to reach toward while Reaper is sleeping.

 

Huzzah!

--OneBoot :D

[YronimosW]

Or maybe drop a the goal for a really big, high-dollar Option at the end of the night, one which might get reached overnight, or later the next day, with little or no overnight intervention required... a really big dragon maybe, or a big scenic item like that circle of standing stones from a couple Kickstarters ago, or... I don't know, that pirate ship everyone keeps talking about? ;)  In all seriousness, it seems like the large-scale items are popular enough to keep things going overnight, but might be just expensive enough to do so without getting blown through too quickly and easily....

 

EDIT:  it occurs to me that I don't really know how different the ROW's taste in miniatures are from Reaper's western hemisphere backers.  Do the European, Australian, and Asian backers go for the large-scale items?  Do some regional segments of Reaper's customer base tend to prefer e.g. Chronoscope to fantasy?  I mean, a high-dollar fantasy-themed item might make sense in the 'States, but maybe it would be counerproductive in the UK or Korea or whatever.

Edited October 2, 2019 by YronimosW

[NecroticDamage]

I can't say I am sold on the dinos, but that's just because I won't really have a use for them. The Dragon Wolf, is something interesting that looks both fun to paint and could be really cool to throw down on a table. New to miniatures so a lot of the core set is really useful to me even if I haven't fallen in love with all of whats currently there, I just wish some of the female adventurers had a bit more armor, but I suppose that's personal taste? Either way a lot of cool sculpts IMO, stand outs being the skinny Scarecrow, the dreadmere villains, bolderkins, and the grim reaper looks sick. 

The War Mammoth looks awesome, Don't know how I will work it into a game... but one day.

The Dungeon Delvers expansion I have some interest in. Small horde of goblins an orcs seem like they'd be useful to have. Plague Doctors look awesome,  Don't know where the rats would be cool other then decoration but I suppose they'd work for familiars/ if I ever open a game in an oblivion style dungeon. The PCs here also look pretty good and excited to share many of them as my groups play. ...The treasure dragon looks coolish but its hard to tell until a finished product emerges. 

So far I am in for the Core Set, Dungeon Delvers, Mammoth, Curious when all the greek inspired stuff will come, as well as the otters, and other seafolk. ...I am going to have to make some choices it seems. 

The dragons look nice, I know I'd like one of them, but again... decisions..

Can't say I am looking forward to the Samurai and Oriental themed minis, but again, that's just because my games town have a more Medieval Europe flair. If people want them, enjoy!

[OddMoominOut]

Going for the numbers... The Witch goal is a shoe-inn and with the way that the marks are laid, at dawn there will be enough for another one... 

Bets? Im calling the greek flavor one...

[NecroticDamage]

1 minute ago, OddMoominOut said:

Going for the numbers... The Witch goal is a shoe-inn and with the way that the marks are laid, at dawn there will be enough for another one... 

Bets? Im calling the greek flavor one...

Judging from the Map being reminiscent of Feudal Japan I am willing to bet we will see all the samurai figures first. ...I'd imagine the Greek one will be towards the end as there were lots of big figures that fit that theme.

What are we betting? 

[Ratmaster2000]

12 minutes ago, OddMoominOut said:

Going for the numbers... The Witch goal is a shoe-inn and with the way that the marks are laid, at dawn there will be enough for another one... 

Bets? Im calling the greek flavor one...

8 minutes ago, NecroticDamage said:

Judging from the Map being reminiscent of Feudal Japan I am willing to bet we will see all the samurai figures first. ...I'd imagine the Greek one will be towards the end as there were lots of big figures that fit that theme.

What are we betting? 

Careful gentlemen, that's a sure way to get yourself in trouble on the forums (IE no gambling)

 

[NecroticDamage]

1 minute ago, Ratmaster2000 said:

Careful gentlemen, that's a sure way to get yourself in trouble on the forums (IE no gambling)

 

Apologies! Hopefully no one took it seriously, but thank you for the call out before it became a thing. :)

[Nunae]

As a ROW backer I don't mind US companys having their kickstarter people going to bed. It's pretty fun to start your day with at least one e-mail telling you about the newest update and scrolling through that.

ROW backing less money has less to do with us not spending money because we can't see the next big thing, and more with us being way, way, way less people to begin with. Most backers are still US based.

 

I'm happy to hear the EU stuff will be shipped through Germany (maybe) or atleast directly form the US, if the waves we're sorted in this time are any indication. Maybe this'll allow people from Norway or Switzerland to be shipped directly from the US with the "normal" waves, since they aren't in the EU (but ofc in Europe).

Even shipping directly from the US will be ok with me. Sure, there will be duties and fees and stuff, but I know them, I can plan for them. No idea what'll happen with the Brits, so it would have killed the mood if all European orders had to go through them.

 

I'll now take some time to go through all the stuff you guys unlocked tonight. Already saw the kids, excited for them. Lots of dragons already on display, also great. 

I liked the Bones 4 graphics better though, the figures on the black or gradient background with the neon lights around are somehow harder to look at for me.