Tariff Time-In: How Mythworks Seized the Moment to Make Slugblaster Happen

Mythworks, the company behind the eco-futuristic Wildsea and the skater-themed Slugblaster is taking advantage of Trump’s most recent tariff ‘reprieve’ to try and get products into the United States, and to launch its latest product.

The company announced on Wednesday that Slugblaster: Slime, Warp, and Solder, the new expansion for the TTRPG about “teenagehood, giant bugs, circuit-bent rayguns, and trying to be cool,” was launching despite previous struggles over tariffs. The company had planned to delay this expansion indefinitely until they could get better rates. But something changed that allowed it to have a future.

So, what happened? A reprieve did. Trump announced on May 12 that the United States and China had reached a 90-day truce, during which the tariffs would decrease from more than 100% to 10%, a stark drop in cost for every company across the board. That reprieve gave Mythworks a short period of time to get its products moved across the

“We are racing our inventory to the US to begin fulfillment,” Ric Heise, Mythworks’ Chief People Person,” told TTRPG Insider. “We look to start shipping the pre-order copies [of Slugblaster] in the coming weeks. Due to this change, we felt comfortable moving forward with the expansion as we had previously planned. Ideally, the expansion would have been released the same day that fulfillment began in earnest, but alas we had to adjust our timelines on both fronts. We are overjoyed that we are able to get our wonders into the hands of our patient and understanding supporters.”

The campaign is still ongoing and will require additional funding, but this momentary reprieve could allow Mythworks to hold down the fort and continue operating in the short term, possibly even getting Slime, Warp, and Solder funded in time to be printed.

Why This Matters

Mythworks wrote in a blog post about how Trump's 145% tariffs meant that they could not ship physical products into the United States because they’d have to pay more than the full price for each product—a staggering cost for any company. That meant that they would delay shipping products to the United States and keep all of their products stored in Chinese warehouses until a solution could be found.

The Mythworks story perfectly illustrates the harm the tariffs are causing publishers and other outlets, as well as the margins they’d have to pay to get something as simple as a TTRPG book published.

Mythworks is far from the only company to be affected by these tariff price changes. Publishers in the TTRPG industry see the 90-day truce as a “stay of execution” for the extremely harmful financial impact that the policy would have on them, according to Rascal News.

However, as publishers noted, many companies will be fighting for space on freighters to transport products to the U.S. for sales. It’s unclear if Mythworks will be able to get their products on a ship in time to be sent to the U.S. before the truce ends. However, the company feels confident enough to give its next product line a chance.

You can learn more about Slugblaster: Slime, Warp and Solder over at its Backerkit page.

Are you being affected by tariffs? What’s your company doing to prepare for the incoming economic implications? We’re keeping a close eye on this beat and want your input. Feel free to send us tips or emails at [email protected].

Want more reporting like this in your inbox? Make sure to subscribe!