The first offering by startup Artisan Games, created by video game designer and producer Timothy Gerritsen, one of the executive producers of BioShock Infinite and who also worked on such games as Lost Within, Minimum, Prey, Rune, MechWarrior 3, Aces of the Deep, A10 Tank Killer II and more.

De Forest, WI – On June 2, 2015, Timothy Gerritsen launched a Kickstarter campaign for Dragon War- Riders of Ashara, a table-top miniatures game of riders and their dragon steeds.  Artisan Games has set the game in an original world that draws upon dragon and cultural mythology from the many legends of our own world.  Players pick their riders, dragons and the faction they fight for as they take on adversaries from the skies, lands and seas of Ashara.  Players fight for or against the nine kingdoms of man across three separate continents- each with their own motivations and machinations.  Geographically, Ashara is a world of incredibly high mountain ranges that divide the continents, meaning that wars must be fought either from the air or by sea.

Dragon War- Riders of Ashara players can opt to play in head to head combat, or choose to play cooperatively in individual missions, or as part of the included Dragon Masters of Shen Campaign where riders work together to fight off a mysterious army of soldiers, dragons and the horrifying Goliaths- huge giants that raid from the heart of the mountains to consume all living things.  Dragons and riders both have rank levels so that players can gain in experience and capability as they go from mission to mission.

“We’re so excited to launch this Kickstarter and bring our vision for the world of Ashara to life,” said Artisan Games founder and Dragon War designer Timothy Gerritsen.  “While there are other table top flight combat games on the market, we’ve worked hard to create a unique set of mechanics with a very different focus where the riders and dragons create interesting variations to play.  We’ve striven to create a meticulously detailed world of dragons and kingdoms influenced heavily by real world history, legends and mythology.  We can’t wait to share these places, riders and dragons with gamers everywhere via Kickstarter.”

Riders of Ashara is the core starting set for the Dragon War game line for up to 4 players of age 13 and older, and takes approximately 60-90 minutes to play.  This core set, Riders of Ashara includes eight ready-to-paint miniatures including four dragons and four riders; all of the templates and support pieces to play; eight custom dice in red, yellow and black; six ground army units plus two anti-dragon siege engines and a Goliath game piece; spell, rider, dragon and general equipment cards; dragon and rider stat cards; four custom bases; health and stamina dials; maneuver selection dials; and a full color rulebook.  If the Kickstarter campaign is successful, Artisan Games plans for a 2016 release including several planned expansions.

The Kickstarter campaign is at www.kickstarter.com, but players can go to www.dragon-war.com to learn more about the game, the dragons, the riders and the World of Ashara.  Artisan Games will continue to update the site with designer diaries, and additional info on how the game plays and the game components. The Kickstarter campaign features an array of stretch goals to be unlocked for backers including new dragons, riders and lots of extra surprises.

About Artisan Games

Artisan Games is a moonlighting design collective of collaborative designers and artists assembled by video game developer Timothy Gerritsen in 2015 to create table top games.  Artisan Games includes modeler Justin Weingartner, formerly of PerBlue, illustrator Jeffrey Moy, formerly of Raven Software and Human Head Studios, and freelance illustrator Cheko Arellano Aguilar with a cover illustration by noted dragon illustrator William O’Connor.  Other project members include Jim Long, formerly of WizKids, illustrator Beau Brokop and technical manager Paul Tutcher.

Artisan Games and Dragon War- Riders of Ashara are trademarks of Artisan Games, LLC.
Facebook:  facebook.com/RidersofAshara
Twitter: @DragonWarAshara

Contact:

Timothy Gerritsen
Artisan Games
dragonwarashara@gmail.com
www.dragon-war.com