Episode 5 - The Roadmap of Doom!
Today we’re going to discuss a (likely) 6 month roadmap of Spell Saga™ 2nd Edition, & new information regarding exclusive content you (might) expect from joining The Weatherguard!
Hi, I’m heatwave anti-enthusiast Todd Michael Rogers. I want to thank everyone who downloaded, played, messaged about, or cast a dark-arts enabled vengeance upon the new demo for Spell Saga™ 2nd Edition. It is very scary to offer something that remains (much like Weezer’s 1995 single) “Undone”. Your joy and romantic-level concerns for Spell Saga™ absolutely keeps me from being torn asunder from within (which is what SHOULD have happened to Weezer, after releasing 2001’s “Hash Pipe”).
THE PLAY-THROUGH
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Before we begin, here’s an example video of me playing through the demo. It’s something I should have posted from the start. All those months of work…and I didn’t even think about posting a video. I have two thoughts on this, both which highlight the point of this update:
Thought One:
Everything in the world needs context to be understood. I started working in restaurants as a way to finish paying for Spell Saga’s first edition Hong Kong printing. And I continue working in them, because I am a musician, and the world is cruel.
The kids that work in the restaurant are all about a decade younger than me. And most of them talk about astrology in the same way my parents talked about Jesus in the 80s (I always tell them the wrong birthday. So far, I’ve been: “Such a Taurus”, “Just like a Scorpio”, and “Good-looking for a Dying Man”.
My friend James has an interpretation of this behavior that now colors my own. He says that these kids ain't’ living by some biblical star code, but that people just want to make sense of the world. Context. Guidance. I for one don’t believe in any of that star shit. Except of course for when I do, which is so “pisces of me” that I find it INFURIATING.
Humans need context to appreciate things. They need videos and opinions to understand new concepts (IE Spell Saga) and they need a preface to understand certain stories. “Concerning Hobbits” may not be a banger, but ole J-double-R put it there for when you need it. Same with GRRM’s maps (Martin SHOULD have just put a preface that said “don’t watch anything past the first two episodes of season 8. Pretend it ends there).
Both those jokes were about Tolkien & Game of Thrones, respectively…but if you didn’t get those references…you would be lost, annoyed, and would probably stop reading.
We need context. It makes everything work.
Thought Two:
I’ve mentioned Paper Engine before--it’s the necro-business-nomicon that I wrote over the last year, in an attempt to right the sinking bough of the good ship Art-Career. My goals with Paper Engine are simple: learn how to make a living from making (good) art, teach my friends how to do it (this includes you!), and perhaps most importantly: learn why the word “business” is spelled the way it is.
Business sounds like a word meaning “a bad attitude seen during ass-sex”, and I hate it.
Look, Paper Engine clearly states that everything is a god damn game. And every game has the same two elements: Goal(s) that you need to reach, and rules that must be followed to reach said goal(s).
Once you have done the work to define your goals, you need to know the rules. And you do this…by running experiments. When it comes to business, and especially “making something that people like”, everything you do must be an experiment. It must test your hypothesis (IE people like really long letters! Let’s find out!). An experiment means you gather data. Whether it’s a demo release, a social media post, or even a newsletter…you need to be testing your hypothesis, to know if your actions are getting you closer to your goals. Everything you do should help point you in the right direction. You either need to stay the course, or pivot. It’s that simple.
I did not think of putting a video up with the demo--And you know what? Everyone wanted a video. What an easy experiment. Now I know: never release a game without a video play-through, even a shitty handheld one from my homemade Ikea-headboard desk. I learned something. And this is the MOST important currency.
CONTEXT & EXPERIMENTATION
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And so, today we’re going to focus on two concepts, which are CRITICAL to making things for the pleasant consumption of others:
CONTEXT: I’m going to present my 2nd Edition roadmap for the rest of the year, so that you understand what these releases are, when you might be seeing them, and even why I chose that particular order. That takes care of the “context” portion of the letter.
EXPERIMENTATION: As for “experimentation”, there are several currently in play. And I’d like to break down some of them for you, so you can follow along at home. But before we can talk about testing anything, we need to have a hypothesis (or several) to test. Which means we need to know what our goals are. Here’s mine:
I need people to care about Spell Saga™
Why?
Because I need to work on Spell-Saga™ full-time.
Why?
So I can release awesome shit every month.
How?
By having people sign-up for The Weatherguard, a monthly donation-based fan club.
My goal is to entice you to donate money for my hard work. To do this, I need to prove there is value for you in that work. And that this value is greater than the loss of your monthly donation (about .33 cents a day). How can I do this? I have two hypotheses:
If I show you enough cool shit, you’ll sign-up.
If I have special fan club-only content, you’ll sign-up.
Okay. How do I test them? Easy. I measure the results by checking:
How many people signed up to the fan club after this email?
How many people unsubscribed from the mailing list?
How many people visited the fan club page?
How many people asked for The Secret Info at the end of this letter?
There’s other things to consider too… These newsletters tend to run pretty long. Some people like them, but most people just want the info. So another experiment: I’m going to post this entire newsletter on the website, but the email version will cut everything out, except for the roadmap given below, which will leave a message made of just colorful images. I’ve got a month of data already. I Can see how many people click-though to read more, or unsubscribe breaking-up with me forever in the high-school halls of gmail. It’s priceless data— but I choose the worth. The only value is in experimenting, measuring, and pivoting.
THE (LIKELY) ROADMAP
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Spell Saga™ 2nd Edition is a multi-part cross-media release made by one dude, who is just TRYING his best! *exasperated asthma-laced sigh*. But it’s also a world built from the nostalgic stardust of everything I ever looked for in a story. I want you to visit SpellSaga.com the way you might have visited the Star Wars section of Borders books in 2001. I want you to play the game on Saturday morning, the same way you might’ve played your PS1 alone in your room with a bowl of Golden Grahams, watching Record of Lodoss War or The Last Airbender on DvD. And I want you to stay up late with your friends, talking about these games the same way my friends and I talked about Dragonlance, or Forgotten Realms, back when we were young enough to stay in touch, laughing together all night inside a Waffle House.
But to do this…you’ll need context. Because Spell Saga™ tends to push the envelope with experimental storytelling. This is a new world, and it may take some time to breathe the atmosphere as presented.
What is a Jedi? How does Cloud hold that Buster sword? What. Is. A Hobbit? We learn what we love through stories. And every one of those questions was answered with a story that buried the knowledge deep inside our hearts.
It is my hope to do the same with Spell Saga. It is my joy to teach myself how to do so.
Here is your roadmap to understanding:
THE WEATHERGUARD
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We have six months until this roadmap is completed. Some stuff might shift, or switch, or die on the vine. The execution of the plan depends entirely on how much time I am given (via your donations) and whether anyone enjoys the content I am giving (which I’ll know, via your donations).
But…there is more. A prize to be given, to those who would give. Here’s a hint or two:
My first goal with The Weatherguard is to reach 200 people. When that happens, it will unlock super-crazy shit that I’m ready and capable of delivering. The caveat? None of it hits until *at least* January. So the earliest Weatherguard prizes will be available after January first IF (and only if) I can reach 200 subscribers by then. That gives us 5 months to reach that number. That’s around 30 people a month. Can we do it? I don’t know. That’s the experiment.
Are you interested in a super-secret email detailing my plans for The Weatherguard? You can request it here: and ONLY those who click this button will be given the info. There’s no charge. There’s no need to guard your credit card number. This treasure is free. But only to those who seek it.
Yes, it’s another experiment, and a sales funnel too. Won’t you help me test it?
TWO WEEKS FROM NOW:
Hate Not The Night launches in two weeks. Get ready, motherfuckers. Get excited.
-mE!