iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

In September, I took part in a review jam of sorts, for which I wrote about @mirror-lock.bsky.social 's Galatea. I really liked my time with the game! And like all good reviews (if you can call it that; I'd bill it as a rant), it comes in horrible Google docs form! docs.google.com/document/d/e...

docs.google.com

Galatea review

1136

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

My favourite thing about this is imagining it in tense scenes. Like a panicked ship engineer shouting "pressure exceeding 50 crates! This thing's gonna blow!"

021

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

It's cool even if the GM defines it, because it allows them to do stuff like... "Okay, you're going to look out the window to check for anyone hiding in the garden. You can either do this carefully (risking being slow) or recklessly (risking being spotted yourself)."

120

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

With way less spare time than I'd like, I've completed my entry for the Marathon game jam! First go at making a slightly fancy layout, so in that context I'm pretty happy with it. It's also the first time I make a game where spoilers are a thing. It's a strange feeling. alder-s.itch.io/phobos-2

alder-s.itch.io

Phobos-2 by alder-s

A Marathon-inspired one-shot ttrpg

031

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

This all sounds absolutely delightful! If I ever run a PBP again I need to think about this kind of stuff.

010

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

I would love to stop you, but I am unfortunately limited by how cool I think this all is. The villanelle is a somewhat absurd length to go to, but I suspect players really appreciate it so I can't in good conscience save you from yourself. I'm curious though: what voices of the world are there?

111

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

If you haven't given a look to @sleepergames.bsky.social 's games yet, you should. They're a ton of fun and have really neat weird-ish concepts. If I had to recommend one, I'd say Red Tether, but you can't go wrong with any I've tried. Hell, Hyperspace Dogfight inspired the first videogame I made.

131

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Just yesterday I decided to read Rogue Trader, and was almost immediately met with this.

An old Warhammer 40k model, depicting an intimidating mech with a shit-eating grin. It has a rather cute "DIE" inscription scrawled on its tummy.

030

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

Love Harry Clarke, I'd recognise the style anywhere.

010

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

Just a fun Halloween hangout. Everyone is joining in!

010

Reposted by Alder (one of them)

Geoff Engelstein - The Universe Explained with Cookie out now! @gengelstein.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

One of my all-time favorite rules, from Pea Ridge (1980). The designer's great-great-grandfather fought in the battle, and if his unit takes damage you roll a die to see if he survives. If he dies, the designer is never born, and the game doesn't exist, and so automatically ends in a draw.

7443172

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

And that's only the backlog you remember!

010

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

That's awesome! All the public domain art you've shared has been such a huge help to me, you have my thanks.

000

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 23/08/2026

You're awesome! And yeah, same here.

010

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

Look, I *could* have 5 abilities per character, which touch on a couple status effects. But I could also have 25 abilities that juggle a vast array of status effects, with setups and payoffs and passive benefits! And also the abilities are modular with a bunch of options to pick when using them!

000

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

I think most of my output is me having a weird mechanical idea I want to try out, yeah. Though I think you're missing "designing RPGs because someone made a joke and you can't get it out of your head"

020

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Submission to the 2026 one-page jam is done! I'm pretty happy with this one I think. I have no idea if it'd work, but I'm happy! alder-s.itch.io/cracks-in-th...

alder-s.itch.io

Cracks in the mirror by alder-s

A ttrpg for an increasing number of players

021

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

Yeah, now that I'm working on my first real project, I'm working out to keep the demons (read: ideas) out. With an exception made for game jams, but at that point I just let the game jam replace the project entirely until it's done.

010

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

In my hubris I tend to go "surely I can juggle these two ideas", not realizing I was already juggling eight. I'm working on it.

110

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

I always put it off against the last second. Like, for the final export. I'm even doing this with my current big game project!

000

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

And yeah, that starting list seems interesting! The variety of eating moves are a highlight, and I like the "add a threat but explain how it'd help to beat it" move.

010

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

Memory loss and alteration as a result of the journey (so-to-speak) is like, laser-targeted at me. Love that stuff so much. This is where my brain would automatically start asking players to list memories and then rip their character sheets apart, or paste/staple alterations on top.

110

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

You're telling me he had the excellent idea for paintings and went with something different for photos?

120

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

I should answer these at some point. That aside, this is an intriguing premise. The part about progressively weirder bodies especially.

110

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

Though in the end I won't go that way, because the premise of the game kind of demands that most enemies be humans doing bad stuff (or just stuff opposed to your employer's goals!) I'll probably have a sidebar going "Hey you should decide as a group if you want to delve into this or not!" 2/2

000

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

Honestly I kinda get it. I'm a tactical combat freak and my current project would benefit greatly from enemies you can fireball away five at a time with no remorse. It's tempting. 1/2

101

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

I think I've never had an in-person session 0. It's always been handled through group chats or talks around lunch (this last one only applied during my uni years). So the idea is a bit mysterious to me, I'll admit.

000

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

Lately I've been in the very weird position of being the one handing out tasks to people. So suddenly I'm responsible for *them* having stuff to do and I just wish they'd slow down so I don't have to keep scraping stuff up to give them as tasks.

010

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

Yeah I totally understand. There's also the looming specter of "that just means a bunch of tasks will appear at once later right?" Brain needs to chill out.

110

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

Oh, thanks a lot! I think I'll give photobashing a break and focus on writing for now, but I'll keep you in mind. I saw you have some floorplans already out. That's a real boon for this game!

010

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

That's the plan! Not sure when it'll be finished given that I'm working slowly, but I'll get there with time.

010

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

Nice! Honestly it's been interesting to research things about that era (if a bit depressing at times). I have a note in my head to write somewhere in the final product that the advent of radio communications (though still burdensome right now) is slowly replacing military telepaths.

010

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

As in "a sort of semi-mundane, semi-magical industrial revolution has happened and that's the world we live in now". I'm taking loose inspirations mainly from early 1900s Europe, which would be out second industrial revolution, but for the world it's the first.

120

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

In responding to this, I have to come to learn that "post-industrial" has an actual meaning, referring to when the service sector grows bigger than the manufacturing sector. This world (at least how I play it) isn't quite there yet, I was using it to refer to the world already being industrialised.

120

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

For reasons unknown even to me, two days ago I just decided to start photobashing characters for the gun wizards project. So now I have a new temporary front cover.

Three characters (two in vaguely 19th century clothes, one in long elaborate robes) holding firearms. At the tip of each barrel, halos of various colors emanate from the weapons.
Above it all, the title of the game: Gun Wizards.

3143

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

More absurd variant: this happened to me talking to a playtester (read: friend) today. Which... yeah. I was literally there, handing them the documents and playing with them. I have no idea how the perspective shift happens.

000

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

I would very much like to have a few of these abilities. I will live the question of which to the reader's interpretation.

010

Reposted by Alder (one of them)

Meanerva McDanger 🔜Metatopia @minahoneybat.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

New release! The Illuminate is a delver class for @rowanrookanddecard.bsky.social's HEART: The City Beneath, all about looking for the true sun. Not the one burning in the sky, but the one that brings about impossible colors and true enlightenment.

A precarious rock path leading up to a glowing sun haloed in red, against a dark ink wash background.

The class' intro text:
There is a sun in the sky, and it brings us life – but it is not the true sun. Stare at it and then look away, and the truth will begin to unfold across your mind’s eye in impossible colors: stygian blue, self-luminous red, hyperbolic orange. That’s a start.
Go deeper. Into the mystery, yes, but also literally. Stare at the sun. Read the Spire’s doctrines. Learn the truths of the surface world and fill your mind with their light. And then: go deeper.
Down into the depths. Where the light of the sun cannot blind you. Where the light of truth cannot constrain you. Find the light that can only be seen against the deepest blackness. Find the seasons that can only exist with the heart’s pulsing. Find the divinity that is too real to exist among the constraints of the surface world.
Drink deep of the dark, Illuminate. And then ascend.

174

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

I, much like a squirrel, am obsessively compelled to store cool design ideas all over the place and hope I remember where I put them all once winter comes.

010

Reposted by Alder (one of them)

Quinns @itsquinns.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

This rule? In the RPG Zephyr? Owns

2137973

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 16/07/2026

I am always a bit sad that I missed the era where at least vehicles worked this way. I don't know if it was for better or for worse, but it sure seemed interesting.

000

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

You'll be happy to know that the only way to heal someone is to shoot them first.

110

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

Game design lesson of the day: if an ability lacks spice, make everyone explode at the end.

120

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 04/07/2026

Hell yeah Miro. Been using it for years, never betrayed me. We even accidentally switched to it at work XD

010

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

Exactly! It gave me a lot of space to flesh out my vermissian, mention at regular intervals how the architectural style kept changing as a result of architect succession wars... And on a personal note, I tend to trip over my own words, mix up languages... which doesn't happen in text, luckily.

010

Alder (one of them) @alder--s.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

Incidentally, PBP was very good for one of my short-lived Heart campaigns because it gave me the space, even in live sessions, to work out the kinds of description that really made the Heart come to life in interesting ways. I couldn't have done that speaking around a table.

110

Reposted by Alder (one of them)

Meanerva McDanger 🔜Metatopia @minahoneybat.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

RELEASING TODAY: GlitchHeart Vermin: A TTRPG of desperate heists, cyberpunk grime, and weaponized neurodivergence. Available and playable now, and it'll only get better over time: minahoneybat.itch.io/glitchheart-...

minahoneybat.itch.io

GlitchHeart Vermin by Minærva McJanda

Brain-breaking cyberpunk

02316