Updated: January 12, 2025;       Posted January 6, 2025

UPDATES: FAQ and More Info
Outlook for Fantasy Series Miniatures

This below Updates are follow-ups from our initial announcment Wildspire Acquires Fantasy Series Miniatures from Blacklist Games

Update #2: Quick Check-in & Fantasy Series STL

January 12, 2025

Hi all,

Thanks again to all of you who have taken the time to fill out our questionnaire. We appreciate the vast majority of feedback. Whether you are still interested in getting the minis, or have already checked out and are no longer interested, we really respect and understand all sides.

Current stats for the 900+ responses to the questionnaire:

-  Roughly 35% of you responded “very interested” in still getting the FS2 minis via a new crowdfunding campaign, of course depending on the price.
-  A bit more than 50% of you are a “Maybe”.
-  While, roughly 8% have responded with a “I’ve moved on.”

While we are eager to make a decision on how to proceed, we are still waiting to aggregate feedback from the majority of original BLG backers, who will likely become aware of the situation once BLG/Alex posts an update directly to the Lasting Tales Kickstarter page. Hopefully soon.

FS2 STL - Pre-supported versions to be available by mid February

As mentioned in our previous Update #1 and FAQ, we are working on the FS2 STL to distribute to you all free-of-charge. Below, there are photos of some of the test prints.

We expect to make all pre-supported FS2 STL (106 STL total) available —only for original backers— by mid-Feb. It will take a few weeks because we need to add supports, modify some models to be print friendly, test print all of them, adjust models if needed, while also arranging the digital downloads logistics.

For anyone who doesn’t want to wait for supports, and prefers to do them yourself, we are looking into the possibility of offering you access to the unsupported STL sooner. Before we do this, we want to test print them ourselves, as some models may need to be modified (e.g. thin parts like weapons or cape overhangs that break easily while printing). We also want to first split a few models that are too big to fit on most 3D printer plates. This still may take a couple weeks. Please stay tuned, we are working on it.

For downloads, the plan is to use Backerkit or something similar because it would allow us to ensure that only original backers can download them. Yes, BLG/Alex has given us the list of backer details and emails, which we will use to confirm original backers. However, at this time, we only have the Gamefound pledge manager details, but hope to also obtain the Kickstarter backer list. The KS list is not critical, as it would only help us to more easily confirm the —typically small %— of backers that didn’t fill out the pledge manager.

In the meantime, we have not forgotten about the FS1 and Horror Series (HS) minis (from Dire Alliance). After distributing all the FS2 STL, we will start working on adding supports to the Horror Series minis. We are also looking at offering FS1 and HS unsupported STL before the supported files are ready. But, again, we want to test print them first ourselves.

We have a full schedule ahead of us related to getting these to you all, while working on planning for production of the physical miniatures. Atop our list of priorities is frequent and open communication, so please stay tuned and drop feedback at anytime.

FS2 - 3D Print Tests - Prints and Quick Photos 

Printed with Elgoo Saturn 4 using water-washable resin from Sunlu. These are some quick photos of Test 3D prints, so, for now, please excuse the debris and less-than-professional photos. Thanks! 

Djinn (Print)

Cyclops  (Print)

Male Dwarf Bard  (Print and primed)

 Chimera  (Print)

 Male Elf Cleric  (Print)

 Crocodile vs Monk  (Print)

Update #1: FAQ

January 6, 2025

We have been reading through all of your responses to our questionnaire and so far it has been very helpful.

As we continue to weigh options of how to best help BLG’s original backers, we have decided to give all FS2 STL to original backers for free, as well as those of FS1 if you never received your physical minis. The same goes for the STL of the Horror Series miniatures, which we can confirm we did also purchase. Details below. 

We understand your willingness to back a new campaign for FS2 depends largely on the price and value, as well as our level of communication and transparency along the way.  Our main goal with any new project would be to provide the opportunity for you to finally obtain the miniatures. We feel very strongly about offering you all this option. For us to purchase the assets, then ignore backers and go on our own way would not be tenable or conscionable from either a personal or business perspective.

At this time, we are working on cost estimates and once we have details, particularly our proposed price for the FS1 and FS2 sets, we will poll the backer base for feedback. 

Below, we try to answer many of your questions, and will add on to this FAQ when more questions can be answered more clearly.

 If you want to provide feedback and get future updates on our project progress, the link to our questionnaire is below. 

FAQ  (as of January 6, 2025)

Is Wildspire partnering with BLG or Alex Lim for this new project or any others?

No, there will not be any form of collaboration with them for this new project or any future project. Our purchase of BLG assets was the full extent of our contact with BLG or Alex Lim.

We saw the amount of interest the Fantasy Series miniatures received, and we even backed FS2. A couple years passed, while Wildspire continued to grow. In mid-2024, we emailed the BLG email address on their website and inquired about buying the FS assets. Ultimately, Wildspire purchased the FS minis because we know many of you want them, therefore we want to make it happen.

Backers already paid BLG for the FS minis and shipping in BLG’s campaigns, can Wildspire provide them free-of-charge and backers will cover shipping?

By reading through your questionnaire replies, we are grateful that the majority of you understand why funding is needed to get the minis produced finally. We will provide details at a later date, but we promise to deliver the miniatures to you at a price that shows we care about the community more than short-term profit.

To clarify, the miniatures for the Lasting Tales campaign were not produced. Therefore, we, Wildspire, will need to produce them if you still want them. This involves a full production cycle --making moulds, mass production, packaging, shipping-- with all the involved costs. BLG sold us the STL, which are only the starting point to producing the minis. This will be a new project by a different company –Wildspire– that has received none of the funding of the original Fantasy Series 2 campaign.

There are over 12,000 backers worldwide who paid for the FS2 sets in the Lastings Tales campaign. Each set is roughly 200 miniatures, all of which need to be manufactured. Additionally, the cost of shipping all units to your doorsteps is a huge amount as well. We promise to offer them at a greatly reduced price, which is a matter of goodwill to the community because we understand how popular the original campaign was.

Shipping costs are variable depending on destination, number of units ordered, geopolitical factors, and more. So, we will ask backers to bear the shipping costs for your respective orders. To keep shipping costs relatively low, we foresee packaging the miniatures in a similar way to how Reaper miniatures packages their bulk minis, but our plan is to use far fewer plastic bags with groups of 10 or so minis per bag. Because our FS miniatures will be hard plastic, they should not bend or break under normal shipping conditions.
 
If you still want the minis, then we invite you to stay tuned for more info soon.

Why didn't Wildspire buy the FS2 moulds from BLG?

The moulds were not made available to us when we inquired about them. We do not know the specific state or location of the moulds, nor did we receive or review any info related to them. So, we need to make all the moulds before we can produce the miniatures.

What of the STL? Will you give those to original backers?

Yes, we will give STL from FS2, a total of 106 STL, to original FS2 backers for free. It's not an ideal solution for those of you without access to printers. We want to do more to earn your trust as we begin the process of delivering what we promise.

If you bought a copy of the FS1 miniatures and never received it, we will give you those STL for free also.

For now, we are working on adding supports to the STL for ease of 3D printing. As for the question of how to best distribute these all to you to download, we are looking into options and will follow up soon when we have a solution.
 
Will Wildspire’s set of the FS2 miniatures  be different from those originally offered by BLG?

At this time, we can say that our FS2 sets will contain all the same miniatures as shown in the Lasting Tales campaign. However, we are remaking a handful of the models that we think are lacking in detail. The minis will be the same hard plastic as some may recognize from the FS1 sets. We are working with our factory to design the moulds, so there might be some minor changes, which we will update you on when we have news.

We plan to design the moulds specifically so similar themed miniatures are grouped together. This is tedious, puzzle-like work but we will ultimately choose the most optimal and feasible mould layouts. Our aim is to make it easier for those of you who do not want to pay for the entire set, but still want a subset of the minis.

Wildspire will make minor upgrades to the minis:
- Remake a handful of the 3D models that are lacking in detail (owlbear, griffon, bear, wolf, and possibly more).
- We will make new the bases with textures (e.g. cobblestones, cracked earth, etc).
 
It's still relatively early, so we are open to suggestions for other improvements, upgrades, etc.

Can we trust Wildspire to deliver?

We understand the vital importance of succeeding with these miniatures and taking care of backers. We are an established business with a solid track record in mass producing miniatures. As an established company with a strong reputation, we have more to lose.

We want to emphasize that any new project will primarily be aimed at offering original backers a chance to get the minis and at a great price that reflects our respect for the community. We do not want to turn out back on you all, even though the original campaign was not created by us. 
 
We do not have an unhealthy reliance on crowdfunding, although it is a valued part of the business in multiple ways. From a funding perspective, we believe that crowdfunding should be used by companies to bring a product idea to life without falling back on traditional financing channels, such as bank loans. From a people perspective, crowdfunding can be a great experience for creators and backers to interface directly. We genuinely enjoy offering the loyal backers the first chance to get our new products at a great price.

 If backers purchased multiple units of FS2 originally, will you also apply the special price to all units in your campaign or just one unit? 

Yes, we will grant the discounted pricing on all units that you already paid for in the BLG campaign.

Did you acquire the Lasting Tale game and content?

No, it is our understanding BLG will still try to fulfill it to their backers, separately from our miniatures. Fulfilling the miniatures is our main focus for now.

Did Wildspire also buy the Horror Series Miniatures from BLG?

Yes, we bought the Horror Series STL, as well. We are planning to announce that separately, and wanted our first announcement to focus on Fantasy Series. Apologies for any confusion this caused.
 
BLG/Alex has stated that all the Dire Alliance rewards (including minis) are already produced. So, there was no place for us to try to also fulfill Horror Series miniatures to Dire Alliance backers.
 
In the meantime, Wildspire will give all original Dire Alliance backers the STL for free. Announcement to follow and please stay tuned. We did not buy the moulds as it has been stated that BLG already completed, but has yet to ship, all the rewards owed to backers. We may use them as a part of a different horror or dark fantasy miniatures set, but have not decided yet.

That’s it for this portion of addressing responses to our questionnaire. More info to come soon.
 

December 31, 2024  

Some info in the below post may be out-dated now. See our most recent Update and FAQ post for more current info

Wildspire Acquires Fantasy Series Miniatures from Blacklist Games

Wildspire Miniatures is excited to announce we have acquired the Fantasy Series miniatures, including both Fantasy: Series 1 and Fantasy: Series 2, from Blacklist Games.

Specifically, we have acquired:

Fantasy: Series 1 (FS1): Wildspire acquired all intellectual property (IP) and associated rights related to the miniatures, digital assets (3D models and artwork), and production moulds. We did not acquire the scenery and doors miniatures.

Fantasy: Series 2 (FS2): Wildspire acquired all IP and associated rights related to the miniatures, as well as digital assets (3D models and artwork). However, we did not acquire production moulds or the game content associated with "Lasting Tales." We did not acquire the scenery, doors, or dice packs.

See Blacklist Games' website for their own announcement. 

Our plan for FS2 is yet to be fully determined, as we first want to gauge the community’s feedback. We do have some ideas in mind, which are laid out below.

The FS2 production moulds have not been produced yet, so a fair amount of work/time is needed before the minis can be delivered. If we start making the moulds tomorrow, the minis would not arrive to customers until Summer 2025, at the earliest.

At this time, we are leaning towards crowdfunding FS2 production (moulds and the initial production batch). A crowdfunding campaign would allow us to raise the funds needed to produce all the moulds/minis at once, while engaging with original backers and offering them special discounts and perks.
 
If we, Wildspire, self-fund FS2 production, then realistically we would not produce all moulds and minis at once. It would be financially and operationally prudent for us to roll out the minis over a year or so, maybe longer. For example, in early 2025 we invest in producing just the hero/player-character moulds, and package them in differentiated sets. Then in mid-late 2025, we produce the monster minis, etc.

We are sensitive about asking for backers to pay again for minis that have been subject to so much frustration and waning enthusiasm. We get it, so if you do not pledge for our hypothetical campaign, there will be a deal waiting for you (not as great as the campaign deal, but still solid) once they eventually hit the market and become widely available.

In addition, we are considering releasing the FS2 STL to any interested backers at heavily discounted price for original backers only. TBD. And you express your interest in these in the below form link.

Anyway, again– an official decision will be made soon regarding FS2. We first want to hear from the original Kickstarter backers, who have not received their miniatures. We will also be carefully reading through the community’s response to this announcement in public forums, comment sections and our inboxes. If you want to be in the loop about the future of FS2, drop your email address here in this form and feel free to voice any questions you may have.

Wildspire Miniatures is a Texas-based company primarily engaged in designing, producing and selling unique fantasy miniatures for tabletop role-playing games, along with original companion content. Since 2019, Wildspire has been gradually expanding our catalog of mostly offbeat, original miniatures for fantasy tabletop RPG. Wildspire is built to create differentiated characters for the endless possibilities of your fantasy game settings. We look forward to engaging with the community and hope to bring a bit more fun and whimsy into your play. 

The Fantasy Series  miniatures were originally funded by Kickstarter backers. In May 2020, Fantasy: Series 1 was funded by 16,000+ backers, who collectively pledged $1,156,102. Then in April 2021, Fantasy: Series 2 was funded by 12,000+ backers, reaching $1,387,699.

The Fantasy Series is an impressive range of nearly 200 unique fantasy character models. It contains many of the most iconic and essential monsters, adversaries, play-characters and NPCs encountered in our favorite games, notably Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder and other fantasy roleplaying games.

The FS miniatures will be absorbed into Wildspire and branded under our new Classics line of miniatures. Because we have acquired the production moulds for FS1, the minis are ready to produce and will arrive on the market in early-mid 2025. Overall, these minis have been very well received due to their quality look, feel and high utility in many games, so we are very excited to get these to everyone.

As for FS2 miniatures, we only have the 3D models and concept art. Meanwhile, the thousands of original Kickstarter backers have yet to receive any form of the minis. We do not want to move forward with these miniatures if it means ignoring the community of backers. We have a soft spot for backers that never receive their products. The niche community thrives on crowdfunding, so we are compelled to help you all, as we are in a position to do so.

Plans Going Forward for Fantasy: Series 2

Our plan for FS2 is yet to be fully determined, as we first want to gauge the community’s feedback. We do have some ideas in mind, which are laid out below.

We have not made the FS2 production moulds yet, so a fair amount of work and time is needed before the minis can be delivered. If we start making the moulds tomorrow, the minis would not arrive to customers until Summer 2025, at the earliest.

At this time, we are leaning towards crowdfunding FS2 production (moulds and the initial production batch). A crowdfunding campaign would allow us to raise the funds needed to produce all the moulds/minis at once, while engaging with original backers and offering them special discounts and perks.
 
If we, Wildspire, self-fund FS2 production, then realistically we would not produce all moulds and minis at once. It would be financially and operationally prudent for us to roll out the minis over a year or so, maybe longer. For example, in early 2025 we invest in producing just the hero/player-character moulds, and package them in differentiated sets. Then in mid-late 2025, we produce the monster minis, etc.

We are sensitive about asking for backers to pay again for minis that have been subject to so much frustration and waning enthusiasm. We understand, and if you choose not to pledge for our campaign, there will still be a special offer available for you (not as great as the campaign deal, but still significant) once they eventually hit the market and become widely available.

In addition, we are considering releasing the FS2 STL to any interested backers at heavily discounted price for original backers only. TBD.

If you want to stay updated about the future of FS2, drop your email address by filling the short questionnaire below and feel free to voice any questions you may have.

An official decision will be made soon regarding FS2. We first want to hear from the original Kickstarter backers, who have not received their miniatures. We will also be carefully reading through the community’s response to this announcement in public forums, comment sections and our inboxes. But, also please use the above link to the questionnaire to provide your input on the specific questions for which we need clarity.

Outstanding FS1 sets

We understand many FS2 backers pledged for an FS1 add-on. For you all, if you are still interested in the minis, we will happily give you a considerable discount on our new FS1 minis sets. Exact pricing is TBD, but leave your email and relevant response in the above linked form to get updated.

As there are so many backers that did not get their FS1 set, we will most likely need to set-up a pre-order. The need for the pre-order is to ensure we do not over or under produce, and still get everyone the minis. Fill out the above form link your email, and we will email you once/if the pre-order store is set up.  

 If you do not wish to pre-order, we will still give you a good discount (although not as large as if you pre-ordered) once they are available to buy.
 
We will provide details in follow up messages to those who elect to provide their email and follow us.

We appreciate it and we are committed to not only the final product but also the people who help fund them!