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ZOETROPE: Death Didn't Take

Time travel with us from 2023 to 2024 and celebrate the new year by supporting this Time Travel Shenanigans game, ZOETROPE: Death Didn't Take. A card-run game that requires no preparation to sit down and play, this roleplaying game will put your gaming group in the shoes of the rent-a-cops of time travel. 

This game is perfect for roleplay focused players, as an improv game or practice, and one-shots around your longer campaign games when a player can't make the session. 

ZOETROPE comfortably seats 2-7 players, with one player acting as the Story Leader running the game, and the others as Time Agents, and games last anywhere from 1-2 hours.

• Let's go to the year 1-Million-and-1 to stop (or cause) the assassination of Earth's President, Sparticus the 7th, our beloved cloned cyborg T-rex overlord.
• Or maybe to Ancient Egypt to stop Elvis-impersonator aliens from changing human history and becoming our overlords, while they learn how the Egyptians built the pyramids and advanced agriculture.
• Or maybe you're returning to one of your character's own old jobs and trying to fix what your team had done to make things right.

This second Edition is being redesigned visually by Rickie Lee Benedetto.

The game features a square two piece box, with over 350 Actions, Time, Gear, Weapons, Roles, Traits, Fated, Wounds, and Event cards. Additionally there are bullet tokens, dice, and the 20-page rulebook.

WHAT WE POSSESS

What We Possess, the ghostly story-telling game where players take turns leading scenes of the living and the dead, as your ghostly souls begin to fade into the whispers that keep you trapped in this building. Why do you haunt this place, what mystery are you meant to unravel, and will you get there before fading away? This game is made for quiet nights in with friends, telling haunting ghost stories over a few hours.

• Ideal for 2-7 Players.
• The game is made to be run as a gm-less experience. Establish the location, set the stage for the living human and animal vessels and possessable objects, then reveal the methods by which your ghosts have died. Before you begin to set the scenes, you will reveal the Haunting, which gives you a core mystery to work towards revealing. From there, you will spend your ghostly energy to set up scenes among the living beings in the space, and use your ghostly powers to help raise the ambient Terror, scaring the living and collecting energy from them, pushing them to the point that they become able to be possessed. Use these vessels to help you uncover Clues, which you and your fellow players will use to build the secret you're uncovering. Once you reveal the truth, you'll have space to define for yourself what your ghost's relation to the haunting was, and what you'll do now.
• Are you the specters of protestors, silenced by a rich and covetous Mayor, realizing the conspiracy that was at play that led to your deaths?
• Or perhaps the haunting souls of a prison that was built over your bodies to hide what had happened to you long ago?
• Or are you the violent, inhuman revenant left behind from a bygotten era that none will ever remember, seeking only to harm the living?

This game's original art was created by Sam Dow, and new half by Robyn Phelps.

The game features a square two piece box, with 20 Locations, 20 Haunting, 20 Ghost, 60 Vessel, and 20 Clue cards, Dice, Energy tokens, and a 10-page rulebook to explain how to get into the game and to answer all your questions of how to keep your story flowing. 

Pledge Tiers

Add Ons

Get an additional copy of ZOETROPE: Death Didn't Take ($25), or the new Across Time ($20) expansion for the game. 

Not enough game for your needs? No worries, the ghostly story-telling game run on cards, What We Possess ($25), is here, featuring its 3 mini-expansions ($3 each) of additional cards in black envelopes, the Five Nights at Freddy's inspired The Happiest Day, the horror in space themed No One Can Hear You Scream, and the Friday the 13th and camping horror themed Camp Ruby Lagoon.

You can also get the two games as a bundle ($40).

Or if you like to collect some fun extras, there are three pin sets on offer!

The ZOETROPE Pin Set ($10) features the Lightning Bolt, Bullet, Fist, and Backpack sticker icons on the Time, Weapon, Action, and Gear cards in the game.

The What We Possess Pin Set ($10) features the Ghost, Vase, Grasped Skull, and Feather icons of the Ghost, Vessels, Hauntings, and Clue cards in the game.

and the Take Me to the Dark Pin Set ($5) features the Take Me to the Dark lips logo and a Black and neon Purple Publishing Goblin pin!

Shipping

Shipping costs will be calculated and charged closer to shipping mid June 2024. We are using Pledge Manager on this project, so while it's new to me, I have confirmed we can charge shipping in the future. This way we are as close to the shipping cost as possible so you aren't over or under charged. 

For now though, this is the shipping estimates sheet. This is estimates based on rates today, knowing that each game will be under 1KG so assume 1kg per game or the ZOETROPE: Across Time expansion set you order.

Orders on this project will be combined with orders made on the What We Possess project. So you can grab items on this and have it merged with your What We Possess package when shipping happens.

Community Copies

In the pledge tiers and in the add-ons, there is an option for a Community Copy! Each one bought by a backer in either slot will add a copy to the Community Copy pool. People who sign up here for a Community Copy will then be emailed after the campaign is done to be offered a Zoetrope or What We Possess game, of their choice, for each copy added to the pool.

Community Copy Signup

(Copies unlocked 8 - Potential recipients waiting 11 - 1/15/24)

If you think this game seems neat but you can't afford it right now, please feel free to sign up for a Community Copy here. You aren't guaranteed to get one, it will be randomized for selections so it's not just first-come, first-served, but there's always a chance.

Who We Are

Seven Dane Asmund - Designer, Publisher

Seven is the Publishing Goblin. Creator of 20+ crowdfunding projects. The award-winning Alleyman's Tarot, the Publishing Goblin's Oracle Dice, Confluence, and more. The worlds and ZOETROPE and What We Possess are their brainchilds. They live a vacillating gender journey in the mountainous state of Colorado.

Website - Twitter - Instagram

Rickie Lee Benedetto - Zoetrope Illustrator

I’m Rickie Lee Benedetto, a California native, I transitioned from opera to pursue a freelance art career. With a passion for creating and making art, I am excited to showcase zoetrope. Stay tuned for any future artistic endeavors!

TikTok - Instagram

milc - Zoetrope: Across Time Illustrator

milc is an amazing artist who has picked up the Across Time expansion for us. Their style is gorgeous and fits into the game incredibly well, while maintaining a unique approach and look. Also look at that profile pic, super cute.

Instagram - Twitter

Samantha Dow - What We Possess Illustrator

Sam Dow is an illustrator, graphic novelist, and tall ship captain from coastal New England, whose work explores themes of the fantastical meeting the mundane. Most recently they have illustrated the Gold Normal Tarot, the Literary Tarot's Major Arcana, and contributions to F(r)iction Magazine, as well as a number of shortform comics.

Website - Instagram

Robyn Phelps - What We Possess Illustrator

Robyn Phelps is a New Jersey based illustrator, designer, and maker-of things. You can find her making illustration work across publications like the Washington Post and Insider and creating and selling art prints and handmade goods like rugs, tapestries, and more. When she isn't illustrating, Robyn spends her time taking care of her plants, making miniatures, playing DND, and searching for her next little treat.

Website - Instagram

Raya Sarkar - What We Possess custom cards Illustrator

Raya stepped up to handle the additional cards to be illustrated for WWP made by backers, as neither Sam or Robyn had the time or space to get these additional cards done. Raya's style is so gorgeously unique but when it slips into the black and white lineart space it thrives so well in the space. I love it! Thank you Raya!

Website - Instagram - Twitter

Catherine Burke - Camp Ruby Lagoon Illustrator

Catherine's black and white work is haunting and on our game it might be wasted in all its potential, and yet Catherine wanted to do it! So here we are. Look into Catherine's other work friends, it'll knock your socks off. I'm so excited to see how this little camp expansion ends up looking in his horrifying style!

Website - Instagram - Twitch

Solomon McMan - No One Can Hear You Scream Illustrator

Solomon had their choice in picking any of the expansions or custom cards, and wanted that space stuff. And I am so glad for it! You'll all be suitably horrified by the horror in space that Solomon is realizing. The Replaced Ghost card is giving me good goosebumps right this second. Promise.

Art Station - Twitter - Linktree

Terms and Conditions

• Refunds I will refund any pledges within 30 days of the campaign's finish date no questions asked, from February 4th to March 4th 2024. After that time, no refunds will be granted for any reason, and if you choose not to fill out your survey or pay shipping on time, your pledged amount will be considered a donation towards the project.
• Shipping and Fulfillment We will be charging shipping costs closer to actual fulfillment. That means you are not being charged for it now, or for VAT or IOSS or any other taxes or fees unique to your country. That will be done closer to the shipping date over on Backerkit. You will not receive your items if you do not pay shipping and any other relevant taxes or fees, and you will not receive a refund for your original pledge if you choose not to pay the shipping costs. This notice is here from day 1 of the campaign.

We are planning to ship to people in June of 2024, but that may move sooner or later. You will be made aware of any changes in regular, monthly campaign updates.

• Fulfillment and Survey Deadline Once the first wave of backer items has been sent out around the world for people who get their surveys and shipping charges in on time*, remaining backers will have 30 more days to complete surveys to then receive their rewards. Any who do not do so in that time forfeit their rewards, and funds they paid into the project are considered donations to the project. As noted in refunds, no refunds will be made at that time for people who do not get their surveys in.

*This will be made clear in updates when we know for sure that we're moving to shipping, and will be clarified in multiple updates prior to starting the 30 day final reward claim timer.

• Damaged or Missing Items, Lost or Misdelivered Packages You will have 30 days after your package arrives to you to report to PublishingGoblin@gmail.com if you need replacement items or have missing items in your order. For packages that go missing, you will have 45 days after the item is sent (60 for international packages) to report lost or misdelivered packages to have us resend or follow up on the items.

Backers are responsible for providing proper and up to date email addresses on Kickstarter/Backerkit, and for reading updates as they come out to inform them of this information and the deadline dates. Tracking info will be automatically sent to provided email addresses, and it is the backer's responsibility to followup on their packages should problems arise.

• Backing this project is a pledge of support to the project itself, it is not the purchasing of items. I will be doing everything I can to deliver all pledged items as part of fulfilling this project with your help, and have a track record of a dozen plus projects of doing so, but there is no 100% guarantee that you'll receive your items with crowdfunding. By pledging you are recognizing this and agreeing to it.