Right now I'm having issues with the inconsistency of this Kick-starter campaign.
They just updated with a teaser back design for a Silver Certificate deck if they hit 85K. In all honesty this new Silver design is better then the Fed 52 and the Gold designs. There is no guarantee this project will hit 85K, which means we might not get Jackson's best work should the deck fall short. This really should have been all planned out prior to launching the campaign. What happens if the campaign hits 85K hours before the end. New rewards need to be created to include the silver deck and then most will have to update their choices last minute. The early birds get screwed, while those who waited get everything. The poster prints are nice but most who support this project want the decks. Add to the fact Jackson does not even want the Bicycle logo on the box but is going with it anyway due to inconvenience.
The design and skills are amazing but I don't know what I'm paying for anymore. Finish the design's first then launch the kick-starter. It kills me to see a project with so much potential to be flawed because of poor planing. Whats the rush? You only get one chance at making a first impression. This project will stick with you for as long as you plan to create future decks.
It's simple. When he launched his project, I'm sure he had hopes and dreams for big success, but like most practical humans, he applied "lottery ticket" logic. You buy a ticket hoping you'll win but expecting you won't. Turns out that his ticket is a winner. One's plans do change a lot after a significant windfall...
I wouldn't worry about this project making or not making the stretch goal. I could practically guarantee that he will produce that silver certificate deck, one way or another. Maybe another KS project, maybe privately funded. He'd be crazy not to - because of people like you, who want it so much!
As far as early birds not getting all the worms, I wouldn't worry too much about that. Most KS campaigns will toss in decks when certain stretch goals are met, and even if they don't add them for free, they give their backers an opportunity to get all the goodies even after it's closed. They'd be crazy not to! It would be like a retailer saying, "Oh, I don't want THAT much extra cash..."
I will grant you, however, that it's best to have a design at least 90% locked in and done before going to Kickstarter. I get the impression that he's still making the deck as he goes along. Lance did that on his Actuators (Artist's Edition) and he overshot his planned delivery date in part as a result of that.
