A fantasy worker placement game from Haakon Hoel Gaarder, designer & illustrator of Villagers, Streets, and Moon.
Latest Updates from Our Project:
Yonder Progress Update #3
11 months ago
– Sat, May 03, 2025 at 04:52:34 PM
Hey everyone - Dave here, and I'm sorry for the radio silence. I'm still having a rough time here with illness & lack of childcare keeping me from my desk, but Yonder lives on! I have had to make some difficult decisions around the dreaded tariffs however, so let's get that out of the way first.
US / China Tariffs
To be clear, the following only applies to backers in the USA.
The White House’s new import duty on Chinese goods now tops out at 145%. Board games (HS 9504) are currently caught in that net, which adds about $23 in duty to every Deluxe copy of Yonder.
Because the tariff rate can change with no notice, even while a container is on the water, I’m not comfortable shipping your games until things stabilise. So, I am proposing a delay on delivery of US Kickstarter pledges until the tariff situation eases or becomes more predictable.
The alternative is to ship ASAP and accept that I'm going to have to charge you 145% of the manufacturing cost of your pledge. I'd do this through BackerKit.
Why I'm Proposing a Delay
A mid‑voyage tariff hike could drop another bill on us all.
Re‑invoicing a thousand backers at the last minute would be an admin nightmare and could leave Sinister Fish holding a debt we can’t cover.
Talks between Washington and Beijing are underway, but no timeline yet. There’s a chance the tariff drops or our product code gets exempted.
Are There Other Alternatives?
Moving production of the game to another country - maybe Vietnam or Poland where tariffs are lower, would mean starting the production process again with a completely new partner. It would also add months to the schedule and almost certainly make the game more expensive to produce, possibly negating any benefit of lower tariffs.
Manufacturing in the US is not currently an option.
Shipping from China via another country and then on to the US doesn't change the origin of the goods. Claiming that the goods didn't originate in China would be illegal.
I'm Listening
I understand that US backers will be upset about this. I would be too. I'm open to suggestions as long as we can keep it civil & free of political arguments. Please feel free to hit the comments & let me know how you feel about all this, and what you'd do in my shoes. I am listening.
If you'd rather bail, I will honour refund requests until the games have been manufactured. You can reach me on [email protected]
Pre-Production Continues
I had a few tweaks to make to the rulebook and the deluxe edition player boxes - these have been delivered. We subsequently received and approved the latest e-proof (basically PDFs of the final print files) with a couple of simple errors to correct.
We also needed to change the size of the GameTrayz insert to allow for the thicker board I mentioned in the last update. This change took a while to be implemented, but these images are from the final files...
The next step is to get our hands on physical prototypes before we give the OK for mass production. I am hoping to get news of when that might be this coming week.
I have images of the new metal coin samples, which I hope you agree look much better than the first attempt. Our manufacturer was able to use a different process which eliminates the casting line around the edge of the coins - they're "Sample C" on the right in this image. I think they're a great representation of recently minted but heavily traded currency from a rapidly expanding fantasy city-state! I have approved them and am awaiting physical samples.
And that is all for now. I won't leave it so long next time!
Thanks for sticking with me while I navigate this bloody tariff mess!
Yonder Progress Update #2
about 1 year ago
– Wed, Jan 29, 2025 at 05:47:42 AM
Hello there!
It's been a while, I know. I hope you're all doing well.
We've been making steady progress on getting Yonder ready for manufacturing, and we're very close now. I'll detail all that shortly, but first, important pledge manager news!
Pledge Manager Closing
We are going to close the pledge manager and lock orders this coming Monday, February 3rd. Then on February 5th we'll charge cards for shipping fees and add-ons. If you haven't given us your payment and shipping address details yet, now is the time because we need to know final numbers for manufacturing.
You should have received an email from BackerKit with your unique survey URL for Yonder. We need you to complete the survey so we have your shipping address, and so we can collect shipping fees. If you don't have the URL, you can retrieve it here, using the same email address you use for Kickstarter.
If you used Apple's "Hide My Email" feature when you backed this project, we will need to update your BackerKit account to a regular email address. Please email [email protected] if that's the case.
GameTrayz Ahoy!
We finally got the production files from GameTrayz! We think the deluxe insert is going to look great and work well in getting the game out & ready to play quickly. The insert for the Kickstarter and Retail editions will be a much more spartan affair, in the tradition of many great Eurogames!
As soon as they come back from the Chinese New Year holiday, our manufacturer is going to make the insert moulds and do some test runs so we can double check everything fits properly. There's a chance we'll have to tweak the box size, but that's a simple job.
Deluxe Coins & Tokens
The Deluxe edition gets metal coins & nice acrylic Arcana tokens. This was the first sample of them we received...
Despite favourable lighting conditions for this photo, the coins look a bit too dull & dirty. We'd prefer them to look newer & shinier, so we'll be getting a new sample soon. Other than that, the size & weight of the coins is very pleasing!
There was a miscommunication about the colour of the Arcana tokens, which should be a transparent blue. The ones we were sent aren't transparent, so we're waiting on another sample. I'll show you those next time.
Rulebook
We made a few edits for clarity, plus we spotted a major goof - books have to have a page count divisible by four (of course!) and ours was 18 pages. Oops! We solved this by removing the solo rules from the book and putting them on a separate sheet, which should help single players learn the game a bit easier.
White Sample
Ahead of the insert being tested, the manufacturer has sent us a "white sample" of the Deluxe edition - that is, a copy of the game with no print on the components. This is so we can check the size & quailty of the components before we move on to fitting them in the insert. Only one thing needs to be changed - the 1.5mm card used for the board is a little too thin so we'll increase it to 2mm. Including the printed paper on each side, we'll end up with a much sturdier 2.5mm board.
The first test we did on receiving the sample, naturally, was to check if a cat fits in the box. Perkins was keen to oblige (without even being asked!), so that's one less thing to worry about. Very few publishers check this, and it's just one of the things we do differently here to look after you guys.
Customer Support
If you need help with any aspect of your pledge, please email [email protected] - the inbox is currently empty & hungry for messages!
I Said Good Day, Sir!
Thanks for reading, thanks for backing Yonder, and thanks for your patience!
We'll see you next time. Until then, take care & play games!
Yonder Progress Update #1
over 1 year ago
– Wed, Nov 20, 2024 at 08:35:04 AM
Hello there!
I realise it's been a while since I updated, and I apologise. The short story is that everything on pre-production is going well, and despite some issues we are very close to having final print files.
The slightly longer version is that I've been facing a few family & health related challenges which have resulted in me not spending as much time at my desk as I'd like. Thankfully, Haakon and Anthony have been taking care of most of the file production and proofing, so work has progressed well in that area. For my part, I'm having to prioritise tasks which has meant I'm horribly behind on customer support, and the pledge manager is really late.
The only other real problem is that we don't yet have the final Deluxe edition insert files from GameTrayz. We can't give the green light for mass production until this happens, and even then we'll need to have moulds made and approve prototypes etc. So we are going to miss our preferred printing schedule which would have seen the game produced before Chinese New Year. The manufacturer tells us they can prioritise our print run after the holiday, which is from late January to early February.
I've done this enough times now not to trust any projected date suggested by anyone ever. It will be done when it's done, and I'll keep you all informed of progress along the way.
Deluxe Insert
Here's some work-in-progress pics of what GameTrayz are cooking up for us (in their slow cooker).
There's actually a surprise hidden in these images - those green boxes you see are cardboard tuckboxes we've added to keep player pieces in. This will make setting up the game even quicker!
Yes, sleeved cards will fit :D
The insert will contain 4 removable "Trayz"; two shaped like boats containing worker meeples, and 2 representing the Yonder city skyline containing all the resource tokens. Between them they hold all the necessary components to play the game and keep them accessible from two sides of the table!
In Other News...
Print files are all done apart from packaging for the free expansion content and the deluxe edition box, which depends on GameTrayz. The general box design is done so once we know the final size it will be a fast turnaround.
We have a final rulebook! You can read it here. Solo rules will be on a separate sheet, here.
Pledge manager will open this week if all goes according to plan. Watch out for emails from BackerKit!
Shipping prices will remain the same as advertised on the campaign.
Wizards & Co. & Coin Chests on Sale Now
If you're looking for some cheeky Christmas gifts for your loved ones or yourself, our latest releases are in our store now with shipping to most of the world. Check out Wizards & Co. and our funky new Coin Chests!
That is all for now my friends. You can reach me on [email protected] for help with any issues, but please be patient. I will get back to you but I am kind of swamped right now.
We're making a game!
over 1 year ago
– Tue, Aug 20, 2024 at 04:30:57 PM
Hi everyone,
What a finish we had! Yonder ended on 2007 backers which looked quite unlikely a couple of days prior, so a special thanks goes out to everyone who jumped onboard in the final days. And to all those who came in before that final charge, we salute you too!
Everyone who supports us on Kickstarter is essential to our survival as a business, and we're extremely grateful to all our backers. We're extremely excited to get Yonder into your hands - I genuinely believe it's Haakon's best game yet. So let's get on with it!
What Happens Now?
Haakon is working on the last few pieces of artwork for the solo mode cards, and then he'll move on to the final version of the rulebook. He estimates he'll be finished around the middle of September. Soon after that we'll collate the final files and submit them to the factory, hopefully before the end of September.
We're still working with the people at GameTrayz on the deluxe edition insert. Having never worked with them before, I'm not sure how long this process is going to take from here, but we'll keep you updated.
The pledge manager (BackerKit) will open in a few weeks. Right now I'm overseeing fulfilment on our last two projects, and I'd like to wait until that process is complete so that we know what stock we have available as add-ons for the Yonder pledge manager. We'll provide full details at a later date.
Customer Support
If you need help with any aspect of your pledge, please email [email protected] and I'll deal with it personally.
That's all for now. I'll try to stick to roughly monthly status reports from now on, and you won't be kept in the dark at any point.
Days 25-28: Final Reveals / Play Solo!
over 1 year ago
– Mon, Aug 12, 2024 at 08:31:59 AM
Hello friends,
The destination is close now, just three days remain on our wondrous voyage. We've reached the end of our extra content, adding 7 new buildings to the base game, with all Kickstarter backers getting a bonus pack of 9 new buildings, 6 envoys, and 7 ships. We're so pleased to have over 1500 of you with us at this point, and we're confident you won't be disappointed with Yonder!
Play Solo on Tabletop Simulator
As a final gift, Haakon has just put together a demo of Yonder's solo mode for Tabletop Simulator, which you can find here. The draft solo mode rules are here. The multiplayer version is here.
Play in Your Browser on Tabletopia
This arrived a few minutes after I posted the last update, but better late than never! You can now play Yonder in your browser on Tabletopia!
Final Days & BGG
So we're into our final 3 days now. We'll have one last marketing push, some homepage ads on BGG, and the final 48 hour alert from Kickstarter which should be good for a strong finish. Maybe we'll get over the 2000 backer mark? What do you think our final tally will be?
Speaking of BGG, we'd be very grateful if you could do one small thing for us and thumb this image. If you've played Yonder online, please consider writing a quick session report on the BGG sessions forum. Any rules questions you might have are best posted on the BGG rules forum - Haakon usually replies in person, so you know you're getting a definitive answer while also building up a useful resource for the entire community. All this will help to push Yonder into "the hotness" and hopefully get a few more eyes on the campaign.
Day 25 Reveal: Vetinari
This ship keeps your eyes fixed forward. Never mind about the envoys you picked up last turn. What new ones can I get this turn? Getting Vetinari early means you are probably going to try & take a new envoy each round, so plan accordingly. Consider building extra boats at the wharf to cover the demand, look out for boats like Goliath that can fulfil two envoys on its own, and consider ways of ditching envoys you no longer need, including the Dwarven Guilders, and the two envoy-related Arcana spots in the Upper City.
Day 26 Reveal: Midas
New players in Yonder will often collect a bunch of envoys, pair them with a ship they combo well with, and fulfill envoys in that combination for the rest of the game. Midas poses a different challenge, as you'll need to deliver to a different envoy each round in order to maximise its effect. That's not bad though. The possibility space you get from mixing up which ships fullfil which envoys is considerable, and we found during testing that once players played a game with Midas, they were more inclined to play in that way in subsequent games, even if they didn't have the ship.
Day 27 Reveal: Monument
What better end to the game than having a worker of every type represented in your settlement? Most C buildings that score for workers ask you to collect a fairly dysfunctional number of a specific type of worker in order to maximise their scoring potential. The momument is different - having one of each worker is actually a pretty good idea anyway, so you can maximise each species' strengths. Monument also pairs well with other C buildings that ask you to keep workers around, including the tavern.
Day 28 Reveal: Skeleton Reverser
Originally designed in response to concerns voiced by members of the community about the dangers of Skeleton Makers in the wrong hands, the Skeleton Reverser is a wonderful bit of kit that will give you a lot of flexibility. Keep your skeletons from round to round without needing food, and then swap them for another worker type you need once the time is right, and get points for doing so! Marvellous.
OK my lovelies, that's all for today - please cross whatever appendages you feel appropriate for a big finish, and as ever...
