Status update - Finalizing graphics and print files
9 months ago – Wed, Aug 16, 2023 at 05:33:08 PM

Hello Mycologists!

I'm delighted to let you know that nearly all our backers (87%) have now completed their survey on our pledge manager, Backerkit. There are still a few stragglers and in the coming weeks we will be reaching out to them with reminders.

In the meantime, the final graphic design and print preparation of MYCOLOGY is still underway. Here are a few highlights:

Having achieved our card expansion stretch goal (hooray!), the final version of MYCOLOGY now contains 126 cards in total each featuring a different fungus. Of these, 51 are edible fungi (half of which are considered choice), 53 are inedible fungi, 19 are poisonous species, and three are hallucinogenic mushrooms.

We received a bunch of feedback from early reviewers and play-testers based on the MYCOLOGY prototype, and we have made a few refinements to the game rules. In particular, when a player harvests a hallucinogenic species, they now receive a special token that will permit them the one-time power to roll back time during their turn up to two seasons (as one of their two actions). But if instead they chose to keep the token until the end of the game, it will be worth 3 points.

We also made some changes to the ecology resources. Two thirds of the fungi in the final expanded card deck are saprotrophic (decaying wood or growing on soil, or both), one third form mycorrhizal symbioses with the roots of plants, and up to 12% are either parasites of plants, fungi, or insects. In our original concept of the game, we simplified the ecology so that each species served only a single ecological role. While this is true of many fungi (including nearly three quarters of the fungi in the game), some species can play multiple different ecological roles at the same time.

For example, the Oyster Mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus, mainly causes wood decay but it also is known to supplement its diet by capturing tiny worm-like creatures called nematodes.  In finalizing the game, we decided to go all-out and represent the full biological complexity of these organisms. Based on these changes, just over a quarter of the fungi in MYCOLOGY require multiple different types of ecology resources in order to harvest them (up to 4 different types!). During play testing, we found that this modification improved the scientific realism of the game and streamlined the game play.

We hope to have all of the game graphics and print preparation completed in the coming weeks at which point we will be moving forward with the print run. If you know somebody still interested in pre-ordering MYCOLOGY, it's not too late! We still have a month or so to take pre-orders, so please help spread the word!! (Pre-order store:  https://mycology.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders) We also want to draw your attention to an interesting mycological crowdsourcing project you can check out if you are interested to grow mushrooms at home. Our friends at Mycoman in Denver, Colorado will shortly be launching a great DIY build for mushroom cultivation that will bring state-of-that-art control systems to home mushroom cultivation at an affordable price. We're really excited about this project and hope that you will be too! Please check them out at:  https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mycomatic/the-45-automatic-monotub-diy-unlock-mushroom-cultivation 

Happy mushrooming,

James

Pledge Manager Invites Sent!
11 months ago – Thu, Jun 15, 2023 at 06:48:13 AM

Hi everyone! 

After ironing out an issue found in our smoke test, our pledge manager is now live! You all should have received an invite from BackerKit to the same email address you used to place your pledge. Be sure to check your spam folder or, if you use Gmail, your "Promotions" tab.

In the pledge manager you'll provide your shipping address and pay for your shipping, as well as any associated taxes with your region. You can also add additional copies of the game - most regions will receive discounted shipping when you order multiple copies. 

If you know someone who would like Mycology but missed the campaign, they can late pledge here.

Please let us know if you run into any issues or have questions. Thanks everyone!

Pledge Manager Launching Soon
12 months ago – Wed, May 31, 2023 at 08:18:05 AM

Hello Mycologists!

Thanks for your patience as we put our pledge manager together for this project. We will be running our pledge manager through BackerKit. 

We have been working on finding some cheaper shipping options for our Canadian backers, and we're very pleased to let you know that we've been able to lower your shipping costs to CA$29/US$22, from the CA$38/US$28 we had originally estimated. You'll see these changes reflected in your order in the pledge manager. 

Shortly, we will send out what is known as a "smoke test." A small number of you will receive invitations to the pledge manager where you will be able to confirm your shipping information and complete your orders. If there are any issues with the pledge manager, we can catch them at this stage with just a small number of backers. If you are one of the backers in the smoke test and you run into an issue, don't panic - just contact us and we'll help you through it!

We'll be back with another update when all of the pledge manager invites have gone out. Thanks again everyone! 

🍄 What's next for Mycology
about 1 year ago – Thu, Apr 20, 2023 at 05:27:57 PM

Hello mycologists,

After two really exciting weeks, Mycology has wrapped up with over 2300 backers! We are so grateful for your support, and we've had a great time hanging out with you all and sharing our love of mushrooms. 

Let's talk about what will happen next!

Stretch Goals

You all managed to unlock custom dice, a plastic insert, and 42 new mushroom cards! We think these are going to be wonderful upgrades to the game. We got so close to the other stretch goals that we've decided to continue these stretch goals into the pledge manager. That means all late pledges will count toward unlocking these! Which brings me to my next point...

Pledge Manager

We will be using Backerkit to manage pledges for this campaign. For those of you who haven't used a pledge manager, this is a separate site where we will collect your shipping info and you can pay for shipping or purchase additional copies of the game. It will take us at least 2 weeks to get all of you loaded into the Backerkit, so sit tight for now - we'll be back with another update when action is required on your part. 

Making the Game

Much of the work for Mycology has already been completed and we've gotten a head start on the production process already. However there are still a few things we need to do, like creating the material for the stretch goals you unlocked. 

What to Expect from this Campaign

We will continue to keep you all updated on the status of Mycology through campaign updates. Generally, you can expect an update from us once a month - please keep in mind this doesn't necessarily mean updates will fall on the same day each month. We may post updates more often if there is particularly exciting or important news to share. Between updates, feel free to ask questions in the comment section or chat amongst yourselves. You can also keep in touch with us via Facebook and Instagram. 

We endeavor to keep you closely updated on the production process and give you a behind the scenes look into how Mycology will be made!

Thank you so much again for helping us bring Mycology to life. We are so grateful for each and every one of you!

— The Mycology Team 

Stretch Goals & Final 48 Hours!
about 1 year ago – Tue, Apr 18, 2023 at 10:38:00 PM

Hello Mycologists!

It's hard to believe but we are coming to the end of the campaign! You've truly exceeded our expectations with your support and we are so grateful 🙏We had no idea how many people would be so excited about a mushroom collecting game, and we can't wait for even more people to discover the joys and mysteries of mushroom collecting through Mycology!

As we enter the final 48 hours of this campaign, we're really excited to announce some STRETCH GOALS! We know you've been waiting for these - thanks again for your patience as we put this list together. We're confident that we can deliver any of these stretch goals within our timeframe and budget and that they won't unduly stress or delay the project. Without further ado, here they are!

You already unlocked our first stretch goal - Mycology will now come with mushroom dice! How many more stretch goals do you think we can unlock?

Here are some ways to continue supporting the campaign even after you've pledged!

•  Become a fan of Mycology on BGG! Add it to your wishlist or give our images some thumbs!
• Like us on Facebook.
• Follow us on Instagram.
•  Visit the project on Kicktraq.
• Spread the word! Are you in a gaming group, online community, or just know someone who would love Mycology? Tell them about the campaign! Every pledge makes a difference.

Thanks everyone! Let's have an awesome final 48 hours!

— The Mycology Team