iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 20h

I can absolutely be distracted from what I'm working on for Victorian haunted house vibes. I'm happy to chat if you'd like. :) Some examples of my layout for easy reference:

0100 10

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 21h

I was so happy to see this on my doorstep today from @comemartin.bsky.social Now I'm going to kick back and have a little read :D (And yes, you'll see me at Dragonmeet! :) )

A copy of A Week With Frog and Rabbit alongside some utterly adorable stickers

171 7

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 16/10/2026

Today I tried a technique I've never done before; painting in greyscale in acrylics, then glazing oil paint colour on top. I only had 10 min at the end of the class to throw on the colour, so it's suuuuper simple, but I still learned from it. (I forgot to photo the greyscale painting, oops)

A pair of aubergines on a rumpled cloth. Painted originally in greyscale in black & white acrylic. The aubergines have had a translucent layer of pinky-purple laid on top of the greyscale.

Purple aubergines on an orange cloth. Only two colours used to glaze with (ideally I'd have spent more time here and done a lot more, but sadly when time's up, time's up)

0100 10

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 15/10/2026

These letter tiles are almost ready to go to their new homes. In the meantime, they're pretending to be miniature armies on my desk 😄

A few hundred cherry hardwood letter tiles standing on end on sheets of baking paper.

090 9

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 13/10/2026

Hello #PortfolioDay! I design, write, illustrate, and lay out tabletop roleplaying games for 1-4 players. I think they're pretty great. :) 🌐 www.montfordtales.com (All made with 100% human blood, sweat, and tears.)

37831 78

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 13/10/2026

Umm, actually, Montford Tales sells really cool tabletop roleplaying games. At least the AI bot spam is easy to identify 🤣

A screenshot of an AI agent spam email, falsely claiming that Montford Tales sells relived clothes, and not excellent roleplaying games like it actually does.

2160 16

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 12/10/2026

Alright, I should now be in "mostly improvement" territory from this point. The masking fluid is now off, and I've put a second layer of transparent yellow on the sand areas. Still lots to do! (Second pic is just to show off the lovely granulation you get with these watercolours)

An in progress watercolour map. The sea colour is now less "bitty"

Granulation of watercolour on the sea area.

030 3

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 12/10/2026

When you're going through the ugly phase of a project, it's fine to make it uglier 🤣 (It's just masking fluid — I needed to get my *really really* big (3 inch) brush out to get the sea washes built up without them going patchy. This way I don't need to worry about the coastline)

4221 22

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 11/10/2026

🤣 I have reached the "ugly middle" stage on this map 🙌

A watercolour imaginary island map, with one round of colour applied.

2333 33

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 10/10/2026

Tomorrow (time willing) may be when I add colour. It makes progress! (I keep finding little bits of pencil to still erase.)

060 6

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 09/10/2026

A little more time was spent on the map today (but then a bad migraine came calling 😭) Water is inked in blue (two line thickness). The black square is both a callout section for the port, and a useful scale setter for when I put a grid on top of it later when adding labels etc. :)

An in progress map on my drawing table. Rivers, lakes, and high & low tide marks are drawn in blue. Pencil shows topography lines.

020 2

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 08/10/2026

No One Lives in Port Robert (Anymore) map progress. I'm figuring out all the topography atm. (I've recorded a bit of this, but not all of it because it's a lot of me muttering to myself as I work out the options 😂)

Pencil hill contours on a huge piece of paper.

1182 18

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 07/10/2026

I am quite happy with the results of today's art class, inspired by Van Gough's sunflowers. The challenge: paint only using mixes of yellow and purple. One 5 minute speedy study. Then (roughly) 45 min for a more considered painting. Time goes so fast 😅

A 45(?) minute painting of a jug of sunflowers inspired be Van Gough's (yellow background) sunflower painting. The brush marks are fast and loose.

A 5 minute speedy colour study of the same jug of sunflowers.

A photograph of a jug of sunflowers on a table with yellow tablecloth. The sunflowers are cheerful and quite leafy.

My paint palette post-painting. On the left are a variety of purples. On the right are a variety of yellowes. In between are mixes of these colours.

2201 20

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 06/10/2026

Doing a little research with this great little find published in 1951. It's a shame they skipped over Asher's Ridge! (Because it's a made up Lake District — Fake District! — town. I can't blame them, really.)

A travel guide published in 1951 titles "The Lakes to Tyneside"

The interior cover of the same book. The right hand page has a watercolour (?) drawing of Hadrian's Wall (I assume). The left shows the publishing date, 1951.

The interior page with publishing date and sponsor: "The About Britain Guides are sponsored by The Brewer's Society as their contribution to the Festival of Britain 1951"

0100 10

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 06/10/2026

The writing may have begun to wear off the "map rice" jar, and you'll have to squint to see my faint first map lines... but part one of the map for Port Robert & its surroundings is complete (and recorded 😅)

A jar of rice with worn off writing on it ("map rice"). A 2H mechanical pencil lies beside it. There are faint landmass markings drawn on paper underneath the jar and pencil.

A preview of the cover of No One Lives on Port Robert (Anymore). A setting and "limited series" logline collection for Asher's Ridge.

(Limited series in the TV episode sense!)

0140 14

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 01/10/2026

I'm stepping outside my comfort zone and submitting these to a local art gallery exhibition. They may not get picked, that's okay, I'm still proud of them. Left: Artwork from Asher's Ridge. Right: My cat.

Two paintings leaning against a wall. The left shows a pair of hands framing a landscape scene. The right shows a log haired calico cat sitting in a box.

An acrylic gouache painting of a pair of hands framing a landscape scene, as if measure up for filming.

An oil painting of a calico long haired cat sitting in a box. The colours are bright and cheerful.

5532 53

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 30/09/2026

How about a whole new setting to use with Asher's Ridge, complete with a "limited series" string of episode longlines to play through? Stay tuned.

A book mockup featuring a lighthouse set against a green-gold sky. The title is "No one lives in Port Robert (Anymore).

To the left of the mockup text reads "Next time(crossed out) year on Asher's Ridge..."

To the right of the mockup text reads "In December 1951 the population of Port Robert and the island of Calraithe disappeared overnight. No-one knows what happened to this day.

In 2026 you got the greenlight for a limited series television show:
No one lives in Port Robert (Anymore).

You decide to film on location. There’s one problem: It’s October 1951, and you’ve no way home."

44913 49

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 25/09/2026

I'm going to be making another big beautiful map shortly, and so I wonder: how much of its making would folks like to see? (Yes, it's an Asher's Ridge setting that I need to get onto a page. No, I don't know when it will be finished. Yes, I am enjoying it.)

A large A1 map of Asher's Ridge, with a book and location cards scattered on top of it. It's on an old wooden floor covered in leaf litter. Spoiling the vibe is a plastic "really useful box" in the lower right corner. It annoys me.

8596 59

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 24/09/2026

A restock of books is en route to Indie Press Revolution right now. The book, custom card deck, and setting map are available from shop.montfordtales.com and other UK game stores. :)

A trio of Asher's Ridge goodness. Left: The setting map and location guide. Middle: Asher's Ridge. Right: A deck of location cards.

A selection of Asher's Ridge location cards photographed at an angle. The cards are bright and evocative, with a textured linen finish that's a joy to shuffle.

130 3

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 24/09/2026

Make your own paranormal drama television show with Asher's Ridge, a GMless, zero-prep, game for 1-4 players. Perfect for fans of Twin Peaks, The X-Files, and Widow's Bay. www.montfordtales.com/ashers-ridge/

A copy of Asher's Ridge on an old, leaf-strewn, wooden floor. It is surrounded by five location cards. Scrabble tiles form the phrase "A paranormal drama ttrpg". The colours are golden, lit by an early morning sunbeam.

27532 75

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 21/09/2026

I wanted to add a "fifth printing" date note to the new print run of Dead Letter Society, but it turns out print files for games about beings frozen at the time of their creation must also remain frozen at the time of their creation. www.montfordtales.com/dead-letter-...

A copy of Dead Letter Society with the tagline "Death doesn't mean you can't write back." An epistolary and journaling game about vampires and their desires for 1-2 players.

1185 18

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 20/09/2026

And the WIP photos I took along the way.

051 5

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 20/09/2026

First, a little zoom so you can see it better.

160 6

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 20/09/2026

Cute delivery! :) Oil on board, 45x45 cm (ish) This was a lot of fun and has taught me quite a bit. WIPs etc below 👇

An oil painting of a calico fluffy cat sitting in a box with packing paper. The colours are bright in tones of pink, teal, lavender and yellow-white.

1214 21

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 18/09/2026

I'm back at art class, yay! 🙌 Today we painted skulls and flowers, which was (a) challenging and (b) super cool. Now I have an extremely wet oil painting to let dry somewhere.

A sketchy oil painting of a ram skull with flowers poking out of its eye and nose holes.

0120 12

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 17/09/2026

Round one of paint complete. I may still change my mind about everything 😹 (But not for a couple days while this layer gets dry enough to paint on. )

A cat in a box, work in progress painting.

180 8

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 16/09/2026

What do you do when a strange old book, and an invitation to write to other werewolves, turns up on your doorstep one day? A journaling and letter writing game for 1-2 players. Find out more at www.montfordtales.com/the-almanac-... Don't bite the messenger. #soloSept #soloSeptember

A softcover game book in tones of green and gold is displayed next to tarot cards, narcissis, and a wolf skull.

02410 24

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 16/09/2026

Four coats of clear gesso (sanded inbetween coats) and a layer of orange acrylic gouache (because I don't have any "standard" acrylic) and I'm happy that I can still see my drawing. Later I'll turn those big scribbled areas into proper shadows and see where this leads me.

The in progress painting after four coats of gesso and a coat of orange acrylic gouache. You can still see the cat drawing underneath it all.

240 4

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 15/09/2026

I hadn't realised just how much I needed to stop and draw. That's one layer of gesso applied. More tomorrow. Then maybe I can start with some paint in a few days 🤞

More of the same cat, but this time outlined with pen and scribbles for dark areas. The picture is shiny as a first layer of gesso is drying on it.

180 8

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 15/09/2026

Okay, having looked through my options of what to paint on, I changed my mind and went for a classic "cat in a box" 🐈📦 I think I'm going to go over this in places with pen, then I'll clear gesso it and let it dry until tomorrow.

A pencil drawing on a card backing board of a cat in a cardboard box.

140 4

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 15/09/2026

Today's jobs are to post some orders, sort a new print run of Dead Letter Society, and choose an old photo of Monty to paint. I think I might pick the stairs (aka Trip Hazard Cat). I think I could have done fun with that 🤔

A gallery view of six (approx 7-9 year old) photos of a fluffy calico cat doing standard cat things: sitting beautifully, sitting in a box, lying on stairs, playing with dangly tape, and mid-yawn/roar.

1250 25

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 02/09/2026

Are you going to #PaxWest? Find Asher's Ridge and The Almanac of Sanguine Paths at IPR's booth (4104, Summit Hall). They're perfect for #SoloSeptember (Also available at shop.montfordtales.com, PDFs on Itch and DriveThruRPG)

A copy of Asher's Ridge among location cards and scrabble tiles. The vibe is "spooky, dusty, cabin in the woods."

A copy of The Almanac of Sanguine Paths surrounded by tarot cards, yellow flowers, and a wolf skull. A dip pen rests across the book.

0137 13

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 29/08/2026

I'm an artist, but my art tends to get channeled into making tabletop roleplaying games. :) Still, since you ask: shop.montfordtales.com (Or for pdf-only: montfordtales.itch.io )

A photograph of a the Asher's Ridge book and illustrated playing cards.

A photograph of a The Almanac of Sanguine Paths book and tarot cards alongside daffodils and a (fake) wolf skull.

A photograph of a the Dead Letter Society book and tarot cards.

051 5

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 28/08/2026

I've just started reading "Composition of Outdoor Painting" by Edgar Payne (written in 1941), and this line from the preface feels particularly relevant to me right now. "The goal in painting should never be the picture but the means which produce it."

A photograph of page viii of Edgar Payne's Composition of Outdoor Painting. A passage is highlighted that reads "The goal in painting should never be the picture but the means which produce it."

1246 24

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 27/08/2026

I am spending a lovely rainy morning slowly scoring and folding the last of my Asher's Ridge maps. Behold my makeshift scoring tool 😅 (An A1 piece of paper that's folded in half with a ruler stuck to the long edge. Then I can slot the map in and score it in the right place.)

A map of Asher's Ridge in the middle of being scored. It gets scored twice more, then folded and packaged.

1291 29

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 26/08/2026

Asher's Ridge has made it into IPR's "What's Hot!" List 🔥 It's making its first convention debut in the United States at PAX West next weekend. Go find it at IPR's booth (4104, Summit Hall) and take a pic for me! 😄 Channel some Twin Peaks vibes for me while you're there, too 📺

A hardcover copy of Asher's Ridge on a leaf-strewn wooden floor. "A paranormal drama TTRPG" is spelled out next to it in letter tiles.

A screenshot of the What's Hot list from Indie Press Revolution's website. Asher's Ridge is #2 (but note the list is organised alphabetically.)

04411 44

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 07/08/2026

We're now 2.5 months post-UKGE and my kiddo is still mad keen on making more books about Minecraft to give to folks. I expect he might have more available at my table at Dragonmeet* than I will 😅 *He was so sad I didn't have a Dragonmeey table after UKGE, I had to put myself on the waiting list 🤣

A kid-made story book about Minecraft. It's made from a folded page of A4 and features several colourful mobs on the front.

1180 18

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 29/07/2026

My newest game has been blessed ❤️ Thank you, pinpanar9, whoever and wherever you are, for bringing joy to the indie ttrpg community 🫡

A screenshot of the reviews section of Asher's Ridge on itch.io. The latest review is by pinpanar9 with the classic "5 star, good" review line.

4828 82

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 25/07/2026

I've now messed about with my new watercolours. It's "good enough" for a sketchbook 🤷‍♀️ (but I may do another layer later) I've regrets about my initial plan to make his tail blend into the water background, and no amount of faff is going to correct that. (Also the white fur shadows are way too dark)

A watercolour "sketch" of a cat lying on his back and dreaming of fish.

1100 10

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 24/07/2026

Oh my word that was such a lot of work 😅 All the books are packed and away (okay, *technically* 12 aren't being picked up until Monday because that's what the courier can do). The 29 left to ship are *just* the letter tiles. Everything else is complete. I have *thoughts* about this experience. 😅

A BackerKit pledge manager screenshot showing a lot of orders of Asher's Ridge have now been shipped out.

3240 24

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 23/07/2026

Now it's time to mess it up with watercolour 😅 (I'm not stressed, if it goes wrong I can always draw it again – probably better – and start over having learned something) I think I'll leave it with this light wash to dry and get some sleep. I always regret colour choices made at night.

A pencil outline drawing of a cat lying on its back sleeping. Three fish float over it, swimming past.

A transparent mix of Jayne's grey and cerulean blue washed over the previous drawing. White areas of the cat, and the three fish, remain untouched. The paint is still shiny and wet in places.

140 4

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 23/07/2026

Okay, I'm following through with my "cat dreaming of goldfish" thumbnail thought (left: a few more minutes progress, right: tiny thumbnail plan)

The above sketch with three goldfish added to it swimming above the cat. They all bend in the same direction as the cat curves.

130 3

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 23/07/2026

I had a spot of time this afternoon, so I started this drawing of my very relaxed cat from a photo I took of him a few months back. I've got some new watercolours to try. Then... maybe I'll draw it again, but it bigger? (It's just a sketchbook thought atm)

A half sketch half more detailed pencil drawing of a cat lying on its back and having the best nap.

1180 18

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 23/07/2026

The lovely lady at the post office this morning saw me and said "Oh no, not you again!" 😄 (She said it with a laugh and a smile!) Here go more copies of Asher's Ridge off to their new homes in the EU 🙌

Lots of book boxes wrapped up and on a trolley in the post office.

1421 42

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 17/07/2026

Okay, one more photo. This time of the location card deck. I just love the light coming through the dirty old window and all the paint chips and dried leaves and seeds on the floor. I especially love the pitted texture on the old wheel/runner.

Eleven playing cards on an old dry floor covered in paint chips and last years leaves. Five cards show locations in Asher's Ridge. Five show the court cards. One shows the card back.

0172 17

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 17/07/2026

Here's a quick edit over lunch of one of the photos I took this morning. I think I love it, even though the light was a little difficult 🤔 (But now I return to sending this book out to folks who backed it!)

A copy of Asher's Ridge, location cards, and scrabble tiles that say "A paranormal drama ttrpg", on the floor of the Victorian rotating sun house. A wheel from the sun house occupies the lower left corner. A sunbeam crosses the book, cards, and some of the scrabble tiles.

3332 33

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 17/07/2026

I'm really grateful that I get to live in the woods and also have this spooky, dilapidated, 100+ year old Victorian rotating sun house to take photos in. I've got some great shots of Asher's Ridge - guess you'll have to wait and see! 👀

A dilapidated rotating Victorian sun house in a wooded area. It has two shades of flaking paint (deep green and turquoise). Its gates are hanging askew.

1321 32

Montford Tales 🔜 Dragonmeet @montfordtales.com · 16/07/2026

A morning cat pic before I get back into the fulfilment groove. He was snoozing in the bushes, then stalked out like a tiger to say hello when he spotted me.

A long haired calico cat walking toward the camera through a bunch of undergrowth.

1211 21