eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 19/09/2026My long awaited review of Dolmenwood!eldritchexarchpress.substack.comDolmenwood: One and Half Years LaterA review and critique 020
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 15/09/2026I just finished @aptshadow.bsky.social's On the Shoulders of Giants, and it's really good! As a non-warhammer guy, I still don't understand Age of Sigmar, but now I think I don't understand it slightly better. Also, I got some real flashbacks to the Chain of Dogs from Malazan, so if you like that.. 0111
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 12/09/2026Eh, revenge fantasy is a long tradition among authors. I mean, Dante even sent the pope to hell in Inferno. Maybe that's what my manuscript needs... A little revenge fantasy... Hmm. Problem is the list of people who have genuinely wronged me is both short, and impersonal. 000
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 06/09/2026This is more of a Design focused post on how Attack rolls and damage have evolved since the days of Chainmail and OD&D.substack.comOn Attack Rolls(and Damage) 020
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 31/08/2026It's hard to believe, but I've been doing this for two years now! Book of the month this time is @jconnollybooks.bsky.social's Black Angel. The Charlie Parker Series hits the same notes as @lairdbarron.bsky.social's Isaiah Coleridge series and True Detective Season 1.eldritchexarchpress.substack.comPraetermancy August, 2026 Monthly RoundupWow. Has it been two years already? 010
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 09/08/2026Weapons Susperia (The New One) In The Mouth of Madness Sinners Jaws Psycho Pan's Labyrinth Most versions of Dracula Silence of the Lambs Hereditary And a handful of others. I know I need to watch the various Exorcist movies at some point. What others am I missing? 110
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 09/08/2026Any other horror movie recomendations? Specifically recent ones? I've been slowly working my way through some of the horror 'cannon' when my wife isn't home. Film isn't an area I've explored thouroughly. Thus far I've covered: All of the Alien Franchise The Thing Nosferatu (New and old) The Witch 110
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 09/08/2026Just watched that one for the first time recently. An absolute masterpiece, but also one I'm not exactly eager to rewatch. 110
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 08/08/2026regardless of my gender, because it's about money. If the market couldn't bear authors who were women, their work wouldn't be so popular. 040
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 08/08/2026It's not women who have determined that my work isn't good enough yet either. It's the market. (Well, it's the editors, but that's a whole other conversation, and they are technically just a different market, a pre-market if you will). If an editor thought my work would move copies, they'd buy it 160
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 08/08/2026Why not here too? It makes the industry better, more solid, more robust, and more diverse. Is it harder to get published? Probably. But it leads to better art. I don't weep because women are "taking my place at the table." I haven't earned a place at the table yet. 180
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 08/08/2026@tkingfisher.com and @maryrobinettekowal.com are just better authors than I'll ever be. You should have a seat at the table, because you've earned it. Women that put in the work and have the skill are just making the industry more competitive. We want that in every other area of our lives 170
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 08/08/2026This is conversation that I (a male who is seeking publication) has had to have with a friend (another male who just doesn't understand the industry). The correct way to view this isn't gender war necessarily, it's the breaking up of a monopoly. Karen Traviss and @fondalee.bsky.social and you, and 180
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 08/08/2026A critique/Appendix N of Adrian Tchaikovsky's Dogs of War, and Bear Head, good books that I think could have been just a little better:eldritchexarchpress.substack.comIn Review: Dogs of War and Bear HeadOne of the things I love about Adrian Tchaikovsky is that I almost always leave his work thinking about it. 000
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 08/08/2026Bonus points if you fit all of these plots into a Paladins book. Oh, wait. I think you did! Like four times now, and they're great. Just scratch out sorceress and you have it. 130
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 08/08/2026I lied, there's a fourth one because I'm caught up on Paladins and want more soon. 010
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 08/08/2026I think it's also an excellent place to start for anyone looking to read Kingfisher's horror focused work. If you are looking her modern fairy tales though, I recommend the aforementioned Hemlock and Silver, and if you are more fantasy focused, try her Paladin's series. (3/3) 100
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 08/08/2026I think it's also one of Kingfisher's best works to date, and second only to Hemlock and Silver. If you are looking for a good book that will let you dip your toes into horror, without some of the bleakness that the genre can have, this is a fantastic entry point. (2/3) 110
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 08/08/2026Okay, so I just finished Wolf Worm by @tkingfisher.com and voiced by @maryrobinettekowal.com. It's excellent, and an almost perfect example of cozy horror, especially if you like the horror part of that pairing. (1/2) 120
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 07/08/2026Dang it, I was sure it was an inside joke. I laughed myself sick when I realized you'd written a lizardman conspiracy. 010
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 07/08/2026@aptshadow.bsky.social. Had a shower thought the other night and wanted confirmation. How much of Saturation Point was you intentionally writing an alex jones style lizardman conspiracy, but with climate change? 110
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 07/08/2026I deeply appreciate it when authors expand their worlds with short stories that are separate from their main series. @aptshadow.bsky.social's Spoils of War for his Shadows of the Apt does this beautifully, fleshing out the world and breathing new life into it. 010
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 07/08/2026Posting more than I usually do, but I was looking for public domain art to illustrate my next post and found some that I just... have to share. Meet Skeleton of a Human Being (Heroic) by Cornelius Van Dyke in 1680. It's beautiful. 000
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 07/08/2026Ohh, @tkingfisher.com and @lairdbarron.bsky.social? I'm going to have to pick this up... just as soon as I get caught up-ish on my TBR... 010
Reposted by @eldritchexarch.bsky.socialMike Davis @michaeldylandavis.bsky.social · 26/07/2026Ellen Datlow, Laird Barron, Carol Gyzander, and others: a conversation about LOVECRAFT'S BROOD: www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DZH... Today at 6pm Eastern! Watch live or later. @datlow.bsky.social @lairdbarron.bsky.social 1153
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 07/08/2026@tkingfisher.com & @maryrobinettekowal.com I am about halfway through the audiobook for Wolf Worm, and I must say it is absolutely incredible. There's just a creepy vibe to the whole thing that works beautifully. I'm currently at "The Possum." 2152
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 24/07/2026I've found that thus far, the best use for AI is finding something for you that you can immediately verify. I don't want you to tell me X is true. I want you to find me the study that shows X is true, so I can read that. The problem is we had search engines that did that, and those are worse now. 020
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 19/07/2026The teroir (I just know I'm misspelling that) is strong with this group. 020
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 19/07/2026A (kind-of) brief and (very) incomplete overview/history of combat in Dungeons and Dragons and adjacent games. Plus Tools! (And I don't just mean me!)open.substack.comOn Combat: The Broad StrokesThis post took me 3 months and 12,000 words to write. Buckle up buttercup. 000
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 31/05/2026Jokes on it, I switched, before they forced me to! 010
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 17/05/2026I wasn’t intending to do a post on this one, but @aptshadow.bsky.social's work is excellent and would not leave me alone until I talked about it. Plus I think it also makes for good RPG fodder too, so there’s that!open.substack.comIn Review/Appendix N: The Hungry Gods by Adrian TchaikovskyAn entry into Appendix N if I've ever read one. 0275
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 05/05/2026Love that series. I watched the Morse, Lewis, and Endevour with her a couple years ago. 010
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 05/05/2026I highly recommend The Hungry Gods by @aptshadow.bsky.social. It's a modern parable if I've ever read one, and the ending is incredible. It really does thread the needle between optimism, realism, and dread. 010
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 18/04/2026It's also really neat to see how you made everyone's point of view feel both viable in setting, and deeply flawed. Something you also managed with Day of Ascension, though that one carried a much greater irony with it. 010
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 18/04/2026@aptshadow.bsky.social Just finished Starseer's Ruin and it's really good. I'm impressed with how you managed to make things matter to the characters even when we the audience know that Games Workshop won't really allow the "World" of Age of Sigmar to change. (Not a criticism, just economic reality) 130
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 12/04/2026Yeah. I can't wait to see the lawsuits when AI-Jesus tells people to commit suicide. I can almost guarantee something like that is going to happen. It's sickening. 010
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 04/04/2026It took a long while, but I'm back with thoughts on Stronghold systems in Dungeons and Dragons.open.substack.comOn StrongholdsThis is a long one. 000
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 15/03/2026I hope they are able to make an example of Grammerly. 001
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 24/02/2026It depends on the group I think. I agree, but it adds so much bookeeping overhead that I don't know that it's worth it. I only get to play with friends once every few weeks. I want to play the game, and continue the adventure, not wrestle over whether their left gauntlet survived a splash of acid. 000
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 20/02/2026Again though, your mileage and your situation may vary. 000
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 20/02/2026Also, I don't know your GM'ing style. Crawford Specializes in sandbox gameplay, and his random tables are excellent for taking genre tropes and turning them into interesting locations and people. Also, there is a free edition that has all the material I would actually recommend for you. 110
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 20/02/2026Depending on your needs, I highly recommend Kevin Crawford's Worlds Without Number, assuming you are playing a D&D Adjacent game in a sandbox style and are looking to make it game-able at the table. It might not be what you are looking for though since you want to make it into a book eventually. 110
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 20/02/2026The difficulty is that what is game-able varies wildly from one game system to another. There are tools to make it easier, but those are not necessarily going to apply to every situation. 000
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 20/02/2026Settings have to be abstract enough that players won't break things just by breathing in their general direction. On the other hand they need enough specificity that GM's can actually run the damn things. The best advice is to focus on what is game-able, and provide hooks for players. 100
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 20/02/2026TTRPG settings though don't need plots. They need all the ingredients for a plot, (points of friction, characters, and worldbuilding) but it's up to the players to actually make the story. Because it's up to players though, you need an odd mix of abstraction and precision. 100
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 20/02/2026As someone who has attempted both (and arguably succeeded at one), settings are... very hard. I haven't managed them yet. Fiction requires plot, and character, and worldbuilding and a certain degree of skill with grammar. There's other stuff in there too, but it can be boiled down to that. 100
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 20/02/2026It's... difficult. Apart from things like grammar it really is two different skill sets. 000
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 10/02/2026That doesn't mean it's good. It just got there first. Preferably a classic does both. But here, it doesn't. 010
eldritchexarch.bsky.social @eldritchexarch.bsky.social · 10/02/2026Oh absolutely. The story has a ton of problems. But it got people thinking about those problems in a way that a lot of people hadn't before. Would we be thinking about terrible engineering in SciFi if people hadn't though 'wait, this is a solvable problem.' It's a classic. 100
