Oof.

November musings from LunarShadow Designs

Fuck.

That's the only word that really sums up world events of late. I'm not in the US but I know how important this election was for not only Americans but the world at large. If you're wondering what this has to do with a newsletter about games then you need to appreciate that the TTRPG scene is one that's filled with diversity and community. Exactly what Trump and his ilk are going to target. It's going to affect everyone but marginalised and minority creators and gamers are going to be amongst those that bare the brunt of those attacks.

So fuck Trump and the rightwing, fuck the Tories and the facists. If that offends you then unsubscribe. I'm not good at being outspoken or angry but here I am. We need community more than ever right now so look out for yours, for the people in your immediate circles but also for those around you.

Be the best you can be, especially when it's hard.

The Words We Leave Behind Update

Right, moving on to something more pleasant - At the start of the month I released the first major update to The Words We Leave Behind! This update expands the emotional prompts, offering longer games and the development of more complex relationships between your Proxies. Accompanying this is a brand new set of Galactic Incursions that open the game up and encourage you to step beyond Earth's history. All of this is supported by expanded text and new rules.

I'm excited to see what people make of this update and I'm already working on the next , which will revise how anchors work based on what I've learned from my ongoing solo play test (check that out here).

Away from the text of the game I've also commissioned the first trio of interior art pieces from Carly, who did the fantastic cover. I'll be sharing those as they're completed and we move towards the kickstarter. I'm still working out the final budget but my aim for the campaign is to fund additional art via stretch goals to really make the book shine.

Dragonmeet Rising

Last years Dragonmeet stall

Over the last few months I've had the pleasure of exhibiting at both UK Games Expo and Tabletop Scotland but the one I look forward to each year is just around the corner - Dragonmeet - and once again I'll be manning a stall in the lower trade hall alongside Nick Bate of Ickbat Games. If you're attending please swing by to say hello and have a chat! One of the best bits about exhibiting is getting to talk to people and as a returning trader it's fantastic when people stop by who had picked up something the year before.

But wait, that's not all! As well as trading I'm going to be on a seminar panel talking about the experience of being a small publisher and stepping up to running your first stall. That talk is on at 3pm as part of Track 3. I'll be joined on the panel by Rori of Montford Tales and Anya of La Lionne Publishing. Between us we'll be sharing the lessons we've learned and the tips we wish we'd known as first time traders.

Links Roundup

• The history of space exploration is recorded in many ways, one of which is through the unique logos designed for each mission. The Space Exploration Logo Archive collects together 370 of them as a free online archive and in print via kickstarter (which has already finished but is open to late pledges).

• Gaming has always reflected the concerns and issues of society and over on Rascal an interview with Malcolm Craig dives into the role that the Cold War period played on the hobby.

• I grew up on second hand sci-fi novels from the 60s and 70s that were adorned with art of dreamlike and unusual spaceships. The 70’s sci-fi art blog does a fantastic job of resurfacing that art, such as in this recent post about colourful spaceships.

The Wrap Up

That's it for now so I'll keep this wrap up short - Stay safe and look out for each other.

Craig