Asa Donald | Backwards Tabletop

I have a game in this bundle!

It's great value, and it's good to have games about love, relationships and such around in times like <gestures around>

A good reminder to reach out to smaller creators :)

I know folks with similar channel sizes to mine who rarely ever get approached. Often they won't charge you, they'll just be happy with a press copy.

I wonder if an outreach guide from a content creator's perspective would be useful.

Building Out From the Megadungeon or Just in Time Prep Introduction If you've read many of my posts, or interacted with me much online you've probably gathered that I'm an inveterate procrastinator. This exte...

Just finished up a blog post about how I prepared for, and continue prepping for my Shadowdark/ Caverns of Thracia campaign. If you're like me and prefer improvisation and light work to Blorb and legwork, give it a read. Hell, give it a read anyway!

billhook.bearblog.dev/building-out...

@czamboni.bsky.social beat me to the punch! This was under wraps until, I guess, today. Anyway CMU Press is publishing an updated and Very Deluxe version of my game and I could not be happier. Art by Sam Araya!

The SPINE review from @cozyrpgreviews.bsky.social tripled my sales for a month (maybe? I'm estimating). The video was great, and its format effectively showed off the book / its premise.

And I'd magic wand a Quinns Quest review, at least to hear him call it a "BDSM-ass game" again.

Rating Every Room in White Plume Mountain — Prismatic Wasteland I review every single room (and some non-rooms) in the original funhouse dungeon and describe what makes them work or not work and what is worth stealing for your dungeons and what you should avoid, a...

I rate every room in White Plume Mountain (X out of 5 Stars) and explain why each room does, or does not, work and how you can take these lessons into designing your own dungeons, be they of the funhouse variety or not
#osr #ttrpg

Playtest Zero is a good and cool event, and I have gotten lots of good feedback, as well as opportunities to think about and talk about games with lovely and clever people.

Credit for this beautiful artwork goes to Gillian (gillidig42 on Instagram). For the other *eight* photos, see their instagram:

www.instagram.com/p/DVcM0m7knJ...

Collage art on an interior page of SPINE, incuding flowers and the words "the pit of your voice."

Pen and collage art on an interior page of SPINE. A concentric circle is labeled "the pit." Other text includes "watching" and "the falling of."

Since SPINE came out, I occasionally get emails with pictures of bound books and questions about the plot. My favorite is when I get photos of someone's modified book.

I received these on Tuesday, and I love that this person brought collage into their prompts.

A van painted with a wizard and castle, with the vanity license plate "Vandalf"

A Wizard is never late, he's always on time for Playtest Zero! For our US-friendly session, join us next Thursday, 12 March from 6 pm (PT) / 9 pm (ET) to late over at the Session Zero Discord server to do some 1-hour playtests of TTRPGs/game bits and chat with other designers! (Image unrelated)

Screenshot of song lyrics "(Refrain) Hot meat, hot rats, hot cats; Rot rits, hot roots, hot zits; Hot, wrists, hot soots. (Instrumental and screaming). (Refrain) Hot meat, hot rats, hot cats; Hot rits, hot roots, hot soots. (Instrumental 2:08 - 9:23)"

Hot damn, it's time for Playtest Zero again! For our SEA-friendly session, join us next Tuesday, 10 March at 8 pm (GMT+8) over at the Session Zero Discord server to do some 1-hour playtests of TTRPGs/game bits and chat with other designers! (Image unrelated)

Wordsearch with the words Triangle Agency Mork Borg Trophy Dark Cairn The Wretched Spine Lancer Quill Tunnel Goons Mythic Bastionland Honey Heist Offworlders Inspirisles Mausritter Rifts Beetle Knight Soulbound Tangled Blessings Necronautilus Slayers Mothership Delta Green Call of Cthulhu Kosmosaurs Rosewood Abbey Ironsworn Animon Story Lay On Hands The Skeletons Runecairn Pendragon The One Ring Exhumed Good Society

It's TTRPG wordsearch time!

Ringing the bell about my itch again! I have an MRI coming up and I need to replace some computer parts around the house, so if you see something you like, please throw some money my way!!

What Should We Have Tomorrow? now also available at Heart of the Deernicorn heartofthedeernicorn.com/product/what...

Illustration of a gigantic monster looming over a traveler paddling a boat in a swamp.

Did you hear something?

Mire is a swamp themed supplement for the WYRM TTRPG.

Ride a river boat, face new encounters and diseases, and collect new gear and spells.

Featuring incredible art by @nightjargames.bsky.social

gilarpgs.itch.io/wyrm-mire

Coming soon: Violent Delights A chess-based RPG about Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet

Did you know that I have a game in prelaunch on Kickstarter?

It's called Violent Delights, and it's a chess-based RPG about Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet. Yes, you guessed it: Your goal is to make the kings smooch!

I'd be delighted if you followed it🙂

Thank you!

I plan to share both an interview and an essay about this too —adaptation in RPGs, generally, and the challenges of adapting chess/Shakespeare

An illustration of a spinal column, twisted into a spiral shape. Above it, the text SPINE can be read, and below it "Revised Edition". The background looks like an aged and worn paperback cover.

14 Siderius Plug's SPINE 0 Immortality in Ninety-nine Endnotes
By @backwardsttrpg.bsky.social
A game/activity book/horror story that is REALLY hard to talk about without going into severe spoilers.

Thank you for the kind words!!

@backwardsttrpg.bsky.social just finished my first playthrough of SPINE and it was an excellent, eerie experience! Thank you for creating such a fantastic book/game!

Coming soon: Violent Delights A chess-based RPG about Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet

Did you know that I have a game in prelaunch on Kickstarter?

It's called Violent Delights, and it's a chess-based RPG about Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet. Yes, you guessed it: Your goal is to make the kings smooch!

I'd be delighted if you followed it🙂

Congrats, this is so well-deserved!

Screenshot of an emailed press release from GAMA announcing Finalists for the 2026 Origins Awards, with The Bonsai Diary highlighted under the category, "Roleplaying Games"

😯😮🫢
The Bonsai Diary is a FINALIST for the 2026 Origins Awards!

Hey it's been, however many months I can't tell.

Doing the biannual thing again where you various creators can post your indie ttrpg down before so I can hopefully spread them to more people and maybe even make a review video on it!

The Play Reports Improv, Play Culture, and Authority

Started thinking about player improv and what the hell that means!

theplayreports.com/posts/player...

#ttrpg #blog #improv #play

Draw Maps, Leave Blanks (Dungeon World) with Tim Denee — Dice Exploder How detailed of maps, and how big of blanks?

This week on Dice Exploder I've got @olddog.games on talking Blades '68, Dungeon World, and "draw maps leave blanks". How much should you define about your game in advance - as a player, as a GM, as a designer? Tim's smart!

I'm Bringing Accuracy Back — Prismatic Wasteland Into the Odd famously jettisoned the “roll to hit” aspect of D&D derived combat. How can accuracy, specifically reducing an opponent’s accuracy by means of sand in the eyes or otherwise, be re-introdu...

If you ask someone how Into the Odd has streamlined their games, they will probably mention removing the "to hit" roll and just rolling damage.

I blasphemously ask the question: can we re-incorporate accuracy and missed attacks with Into the Odd without turning it into a major slog?
#osr #ttrpg

Physical game booklet Browse all products in the Physical game booklet category from Perplexing Ruins Shop.

Going to raise prices on my zines by $3 soon. If you had been interested, they're pretty generously priced. Losing $ is not doing good things for my morale or family situation
perplexingruinsshop.bigcartel.com/category/phy...

Coming soon: Violent Delights A chess-based RPG about Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet

And finally, hey, you'll see a plug for a game that I've been working on. It has a prelaunch page on Kickstarter. I wouldn't be offended if you signed up. In fact, I'd be *delighted.*

Big Robots, Big Feelings RPG A mecha anime tabletop roleplaying game about big robots piloted by teens with even bigger feelings.

In the newsletter, you'll also find three new releases and a kickstarter by @jeffmartinart.bsky.social entering its final week: Big Robots, Big Feelings. The game looks fun, and the art is very cool.