Update #33: Additional info + Digital 0.9 PDF Release!!!
about 2 months ago – Mon, Mar 04, 2024 at 06:30:47 AM

Hi, adventurers!

And we're calling you "adventurers" with the full definition and intent of the word. After all, it's finally time to dive in and explore what Riveborne: Champions from Beyond has to offer—like real adventurers.

Riveborne 0.9 PDF

We've just distributed the 0.9 PDF to all applicable backers. Get ready to saddle up and check your inboxes because it's time to start rivin' with Riveborne now.

You can receive the PDF if your tier (or add-on) includes the "PDF" delivery. This means the add-on for it and the PDF, Book, Game-Ready, Core Box, and Deluxe Box tiers.

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Note: Rewards are only distributed to backers with locked orders and whose required payments have been collected. If you have issues and should've received the order, please get in touch with us directly here or via Discord.

Check your mailbox's promotions/spam tab and check on Backerkit directly for any download links.

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Feedback?

Have you looked through the PDF and have thoughts? Or perhaps you, with Na'Ja eyes, spotted a mistake or two? Your adventure, your voice! Help us perfect Riveborne by sharing your feedback and reporting any issues you encounter. We can't stress enough how important it is to hear from you—both the good and the bad. Your insights are invaluable as we journey from version 0.9 to the ultimate 1.0 release.

The Feedback Errata is present in the book with a QR code. However, if you're looking for easy linkage, please check below:

• Quick Report: https://forms.gle/aKiA1gwreby2RfT6A 
• Riveborne 0.9 Feedback: https://forms.gle/xY6hprko5oHSCJDy8

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300+ Pages of Goodness

The PDF features "161" pages, but don't let the page number fool you! We've exported the PDF in spreads (double pages) since that's how Riveborne's battle compendium is intended and designed. We wanted to use these spreads throughout the book, with extensive boss statblocks covering an entire spread with their Standard and Primal forms and enough space for art in the design layout. This means the book is currently a whopping 320 pages.

A big thank you

We still have a while to go for the final 1.0 release and the remaining releases; such as Item Cards, boss tokens, Arena, physical products, etc. We are well aware! However, this was a massive leap for Riveborne, and we wanted to take the time and thank you for your continued support and excitement. We wouldn't have been able to do this without you. So, realy... thank you! Now, let's get rivin'! 

Until the next Rive,

The Eightfold Paper Team

Update #32: Brief Info on 0.9 PDF Release
about 2 months ago – Fri, Mar 01, 2024 at 07:01:21 AM

Hi, guys!

This will be a brief update about the impending 0.9 PDF delivery. 

Riveborne 0.9 PDF will be the first look at the full book. For those who missed the memo, this is a playable, finalized version.

We've concluded closed beta's before for the systems (Arena Mode and Cataclysm Mode), as well as for races, subclasses, and, of course, all of the Champions. However, we are aware that, considering the sheer size of the book, there are bound to be issues - whether that's grammar, spelling, and/or formatting issues, or even a few strikeouts on balance. Once hundreds/thousands start using the book, there will always be things that pop up despite our rigorous testing. We are open to improving the book further and will include feedback forms that come with the 0.9 release. We want to iron out most, if not all, of the issues that bubble up from 0.9 leading up to the final 1.0 release. We aren't expecting major issues - but if they arise, we'll do our best to correct them. We are determined to give you guys the best version of Riveborne.

That being said, Riveborne's 0.9 was slated for an end-of-February release. We now have more definitive data! The end of February was on a Thursday. We didn't want to release 0.9 on that day. Instead, it'll come after the weekend passes, on Monday or Tuesday (March 4th or 5th). This gives us a full extra weekend to wrap up the release, and we can focus on Backerkit's end of things from Monday to Tuesday.

We hope you're as excited as we are. After all these months, we'll finally be able to share more of Riveborne with you all! 

We'll send another update once 0.9 is live so you can start playing.

Until the next Rive,

The Eightfold Paper Team

Update #31: Closer Look at the Upcoming PDF
3 months ago – Fri, Feb 02, 2024 at 04:51:12 AM

Greetings, Adventurers!

Grab your favorite beverage, find a comfy chair, and prepare for a hearty dose of Riveborne goodness. Our world is brimming with exciting content; we can't wait to share it with you. Below, we've included quite a few teasers of what you can expect.

Adventurers of the Rive

In Riveborne: Champions from Beyond, races and subclasses draw inspiration from the formidable boss Champions you'll encounter and defeat. This unique twist allows players to incorporate the thrilling playstyles of these bosses into their character progression. 

Races

Rivekin

Rivekin are dragon-like humanoids who originate from the Primordial being known as A’Nexodus. They are not born in the traditional sense but come into existence when A’Nexodus collides with a new realm. In these moments of convergence, these raw, primal energies give rise to dragon-like humanoids adorned with scales resembling purple magma.

These unique beings possess the innate ability to tap into the volatile energy coursing through their veins, allowing them to conjure bright, radiant wings of swirling fire and lighting their eyes in purple fire. However, the heart of a Rivekin is a delicate container for vast primal energy. This, unfortunately, bestows upon them a unique vulnerability. The immense primal energy held within their hearts often leads to heart problems and a notably shorter life span.

The Fragments

When a creature dreams, it enters the Dreamscape; sometimes, a part of its essence remains when it awakens. This essence can give rise to a copy of the person within the Dreamscape, known as a Fragment. These Fragments inherit the physical form of their original selves but are devoid of any memories and identity from their previous life. As a result, a Fragment created from a wicked creature may not necessarily be evil. The Fragments continue to exist within the ever-shifting realm, embracing its boundless imagination and participating in the Dreamscape's unpredictable landscape, all the while remaining unaware of the illusions that surround them.

Subclasses

Iron Master Ranger

At 3rd level, a Ranger can choose an archetype they strive to emulate. Here is a playtest option for that feature: the Iron Master. 

In a world where the thundering beat of industry meets the unrelenting roar of the waves, the Iron Masters rise as a distinct breed of Rangers. These individuals have honed their skills to master crafting, whether it be mighty vessels that sail the oceans or the destructive power of firearms. 

Embracing their formidable ability to meld mechanics and the unforgiving sea, Iron Masters emerge as the rulers of the seas, defending their watery dominions with ironclad determination. They command not only the powerful might of advanced weaponry but also the art of naval engineering, forging vessels that traverse the seas with a purpose. 

Fueled by their relentless pursuit of the sea's depths, these Rangers stand as formidable hunters and protectors, embodying a new wave of maritime power that seamlessly blends artifice and waterways.

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Teaser Highlight: Iron Arsenal
3rd-level Iron Master Feature 

You forge yourself a weapon of great power, capable of changing at your command to suit your needs. Only you are proficient with this weapon. 

The DC for your Iron Arsenal is the same as your Spell Save DC. 

As a Bonus Action you can change your Iron Arsenal between the following forms. 

• Saw Blade. In this form it counts as a melee weapon. It deals 1d8 slashing damage and has the finesse and the versatile (1d10) property. On your first hit each round, you deal an additional amount of damage equal to (your Wisdom modifier). 
• Blast Cannon. In this form, it counts as a ranged weapon (range 40/120). It deals 1d8 piercing damage and has the two-handed property. On your first hit each turn, the creature is pushed back 10 feet. 
• Gatling Gun. As an Action you can fire a hail of bullets in a 30-foot long line. Any creature in the area must make a Dexterity saving throw. A creature takes 2d4 piercing damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. 
  
  The damage of your Gatling Gun increases as you gain levels in this class, increasing to (4d4) at 7th level, (6d4) at 11th level, and (8d4) at 15th level. 

You can only have one Iron Arsenal at a time. If you lose your Iron Arsenal or wish to create a new one, you can do so by spending 1 hour of uninterrupted work (this can be done as part of a short or long rest).

Blood Knight

At 3rd level, a Fighter gains the Martial archetype feature. Here is a playtest option for that feature: the Blood Knight.

You have been known by many names, Hemophages, Crimson Fighters, and Blood Benders, but most know you as a Blood Knight—a warrior capable of using blood as a weapon to confront foes. As a Blood Knight, you can mend your wounds with rapid regeneration or burst open enemy wounds. Veteran Blood Knights can even siphon the life force of their enemies, using it to empower their abilities.

Blood Knights acquire their powers through ominous pacts with corrupted deities, internal mutations, or, most frequently, by succumbing to the Blodstadt curse, prevalent among the Nocterum offspring. For those who attain their abilities through mutation or the curse, these powers often awaken during moments of extreme duress.

A prevalent legend among Blood Knights narrates the sudden emergence of their powers when confronted with grave injuries. These newfound abilities serve the dual purpose of saving their lives and eliminating any nearby threats.

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Teaser Highlight: Blood Rites
3rd-level Blood Knight Feature

You can manipulate the blood in your body to amplify your attack, wound your foes, or even mend your broken body. You gain the following Blood Rites.

• Blood Bolt (1 Hit Die). In place of an attack, you can fire a ball of crystallized blood at a creature within 60 feet range, using (your proficiency bonus + Constitution modifier) for the attack roll. On a hit, you deal (2d8 + your Constitution modifier) as damage. If you have temporary hit points, you can remove them and add them to the damage roll. 
• Crystallized Strike (1 Hit Die). When you take the Attack Action, you can spend a hit die to extend a melee weapon’s range by 5 feet until the start of your next turn. When used with a ranged weapon, the weapons range increases by (10 x your proficiency bonus).
• Wounding Strike (1 Hit Die). When you hit a creature with a melee or ranged weapon attack you can use your Reaction to extend the damage, opening terrible wounds on your enemies body. The damage roll of the weapon is maximized.
• Mend (1 Hit Die). As a Bonus Action you can draw on your body's reserves and crystalised armor made of blood. You can roll a hit die and gain that number of temporary hit points.
• Siphon. When a humanoid within 10 feet is reduced to 0 hit points, you can use your Reaction to rip the last of its life force from its body and regain 1 hit die.
   

Primal Companions

Introducing Primal Companions, creatures crafted from the remnants of defeated boss Champions. These charming allies can seamlessly integrate with Heliana's Guide to Monster Hunting's Tamer class, or you can opt to utilize it independently with Riveborne's system, offering unique abilities and a fresh experience. Picture your fearsome foes transformed into loyal friends, growing and evolving with you on your journey.

These 5 familiars, filled with personalities, promise a new experience. Crafting Primal Companions is a fun alternative to the conventional summoning of companions. Here is a look at them: 

Charcoal

"Charcoal is a tiny, loyal beast with a knightly spirit, exuding a gentle warmth and protective nature. Cloaked in blue flames that harm only its foes, Charcoal is both a beacon in the darkness and a fiery shield for its allies. With a wagging flaming tail expressing its joy and a fierce determination to guard those it holds dear, Charcoal embodies the heart of a true friend and the soul of a valiant protector."

Game Mode: Arena - The Arena Vendor

When a creature is recovering after an Arena bout, they can spend their Triumph Tokens to requisition services or items from the Arena Vendor, such as magical weapons, healing potions, mercenaries, or even resurrections for fallen comrades. The Arena Vendor’s Mystic Stock details the available effects and items a creature can request, as well as their costs and the number of times that requisition can be used during the Arena Challenge. 

Game Mode: Cataclysm

With the Cataclysm Mode, you are given a handle/guide on inserting the champions of Riveborne in a narrative campaign of your own design, including a short introduction to the cataclysm itself, the origin of the Rives and the plight of their creator A’Nexodus, and the various multiversal realms available to call forth into your campaigns. Below, we take a closer look at one of the realms.

A Closer Look: The Realm of Storm and Sea

Champions of the Realm
The Sharkinator

Overview
Beyond the distant veil of the elemental planes lies an ancient domain of infinite ocean, its depths too deep to navigate, and its waters ever raging from miles-wide tropical storms. Vast ship cities sail atop the choppy waves, some a safe haven for drifting survivors, while others stalk the waters like hungry predators, their occupants bloodthirsty and violent. 
Smaller vessels traverse this watery wasteland, from merchant traders to adventuring parties and sea monster hunters, all in a constant search for supplies. 
Piracy also runs rampant throughout the realm. Captains rise and fall in cutthroat betrayals, mutinies, or assassinations, with another all too eager to take their place for a greater share of recent plunder. 

This is a brutal realm brimming with untold treasures, mysterious locations, and unfathomable undersea creatures.

Disastrous Impacts
The Realm of Storm and Sea is a vast, lively ocean home to drifting sailors, colossal ships, immense sea creatures, and coral-covered flooded mountains.

When a dimensional gateway opens due to existing water sources like rivers or lakes, it floods the area with dark seawater within three days, unleashing tropical storms, towering waves, and fierce winds. This transformation beckons strange sea creatures and ships emerging from dense fog, seeking sustenance, trade, or refuge from their cursed realm. 

The book will list all the potential dangers, ranging from Regional Effects to Local Effects, and the creatures you might come across. Be on the lookout for this with the upcoming PDF release!

Digital PDF Launch

Mark your calendars! The Riveborne 0.9 PDF is set to launch at the end of February 2024. Get ready to dive into a cataclysmic journey filled with enigmatic bosses, unique races, powerful subclasses, the thrilling Arena Challenge, and more!

Thanks for your patience and commitment to the Riveborne project and for being a part of what seems like one crazy ride. We feel extremely blessed and appreciative of your continued support.

Until the next Rive,

The Eightfold Paper Team

Update #30: New Year and Update On Digital Release
4 months ago – Sun, Dec 31, 2023 at 07:14:42 AM

Hi friends!

It's been a year filled with developments—and surely, for some, they were easy; for some, they were hard. For us, it's been a year that felt like a rollercoaster. We've made such incredible progress with Riveborne, but also, in our private lives, things have progressed or transpired. Some good, some bad. For one, we took our first-holiday break in what felt like forever this year. And we've delved deeper into developing an extensive book (easily 300+ pages!) than ever before. All in all, lots of things!

But we wouldn't be posting an update just to reminisce!

This update will be short. We are still working on the book but would like to let you know about its status. So, when can you expect the Digital PDF release? Thanks to the amazing writers and creators, we've finished all the writing for it. All the subclasses, bosses, systems, and everything has been finalized and designed into the book. So... what's stopping us? We are still creating and licensing art to further fluff up the book and expect to release the 0.9 PDF early in the next year, likely in February 2024.

After that, we'll send the same PDF to the manufacturer so we can get a copy in our hands. This 'hence and forth' with the manufacturer will likely take anywhere between four to eight weeks starting from when we send them the PDF. This gives us time to error out anything we find meanwhile for a final 1.0 release, as well as gives us time to perfect the physical state of the book and other products.

Note: This does not mean 0.9 will be an unfinished product. It will be a finalized, polished product you can start using straight away. 

That being said... We wish you the absolute very best in 2024.

As always, we'll make sure to keep you posted.

Until the next Rive,

The Eightfold Paper Team

Update #29: ANOTHER Digital STL Bundle Delivery! And Start Prepping For The Cataclysm & Arena Modes!
5 months ago – Sun, Dec 03, 2023 at 12:25:05 PM

Dear Adventurers,

Welcome to Update #29, where we've got exhilarating news to share! Dive into the latest developments in Riveborne: Champions from Beyond.

Arachiko STL Digital Delivery

We're thrilled to announce that the digital STL for Arachiko is NOW available(!) for download on Backerkit for all eligible backers. If you backed for the Digital STL Bundle, Arachiko is yours to add to your collection of STLs. 

Arachiko, formerly known as Jorogumo, underwent adjustments based on manufacturing details. While the story remains true to its origins, Arachiko's final design is ready! Backers entitled to this champion, seize the opportunity, and grab your digital download from Backerkit!

NOTE: Since some might be disappointed with the change in design, please understand that this was a change we had to make looking into manufacturing her. Since we don't want to disappoint, we made sure to include both the Jorogumo (as a freebie bonus) AND the Arachiko STL for download. The original design was in the previous bulk STL download, and Arachiko is joining the fray as a separate download. If you backed for the STLs and want to find her, you need to get into Backerkit using the same email/account you used to preorder Riveborne, after which you should be able to find her in your Digital Downloads section. 

Arena & Cataclysm System

All of our written content is now about 90% finalized and tested. It's really exciting! With development well underway, let's take a deeper look into the Arena and Cataclysm Modes so you can start preparing for what's to come.

Riveborne has been created to be quick, accessible, and easy to inject into any narrative campaign, whatever the setting might be. This means less time planning and more time playing while still being flexible enough for Game Masters to tweak things on the fly or even plan entire side adventures using the realms provided as a jumping-off point.

First up, the Cataclysm System – an immersive mode designed for new adventures or side-quests within your narrative campaign. Explore a world transformed by the primal energy unleashed by Rivedragon A'nexodus. Rives emerge, merging connected worlds, leading to cataclysmic consequences. The characters' role becomes pivotal in closing these Rives before irreversible destruction engulfs their realms.

A Rive can open at any time during a campaign or even before the campaign has started. When you wish to open a Rive in your games, consider what events might occur to precede its arrival, or what the initial aftermath might be for the characters, should they already be in the region when it is unleashed, and what champion it may call forth.

For example, opening a Rive to the Realm of Storm and Sea while the characters are traveling through a mostly flat region, they might suddenly find themselves at the mercy of extreme flash floods, thunderstorms, or even beset by giant tentacled creatures from the depths of the sea when taking rest at a lakeside camp. If in a settlement, do the characters choose to save themselves from this mysterious environmental disaster or risk their lives against the rising torrents to save innocents from their homes? Do they search for a location tall enough to weather the flooding, or be whisked away by the rushing waters and hope to make it to shore somewhere else in the region?

Your players are the only ones capable of closing these Rives - perhaps it is fate, guided by the gods of your world? Or perhaps it is sheer dumb luck, and the player’s characters are the only ones close enough to close a Rive in time before more begin to appear?

Whatever your reasoning, the progression of this narrative mode is largely the same: characters uncover a Rive and must close it before the realm it leads to bleeds into their world and utterly destroys it.

On the other hand, the Arena Mode unveils the Colosseum of Dreams, a colossal structure in space.

Drifting silently through the depths of space lies the mysterious Colosseum of Dreams - a gargantuan superstructure crafted from the finest materials from across the multiverse and home to The Grandmaster, an otherworldly entity of incredible power and influence.

Within the expansive golden halls of the Colosseum lies a multitude of combat arenas, each with its own Arena Champion who fights for the amusement of their bloodthirsty fans. Warriors from across the multiverse are invited by the Grandmaster to challenge these Champions for the chance to claim the title of Arena Champion for themselves. Although few make it out alive, the ones that do are crowned Champion, and may find themselves invited back to compete against Warriors craving a chance at their prestigious title -  should The Grandmaster deem them fit.

The Colosseum of Dreams sports many arenas of various shapes and sizes, each tailored to its particular Arena Champion. When characters are invited to participate in the Colosseum, they can choose which Arena Champion to challenge. Before facing their chosen champion, characters must first prove themselves a worthy enough foe by completing two initial bouts in the champion’s arena. During these bouts, characters can complete special missions to garner Triumph Tokens, which they can spend on items, spells, or other features that may grant them an edge in the final conflict against the arena’s current Champion. Should characters emerge victorious, they claim the title of Arena Champion as their own and may be called back by The Grandmaster to defend their title or even participate in The Grandmaster’s personal pride and joy, The Endless Arena.

With the introduction of these two compelling game modes, we aim to enrich your gaming experience with epic boss encounters and intricate twists. Prepare to face formidable champions and steer your narrative toward extraordinary adventures.

Until the next Rive,

The Eightfold Paper Team