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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier

@mirror-lock.bsky.social
2.6K followers 165 following 3.6K posts

Contemplative indie tabletop games: HER ODYSSEY, GALATEA, UNTITLED MOTH GAME, & more. Worldbuilding examination. Character and roleplay theory. Opinions about fonts. She/her. You look lost, follow me. mirror-lock.com & mirror-lock.itch.io

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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 12h
I am thrilled that, after weeks of not eating properly after her surgery, my cat has finally discovered that she loves wet food, but sweet baby girl, do you reeeeaaally have to demand more food from me every 90 minutes
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Ben // foresight studio @foresightstudio.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Super excited that The Firmament is officially a Kickstarter Project We Love!! And I put together a new banner image featuring some previews of the card designs. Follow the campaign & see more at ttrpg.fund/firmament!
The banner for a kickstarter page for a game called The Firmament. A book floats on the left side of the image against a glowing, grimy gradient with a faint grid overlaid on it. The book features a large white hand reaching up toward the title at the top. On the right side of the image, four tarot cards fall from above, glowing faintly. The most obviously visible one features three eyes looking different directions. The title of the game is written in white text across the bottom of the image.
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
I am incredibly excited to see @fwalkerrpgdev.bsky.social return to this historical period!
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Asa Donald | Backwards Tabletop @backwardsttrpg.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
COMING SOON: In prelaunch w/ Violent Delights, another game inspired by Shakespeare: Mousetrap is a cursed game-within-a-game that won’t go back into its box. It’s game night. You and your friends have gathered to play a Hamlet-inspired game manuscript from 1983. But there’s a catch…
kickstarter.com
Coming soon: Mousetrap & Violent Delights
A cursed game-within-a-game that won't go back into its box, and a chess-based RPG about Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet.
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Art SilverGlass ~ Sophie Grunnet @silverglass.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
👉 Free Art for Three Days 👈 I’m not pointing any fingers...but if you are, then I have made the perfect stock art bundle ^^ Free download for 3 days. Free for personal and commercial use. www.patreon.com/SilverGlass/... or ko-fi.com/s/f9cdee8279 Tell your friends! #ttrpg #stockart #lineart
Shows 8 different pointing hands icons, mostly in fantasy/medieval theme. All made by me.
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Good morning, Bluesky. We’ve made it through yet another weekend.
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
When I go out of town for a week, my husband fills the freezer with frozen pizzas and eats like a 90s gamer bachelor. When my husband goes out of town I fill the fridge with smoked salmon, cheese, and crostinis, and eat like I'm a medieval Flemish merchant waiting for my ships to return
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Ramona @alderdoodle.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
✨Gold appreciation post ✨
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Eric Jordan @ericremyjordan.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
I'm very excited to announce our newest game, Folded Fables: Tidy Up The Dragon Hoard. It is a delight to bring together two of my great joys: papercraft and tidy-up games. You can check it out at: store.steampowered.com/app/4995030/... @foldedfableshq.bsky.social
store.steampowered.com
Folded Fables: Tidy Up The Dragon Hoard on Steam
Unwind in a relaxing first-person Tidy Up game where you'll sort and arrange 5,648 treasures in a papercraft world. Level up, unlock new skills, and tally every coin. Play solo or tidy up together wit...
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SprintingOwlDesigns @sprintingowl.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
The Sprinting Owl Halloween Hijinks TTRPG bundle is now recruiting. It'll be running during October. If you have a TTRPG that is loosely in the theme, and you would like to be part of an even profit split itchio bundle, please fill out the form before the end of Sunday. forms.gle/oU66QVfQ9n8H...
forms.gle
Halloween Hijinks TTRPG Bundle Submission Form
Please use this to submit itchio TTRPGs for the Halloween Hijinks TTRPG bundle.
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
I love playtesting because I get to deep-dive into what the designer is aiming for with themes and mechanics, and really poke at what all the cogs of a game are doing together. Some designers love hearing that kind of feedback, and some hate it! I'm very grateful that PV took my comments seriously.
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PVincent (Table Cat Games) @tablecatgames.com · 23/09/2026
Shout out to the folks that helped with Shadow in the Stars: Art: @gunmetaldraws.bsky.social @scragend.bsky.social Writing: @africanmorning.bsky.social @lurzblurbz.bsky.social Consulting: @cassi.mothwin.com @mirror-lock.bsky.social The game would have been sucky without them.
Shadow in the stars art featuring a pilot and a starfighter
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Ben // foresight studio @foresightstudio.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
The Firmament is coming to Kickstarter October 27th!! A huge thank-you to the 150+ folks already following the campaign. Check out the pre-launch for more on what the crowdfund will support, and let me know what you want to see more of in the lead-up to launch! www.kickstarter.com/projects/for...
kickstarter.com
Update 1: The Firmament is coming to Kickstarter October 27th · The Firmament - Tarot TTRPG of Divinity and Desperation
Hello, everyone!I'll start with the headline: The Firmament is coming to Kickstarter October 27th. So what kind of game is it, and what can you expect from the campaign? Read on to find out! What...
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
the only thing worse than mandatory corporate self-evaluations is mandatory video training that tries desperately to convince you that the mandatory corporate self-evaluations are important and fun
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Good morning, Bluesky. I’m still sick. But at least we survived the weekend
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Ben // foresight studio @foresightstudio.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
it has taken me like 4ish years in games to say this but: I want to be on your podcast. I want to be on your stream. Plus I sound smart occasionally, so I bet it'd even be good
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Markus Montola @montola.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
I’ll call that.
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sam “ludonarrative disinterest” sorensen @samsorensen.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
[rings bell] theoryslop! theoryslop! come get yer theoryslop while it's still hot!
one page. header reads "RPG DESIGNER THEORYSLOP ALIGNMENT CHARTS & SHEET." gray text under the header reads "You have 20 points to assign to each stat array, Pendragon-style. For tri- or otherwise multi-polar arrays, express the stats as ranges, e.g. “Gamist 1–7 / Dramatist 8–9 / Simulationist 10–20.”
subheaders followed by lines for writing read: "Designer: / Project: / Link:"
subheader reads "Binary Traits," followed by a list of silly game studies paired descriptors and space to write stats: "Ludologist / Narratologist // Game-as-Activity / Game-as-Object // Proceduralist / Anti-Proceduralist // Diegetic / Endogenous // Suitsian / Non-Suitsian // Closed Lusory Goal / Open Lusory Goal // Toy-Game / Meta-Game // Character-Locked / Authorial // Problem-Solving / Story-Telling // Rulebooks / Adventures."
subheader reads "Special Twinned Binary Traits (the Bartle Zone)," followed by gray text reading "Assign 20 points to each axis, but make a single roll when testing the combined traits." following is a two-axis chart, north-south reading "Social / Non-Social" and west-east reading "Aggressive / Passive." 
in the second column, a subheader reads "Multi-Polar Traits" followed by shapes with stats at their corners: triangle, "Dramatist / Gamist / Simulationist"; square, "Agon / Alea / Mimicry / Ilinx"; hexagon, "Classic / OSR / Trad / Nordic larp / Neotrad / Storygames"; square, "Gamer / Actor / Socialite / Immersive." 
a subheader reads "Skills," followed by a big list of 32 skills, with space for stats next to each: Academia, Acting, Art Direction, Blog, Cartography, Copyediting, Credit Rating, Day Jon, Game Studies, Graphic Design, Illustration, Layout, Line Editing, Livestream, Marketing, Networking, Operations, Organizing, Podcast, Printing, Production, Proofreading, Shitpost, Shortform Video, Social Media, Thirst Trap, Video Essay, Web Dev, Writ. (Adventure), Writing (Lore), Writing (Rules), Other: "
gray text reads "Sam Sorensen, September 2026"same theoryslop designer sheet as before, this time filled out in handwritten green, for me, Sam. I skew towards problem-solving, goal-driven play, as well as towards adventures, imaginary worlds, and simulationism. the notable inclusions in my skills lists are a +6 in game studies, a +4 in academic, blog, layout, line editing, and adventure-writing, and a +2 in "museum," my "other" skill
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A Couple of Drakes @acoupleofdrakes.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Dead Net's goin' live tomorrow, y'all. Why don't we do a giveaway to help spread the word? Follow us, repost this post, help us get the word out, and I'll put your name in the hat for a copy of Dead Belt (Dead Net's older brother).
kickstarter.com
Coming soon: Dead Net - A Solo Tabletop RPG for High-Tech Low-Lifes
Dive the Dead Net, snag the paydata, survive the churn.
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Good morning, Bluesky. This has been a really weird weekend, and now I've got covid, so
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
I am vibrating with anticipation
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Currently sitting on a tram car across from a girl who’s talking about her crochet projects to a guy who clearly doesn’t care about fiber arts but is very into her, and. Girl. Don’t self-censor when you realize he’s trying to change the topic. *I* want to hear about your beaded shawl
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
It's pretty amusing looking back and seeing the prophecies I fulfilled
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
🥰 Thank you so much for your glowingly generous words!
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PVincent (Table Cat Games) @tablecatgames.com · 10/09/2026
Shadow in the Stars is out now! Pilot a starfighter with no memory as you embark on a deadly mission to blow up the enemy home world. Featuring starfighter combat, tough choices, wild revelations, and a high score board.
ad featuring Shadow in the Stars text, a close up of a sci fi, fighter pilot, a ship, and the text "Destroy the enemy. Get the high score. Try not to fry your brain."
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Petra @hedgegirl.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
I’m so tired of ai
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
it's happening (pinging @curatrix-ribston.bsky.social if you care to see!)
A photo of an open notebook. The left-hand page is filled with writing; phrases like "were my online best friends", "the closest perspective [...] of the last twelve years", and "about time blindness" can be seen, as well as the phrase "my ex-wife" written in gold pen and outlined in a box. On the right-hand page, the top half of the Ace of Diamonds has been grafted onto the bottom half of the five of hearts, which has the word "RESPONSE" written on it in black Sharpie. The date "10 Sep" is just barely visible in the corner. It is not evident just by seeing the photo, but this is part of a game of "I Trust Only You" by Wendy Ribston Pippin.
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Repost with your home river Take your pick: the Yellow River, the Red River, the Hudson, the Charles, or any number of smaller creeks; like their waters, I was there, and am no longer and after many winding ways, like all waters, my home is the ocean
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
ugh, almost got got by a bilingual healthcare scam call, figures they'd pick the one day that I'm actually answering calls from unknown numbers because I'm waiting for a call back from the vet
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Just dropped off this grumpy old lady for surgery, please send well wishes
A photo of a calico cat sitting on a staircase. The photo is taken from below the stairs, such that the cat looks down regally at the viewer.
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Exeunt Press 💀🎲 @exeunt.press · 09/09/2026
How much information is stored in a deck of cards? #ttrpg #boardgames #gamedesign #information
skeletoncodemachine.com
Storing information with components
Exploring how much information is stored in a deck of cards.
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Caroline✦ @carolinejamhour.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
I missed painting my little memento mori skulls. These two are in ACEO format, available in my ko-fi shop: ko-fi.com/carolinejamh...
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Asa Donald | Backwards Tabletop @backwardsttrpg.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
It's Tuesday, which seems like a good day to remind folks that I have a game in prelaunch on Kickstarter: Violent Delights. Use a chessboard and its pieces to re-envision the masquerade scene of Romeo and Juliet. When characters clash, play the scene with a Firebrands mini-game.
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Good morning, Bluesky. What a weekend to have finally made it through.
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沁 @loika.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
crossings
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Hinokodo @hinokodo.com · 06/09/2026
Hey latenight Bluesky. Have you heard of Léonard Dupond? leonarddupond.com Artist for ICE by @thiswaygames ( i'm really excited for my copy to come in soon!) I've almost picked up Line of Fire: Burnt Moon by @ospreygames.bsky.social for the art alone. 10/10 Who's your favorite #boardgame #artist?
art by leonard dupond for the board game ICE by This Way!
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
can't believe it's already been one whole year since Silksong broke the internet
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Knave of Cups @knaveofcups.com · 04/09/2026
GREETINGS FELLOW HERMITS! IT'S SOLO SEPTEMBER! Journaling, gamebooks, solo+, boardgames - we've got a wealth of finds for ya. Fight monsters, make monsters, or date monsters. Explore the Zone. Do an Arthurian Quest. Deliver the mail! Fight a book! Start a restaurant! 🧵⬇️ #solosept #soloseptember
A smorgasbord of new stuff in the Knave of Cups online shop, including games like HOME, Out for Delivery, We Shall Be Monsters, SPINE, Eleventh Beast, Ruin in Bloom, Trespasser, Rillem, Cyberpunk: Augmented, and Pilgrimage of the Sun Guard. There's a Knave of Cups logo sticker in the center of the shot
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
true story: I did a little informal market research in @cassi.mothwin.com's Discord server to see how many people owned enough tarot and oracle decks for the full Six Deck Experience, because I am convinced deck collectors are just waiting for an excuse to use them all
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Good morning, Bluesky. We've made it through yet another weekend (these feel like they're getting harder and harder)
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Tabletop Bookshelf🔜Gamehole Con @tabletopbookshelf.com · 31/08/2026
Solo journaling games, delivered to your door every month. Introducing Solo Party, a new subscription service from Tabletop Bookshelf! A new solo game, chosen and packed by us, delivered to you every single month. 🗓️ Launches September 2026 | First delivery in October
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
My cat has had a very rough week, but at least she has figured out how to leverage her cone of shame to her advantage
A calico cat lying down on the lowest shelf of a cat tree next to a window, wearing a space-themed e-collar. She has wedged her collar between the cat tree and the windowsill such that it provides a comfortable stable surface for her head while she naps and holds the window blinds open for sunshine and a nice view.
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
bluesky please don't tease me with "30+ unread notifications" when they're just old notifications misflagged as being unread; for a moment I really thought that the new solo journaling game I uploaded last night and was never going to mention again had broken containment
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eshpur @eshpur.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
uninvited
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
This week I'm learning that one of my extreme stress responses might be "upload a new solo journaling game to itch and never mention it again"
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
I’ve published too many games as S. Kaiya J. to really gracefully pivot to a pseudonymic surname now, but I did spend a few minutes considering whether it’s worth establishing that S. Kaiya J. stands for Sic Kaiya Jacent
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
This is, all seriousness, one of the very subtlest pieces of clothing this store had for sale
A photo of Kaiya, who is a Chinese woman with her face obscured by a black KN95 mask, wearing a heather grey sweatshirt with “NEW YORK” across the front in five-inch-high black block letters.
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Am I really going to get cold enough in this airport that I buy an NYC hoodie, despite twenty-five full years of actively avoiding getting NYC-branded anything
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S. Kaiya J. || Mirror-lock Atelier @mirror-lock.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Good morning, Bluesky. I just have to keep going a little longer to survive this weekend.
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Brent Jans (he/they)💜🖤🤍 @dorklordcanada.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
If I've never mentioned, I find the Affinity Publisher videos from @icarus-games.co.uk extremely helpful when using Affinity for The Hearth Magazine. Wish I discovered them before I started but they've helped me improve a great deal. Check them out! youtube.com/playlist?lis...
youtube.com
Getting Started With Affinity Publisher - YouTube
Are you an Indie TTRPG publisher looking to produce your own books? Want your stuff to look gorgeous and not just like a 5e cookie cutter template? This seri...
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