Patreon Update: I'm going on Holidays!

Hey there everyone!

A quick update so everyone knows what's up.

I first started modding back in 2015. I wasn't modding RimWorld back then, oh no, I was modding Don't Starve.

You probably wonder what gave me that idea - to become a modder. Well, my missus and I have been playing a lot of Don't Starve Together. I figured that the perfect present for our first anniversary was if I made a mod that adds her to the game, with a character tailored to her playstyle, with somewhat similar looks etc.

Thus, Wiley was born. My first mod for any video game, ever.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=457199494

As you can probably notice I tried to imitate the 'vanilla' art style of Don't Starve to the best of my ability, same way I imitate 'vanilla' art style of RimWorld now. Just my thing I guess.

Anyway, my career on Don't Starve modding wasn't exactly long, but I released a few very popular at a time mods. Through all this time, I was supported by my girlfriend.

After I stopped modding Don't Starve, I spent a few years studying - I was not really in the right mindset to pick up any other hobby then, and now, after all this years, I see I wasn't in the right mindset because I didn't have a hobby. Paradox, isn't it.

I found RimWorld by watching one of my favourite youtubers play it - Angory Tom from the Yogscast.

This is not a sponsored post but I'm going to plug in the link anyway:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5rUMdCFWPXYs9e8PBLzq5g

After I shown it to my missus we decided to give it a shot and play it, side by side, for a while just to see how it is. We spent countless of hours on unmodded, and then modded RimWorld. Our favourite mods at a time were Alpha Animals and Rimsenal, as well as Genetic Rim and Animal Collab Project.

She asked me if maybe I'd like to pick up modding again - so I did. I released the Apex weapons mod and to my surprise it was more popular than any of my Don't Starve mods. I even got a comment from the author of Rimsenal on it!

I released Spartan Foundry, and then Animals Expanded: Livestock. It was my missus that suggested I set up Patreon. I thought: Surely noone will throw any money my way, the world isn't wired this way.

Turns out RimWorld has absolutely astonishing playerbase and you guys did not hesitate for one second to support what initially was, and still is, a hobby.

Then I got a message from someone called Tynan Sylvester on Steam. I blocked him, because I thought it's a scam, but it was my missus who pressed on and told me to contact him on his actual email. So I did. Turned out he wanted to offer me a job, which I took.

Patreon, Ludeon Studios, modding, everything I achieved so far, every step I took I owe to her.

I am now going on holidays, and after 8 years of being together it's finally the time: I'm going to propose.

The ring is here now, on Tuesday I'm flying off to Greece and potentially after 2 days I'm going to ask her to marry me. Needless to say, I'm stressing, but I'm also really looking forward to it. Don't worry, she doesn't check my Patreon so she won't see that post.

It's about time I also started work on a little personal mod that I'm not going to share called 'Vanilla Family Expanded' if you know what I mean ;)

Anyway, what does it mean for VE? Let's touch base.

Vanilla Factions Expanded - Ancients will enter testing within 3 days. It will probably take 2 weeks of testing before it's release-ready. We don't want any bugs.

Vanilla Furniture Expanded - Architect is entering a second stage of beta testing. I don't want to release a mod before I go on holidays so I will release it after I'm back, on 22nd of September.

Rim-Effect: Asari and the Reapers is complete and will enter testing right after Ancients is prepared for release.

The mod you've all been waiting for: Vanilla Ideology Expanded - Memes and Structures, is also going along nicely, I'd say 60% of the mod is complete.

That's it for now.

I have scheduled a few Vanilla Lore Expanded posts for the upcoming week so you will still get your dose of VE. Before I leave there will be one more Development Blog (maybe two).

I hope you all have someone that pushes you forward - but don't worry if you don't: it just means you can become that person for somebody else!

Stay safe everyone!