The Dark Continent by Gakondo (ill. Chaka Laker-Ojok)

[niyomax85]

Hello

#UC friends.

it has been such a journey to finally be here, after four years trying to be
eligible to run our first campaign.

and i wouldn't thank you enough for seeing us through even when it was hard, and i was
new to this beautiful world of playing cards enthusiasts.

i can't thank enough the following cards collectors:

first all :@Decknowledgy for standing with me from day one, for challenging me to
this day to only bring Quality and to give the community what it's worth.

and @montenzi for the insight about the right printing techniques. @Adonael for challanging my
design perspective which later on helped me to design a better version of gakondo Zahabu Edition

also would like to thank @BaconWise @brownsl @kem-collector @kem-collector @hsbc @Thirdway Industries @Eric Lee @wingedpotato @Harvonsgard @JackBrutusPenny @Brian @wingedpotato @osaze @Mike Ratledge.

Attention please, Drums rolling !!!!!

It is with a great pleasure that i share with you that tonight at 23:00 CAT, @gakondocards will be launching it's first kickstarter Campaign named


" THE DARK CONTINENT KS CAMPAIGN "
-----------------------------------------------------

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ga ... ying-cards

illustrated by Chakamoi Laker-Ojok
Campaign Written by Nurul Alam and
produced by Gakondo Inc.


The Dark Continent celebrates the history of the African culture and the empires responsible for
shaping the continent and the people. This project was borne out of a passion for
African history and playing cards.

The extensive research into this deck has been taken from many sources,
delving into the rich tapestry of cultural life full of honour, betrayal, theft and war.

All 54 cards are custom and have been hand drawn by talented Ugandan artist, Chakamoi Laker-Ojok.
With the world standing still, Chaka used this time as an opportunity to create this
beautifully detailed deck. Countless hours were spent perfecting something
so near and dear to his own heart.

Please join the Gakondo team as we take a journey through the ages and explore 4 of
the major powers that shaped the rich cultural tapestry of that mysterious land
once known as the Dark Continent.


I want to thank you personally for introducing me to this world, that has changed my life for good.


hope to see each one of you tonight at Kickstarter.

Best Wishes.

[Decknowledgy]

So glad that Gakondo has grown into a full-blown brand! Again this deck incorporates the elements of the African culture, a very nice touch... We need more decks that are cultural based.

Hopefully this campaign funds well!

[Decknowledgy]

[vasta41]

Per their most recent update, they are now printing this deck with WJPC and not Cartamundi. I have asked for a refund and am awaiting a reply.

[Strag]

Hiding it in a backers-only post is kinda not good for future campagins so that people could see what happened. Don't blame you for wanting a refund, it's not what was promised.

[vasta41]

Refund issued, no questions asked. I understand why they had to switch companies but this truly is a bummer. I was very much looking forward to this unique theme.

[veil]

I would be severely disappointed if I were a backer and would probably have requested a refund as well. Given that the project barely funded and might not have if WJPC had been the printer while the campaign was running, I guess the late switch works out well for them as long as too many people don't bail. I just got some WJPC decks and the stock feels like construction paper; the registration is also pretty bad.

[wingedpotato]

I feel bad that it happened even as I wonder why it happened, but I still support the creator and wish them the best. The WJPC decks I have (including the first Gakondo deck) have never felt that bad to me.

[EndersGame]

I did some reading up about this deck after learning about in the presentation that the designer did at 52 Plus Joker's virtual convention.

Here's a few clearer images I compiled from various places.

















You can view his enthusiastic 52 Plus Joker presentation here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgQpBtJm6_E

If you prefer written text rather than video, you can check out the write-up that I did about this and several other lectures from the convention here, which summarizes the main points made in the presentation.

[Cardamon]

I’m getting this one for the art work and story so I’ll stay backed.
Wonder what I’ll end up with

[niyomax85]

Hello Guys,

hope everyone all is well on your side,


Would like again to say thank you for being patient with us,

This being our first campaign, we didn't expect it to be this challenging,

but we are excited to let you know that :


- The cards have been printed and varnished. ( Completed )

- The tuck boxes printing process is over, now

the process of foils and embossing has began. ( 85% Completed).

- Stamps ( Completed ).

- We are looking towards completing everything by the end of this month,

and begin shipping to the fulfilling centres.


Next Friday we will give another updated on the next step once

we get an update from WJPC.


Thanks again for backing our KS Campaign.


Signed GAKONDO INC Ltd

[Harvonsgard]

Thank you for posting the update.

[hsbc]

[wingedpotato]

Thought you were posting that you had your cards for second...

[hsbc]

Thought you were posting that you had your cards for second...

I wish! I try to put images that aren't mine in a quote box but I may forget sometimes

I'm assuming these are a new edition, does anyone know?

[nur1988]

Thought you were posting that you had your cards for second...

I wish! I try to put images that aren't mine in a quote box but I may forget sometimes

I'm assuming these are a new edition, does anyone know?

This is just the prototype of the Explorer edition. The campaign offered two decks - the black and gold is the standard Dark Continent version and the coloured version is the Explorer edition.

[wingedpotato]

Anyone have any behind the scenes update on this? First the switch to WJPC and no KS update since April. Seems the creator is on the up and up but wonder what trouble may have gotten in their way.

[EndersGame]

Anyone have any behind the scenes update on this? First the switch to WJPC and no KS update since April. Seems the creator is on the up and up but wonder what trouble may have gotten in their way.

Their April 14th update (Update #17) said "Next Friday we will give another updated on the next step once we get an update from WJPC.".

They must have contacted WJPC and got an update from them within the next 24 hours, because they posted an April 15th update (Update #18) the very next day. It was entitled "A Behind the Scenes look of a Playing Card Factory" and includes videos directly from the WJPC factory, which shows the cards and deck being actually printed. It's pretty cool to watch some videos from inside a playing card factory (even though there's no sound):

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ga ... ts/3482426

You can also see the physical product of this particular deck in those videos, so I wouldn't be too worried at this point. There have also been two updates since then, including a May 20th update (Update #20) about shipping - perhaps you missed that one?

Those videos are directly from WJPC, so it looks like everything things are definitely happening. I've been very impressed with them lately. I've got one of the decks they recently produced (The Secret Connection Playing Cards) in my hands right now, and it has stock that reminds me in feel of USPCC's crushed stock, and handles very similarly. It's the closest to USPCC quality and feel that I've come across from any playing card manufacturer anywhere in recent times. I'll try to find out what exact specs (stock/finish etc) were used for that particular deck, because it handles beautifully.

[wingedpotato]

Thanks. I see what happened. The April 13 Update is pinned, so I mistakenly assumed it was the latest one. Thanks again for letting me know what you know, EG.

[wingedpotato]

Radio silence on these since August. I know the creator is sincere in getting these out into the world (and I have their previous deck), but they should understand backers get cranky when there is no update.

[hsbc]

Hello everyone, this is Chaka Laker-Ojok, artist and creator of the Dark Continent Playing Card deck. At long, long last, I bring you good news! I have finally received the card decks we funded through the Dark Continent Kickstarter, and they look great! We can finally begin working on shipping out your rewards! Before I get into that though, I owe you all an explanation of what happened, and why there has been so little word from me or the Kickstarter campaign in so long.

For almost 2 years now I have been trying to get this deck printed and into my hands. In the beginning this was just a fun exercise for me. I was let go from my job during the Covid-19 downturn and things were a bit bleak. I needed something positive to keep myself sane and decided to start working on this card deck project that I had been thinking about for a while. I knew very little about cards when I started and discovered just how little when I started looking at production. During this I made a friend, Maxime Niyomwungeri, whose company Gakando LLC. had also produced an African-themed deck in the past. We became partners. I was responsible for all the art and layouts required as well as putting together the e-book guide, while Max and Gakondo LLC were responsible for setting up and managing the Kickstarter, dealing with the printer and handling fulfillment once the cards were made. Through introductions he made I was able to refine the design to what I considered a viable product. As you all know, we were successful in raising the money for the enterprise. We had to pivot when our initial printer backed out of a quote, but eventually used Max’s connections with WJPC, a card company in China, to begin manufacture of the decks.

Shortly after the print process began, we started to have issues. The war in Ukraine kicked off, further disrupting worldwide supply chain issues already strained by a year of Covid-19. There were many, many delays, but it wasn't until about May 2022 that I started to really worry about the project. I had been making periodic posts to my social media about the delays, but stopped as I began to distrust the explanations for the delays from Max. Despite repeated requests for transparency, Max began to be inconsistent with his communication and through avoidance and deflection essentially refused to provide supporting documentation for how he was spending the funds we had raised. While I knew the cards were printed and had shared video from WJPC of the production process on Instagram, I was continually being blocked from getting the finished decks into my possession. Since the order for the cards was placed through Gakondo's connections [which he avoided sharing with me citing “proprietary business practices”], WJPC would not deal directly with me, effectively cutting me out of the decision-making process of my own product. I did everything I could to expedite things short of flying to China, even going so far as to pay for shipping from them to myself out of my own pocket, but by the end of October 2022 there was no movement. At this point Max was completely ghosting me despite my every effort to figure out what was happening.

Thus, as New Year’s Day 2023 approached I was no longer confident that Gakondo would meet its fulfillment obligations to our backers since they clearly were not interested in meeting their obligations to me as a partner. I was extremely disappointed, not only for the loss of all the time, effort and money I have invested in this project, but more so because I had convinced so many of you to support the campaign and yet was unable to refund your investment myself. I kept thinking about how this project should have cemented my good reputation, but instead I was certain that no one would ever support me again. Furthermore, because Max and Gakondo LLC were based in Rwanda, I discovered that litigation would be difficult to effect and likely cost as much as the amount I wanted to recover. Needless to say I was pretty depressed about the situation. I was ready to basically throw in the towel but decided to try one last gamble.

I was positive that Max was getting my messages, despite his lack of response, so I offered him an out. I indicated to him that I thought he was overwhelmed by the responsibilities we had agreed he would handle as partner, and that if he felt unable to meet them, he should turn all of them over to me, including authority to deal with the print company directly. To my amazement this worked! He responded, and agreed to my terms, citing personal and family issues and embarrassment as his reasons for not communicating. He sent out an update to this effect, but this wasn’t the end of things. It took me another 3 months of back and forth with him before I actually got the authorization to deal with the card company.

The first thing I asked WJPC for was the invoice for the order, and at this point discovered that the reason the cards had never been shipped was that they hadn’t been paid for! There was a sizable outstanding balance left on the order, and when I pressed Max about it, he confessed that he had used some of the funds for that to handle a personal issue and hadn’t been able to pay it back after the fact. He made promises to pay me back and provide documentation for how the rest of the money had been spent, but it has been another 2 months and he still hasn’t come through. In the meantime, I paid the balance out of my own pocket and had WJPC ship all the card directly to me. I am pleased to announce they arrived a couple days ago.

I am forced to conclude due to the absence of receipts and documentation that Max misappropriated most of the money raised, and I doubt that it will ever be paid back. I am therefore left to make the best of a decidedly bad situation. I will be funding fulfillment of the Kickstarter at my own expense. I can’t afford to do it all at once so I will be sending out rewards in batches as my finances allow. They WILL be sent out as soon as possible, rest assured. I will also be selling the decks not set aside for you all on my website and wherever else I can. Whatever I can make from those sales will help me fund the rest of fulfillment. I know this means more delays for many of you but that cannot be helped. All I can say is I understand what frustration you may be feeling and offer my sincere apologies for my part in placing you all in this predicament. If any of you require more proof of what I am saying, I have the receipts, screenshots and invoices I have collected to support my claims.

I am very pleased with how the final product turned out, despite all of this needless drama. The tuck boxes came out beautifully, better than I thought actually. It is one thing to come up with an idea and another to hold that idea in your hand as a physical object. I’ve evolved a bit artistically since I was working on these, so to my current eye there are a few things I might do differently if I was doing them now. Mental notes for the next project. That said, I’m positive you all will be as happy with them as I am.

I am sure some of you will have moved since October 2021. If this applies to you, please send me an updated address to the email below:

[email removed for spam]

as soon as possible. The last thing I want is for any of my backers to lose out on their rewards because they were sent to the wrong place, especially after all this! Once we have your updated addresses, we shouldn’t need anything more from you. An email confirming you have the cards when they arrive would be nice but is by no means required. Please remember that delays do happen despite our best intentions. I will make sure you are as up to date on progress as I can manage to keep you. Final push here people, so let's get this done!

If you are reading this as a Kickstarter update, this will likely be the last update from me on their platform. Any further messaging on the Kickstarter platform going forward will NOT be from me. The Kickstarter itself was set up by Gakondo LLC, and as such I can’t lock them out. Any further updates will go out to you from the same email address listed here, [email removed for spam]. Should any of you need to contact me directly you can email me there, direct message me on Instagram at @chaka_laker_ojok or reach me through my website at www.chakalaker-ojok.com.

I sincerely appreciate all of you for your support and infinite patience, without which this may never have come to be. Thank you,

Chaka Laker-Ojok

PS> Beware that any Dark Continent prints, t-shirts, cards or any other Dark Continent related merchandise sold through Gakondo, gakondo_origins, gakondocards, gakondobrand, or any variation there of going forward will be unauthorized by myself, the copyright holder.

[hsbc]

The following images were provided to me by WJPC as the finished products.

He also has a shop on his website with a free downloadable guidebook, and decks, shirts, and prints

[steampunk52]

Mine arrived yesterday. Pleasantly surprised, as I had written the project off as a bust.

[hsbc]

[EndersGame]

Kudos to the artist for making this happen.

Such a shame that something went wrong somewhere with Gakondo in fulfilling this.

[hsbc]

... Almost done shipping packages. Given the volume and just me having to handle it, it's taking a while but I'm getting there. The outpour of support has been very overwhelming and I appreciate every one of you! Most US orders are done and international is being worked on. Those of you in the UK, you'll be getting your decks soon ...

[Adamthinks]

Explorer Edition $12
https://socalplayingcards.com/collectio ... ying-cards

Standard Edition $12
https://socalplayingcards.com/collectio ... ying-cards

[hsbc]

I've been holding back from posting individual decks in SoCal's clearance section -- there are usually 2 in stock at most and various decks come and go within hours

[Adamthinks]

I've been holding back from posting individual decks in SoCal's clearance section -- there are usually 2 in stock at most and various decks come and go within hours

Same here, but these have been up all day so far ( I grabbed one this morning).