Hey everyone,

Alongside this month's release, we need to have an honest, transparent conversation about what has been going on behind the scenes at Critical Crafting over the past few months and where we are heading as a creative group.

First of all, let me say right off the bat that we aren’t going anywhere, we are just changing the way we approach creating content. 

Over the past 5 years, we have poured everything into building the Critical Crafting Multiverse with you - over 3,000 pages of 5e modules, player options, monsters, adventures, battlemaps, new mechanics, items, spells, grafts, sigils, feats, species, calsses, subclasses, tokens, STL’s, and more. But the hardships of the last several months have forced us to take a hard look at our operations. Between the catastrophic account hack we dealt with (and are still recovering from), my unexpected medical leave of half a month to take care of my physical and mental health, changes in our team’s day jobs, and growing family obligations with toddlers, our capacity has been stretched very thin for a very long time. 

We need to focus on keeping our content creative and high-quality without stretching ourselves to the point of breaking, putting creativity, community, our families, and our health over the constant “grind” of monthly releases.

Instead of letting Critical Crafting burn out and disappear, we are making a deliberate shift to create flagship products with a more flexible release schedule, to protect our creativity, health, families, the future of the studio, and the Critical Crafting Multiverse we have all built together. 

WELCOME TO THE VAULT

Legends tell of an ancient trove of lore hidden within the Spire, of knowledge and histories lost to time. It is said that all that has occurred, and that will ever occur, is recorded in this secret library, locked away in The Vault...

And now, you hold the key...

What is Changing?

(Bear with me, there is a lot of info to get through)

Starting December 1, 2026, our Patreon will officially step off the monthly content release schedule and transition into the Loremaster Vault - a low-cost new release tier including our digital library, community hub, and VIP access on Discord, and the Loremaster Vault+ a premium tier for backers that want to offer additional support to our creative endeavors (more on that later in this post). 

The Loremaster Vault Tier 

• We Are Slashing Loremaster Pricing to $5/Month: We are cutting our Loremaster tier down to a flat $5/month (or $51/year if you prefer two months free). We refuse to charge high monthly rates when we are not producing brand-new monthly content drops.

• You get access to ALL New Releases: We are not done creating! Moving away from the monthly grind allows us to focus our creative energy on major, high-production releases. We are not sure exactly how many releases we are going to make each year, but we WILL continue making content for the Patreon, and as a Loremaster of these updated Vault tiers, you will receive any new PDF content and STLs we release for the Patreon, added to the expanding Vault.

• NEW Backlogged STL Files: ALL Critical Crafting STL files will be available through the new Vault backlog, ready to be accessed at any time!

• NEW Poll Changes: YOU will determine what we make. Polls will be taking a more prominent role in determining what content we create, everything from what theme of content we will make to what sculpts will be made, what will get art, what monsters or subclasses or classes we will do next, etc.
  We will be using Featurevote, a 3rd party system linked to Patreon to weigh votes.
  Free followers will count for 1 vote, Loremaster Vault patron votes will count for 5 votes, and Loremaster Vault+ patron votes will count for 15 votes. 

• Weaver's Web Access: You get access to the Weaver's Web a searchable / filterable database of ALL Critical Crafting content.

• You Keep Full, Uninterrupted Backlog Access: Every single piece of content we have shared to the Loremaster tier stays unlocked. Active Loremaster members retain direct, unlimited download access to our entire 3,000+ page library (110 GB of content stored on Google Drive).

• Asset Library: Loremasters retain access to the complete collection of hundreds of downloadable battlemaps, VTT tokens, and printable item and spell cards. 

• Growing the Critical Crafting Multiverse (50% Off Digital Content on the Critical Crafting Store): These releases will continue expanding the Critical Crafting multiverse, and active Vault members will receive an exclusive 50% discount code every single month, increasing the discount for Loremasters by 20%. This is in addition to the 15% off Loremasters receive on physical products on the online store. 

• Community Perks: Access to private Discord channels, community playtests, and more!

• Early Access: You get access to Critical Crafting releases at least 1 month before the public does as part of your tier! 

What is Happening to the Current Tiers? 

• Loremaster Tier Conversion: The Loremaster tier is being converted into the Loremaster Vault tier. Current Loremaster patrons will renew in December with the updated pricing and tier. 

• Sunsetting Lower Tiers: To simplify everything and ensure no one is paying for partial access to an archive, we are retiring the Adventurer, Acolyte, and Apprentice tiers so everyone gets the entire vault under the new unified, low-cost passes. Access to the backlog for this content will expire December 1st.

Please note: Any accounts remaining on Adventurer, Acolyte, or Apprentice on the afternoon of November 29 will be proactively canceled by us so that you are not billed for a discontinued tier on December.

If you are on an Adventurer, Acolyte, or Apprentice tier, click below to upgrade to the $5/month (or $51/year) Loremaster tier before the grandfathering window closes on November 29: https://www.patreon.com/membership/edit. Or join the Loremaster Vault+ Tier.

Exclusive Offer to Existing Patrons 

On November 29, the $5 tier will be permanently locked and hidden (patrons in this tier will retain access to it for as long as they do not cancel).

After that date, the Loremaster Vault tier opens to the general public through a new tier priced at 8/month ($81.60/year).

Upgrading now locks in your $5/month grandfathered rate.

What You Need to Do During November

Patreon cannot automatically move members between tiers, so here is how your account is handled through November 29:

1. If You Are Currently a Monthly Loremaster or Loremaster (Early Bird): You do not need to lift a finger. Your tier price will automatically drop to $5/month starting on your December renewal cycle. (If you want to lock in an entire year  at a 15% discount, you can toggle your billing to annual right now in your membership settings Here.)

2. If You Are Currently in Adventurer, Acolyte, or Apprentice: We have closed these tiers to new signups and will be fully deleting them on December 1.
   On Monday afternoon (Nov 30), we will proactively cancel any memberships remaining on those tiers so you are not billed on December 1 for a discontinued tier.
   To gain full access to new releases, the 3,000+ page backlog, STL backlog, and unlock the monthly 50% store discount, you can switch your pledge to the Loremaster Vault or the Loremaster Vault+ tier.

3. If You Are an Annual Member (Any Tier): Keep an eye on your Patreon direct messages. Because Patreon cannot automatically recalculate mid-term annual pledges, we are reaching out to every annual subscriber individually with options for your remaining prepaid balance.
   Note that for annual patrons, the prepaid balance is based on your annual balance minus the months you have received content for under the current tier structure (content through November).

The NEW Loremaster Vault+ Tier 

Want to continue supporting our creative efforts in a more meaningful way? 

People have been reaching out asking how they can support us, and for those people, the Loremaster Vault+ tier for $15 is available ($153 for the annual tier). This tier gets you all the normal Loremaster Vault  tier rewards in addition to the following rewards:

• More Poll Votes: Your votes will count for 15 votes in Patreon polls.

• Recognition: Your name and a special thanks in PDF releases and in printed books you helped support.

• Exclusive Discord Role!

This tier is primarily for those who have asked how they can continue to support us while also giving you some awesome new “thank you” rewards.

As always, we are grateful for any support!

WHEW that was a lot of info… 

Thank You

You supported us through the thick of it, and we want to ensure you have access to everything we built together at the lowest possible price point. Thank you for your understanding, your patience through our personal hurdles, and for being the reason Critical Crafting exists. 

Thank you so much for all of your support over the years, for your love, your ideas, your creativity, and for making this dream happen. We aren’t going anywhere, just changing how we do things so that we can continue creating awesome content for you. 

Enjoy this month's release, and thank you for sticking with us into this new chapter. And as always, please feel free to reach out to us with questions or concerns. 

All our thanks,

-Dillon, Cameron, Connor, and Fitz