Senjutsu: Battle For Japan

Mini-Update: 48h Notice for the Add-On and Extras BackerKit Charge! (Plus a WIP page from the Path Of The Ronin!)
about 2 years ago – Sat, Apr 30, 2022 at 03:40:46 AM

Good morning, afternoon and evening Backers!

This is your 48-hour pre-warning email / Kickstarter Update for the Add-On and Extras BackerKit Charge. This charge only applies if you have added extra items to your Pledge or upgraded your Pledge.

If you have not updated your Pledge since the Senjutsu Kickstarter Campaign, no charge will take place.

Applicable cards will be charged on the 30th April.

Your Pledge will be locked. Then your card will be charged for the outstanding balance shown on your BackerKit account for Senjutsu.

Your Pledge contents cannot be changed or upgraded beyond this 30th April date, so if you want to make the most of the Kickstarter savings or grab a Big Box please do this before the 30th April.

The Big Box and the All-In savings will be limited to special events past this date- retailers are carrying a limited supply of Big Boxes so to guarantee you get one, please upgrade your pledge to an All-In before the 30th April. 

Email me or Max if you need any help [email protected]/ [email protected] .

I'll be back tomorrow with a new Samurai Spotlight, a Senjutsu Tournament Update and more great content!

Much love, 

James (and Paul!)

See below for a WIP "Path Of The Ronin" page from Raben. I can't get over how awesome the Ronin looks!

Post Kickstarter Update #14 The 30th April Add-On/ Extras Charge, Shipping Information and something worth reading the Update for... (Martin Wallace's Daimyo)
about 2 years ago – Fri, Apr 15, 2022 at 11:08:00 PM

Good morning, afternoon and evening Backers!

A long and very important Update for you today so please read carefully. See the bottom of the Update for something really cool! 

The Add-On and Extras BackerKit Charge:

Note: This charge only applies if you have added extra items to your Pledge or upgraded your Pledge.

If you have not updated your Pledge since the Senjutsu Kickstarter Campaign, no charge will take place.

Applicable cards are going to be charged on the 30th April.

1) First you will receive a 48-hour pre-warning email / Kickstarter Update.

2) Your Pledge will be locked.

3) Your card will be charged for the outstanding balance shown on your BackerKit account for Senjutsu.

Your Pledge contents cannot be changed or upgraded beyond this 30th April date, so if you want to make the most of the Kickstarter savings or grab a Big Box please do this before the 30th April.

The Big Box and the All-In savings will be limited to special events past this date- retailers are carrying a limited supply of Big Boxes so to guarantee you get one, please upgrade your pledge to an All-In before the 30th April. (Email me or Max for help [email protected]/ [email protected] ).

The Shipping Charge:

Senjutsu will be shipping sometime during this Summer (2022). 

Shipping will be charged at a point shortly before fulfilment using rates published via Kickstarter Update.

As shipping rates are highly sensitive to global events / policy decisions and economic factors, our goal is to make sure that the shipping charge and fulfilment are as close to each other as we can manage. This is in the best interests of you, the Backer- as we secure the best rates using this method- and in the best interests of Stone Sword Games as Stone Sword Games makes 0 profit from your shipping charge (by strict policy).

Freight is currently at 400-550% of its 2020 cost. If there is a fall in freight prices- this saving will be passed on to your shipping charge where possible.

Transparency matters:

Information about our fulfilment partners, their prices and their services will be published via a Kickstarter Update.

This will ensure Stone Sword Games remains accountable regarding shipping costs and our policy of making no profit via shipping.

Additionally, any and all shipping rate changes will be detailed via Kickstarter Update.

The Shipping Charge Process:

1) Finalised shipping rates will be published via a Kickstarter Update later this year; these rates will be loaded on to BackerKit and show as applying to your Pledge.

2) You will receive a 48-hour pre-warning email / Kickstarter Update. This marks the last 48-hour period in which you can change your shipping address.

3) Your Pledge Address will be locked.

4) Your card will be charged.

5) Fulfilment will begin.

6) Senjutsu arrives at your door!

Updated Shipping Rates:

Please find our updated shipping rates below. We’ve worked on these rates with partner fulfilment agencies to find you dependable prices for a Summer 2022 delivery:

Weights used:

Core: 2.5kg, Deluxe: 3kg, All-In Pledges 8kg+

These weights are an estimate and include premium packaging to make sure your copy is safe during its long journey.

Rest Of The World Shipping:

Rest of the world shipping will receive its own Kickstarter Update around that time that contains each and every rate given to us by the carrier for your Rest Of The World fulfilment location.

VFI Asia will be used where possible to ensure a smooth and streamlined delivery.

Transparency and Profit:

If a situation arises where Stone Sword Games charges you more for your shipping than it actually costs, this balancing sum will be offered back via a refund. This information will be able to be checked via the Fulfilment Partner Kickstarter Update later in the year. 

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Now that's out of the way, here is the cover art for Daimyo: Battle For Japan.

Daimyo is our upcoming 2022 Kickstarter release that features gameplay by Martin Wallace, gorgeous miniature sculpts, fantastic Solo content and historically driven conquering for up to 6 players!

 (Grab the cover art for a closer look / screensaver here!  ) 

I hope you're having a fantastic Easter wherever you are! 

Paul and I are off for a much needed Bank Holiday weekend and we will return next week with a new Samurai Spotlight, a Senjutsu Tournament Update and more great content! 

Much love,

James (and Paul!) 

Post Kickstarter Update #13 Yojimbo Samurai Spotlight, Painted Yojimbo, New Burning Village and Bridge Battlefield Art + German Backer Info
about 2 years ago – Sat, Apr 09, 2022 at 12:22:07 AM

Good morning, afternoon and evening Backers!

This week marks the triumphant return of the Samurai Spotlight, new Battlefield art and the update for German Backers! 

Yojimbo:

The Yojimbo is a deadly, hired mercenary, a wanderer ripped straight from a Kurosawa epic. A trained killer- his Signature Ability Cards rely on a solid plan of attack and using a range of tactics to win the battle- a real "jack of all trades" playstyle. 

Only by leveraging this wide range of tricks and abilities will you overcome more straightforward fighters like Yasuke or the Ronin. For example- you can use the Yojimbo's Threatening Demeanour to force the opponent to discard cards and Focus, and to take the advantage- or hobble every opponent in range using the Yojimbo's Fearsome Reputation Ability Card... manipulating the resource costs and speeds of any Ability Cards you and your opponent want to play. 

The Yojimbo has his own unique game mechanic- Contracts! 

5 Contracts are chosen before the game, from a pool of 6 Contract Cards, depending on whether you are duelling 1v1 or fighting a multitude of opponents. These Contracts provide small objectives which flip the Contract Card once completed. 

Completed Contracts can be cashed in for bonus Card Effects - gaining a short term reward but using up the completed Contract. See the image above! Zanmato gets faster and given more wounding power per completed Contract Card that has been stored up. 

If you manage to deftly complete all 5 Contracts and not cash them in for a reward, the Yojimbo will win the game! Use the pressure of winning using your completed Contract Cards to force opponents into a brutal mind game, influencing their playstyle in an intense battle of wits. 

The Yojimbo carries the Nagamaki. Resembling a katana with a tsuka (handle) as long as the blade, the Nagamaki could be used more easily as a reach weapon than an ordinary sword. This gave rise to the use of the weapon by lower ranking, horseless Samurai. 

The Yojimbo's Core Weapon Card gives the fighter great reach and features an optional focus spend to land a Stun / Hobble effect on the opponent. This hand / Initiative Speed manipulation plays into the strengths of the Yojimbo fighter- putting pressure on your opponent and opening up the game to allow you to complete more Contracts. 

The Scorpion Sting is a vicious but predictable front facing attack that uses a focus spend to inflict a deadly poison effect to the opponent! Wariness of a Red Kamae Yojimbo with focus to spend is crucial to mitigating this Ability Card. Again you see that fantastic Yojimbo ability to force discards on to the opponent- keeping that pressure high during the duel. 

Painted Yojimbo:

 Max's painted Yojimbo is looking mean with a brilliant freehand dragon design. Traditional headgear and a fantastic Nagamaki  pattern sword completes the miniature.  

New Battlefield Art:

  German Backers:

Stone Sword Games is very happy to announce that Giant Roc will be publishing the German-language edition of Senjutsu: Battle For Japan.

Giant Roc have some fantastic titles under their publishing belt already with Brass,  Empire, D-Day Dice and The King Is Dead (Me and Paul's favourite!).

All German Senjutsu Pledges made through Kickstarter and BackerKit will be included in this Giant Roc publishing collaboration- and will be receiving any Kickstarter extras bits that apply to the pledge (Coin and signed Art Print). The manufacturer and top-tier quality we worked hard to secure for the Senjutsu project will also be utilised by Giant Roc for their German edition of Senjutsu. 

All German Deluxe , Gameplay All-In and Deluxe All-In Senjutsu Pledges pledged via this Kickstarter or the post-campaign BackerKit will receive the full consignment of Deluxe Components, sleeves, ink drop finishes and Big Boxes. 

Giant Roc will be running an additional German-language pre-order campaign later this year to German speaking peoples, featuring and limited to the Core Set, Duel Packs and Neoprene Mats*. 

(* The same mats as featured in our Deluxe Pledges.)

That's all for now! Please give this Update a like if you want, comment below with any questions and have a great weekend! 

Next week's Update will include the shipping estimates for Senjutsu as well as a glimpse at some new art! 

Much love,

James (and Paul!)

Post Kickstarter Update #12 Charging Cards + Pledge Manager Closing Date, Painted Ninja, New Battlefield Art + £1000 for the Dogs Trust
about 2 years ago – Fri, Mar 25, 2022 at 02:27:08 AM

Good morning, afternoon and evening Backers!

Pledge Manager Closing Date:

We previously announced that BackerKit card balances would be charged on the 18th March. This was to collect a large chunk of remaining BackerKit funds to accelerate the production of Senjutsu. 

PLEASE NOTE: If you have not added anything to your BackerKit Pledge since the Kickstarter- there will be no charges to pay. These charges are for additional content or upgrades to your pledge!

After some deliberation, we've decided that cards will not be charged until the Pledge Manager is closed (see below).

This decision has been made because the Senjutsu production cycle has been improved without the need to charge cards and this keeps the process simpler for both yourself and at our BackerKit back office end.

Closing The Pledge Manager:

On the 30th April we will be closing the Pledge Manager.

1) First you will receive a 48 hours notice email. 

2) Then your order will be locked and your card will be charged. 

This charge will not include shipping nor will your pledge's delivery address be locked. 

Updated shipping rates will be released in an Update before this 48 hours notice email is sent. We are aiming at having these updated rates 2 weeks before the Pledge Manager closes - around the 15th April. 

What does closing the Pledge Manager mean?

• You will no longer be able to make changes to your pledge's contents without emailing one of the team first. 
• You will still be able to change your shipping address.

What if I haven't completed my pledge?

Your copy of Senjutsu may take longer to fulfil and in extreme cases (total non-responsiveness) we may struggle to actually fulfil your pledge- lacking your address or any language preferences. 

Painted Ninja:

The Ninja comes to life with Max's latest paintjob! Spinning that chain fiercely!

New Battlefield Art: 

Raben has been busy working on new battlefield art for Senjutsu's core set. We feel cold just looking at them!

Dogs Trust Donation:

Paul and I finally managed to visit the Dogs Trust (Loughborough). We met and spoke to some fantastic, passionate staff about the Dogs Trust and their rehoming efforts.

Over £600 was raised by Backers liking our Stone Sword Facebook Page and Stone Sword Games matching that Like with a £1 pledge (and the rest!) . Paul and I also decided that we will personally round up that donation to £1,000 in order to help out some pooches in need. 

In honour of the legendary dog of Shibuya station- Senjutsu's Akita will be named Hachikō. Our consultants all agreed that it was a fitting tribute - especially with the vast support from Backers. 

Currently we are working on an Update for German Backers regarding Senjutsu's German Publisher. This information will be published in the next Kickstarter Update and contains a lot of really positive information for German Backers- we've ensured your Pledge for Senjutsu is safe, the best value and will be streamlined into a fantastic German-translated final product.  

Until next time, 

Much love,

James (and Paul!)

Mini-Update: Sensō Rules
about 2 years ago – Thu, Mar 10, 2022 at 03:17:34 PM

Greetings Samurai!

We have seen some questions about Senjutsu's sister game Sensō about how the game works! The playtesting for Sensō is now done! Check out the whole rulebook here:

https://bit.ly/3hOPXwa

Sensō is a trick taking game with fast paced action! Round to round the amount of cards increases, every card in the hand is played and every hand you win generates your score for the round.

Every round on the campaign map Daimyo's can move their clan's armies around to take settlements or if you have an especially good round, take settlements directly from your opponents!

2-4 players take the role of one of 4 major clan's Daimyo (Mori, Uesugi, Takeda and Oda), who all want to win by taking as much of Japan's territory for themselves. Certain territories are worth more so you can expect a blood bath around key regions!

A 5th player can also take the role of The Emperor, who doesn't have their own forces. They can however influence every other clan on the campaign map and move their armies as if they were their own. The Emperors goal is to keep the Daimyo's weak, pitting them against one another to make sure no single force has the power to oppose The Emperor!

Add a copy on Sensō on to your pledge via the BackerKit today! On BackerKit will you be able to save £3 off the RRP of the game (£12 instead of £15). 

https://senjutsu.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders/387826

Farewell Samurai,

Max (and the team!)