Hogwarts Defenders
Menu

Kickstarter

The 28 FAQs, condensed

Data last checked: · how we verify numbers

On this page
  1. Tiers, exclusives and pricing
  2. Retail timing
  3. Languages
  4. The campaign’s shape
  5. Refunds, cancellations and returns
  6. Who made it and who ran it
  7. What the campaign never answered

The official Kickstarter page carries 28 FAQ entries [official JSON], spread across tiers, shipping, refunds, retail and the studio’s working methods. This page condenses all of them into the fourteen questions people actually ask, restated in our words — rules behaviour is deliberately absent here, because that belongs to the rules FAQ. Every answer links the source it restates, and the questions the campaign never answered sit in their own section at the end rather than being smoothed over.

Tiers, exclusives and pricing

Was backing the Kickstarter just a pre-order?

Effectively, yes — the official answer calls Kickstarter the game’s first sales channel and the way to get it earliest (official FAQ). The practical difference from a shop pre-order: payment at the campaign’s end, delivery through a pledge manager, and no consumer-returns routine attached at purchase. What the campaign raised and when it closed is on the pledge-tiers page.

What made the Kickstarter edition different from retail?

Exclusives and pricing. Every tier carried exclusive content and “Kickstarter Exclusive pricing that will not be available in regular retail” [official FAQ] — the foil Art Print, box sleeve, wooden tokens, card sleeves and the Collector’s Box items. The base game itself was identical in both channels: the same game reaches select House of MinaLima retail locations, and the recommended retail price is £75 including UK VAT for the base game only, with no exclusive add-ons (official FAQ).

Could you pledge £1 and upgrade later?

Yes — the official FAQ confirms a £1 pledge locked access to the pledge manager, with the tier upgrade and add-ons chosen later (official FAQ). Around 1,054 of the 10,959 backers took some form of non-game pledge, which is why the three named tiers do not sum to the backer total [official counts, our arithmetic].

When were backers charged?

At the campaign’s close: payment happened automatically on the final day of the campaign, with shipping and taxes collected later in the pledge manager before dispatch (official FAQ).

Retail timing

When could you buy it in a shop?

In steps. The same base game reaches select House of MinaLima retail locations “starting in Autumn 2026”, wholesale supply to other retailers follows “in 2027”, and retail carries the base game only — none of the Kickstarter exclusives (official FAQ). Which channels are open right now is tracked in where to buy.

How were retailers meant to stock it?

Not through Kickstarter. The FAQ directs shops to a wholesale interest form — and says the game will be “available for wholesale to retailers in 2027” (official FAQ; form at bit.ly/DOHretailers).

Languages

Which languages was the game available in?

English only at launch: “For the Kickstarter launch, the game will be available in English only” [official FAQ], with translated versions planned “at a later date” — no month, no year (official FAQ). Any timeline you see attached to translations is someone else’s guess, not the campaign’s.

The campaign’s shape

Why were there no stretch goals?

There never were any, at any funding level — unusual for a campaign that closed at 26 times its goal [official JSON, our arithmetic]. The official reason: every element was crafted with the same care and intention as all of the studio’s work, the greatest magic is in the details, and the team wanted the base game to be the best product it could possibly be (official FAQ). Take it as stated; no milestone unlocks existed to track.

How did the free Commemorative Pin work?

Pre-launch newsletter subscribers who backed any of the three tiers received the enamel pin packed with their game; after the campaign a survey confirmed the subscribed email address. Anyone else could add the pin separately at £13 plus tax (official FAQ).

Refunds, cancellations and returns

Could a pledge be cancelled or refunded?

Yes, on a strict clock (official FAQ):

  • First 14 days after payment: full refund, no questions.
  • After 14 days, before fulfilment begins: partial refund minus a 20% cancellation fee.
  • After fulfilment starts — scheduled for 2026-09-30: no cancellations at all; the returns policy below is the only route. Fulfilment actually began after the survey window closed on 2026-10-09 [official, Update #18].

Warning

The returns routine was deliberately narrow. Unopened games could be returned within 28 days of receipt minus a 20% administration fee; shipping, duties and taxes already paid were not refundable; return postage was the buyer’s to pay; House of MinaLima stores do not accept returns; and tier rewards and add-ons were made to order — non-returnable except for defects. Within a tier bundle, only the base game was returnable, dealt with at base-game price (official FAQ).

What if a parcel arrived damaged — or never arrived?

Through the pledge manager’s support channel, now at bit.ly/DOHsupport (official FAQ). Parcels confirmed lost in transit are re-sent at the campaign’s own cost. Damage or defects must be reported within 7 days of delivery with a description and photos — statutory consumer rights are unaffected.

Who made it and who ran it

Who ran the pledge manager?

Hive Interactive, announced in Update #13 when surveys opened on 2026-08-28 [official, Update #13]. Hive collects addresses, shipping and taxes for the campaign and hosts the support tickets (official FAQ names the pledge manager as the damage/loss channel; Hive is confirmed in the update).

Who manufactured the game, and under what licence?

The official rulebook credits Panda Game Manufacturing as manufacturer [official rulebook], and the copyright line names Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products as licensee, alongside The Blair Partnership [official rulebook]. The FAQ itself does not name either — this is rulebook-and-copyright sourcing, flagged as such. What the FAQ does cover: the pledge manager carried only items shown on the campaign page, with the studio’s wider range living on its own shop (official FAQ).

Did the campaign use generative AI?

No, in the campaign’s own strongest wording: “Generative AI has not, and will never be, used in the creation of Defenders of Hogwarts or Studio MinaLima designs” [official campaign page, Our Values]. The statement is about the game’s artwork and design, and stands as one of the campaign’s few absolute promises.

What the campaign never answered

Five questions were left open by the campaign, and we mark them rather than invent answers:

  • Does the £58 UK pledge include VAT or not? The tier cards say taxes are collected in the pledge manager [official]; no UK backer’s final invoice has surfaced to settle it. Both readings are costed in the calendar page.
  • Could Hive still accept new orders after 2026-10-09? The page kept rendering pledge buttons, checkout sits behind a login, and no official statement ever re-opened or re-closed it — we treat late pledging as closed [our test].
  • Retail prices outside the UK. Only the £75 UK RRP is official; US, EU and other pricing was never published [official FAQ gives the UK figure only].
  • A schedule for leftover exclusives. “May be sold at limited events, House of MinaLima locations, and activations” is the entire commitment — no venues, no dates [official FAQ].
  • Hive’s stale statistics. Hive’s page showed 1,145,517 GBP from 9,436 backers against Kickstarter’s official £1,313,755 from 10,959 — a 13% gap never explained by either side [official Hive page vs official JSON]. All totals on this site follow Kickstarter’s figures.

Sources

Related reading

The 6 pledge tiers, decoded£58 / £115 / £280 with backer counts and all the fine print.Where to buy it right nowChannel statuses checked 2026-10-12 — and the steps to try anyway.Timeline to fulfilmentEvery official update from announcement to doorstep, in order.