General Patreon update (Patreon)

Hi everyone, happy new year! I hope you all had a great time during the holidays. I wanted to start off the new year with a general Patreon update so that I can share my thoughts about the future and what to expect. TL;DR: I have new models to animate with and expect more content over the next few months!

You might have noticed that I had a Patreon goal set for purchasing a new model. When the goal was reached, my plan was to put up a poll with a selection of models and all patrons would vote for which one I would purchase. When the time came, I found that there really weren’t many WoW models out there for SFM (the animation software that I currently use) that I didn’t already have. There were only a few from Bangfri that I hadn’t already purchased, and turns out he’s moving on to other stuff and was offering good deals on the rest of his WoW models. So instead of having a poll to decide which model to purchase, I was able to purchase all of Bangfri's remaining models for a good price. We now have Jaina (BFA/Lord Admiral version), a better Draenei female (which I can use for Yrel, best girl), a Nightborne elf, and a better orc male. All-access and VIP patrons can now submit ideas with these models in the monthly polls.

Speaking of models, I’ve also been thinking about the future of this Patreon. Since the beginning, I have been focusing on improving my animation skills so that I can make better content for you. However, my main limit at this point is character modeling. I can only animate with models that I have access to. Being able to create good character models on my own would allow me to stay up to speed with recent events in the game instead of waiting/praying that someone releases a model for me to use (i.e. Sylvanas Shadowlands versions), but getting to that point will take a lot of time. Even if I did get to that point, I think putting together a good character model for animation will take a lot of work and would take a while before paying off.

The other option would be to commission established model creators to make models for me. This would require funds to accomplish but would allow me to keep animating and producing content in the meantime. It’s a good idea, but there’s one problem: the animation software I use (SFM) is pretty dated and limited for today's standards. While I don't think it's a big issue for producing content in the WoW style (fairly cartoony to begin with), it would certainly be a good idea for me to graduate to better animation software at some point as well. So there's definitely a lot of stuff I still need to learn, and right now I'm trying to prioritize them in a way that makes sense.

That said, I do think I have a good selection of assets to use at this time and that I could still put together a lot of content for you. At the end of the day, I think that's what matters: putting out good, fresh content on a regular basis. Right now we're still in the growth phase of this Patreon, and its longevity requires a good amount of growth still to become sustainable in the long term. Making these animations takes a lot of time, and I can only continue to commit this amount of time for the next few months. After that, I will have to make a decision whether to continue at the same rate or have to change things up to make ends meet. I would like to continue making animations, but I may not be able to put out content as often. But we'll cross that bridge when we get there.

For the next few months, my plan is to continue improving my animation skills and put out as much content as I can. I will continue with the monthly polls and try to complete each one within the month. These monthly animations will be my main focus and I will try to make them as good as possible. I will also spend some time on side projects such as bonus animations with more niche races that I find interesting, and improve my modeling skills by attempting to put together new male models.

None of this would be possible without your support, so thank you so much for sticking around and helping me grow! I hope you enjoy my content and if you have any feedback at all, please let me know either here on Patreon or on Discord. Have a nice day!