Write a commentA Kickstarter campaign has just been launched to produce Newry man Garry McElherron's very first board game and judging by the incredible support it has allready attracted it won't be long before the Mourne Mountains based game will be gracing coffee tables in homes around the world.
The game MourneQuest is based on his novel of the same name and even though the campaign just launched on Thursday past, it already has 369 backers pledging over £24K.
MourneQuest billed as "An adventure game filled with myth and folklore from the heart of the Emerald Isle" will be produced by Backspindle Games when fully pledged. Backspindle are a games designer and publisher based in Newtownards.
The box cover tree was made by Mark Maher who worked on The Hobbit with Ken Coleman using his Photoshop skills to give it that magical look.
Garry's first endeavour into the board game market really is close to his heart, with characters named after his son Jack, daughters Tess and Grace and wife Martha as well as many other locally derived names. The game is based around the Mourne's, both geographically and in it's folklore.
Playing MourneQuest
It's a game for up to four players. At the start players chooses one of six heroes and they must journey into the Mourne Mountains to work together to defeat the evil Shimnavore before it is too late. On their quest they’ll encounter many enemies, including infuriating Bogbeans and terrifying Nightmares like the Banshee, the Changeling and the Dullahan. To triumph, heroes must gather charms, equipment and magical relics, to increase their powers and use their skills and combat abilities effectively.
Mournequest the book started ten years ago when Garry's son Jack, who was four at the time asked where Dandelion Clocks went when you blew on them! It's a fantasy novel set in the Mourne Mountains with great homage to Irish ancient folklore. As Garry says "I was fortunate enough to go through some writing programmes with Catherine McInerney from LitNet and Frazer Ross, and they actually helped me to get it to the point where the book was published, and from that someone said to me it would make a good Board Game"
The Kickstarter campaign runs to 12 April and pledges can get you various rewards including a deluxe edition of the game.
If you would like to support what probably is the very first board game to come out of Newry check out the MourneQuest page at www.kickstarter.com
