The Successor by TGW/Kevin Cantrell

[RandyButterfield]

You know the first day is so important for playing cards campaigns. I'm going to be doing my best to make sure as many people know about this launch as possible. Lately I've noticed a disturbing trend (if you are a KS creator making decks). Most projects lately have been idling at about between 400-800 backers. This is a low number historically. Odd Fellows had 1700. That was the last big one--and that was a while back. I'm curious to see how Jackson's LOTR does. I'm worried that theres just less interest all around in playing cards. Maybe its that there hasn't been a real 'mega' campaign that has grabbed people's attention.

The Red Rising Decks ended with 1,882 Backers, just last month. Sure, that drew in a lot of fans of the books, but I definitely recognized a lot of names in the Backer List! I would consider that a mega campaign.

Personally, I think Decks with “Luxury” themes are getting played out. A lot of KS creators keep trying to 1-Up each other with a billion Foils, Embossing, Debossing, Diecut Tucks, crazy Premium Boxes…. They’re all competing to attract the niche market of high-end Playing Card collectors who spend hundreds of dollars on one campaign. That’s the bubble that’s gonna burst some day.

That’s just my opinion though.

Thanks, Randy

[balrog326]

I know I'm only one collector but personally I am more excited for this then any other campaign coming out for 2022. It's my #1 goal of the year to get one of those prototypes so I hope my computer is quick enough when it goes live. I feel like the presentation behind this series in regards to the sarcophagus and metal plated decks is far better then any other upcoming campaigns IMO. Its not just a special carat case or a wooden box with a coin on it, its truly unique display that will be at the center of folks collection's. I feel like this campaign will bring the same excitement as Odd Fellows did with so many unique options available though with a more refined luxurious aspect. I wouldn't doubt yourself Omar , you will breathe a sigh of relief just as Lorenzo did for EOTO when it went live and he realized all his hard paid off. This one will def make top 10 of this year (to echo the sentiment of others) .

[TheGentlemanWake]

You know the first day is so important for playing cards campaigns. I'm going to be doing my best to make sure as many people know about this launch as possible. Lately I've noticed a disturbing trend (if you are a KS creator making decks). Most projects lately have been idling at about between 400-800 backers. This is a low number historically. Odd Fellows had 1700. That was the last big one--and that was a while back. I'm curious to see how Jackson's LOTR does. I'm worried that theres just less interest all around in playing cards. Maybe its that there hasn't been a real 'mega' campaign that has grabbed people's attention.

The Red Rising Decks ended with 1,882 Backers, just last month. Sure, that drew in a lot of fans of the books, but I definitely recognized a lot of names in the Backer List! I would consider that a mega campaign.

Personally, I think Decks with “Luxury” themes are getting played out. A lot of KS creators keep trying to 1-Up each other with a billion Foils, Embossing, Debossing, Diecut Tucks, crazy Premium Boxes…. They’re all competing to attract the niche market of high-end Playing Card collectors who spend hundreds of dollars on one campaign. That’s the bubble that’s gonna burst some day.

That’s just my opinion though.

Thanks, Randy

I missed that one. And congrats on the strong showing! This certainly gives me hope.

I hope for my sake Luxury decks don’t stop being a thing. Because that’s literally the only kind of product I put out.

[TheGentlemanWake]

I know I'm only one collector but personally I am more excited for this then any other campaign coming out for 2022. It's my #1 goal of the year to get one of those prototypes so I hope my computer is quick enough when it goes live. I feel like the presentation behind this series in regards to the sarcophagus and metal plated decks is far better then any other upcoming campaigns IMO. Its not just a special carat case or a wooden box with a coin on it, its truly unique display that will be at the center of folks collection's. I feel like this campaign will bring the same excitement as Odd Fellows did with so many unique options available though with a more refined luxurious aspect. I wouldn't doubt yourself Omar , you will breathe a sigh of relief just as Lorenzo did for EOTO when it went live and he realized all his hard paid off. This one will def make top 10 of this year (to echo the sentiment of others) .

Thank you for this vote of confidence. It means a lot.

[GandalfPC]

I would add that the Eye of the Ocean was huge, not because it was in the past but because the cards were gorgeous. The market may get more selective, but it will always recognize greatness.

[TheGentlemanWake]

I read somewhere that Tuck boxes sell cards.

[steampunk52]

I read somewhere that Tuck boxes sell cards. 6A7D83FD-FA6F-4565-9AAC-B76A4A64DE1F.jpeg

That’s dope. (Yes, I just hinted at my age)

[GandalfPC]

I would imagine that tuck boxes to indeed sell cards - but as card mafia has proven to me with the Iron Man series - no tuck box will get me to buy ugly cards.

For me personally, I would much sooner buy nice cards in a plain tuck than a nice tuck with plain cards.

I do like the Successor cards - to what degree I am waiting to determine once the campaign launches - but that will be my determining factor in what I buy, as I will not go for the Box or Prototypes unless the cards win me over.

[TheGentlemanWake]

Yeah. Good news is tho once the Cartamundi prototype cards come in with gold cold foil I think it’ll be a case of cards and tuck selling each other.

[GandalfPC]

When the cards and tuck sell each other, my bank account suffers.

[Fenrir]

I read somewhere that Tuck boxes sell cards. 6A7D83FD-FA6F-4565-9AAC-B76A4A64DE1F.jpeg

I think this is an accurate quote. That being said I bought the Dynastinae TOTT deck for that beautiful tuck but I can tell you that the deck is ruined for me by the card color. The mismatch is unbearable for me.

[TheGentlemanWake]

That was our Greek friend. Lol.

[TheGentlemanWake]

Some prism shots.

[Fenrir]

That was our Greek friend. Lol.

Haha, well it is my least favourite part and absolutely hurts me to the core.

[Harvonsgard]

That might be the first time I see diffraction foil used in a fitting and tasteful manner. Tip to the hat.

[EndersGame]

I would have a slightly more optimistic view on the current state of the market on Kickstarter. In mid 2021, I did a Top 40 list of the all-time most grossing Kickstarter projects for playing cards. You can see the results here:

Kickstarter Rockstars, Part 1: The Top 20 Most Funded Decks of Playing Cards of All Time
Kickstarter Rockstars, Part 2: The Top 40 Most Funded Decks of Playing Cards of All Time

In my final conclusions, I made the observation that 2020-2021 were big years:

"The years 2020-2021 were big. It is astounding to observe that nearly half of the projects in this top 40 list are from the last year and a half. In fact, projects from 2020 and 2021 represent 11 of the places in the initial Top 20. That means that a list of Top 20 most funded playing card projects would have looked drastically different less than two years ago. That gives good reason to suggest that crowdfunded custom playing cards haven't peaked yet. If anything, we can expect this trend to continue, and can anticipate Kickstarter projects for playing cards to continue generating big numbers well into 2022. The playing card industry continues to generate momentum, and is attracting a large base of support with a growing number of collectors and enthusiasts. We've seen some top quality projects in recent times, and recent successes give us a reliable basis for predicting that we can anticipate more stunning projects with big support figures in the next year or two, which will knock many entries off this list."

I don't believe that trend has altogether stopped. Since that time, we have had two projects hit over a million dollars in funding for the first time ever (see coverage on the first and on the second).

There are some key factors that determine success, one of them being previous success. If a creator has produced previously, that makes a huge difference. And that's exactly what Gentleman Wake has done, because he already has an established following. We saw something similar with Artisan Playing Cards projects - each one proved to generate more funds than the previous one.

So I think there is good reason to be very optimistic about the success of The Successor, Omar, and I anticipate it will do very well indeed. Especially given how much thought Omar puts into everything, as is clear from this thread. All the best as you keep working on this!

[GandalfPC]

I have also seen several outstanding campaigns, including one of the million dollar ones, where the creators were very unsure of how well the public would respond - it seems to be the plight of artists that make great things that they know are great, then doubt they are great enough, then find that the public is astounded that they didn’t know how great it was…

[TheGentlemanWake]

So I think there is good reason to be very optimistic about the success of The Successor, Omar, and I anticipate it will do very well indeed. Especially given how much thought Omar puts into everything, as is clear from this thread. All the best as you keep working on this!

Thanks for the perspective Richard

[TheGentlemanWake]

I have also seen several outstanding campaigns, including one of the million dollar ones, where the creators were very unsure of how well the public would respond - it seems to be the plight of artists that make great things that they know are great, then doubt they are great enough, then find that the public is astounded that they didn’t know how great it was…

I think the typical artist journey always includes a massive amount of self doubt. It’s the nature of pouring yourself into something. It’s personal somehow.

[STLBluesNut]

that prism tuck looks beautiful! it could fetch a good price as an add on and i would definitely buy it.

[TheGentlemanWake]

The Successor Monarch White Edition will feature a gorgeously foil embossed outer tuck sleeve with a zinc alloy cast antique gold sculpt of the coronation.

[brownsl]

That tuck looks awesome. Looking forward to this launching.

[TheGentlemanWake]

The prism sleeve.

[Harvonsgard]

I really LOVE the courts Lotrék did for your Tale of the Tempest. That said overall these decks will continue raising the bar for your brand.

[TheGentlemanWake]

I really LOVE the courts Lotrék did for your Tale of the Tempest. That said overall these decks will continue raising the bar for your brand.

Thanks H! Lotreks courts are indeed gorgeous to be sure. But I agree. This deck project is exceeding even my high expectations so far. Studio Pression is absolutely killing the tuck box printing. Kevin’s art is even better given the dimensionality of actual foil on paper. His work can come across a bit flat until you see it physically printed. The texture does so much. I’m super pleased with the metal work as well and although it’s been done before by a few folks, I think the sculpture adds a nice bit of authenticity to the series. It really looks like it could’ve been sculpted in the 14th century. I will have images of the red, blue and black tucks soon!

[Fenrir]

Omar when can we expect to see images of the courts? I really like Kevin's style and I am really looking forward to seeing what is done on those cards. Sorry if I missed previous photos.

[TheGentlemanWake]

Omar when can we expect to see images of the courts? I really like Kevin's style and I am really looking forward to seeing what is done on those cards. Sorry if I missed previous photos.

Cartamundi just sent word that the prototype decks will be done this Friday. I should have them in hand by beginning of next week. I’ll be taking photos as soon as I can. Can’t wait to see the cold foil on these cards!

Generally speaking I can tell you they are inspired by standard courts and he’s kept a very 14th century style to them. The aces and spot cards are spectacular too.

[Fenrir]

Omar when can we expect to see images of the courts? I really like Kevin's style and I am really looking forward to seeing what is done on those cards. Sorry if I missed previous photos.

Cartamundi just sent word that the prototype decks will be done this Friday. I should have them in hand by beginning of next week. I’ll be taking photos as soon as I can. Can’t wait to see the cold foil on these cards!

Generally speaking I can tell you they are inspired by standard courts and he’s kept a very 14th century style to them. The aces and spot cards are spectacular too.

Looking forward to seeing them. I am not sure my brain can accurately capture what they might look like. Kevin does some incredible custom courts but hopefully some of that same style shows through.

[gacktvam]

The Successor Monarch White Edition will feature a gorgeously foil embossed outer tuck sleeve with a zinc alloy cast antique gold sculpt of the coronation.

is the zinc alloy sculpt got to be sticked on the tuck like Steve Minty did on the Ascension Signature Edition?

[TheGentlemanWake]

The Successor Monarch White Edition will feature a gorgeously foil embossed outer tuck sleeve with a zinc alloy cast antique gold sculpt of the coronation.

is the zinc alloy sculpt got to be sticked on the tuck like Steve Minty did on the Ascension Signature Edition?

That is correct. It will be glued on the sleeve. Then the sleev goes over the tuck case.