Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarter Club

Avatar Legends leads the pack in an exclusive club -- Kickstarters for tabletop roleplaying game products which have broken the $1M barrier! It is currently the most successful TTRPG Kickstarter in history with a funding total of nearly $10M, and over 80,000 backers.

24 TTRPG campaigns have ever achieved $1M; 9 TTRPG campaigns have done so without offering miniatures, and only 8 which aren't D&D-related. I myself nearly did it, but fell slightly short with a mere $950,000!

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This list comprises Kickstarters specifically for tabletop roleplaying games or supplements which have exceeded $1M. It does not include Kickstarters for miniatures, software, dice, or other accessories.
  • The first TTRPG Kickstarter to break $1M was 7th Sea: Second Edition (2016) by John Wick.
  • The first to break $2M was Strongholds & Streaming (2018) by Matt Colville.
  • The first to break $9M was Avatar Legends (2021) from Magpie Games.
  • The first to break $1M on its first day was Avatar Legends (2021) from Magpie Games.
  • The first (and so far only) to break $1M without physical merch addons (minis, dice, shirts, pins, etc.) is Coyote & Crow the Roleplaying Game (2021) from Connor Alexander.
  • Most entries are Hit Point Press with 3 campaigns over $1M and contributor on two more; and Matt Colville with 3 campaigns over $1M.
  • Ghostfire Gaming has one million-dollar campaign of their own, and is listed as contributor to three others; Hit Point Press has three million-dollar campaigns, and is listed as a contributor on two more.
In the 12 years since Kickstarter's creation in 2009 until the start of 2021, 4 TTRPG projects beat the $1M mark. In the months since March 2021, until the time of writing, a further 18 projects have done so.

$1M+ TTRPG Kickstarters: The Official TTRPG $1M Kickstarter Club

#​
KickstarterCreatorDate EndedBackersAmountFirst Day**Average Pledge
1​
Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying GameMagpie GamesSeptember 202181,549$9,533,258$1,150,566 (12%)$117
2​
Steinhardt's Guide to the Eldritch Hunt: A 5e Supplement^⁺MonkeyDMAugust 202219,723$2,692,698$411,135 (15%)$137
3​
Fool's Gold: Into the Bellowing Wilds^*⁺Hit Point PressNovember 202116,929$2,479,888$349,884 (14%)$147
4​
Strongholds & Streaming^*⁺Matt ColvilleMarch 201828,918$2,121,465$591,556 (28%)$73
5​
Tanares RPG - 5e^*⁺Dragori GamesOctober 20219,403$2,100,242$993,228 (47%)$223
6​
Old Gods of Appalachia Roleplaying GameMonte Cook GamesMay 202215,061$2,097,715$679,748 (32%)$139
7​
"Flee, Mortals!" - The MCDM Monster Book for 5e^*⁺Matt ColvilleMay 202227,009$2,084,117$788,976 (38%)$77
8​
The One Ring Roleplaying Game, Second EditionFree LeagueMarch 202116,591$2,025,288$521,908 (26%)$122
9​
Monty Python's Cocurricular Mediaeval Reenactment Programme*⁺Exalted FuneralNovember 202215,018$1,933,426$792,724 (41%)$129
10​
Heliana's Guide to Monster Hunting^⁺Loot Tavern (Hit Point Press)July 202118,082$1,845,422$259,382 (14%)$102
11​
BLADE RUNNER - The Roleplaying GameFree LeagueMay 202215,323$1,673,567$833,263 (49%)$109
12​
The Seeker's Guide to Twisted Taverns^⁺Eldermancy (Ghostfire Gaming)March 202117,921$1,650,076$211,563 (13%)$92
13​
Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG 1st Edition Boxed SetAlan GerdingDecember 202115,699$1,405,569$529,134 (38%)$90
14​
Kingdoms, Warfare & More Minis!^*Matt ColvilleNovember 201919,033$1,372,685$594,330 (43%)$72
15Shadowdark RPG: Old School Gaming, ModernizedThe Arcane LibraryMarch 202313,249$1,365,923$299,898 (22%)$103
16Grim Hollow: The Monster Grimoire^*⁺Ghostfire GamingMay 202115,530$1,348,160$258,640 (19%)$87
17​
7th Sea: Second EditionJohn WickMarch 201611,483$1,316,813$286,290 (22%)$115
18The Deck of Many Animated Spells, Tarot and More for 5eHit Point PressJune 20209,871$1,310,509$218,381 (16%)$133
19Dungeons of Drakkenheim^*⁺Dungeon Dudes (Ghostfire Gaming)August 202113,376$1,279,240$370,638 (29%)$96
20Auroboros: Coils of the Serpent^*⁺Warchief GamingMay 202110,218$1,260,863$493,947 (39%)$123
21The Griffon's Saddlebag: Book 2^⁺Griffin Macaulay (Hit Point Press)April 202211,710$1,237,197$297,192 (24%)$106
22​
Coyote & Crow the Roleplaying GameConnor AlexanderApril 202116,269$1,073,453$106,515 (10%)$66
23​
Sebastian Crowe's Guide to Drakkenheim^*⁺Dungeon Dudes (Ghostfire Gaming)September 20228,963$1,025,330$422,376 (41%)$114
24Humblewood Campaign Setting for 5e^*⁺Hit Point PressApril 201914,604$1,001,085$58,985 (6%)$69
^D&D
*Includes miniatures
⁺Includes other non-digital merchandise (dice, bags, pins, shirts, coins, etc.)
**First day figures represent first calendar day, not first 24 hours, and are taken from Kicktraq's daily funding stats

Some unusual patterns can be seen above. Most Kickstarters follow the traditional 'U' shaped curved, with a large portion of the funding taking place in the first few and last few days of the campaign, and comparatively slower progress in the middle.
  • Tanares RPG did nearly $1M in its first day, but then support dropped off for the remaining month. This was due to a high-value giveaway to first-day backers.​
  • Humblewood started off slow and then got a big boost in the last 4 days. It's not clear what caused that, but an aggressive final marketing push is a good candidate--they have multiple marketing entries in their collaborators list.​
A Kickstarter which does well will tend to mean later campaigns also do well, as those backers are notified when new Kickstarters by the same creator are launched. Including Ghostfire Gaming (which is involved with 3 campaigns), the list of 17 creators includes 4 who have 2 or more entries.

The average pledge level for a million-dollar campaign is about $100. This is usually reached by including add-ons and merchandizing.
 
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Dang, that looks like an amazing product. If you've ever wanted to fuse Call of Cthulhu to D&D, this would be a step in that direction.
Yeah, it looks great. I'll probably end up backing it, though there's a couple of warning lights going off. A first-time publisher raising a million, but with a massive laundry list of non-book stretch goals including dice, badges, animated cards, etc etc etc? That's almost a guarantee of supply chain problems and big delays, sadly.
 

Morrus

Well, that was fun
Staff member
Yeah, it looks great. I'll probably end up backing it, though there's a couple of warning lights going off. A first-time publisher raising a million, but with a massive laundry list of non-book stretch goals including dice, badges, animated cards, etc etc etc? That's almost a guarantee of supply chain problems and big delays, sadly.
Looks like they’re teamed up with Loot Tavern.
 

I didn't realize the campaign was offering so many doodads. That definitely helps explain hitting such a high number as a first-time publisher. Whole lot of people pledging at the $250 level.
 









nyvinter

Explorer
With Free League, one can make the argument that the kickstarters are there to make them afford the stretchgoals rather than the game — because I think the low goal are what they need to pay a small initial print run.
 

Morrus

Well, that was fun
Staff member
Arbitrarily low goals are pretty much standard operating procedure for larger Kickstarters these days. The goal is to fund as quickly as possible, as a funded KS is more attractive than one that is not yet funded. There are exceptions, of course, but it's a common tactic and it works. Generally an established creator has a realistic expectation of what the campaign will do. In many cases, there has been significant investment in the product in advance of the KS, so not making it isn't an option; it's more about how many to make.
 





I used to be on her email list so I hope Kelsey pulls off the game as I’m sure with it being her first Kickstarter and it turns out to be a big one she’s have some growing pains.
 


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