January Updates and Boss Monster Map Poll

Hello and Happy New Year,

I hope this update finds you well. I've got some exciting progress to share with you all. Also, I realized I've gotten so carried away that it's been some time since I've done a boss monster map. The last was the Great Treant's Glade, which was my first piece created start to finish with Clip Studio Paint and my new Wacom tablet. It's hard to believe that was only a month ago, as my art has pulled me in some really exciting directions since then. Without further ado, here's a sneak peak at some irons I've got in the fire.

I have partnered with Shard Tabletop, a new VTT optimized for 5e, and will have my maps featured on their platform in the coming months. You can check them out in early access for free at shardtabletop.com. Their Kickstarter goes live on January 26th, and some of my work will be featured as fully-integrated map packs as part a stretch goal.

While on the subject of map integration, I have dipped my toes in the waters of Foundry VTT, and am very excited to announce that all of my maps will be featured in fully-integrated modules. These modules will come pre-walled with full dynamic lighting and animations. I am also in the process of experimenting with sound effects. So far I am about a third of the way through formatting my entire back catalog. Once I catch up to my present releases, I will unveil a new tier that will include this content among its benefits. I plan to have this feature go live by the end of the month. For those of you who haven't checked out Foundry VTT, here's a clip from one of my integrated maps.

By the way, that token is a work in progress of one of my newest projects, which brings me to the next update:

I've recently partnered with The Token Vault to implement the tokens I made for the Astral Express into their marketplace. That project was a lot of fun, and while it was a bit of a scramble to bring it down the homestretch, having the opportunity to work on illustrations and tokens in addition to my regular maps was a huge confidence boost that got me thinking about expanding my offerings. The above token is a wild magic barbarian, and I plan on releasing a full set of tokens that reflect new subclass within the next month. These tokens will be released for patrons, and will also be available with customization options on The Token Vault. If you are looking for a place to get high quality, customized top-down tokens, please check out their site. Aside from the awesome service they provide for DMs, Ryan from the Token Vault is hands-down one of the most earnest and helpful creators in the scene and well-deserving of the support.

I'm also excited to announce another upcoming collaboration- this time with Music d20 who has brought their own campaign setting known as Arkus to life. Arkus is described as "a world filled with colossal trees that tower over a barren earth beset by unending earthquakes. Atop these trees, gnomes build massive mechanical cities, orcs and tabaxi forge an uneasy alliance, and elves take to the skies atop massive palm fronds. Governments, religious order, and extraplanar forces vie for control, all while parallel dimensions offer glimpses into alternate realities." The campaign primer can be downloaded for FREE here. Now Music d20 is back at it with a host of artists old and new for the second volume. For this project I will be creating a gnomish observatory, and I can't wait for you all to see it. Release date is TBD, but we expect to go live with this content in February.

As a final bit of news, I am happy to share that I will be submitting illustrations for Volume 2 of Through the Veil: Tales of the Feywild. Volume 1 can be found here on the DM's Guild. Details on this will remain undisclosed until release.

If you've made it this far, I can't thank you enough for being here. Trying to build this business has been a lot of work with slow payoffs, and your early support has given me the confidence to keep pushing. It hasn't been easy to put out this much content while working another full-time job, and I really appreciate every single one of you for having faith in my journey and my process.

Anyways, here are some options for this month's boss monster map. Have a great idea for something not on this list? Drop a comment below and I'll see about working it into a future poll.