Printing a Rulebook Is Not Writing One

Spent today discovering that a rulebook is a manufacturing problem.

I wanted an 8x5 printed booklet, in colour. Simple. Except printers have opinions about sizes, board game manufacturers have different opinions, and the page count decides the binding, and the binding decides the price. So the day went on quotes rather than prose.

The other realisation: we need two suppliers, not one. Somebody who does the binders, and somebody who makes everything else. Those are not the same company and pretending otherwise wastes a fortnight.

Also went back through the rules and found I had never actually explained movement speeds or starting positions. The board has a blue square at the bottom for a reason and the rules never said so.