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Update: 1000 Backers! And this Geeknative article Glorantha's Khan of Khans Conquers Kickstarter actually says: "The nature of the beast means there’s no such thing as a ‘safe Kickstarter’ but Khan of Khans is complete, just waiting for the Kickstarter campaign to finish before going to the printers, it has more than 300% of target in funds and is being managed by Chaosium." A Kickstarter "managed by Chaosium" is now seen as a plus? Wow, that is turn-around and a compliment that Rick and the Chaosium team can take a great deal of pride in.

BTW, Jeff's art direction notes for this painting by Cory Trego-Erdner: http://www.glorantha.com/for-those-of-you-who-wanted-the-references-for-corys-prax-landscape-picture-here-it-is/ And this is the scene in view, as projected onto Colin Driver's map in the Argan Argar Atlas:

The dust cloud shows that with just over three days left in our Kickstarter, almost 1000 backers have already joined our nomad horde on the Plains of Prax. You can back the full KHAN OF KHANS game for just $20, and it's from two of the best known names in tabletop design (Reiner Knizia and Greg Stafford). So come join us in plundering Dragon Pass! http://bit.ly/KhanofKhans

Update: ACHIEVED: $35,000 - PRAXIAN T-SHIRT COLLECTION AT CHAOSIUM'S REDBUBBLE STORE With three days left, just 27 backers to go to reach 1000!

Yes, but after the Kickstarter.

Update: ACHIEVED: $32,000 - AN INTRO MAP FOR FURTHER INSPIRATION Many backers are keen to know more about the world of Glorantha, especially the area of Prax and Dragon Pass where the game takes place. Even though it isn't a part of the game, we know many people love very visual maps with lots of wonderfully evocative detail. All Backers from $9 shaman level on up will receive an introductory PDF map of Dragon Pass.

Oh no! - over on the Khan of Khans Kickstarter it pains my heart to see that the Count of the Sun Dome has apparently defected to the nomads! (In other words, that backer changed their pledge level, and Count of the Sun Dome Lands backer slot is available again) In other news, Sandy Petersen was happy for it be known the backer for the Dark Mistress of the Council of Elders, leader of the Uz in Shadow's Dance, is none other than his wife, Wendy. Confirmation of who's really pulling the strings at Petersen Games...

Update: With a week to go we've announced the final backer levels for the Kickstarter: Some backers have let us know they were disappointed to miss out on the opportunity to get a framed print of their favourite Khan of Khans image. With a week to go in our Kickstarter, we have two final backer levels available where you can show your appreciation for Ian O'Toole's engaging artwork. Art Patron Kakstan's Art Museum is a famous landmark in the ruins of Old Pavis. It is a regular stop-off for adventurers on their expeditions in the Rubble, because magical art mysteriously appears. As an esteemed Patron of Kakstan's Art Museum, you have a chance to take some of these fabulous pieces home with you. Kakstan's Art Museum - Art Patron $250 (5 only) Be named as an Art Patron of Kakstan's Art Museum in the rule book. Receive a boxed and tin boxed versions of the full game with all expansions and stretch goals, a framed 12" x 12" art print (your selection), a 10" x 10" art board (your selection), and the Nomad Gods rulebook PDF. Note: Shipping will be calculated when game is ready for shipment. INCLUDES: Full Print-and-Play version Printed Boxed Game Nomad Gods rulebook PDF Full game in Kickstarter exclusive metal tin box 12" x 12" framed print (your selection) 10" x 10" art board (your selection) Jaldon Goldentooth - our final backer level! Jaldon Goldentooth is the legendary immortal Khan of the Praxian nomads. He is dead at the moment, sleeping away the years in his stone cairn at Jaldon’s Rest. But it is prophesied that when all the Great Tribes gather at his cairn and unite themselves against a common foe, Jaldon will rise again to lead them into battle. Jaldon Goldentooth - $750 (1 only) Be named as Jaldon Goldentooth in the rule book. Receive a boxed and tin boxed versions of the full game with all expansions and stretch goals, one 12" x 12" framed print (your selection), ten 10" x 10" art boards (one of each Khan), and the Nomad Gods rulebook PDF. NOTE: The Jaldon Goldentooth backer level includes free shipping Full Print-and-Play version Printed Boxed Game Nomad Gods rulebook PDF Full game in Kickstarter exclusive metal tin box One 12" x 12" framed print (the Khan of your selection) Ten 10" x 10" art boards (all ten Khans!) As always, thank you for backing our Kickstarter. PS Kickstarter has just made Khan of Khans a "project we love" - nice!

UPDATE: Winners Token at 29K is achieved! Here's a bit about Greg demoing Khan of Khans at Gen Con last year: http://www.chaosium.com/blog/grand-shaman-of-games-demos-chaosiums-new-family-game-khan-of-khans/

Hear hear! Vathmar looks a happy chappy

The new Wild Cards website has a great article by Steve Perrin about the genesis of Superworld, the RPG that George RR Martin got so captivated by he reckons it "cost him a novel". Steve mentions at one stage GRRM was actually in negotiations with Chaosium for a campaign book (but went on to write Wild Cards instead). Another of roleplaying gaming's tantalizing "what ifs"... http://www.wildcardsworld.com/a-brief-history-of-superworld/

George RR Martin's popular Wild Cards stories stemmed from what he describes as a "two-year-long role playing orgy that engulfed not only me, but the rest of my Albuquerque gaming circle as well." And the game they were playing was Chaosium's SUPERWORLD, by Steve Perrin (co-creator of RuneQuest). GRR received Superworld as a birthday present in September 1983. It ultimately lead to the creation of a shared universe of superhero stories by 30+ authors. More from GRR about his addiction to Superworld here: http://www.wildcardsworld.com/from-game-to-book-or-the-birth-of-a-shared-world/ Superworld is of course still available in PDF from Chaosium, along with the 'Superworld Companion', 'Trouble for Havoc' and Ken Rolston's legendary adventure 'Bad Medicine for Doctor Drugs': http://www.chaosium.com/superworld

UPDATE: 9 days to go 738 backers $27,037 (270% funded) ACHIEVED: $23,000 - GRACEFUL VISTAS (WALLPAPERS) A deceptively useful and formidable collection of downloadable wallpapers will be created from Ian O'Toole's playful Khan of Khans art! Use these to tempt and taunt your friends when they will inevitably ask "that's cool/cute, what is it?" ACHIEVED: $26,000 - DEDICATED KHAN OF KHANS FORUM AT BRP CENTRAL We will set up a dedicated forum for Khans of Khans at BRP Central, the Chaosium Forums. Here you can boast of your record raiding of cows, tally the numbers of foes vanquished, playfully taunt your rivals or gain secret inner knowledge from other legendary Khans (yes, here). Closing in on the next Stretch Goal, the WINNER'S TOKEN at 29K...

Great article in Geek & Sundry about the game! "Reiner Knizia, the epochal board game designer who has won enough gaming awards to sink a boat, has a new game on Kickstarter that you need to know about." Geek & Sundry says our new cow-stealing game Khan of Khans is "udderly fantastic" http://geekandsundry.com/god-of-board-games-new-kickstarter-project-udderly-fantastic/

George RR Martin writes of his first experiences with RPGs, playing Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu and then later, Superworld... "I had seen kids playing D&D at cons, pretending to be Thongor the Barbarian and Pipsqueak the Hobbit while killing monsters and looking for treasure. I had read too much bad sword and sorcery in my youth for that to have much appeal. And there were all these weirdly shaped dice you had to roll to determine whether you lived or died. I would sooner have joined a weekly poker game or an on-going game of Diplomacy. I was much too old and sophisticated for this role-playing stuff, after all. Still, if this was what the local writers were into, I figured I might as well give it a try. Famous last words, those." More of the story here at Wild Cards World: http://www.wildcardsworld.com/the-first-wild-cards-day-or-the-game-that-ate-my-life/

Update: Khan of Khans has passed 600 backers and is closing on the next Stretch Goal at 23K. So we've outlined the next couple of Stretch Goals after that, or as Rick so deftly put it to the backers, "additional treasures and riches await to tempt our assembled raiders". Sounds better than stretch goals, but here they are nonetheless: $23,000 (mere hoofbeats away!) - GRACEFUL VISTAS (WALLPAPERS) A deceptively useful and formidable collection of downloadable wallpapers will be created from Ian O'Toole's playful Khan of Khans art! Use these to tempt and taunt your friends when they will inevitably ask "that's cool/cute, what is it?" $26,000 - DEDICATED KHAN OF KHANS FORUM AT BRP CENTRAL We will set up a dedicated forum for Khans of Khans at BRP Central, the Chaosium Forums. Here you can boast of your record raiding of cows, tally the numbers of foes vanquished, playfully taunt your rivals or gain secret inner knowledge from other legendary Khans (yes, here). $29,000 - WINNER'S TOKEN We will create a special token which denotes which player is current Khan of Khans. Win the first game and claim the prize. In the next game, as the premier warlord of Prax, you get first pick of the Khan cards and can choose to go first to claim your rightful first pick of targets. We also have this clarification: A REMINDER: TRIBAL WAR BANDS We regrettably did not make it crystal clear that ALL Tribal War Band Backers will get their names immortalized in the Khan of Khans rule book. To help make up for this, we are working on a nifty bonus reward for each Tribal War Band that fills to capacity.

I have fixed the link, thanks. No idea why it wasn't right the first time. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/448333182/khan-of-khans-family-game

Update: New 'Leaders of Dragon Pass' backer levels added to our Kickstarter—your opportunity to immortalized in the KHAN OF KHANS Rulebook as the leader of one of these famous Gloranthan places! Up for the taking: Count of the Sun Dome Chief of the Colymar Dark Mistress of the Council of Elders The Dwarf of Dwarf Run Great Witch of the Earthshakers Prince of Sartar The Human King Lunar Governor of Tarsh Feathered Horse Queen and (last but least) Great Beak, Lord of Quackford, Duke of Duckvale and Master of Gandertown

The Aethercon V panel where I talked BRP—where it came from (RuneQuest) and what it led to (a whole lot of great d100 games including, of course, Call of Cthulhu). The other panellists are Josh Harrison from FASA and fellow Aussie Oliver Shead from Immersion Studios.

"Not related to Star Trek - this is the Genghis kind of Khan!" Roll for Crit's Kickstarter Pickstarter podcast:

Update: Our great horde has just thundered past $20,000, unlocking the Additional Location Cards - Wa-ha! Here's one more card from the new set, a hungry Dream Dragon from The Dragon's Eye. Better get your cows safely locked away in a corral before it spooks them into a Stampede! Our new Stretch Goal at $23,000 is a downloadable Wallpaper Collection of Ian O'Toole's delightful Khan of Khans art! Can we get to the next Stretch Goal? Yes we Khan!

Not having the rights to Glorantha at the time, or Michael Moorcock's material, Chaosium used RQ3 content to help create the Magic World line, along with rules (but not the background setting) from the Elric/Stormbringer RPGs.

Update: As we scan the horizon we see that the next stretch goal of $20,000, the 10 additional location cards, is almost within our grasp. Each card has a uniquely Gloranthan twist and features newly commissioned art by Ian O'Toole. Here's a sneak peek at some of the new cards, with more delightful art! There are 10 new cards, one for each of the Dragon Pass location stacks. The Duckpoint card: Duckpoint is the home of the cantankerous Ducks, a cursed race of humans that became duck-like, or ducks that became humanoid (don't ask!). Don't mess with the Ducks! The Shadows Dance card: Shadows Dance is the dark and gloomy homeland of the Uz (also known as trolls), fabled for its living shadows that crawl about the landscape. Berserker Troll!

Update: 500 backers—we are really beginning to assemble a mighty Praxian horde! Many thanks for everyone's support, and please keep spreading the word about Khan of Khans. We have updated the main Kickstarter page quite a bit, adding more of the art, a play-through description and play-through video, as well as a section on what people are saying about Khan of Khans. The Dice Tower's Board Game Breakfast also had nice things to say about Khan of Khans today...

It will appear on Redbubble at some point soon...