Before All Others Announced

The Cyclopedia of Elven Civilization will Kickstarter This Summer

Jul 09, 2025

Before dwarves, before men, before halflings and gnomes...Before all others, there came the elves. This summer, Autarch is crowdfunding Before All Others: The Cyclopedia of Elven Civilization on Kickstarter. In this 200-page full-color tome you will find the secrets of the high and noble race of elves, compiled, codified, and curated for use in your favorite old-school fantasy role-playing game.

We expect to launch Before All Others in August 2025. Please sign up by clicking the link below to be notified when we launch so that you don't miss out on early-bird reward tiers and first-day backer incentives. A sourcebook this good only comes around once every 1,000-year lifespan!

And if you're interested in getting early access to Before All Others, sign up to become a Conqueror-tier members of the Autarch Patreon.

There Will Be Bitter War

Gamers who back the Before All Others Kickstarter will gain Early Access to the upcoming Domains at War: Battles computer game. You can see actual play footage of the Domains at War: Battles computer game in the video below:

Created by Lost Coast Studios, D@W: Battles will be the digital edition of the acclaimed tabletop wargame, designed for use with ACKS to resolve mass combat in your fantasy RPG. We will be using the D@W: Battles computer game to simulate the Bitter War between dwarves and elves, and every backer tier will have an opportunity for ‘combat command’ in the great war.

If you can’t wait to get involved, emperor-tier backers in our Patreon have already gotten full access to Domains at War: Battles computer game and are playtesting it now. It is already live, full-featured, and playable, with online and asynchronous multiplayer, though graphics remain minimalist at this stage.

Star-Spangled Summertime

Two years ago, we released Ascendant: Star-Spangled Squadron, the debut graphic novel in the Ascendant Universe. It’s available at Autarch Emporium, Amazon, and DriveThruComics.

This August we’ll be releasing Ascendant: Star-Spangled Squadron Volume II in PDF, with print and retail distribution to follow in January 2026. If you haven’t been following the rise of the Ascendant Universe, there’s never been a better time to get involved. After Star-Spangled Squadron Volume II ships, we’ll be launching Ascendant: Power Overwhelming, the latest sourcebook for the RPG, plus new short fiction, new adventures, and more.

Tell Me More of the Superheroics

If you’re like, “Woah, Alex, I didn’t even know you had an entire line of superhero RPGs and comics,” you’re not alone. I haven’t put nearly enough effort into marketing Ascendant as I ought to have.

Fortunately, my friend Rick Stump was kind enough to invite me onto his podcast, Lore With Rick, to talk about superheroes. Check out our 40-minute conversation at the link below:

ACKS II is Available Now on the Autarch Emporium…

On June 17th, ACKS II became available for purchase on the Autarch Emporium. They’re selling fast and it won’t be long until the entire first run of these black-and-gold PU leather offset-print books is sold out.

If you miss out on purchasing the books now, you’ll will have to wait until the books receive a second printing or settle for the print-on-demand!

Remember that when you purchase a hard copy on the Autarch Emporium, you get the PDF along with it. It will be delivered automatically to you via DriveThruRPG. Just check your DTRPG Library after your purchase.

And We’re Adventuring and Conquering on YouTube

Tom’s Gaming Table has begun a whole series of videos on ACKS II, of which the most popular so far has been his video “5 Reasons to Ditch D&D 5e for ACKS.”

The original teleplay was called “All the Reasons to Ditch D&D 5e for ACKS” but Tom’s Gaming Table was unable to commit to the necessary 10-season 80-episode documentary.

Meanwhile, Mythic Mountains Folk Tabletop has released a video asking the hard question, “Is Adventurer Conqueror King Imperial Imprint the most complete DnD ever made?”

Spoiler: Yes.

FOXOFF RPG is a new YouTuber who has become active in our community, and he’s done an ACKS II Unboxing:

Marketing and publicity remains one of the primary challenges for the game (alongside declining literacy rates and an abandonment of the manly virtues that made Rome great) and I’m very grateful these gentlemen spotlighted the game.

The Escapist Turned 20

This summer I celebrated a major milestone in my life: the 20th anniversary of the launch of The Escapist. Alongside my co-founders Tom Kurz, Greg Lincoln, Jason Smith, and Julianne Greer, I published the first issue of The Escapist (www.escapistmagazine.com) in June 2005.

Our inaugural issue (released in PDF) was entitled Gaming Uber Alles and it was possibly the most prophetic piece of game journalism ever written. In it, we warned that gaming was the new theater of conflict in the culture wars and that the sudden arrival of The Mainstream threatened to change everything about the hobby we loved.

Of course, everything proceeded as we had foreseen.

It is no exaggeration to say that The Escapist re-shaped the face of games journalism. Its acclaimed editorial style won 6 Webby Awards and got it named by Time Magazine as one of the Top 50 websites in the world. Some of the proudest days of my life came during my time running the site, and some of the best friends of my life, too.

A dozen of us got together in Raleigh-Durham, where it all started, to celebrate and reminisce. Not everyone could make it, but those who weren’t there — even those I’ve since fell out with, mostly over the very culture war we predicted would come — were still in our hearts. Thank you to everyone who made the website what it was, editors, writers, artists, contributors, readers, forumgoers, and more.

Other Updates in Brief

There’s so much afoot that I can’t do more than summarize the rest of it!

ACKS II Print on Demand: I have submitted the files to make ACKS II available in print-on-demand on DriveThruRPG. The print-on-demand books will feature the Michael Syrigos covers and will be available as standard-color hardcovers.
ACKS II Second Printing: There will, of course, be a second printing of ACKS II. Backers who crowdfund Before All Others will have the opportunity to purchase the second printing as add-ons. I may also do a second printing as part of a starter box or as a standalone, too.
Annals of Auran Empire: BackerKit has invited me to participate in a crowdfunding campaign in September to promote books and comic books called Printopia. Our project is called Annals of the Auran Empire. However, because of various health challenges and time commitments, I’ve let BackerKit know I might not be able to participate.
Ascendant: Power Overwhelming: The third sourcebook for the Ascendant RPG, Power Overwhelming is currently being edited. This 256-page book will greatly expand the Ascendant universe with new characters, organizations, and powers.
ACKS II Domains at War: A revised re-launch of ACKS II Domains at War remains a top priority. I'm working with some of the elite D@W experts within the Autarch community on this. No timeline at present but obviously the computer game is a major part of it.
Other future projects: I've begun work here and there on a number of other projects, including Under the Dread Flag: The Compendium of Pirate Culture, (previews of which are available to Patreon backers), After the Flesh: The Cyclopedia of Chthonic Civilization, Amalgam, Aeon Star, Armiger, etc. How these shall proceed remains unknown.

Let me know in the comments or on Discord if you have any strong opinions on the above. If you’re not on our Discord, be sure to join!

Are You a Patron of the ACKS Patreon?

If you're interested in "what's next" for ACKS II, members of the Patreon are getting monthly updates and sneak previews. One of the best perks of being part of the Patreon is the opportunity to help shape the design process by seeing the earliest drafts. Those who've been with us for the long-term know that Autarch (me, really) listens intently to the community's playtest feedback.

If you've never checked out the ACKS Patreon, you can find it here. The recurring revenue from the Patreon is what sustains the business during the long spells between Kickstarters, especially in 2023-2024 when sales of ACKS I have dried up during the transition to ACKS II. In today's economy, with inflation making every dollar count, I am exceptionally grateful to everyone who chooses to allocate some of it each month to helping keep Autarch in action.

Support the Community

Once you’ve signed up for the crowdfunding campaign, head on over to these community links:

Arbiter of Worlds

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