Update 20 October 2021: WE ARE SHIPPING (1812-1s3)!

1812-1s3: Master of the World, 1812 in Russia, Series 3 is shipping!

We shipped all non-Australian pre-orders yesterday and Master of the World is now generally available.

* Australian pre-orders are directly impacted by a halt of inbound parcels to Australia from the US which went into effect 17 September 2021 due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. We are currently holding Australian orders while we await developments and investigate other delivery options.

Update 21 June 2021: What’s Coming with 1812-1s3?

A preview of what we’ve done with 1812-1. Checkout what changes are coming in 1812-1s3.

Update 17 June 2021: 1812-1s3 Submitted to Production

1812-1s3 is development and proofing complete, we’ve submitted it to production and are now waiting not-so-patiently for it to be ready to ship. Pre-pandemic production times were 30-45 days, but currently the print run is estimated at 12 weeks putting a release tentatively in late September 2021, i.e. late Q3 early Q4.

Update 3 Feb 2021: WE ARE SHIPPING (Iberia-1s3)!

Iberia-1s3: To Assure My Dynasty, 1808 in Iberia, Series 3 is shipping!

Pre-orders shipped yesterday and To Assure My Dynasty is now generally available!

TL;DR (Too long; didn’t read, i.e. summary):

We’re very sorry for how long this has taken, and most of all, that we haven’t been providing much in the way of status updates. So, we’d like to bring all of you up to speed.

  • Iberia-1s3: To Assure My Dynasty, 1808 in Iberia, is complete and scheduled to ship this month (December 2020 January 2021, see update 29 December 2020).
  • 1812-1s3: Master of the World, 1812 in Russia, is in-progress and will be the next book to ship after Iberia-1s3.

What can you expect from the Series 3 Edition of To Assure My Dynasty? Check out the summary here!

Update 29 December 2020:

Due to a major technical failure on the main production press of our printer, Iberia-1s3 will not ship in December 2020. The press went offline on 12 December and we have been receiving 2-3 updates per day while the printer works with the press vendor to resolve the issue.

This is a complete work stoppage for the printer’s core business making the degree to which we can pressure them is limited, as they are already as motivated as they can be. We have been been told our job (Iberia-1s3) will be the first to run. We are also considering options around moving to a different printer but would include other delays.

Details (Everything below elaborates on the above):

Our original plan in fall of 2019 was to perform moderate revisions to each of our ESR Campaign Guides as they went out-of-print and then reprint them, beginning with Iberia-1, early in 2020. What happened? A mix of feature creep and being victims of our own success, combined with an international pandemic. Add in equal parts and shake.

Clearly none of this came to pass as scheduled.

From 2009-2018, all of our books were created using the same software, it really was never intended to produce publications of the complexity or size that we create, and this was showing its shortcomings as early as 2016. So in 2018 we moved to something drastically more robust. The last title to use our old software and methods was 1812-2: Didn’t Dare Do Anything, 1812 in Russia in March 2019.

New software means new ways of doing things. So from 2018-2020 we created a new revised layout using crisper graphics and more precise formatting. The result looks really good, but…

Ever watched the movie Aliens?

Sigourney Weaver (Ellen Ripley) cleans a spot on the little girl’s face (Rebecca “Newt” Jorden, played by Carrie Henn) and then says, “Now I’ve done it, guess I’ll have to do the whole thing.”

Once we upgraded the look and feel of the layout and supporting materials, a lot of our content didn’t match what we’d just created. It was like buying a historic Victorian mansion and then filling it with furniture from your college dorm room. That couch was a good couch, it was comfy, but… it just didn’t look quite right in its new home.

Some things were already in the works, we’d started working on a new method for cartography back in mid-2018, but with the maps and layout graphics in a new sharper style… what about everything else? The text? The orders of battle? … the uniform plates… all the uniform plates…

Small revisions became a major change in product scope. That obviously caused delays. Additional pressure came in the form of success, with the popularity of our products continuing to grow, our stock of other titles dwindled and we were now in a position where we needed to move them to the new format rather than simply reprint them as-is. Lastly, the international pandemic and disruptions to our supply chain have of course compounded issues with scheduling because they lessen our ability to makeup for delays and lost time.

So where are things now?

Iberia-1s3: To Assure My Dynasty, 1808 in Iberia was completed in fall and should begin shipping this month pending its delivery, obviously we’re at the mercy of the holiday shipping season and coordination with our printer.

1812-1s3: Master of the World, 1812 in Russia is in-progress. Scenario battlefield maps are largely complete, the historical narrative is well along, general layout is complete, and the uniform guide is underway. We do not yet have an expected release date. It will be the next title we ship following Iberia-1s3.

If you’ve got an outstanding pre-order for one of our ESR Campaign Guides please know that you can cancel any time prior to shipment and receive a refund, you’re not indefinitely committed, especially when our release timelines have been forced to change.

Thank you to all of our customers for your collective understanding, we’re really proud of what we’ve produced, and can’t wait to begin shipping it.