Happy New Year!
by N.A. Larson
And what a year it was! This time last year, the future of TSSSF was in doubt. The official cards couldn’t be bought anywhere, and there was no community to speak of. Now, Core Deck and the more popular expansions are back in print, and there are more fan cards than ever before. There is a thriving online community on Twitter and in our forums. Yes, 2016 was a good year for TSSSF, and 2017 promises to be even better! Now, on to the news:
Set Updates
We’ve updated Tales of Ponyville University and Extra Credit to match the Style Guide. The only mechanical difference is new wording on the Love Poison, but if you saw Core Deck 1.1.5 or 1.1.6, this should not come as a surprise.
Card Size
Some printing services, such as Make Playing Cards, offer two "Poker" sizes: 2.5"x3.5" and the slightly smaller 63mmx88mm. The difference is slight but noticeable when both sizes are shuffled together, but this issue can be solved by using card sleeves. The original HPG Core Deck and expansions (except for the final print run of Core Deck 1.1.4, Ponyville University 1.0.4, and Extra Credit 1.0.0), as well as many of the older fan cards, were 2.5"x3.5". Most of the cards available at BronyCon 2016, including Core Deck 1.1.6, were 63mmx88mm, making this the prefered size going forward.
Watermarks
Some people have asked us why we put the black dot watermark, which indicates that a card is fan-made, on the official sets we’ve released. While HPG did have input into our Style Guide and we believe the changes we’ve made are for the good of the game, HPG has not reviewed or signed off on our edits. Therefore, we use the black dot to convey this, and have added our name to the copyright line, so people will know who made the changes should they have questions.
Rather than use the standard dot, some vendors have opted to use a different symbol as a printer's mark. If you are interested in vending with your own custom watermark, we can help you add it.
Left: Core 1.1.6, as printed by Hobbes et al. Right: LunarShine
Upcoming Conventions
We’ll have members at Ponycon, BABSCon, Everfree Northwest, and BronyCon, so follow us on Twitter so you can find us and get our free promo cards and talk TSSSF! Sky (@Breakfast_Tee) is running a workshop panel called Twilight Sparkle’s Secret Shipfic Folder: Learn N’ Play at most major US cons, so be on the lookout for that.
As always, feel free to ask us about anything and everything TSSSF at info@childrenofkefentse.com or @KefentseTSSSF.
Happy Shipping,
The CofK Team