Introduction

Hog Lordz is an already-launched NFT project that I consider to be an "underhog" play in Dotsama. They’ve a vision to be an incubator, to be a DAO, and to create a tabletop style game from their NFT collection which is built on Moonriver.

With such broad ambitions, I thought I’d talk to their team and see just how realistic their goals were.

As with all reporting, this is not an endorsement, but I did find their answers sincere and I’m certainly curious to see where they will end up.

The Vision

Kuro, one of the team members, tells me that he recently attended a Board Gaming Convention only two weeks ago in Reno, called GAMA

According to him, at least three companies were trying out blockchain tech for board games.

He has been seeing the signs of board gamers adopting NFTs everywhere, and as a self-described "fanboy" of Dotsama, he believes that it’s only a matter of time before the communities begin merging.

The team describes their ambitions around Hog Lordz to be about building a grassroots network that doesn’t exclude people. In other words, they don’t want to be a network for "cool kids", but rather to dig deep and help their members launch their dream projects. Essentially, Hog Lordz would like to form a guild in which creatives can come together and achieve common goals.

When I asked if maybe the team was being too ambitious, as their vision is quite broad (usually a bad sign), Kuro replied that he didn’t think this was the case at all with Hog Lordz.

In the case of RMRK, with the tech of RMRK, the proof of concept through Kanaria, and Singular’s markeplace—you might think the same of their team (that the team was biting off more than they could chew)—except all that was indeed achieved with just a few developers to begin with.

While Hog Lordz is not saying they are RMRK, they are inspired by them. They believe in the power to accomplish with a few passionate people, especially as the DAO continues to form and passionate community members become more involved.

The Hog Lordz would like to form an elected council in which the DAO will be run and eventually, JJ and Kuro will be able to focus entirely on creating and mentoring other creators.

The Team

JJ Kirby is their lead artist who has created their highly diverse PFP collection. Unlike most artists in generative NFT projects, however, he did not join the project because he was hired in, but rather, he has been involved in the concept of Hog Lordz, the lore, and all asset creations for the project since the beginning.

But who is JJ Kirby?

JJ has been a professional comic artist for over 20 years. He’s been creating, writing, and editing for some of the largest publishers in the world.

KuroCrypto has worked in the gaming and collectibles industry for several years, and he has worked on projects with world-recognizable IP. Kuro and JJ met through working on a popular Marvel board game and have been close, since.

Their game developer is already on board and designing, but will be announced later.

With a team heavily involved in comics and game creation, they feel they have accumulated a vast and diverse network of professionals across several industries, and that they can execute on their ambitious visions.

Swords, Wands, and Biker Gangs

How are things going so far?

Kuro states:

"Our first 2 whitelist mints were really successful. JJ was a little nervous about doing a generative project. Most characters he works with have very specific character designs. The generative process came out great. The PFP NFTs are emotive, fun, iconic, and relatable. I think we did a really great job."

What is the game going to be like?

A game is a difficult task. Even with hundreds of millions of dollars, and thousands of developers, game development often can fail even in the traditional marketplace. Thus, for NFT collections to aim at creating a game, I’m immediately skeptical. With the RMRK 2.0 standard, the teams have a new toy, however, and there are innovative options everywhere, which is why I thought to ask the team…why game? A DAO incubator is enough, right? What makes them think they can accomplish such a challenging task?

Kuro responds that he agrees that most all blockchain games to date have been sub-par. To him, this is certainly an obstacle. Every project seems to want to be an RPG with fully equippable interactions and AAA graphics. He’s worked for a AAA in the past, and he is well aware that this kind of undertaking takes an army.

This is why RMRK 2.0 and boardgames are a perfect match.

"I envision people playing this game over video conferencing across the world at community events on twitch and discord. Also people playing this in groups of friends with everyone having an IPAD or tablet out with their RMRK player board up. It will play a little like D&D 5th edition but with important thematic changes for the fun world we are creating where anything goes."

This is why the focus of Hog Lordz is on gameplay, RMRK 2.0 integration, mechanics, art, and lore.

Kuro presents the case that D&D is more popular than ever thanks to Twitch (news to me), and D&D themed shows like Critical Role.

In large part, this may have been related to the pandemic, because prior, gaming conventions like Essen in Germany were drawing crowds above 100k attendees.

The point is that in D&D, these memories of tavern fights and dungeon looting were all formed by the mind’s eye, and remain unforgettable. They don’t require graphics cards, but only great story and imagination.

Kuro believes that the combination of NFTs and board gaming is already coming. The communities will merge, and as mentioned earlier, other major blockchain companies are trying to figure it out already. To Kuro, this is one of the most exciting aspects. They are taking established RPG game design and creating interactive custom lore that can be built into blockchain thanks to RMRK 2.0.

All that said, they have two important unique elements in their RPG play to earn model.

First are Adventure Loot boxes. These boxes are themed around lore events and special scenarios released for their RPG. These loot boxes will provide a scenario walkthrough, along with the Loot, all of which will be playable and sellable in the secondary market.

Second is that they will be creating a player board.

What’s a player board?

"So in D&D the player board is interacting with by the player. It is a dashboard for buffs and items that both the player and the DM can view in video conference play on platforms such as Discord or Twitch. Our focus will be to have cool boards to present your Loot that fits your personal style. We will airdrop all Hog Lord holders a Player Board. Other boards, like for example a Forest Board or a Lava Board, will be either sold or rewarded to community members."

As the player board is an RMRK 2.0 NFT can be equipped with the Loot found in adventure or in Loot boxes, the player boards will become a status symbol as seasoned RPG players are able to show off their equipment to the community.

Essentially, they are building the RPG in a way that participation with NFT player boards is a big part of the gameplay and social dynamics.

They will send royalties from secondary market sales of player boards and loots to the DAO.

Kuro believes that as long as they continue to create content that the community loves, the model can be sustainable. This game, therefore, is a proof of ability for the DAO, and the first of many products that the DAO hopes to create.

		Loot will come in different rarities

The community

I’ve a pattern where I stalk a community quietly until I feel like it’s "worth my time" to engage. This is to observe for any red flags, or to see how the team conducts itself, and from there I determine if it’s something I want to casually participate in, or get involved in.

The community development with Hogs has been consistent, the leadership engaged, but at the same time I’ve seen little chatter across other channels about Hogs. Thus, I wanted to know why, and how the team felt about this impression.

Kuro says that he is comfortable being "the underhog", and they are hard workers and professionals—and while they don’t have influencers, they believe their ideas will foster great creators and innovators. He believes in ideas above hype, and organic growth, building products, which will let the community sing the praises and generate attention.

Kuro would also like to give a special shout-out to the Spanish speaking community, "You guys are truly Hog Wild."

On the Promised Airdrops

So, the thing about Airdrops is that economically, unless there is real attention coming in, it simply dilutes the value and pulls liquidity from already existing community members. Airdrops sound nice, but frequently if you step back, you’ll see that even with the airdrop, the value of your investments has only remained the same (or sometimes lost value), unless it truly generates utility and value to drive further adoption.

The team states that they have clearly mapped out their collections in a way to maintain value across each collection. With limited quantities, the value dilution would be minimal. They also will be giving rewards with ecosystem coins: MOVR, RMRK, KSM, etc, which will incentivize participation and intertwine their project with a broader ecosystem.

Why would people choose to incubate with Hog Lordz?

Kuro remains somewhat mysterious in his answer to this question.

"Once you see how we incubate this RPG, you will know why."

Lore

How often I’ve seen the promise of "lore", and upon reading, it looks like a side-thought, an extra—and it doesn’t really affect the gameplay or macroeconomics at all.

To the team, they believe that lore is critical, and they have always felt this from the very beginning. The world they are crafting is inspired by classic marvel comic book storytelling, as well as Final Fantasy and D&D RPG tropes.

There will be no scarcity of available lore.

Kuro hints about the Hogs in Prison gear that have been seen on some Hogs, and, "The Sons of Swine".

The story behind these characters, as well as the previously announced PIGS (Police Investing Greed Squad) is an introduction to the immersive world that is planned.

			Hog Zu - Member of the Sons of Swine

Additionally, Alpha Alert, players can eventually play as one of many races (8 are planned), humans included.

The Hog Lordz token holders will merely be the OG DAO members.

The Hog Intro story unveils the game to the world, but by the end of the first campaign, the lore will open up to the other races.

Final Notes (and a special promotion)

Kuro says,

"We are so grateful to be able to share our vision with you and your readers. In honor of this, we are opening up the Whitelist for 24 Hours from the time this is published. Join the discord to get on the Whitelist. We also would like to share with you the first look at the Map of Sow Terra, the mysterious world where our RPG will begin."

			The Tales of Sow Terra stretch back Eons

"We are having a private mint for the Hog Lordz DAO if you are reading this article before April 2nd, you are invited.

"Join us on our discord get involved and get on the whitelist today. discord.gg/xUhC3Fpj5j

"You can also check out our website at: Http://www.hoglordz.com for minting and roadmap information."

I’m thinking of creating a rating system, to help people make informed decisions and to measure my own confidence. Please feel free to give me feedback on if it's helpful to you, and how you feel about this new rating system. Categories may change in time.

Pnin’s Ratings:

Sincerity: 7.5/10 (1 = "It’s a scam, run for the hills") (10 = Convincingly not a scam)

Explanation: The team has doxxed themselves to me, and I’m convinced of their authentic background and involvement in the culture of Tabletop gaming and comics—however, that doesn’t by itself mean that this isn’t a scam. There are always ways to mislead. That said, after speaking to the team and observing their discord, I only got good vibes and I didn’t see any red flags that would make me think this is a money grab rug.

Art: 7.5/10 (1 = Low effort/skill trash) (10 = Worth investing in if only for only the art)

Explanation: The art is clearly professional, to the point that I questioned if the artist was actually involved. In NFT world, it’s not uncommon to hire a famous artist to launch an NFT project, and then possibly rug. The artist gets a lot of crap when this happens, even though they were merely hired for a gig. Seeing that the artist is heavily involved was great, as the style will remain consistent this way, however…I’m honestly not much a fan of pigs? Personal opinion of course.

Ambition: 8/10 (1 = Nothing of note planned) (10 = Might actually be impossible to achieve)

Explanation: Any industry disrupting technology is highly ambitious. I love that the team is targeting a niche market in which the use-case is very clear, but as in all established traditional markets, creating something different can be met with a lot of resistance.

I believe their goals are great, but "I’ll believe it when I see it".

Additionally, a DAO is the most functional and immediate type of value an NFT collection can realistically offer, but in order to become an incubator as well as DAO, the team must prove itself to such an extent that they become a place artists truly covet to be part of. The reputation of Hog Lordz needs to become more than significant. I, personally, am also someone who wants to support artists and new projects (especially of the grassroots variation), so their stated vision is close to my heart.

Team: 7/10 (1 = Totally unqualified, if even real) (10 = The dream team)

Explanation: Honestly, I was impressed with the team members mostly because it was clear that they knew their own industry, and they were heavily involved. It’s easy to say from the outside that your team is going to x/y/z, however, those outside the industry rarely know the obstacles that are involved. This team seems to know well the challenges of penetrating the tabletop gaming community. However, I also have no information on the developer’s skills, experience, or ability to execute. It’s also quite a small team which may suit the vision, but as this is blockchain, it’s incredibly important that the developer be competent and familiar with blockchain’s limitations and toolsets. Until I know more, I can’t be entirely positive on the team.

Community: 4/10 (1 = It’s dead, and for good reason) (10 = Not only is it active, but the community is real and authentically invested)

Explanation: This is a grassroots project, which means that in time (in theory), the community will grow and improve. The team is active and engaged and positive, however I would be amiss not to mention that there are a lot of passersby who aren’t fully engaged. This can be worrisome, but I am withholding judgement as the style of organic marketing and the long-term vision can offset early slower growth.

Risk: 8/10 (1 = Pretty much a sure bet) (10 = Chances are akin to winning the lottery)

Explanation: The cost of entry is rather moderate as far as NFT collections go. Each mint has cost 1 MOVR, which at the time of minting, was between 50-80 USD per mint. It bodes well that it’s not a greedy play, despite being a hog/greed theme, however the risk comes with the lofty ambitions. I still hold a lot of doubts on if this team can accomplish their vision, though I can see just how great this would be for the Dotsama ecosystem, and how Hog Lordz could bring in another wave of artists and participants from an untapped (and large) community of board game geeks.

Significance: 8.5/10 (1 = Doesn’t offer anything new or valuable) (10 = Could change the very fabric of reality)

Explanation: Sometimes, it’s important to support something just because it’s a good cause. This is where I consider this play to be strongest. I WANT this project to succeed because I want more Dotsama, more artists, more community, more NFT utility and integration. I think this is a niche market that isn’t being paid attention to, and with the right support, it could be a great move by the Dotsama ecosystem. If I had my way, the RMRK team would come in as advisors, and perhaps Dotsama itself could provide some support to building infrastructure into tabletop gaming communities.

Disclosures:

I hold several Hog Lordz (which often is NOT a sign of endorsement, but of curiosity) but I was not paid or asked to write this article.

If you enjoyed this article, donations can be sent to: D8WrK1jsFy9zpFwFZStaDTmX32pMZVdwXTm5rt9LsRKBQrz

Hog Lordz: The "Underhog" of Tabletop Gaming on Dotsama