MINIATURE PAINTING: Dinosaur Skull and Rocks - Sculpt: Artisan Guild

I'm always trying to improve my painting so when I saw the dino skull sculpt from Artisan's Guild I couldn't wait to get my hands on it.  Surrounded by rocks and partially buried, this item just spoke to me and I knew that it was going to be not only fun but a challenge.  Why?

Well most people tend to think of skulls or bone as yellow, yes sunbleached it could be, but when you look at a lot of them, there is subtle shades of grey, white and of course yes, a slight yellowing to brown.  So what did I do, that made mine a little different.

Firstly I looked at some old bones and made notes of the colours within, I then rummaged through my paints and brought a few out to get started.  Unless otherwise stated paint colours are from Army painter (box set listed next to the colour).

PRIMER:  White Scar - Citadel

Rocks:

Base:  Necromancer Cloak (Mega Paint set)

Highlight:  Uniform Grey (Mega Paint Set)

Finer Highlight:  Ash Grey (Mega Paint Set)

Very light finishing dry brush:  Matt White (Mega Paint Set)

Skull:

Base:  Palid Bone (Speedpaint Mega Set)

First Drybrush: Uniform Grey (Mega Paint Set)

Finer Drybrush:  Ash Grey (Mega Paint Set)

Light Drybrush:  Skeleton Bone (Mega Paint Set)

Highlight Drybrush:  Matt White (Mega Paint Set

Whilst this does sound complex it is quite easy, you carefully apply the base colours to the correct place and then, using your Dry Brush (I use a make up brush as I find they're ideal) going round area's add less and less as you move up to the later layers.  

All round, it is simple and to be honest, something I've learned is to always have a look for something that exists in the real world to help you look at the various colours and how they work.  Its always more of a combo than any singular colour and whether you add a touch of white or black to lighten or darken your original colour, you will always find a different way to make the piece your own.  

INDEPENDENT TTRPG 3D MINIATURE SCULPTOR INTERVIEW: Adam: Twin Goddess Miniatures

When I get to play TTRPG's, when I was younger it was all left to the imagination, however, in more modern times (since my return) I've loved seeing Miniatures that represent your heroes as well as the monsters, making the whole game extra special on a new level and with every passing month, new developments have allowed the average person to own a 3d printer with wonderfully creative 3d modellers creating their own visions that people can download and print themselves.  

I've been lucky enough to get some of Adam's time, from Twin Goddess Miniatures whose own sense of whimsy is winning them fans the world over.  Here we get to listen to his answers to our questions...

Totally Pawsome:  How do you work out which themes to create pieces for?

Twin Goddess Miniatures:  Themes are kind of on a whim, I used to do polls but I felt sometimes themes were picked that my heart wasn't into 100% So now I just do what I want to at the time.

TP:  What would you say sells your miniatures to people?

TGM:  For me my stuff sells from being unique, fun, and dynamic. There are lots of minis out there but being able to get charm into the character means it is more likely to be noticed and purchased.

TP:  What is the turn around time from designing a concept to having it ready for printing?

TGM:  If I'm not distracted about 6-12 hours depending on how much "new" parts I have to make. Armor can slow things down.

TP:  What is your favourite piece that you've created and why?

TGM:  Probably Knox the Goblin, she was one of my first but she set the standard of quality and charisma.

TP:  Coming up with a piece is often an idea that gets written into a journal to come back to. How often do you find yourself working on one piece and another comes to mind and can you give an example?

TGM:  Ideas typically come to me from playing D&D with my friends.

TP:  What do you think is most inspiring about your miniatures and why?

TGM:  Kinda the same reasons as question 2.

TP:  Where do you see your business taking you in 5 years?

TGM:  I'd like to be more popular and working with bigger names on you-tube and streams. Possibly making minis for their shows.

TP:  If you were given the time and opportunity to create anything you wanted what would it be and why?

TGM:  I pretty much already do that lol

TP:  Who do you admire in the fantasy community and why?

TGM:  Just the sheer amount of fun ideas people come up with.

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

TGM:  Not sure what was the first instance of it, but I've been interested in Medieval Fantasy since I was little and I've been playing d&d for almost 15 years now.

INDEPENDENET TTRPG MODULE/SYSTEM CREATOR: Alex Rinehart

Based in Seattle, Alex Rinehart is a game designer with a passion, creating the well known Cyberrats, where you play as one of the genetically modified rats" where you fight against aliens whilst trying to increase your companies credentials (and sabotaging their rivals), its a game that is a lot of fun to play.

Here he took a crack at our questions and whilst I did spot the odd little beady eye looking, I think we managed to pull of a successful operation, you can keep up to date and join in one of his monthly oneshots on his discord here...

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

Alex Rinehart:  My most-well known game is Cyberrats, which started as a Shadowrun hack. Shadowrun is such a beautiful, rich, and fun setting paired with some of the clunkiest mechanics possible. 

I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that it has spawned more game designers than any other RPG. It's a universal experience to say "I want to love this game, but there's so much... crunch!".

There's a lot of things I love about Shadowrun, and I had a list of elements I wanted to keep (the tiered initiative, the dice pool, damage reduction) and then the LUMEN system reference document came out, and I saw that it was perfect for what I wanted to do: emphasizing tactics and simplicity. I threw out 90% of what I had, and built up a new system, with new lore. The two biggest inspirations now are Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and XCOM. There's still some Shadowrun bits in there (you work for a megacorp after all), but I wanted to capture the XCOM feel of building a base, managing resources, and figuring out how to survive just one more mission. The premise is the same: you want to save the world from invading aliens, but in Cyberrats you have a different problem: a different megacorp, one of your competitors, is also saving the world, and they've got it under control. 

Naturally, your CEO finds this unacceptable: it's better for the world to end than for it to be saved by someone else. So you're tasked with sabotaging the rival megacorp, stopping the aliens, saving the world, and making sure that your boss gets all the credit. 

That's a long way of saying that the inspirations were:

Loving XCOM and wanting to replicate it in an analog way

Loving the Shadowrun lore but not the mechanics

A conveniently-timed SRD release

TMNT and corporate apathy.

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

AR:  I like to say that I make games no one else will. People laugh at me when they look at my portfolio because it's just so bizzare. I was playing Cyberrats (a violent game of resource management and combat tactics) while I was Kickstarting Shoppers, which is a Slice-of-life game about hanging out in a Shopping Mall, playing mini games (like dice stacking, Price is Right,  or a sort of analog Candy Crush) to gain rapport with various shopkeepers. It's such a different vibe than Cyberrats, and everyone on stream stopped to say "What are you doing over there?".

More specifically, I use mechanics very deliberately. I made a 60-page zine called Gratitude: A Horror Game, which is published by Exalted Funeral. That's a horror game that was inspired by my enormous Labrador Lacy, but it's also my answer to Dread. Dread (played with a Jenga tower) is a brilliant game, but the tension of the game slowly ramps up... and then it falls, suddenly. Once the tower drops, it's unlikely to do it ever again during that game. So there's a sense of evaporation, you only get one climax. With Gratitude, I wanted to have a much smaller, tighter tension curve. Not like a ramp, but more like a sine wave. So there's a Fear Die, the largest available d6 that sits in the middle of the table. Every time you succeed at a task, it increases by 1. Every time you fail, you take damage equal to the number shown on it. And you only have about 10 hit points, so you're going to die. But that's not the end of the story! Gratitude is a game about sacrifice, about finding out what you're willing to lose. When you die in the game you die in real life you choose something to lose and you continue playing without it. How does your character change if they no longer have a sense of time? Of taste? Of hearing? It's a game about recognizing the blessings we have in our day-to-day, and about losing those. It's a very personal kind of horror.

You previously asked about inspirations: a lot of my games come from taking something I really like (or really want to like), and tweaking them. In 2021, I released Close Encounters, a sci fi game about sad astronauts on a planet that wants to eat them. I like to describe this game as Numenera meets Hellapagos: you're stuck on a planet, and each night you need to sacrifice enough technology to feed a robot spirit so it doesn't eat you. The way you get that technology is by exploring the remains of other crashed ships. I wanted to imagine a sci-fi dungeon crawl with simple mechanics (this was before I knew about Through the Void, an incredible sci-fi OSR game). 

My biggest complaint about Numenera is that I wanted a list of both what an alien technology might do, but also what it might look like. The best part of Close Encounters is the spread where I just describe familiar things (like a bicycle handle) in unfamiliar ways, it's a very Brechtian approach. So you get these pieces of technology, and all of them are tools that can help you further explore the ships. Here's a gun that shoots a rope, here's a bead that turns into a giant floating bubble when you crush it. So you have to choose between keeping it to use and feeding it to the planet to survive. And if you get enough technology, you can repair your ship and fly home. I'm always thinking about the end conditions of my games. I don't usually make games that are meant to be played indefinitely. I respect your time too much. I like stories with endings. Gratitude and Close Encounters are about escaping a terrible place. Cyberrats is about saving the world. Shoppers is about building rapport and "conquering" the turf of the mall. These aren't multi-year campaigns, they're experiences that build memories. Ultimately that's the purpose of play. 

3)  Why the TTRPG space?

Tabletop roleplaying games are a uniquely intimate way of creating memories. You aren't just watching a TV show or even playing a board game: you're watching a bespoke narrative play out in front of you and interacting with it. I believe that storytelling is the most powerful way we have of connecting with other people. There's also an incredible opportunity to connect with people, to make new friends. Or just to try something out. None of us knows who we are, and TTRPGs give us a chance to be someone else for an hour or a day. What if I was a noble knight or a charlatan? It's a place to play with trust and without consequences. There's nothing sadder than forgetting how to play, and it can happen at any age.

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

AR:  I made a game called Today's Passing that is inspired by one of my favorite comics (Daytripper). It's a solo journaling game where you revisit pivotal moments from your life. You write a handful of journal entries, and then you die. And at the end of it, you write an obituary. "What would your life mean if it ended today?". It's a deeply personal and intimate game, and I think it's only sold about a dozen copies. But I just love it. I didn't make it for commercial success, I made that one for me. And some people love it. I've had two people message me saying "This is so great, I love this". Those comments always feel good, but for Today's Passing, I think "Yeah, you got this, you saw what I was trying to do". 

This was also my first time doing my own layout, the game is laid out like a newspaper to fit the obituary theme, so there's even more of me in this game than usual.

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

AR:  'm currently working on two projects. The first is an expansion for Cyberrats called Rise of the Briny Bastards. It's in open playtest right now. This expansion is huge, the joke is that it's a supplement so big, it was almost Cyberrats 2. Fans of XCOM will recognize the allusion, but it really is true! The expansion improves upon the faults of the base game. Stealth in Cyberrats is kind of a suggestion, and here we flesh out actual (fun) rules. We give everyone a Submarine, because the first game didn't have one of those. 

Briny Bastards is an homage to War of the Chosen, so we have some Lieutenants that harass the players. Or their Operatives, anyway. And the lieutenants drop extra special loot when defeated. But we also add new elements: your Operatives can have relationships with one another (if you develop a crush on another Operative, you have to write their name on your character sheet surrounded by little cartoon hearts), we've got rules for heists, expanded downtime, and toyetic drones. These are all things that people already wanted the game to do, so there's a lot of fan service here. Except for the Submarine. No one asked for that, that's just for me. 

It's funny, the submarine was my original impetus, my starting point for this expansion, and I almost cut it. After one playtest I said "This just isn't working. It's not fun enough." And I'm quick to cut things that don't meet the bar for fun. One of my playtesters approached me afterwards with a suggestion to flip the mechanic around. "Alex, you love push your luck mechanics. Why don't you make it into one of those?" And it all clicked. Now the players have to make a choice about whether to stay submerged and get more loot, or to come up for air (and safety). Suddenly the submarine works, and it's all thanks to my pal Chris. I don't have all the answers myself.

My second project is called SARO (pronounced "sorrow"), which stands for "Sometimes, Always, Rarely, Once". I like to describe it as a tactical SRD-cum-manifesto. Basically, this is me distilling everything I know about making fun tactical combat and putting it into a guide that anyone can follow. There's a lot of 4e [D&D] in there, there's a lot of Into the Breach and Advance Wars. Tactics can get bogged down, and no one wants a 4-hour fight in their RPG. Well, some people do, but most of them play Warhammer instead. This is a guide about making combats fun, memorable and tactical, and if you read this, you'll recognize a lot of my design ethos from Cyberrats as well.

I could talk about SARO forever, but I'll just share one tenant: make numbers small. It's easy, lazy, and uninteresting to have your Paladin dealing 10,000 damage. It's exciting the first time, and then the numbers become meaningless and hard to process. If you're hitting for 2 damage and the baddie has 5 HP, that's... you can fit that in your head. And you can tweak it! The difference between 2 and 3 on that scale is huge! The difference between 10,000 and 11,000 is nothing. It's a rounding error. I'm not making a JRPG here, I'm making something meant to be enjoyed, and I want every minute to be worth it for you.  You asked earlier what made my games stand out. I'll change my answer: every one of my games respects your time. I don't put out 300 page rulebooks. I make them as small as possible so you can start playing right now. And my games try to earn their time at the table. I hope you'll agree they succeed.

TP:  Who do you think would love to play your TTRPGs and why?

AR:  I like to think I have something for most people. If there's someone who's never played an RPG before, Shoppers is really low-stakes. You're a teenager at the mall! And you're playing Price is RIght, guessing the total of this stack of dice I'm about to roll. That's low stakes, we can all relate to that. 

If you're a video gamers and you love XCOM, Cyberrats is perfect for you. If you like Horror or worldbuilding or giant friendly dogs that can't be injured in any way, there's Gratitude. Close Encounters is for fans of dungeon crawling who want a change of pace from generic fantasy, and don't mind some narrative scenes where you profess your love for other characters (the titular "Close Encounters" refer to flashbacks with other characters, the only way to relieve Stress that builds up over play). 

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

AR:  Whew. I've thought about walking away. 

Every time I run a Kickstarter, I think "This will be my last one". But so far I've had more ideas I want to pursue, and if I think other people would like them too, I publish them. 

I'll be honest, the only way I see myself being here [in the RPG writing community] in 5 years is if Briny Bastards does well. We're swinging for the fences here, and we've got big plans, things we'd like to do. (I say "we" here, because Cyberrats is a team project, it's the work of my sister Rachel, our incredible artist Patrick Sinnott, and myself). If we can fund the book we want to make, if there's appetite for that, we'll deliver it. But if there isn't, I'll really have to ask myself what I'm doing here, what I'm getting out of it. 

RPGs are a big part of my life, and have been for more than 10 years. I don't think I'll stop playing them soon, but there's a very real chance I stop releasing them, y'know? I've only got so much time to make cool projects, and the amount of polish it takes to switch from "something I made for me" to "something I think others would appreciate", it just... it might not be worth it. 

I know that's kind of a bummer response. If the question is "where would I like to be in 5 years", well that's a different question: I'd love to cap off the Cyberrats trilogy with Cyberrats in space, I've got an idea for a steampunk Ghostbusters-like game in an eastern-European canal town. I'm toying around with (a probably unpublishable) Cortex hack of Animorphs. The passion is there, but it's not the only factor.

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

AR:  I'd like to think that all of my games are unique, but I'll go back to the previous question: if K.A. Applegate wants to give me the license to Animorphs, and if a publisher wants to front me some money for the Cortex license and some artwork, I could make an incredible game there. There's a really wonderful balance between "we have to save the world" "We can't tell anyone about it" and "We're also teenagers trying to live our lives". It's a rich tapestry, and obviously Masks has proven that it's a recipe for success. 

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

AR:  There are so many people I admire here, but I'm going to call out two of them: Shawn and Navi Drake. Not only do they put out incredible games (Court of Blades is Victorian Intrigue, HEDGE is a fey-inspired game I wish I'd made, they've got stuff inspired by anime, the Expanse, the Dresden Files, and it's all their own take on it, and it all looks so damn gorgeous). But they're also extremely transparent about their process, their numbers, every part of what they do. They're just good, genuine people making great games, and the space needs more people like them.

I also really admire Marx Shepherd, who is a bastion for knowledge, and one of the most helpful and enthusiastic people I've encountered. They're an extremely competent editor and game designer, and they used to host the Yes Indie'd podcast as well. Every time I see a helpful post in a discord server, I have to check because there's a good chance it's from Marx. 

TP:  What got you into TTRPGs in the first place?

AR:  When I was in high school, there was a new version of D&D coming out. One of my friends said "Hey you're a big nerd, right?" Her dad had purchased the books, but didn't have anyone to play with. So she gathered a bunch of us from school and had us over to her house, and her dad rolled up characters for us all, each of us Dwarves. And he just ran a little campaign for us all right there. I fell in love immediately, and that group stayed together for another 3 or 4 years after that. Once I went to college, I started poking around some more experimental games, and once I graduated I kickstarted my first game, Solipstry. 

I actually walked away from writing games after that for a while, but I moved to a new city and started inviting strangers into my house each month to play a different indie game. Then the pandemic hit, and I pivoted to online and started publishing some adventures for other systems, like Slayers. My first adventure, Cretaceous Skatepark, is about a mad scientist who's turning teenagers into dinosaurs. That one really struck a chord with people, so I started making more. And then I started writing bigger projects again, with Gratitude. And I haven't slowed down yet!

INDEPENDENT TTRPG PODCAST/YOU-TUBE CREATOR: Cassandra Snow - Lesser Evil, Table It.

Cassandra Snow (they/them) performs on two TTRPG podcasts. The first is a DnD 5e campaign with some homebrew elements called Lesser Evil. Lesser Evil (can be heard here) takes place 200+ years after evil won the big battle between good and evil. Now it's several generations later and we are all just trying to live our lives even though Things keep happening. Table It!  (Find their links here) A Micro-Rpg Podcast takes micro-rpgs (usually no more than 2 pages long of introductory materials, how-to-play and rules) and plays them. The GM rotates each time, and after game play they along with the others review the RPG and discuss if they'd play it again and under which circumstances. In their other life, Cassandra is a professional writer and tarot teacher & reader who consumes entirely too much coffee... 

Totally Pawsome:  As a creator of podcasts/You-Tube Vids for TTRPG's, what inspires you each time you sit down to record?

Cassandra Snow:  I am always thinking of the listener as I record. I want them to have a good story to listen to, and if I'm being honest I also want them to think I'm smart and funny! I try to make choices that are both good game play and good listening, and to model collaboration with my castmates because that is a core value for me as a person. I think TTRPGs are such a beautiful and immersive mode of storytelling even when they are hot nonsense (in the best way!) and I want people to walk away from my podcasts loving gaming as much as I do. 

TP:  What would you say is the best selling point of your Podcast and what has people coming back for more?

CS:  I just heard back from a listener of Lesser Evil who said that they really like that the party members are regular cog-in-the-machine workers who didn't necessarily want or need to go adventuring. They said it makes them feel like anyone can hop into an adventure at any time, and I couldn't have written a better selling point myself so THANK YOU to Eli Effinger-Weintraub. I also can say that the five of us really pour our heart and humor into this one. You get a sense of who we are as well as our characters, as well as how real our friendships are behind the mics. 

Table It! is doing something not a ton of people are doing in both playing AND reviewing micro-RPGS. I'm new to the cast but other than me it's three really game-savvy players and long-time GMs. Everyone there really knows what they're doing, has a ton of fun, and you get to see a lot of different games and gaming styles. If you struggle keeping up with season long-arcs, this one is perfect to get you hooked on this whole genre since we do something different every time we meet. Because of that you get to explore the dense world of RPGs with us, and I think that's rad!

TP:  Why the TTRPG space?

CS:  My background is in theatre - that's what I majored in and I produced successful theatre for a really long time. When the pandemic hit and it wasn't safe or responsible for me (an immunocompromised person) to be creating in that way, I did feel like there were some gaps or holes in my heart where theatre once was. I also quickly realized I couldn't come back to theatre full-time because life-long health problems had been clearing up and I realized the intense schedule of theatre was part of the problem. I say all of that to say, to me, TTRPGs hit a lot of the same spots. It's collaborative. It's story-telling and art. It's immersive. It's so removed from reality and yet so real at the same time. I fell so in love with it for those reasons. 

I have also felt very welcomed in queer TTRPG spaces which is something I struggled with in theatre which is a deeply competitive field. It feels like everyone wants MORE people involved and not less, and I'm definitely someone who does not have an innate sense of competition. I want us all to win, and this has been such a homey space for that where other people seem to feel the same way. 

TP:  What is your favourite individual podcast that you've worked on and why?

CS:  For Lesser Evil, it takes place at a major corporation and we all have low-level jobs. Because of the nature of it, Manny, who is the GM, wanted us to each have our own episode that follows us on our day off. There's so much you put into a character that you don't necessarily get to bring to the table in the name of teamwork, so as much as I love the teamwork, having the unique opportunity to explore those facets in Bromine's Day Off was really fun. I got to hit some absolute chaos vibes and excorcise my own insecurities about talking to women AND I got to explore this deep, searching, spiritual side of the character. It's so unique to the show to have us all be "main character" for a day and all of those episodes turned out so wonderful. 

TP:  With some podcasts being a little behind the actual play of the game what can you tell us about what you're up to now?

CS:  Lesser Evil is on hiatus. One of our campaign members is facing a major life challenge, and another one is going to nail school which is great! But it is going to take six days of her week, all day. So right now what we're doing is a lot of hilarious group chats and sending that first party member a lot of love and encouragement. Our GM is also still writing the next leg. They built the world up so richly but because things change so quickly in campaigns, they wanted to edit their story outline some before we jump into season 2. 

Table It! is recording monthly still and releasing two episodes a month. We just did a fun, short Sword & Sorcery one-shot that we all really loved. We all take turns GMing so we get fun little surprises each time. Table It! did just start a Patreon, and Lesser Evil will soon. 

As for me, in my other life I'm a professional tarot card reader and writer. I also sit on a couple of arts boards and councils. So I'm working on writing deadlines, meeting with clients and going to meetings, just waiting for my next chance to roll my dice!

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

CS:  Lesser Evil is really wonderful for people who have not played DnD before but would like to. It's high fantasy but a lot of it doesn't feel like it. A lot of it feels like a slightly off magical version of our world. I think anyone who is interested in dipping their toes in would absolutely love this one. Table It! really runs the gamut. There are episodes rule-following game experts will love and episodes newbies just looking for a good time will love. I think anyone wanting to explore TTRPGs beyond the big names should give these games a try. 

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

CS:  You know, when I moved out of theatre space full-time I was kind of excited that for the first time I didn't know what my future looked like. I don't know this space as well, and while I always want to make connections and network with people who love it as much as we all do, I don't actually want to know what's possible for myself. I would love to just be doing these podcasts but with money (LOL) and maybe some appearances at conferences. I'm open to rewriting some adventures as books and talking to my lit agent to try and sell those. I'm open to Twitch, live shows, etc. I don't know what the sky in "sky's the limit" looks like here. I just want to be able to keep doing this, and to be able to help support myself eventually with it so I can devote more time and energy to it.

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

CS:  I know there are some, but I would really like to combine my loves and create a witchy, spooky TTRPG using tarot cards AND dice with a big budget for marketing. I'd love to have our own branded dice for it, as well as the rulebook, unique tarot cards and maybe some ebook novelizations. I'd absolutely love to do it on a podcast or streamer as a player or GM. I think it'd be so cool to just have a giant rollout combining my favorite things. 

TP:  Who do you admire in the podcast community and why?

CS:  Well first of all, who is NOT in love with Aabria Iyengar? The absolute love for the worlds she creates or plays in emanates from her. I love that she plays in super mainstream DnD spaces as well as creates her own. I also think the way Emily Axford and the whole Not Another DnD team has moved the needle on mainstream popularity of TTRPGs is wonderful. I also think the work Three Black Halflings are doing on anti-racism and other problematic elements of this industry is SO necessary and I deeply admire how they still bring so much joy to TTRPGs even when handling tough topics. 

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

CS:  I covered this a little but definitely looking for new outlets and experiences in the pandemic! That being said, I'd always had friends who were into it and I was always curious to try. I think I just needed the time/space/energy to learn something new. When I started early on in the pandemic, I did my first campaign and fell so in love that I quickly joined or helped start several others. I only have 3.5 years in this at this point, but after the first couple of months I was doing up to five games a week. I've had to slow down with recording and things going on in my "other" life in 2023 but I still game 2-3 times a week. 

TTRPG INDEPENDENT PODCASTER/YOU-TUBE INTERVIEW: Chris Colon

Having been fascinated with stories of magical origin from the Carribean, it wsa inevitable that Chris Colon, a second generation voice actor, would move into the TTRPG space.  Now the producer as well as player in the fab, Voices of Color, as well as the admin/producer for The Mythic Initiative keeps him pretty busy.

Grabbing a few minutes from his day, we were lucky enough to get Chris to answer our starter set of questions, here's what he had to say...

Totally Pawsome:  As a creator of podcasts for TTRPG's, what inspires you each time you sit down to record?

Christopher Colon:  The thing that always keeps me coming back for more is creating a new story with the people I  share a table with. I love to write stories, but they are nothing without the cast's input as their ability to infuse their own experiences into my stories has always made them richer and more meaningful than I could have ever created by myself.

TP:  What would you say is the best-selling point of your Podcast and what has people coming back for more?

CC:  I would say the cast's performance is the best-selling for The Mythic Initiative. Hamnah (@lilithttrpg), CJ (@scholasticdragn), Vyn (@VynVoxVa), and Sea (@SeaPlaysRPG) are an extremely talented group of performers who are able to play with emotional beats in ways I could never imagine. From hitting comedic high to tear-jerking tension of drama they always manage to outdo themselves, have made the show what it is today, and are what keeps people coming back to see more.

TP:  Why the TTRPG space?

CC:  I am an actor who has to audition every day to be a part of the next production or project but the caveat with this is that you will face a lot of rejection as you are not always going to be the best fit for the role even though you might be a great actor. TTRPGs are different as you don't have to worry about trying to fit into someone else's role as you are the one making it up. On top of this collaborating with other feds that creative part of me that I can't get anywhere else while at the same time allowing me to improve my skills as a performer.

TP:  What is your favorite individual podcast that you've worked on and why?

CC:  I would have to say The Mythic Initiative. This was my first escapade into AP production/Streaming, and I was able to learn much about what goes into a live production. Plus, having it on my own channel allowed me to get really creative with it in terms of design, which I have never done before.

TP:  With some podcasts being a little behind the actual play of the game what can you tell us about what you're up to now?

CC:  At the moment I am working on two projects which hopefully come out towards the end of the year if time permits. The first project is the second session of The Mythic Initiative which is a continuation of the first season as it follows our monsters across the U.S. as they try to stop the apocalypse and the new threat that comes with it. It's going to have new art for all the cast members, we will be using a new game system, it's going to have a ton of guests from across the TTRPG space, and a couple of special episodes that will make this season better than the last. The second project I am working on is titled Fatebreaker which is a Godkiller campaign, inspired by pieces of media like Arcane and Andor, which I am extremely excited for as the art is exceptional and the cast member, I have on board is phenomenal.

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

CC:  While I don't have any TTRPGs of my own that I have made, I will say the reason people watch my productions is due to the narrative element that I really focus on in my shows. This narrative focus provides not only helps create an engaging story for the audience to remember for the years to come but also provides a space where my cast members can explore their emotions without the fear of being criticized which makes our audience feel at home. 

TP:  Where did you see your TTRPG podcast take you in 5 years?

CC:  I really hoping to finish up The Mythic Initiative by then as the whole series in total are planned for 3 seasons (we are currently producing season 2) but I'm hoping to produce something of a sequel series for it with a whole new set of character and would be inspired by the spider-verse movies both in design and story but that's if I have the time to do it as I am a team of one trying their best XD.

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

CC:  I would say that the sequel series to The Mythic Initiative as I am currently obsessed with the Spider-verse movies that have come out in the past few years and the art behind them. I am currently looking up a lot of things around the design aspect of the movies and am thinking about dipping my toes into new programs to help me achieve that dream. This show would be something that I haven't really seen done in space yet and the story that I have in mind for it would be unlike anything I have written before, which would be a challenge for me, but I would love to do it.

TP:  Who do you admire in the podcast community and why?

CC:  Stellaluna (@stellalunaTV) for sure! They have not only produced some of the most incredible pieces of work I have ever seen (in terms of design and performance) but they also have given their own time to help the community whether it be by providing people with new opportunities to be a part of the streaming space or teaching newbies on how to create on their own content. I hope to play or produce something with them one day but until then I am going to keep rooting for them and support everything they do.

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

CC:  I’m going to be honest with you all here. What originally got me into TTRPGs was a crush I had for someone back when I was at college. They would be constantly watching Critical Role in class, and I thought if get into TTRPGs it could be something else we could talk about but needless to say, that relationship didn't work out as I planned it XD. I am glad that I pushed myself to learn about TTRPGs though as it has given me a creative outlet to express myself and has helped me meet new people that I would have never met without these wonderful games.

INDEPENDENT TTRPG MODULE/SYSTEM CREATOR: Pierrick Simon

Whilst a lot of people tend to associate TTRPG's with more of a hack and slash type of game, they can actually be quite deep, especially when independent module creator's are set loose.  Pierrick Simon, is one such person who has tackled a lot of different idea's within the D&D setting, from his Monk class through to his Vault of the Thinker were puzzle have the players on edge as they fight against time to achieve their goal.

Throwing Pierrick into our own question adventure, we couldn't wait to see what he'd come up with for his answers...

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

Pierrick Simon:  The module I am most proud of is called « Vault of the Thinker », a dungeon for D&D 5e. It is inspired by my love of heists and by my passion for academic philosophy. Only one of which I practice in real life. In it, you raid a vault filled with puzzles. A time constraint heightens the stakes, and gives it a real turn-by-turn dungeon-delve feel that I am also a fan of.

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

PS:  The best selling point for my products is a very simple design philosophy : if I create something for Dungeon Masters, I consider it to be my responsability to come up with something that actually saves time for them to use. In other words, I need to be the one doing the heavy lifting in this relationship, and not just inspire ideas in them (which is also nice, admittedly). The only way that I know how to do that is to put a lot of care into making sure that the themes I invoke and the gameplay I outline are mutually reinforcing. And so I always keep an eye on design questions that people usually need help thinking about, because they can be a bit abstract.

TP:  Why the TTRPG space?

PS:  I’m hooked !

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

PS:  For D&D 5e, I produce Action-Oriented Monsters (inspired by Matt Colville’s design), which are special monster stat blocks that make sure that the bad guys get to shine during combat. It’s a very interesting exercise, and I think it is very needed for this system.

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

PS:  I have finished a D&D campaign where we waged war against the Xanathar of Waterdeep. I have many war stories to tell, DM notes to share, and homebrew to polish and publish. My aim is literally to talk about my campaign, while sharing all the best re-usable bits. It would be the perfect mix of self-indulgence and aid.

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

PS:  People who can fall in love with a singular idea or archetype. For instance, if you can fall in love with the idea of ghosts, and think to yourself, « that is freaking cool ! » you might like my stuff about specters. If you can fall inlove with the idea of maledictions, i have something for you too, etc. I present a series of things that I find cool. If you regularly find things cool, you might enjoy my style of presentation.

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

PS:  Who knows !

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

PS:  I have become fascinated recently by a type of D&D product which is a hybrid between a « choose your own adventure » type book and an adventure module. It is something that you can play by yourself, even when you do not have a D&D group. You read along and you play along. I think I would love to create one of those, and perhaps the gameplay system that comes with it.

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

PS:  That would be Matt Colville. I am not sure if this counts as who you are thinking of when you ask about indie TTRPG writers. But what I do know is that anything that I know about TTRPG game design in general, not just D&D, I know it because of Matt Colville. I recommend his Youtube series and Twitch Streams to learn how to think like a game designer, without fealty to any brand.

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

PS:  One day, I was given a « Choose your own adventure » type book. I think this is when I got hooked. It was a perfect match for me. As if my brain was made for it. And then my character died in the book. I put it away, disappointed, and I didn’t think about it for years. Not sure why. Until one day I saw TTRPG actual play streams on youtube and something that had been laying dormant in me went « it’s back ! It’s that feeling of adventure, like in that one book where you got killed by giant crabs ! ». And I was back in the game.

TTRPG INDEPENDENT ARTIST INTERVIEW: Claire Gray

Sam Miller

As a person who's only just learning to draw (from a lot of You-Tube tutorials, ed.  Me Thundermouser, not the interviewee)  I'm always fascinated when I see others who have worked hard on their craft and learned different mediums so that they have not only a few strings to their bow, but so that they can take what they need wherever they go and be able to create.

Claire Gray, is one such artist who moved to digital art and now produces a webcomic (Coffee Club Adventures and her own Autobiographical Webcomic) as well as custom illustrations to order from people all over the world, whether they want a ttrpg character or a portrait of themselves. 

Here we grabbed a word with the artist with a quirky merch store, to learn a little more about them and also how the ttrpg community made them feel not only welcome but also allowed through her skills to become a full time artist...

Falcata Times:  As an artist, what comes first for you, the story or a snapshot and why?

Claire Gray:  The story of a game I’m playing usually inspires my art because of the fact I get mental imagery from gaming with a group of players and the storyteller. We often call this the minds eye, which is how I often decide what to sketch

When it comes to character creation I come up with a sketch first and build the story and personality afterwards 

Rene Glow

FT:  What would you say sells your art to people?

CG:  My business strategy is to make comics accessible on social media to advertise my portrait skills so people can come to me for commissioned work, so far it’s been successful enough that I can be a full time creator.

FT:  Why the TTRPG space?

CG:  Throughout my life I have been an obsessive gamer, I met a group of ttrpg players in 2002 and joined and played with them consistently, my gaming experience expanded to many more groups, these people became my found family and their friendships majorly inspired me artistically, I usually create art about my life and experiences, and the ttrpg community is a really big part of my life.

FT:  What is your favourite piece that you've created and why?

CG:  It’s a hard choice to pick one favorite piece, my current favorite is my newest OC from a Shadowrun campaign I will be playing soon that my creative partner, James Sheridan will be running online. (Image in attachments) Her name is Rene Glow, she is a technomancer and she has glow in the dark fur, hair that changes colors according to her moods, rainbow eyes, and fangs

FT:  Coming up with a piece is often an idea that gets written into a journal to come back on. How often do you find yourself working on one piece and another comes to mind and can you give an example?

CG:  I’m a speed artist and I can finish a piece in less than an hour, sometimes I will create line art first and color it later, so I can have several panels I’m working on coloring at once. I model my comics after manga which is typically black and white with flashy color covers

FT:  What do you think is most inspiring about your pieces and why?

CG:  I’m told the positive messages in my comics help people by my fans, I have inspired young and old to pick up a pencil and sketch, I believe my prolific art creation inspires others to learn.

Shade Glow

FT:  Where do you see your artwork taking you in 5 years?

CG:  I would like to be able to travel to fairs and conventions to sketch portraits and OC art live for people and put my speed to use

FT:  If you were given the time and opportunity to create anything you wanted what would it be and why?

CG:  I’m working my way towards publishing comic books and I would eventually like to design action figures 

FT:  Who do you admire in the fantasy art community and why?

CG:  Nina Modaffari is a game developer that is part of the ttrrpg community that greatly inspires me with their work.

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

CG:  Genuine love of gaming, especially social gaming, the beautiful art displayed in the system books grabbed my attention and hooked me.