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Listen, I'd love to see this happen. But this feels like the emptiest of promises given your actions as mayor this term. I hope if re-elected that you will take your campaign promises seriously.

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Reposted by Fiona

Marceline is Racing Dinos @marcelineleiman.bsky.social · 19h

I fear we’re ignoring the reality that there are people who think it’s a fine idea to throw our rulebooks into an LLM and have it spit out a vibe-coded version of our games Players will take advantage of opportunities to “try the game” and form their opinions based on these… things

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

My most anticipated book of the year has arrived!! And in classic Tad Williams fashion, I am charmed before the book even begins. "Harold the Tree" had me in stitches. Looking forward to ignoring all responsibilities for a while as I read The Splintered Sun. Priorities! #booksky

My hand holding up The Splintered Sun by Tad Williams.

A page at the beginning of The Splintered Sun by Tad Williams. It reads:

Author's Note
Anyone reading this book who wishes to refer to one of my famously long indexes for a list of characters, places, as well as important animals and inanimate objects, will not find said index in the book itself this time, but it is available (for free, of course!) in one of two places online:
- tadwilliams.com
- astrapublishinghouse.com/splintered-sun-appendix
We may thus, by avoiding printing the indexes in the book itself and the subsequent shrinkage of page-count, save one small but deserving tree. I am naming it "Harold the Tree." I do not know where it grows, but I wish it a long and healthy life.
You're welcome, environment!

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

The first book takes place in small towns, most of the second takes place in a city and the third graduates up to a capital city with a royal family. The stories in each book grow to fit their settings. The first two books are effectively standalones and the third ties them together beautifully.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

A cool thing about these books is each one broadens the scope & the stakes. They are almost each different styles of novel. Book 1 is told as 4 stories. Book 2 is one narrative & introduces more locations & lore. Book 3 has several intersecting storylines, more characters & political intrigue.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

I've just caught up on The Eight Chant Series and had an amazing time with all 3 books. Yet somehow books 2 and 3 have under 100 ratings on Goodreads. Talk about criminally underhyped! Recommended for lovers of magical creatures, great characters and fresh stories with a classic feel. #booksky

3 books laying side by side on a bench with their cover sides up. The books are: Seasons of Albadone, A Contract In Sol Forne, and A Rescue in Vizen. All three are by Élan Marché and Christopher Warman.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

I'm excited to hear there is a fourth one coming!! There's so much potential for more stories in this world.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

For what it's worth, I'm reading that same book currently and your series is one of my favourite things I have read so far this year. I saw that "review" and was immediately confused by how anyone could mistake your work for AI. I'm sorry you have to deal with that. Hopefully they will take it down.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I totally empathize. I have a lot of programmers among my family and friends. It is a weird time for that industry. So much of what drew a lot of them to pursue that field has just completely turned on its head. I'm thrilled if game design can be an escape from that for you! Best of luck with it!

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Also there are plenty of books on the subject of board game design, too! I have a neglected copy of The White Box I need to pick up sometime which is a game design kit including a book on the subject.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I'm not a game designer but I have a passion for board games and an interest in what goes on behind the scenes so I spent a lot of time consuming those sorts of informative board game media and I find it super interesting. Lots of stuff out there is specifically intended to help new designers, too.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

example: - "Fun Problems" with Peter C. Hayward and another aspiring designer (apologies for forgetting his name!) is available on Youtube/podcast platforms - Matthew Dunstan's Youtube channel - "The Bits with Joe and Nick" with publishers from Bitewing and Allplay All focus/touch on game design

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

mechanism. And while they aren't perfect or inarguable, that's a great place to start. Also just playing games with a variety of mechanisms? Then there are lots of great podcasts and youtube videos (etc) from designers and other industry professionals that can be a good resource, I think. For

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Honestly I think opinions would vary on that and many people would be comfortable with it. I wouldn't, personally. But I'm also annoying when it comes to AI. There are just lots of amazing resources for learning about things like game mechanisms, though. Board Game Geek has a page defining each

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

That's totally fair! Those types of games do tend to get grouped together but they do feel quite different.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

That's a good point. I could see how that dynamic would pop up easily and wouldn't be a fun one for everyone. I've played it a lot but all but twice has been 2 player so that's something I've experienced less. In my two multiplayer games though that did come up a bit.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Only 5 for Linko stood out to me! Any chance you'd like to share what doesn't work for you with that game?

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

September was a particularly good reading month for me. While there were a few books I really didn't like, I also discovered some new favourites with The Wounded Kingdom trilogy, Seasons of Albadone, The Last Unicorn and Mestra. And I re-read a childhood favourite, Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie. #booksky

An image generated by Storygraph showing the books I read in September and the star rating I gave each out of 5. The books and ratings are:
- Slewfoot by Brom, 2 stars
- Night's Master by Tanith Lee, 2 stars
- The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle, 5 stars
- Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie, 5 stars
- Age of Assassins by R.J. Barker, 5 stars
- Blood of Assassins by R.J. Barker, 5 stars
- King of Assassins by R.J. Barker, 5 stars
- Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier, 4 stars
- Wonders of the Invisible World by Patricia A. McKillip, 4 stars
- DragonForged by Justin C. Orr, 2 stars
- Seasons of Albadone by Élan Marché and Christopher Warman, 5 stars
- The Water Outlaws by S.L. Huang, 3 stars
- Mestra by Madelina Miller, 5 stars

An image generared by Storygraph showing some statistics about my reading month for September. It shows I read 13 books, 4152 pages with an average rating of 4 stars. It highlights Mestra, Seasons of Albadone and King of Assassins as some of my highest rated reads. My average book length was 340 pages and average time to finish was 3 days. I read 100% fiction books. 12 of them were classified as fantasy, 4 historical, 2 short stories, 2 classics and 1 young adult.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Time for a little September recap thread. First off - my September in board games! An overall quieter month for games but still lots of fun especially with my many plays of Nebular Colors and first play of Hellas. The first pic is in person plays, the second is BGA plays. BGA added Bus!! 🥳

An image generated by BG Stats App showing my in-person board games played with the number of plays for the month of September in a 5×3 grid. The games and plays are: Nebular Colors (28), Lost Cities (18), Orbita (15), The Yellow House (6), Scout (6), Abandon All Artichokes (3), Royal Visit (2), Patchwork (2), Linko (2), Mandala (2), Penguin Party (2), Hellas, Piñatas, Hanamikoji and Nut.

An image generated by BG Stats App showing my online plays for the month of September in a 5×3 grid. The games and plays are: Tigris & Euphrates (4), Azure (4), Schotten Totten (4), Toy Battle (3), Targi (2), Azul (2), My City (2), Patchwork (2), Bus, Café, Nanga Parbat, Trinket Trove, Hey That's My Fish!, and Flowers.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Such a thoughtful example/exploration of what you might have to sacrifice for efficiency. Rodney is speaking specifically about Youtube AI tools here but the message feels relevant to lots of choices we are presented with these days.

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Reposted by Fiona

Peer Sylvester @peersylvester.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

My designer diary of Upland&Prairie is online and if for nothing else, ppl should read it to learn how lineages of inspiration can flow. boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogp...

boardgamegeek.com

From the King of Siam via Afghanistan to Sweden and back to Berlin: Upland & Prairie | BoardGameGeek Blog

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

It's my favourite! Haha. I get so much use out of it.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Madeline Miller never misses. Mestra is a bite sized delight. I loved it. #booksky

A photo of me holding Mestra: A Short Story by Madeline Miller. The cover is red with gold lettering and an illustration in gold of a sparrow in flight.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

The worst of the hobby are really all out in your comments. So sorry about that. But congrats on a very successful campaign!

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

It's SO GOOD!! One of my favourites. And such fun toy factor with those chunky wooden pieces too.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

I asked my husband and his guess is it comes up roughly 1 of 6 games? Which feels about accurate to me. It's hard to make the nova work.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Pretty infrequently? It's not uncommon for it not to come up in a game. My husband goes for it more often than I do but still in not much. Though we have taken to playing with the shortened win condition of 3 star shards instead of 4. I assume in the full length game it would be more tempting.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

I Remember as a Christmas song is so funny to me but also I can't wait!

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

More people should be talking about this. This was enchanting. A fantasy novel divided into 4 interconnected stories, one per season. Dark fairytale/folklore vibes. Witty, moving, charming, creepy. I loved it. Highly recommend Seasons of Albadone by Élan Marché and Christopher Warman. #booksky

The cover of Seaons of Albadone by Élan Marché and Christopher Warman. A girl stands facing away from the reader, towards a yellowing forest with plumes of smoke rising from it. The girl grips a shining feather in one hand and a satchel in the other as her green cape blows in the wind.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Cameron is not having a midlife crisis, enter Ferris and Sloane to show him how much fun he could still be having.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

It has been a while since I played it so my memory of it is fuzzy. Mostly I found it dull? I've played a lot of polyomino games & nothing stood out with that one. New York Zoo has the race element which keeps you on your toes & the animal breeding is a cool addition without overcomplicating it.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

It's on BGA if you'd like to try it without tracking down a copy. I didn't enjoy my plays of Barenpark, but I'm grateful for it because some games I enjoy a lot would probably not exist without it? I prefer New York Zoo, Llamaland (another Walker-Harding!) and Grand Carnival for similar vibes.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Lots of card games again. :) Looking forward to hearing more about Upland & Prairie.

An image generated by BG Stats App showing my in-person board game plays from last week in a grid. The games and number of plays are: Nebular Colors (8), Lost Cities (5), Orbita (5), The Yellow House (3), Scout (2), Patchwork (1), Abandon All Artichokes (1), Linko (1), Nut (1), and Penguin Party (1).

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

I've only tried High Tide and Nebular Colours so far but if this is the standard we can expect from her then that is VERY exciting. Both of those games absolutely rule. I'm excited for Wildberries, too. A fantastic designer for sure. I'm excited to see what else she comes up with!

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

I recommend it!! It has very quickly become one of my favourite card games. I think it's brilliant.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

Colors is definitely more my speed. Perfect for my tastes.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

discard you have to take the entire accumulated discard pile you choose. And any cards you can't use contribute to penalty points. So there's quite an interesting dynamic of waiting for the pile to be more useful to you while also hoping it won't get full of cards you can't use. So yeah, Nebular

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

the simplicity of it. There are no special powers. The sets/runs you can play are easy to keep track of. There are 4 of every card in the game. It took me a few games to remember how the scoring works but until then there's a handy reference card for that. I also enjoy that when you pull from the

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

I might not be the person to ask since I don't really like Sea Salt & Paper? I'm in the minority opinion on that one I think. Like a lot of Cathala's designs I feel like there's some stuff that's a bit too fussy for what could be a more streamlined game? Nebular Colors is fantastic, though. I like

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

I played my 25th game of Nebular Colours today, along with my 50th game of Orbita. Not too shabby for games I started playing in July (Orbita) and August (Nebular Colors)! My husband and I continue to be totally obsessed with both.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

This is genuinely part of why I like Medina. Haha. It's not these exact blocks but it has that fun tactile feel of playing with blocks.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Haha yeah you need a stomach for some real meanness!

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Oh wow!!! Those are some dreamy looking shelves! Also always fun to see Brew. That's a fun one, and so pretty.

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

One of my favourite passtimes tbh. 😅

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Fiona @fionajackson.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Lots card game time last week. Plus a first try of Hellas, which was awesome.

An image generated by BG Stats showing my in-person plays for last week: Nebular Colors (8), Orbita (6), Lost Cities (4), Hellas, The Yellow House, Penguin Party and Scout.

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