Actual play troupe Legends of Avantris launched the Kickstarter for its second D&D supplement, Neon Odyssey, on May 5. At time of writing, the space opera D&D spinoff has had just over a day to crowdfund, and it's already raised over $5 million. That officially makes it the most successful Dungeons and Dragons Kickstarter of all time.
Neon Odyssey is a trilogy of sourcebooks that turn your typical DnD classes and DnD races into spacefarers. New mechanics mean that staples of the scifi genre - from podracing to bounty hunting to starship battles - are all on the table. Avantris previously told us about the nostalgic, hopeful vibes of the books (and even gave us a cheeky subclass preview).
The Kickstarter page itself is about as luxurious as crowdfunders get. There's an entire animated music video for an original song by The Midnight.
Avantris has drip-fed us streams of gorgeous neon artwork in the lead up to the campaign, and this is displayed in its full glory, splayed across deluxe book covers and oracle cards. High-end pledges come with starship minis, glossy map packs, pins, plushies, and enough dice to fill a brightly-colored ball pit.
No wonder, then, that Avantris credits over 120 individuals with the creation of Neon Odyssey. Avantris Entertainment says it was able to form a "full publishing company" after the success of its first Kickstarter - the $4 million horror supplement, The Crooked Moon.
It's no surprise, either, that pledges can get pricey. At the bottom, a single PDF costs $30, with all three books available digitally for $80. One physical book goes for $65 (which, according to the Kickstarter, is $35 off its RRP). A complete physical trilogy costs $165, while the deluxe alternate covers are available for $240.
There's a complete digital pack that adds VTT tools, art packs, and more to your PDFs for $195. Meanwhile, the physical $250 core box adds battle maps, reference cards, dice, a dice bag, and a handful of pins.
Now we're getting into the sky-high luxury zone. A $350 digital all-in comes with STLs for Neon Odyssey's official minis, while the $495 deluxe box adds a GM screen, more pins, more maps, and even more dice to your deluxe books. If you want the physical all-in, that'll cost you $999. That gives you access to physical minis, three cute plushies, an oracle deck, and, frankly, more accessories than I have the word count to list.
Heck, there's even limited signed copies of the books available. Anyone who wants their favorite actual players to sign the books needs to pay $750 (standard covers) or $1,500 (deluxe covers) for the pleasure.
It's a premium product, but the premium pricing hasn't put fans off. The $999 all-in option is the third-most popular pledge tier, falling only slightly behind the core book trilogy.
With 28 days of funding left, Avantris Entertainment has already blasted well past its $60,000 goal. It might not have beaten the top tabletop RPG crowdfunders (those honors still go to Brandon Sanderson's Cosmere RPG), but it's a masterclass in Kickstarter marketing - and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't tempted to make a pledge.
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