Mid-October Fulfillment Update
3 months ago
– Thu, Oct 17, 2024 at 11:36:11 AM
Hello backers!
We just wanted to check in with a quick update on fulfillment as timelines progress in each region. Keep in mind all these dates are estimates that may change.
Note that Miroki and Eric are getting married in late October and Peter is in the wedding party, so we may be less available to reply to customer service requests from Oct 24-28. Thank you for your patience as we celebrate a special day!
Canada (fulfilled by our team)
Canadian freight arrived in port on time, but unfortunately was selected for random secondary inspection. The shipment was just released yesterday and will take 1- 2 weeks to cross the country and be delivered to our hub in Ontario. We may be able to fulfill as early as next week, but it's equally likely we could be delayed to early November.
We have initiated the 48-hour address locking process. This is your last chance to update your address via your original backer reward survey link.
Current estimated fulfilment timeline: late October or early November
Note: Canada Post may go on strike in early November. In the event this happens, we have numerous alternate postal carriers lined up.
USA (fulfilled by Flying Cloud Fulfillment)
US freight is en route and is expected to arrive in port in late October. The East Coast Longshoreman's Union strike only lasted three days, so that crisis has been averted, but there is some residual port congestion. If all goes well, our container will be delivered to the hub in mid-November.
Current estimated fulfillment timeline: mid-to-late November continuing to December
Australia (fulfilled by Aetherworks)
Australian freight has arrived, cleared customers, and been delivered to the hub. We've locked Australian address and sent our final shipping list to Aetherworks. We anticipate fulfillment starting in the next 1-2 weeks.
Current estimated fulfillment timeline: late October continuing to November
UK/EU/Rest of World (fulfilled by Spiral Galaxy Games)
We have been advised of a docking delay due to congestion at the port of Felixstowe. Our new docking date is only a little later into October than our original one. It is possible, however rare, for a docking date to be double-delayed, but we're hoping the current one holds.
In previous years, it's taken 1-2 weeks for freight to be received and transported to our UK hub, with another 1-2 weeks for fulfillment to begin.
Current estimated fulfillment timeline: mid-to-late November continuing to December
That's all for now!
As always, please bear in mind that these estimates may change as we pass each milestone. We're keeping a close eye on our inboxes (outside of the wedding weekend) to resolve logistics issues as they come up.
Thanks so much!
The Story Engine Team
Regional Fulfillment Timelines + Early Bird/Returning Backer Rewards Applied
4 months ago
– Sat, Sep 28, 2024 at 08:03:08 AM
Hello backers!
We're excited to report that all boats are either en route to the fulfillment hubs OR have already arrived at port! That said, there are still a number of important checkpoints between now and actual fulfillment, so let's take a moment to look at each region and what the anticipated timelines look like in each.
Going forward, we'll likely break down our updates by fulfillment region, but please keep in mind that any timelines we provide are estimates based on things going smoothly, and disruptions can and do happen despite everyone's preparations and best intentions. We always prepare our paperwork and contingency plans in advance so we can handle hiccups as quickly as possible. Even so, these timelines may shift as we pass each milestone.
Before we dig into the regional updates, there are three other important updates.
1) Last month we applied all the early bird rewards (promo cards) and returning backer rewards (Story Engine logo mini-pin) to your rewards. You can view your BackerKit profile via your original reward survey link to confirm if your rewards look correct. Please
contact us and include your BackerKit email in your message if you think you were supposed to receive a specific reward but did not.
2) You can still view and update your address via your reward survey link. The only exceptions are if you're moving from one country to another, from one US state to another, or one Canadian province to another, in which case you will need to
contact us to update your address and shipping charges. We will lock surveys as each region begins fulfillment. When we do, BackerKit will email you to give you a 48-hour window to update your address, but it's better to check and update now if possible.
3) We have completed our allocations for the free educator decks and contacted the selected educators to complete BackerKit reward surveys. Educators who were not allocated a deck have been moved to a waitlist. Educators have until Oct 4 to complete their surveys or their allocation will be cancelled and transferred to a school on the waitlist.
Okay, here are the updates on each freight region!
Canada (fulfilled by our team)
Canadian freight has arrived in port and is expected to arrive at the hub in Ontario in mid-October.
We will be packing and shipping these orders ourselves from Ontario, likely in mid-to-late October. Canada Post may go on strike in the fall, but we anticipate being finished with fulfillment before the earliest possible strike dates in November.
USA (fulfilled by Flying Cloud Fulfillment)
US freight is en route and is expected to arrive in port in late October. The East Coast Longshoreman's Union is threatening to strike, which could lead to delays with our container being unloaded and brought to the fulfillment hub. If all goes well, we will be starting fulfillment in mid-to-late November, but please be aware that a strike could introduce delays. We will be following the strike news closely.
Australia (fulfilled by Aetherworks)
Australian freight has arrived and is in the process of clearing customs. Based on previous experience, we anticipate freight arriving at our fulfillment hub in 1-2 weeks, with fulfillment starting within 1-2 weeks after that.
UK/EU/Rest of World (fulfilled by Spiral Galaxy Games)
Freight is en route and expected to arrive in port in late October. In previous years, it's taken 1-2 weeks for freight to be received and transported to our UK hub, with another 1-2 weeks for fulfillment to begin. However, conflicts near ocean routes could lead to delays or complications. If all goes well, we will be starting fulfillment in mid-to-late November.
That's all for now!
Again, please bear in mind that these estimates may change as we pass each milestone. We're keeping a close eye on our inboxes to clear freight/customs/logistics issues as soon as they come up and provide the best chance of hitting these timelines.
Thanks so much!
The Story Engine Team
LMD Pre-Freight Update + Final Form Livestream
5 months ago
– Wed, Aug 21, 2024 at 09:59:05 AM
Hello backers!
We wanted to pop in to share some production updates and invite you to join our
"We've Reached Our FINAL Form" Unboxing Livestream, where we'll be showcasing the deck in its FINAL FORM - the one you'll all be receiving in a few months when fulfilment begins!
We couldn’t be more excited to be sharing the finished deck with all of you. We hope you'll join us at
3pm ET on Friday, August 23 to get your first look at the true
Lore Master’s Deck, followed by some improvised lore-weaving guided by the chat!
At the end of this update, we'll share a few teaser photos from a shoot we just did with the deck and accessories. But first, a quick progress update!
Progress Update
We're pleased to report that all freight has been sorted into pallets according to the four fulfilment hubs we'll be using: US, UK/EU, Australia, and Canada. We're just securing freight quotes and preparing to book our freight for transport to the hubs.
Things continue to move along and we remain on track for our fulfilment goals! We'll be able to offer a more specific timeline once our freight dates are booked and we can confirm preparations with our fulfilment partners.
Deck Photos
We did a 4-hour photo session yesterday capturing the new deck, expansions, and accessories. We'll share our favourite photos during the livestream, but for now, here are a few pics as a teaser.
Production complete + next steps + win a signed alpha deck + Gen Con
6 months ago
– Fri, Jul 12, 2024 at 01:41:43 PM
Hello backers!
We're excited to share that we've passed another major milestone and we have a few big updates to share!
Here are the headlines, which we'll get into in more detail below:
- All production on Lore Master's Deck, expansions, and accessories is complete!
- Next our printer is packing everything for ocean freight.
- We're giving away a free signed alpha deck if you fill out our customer survey.
- We'll be at Gen Con and we hope you'll come visit our booth!
Also, in case you missed it, you can
catch the replay of our 100%-from-scratch improvised TTRPG session created live using only card prompts.
Let's get into the details!
All production is complete
That's right! We'll share the final production samples with you have a chance, but for now we're thrilled to announce that production is finally complete on everything: the deck, the expansions, the journal, the storage boxes, the sleeves, the playmats, and the pins.
Which brings us to…
The next step: preparing freight
The next phase of fulfillment is preparing for ocean freight, which involves a few steps:
- Packing decks into labelled shipping cartons.
- Bundling expansion sets and sleeve multipacks. Plus a new tactic we're trying: pre-bundling common pledge tier combinations during production to streamline fulfillment once freight arrives at our local hubs.
- Preparing pallets for sea shipping, including dividing product allocations to each hub.
- Finalizing freight quotes and arrangements.
- Sending freight to port to await pickup.
A lot of spreadsheets are involved to ensure all the numbers are correct for bundling, splitting freight, and cost analysis. So. Many. Spreadsheets.
Depending on the state of global freight, this process can take 4-8 weeks. After that, the next steps are waiting for the freight itself to be loaded onto a ship, traverse waters, arrive in port, clear customs, be transported to our hub, received and inventoried, sample-packed for approval, and finally be greenlit for fulfilment!
We'll keep you in the loop as we continue to pass milestones. The good news is that we are still on schedule for our original timeline!
Win a free signed alpha deck
We released a customer survey this week to learn more about how people use our decks (or plan to use our decks), and what people would like to see us develop next.
Come see us at Gen Con Aug 1-4
We'll be at Gen Con again this year. If any of you are coming, we hope you'll swing by booth block 1237 to meet the team!
Bonus update
As always, feel free to send us a DM, leave us a comment, or reach out through the
contact form (including your details) if you have any questions!
Digital print sample unboxing sneak peek + full livestream tomorrow
8 months ago
– Mon, Jun 03, 2024 at 07:07:39 AM
