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The Cave of Amber Tears Awaits You!

Created by Heart of Arcana

An adventure for the new fantasy RPG from MCDM, Draw Steel! Designed for a group of five 1st-level heroes, this adventure, inspired by Norse myth and folklore, earns the heroes up to 17 victories over the course of 4-6 sessions. *Within the burial mound of a village on the edge of the frigid northern frontier, a decades-long spell of undead transformation reaches its conclusion on the day of Sun Return. Nightmares of the honored dead, risen and bloodthirsty, torment the villagers. Meanwhile, the village chief fitfully recovers from a grievous wound. The heroes, summoned for a feast to commemorate the solar holiday, are secretly tasked with uncovering the source of the nightmares and putting an end to the horrors that stir within the burial mound. But mysteries await the party, as a deeper plot and plan wait to be discovered…* The Cave of Amber Tears is an independent product published under the DRAW STEEL Creator License and is not affiliated with MCDM Productions, LLC. DRAW STEEL © 2024 MCDM Productions, LLC.

Latest Updates from Our Project:

The last 24 hours! $5K and a secret stretch goal.
4 months ago – Wed, Nov 26, 2025 at 05:01:05 PM

So the last few days have been pretty incredible.

If you missed it, Matt Colville gave my Timescape quest a shoutout in his Draw Steel Ancestry Guide video!

I was also interviewed for a second time by Jon de Nor on Goblin Points.

And for a brief moment, the Cave of Amber Tears crowdfunder was featured on the front page of BackerKit!

At each stage of this project, my expectations have been trampled and set ablaze, and at some point in the last day, they were destroyed further when the project broke through $5K.

With us surpassing $5K, you have unlocked a final secret stretch goal! The Cave of Amber Tears will now be implemented into the Draw Steel Codex, the bespoke virtual tabletop currently in development. This won't occur until after the final PDF is finished, so probably sometime around late March next year. 

Thank you all for your flabbergasting support. I'm truly grateful and in awe of how successful this project has been. 

- Paul

Thank you for $4K! Second stretch goal smashed, and an official editor.
5 months ago – Tue, Nov 18, 2025 at 08:09:48 PM

Hello all,

Thank you so much for getting the project to $4K!! That means I get to make a new ancestry - the strange "dwarves" of the wandering manifold known as the Sleeping Lands.

At the moment, I'm calling this ancestry the Argillum. Argilla means clay in Latin, and I think appropriately conveys some of what these weird lil dudes are about. 🖤🤍

Finally, I'm incredibly excited to announce that the Cave of Amber Tears has an official editor in the form of Graeme Bloodworth! Welcome to the draugr party, Graeme!

That's all. How about some more art from Justin?

Best,
- Paul


NOTE: This is for Director's eyes only.

Here's Kvasir, the Demigod of Mead and Poetry, imprisoned in the eikrót and generally not having a good time.

One Week Down, Two-ish to go!
5 months ago – Tue, Nov 11, 2025 at 09:39:12 PM

Greetings all,

It's hard to believe that it has only been one week since the crowdfunder launched.

I'm overwhelmed by the incredible support the project has already received.

We smashed through the only (planned) stretch goal for the project, and now the adventure will receive beautiful, professional cartography. When I was planning the crowdfunder, I didn't think it would be possible to raise $3,000, and now we are nearly at $4,000! 😀

If we hit 4K, I'm excited to let you know that I'll include a new ancestry in the adventure - the Argillum, strange onyx and alabaster dwarves that dwell in the wandering manifold known as "Castle Dreamgrasp."

Thank you so much for your support. If you haven't already, please do share the crowdfunder with your friends! ❤️‍🔥

- Paul

We funded in less than 30 minutes!
5 months ago – Tue, Nov 04, 2025 at 01:38:59 PM

Greetings all,

Thank you so much for an incredible launch - I'm in awe that we were able to fund so swiftly.

I want to take a moment to shout out my friend Steven Alexander, the creator behind Huckleberry. I'm incredibly grateful for his guidance and support - this crowdfunder would not have been the same without his help!

If you haven't backed the project yet, feel free to check out the playtest draft.

Now it's time to crush the one stretch goal for this project!

Here's a preview of some of the interior art from Justin McElroy

Less then a month away!
6 months ago – Wed, Oct 15, 2025 at 09:09:46 PM

Dearest kinfolk,

We are less than a month away (19 days and 11 hours, but who's counting) from the launch of the Cave of Amber Tears.

As this is my first crowdfunding campaign, I am BLOWN away by the fact that ELEVEN people have already backed the project?! That is just crazy to me. Thank you so much for the early votes of confidence.

I recently had the tremendous privilege to spend several nights in Big Sur, and was blown away by the sight of the Milky Way. The time ended up as a de facto writer's retreat, and I was able to make some excellent progress on the core villain of the adventure (hint - he's on the cover).

I'll keep this update brief - really I just want to express my gratitude for you all. I can't wait for the crowdfunder to launch in a few weeks!

- Paul