INDEPENDENT TTRPG CREATOR INTERVIEW: Kai Medina

The best thing about the TTRPG community, is that there's always an independent creator out there that makes something that not only players can get behind, but create it out of love with some wonderfully quirky options.  Kia Medina, an ecologist as well as photographer in New Jersey has dug deep and created quite a few independent titles that not only give you something different but also allows a whole heap of fun on his Itch.io site.  

Here we were lucky enough to be able to ask him some questions to learn all about what he brought to the table to amuse as well as fascinate....

Totally Pawsome:  As a creator of modules for TTRPG's, what inspired you to write the one you're most proud of?

Kai Medina:  The game I'm most proud of is "The Goblin Thought", where you play as a goblin collecting items for their hoard, but each item represents their memory of that day. As you collect and lose items, you tell a wonderful story, encounter change and loss, and practice skills relating to mindfulness, having a growth mindset, and being in a hive-mind.

I had the idea to write this a while back, but "A Thousand Year Old Vampire" gave me some more ideas for the mechanics that could let it run, and books like "The Last Human" by Zack Jordan helped me out when it came to flavor. As I put it all together, I ended up pouring into  it with my autistic experience, in a way that helped provide a strong platform for personal understanding and growth. I wanted people to see that the goblin's experience isn't lesser, it's just different. Being a goblin in this world can be tougher for some more than others, but it’s something certainly worth getting to know. As an educator, I tried to build in an equal amount of adventure/fantasy/intrigue as well as real life topics of stress management, neuro-diversity, and the idea of a day where everything went right, it can still feel sad sometimes, and that’s ok.

TP:  What would you say is the best selling point of your TTRPG's?

KM:  My tabletop games all revolve around understanding. They’re meant to both be entertaining, but offer a new lense and perspective. ‘The Last Step’ asks the player to understand other alien civilizations, while combining with real topics of having multiple identities. ‘To Care is to Cairn’ has you worldbuild a town out of reflections of ordinary objects that shape and are shaped by history, while growing on the idea that items and symbols of the past can have real-world power in the present. ‘BeHoRo’ has you tower-defending your dwarven base from crazy things like pitch-rain and meteorite monsters, but also says that we can’t always act perfectly when we’re out here trying to survive.

TP:  Why the TTRPG space?

KM:  A good monument lets you approach it, and engage with it. You get to see the reliefs on it (carvings / sculpted pieces bonded to it) and learn about the history, stand at a point and look out from the perspective of historical figures, and feel something. It’s a conversation. Games provide a means of conversation; facilitation, where we can escape and have fun in a fantasy world, while also encountering interesting topics we don’t always seek out in real life. It lets me convey what I have to say, and the player gets to hold and explore it without accepting it as fact or fiction. As they play they slowly bringing their own thoughts into physical being, like holding a piece of clay. It’s not forceful and lets them mold it, but has bounds that keep it from falling apart or wandering, giving specifics to engage with. Games allow for a kind of connection with others, even when they’re not fully with you. I’ve been playing dungeons and dragons for the past eight years, and managed to find community everywhere I’ve been - from Boston to Quito, I could find my group of friends, which can be  difficult otherwise.

TP:  What is your favourite product that you produce and why?

KM:  Definitely ‘The Goblin Thought’. It’s the least bulky (The Last Step is fun but isn’t wholly my own and takes quite a bit of reading), most entertaining (To Care is to Cairn is really great to play, if you fit that little boring niche that I reside in), and puts in the most of my personal life. Playtesting this game worked well with so many different people, and we created such interesting worlds within five turns. It takes a moment to get into, but once you get past the first turn, it’s smooth sailing.

TP:  What is your current work in progress and what can you tell us about it?

KM:  I’m toying with a goblin expansion, where a part of your hoard acts as a raft on the ocean. With lifelines (physically and mentally) holding you to it, you can choose to peacefully fish, or dive deep into yourself and the depths where lovecraftian beasts roam. The point of the game will be to add more direct adventure, as well as scaling up the threats for those ready for it. Plus I love throwing in some good fish flavor - I got my B.A. in ecology after all.

TP:  Who do you think would love to play your TTRPG's and why?

KM:  I think anyone can get into The Goblin Thought. When I resigned from a job, doing a couple rounds of it quickly each morning helped me cope. When I was playing with friends we had a goofy, battle filled time as we messed about and caused hissing shenanigans. The core of the game is to meet people where they are. When it comes to my other games, if the premise calls to you, it’ll be good. If not, fair enough.

TP:  Where do you see your TTRPG writing career taking you in 5 years?

KM:  I still see myself working on it as a hobby, but I’m hopeful to get something in a game store one day. Heck one of these is already up online on Barnes and Noble. That’s crazy.

TP:  If you were given the time and opportunity to develop something unique, what would it be and why?

KM:  More of what I do. I am thankful to have the time and opportunity now, so I use what I can and wait for more inspiration to strike.

TP:  Who do you admire in the Independent TTRPG writing space and why?

KM:   I love a shared table. Weird fantastic art pieces like “A Collection of Improving Exercises” by Tim Hutchings that really push the genre past the normal monopoly borders. Places that revitalize history like assets ‘Rabbits & Demons’ traced by Exeunt Press (not to mention their great Exclusion Zone two-pager). Stories that are continually advancing classroom STEAM topics and cultural discussion in places such as “Kampala Yénkya”, and others that provide players with a physical product to look at, take home, and admire like in BlackwellWriter’s ‘DELVE’. Finally the fact that a community where the same $5 get’s passed around managed to raise over $250k for Trans Rights in Florida from a $5 bundle. That’s something incredible.

TP:  What got you into TTRPG's in the first place?

KM:  I listened to ‘The Adventure Zone’. Nobody around me wanted to try D&D but my friend Connor. So the two of us had fun with it. Then, over time, we brought more and more onboard. Real heart is found when sharing a meal with others, and so having some dragons to kill in the meanwhile adds some spice. Always make sure to bring snacks for the table and especially for the host.