iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

Nah, but seriously, I'm just really, really tired and depressed on a personal level. Plus, I've been having a midlife crisis of a kind and severity only possible when you literally still live with your parents after having turned 40, and it comes and goes in waves. Don't mind me.

010

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

Oh, I just noticed that there's a new threading feature on this website that automatically numbers posts within the context of a thread, and that's pretty cool, I guess. Too bad it does absolutely nothing to stave off the heat death of the universe.

110

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

Yeah, I'm officially burnt out crispy style ... Everything sucks, especially everything I try to make, and nothing matters, and all food tastes bad, and all the lights are too harsh, and music sounds like noise, and I am all alone, and it's all kind of a run of the mill misery show up in here...

120

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

Yeah ... hopefully that happens someday...also, hopefully, they stop flirting with GenAI ... that's a deal-breaker for me, personally ...

000

Reposted by The Aleks (they/them)

Follow the Leader (2026 CRIT Awards Finalist!) @ftlcast.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Eyyyy, why don't y'all join us Saturday, October 17th in celebrating our 50K download milestone while we play This Town Is Full Of Monsters 2E by @thealeks.bsky.social in grand FTL tradition! It'll be a rip-roarin' good time!

Image of several jack-o-lanterns with text in the foreground. Text reads:
Saturday, Oct 17
1PM EDT
Playing This Town Is Full Of Monsters 2E
A spooktacular livestream celebrating Follow the Leader's 50K downloads
Starring:
August
Cory
Danielle
Koda
Sam
https://twitch.tv/standingstonesprod

034

Reposted by The Aleks (they/them)

Anton ☾ ❦ ⟡ @antonarcana.gay · 21/08/2026

Y’ever notice how nobody talks about a “trans loneliness epidemic”, an “autistic loneliness epidemic”, an “I can’t afford essentials so I can’t go into paid spaces to meet people loneliness epidemic”? Funny how bad feelings only matter when they happen to cis men lol

171560493

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

I wonder if I still sometimes talk in my sleep? The other day I dreamt that I was singing Karaoke for some reason and had chosen to perform a very, very spirited rendition of "Chocolate Jesus" by Tom Waits. I hope that, in the waking world, I was barking out slurred bits of it between CPAP pumps.

020

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

You know what's really hard and largely thankless? Well ... a lot of things, actually ... I was going to say, like, "art" and / or "tabletop roleplay game design, especially solo" ... but I guess kind of everything is hard and thankless? Life, for one ... I'm feeling okay, though, just tired.

050

Reposted by The Aleks (they/them)

Nefarious "Pogna" Hexnificus, noted hoydon @gaudymouse.bsky.social · 28/06/2026

If you have anything to spare, please consider.

178

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 28/06/2026

I'm notoriously bad at maintaining a consistent online portfolio, or "professional" presence, but this sounds like a fun project, so I'll toss my hat in the ring, I guess. Recent ttrpg art samples attached:

030

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

I like thegamecrafter.com well enough. It's probably not the cheapest option out there, but it's US based, if that matters (for me, less tricky to navigate the labor ethics of it all), has decent customer service, and solid quality and options. Used them for Mt tarot deck a few years back.

thegamecrafter.com

Welcome to The Game Crafter - The world leader in print on demand board games.

011

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

I want to be loved. I think that is a pretty normal affliction, however. All things pass in time.

010

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 20/06/2026

I'm suddenly feeling real tired and hopeless. I think I might have overdrawn at the spoon bank. That's why I'm posting on social media, I guess. It's rarely a good sign when I do...

110

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

Adventure Time characters are allowed to cuss now. We truly live in a golden age.

020

Reposted by The Aleks (they/them)

Faith K. Falkner @faithfalkner.com · 18/06/2026

Not to be a filthy capitalist, but if you want to help transgender people you have to hire or buy goods from transgender people directly. This will be the case so long as the average transgender person makes 60 cents on the dollar to a cis white guy (lower for trans women of color).

4381160

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

Side note: How much you want to bet that even if the Dems do end up completely fucking sweeping the midterms, none of this "Big Beautiful Bill" bullshit will end up getting addressed or overturned? Those guys ain't our friends either.

020

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

I'm not going down without a fight, so if they want proof, I'll fucking give them proof... Chances that I'll lose the fight are, however, high... Not that such a requirement is in any way acceptable (all these fuckers need to be voted out or removed from the equation by other means).

120

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

The one positive thing to come from the fucking murderous "work requirements" the regime has attached to medicaid is that, after having set up an internal record keeping system, I now can't beat myself up for not working enough - turns out I work full time ... I just don't get paid full-time wages.

170

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

Less charitably, this is some subtle 1984 shit. Combine that with the fact that corporate monetization policies have got kids saying shit like "unalive" instead of "kill", "murder", or "suicide" because they think it'll afford them a career as a "content creator," and ... well, it feels ungood.

010

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

Look, I know this is silly at a glance, but a comprehensive dictionary doesn't take up a ton of space or cost a great deal of processing power, so the fact that google, canva, and microsoft are clearly skimping on that front speaks to (charitably) their instinctive priorities and values.

100

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

I'm getting increasingly suspicious of spellcheck, or, more specifically, the shallowness of the internal "dictionary" databases that run it ... You're telling me these corpos have data centers and "large language models" but their products don't know how to spell "Monad" or "dimensionality"?

130

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Thanks. Sounds like it's well worth a try. Gotta put that on the docket.

010

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Oh, and if you were a backer at one of the higher tiers, your copy is probably in the mail, assuming you've already provided your shipping info and all that. Thank you for making this thing possible. It has made me very happy to be able to work on this.

000

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Howdy. It is me, the Aleks. I'm popping in to let y'all know that physical copies of This Town Is Full Of Monsters - Second Edition are now available via print on demand. I am sorry they're a bit pricey. The economy sucks. But they're cool and good! #ttrpg www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...

drivethrurpg.com

This Town Is Full of Monsters - Second Edition - Cloud Monster Press | DriveThruRPG

Overview This Town Is Full of Monsters is a tabletop storytelling/roleplaying game about a smallish community beset by mysterious, eldritch forces. There’s always a Town. There are always townsfolk. A...

031

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Also, the recognition that most of the world is run by incompetent monsters, in comparison to whom I am objectively both a saint and a genius.

110

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

If it's any consolation, having finished art school hasn't helped me with the imposter syndrome even one little bit, nor has getting older, nor has much of anything, really. The only thing that's helped so far is getting burnt out to the deliciously crispy point where I just can't be bothered.

110

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

First time I'm learning of this platform. Is it looking promising? God knows we could all use better options than what we've got...

110

Reposted by The Aleks (they/them)

Infinite Citadel @infinite-citadel.com · 09/06/2026

RPG Trader is live, and with it comes our full digital catalogue! Before the Bog God Temperamental Upgrades Gentlemages Spellbook Thou Art Spill Your Fluids & The Beckoning Dream! rpg-trader.com/creator/229/...

rpg-trader.com

Infinite Citadel on RPG Trader

Infinite Citadel is an indie TTRPG co-op making anti-ordinary games of infinite expression. Check out our latest Kickstarter campaign - The Beckoning Dream - launching in 2026!

185

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

So, the first proof of This Town Is Full of Monsters (my GMless #ttrpg of supernatural melodrama set in mysterious small towns / uncommon communities) just came in yesterday! It turned out ok for the most part, but I have opted to make some adjustments. Gotta wait a BIT longer. Still, though!

Aleks' hand holding a proof copy of This Town Is Full Of Monsters, cover up. The cover depicts a surreal interpretation of a small town main street.

Aleks' hand holding open a copy of This Town Is Full of Monsters. The pages in question feature a simple two page layout in four columns, with the rightmost column in blue.

A proof copy of This Town Is Full of Monsters opened onto a two page spread that features a single column discussion of the optional mapping mechanic and a color illustration of stylized "red string conspiracy board," featuring maps, a goblin, and an alien, among other bits and bobs.

063

Reposted by The Aleks (they/them)

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

The digital version of This Town Is Full Of Monsters (Second Edition - now with #art), the GMless tabletop roleplaying game of small towns and supernatural melodrama (think #twinpeaks) is now live on itch. Check it the heck out. thealeks.itch.io/ttifom2e #ttrpg #selfpromosaturday

051

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

051

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

And when they do recognize that we exist, they automatically assume that it's because we're afraid it will gain sentience and do a skynet or some other boring sci-fi bullshit like that, and not because we know that it's literally a massive scam that gives us nothing of value and takes everything.

010

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

People who don't understand that "AI" is a problem are always so utterly baffled when they learn that there exists a large contingent of people who do, in fact, know it to be a problem ...

110

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 22/03/2026

At the moment, I can't even conceive of the amount of work something like that would actually take, though, so I think I'm going to let it sit for a while...

000

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 22/03/2026

I mean, the tropes all fit. You show up in a small town after magically inheriting some property, do some crafting and some vaguely witchy stuff, search for hidden secrets, and talk to townsfolk. There was already going to be an alchemy and herbalism system.

100

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 22/03/2026

On a side note, I've been refactoring "The Wizard Doesn't Live Here Anymore," which was originally designed as a visual novel / gamebook with RPG elements, into something resembling a farming sim, because I hear the cozy market is eternally ravenous, and it sort of works as one?

100

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 22/03/2026

Don't y'all worry. I am still committed to the highest quality ttrpgs, as well as very slow solo indie gamedev on like three different prototypes that nobody will ever play if they ever do turn into full releases, but sometimes you just gotta write really ponderous, purple-prosed, depressive smut.

110

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 22/03/2026

You ever just wanna spend all your time writing really pretentious and kind of smutty "lit-fic" that nobody but you is every going to read, but you have to, like, do other stuff, stuff which might actually make you a tiny bit of money, instead? No shade on the other stuff. This might be "burn out."

240

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

It's really a very humorous analogy when you think about it. . . . Sorry, I am feeling kind of not so great right this moment (every day I am suddenly flooded with absolute horror at least a handful of times, when I remember where and when I live - namely earth, 2026 - and what's going on).

001

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

The fact of it being 69 hours is saucy and sensual ... not so much the campaign. I am told that this derives from the fact that the numerals 6 and 9 mirror one another along both axes, which some see as a pictoral representation of two people performing simultaneous mouth-to-genital stimulation.

100

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

I just want everyone to know that , as of this hour, and for the duration of this one hour only, there are 69 hours left to go in my Kickstarter campaign, which I am told is very saucy and quite sensual. #ttrpg www.kickstarter.com/projects/the...

kickstarter.com

Shores Of Night - Redux

The essential core of Shores Of Night, the Surreal / Weird / Cosmic Horror TTRPG without ableist sanity systems.

123

Reposted by The Aleks (they/them)

Alex Bertram-Powell @alexbpart.bsky.social · 26/02/2026

"Artists peak at 30", "30 under 30", "by 30 you should" ridiculous. Arts industries capital craves young people to exploit and burn out. It doesn't want older artists thriving and guiding the young. It also doesn't want artists to exist. Stop letting cannibals tell you you only matter on a plate.

2981913460

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

I have too many reasons, and in order for me (personally, due to various features of my neurotype) to feel satisfied with my explanation, I have to start at the fundamentals of computing, and most people check out by the time I say the words "transistor-based, binary Von Neumann architechture."

040

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

I am SO tired of having to justify my zero tolerance anti-AI stance over and over again on an interpersonal basis (like it isn't already draining enough just to live in a world where that shit exists) that I'm thinking of just putting together a pamphlet Zine and handing it out to anyone that asks.

150

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

Yeah, there's a reason why account farms and similar services exist, sadly, though I doubt that it ever works out well for those artists / authors in the long term. There have to be ways to make things moderately sustainable on a smaller, more humble scale. Gotta figure that out. Maybe "new pulp."

000

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

If I was a smart tech executive right now (probably an oxymoron) I'd be investing in a developing model of internal longevity and sustainability, and weaning my company off of "growth" ... but I'm just a bum with 30 bucks in their pocket, so what do I know.

020

The Aleks (they/them) @thealeks.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

*contend People still make new models of refrigerator, new cars, new TVs, and new mattresses, but cars, fridges, etc. are no longer the revolutionary, society-altering things they used to be. They are just things. Binary Computers have real, material limits. The growth spurt is over. It's okay.

110