It has been three months since our last playtest, and almost eight months since we have introduced a new player to 44 BCE. I cannot believe that it has been that long. Kelly, Holt, and I have not been sitting idle during this time; we have actually been quite busy! Let me tell you a little about all that we have been doing.
Our most extensive change to the game has been a complete redesign of the game board. We took it from a small 24 x 8 inch tri-fold board to a massive 33 x 22 inch six-fold board. Doing this allowed us to create room to put all of the components (recruits, denarius, buildings, allegiance tiles, etc.) onto the game board. This really makes setup much easier, as well as cleans up the area around your player mat.
Additionally, we have been adding finishing touches to all of the printed components. New symbols on the recruits make them much easier to identify. And with help from a new graphic designer, we have elevated the look of all of your components, especially the game board and player mats!
We have also been furiously working on getting the rules written and adding player aids. We are almost ready to typeset and print the rulebook. And have gotten quite positive feedback on the new player aids for resolution and end game scoring on the updated player screens.
However, our most exciting effort has been preparing to host a fan table at Magic City Con 2021! It starts at 3:00 PM on June 18. We cannot wait to set up and the Wynfrey Hotel and show off our incredible new game to everyone at the convention! We have a new banner that looks awesome, great-looking new t-shirts that we will be giving away, and, best of all, we will have three brand new copies of 44 BCE! We are ready to let gamers from across Alabama and the world play 44 BCE! If you are in Alabama over Father’s Day weekend, stop by the Wynfrey Hotel in Hoover and say hi or play a game of 44 BCE!
Once we are finished with Magic City Con, we are going into blind playtest mode. This will really help us put our rules through the wringer. If you (or someone you know) are interested in blind playtesting 44 BCE, please, reach out and let us know.
We have set a new goal of launching a Kickstarter campaign to publish 44 BCE on the ides of March 2022. We are ready to kick our efforts into high gear! Join us to get our latest updates. I’ll be posting pictures of the updated version of 44 BCE soon; let us know what you think!