Here Be Monsters - TCG

Why Back Now?

Pledge Levels

How to Play

Here Be Monsters is easy for newcomers and experienced players alike to learn how to play. If you know the Three Golden Pirate Rules - you'll know 90% of the game:

And that's 90% of what you need to know to play Here Be Monsters... but let me tell you, you'll spend years mastering that last 10% in order to become a true pirate legend!

Armada Format (Classic Constructed):

For those looking for a traditional TCG experience, look no further than the Armada format. Whether you want to try out a new combo, express your own personality, or highlight your favorite pirates, Armada is your chance to flex your deck-building prowess. Assemble your ideal pirate crew and get sailing!

To play Armada, you'll need a 50-card poop deck comprised of pirates and shanties with no more than three copies of any single card. You'll also need a 15-card ship deck comprised of ships with no more than one copy of any single card.

Renegade Format (Shared Deck):

Don't want to build your own deck in advance? In Renegade format, both players build their crew card by card from a single shared poop deck and ship deck. Five cards from the shared poop deck remain face up to form the "tavern" and players can draw from the tavern whenever they would draw a card (replacing drawn tavern cards from the top of the shared poop deck). Not only is it the perfect format to play with draft, it's also great for showing the game to people intimidated by TCGs because it feels almost like a board game.

To play Renegade, throw together a poop deck of any size (we recommend 50-100 cards depending on what kind of experience you want) as well as a ship deck (12-20 ships is a good amount) with no restrictions on either one. If you run out of cards in either the shared poop deck or the shared ship deck, shuffle your Davy Jones' Locker/Ship Graveyard together to re-form your own personal decks.

For a curated Renegade experience, curate your own cube with your play group and fine tune it over time to make your Renegade games exactly to your flavor. For something a bit more spontaneous, pick up a Stowaway Chest for a unique Renegade experience where you draft as you play!

Multiplayer:

Although comprehensive rules for multiplayer games are still being fleshed out, we've done enough play testing to know that it's a ton of fun. Whether you're playing a free for all or a team game, HBM is equipped to handle larger numbers of players.

Alt Arts and Holofoils

Having spent over five years meticulously building this world of pirates, each of them is a lot more than just a single illustration on a card. Each pack comes with 11x cards - 3x standard pirates, 2x standard shanties, 2x standard ships and then 3x Alt Art cards and 1x Holofoil card. And so with every additional piece of alt art we want to show new sides (and new stories) for these characters! The variations you'll find in the game are as follows:

• Original Cards: These are the original illustrations by Carson for all of the cards in the set. You can find these in the Full Playset Box or in Booster Packs.
• Lore Cards: These are alt art cards by Carson that feature characters in lore situations or Lore variations of characters. The example above features Sword Beast when he was corrupted by the Fair Isle and went primal.
• Alternate Artist Cards: These characters are multifaceted and benefit from having other artists come in and provide their own personal spin on a character. All cards created by an artist that's not Carson will have the artist's signature on them. We have loved working with all of our alt artists thus far and can't wait to share more with you!
• Holofoils: Growing up in the late 90s spot foiling was a holy art. While the image below is still an early prototype, this will give you an idea of the direction we're taking. We want our holographic cards to feel special and premium.

Treasure Hunt

Do you like a good treasure hunt? Well if you're a good enough pirate, you'll be able to uncover a buried treasure within the set and get special rewards for doing so!

Each pack comes with 11x cards - 3x standard pirates, 2x standard shanties, 2x standard ships and then 3x Alt Art cards and 1x Holofoil card.

However some packs include Map Cards. Each Map Card has three snippets of card art taken from the many alt art cards within the set. If you can find the three matching cards and then mail them and your Map Card to us, we will mail you back a special Treasure Card that can only be obtained this way (we'll also send back the cards you sent, minus the Map Card)!

And the best part? Since each Map has a unique combination of images, you and your friends will be chasing different things and be encouraged to trade more! Gone are the days of everyone trying to get their hands on the same expensive super secret ultra mythic rare. Now you can work together, pool your resources and have an adventure while you do it!

And did we mention Organized Play will have its own Map Cards? We want to reward players for showing up, helping out and creating a community, so these Maps cards are extra special... stay tuned to find out more!

IF YOU WANT TO GET STARTED WITH A TREASURE HUNT NOW - THERE ARE SIX PIRATES HIDING THROUGHOUT THIS KICKSTARTER PAGE (LIKE ZOMBUOY BELOW) SEE IF YOU CAN FIND THEM ALL!

Future of Game

One Set a Year: We understand that people are busy. There are a thousand things fighting for your attention every single day. We want to give you time to enjoy Here Be Monsters at your own pace. As such, we will be releasing a set of Here Be Monsters roughly once a year. Not only does this give all our players time to experience the best of the game, but also allows us to really take our time in crafting an exciting game worthy of your time.

Swashbuckling Surprises: But that doesn't mean there won't be any thrilling new updates throughout the year! Organized Play will introduce new, exhilarating changes to the game to keep even the most devout player on their toes... oh, and did we mention the set will have some secrets that you'll need to uncover... good luck figuring them out! 

Built Around Community: Our focus is around bringing people together to hang out and play games. Competition, while fun, is not the core focus that we are supporting. Our goal is to create memorable events with surprising formats, new Map Cards (they're like Booster Map Cards, but can only be obtained at OP events) and celebrating the community in all its forms! More information to be shared soon!

Covenant Fulfilled: We have the pleasure to be partnering with Team Covenant to get Here Be Monsters into Local Game Stores! If you have a store that might be interested in carrying HBM, take a look at the exciting perks that Covenant Fulfilled has to offer, presenting a new way for stores to interact with publishers! Believe us, they'll love it!

Retailers: Drop us a line! We'd love to discuss stocking Here Be Monsters in your stores and also hear about what you'd love to get from a local experience with your players. We're all about building community and you're part of that, so let's talk! Please fill out this form so we can best help you.

Media and Gameplay

Demo Decks

Add-Ons

Shipping and Fulfillment

We are excited to offer domestic shipping in the United States and UK/EU. We are looking into the possibility of offering domestic shipping elsewhere. Please reach out to us if you're hoping to get domestic shipping where you live. The more people we have from a given region the more likely we'll be in offering it.

Your shipping costs will be calculated when you complete your order in the Pledge Manager. The cost is dependent on your order's total weight and volume. Below we have a table that shows estimated shipping costs (not including add-ons, which could increase shipping costs).

Please note: These rates could be subject to change due to potential future supply chain challenges, or other world events or factors beyond our control.

We will cover the cost of freight and will not pass along that expense to backers.

We also cannot ship to PO Boxes domestically or internationally. Due to the size of each package, there is too great a risk of the package being bounced back to us.

SALES TAX and VAT

Prices shown on the campaign page do not include tax. Please see below for details as to how applicable taxes will (or won't) be collected based on your location.

USA:
Sales tax will be collected in the pledge manager. There will be no taxes or duties charged at the time of delivery.

EU/UK:
Based on the country of residence, the applicable VAT will be calculated and charged in the pledge manager. There will be no taxes or duties upon delivery.

Rest of the World:
No taxes will be collected during the Pledge Manager, however, taxes and/or duties may be due when your games are delivered.

GAME DELIVERY TIMELINE

We are planning our manufacturing timelines with plenty of buffers and aim to deliver prior to May 2027, but are also aware there are many things that could crop up to slowdown this timeline.

July - Campaign Ends

August-November - Final Alt Art and Card Design Tweaks

December - Finalize Print Files

January-February - Manufacturing Proofs

March-May - Ships from Manufacturer and we begin fulfilling!

Core Artwork - 99.9% done. There is a single card Carson has put off finishing. It's a really cool card and he doesn't want it to be done.

Alt Artwork - 45% done. We already have almost half our alt art done and we have all of our alt artists lined up and as soon as we fund we'll get them started! We can't wait to share the amazing pieces of art they'll make!

Gameplay Mechanics - 85% done. There are a handful of cards that need to be tweaked and playtested a little further, but the majority of cards are ready to go!

Packaging Design - 70% done. Our boxes look pretty, but we're going to make them look even prettier. Pirates love pretty boxes.

Piratey Nicknames for Each Other - 110% done. We had this done like two weeks into game development.

Lore and World

Here Be Monsters takes place in a magical world called the Monster Coast. Legend has it that the first pirate, Doombeard, assembled the powerful Original Pieces of Eight and used them to create this world of freedom, friendship and adventure!

And while Doombeard may be long gone, his dream still lives on in all pirates. Join the rush to the sea as cutthroats and adventurers of all shapes and sizes set sail to explore their bizarre world, exchange tall tales, and, of course, search for the legendary Original Pieces of Eight! Will your crew include the cute and cuddly Cannon Floof? Or the gentlemanly scholar Barfrogamew Hops? Maybe the cutthroat and calculating Captain Lazerbeard? Find your favorite pirates, uncover the secrets of the Monster Coast and set sail for the horizon!

Additional Lore:

Doombeard and the Monster Coast

Monster Coast Quick Facts #1

The Song of the Ronin and the Beast (1/3)

The Song of the Ronin and the Beast (2/3)

The Song of the Ronin and the Beast (3/3)

Unheard of in modern card games, Here Be Monsters is unique in that all of the standard art for the game was created by a single person, Carson Einarsen, one of the game's co-creators. Every pirate, ship, and shanty is a living breathing part of the Monster Coast, and he brings them to life in the style of retro Saturday morning cartoons. 

He's also a little crazy... he does ALL of the art for the game in Apple's version of PowerPoint. Yes, you heard that right. And yes, he does know how to use Photoshop and Illustrator. And no, we don't know why. And no, he won't change. He's special and perfect and we love him.

We've been building, playtesting, and otherwise daydreaming about Here Be Monsters for over five years, and we're so excited to finally share it with the world. Being a pirate is all about assembling a good crew... a good group of friends. And what better way to do that than to play a few games together?

Our dream is to create a card game that can bring people together, especially people from communities who usually feel excluded or uncomfortable at play events or local game stores. The Monster Coast is for everyone, and that includes you!

More information to come on how we are going to be supporting this initiative and these spaces, but if you have any thoughts in the interim, we're here to listen and learn. Follow our socials to stay up to date!

DISCORD

INSTAGRAM

WEBSITE

YOUTUBE

Here Be Monsters was created as an excuse for two friends to stay in touch during the Pandemic. Every Wednesday for two years, Carson and Phil would hop online and play a game of HBM on Tabletop Simulator, decide what was fun and what wasn't, make some changes and play again the next week.

After two years they decided to do a playtest event with their friends. Then, they took it to PAX East to get strangers to give it a try. Bolstered by the fantastic feedback they received, they decided to get serious and finish the game!

HBM has been a labor of love over five years, with every gameplay decision and piece of art given the time and attention it deserved. We're honored that you've taken a look and we can't wait to share this world with you!

We value human artists and the time it takes to do something right. We do not and will not support the use of AI, especially in the creation of art. In fact - we're so against AI that we actually made our process harder by using Keynote. Take that algorithms!

If you've made it this far, welcome to the Monster Coast! We thank you for joining us on this journey and we hope it leads to plenty of wonderful memories in the future! And remember...

Grab a friend. Set sail. Have an adventure!