A team from Minsk is seeking support in promoting and developing the online CCG "Bremya Vladyki"

New material in the “Investor/Publisher Wanted” section. Today, we're highlighting a collectible card game from Belarusian developers. It's called "The Load of the Lord."

Ilya Butov, one of the creators of the project, spoke about it.

Ilya Butov

About the Team

We are an independent team of developers based in Minsk. We are located in Minsk. There are no past projects — we are proud of this project.

About the Project

The project originated in 2006, with the idea to create a board game called "Darkfighters." It saw the light of day in 2015.

In the summer of 2018, the core group for developing "The Load of the Lord" was formed. By the summer of 2020, we began working actively across all product areas.

Currently, it is self-funded.

Overall, "The Load of the Lord" is much more than just a CCG; it is a fantasy universe based on Slavic mythology with a focus on Belarusian folklore, also partly incorporating mythology and folklore from neighboring countries.

Within the developed universe, a namesake series "The Load of the Lord" has been launched by the Russian publisher Vechе, with two books published: "And No Roads to the Shadow City" (2024) and "The Crow is Weak, but the Temper is Vicious" (2026). A total of four books are planned, united by a common plot and characters. There is also a series of short stories referred to as fairy tales. The fairy tale cycle comprises three works: "The Best Laughter in the World," "How Kind Fairy Tales Appeared," and "From A to U."

Incidentally, the aforementioned board game, "Darkfighters," is also part of this universe.

One of the key goals is to make "The Load of the Lord" a standalone esports discipline. The game is already functionally geared towards this.

We presented an early version of the product four times at computer game exhibitions in Minsk:

• Unicon (September 13-15, 2024);
• "Dark Matters IV + IndieHub" (March 8-9, 2025);
• Unicon (September 12-14, 2025);
• "Dark Matters V + IndieHub" (March 21-22, 2026).

We also managed to host four tournaments — a pair of both closed and open ones.

Today, the project can already be called the first Belarusian transmedia fantasy franchise. Universe, books, board, and computer games — this is the "The Load of the Lord" project!

About the Gameplay/Mechanics of the Project

Features and key highlights of the computer game:

• 120 unique cards with illustrations drawn without the use of neural networks;
• viewer and commentator modes (connecting to an ongoing game session for viewing);
• Replay feature for viewing past matches;
• an unconventional resource allocation system;
• day-night cycle mechanics;
• combat system built on the principle of "You decide not how much damage you deal, but how much you take."

Gameplay

Initially, the player needs to choose one of the Lords (heroes) to play as. Then, they construct a deck from the available pool of cards. Once these steps are completed, the player searches for an opponent. During the battle, each player receives six cards and 10 resource units — mithril. Then, the order of play and time of day are established.

Players take turns playing their cards using resources allocated each turn, considering ongoing expenses for maintaining creatures on the battlefield and the influx of mithril from the abilities of several cards in play. Creatures are initially deployed in the first zone — the "Camp," from where they can be moved to the second line — the "Portal," to attack your opponent, who, in turn, can deploy creatures for defense, protecting their Lord. Each player's goal is to destroy the opponent's Lord.

About the Target Audience of the Project

• Age rating for literature: 12+, 16+ (depending on the specific book);
• age rating for the board game: 13+;
• age rating for the computer game: 12+;
• target audience is from 16 to 36 years old.

About the average user:

• a fan of tactical CCGs.

Projects we consider as near benchmarks:

• Magic: The Gathering;
• MTG: Arena by Wizards of the Coast from the Magic: The Gathering multiverse;
• Hearthstone by Blizzard Entertainment from the World of Warcraft universe;
• Legends of Runeterra by Riot Games from the League of Legends universe;
• The Gwent by CD Projekt Red from the Witcher universe.

About the Business Model of the Project

A hybrid model is planned between free-to-play and premium:

• boosters;
• cosmetics;
• accelerated unlocking of PvE campaigns;
• acquiring full expansions;
• and others.

About Metrics

The application is not publicly available — metrics have not been collected.

Our planned revenue for the first three years of operation is $1.41 million.

About Who We Are Looking For

We are looking for what we can find:

• influencers who are ready to work with us on various fronts (literature, board games, video games);
• journalists ready to cover us on their news channels;
• access to foreign exhibitions;
• help in participating in exhibitions (transportation, accommodation, organizational aspects, volunteering);
• partners for any kind of questions (creating content for both computer and board games, as well as for literature and other product directions within the team — from illustrations and audio to animations, game design, and distribution of our merchandise);
• partner studios looking for a rich and developed narrative that stands firm thanks to an impressive cultural base;
• companies willing to use our narrative for collaborations (for example, in the food industry, light industry, etc.);
• funding or assuming a portion of the project commitments that require financing (terms negotiable);
• providing rental space at very favorable terms (in Minsk on weekends; ideally for a nominal fee and covering consumables);
• new assistants in related fields, for instance, cosplayers and artisans to create cool stuff for the project and reduce the cost of producing any kind of merchandise;
• help in creating costumes for cosplayers based on our illustrations;
• volunteers at events (assistants for computer and board games, as well as for organizational matters);
• game masters for role-playing games based on our project’s Universe;
• new team members;
• everything else we might not have considered but could be important for us, including what we don’t yet know.

More About the Project

• Website: https://theloadofthelord.by
• Telegram Channel: https://t.me/TheLoadOfTheLord
• ArtStation: https://www.artstation.com/theloadofthelord

How to Contact Us?

• Telegram: https://t.me/vm_v_mv

Important: Please mention where you heard about us in the first few lines of your message.