NEW ADD-ON:

If you donated at the Dice Master level and would like the optional Lid Add-On as described in the Update 4 Video, you can now do that by donating an extra time and choosing the $19 Lid perk.

Who We Are:

My name is Rodney Smith. Because of your past support, my friends and family have been creating videos dedicated to teaching and playing board games for 4 years. Our goal is to:

• Fully teach you the game, so you can skip the rule book.
• Play the game, so you can see how it works and decide if it is a good fit for you.
• Create a community where you are a valued participant, not just a content consumer.
• Spread awareness of this hobby and make it easier for more people to discover and enjoy tabletop gaming.

What We Need & What You Get

Donations to Watch It Played enable me to work on the series in a full-time capacity, allowing me to achieve a consistent release schedule while maintaining the best quality of videos we can produce. Plus you'll get donation perks (see Perks section)!

In the past year we posted 166 videos, averaging a new video every 2 days.

In these videos we:

• Taught 32 Games
• Played 12 Games
• Held 26 Table Talk Segments
• Previewed 10 Games
• Previewed 8 Products
• Created 27 Contest, News and Unboxing Videos
• Posted 17 Videos from GAMA

Why I Need Your Support

I have had the privilege of working on Watch It Played full time because of the support of my family, sponsors and viewers like yourself.  The money I make from the show is how I contribute financially to my family, which allows me to keep creating videos.

If you have enjoyed some of the videos we create, please consider making a donation and claiming a perk!

Stretch Goals

I try to set my fundraiser goal at a level which does not seem extravagant, but the reality is, taxes and fees will claim a large percentage of the fundraiser earnings. The more we earn, the more that can go back into enabling me to continue and grow the show.  My hope is that the stretch goals will reward your efforts! More stretch goals may be added as the campaign continues.

Stretch Goals that have been completed will become unlocked:

GOAL: $42,000 - Season Five Funded! This goal is actually less than what I really need in order to continue creating content at the current pace I am maintaining, but this will ensure I have the financial means to continue, even if it means I need to scale back a bit (see below).

STRETCH GOAL: $50,000 - Bonus Promos Everyone who backed to get a particular promo bundle, now gets one extra promo for free.

STRETCH GOAL: $55,000 - New Show Segment Monthly Live Q&A with Pep and Rod. We'll have a show format that involves discussing board game news, games we've been playing and answering viewer questions live.

STRETCH GOAL: $60,000 - Full Steam Ahead This is less of a stretch goal, and more of a bench mark of where funding needs to get to, for me to be able to keep putting out video content at the current pace I've been doing. This is the ideal minimum I'd like to see the fundraiser climb to, given the current time that content creation requires.

STRETCH GOAL: $65,000+ A Helping Hand One of the challenges of working on the show, is wanting to continue to create more content, but still being only one person. If I can raise this amount, then I will have the extra I need to start investing back into getting help creating content and putting out more videos on the channel. Anything I raise above this level will contribute to that goal.

Tracking Our Progress!

Our funding goal of $42,000 represents $3,500 per month, for 12 months. As we reach each successive $3,500 landmark, we'll mark a spot on the calendar as FUNDED. If we fall short of our goal, then we'll at least be able to record for the funded months. (Note: My schedule kept me from launching the fundraiser in June, when the season officially ended, so that is why are starting this season in July).

If you want to keep me at it, all year long, then let's see if we can fund the full season!

Season 5 Perks!

Unique Promo Cards: I am thrilled to announce that several publishers who are friends of Watch It Played have created some exclusive promos for me to send out to our backers.

These are not essential for play, but act as special mementos of the games you've seen on our show, and symbols of our appreciation for your support. See further down for promo options from the previous season.

Note: Delivery of these promos will be dependent on when I get copies from the publishers. I will keep you updated during the campaign and in regular fundraiser updates following it.

Note: To ensure all backers have the best chance of getting each promo card they want, you may not request duplicates within the same donation.

Note: Each promo is a single card. If you want all of the Legacy promos, when making your selection, these will count as 3 cards.

Imperial Settlers Promo: This year I wanted to have a promo to commemorate the people who have watched and been a part of our series for the past 4 years, so I asked Portal Games if we could make a promo card specifically for you guys! Thanks to Portal for the great results:

Dead Of Winter Andrea Promo: Our friends at Plaid Hat Games made this fantastic card, featuring Andrea, who loves to snowboard:

Euphoria Promo: Our friends at Stonemaier Games created this great promo that captures our title in a perfectly functional way within the game world:

Bottom Of The 9th Pep Promo: My pal Pep gets his own Promo card, thanks to the kind folks at Dice Hate Me Games:

LAST SEASON PROMOS
In addition to the new promos, I have some extras from last season.
WARNING: Any promo with a title header in RED on this page may be in limited quantities, so should I run out during fulfillment, you may be requested to select different options, or your fulfillment may be delayed as I try to get additional copies. So, to clarify: at the end of the campaign when you are given a survey to resolve your chosen perk, you are not guaranteed to get any of the promos in RED (though it is VERY likely that you will)!

Dead Of Winter Luke Promo: Our friends at Plaid Hat Games made this fantastic card, featuring Luke:

Xenoshyft Promo: When I played Xenoshyft, I developed a favorite two-part strategy: 1) Build lots of bombs. 2) Load my paratroopers up with them.  So it was a total treat that the Cool Mini or Not gang agreed to combine my two favorite things into a single card! The R.O.D. Android was designed to fly in carrying a devastating payload, so if it's assault didn't pay off, it would at least squish some bugs on the way out:

Legacy: The Testament of Duke De Crecy Promo 1, 2 and 3: Our friends at Portal Publishing let me try my hand at designing some characters for their game! These have backs from the first edition of the game, but when shuffled into your deck, they don't break the game play if you have a later edition

Pixel Tactics Promo 1, 2, 3 and 4: The crew at Level99 Games designed some great cards to bring not just Luke and I into your games, but also Chaz and Diego who have been working with Watch It Played longer than anyone else, with their great musical intro and animations.

Roll For It Express - Watch It Played Promo: A simplified version of Roll For It, using a single card and 6 dice!

Unique Digital Art: Two years ago we had several digital prints created based on moments from our play-throughs. Our fundraisers are the only way to get these high resolution digital files, which you can then print out on photo paper to display proudly, or to use as digital Wallpaper. The final images do not include any text.

Scott King Exclusive Watch It Played 2016 Calendar: Scott King is a noted photographer who lends his incredible talent to the board gaming hobby, which he also collects into a 12 month calendar.  Along with fundraising for his calendar, this year he has created a special Watch It Played edition, featuring only games we've covered on our series.  As a special thanks to our higher level backers (or as seperate Add-On donation, see below), you will receive this collection of 12 brilliant gaming images:

The Watch It Played Dice Tray: I've often been asked: "Where can I get that dice tray you show in your videos?". As it turns out, it's just a picture frame that I converted, but I agree with you, I think it's pretty great!

Thanks to my friends over at Daedalus Productions, we're going to be making some for you, based on this same design, with some upgraded features! Full production of these won't happen until... well, we don't know exactly when, but it'll be later. However, Daedalus has agreed to make a limited early run for us to offer during this fundraiser. We are going to make 50 available at this time, as a big thank you to our supporters who each year donate above and beyond.

Shipping for the Dice Tray will be dependent on your location, see the related perk level for details and add that to your total pledge amount.

The storage area for dice is clamped into place using strong magnets. See the fundraiser video for examples of the tray in action.

We hope you'll agree, this is going to make a classy addition to your table, and act as a meaningful connection to this show you've helped make possible.

Disclaimer: Using this dice tray will not necessarily improve the values you roll on your dice, but if you prove that suggests otherwise - let us know!

Add-Ons

$40 - The Watch It Played Calendar. Includes shipping. To select this option when making your pledge, simply choose the regular perk level that you want, and donate at that amount + $40. During fulfillment (after the fundraiser is over) you will be able to specify that you chose a calendar as well.