Must Be a Dragon, a masterless RPG of explorers and dragons

#29 DRAGON PROJECT .STL AND UPDATES
6 months ago – Sun, Sep 21, 2025 at 04:08:00 AM

Hello Explorers, I'm Luca and I hope you're fine! I had to gather quotes and feedback from suppliers, which is why I'm only writing this new update now. Here's the latest news:

Dragon project 3d .Stl

All backers of the ‘The Dragon’s Secret’, ‘The Return of the Dragon’, and ‘The Dragon’s Treasure’ pledges are entitled to receive an exclusive 3D-printable .stl model of a special dragon from Must Be a Dragon. We collaborated with the amazing artist Chiara Vincenti (👉 Instagram), who created this splendid design: a majestic dragon, muscular and elegant, exploring nature. The Must Be a Dragon logo is engraved underneath the miniature’s base.

The printed version will feature a 16 cm base, with the dragon measuring about 25 cm in length. A stunning piece to paint and treasure as a memento of this game!

We’ve sent all eligible backers an email with a Google Drive link to access the files (If you have not received it check the spam folder).
Please note: the email was sent to the same address you used on Kickstarter. If you’ve changed your email since then, contact me here or privately so I can resend it.

Thank you, and happy printing! 🐉✨

English Copies

We’re happy to share some good news: our Polish printer, who was originally set to handle only the European and non-American copies, has agreed to take care of the entire print run, including the American ones. This way, all copies will have the same high level of quality, and we’ve now been able to place the full order with confidence.

The books should be ready in about a month. As soon as they arrive, I’ll get in touch with European and worldwide backers to confirm shipping details and arrange delivery.

For American backers, as well as anyone whose pledge includes extra materials beyond the core rulebook, we’ll just need to wait a little longer until the tokens arrive (see next point). That way, we can ship the corebook together with the tokens and all the other goodies in one package.

Narrator Token + Scale Tokens 

These tokens will be printed in China, and we’ve already submitted the order and artwork, and everything has been accepted. Production hasn’t started just yet, but the printing process itself will be quick—delivery is expected within about 14-20 days. This means we should have all the tokens in stock by mid-November 2025. 

All the other goodies are already ready, so as soon as the tokens arrive:

• We’ll send the tokens, remaining goodies, and the copies for American backers to our fulfillment center in the United States, so they can be shipped out to each backer.
• We’ll send the tokens, remaining goodies, and the copies to European and international backers with pledges that include extras beyond the core rulebook.
• We’ll send the tokens together with the remaining goodies to Italian backers who already received the rulebook but are still waiting for their extras.

Barring unforeseen issues, and with everything moving along as planned, we expect to complete deliveries for all customers, including the US, by the end of 2025.

I know it’s been a long wait, and I truly appreciate your patience and support. Every small step brings us closer to the finish line, and I’m more confident than ever that we’ll soon be able to deliver everything you deserve. I’ll keep you updated the moment the copies and tokens arrive, since each delivery milestone means shipments are going out.

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The game will definitely be produced. We care about you, and we truly want to bring this game to a wider market, not just through Kickstarter (the opening of the English store has been postponed specifically because of this delay). We also need to complete this project in order to move forward with new games. It is absolutely not in our interest to slow down or leave the game unfinished, so please never have any doubts about that.

As always, I am here if you need anything, and I sincerely thank you for your patience and support.

A big hug from me and from the whole Sushi Role team!
– Luca

#28 ENGLISH EDITION - UPDATES
11 months ago – Sun, Apr 27, 2025 at 02:28:52 AM

Hello Explorers, I'm Luca and I hope you're fine! Have a look at the new updates!

The English edition

As I mentioned in previous updates, the English copies will be printed by two different printers: one in Europe and one in America. We have received the sample from the European printer, and we already have the contact for the American printer ready to start printing.

Unfortunately, we experienced delays due to a fair we attended, and at the same time the supplier of the tokens and other materials also had delays. Now we have resumed work on the project, and we will start production with the Polish printer for the European + rest of the world copies, then move on to the American printer.

I am fully aware that this project is taking much longer than expected, preventing us from delivering what you supported in the timeframe we had hoped for and from launching new projects. The delay is not due to duties or external causes, but entirely our responsibility, mainly because of limited budgets. However, we are working hard to resolve the situation and complete this project by delivering everything you are owed.

I also received an update from the token manufacturer, and based on the current progress, I am confident that by August 2025 we will be able to ship everything to Europe, the United States, and the rest of the world. I will keep you updated, and I will be at your disposal to answer any specific requests or updates in general.

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The game will definitely be produced. We care about you, and we truly want to bring this game to a wider market, not just through Kickstarter (the opening of the English store has been postponed specifically because of this delay). We also need to complete this project in order to move forward with new games. It is absolutely not in our interest to slow down or leave the game unfinished, so please never have any doubts about that.

As always, I am here if you need anything, and I sincerely thank you for your patience and support.

A big hug from me and from the whole Sushi Role team!
– Luca

#27 ENGLISH EDITION AND NEXT STEPS
over 1 year ago – Thu, Dec 12, 2024 at 08:04:52 AM

Hello Explorers, I'm Luca and I hope you're fine! Have a look at the new updates!

The Italian edition

The Italian edition of Must Be a Dragon has been produced and distributed. 
All Italian backers have received an email with instructions on how to receive their copy and with this subject: 'Must Be a Dragon è arrivato: spedizioni pronte a partire!'. If there are Italian backers among you who have not received it, please write to me, your copies are ready to be shipped!

The English edition

We have started production for the English copies for Europe, Asia and Oceania. These copies will be shipped first, and we should be ready by the end of January 2025. Then we will move on to the copies for America, which will be ready by the end of March 2025. In both cases, we have fulfilment centers, so the shipping management will be tracked, fast and safe.

When the printer delivers the corebooks to the warehouses of our fulfilment centres, we will send the survey via Backerkit. My goal is to have as little time as possible pass between receiving the survey and shipping, so as to ensure that there are no changes in addresses and that the shipping is done correctly at the first attempt.

The digital edition

You all received a link via Drivethrurpg to download the English PDF of Must Be a Dragon. We are working on some minimal corrections and graphical improvements on the English digital edition that we've improved in the Italian edition. So we will soon upload this new English edition on Drivethrurpg and you will receive a new email to download it (even though the file will be almost identical to the previous one).

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The game will certainly be produced because we care about you, because we would like to spread this game in the market and not only on Ks, and because we also have to produce other new games. It is not in our interest to slow down or fail to produce the game, so never and absolutely have any doubts about this. Unfortunately, there have been and are some slowdowns, but we will do everything possible to respect what was said and close the project and send it to print for the whole world in a short time. I am available for anything, and I thank you as always for your patience.

A hug from me and from the whole Sushi Role team!
- Luca

#26 ITALIAN EDITION AND NEXT STEPS
over 1 year ago – Thu, Jul 11, 2024 at 12:19:07 AM

Hello Explorers, I'm Luca and I hope you're all well! Have a look at the new updates!

Must Be a Dragon: ITALIAN EDITION!

In the last few months, the team of the Italian publisher Isola Illyon Edizioni has supported the nascent Sushi Role team to solve the problems related to the last phase of the Kickstarter, (printing and shipping). And we have great news for Italian players. Must Be a Dragon will also be published in Italian, and the PDF is almost ready! When you receive the survey via Backerkit, each of you will be able to decide whether to receive the English or Italian physical version. Those who have pledged for the PDF only, will receive an email asking them if they want to receive the PDF in Italian or if they are okay with keeping the English one. All of this will help the game grow and will be a way to meet the requests of Italian players for a specific edition in their language.

Backerkit Survey: why was it not sent?

The huge delay of this project makes me very uncomfortable, having reached a goal at the limit with the costs, we were forced to proceed slowly or use other funds to support it. For this reason, and for other organizational and team matters, there have been delays and sending the survey asking to pay the shipping seems to me too much at this moment. I prefer waiting for the printer to finish the production of the physical copies. Then I will send you the survey to be sure that the addresses and all other information will be updated, and to make you pay the shipping price on a date as close as possible to its shipment. I know what it feels like to wait a long time for a Kickstarter, and I am sorry, for this reason, we are trying to impact your patience as little as possible by working silently and quickly.

Next steps

We are evaluating the quotes received from the American printers, and we are arranging an agreement with a distributor for the USA. For Europe and the rest of the world, we already have the printer ready, but they are also waiting for the Italian edition so they can print everything together. By the end of July, everything should be ready, and the printing times will be short. However, instead of giving you dates, I will give you updates, every time there is a step forward in the production of the physical edition, I will write to you so that you all know in real time. As always, I will keep you updated.

The game will certainly be produced because we care about you, because we would like to spread this game in the market and not only on Ks, and because we also have to produce other new games. It is not in our interest to slow down or fail to produce the game, so never and absolutely have any doubts about this. Unfortunately, there have been and are some slowdowns, but we will do everything possible to respect what was said and close the project and send it to print for the whole world in a short time. I am available for anything, and I thank you as always for your patience.

A hug from me and from the whole Sushi Role team!

- Luca

#25 THE PDF IS OUT!
about 2 years ago – Sun, Mar 24, 2024 at 08:44:41 AM

Hello Explorers, I'm Luca and today...is the day!

Digital copy!

Editable Sheets

• Scenes Sheet (Editable)
• Traces Sheet (Editable)

Next steps

Enjoy!

After shipping the physical copies, we will start communication activities, online sessions on our Discord and events with shops, associations, clubs, geek conventions to let all of you and many other role-playing players to play our Must Be a Dragon!

Thank you all for your patience, you have been wonderful. I hope that you like all the game design and graphic work done and have fun! A hug from me and from the whole Sushi Role team!

- Luca