Littlebox Journeys: Kickstarter
There’s a DnD/Marvel meme out on the internet that goes something like this: Dr. Strange “I looked forward in time. I saw fourteen million futures.” Stark: “In how many of those futures do our schedules match up so we can play D&D regularly?” Dr. Strange “One”. It’s a problem we all have, whether it’s in person or virtually; it’s just really hard to find the time and the energy to play weekly, or even monthly. One solution to this is to do a series of one-shot campaigns. Another solution is to find something that is simpler and less intimidating than a full scale dice and handbooks, hack and slash RPG. Storybrewers, out of Australia, offers up a little box of journeys in the form of Littlebox Journeys, a small, “No preparation, no GM” storytelling game that focuses less on skill checks and loot, and more on choices, character growth, and worldbuilding. Instead of creating a character from scratch, you can choose from a selection of characters (or character templates); but there is always an opportunity to customize your character by answering questions. The structure of the game comes from cards that provide opportunities for choice and decisions. There are several different demonstration videos on the campaign page, and I took the time to watch a couple of them. The amount of game structure versus storytelling varies from game to game, but there is a pleasant feeling of freestyle acting that reminds me of an improv show.
The Storybrewers are not newcomers to the world of TTRPG. They created the award winning Good Society: a Jane Austen RPG (with several expansions), the unique Fight With Spirit “sports drama” RPG and others. This campaign, which started on April 21st and hit its base goal in around 8 hours, is going strong. This is their second Littlebox Journeys campaign offering the Science Fiction/Horror themed Decaying Orbit (DO) and the Traveling Merchant themed Saltfish and Almanacs (SA). But don’t worry, you’ll also be able to get the two original games: Villagesong (a politics/leadership story with fantasy elements, inspired by Indonesian folklore) and Our Mundane Supernatural Life (Day in the Life with a twist). I have to admit that out of all the descriptions, I like OMSL the most, because it feels intimate and self-contained, with a dose of humour.
Now, let’s talk about the campaign itself. We start off with the usual “One Dollar” level, which gets your foot in the door, and allows you to buy individual games (at AU$42 each) as add-ons at the end of the campaign. The next level is something very unique that I personally don’t remember ever seeing before. The Financial Hardship Level (limited to 100 backers) allows backers with a limited budget to get a copy of both games (DO and SA) including stretch goals for only AU$50. This is based on the Honour System, you will not be required to prove your economic hardship. (One of the stretch goals for the campaign will be to increase the number of Hardship backers from 100 to 150.) For AU$78 you can get both DO and SA (and all stretch goals). This would be considered the “standard pledge level”. The final, and most exciting in my opinion, pledge level is the Complete LittleBox Collection: for AU$154 you get a copy of all the Littlebox games: Villagesong, Our Mundane Supernatural Life, Saltfish and Almanacs, and Decaying Orbit, as well as the stretch goals for the current campaign.
Of course, we have to address The Kangaroo in the Room, shipping and import taxes. This is a campaign based out of Australia, so I was expecting a really high shipping cost; but it really isn’t horrible. The main campaign page does not offer a list of shipping costs based on location, but when you pledge, you will automatically see how much shipping will be before you decide whether or not to commit. Shipping to Canada is an additional AU$25 regardless of the number of games you are buying. Storybrewers are also upfront about discussing VAT (Value Added Tax) and Import Taxes. Backers from Australia, the USA, and the UK do not have to worry about any extra fees or taxes. I don’t know very much about VAT (apparently it’s the European equivalent of GST), but Storybrewers were able to arrange to have the VAT included in the shipping cost for European backers. I found it interesting that Canada was mentioned by name when it comes to extra fees: “For those in Canada, we have been informed that it is likely that a small import tax will apply”.
You can find Storyberewers online at storybrewersroleplaying.com or on Facebook at facebook.com/storybrewers.
[Editor’s Note: Since I happen to be partial to Party of One, check out Jeff’s episode on Decaying Orbit, below. -dc]