A collective of TikTokers that specialize in wielding real-life versions of D&D weapons have begun crowdfunding an official 5e campaign. The GoFundMe page, which has already raised over $60,000, says: “We are bringing together the biggest names in SwordTube…? WeaponTube…? You get it…to play the most min-maxed tabletop RPG characters…probably ever. Ourselves!”
The party will be DMed by Tater the Bard, a content creator who regularly posts D&D tips and tier lists. The players are all known for their prowess with typical fantasy weaponry. Jacques Ze Whipper performs musical numbers with a whip, Instructor Bensei is a meteor hammer expert, Blumineck specializes in archery, and Sellsword Arts makes videos dedicated to swordsmanship.
While Mateo (AKA Tater) is the most obviously D&D-oriented creator, pretty much everyone else involved has years of passion and knowledge for the tabletop RPG. Jacques Ze Whipper, for example, says “I basically know the game of D&D backwards and forwards” and cites experience ranging from reading the Player’s Handbook at Ren Faires as a youth to doing charity shows with the Twenty-Sided Tavern theater group.
Blumineck (AKA David the Arrow Bard) tells Wargamer that he’s collaborated with several of his new adventuring party before. “For me, it all started with Sellsword Arts”, he explains. “I’d collaborated with them a few times on remote videos (and with Instructor Bensei too), and people would often joke in the comments that we should form a D&D party.”
“We all make videos about various weapons but we’ve also all covered D&D content pretty regularly, so it makes sense! They were also getting similar comments on their collabs with Jacques Ze Whipper and Bensei, and so one day they dropped us all a message about making it happen. As a long-time fan of everyone involved it was the closest I’ve gotten to a call from Nick Fury, so of course I was in!”
@sellswordarts We are Playing D&D with @jacqueszewhipper @blumineck @instructor_bensei & @tater_the_bard! #dnd #ttrpg #fantasy #collab ♬ Originalton – Sellsword Arts
As explained in a Tiktok video (see above), the team is separated by states, countries, and even timezones. They also want to create a game with premium production value. All of this means that crowdfunding has become a necessary part of the project.
“We want to bring everyone to the Sellsword Arts Studio in Texas to film an Epic, Unpredictable and absolutely Hilarious campaign where we will put ourselves into the game”, the GoFundMe says. “And… this comes with some upfront costs that we need your help with. Flights, Hotels, Equipment and if we are lucky… an immersive set!”
“I was most excited to get to play with a bunch of people I’m a fan of, digitally, but never had the chance to meet in person”, Jacques tells Wargamer. “But now, after seeing the reaction from fans, I’m really excited to get to do something big for them and give them something unique and silly.”
So far, over 2,000 people have donated to the fundraiser. “We were hesitant putting that together because we had no idea how well it would do, but the support has been overwhelming!”, Blumineck says. “We’re super grateful to everyone who helped out, and we’re looking forward to making this happen!”
“We were worried that fundraising might be an issue, but holy smokes have people showed up”, Jacques adds. “Now the challenge is going to be making sure we put out something that’s worthy of the support our fans have shown us.”
There are currently no details available about the campaign itself. We don’t know how many episodes will be recorded or when they will be available.
We don’t even know what DnD classes everyone will play (though there have been plenty of jokes about Jacques playing a Bard). Blumineck tells Wargamer that, “while I also love a Monk or Barbarian, I tend to gravitate towards Ranger (because someone has to!)”. Only time will reveal the exact party makeup, however.
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