🌈🚀 Reliable wonder engine. I make narrative role-playing games that imagine a weirder, queerer, more connected world.
play Defy the Gods!
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Hi Reader, How are you? Please, come in, sit. I have tea and water, and some little biscuits. February is still figuring out if it's winter or spring. Little green shoots are coming up in the yard, now covered in snow, but brave and unstoppable. I've been heads-down over here, working on the "beta" doc for Defy the Gods. And here it is! https://bit.ly/defy-the-gods-beta​ ​You could play it right now. That link takes you to a "quick start," focused on the one-shot experience, to see if the core loops are working. I've been running this game so much, I don't always know what's in the text and what's in my head. To evolve it into its next form, others need to run it. Here's the current blurb I'm telling the internets, socials, and basically anyone who'll listen:
Defy the Gods is a queer sword & sorcery game about daring adventurers struggling against titanic forces who want to destroy them. Inspired by stories as diverse as Conan, Clash of the Titans, and Princess Mononoke, the game pits you against jealous gods, ambitious tyrants, wild creatures, and the lingering shadow of lost Atlantis. Play as a fierce warrior, scholarly sorcerer, flirtatious trickster, wild child, or fugitive shade as you explore this ancient, Mediterranean-like world and your emotional entanglements with each other. Burn brightly and hold fast to each other's hearts as you spiral upward toward your most glorious, monstrous self. But you already know that, because I've been talking about it at game night for months. Also, check out this amazing art that Thalie Shelen made for the front page! She based the enemy goddess on the Burney Relief, also known as the "Queen of the Night." She did a splendid job. I love everything about it—the colors, the mood, the action. ​The doc contains links to character sheets for both online and in-person play. There are pre-filled sheets for characters and setting if you only have time for one session, but the world-building is so much fun that it's worth setting aside time for that. Whew. Feels like a milestone. Lots farther to go with it yet. Cheers, P.S. I hope you can play Defy the Gods sometime! If you do, please tell me how it went. I'd love to get your feedback. P.P.S. And even if you don't, please tell others about it! It's out there now. |
Everlasting, Neverending Game Night
🌈🚀 Reliable wonder engine. I make narrative role-playing games that imagine a weirder, queerer, more connected world.
Hi Reader, Welcome! Please, come in. There's still a few patches of snow on the ground—winter coming in fits and starts. How are you? Me? A weight is off my shoulders—Defy the Gods is at the printer. You can read more about it in the breathless Kickstarter update I sent out yesterday. In fairness, I was feeling breathless. Or like I was just starting to exhale. The printer is reviewing the files. They'll send a report by the end of the week. I'm gonna pay half the print cost soon, with an...
Hi Reader, Welcome! Please come in. It's rainy and blowy outside, and someone said we could get snow. But it's toasty in here. On the table, we have a pile of decorative gourds. I marked numbers on them with a Sharpie so you can roll them like dice. After months of frenzied work on Defy the Gods, I'm suddenly left with nothing to do. The text is complete, the book is laid out. We're waiting on the index and the last four pieces of art—out of 75! Sometime in the next 10 days, we'll submit the...
Hi Reader, Welcome! Please come in, sit down. Have some cold fizzy water—it's way too hot out there. On the table are echinacea blooms—they're back! Since the Defy the Gods Kickstarter wrapped, I've been keeping a low profile. Writing the text, fixing things, finishing sections that were rough. I mean, that's what I'm doing now. At first, I just took the weekend off. Went to a movie. I found myself working on an old card game idea—a fast-paced sword duel played in real time instead of turns....