I'm going to be running four RPGs at #FanExpoBoston this weekend. Anyone else headed there?
Lyme
@lymerpg.bsky.social
TTRPG Writer & Game Designer. Known for Dawn of the Orcs, Fear and Panic. https://lymetime.itch.io/ https://brackish-draught.bearblog.dev/blog/ https://linktr.ee/lymerpg
Born to write RPGs, forced to resize thumbnails for multiple platforms.
I love everything about this and want to see more like it. "The cost of paying an unlikely company of heroes to deal with the dragon is cheap when compared to hiring a competent group of specialists to deal with the aftermath."
Ben M | Periapt Games@periaptgames.bsky.social · 2w agoFantasy gaming meets environmentalism and bomb disposal! Ecoheroism is a free #TTRPG supplement exploring the idea that slaying a dragon doesn't make it safe. Each organ is magically hazardous and must be disposed of carefully to avoid environmental disaster. periapt-games.itch.io/ecoheroism
If I had a nickel every time I went to a free afternoon concert at the town park and some guy played the fiddle faster and more furiously than Yngie Malmsteen shredding I'd have two nickels, which isn't a lot but it's cool it happened twice.
After complaining for years that there are no font managers around, I found out last night that font managers have been around for years
New blog post about what the world of sea shanties can teach the world of RPGs: brackish-draught.bearblog.dev/five-things-...
Five Things RPG Players Can Learn From A Sea Shanty Festival
I recently had a good time at a sea music festival. I’ve listened to a variety of nautical music on YouTube and Tidal, and even seen the Longest Johns play a...
brackish-draught.bearblog.dev
Less than two days left to back Dawn of the Orcs on Backerkit. Build and mutate your own army of homunculi in this Ennie-nominated dark fantasy RPG. Pick up an open-source horror game or a GMless falconry game on the side. www.backerkit.com/c/projects/l...
Dawn of the Orcs - ENNIES EMPORIUM!
Dawn of the Orcs is an Ennie-nominated GMless dark fantasy worldbuilding and roleplaying game. You play as the magical technocrats who create the first Orcs as weapons of war, modify and improve them ...
backerkit.com
Does anyone have numbers on the average words in a modern one-shot horror adventure (CoC, ToC, Mothership, Delta Green, etc?) I'm running word counts on the PDF adventures I have, but they're definitely not an exhaustive collection.
From the brilliant mind of Magnolia Keep comes a high-octane review of @lymerpg.bsky.social's Dawn of the Orcs! Lyme wrote one of my favorite blogposts of 2025, and with it came my "Holy shit Orcs are clone troopers" revelation. And it's also a whole game! magnoliakeep.blogspot.com/2026/07/revi...
Review: Dawn of the Orcs
It's no secret I'm into Orcs. Lyme's Why Orcs? was my favorite post in last year's Lizzies , because it dug through the history of The Orc...
magnoliakeep.blogspot.com
Patchwork Paladin is not here on bsky to promote it, but are people wise to her newsletter? Great picks for the cream of the blogosphere each week, a swift rundown of what’s in the discourse and my personal favourite, a weekly poem. #osr #ttrpg #blog #newsletter
Patchwork Newsletter Volume 2, Issue 28
This week’s Discord discussions, blog posts to read, projects to download, arrivals, a ton of play reports, and of course a poem.
patchworkpaladin.com
I had to change jobs and move homes a couple times since the last Ennies, so I haven't had as much time for gaming. I'm not familiar with a lot of the nominees this year - which is okay! A good set of awards helps people discover new things! Here are a few games I can say nice things about:
THE ZEPHYR X ENNIES EMPORIUM CAMPAIGN IS OUT! Set into a wandering,sentient landmass as the Windfolk - beings made of the raw stuff of feelings, in a grand adventure to fulfill sacred obligations. Get it at a 25% discount, as well as the new backpack add on, here: www.backerkit.com/c/projects/a...
Cooking with the Orcs was just supposed to be a joke, but I got way too into it. I ended up with a completely playable game based on actual classical alchemy. The PDF is still free on itch, but you can get a physical copy as an add on to the Ennies Emporium: www.backerkit.com/c/projects/l...
Dawn of the Orcs - ENNIES EMPORIUM!
Dawn of the Orcs is an Ennie-nominated GMless dark fantasy worldbuilding and roleplaying game. You play as the magical technocrats who create the first Orcs as weapons of war, modify and improve them ...
backerkit.com
About to run this as a paid ad on Facebook. Wondering about the level of interaction from people who do not like the idea of rejecting AI and embracing puppet. We'll see. Anyway. Embrace puppet: www.backerkit.com/c/projects/h... #ttrpg #maskwitches
Dawn of the Orcs is back on Backerkit for 10 days, as part of the Ennies Emporium! Play wizards and mad scientists. Build your own orcs. It's a GMless game with just the right mix of strategy and storytelling that everyone who plays it has a good time. www.backerkit.com/c/projects/l...
Dawn of the Orcs - ENNIES EMPORIUM!
Dawn of the Orcs is an Ennie-nominated GMless dark fantasy worldbuilding and roleplaying game. You play as the magical technocrats who create the first Orcs as weapons of war, modify and improve them ...
backerkit.com
This person is one of the best qualified people in the world to say something about a game about orcs. It means a lot to me.
James Mendez Hodes @ Gen Con@lulavampiro.bsky.social · last mo.Lyme has impeccable taste in fantasy orcs. This game goes deeper than even the "cool orcs" approach I often like: it makes your character literally personally responsible for the way the orcs turn out in the classic "wizard did it" situation, exploring the question of creative responsibility.
5 hours until the Ennies Emporium backerkit campaign for Ennie-nominated RPG Dawn of the Orcs launches. If you didn't get the game the first time, now's your chance! I'm also offering a couple games that will probably never see physical printing any other time. www.backerkit.com/call_to_acti...
ENNIES EMPORIUM - Get Ready for Dawn of the Orcs: An Orc-Building Game
From Lyme and Plasmophage - ENNIES EMPORIUM - Get Ready for Dawn of the Orcs: An Orc-Building Game
backerkit.com
I've been to Third Kingdom once and it really is an incredible game store. Four shelves of indie RPGs right up front! Run by some very nice people.
Rise Up Comus@riseupcomus.bsky.social · last mo.This is a FLGS near me. To celebrate their 3 year anniversary, they're having a sale on everything until end of day tomorrow. Use the code "Birthday" at checkout for 15% savings. They've got one of the best selections of OSR and indie games on the East Coast. Check 'em out, why not?
An actual play of Dawn of the Orcs by Donog McCarthy and @openhearthrpg.bsky.social! They took this game in a neat direction. www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBf_...
Dawn of the Orcs
YouTube video by Donogh McCarthy
youtube.com
I'm very excited that this year, the ENNIE Awards added a new category to recognize the explosion of solo games. Solo RPGs and journaling games have so much potential to explore topics, experiences, and feelings that are much harder in group settings. 1/▶️
Some great nominees for the Ennies this year! It's good to see they're still bringing attention to lots of weird independent creators who are doing fun and interesting stuff!
In her article on TTRPG worldbuilding, @beckyannison.bsky.social writes: "there are almost no games GMd or GMless which wouldn't be improved by asking good questions." Yes — and I design GM-less games that run entirely on questions. Here's what I've learned about making one do three jobs. 1/🧵
Becky Annison🔜 Kickstarting Black Armada's Advent Adventures@beckyannison.bsky.social · last mo.Just finished putting up a post about Worldbuilding in TTRPGs. Specifically how system and mechanics deliver setting info. I love the idea that you can seed the world in the mechanics and system so it just slips into the brain.
Appx. N Jam 2026 by @dankdungeons.bsky.social and @jorphdan.bsky.social is starting next week! So I wrote something about the Appendix N and why TTRPG can be weirder. I wasn't expecting it to be a manifesto, but here we are 😂 afraidofencounters.bearblog.dev/appendix-n-m...
Interesting study that finds spoilers don't actually make people enjoy stories any less: bear.warrington.ufl.edu/brenner/mar7...
bear.warrington.ufl.edu
I like that Terror in Tortuga, the Pirate Borg Free RPG Day offering, is printed on uncoated paper. Great texture and better for the planet.
Death to the living Long life to the killers Success to sailor's wives And greasy luck to whalers michaelhotkowski.bandcamp.com/track/whaler...
Whalers Toast, by Michael Hotkowski
from the album Death to the Living
michaelhotkowski.bandcamp.com
JUNE DROP IS HERE! Welcome TWO art-forward divination decks. SOLO tactical fantasies WYRD & REAP, songwriting, gamebooks, and VOID_SHIFT, the cyberpunk gig economy deck builder STORED IN A CASSETTE CASE. Tiny board games, multiplayer fantasy/scifi/mech battles, DICE DUELS +more Discover it all 🧵⬇️
10 days until Dawn of the Orcs launches on Backerkit's Ennies Emporium! This is a special crowdfunding celebrating Ennie-nominated roleplaying games! If you want to unleash your inner Saruman, Victor Frankenstein, Abathur or Fabius Bile, check it out! www.backerkit.com/c/projects/l...
ENNIES EMPORIUM - Get Ready for Dawn of the Orcs: An Orc-Building Game
From Lyme and Plasmophage - ENNIES EMPORIUM - Get Ready for Dawn of the Orcs: An Orc-Building Game
backerkit.com