Stellar Kingdom

Welcome to Stellar Kingdom

Humanity reached the stars.

The maps were lost.

The past was forgotten.

Across thousands of worlds, isolated colonies survived as best they could. Knowledge faded into legend. Great discoveries became myths. Entire chapters of human history disappeared.

Yet one truth endured.

When people needed help, someone answered.

That calling became the Pathfinder Corps.

Not an army of conquerors.

Not an empire.

A community of explorers, rescuers, engineers, doctors, scientists, diplomats, and ordinary people who chose to venture into the unknown so others wouldn't have to face it alone.

Their mission was never simply to chart new systems.

It was to build bridges between worlds.

To preserve knowledge.

To protect those who could not protect themselves.

To remind humanity that progress means nothing if we abandon each other along the way.

That belief is summed up in four simple words:

No One Walks Alone.

What Is Stellar Kingdom?

Stellar Kingdom is a shared science-fiction universe told through both a tabletop roleplaying game and a companion novel.

Whether you experience the universe by reading The Founding of a Family or by sitting around a table with friends creating your own Pathfinder expedition, you're stepping into the same living setting.

Every story matters.

Every crew leaves its mark.

Every discovery becomes part of the journey.

This Kickstarter is the first step in bringing the Stellar Kingdom universe to readers’ bookshelves and gaming tables around the world.

What Awaits You

• As a reader, you’ll discover how Pathfinder Group 11 became Group 13 through The Founding of a Family, the first novel in the Stellar Kingdom universe.
• As a player, you’ll create your own Pathfinder crew, explore forgotten worlds, face impossible choices, and write stories that embody the Corps' enduring promise:

No One Walks Alone.

Why You’ll Want to Stay

Most science-fiction asks how humanity survives.

Stellar Kingdom asks what kind of humanity deserves to survive.

Exploration comes before conquest.

Rescue comes before revenge.

Knowledge is a responsibility, not merely a prize.

Leadership is measured by service rather than authority.

Conflict exists, but hope survives alongside it.

Kindness is not weakness.

Competence is not cruelty.

Heroes are defined not by the enemies they defeat, but by the people they refuse to leave behind.

Why We Built Stellar Kingdom

Science fiction has always challenged us to look to and imagine the future. In a lot of them, that future is grim and dark. Occasionally, it is hopeful. Stellar Kingdom embraces the hopeful path.

We did not embrace it because the universe is safe. And it was not because danger does not exist. We chose hope because we believe courage is more meaningful when it is used to protect others.

We believe exploration should inspire wonder, not conquest. Leadership is about service. We believe our greatest achievements are built together, not alone.

And we believe that no matter how far humanity travels among the stars, our greatest strength will always be each other.

That’s why every Pathfinder shares one promise:

No One Walks Alone.

A Universe Already Built

One of the biggest strengths of this project is that we're not asking you to fund an idea.

We're asking you to help complete the professional production of a universe that already exists.

Today, Stellar Kingdom already includes:

• A completed novel manuscript (The Founding of a Family)
• A complete core tabletop ruleset
• The Pathfinder Corps setting
• Established game mechanics
• A growing community
• The foundation for future novels, adventures, and games

Your support allows us to transform those completed foundations into professionally produced books that can reach readers and players everywhere.

The Founding of a Family

Before there was a Stellar Kingdom, there was Pathfinder Group 11.

When the crew of the Sovereign Star answers a distress call, what begins as a rescue mission becomes a test of duty, leadership, sacrifice, and the promises that hold a crew together when everything else begins to fall apart.

The Founding of a Family tells the story of how Group 11 became Group 13—and how a collection of explorers, engineers, medics, soldiers, scholars, and survivors became something more than a crew.

They became a family.

The manuscript is complete and will be professionally edited, proofread, formatted, and prepared for publication through this campaign.

The novel will be available as:

• A digital edition
• A printed paperback
• Signed paperback editions in selected Founder reward tiers

At its heart, The Founding of a Family is a story about responsibility, belonging, and the stubborn refusal to leave anyone behind.

No One Walks Alone.

The Stellar Kingdom Core Rulebook

The Stellar Kingdom Core Rulebook gives players and Game Masters everything they need to create their own Pathfinder crews and tell stories within the Stellar Kingdom universe.

Built around an accessible dice-pool system using standard six-sided dice, the game emphasizes exploration, problem-solving, teamwork, difficult choices, and the consequences of leaving people behind—or refusing to.

The Core Rulebook includes:

• Complete character-creation rules
• Skills, attributes, and task-resolution mechanics
• Rules for combat, medicine, engineering, investigation, diplomacy, and exploration
• Equipment, vehicles, spacecraft, and other tools of the Pathfinder Corps
• Guidance for Game Masters
• The Pathfinder Corps setting and organizational structure
• Quick-start materials and printable character records

Players are not restricted to a single Pathfinder Group. A crew may belong to any active Group, draw members from several Groups, or operate as a joint task force assembled for a specific mission.

The game is designed to support stories ranging from rescue operations and scientific expeditions to political crises, survival missions, and journeys into places humanity has forgotten.

The Core Rulebook will be available as:

• A digital PDF
• A printed hardcover edition

The rules are complete and will undergo final editing, layout, a final playtesting review, and preparation for professional publication through this campaign.

Physical Rewards and Handmade Items

The physical rewards for Stellar Kingdom are designed to be useful, durable, and connected to the Pathfinder Corps rather than disposable promotional merchandise.

Depending on the reward tier, physical rewards may include:

• The hardcover Stellar Kingdom Core Rulebook
• The paperback edition of The Founding of a Family
• Custom Beacon dice sets
• A numbered Pathfinder Plankowner Certificate
• Handmade Pathfinder dice bags
• Handmade disc-bound Pathfinder journals
• A refillable BIC mechanical pencil bearing the Stellar Kingdom logo
• Signed books and Founding Charter Certificates in selected Founder tiers
• A Pathfinder letter opener kit in the Charter Founder tier

The Pathfinder journals will be assembled by hand using refillable disc-bound construction, allowing pages to be removed, rearranged, or replaced. The dice bags will also be individually dyed and assembled rather than mass-produced.

Because these items require individual assembly, the handmade journals and dice bags are limited to specific reward tiers and will not be offered as add-ons.

Custom dice, printed books, certificates, and other manufactured rewards will be ordered from established vendors after final proofs and production samples have been reviewed.

Where final production samples are not yet available, photographs and images on this campaign page will be clearly identified as reference images, design examples, or representative products rather than finished rewards.

Reward Tiers

Whether you want to support the project, explore Stellar Kingdom digitally, place the Core Rulebook on your gaming shelf, or become one of the campaign’s limited Founders, there is a reward tier for you.

• Pathfinder Supporter — $1
  Campaign updates and our thanks for helping launch Stellar Kingdom.
• Digital Explorer — $20
  The digital edition of The Founding of a Family, the Stellar Kingdom Core Rulebook PDF, the Quick Start Rules, and printable character record sheets.
• Pathfinder — $50
  Both digital books, Quick Start Rules, printable character records, the hardcover Core Rulebook, and a numbered Pathfinder Plankowner Certificate.
• Pathfinder Expedition Leader — $100
  Everything in the Pathfinder tier, plus Kickstarter-exclusive Beacon Dice Set A.
• Pathfinder Group Commander — $150
  Everything in the Expedition Leader tier, plus Beacon Dice Set B, a handmade Pathfinder dice bag, a handmade disc-bound journal, and a BIC mechanical pencil bearing the Stellar Kingdom logo.
• Founder — $500
  Everything in the Group Commander tier, plus a hand-signed Founding Charter Certificate and a signed paperback edition of The Founding of a Family.
• Senior Founder — $1,000
  Everything in the Founder tier, plus a signed hardcover edition of the Stellar Kingdom Core Rulebook.
• Charter Founder — $1,500
  Everything in the Senior Founder tier, plus a Pathfinder letter opener kit.

Each Founder rank is individually limited to thirteen backers in honor of Pathfinder Group 13.

Additional Beacon Dice Sets C, D, and E will be available as optional add-ons for physical reward tiers. Shipping will be charged separately based on the selected reward and destination.

Why PAWS Matters to Us

No One Walks Alone is more than a motto for Stellar Kingdom. It reflects a belief that those who need help should not be abandoned simply because helping them is difficult, inconvenient, or expensive.

For years, our family has worked with PAWS Humane Society in Columbus, Georgia, including fostering animals and supporting the people working to give them safety, medical care, and another chance at a permanent home.

We have seen firsthand the work PAWS does for animals who arrive frightened, injured, neglected, or simply unwanted. We have also seen what happens when volunteers, foster families, staff members, donors, and adopters come together on their behalf.

That work matters deeply to us. Animals cannot explain what happened to them, advocate for themselves, or choose the circumstances in which they are placed. They depend on someone being willing to answer when they need help.

That is why, following successful production and fulfillment of this campaign, TaTanka Plays will donate 10% of all funds raised above the campaign’s funding goal to PAWS Humane Society. The donation will be made within 30 days after the project’s production and fulfillment obligations have been completed. Funds raised above the goal beyond that donation will be used to support announced stretch goals and other project-related production and fulfillment expenses. It is our way of giving back to an organization that has done so much for animals who cannot speak for themselves.

This Kickstarter is a TaTanka Plays publishing campaign and is not being conducted on behalf of PAWS. PAWS is not responsible for the production or fulfillment of campaign rewards. The contribution will be made by TaTanka Plays as described above, and we will share the final donation amount with backers in a campaign update.

Because whether someone is stranded among the stars or waiting in a shelter for a home, the promise remains the same:

No One Walks Alone.

What Your Support Funds

The creative foundation of Stellar Kingdom is already built. Kickstarter funding will pay for the professional production and fulfillment needed to place it in the hands of readers and players.

Funds raised will support:

• Professional editing and proofreading
• Final book layout and file preparation
• Cover design and production artwork
• Printing and proof copies of the novel and Core Rulebook
• Custom dice and other manufactured rewards
• Materials for handmade journals and dice bags
• Certificates, pencils, packaging, and fulfillment supplies
• Kickstarter and payment-processing fees
• A contingency reserve for damaged shipments, replacements, and unexpected production costs

Every pledge moves Stellar Kingdom from completed manuscripts and working rules into finished books, playable materials, and lasting rewards.

Production Timeline

The creative work behind Stellar Kingdom is already well underway, but professional production still requires time for editing, layout, proofing, manufacturing, inspection, and fulfillment.

Our current production plan is:

• Campaign completion and fund collection
  Finalize production quantities, confirm vendor orders, and continue the professional editing and layout process through completion.
• Editing, artwork, and layout
  Complete final editing and proofreading for The Founding of a Family and the Stellar Kingdom Core Rulebook, finish cover and production artwork, and prepare print-ready files.
• Proofing and manufacturing
  Order and inspect physical proofs of both books before approving the full print run. Custom dice, certificates, pencils, and other manufactured rewards will also enter production during this period.
• Digital fulfillment — estimated November 2026
  Deliver completed digital editions, including the novel, Core Rulebook PDF, Quick Start Rules, and printable character records.
• Book-tier fulfillment — estimated January 2027
  Pack and ship physical rewards for the Pathfinder and Pathfinder Expedition Leader tiers after printed books and dice have been received and inspected.
• Handmade and Founder-tier fulfillment — estimated February 2027
  Complete the handmade journals and dice bags, prepare signed books and certificates, and fulfill the Group Commander and Founder reward tiers.

These dates include additional time for proof corrections, vendor delays, damaged shipments, replacements, and the individual assembly required for handmade rewards.

Backers will receive regular updates throughout production, including photographs of proofs and manufactured items when available, progress on handmade rewards, and prompt notice of any delay or material change.

Our goal is not simply to ship quickly. It is to deliver books and rewards worthy of the people helping launch Stellar Kingdom.

Stretch Goals

The $8,000 funding goal covers the core Stellar Kingdom project described on this page. The novel, Core Rulebook, digital materials, and listed rewards do not depend on stretch goals to be complete.

If the campaign exceeds its goal, additional funding may unlock carefully selected enhancements such as:

• Additional Beacon dice designs beyond Sets A through E
• New digital adventures for the Stellar Kingdom tabletop roleplaying game
• Production upgrades that improve the quality or durability of existing rewards

Stretch goals will be chosen with fulfillment in mind. We will not add rewards merely for the sake of making the campaign larger if doing so would create unnecessary delays, excessive shipping costs, or risks to the rewards already promised.

Each stretch goal will be announced with a clear description of what it adds and how it affects production before it is unlocked.

About TaTanka Plays

TaTanka Plays is an independent game and publishing studio founded by Matt Ebeling in Columbus, Georgia.

We create stories and games built around curiosity, service, belonging, and the belief that hope does not require ignoring danger. Stellar Kingdom is our first shared science-fiction universe, beginning with The Founding of a Family and the Stellar Kingdom Core Rulebook.

The project is supported by a small team of family and friends who bring experience in writing, gaming, technology, administration, streaming, and community building. Every creative decision remains guided by the same promise at the heart of the Pathfinder Corps:

No One Walks Alone.