synopsis...

need one for Jon at Gothic green games... perfect getting in the way of good currently.

projects projects projects

Taxes are finally over. The sun will rise on a new day filled with talking to people about toothless and the dark yew... coming soon news about a classic style abstract board game, the martyrs' crusade. also look for fast paced paper doll card game, hipsters hate springtime.

Period games.

Contacted the good folks at gothic green oak, see what they have to say before I beat my head against a wall learning carving.

Doing it right

The more I keep hammering at this game the more the style comes into focus. Mechanically, almost impossible for a war themed game to do something new. Sprinkle of innovation, but others have done similar, and in addition, with a complexity I don't find enjoyable. But a new game done as if from 12th century... much more unique. Time table, increasing rapidly. Realistically will be some time before completion. The Dark Yew is going to be heavy, bleak, complex. Going to make something quick, easy, simple. A palate cleanser.

map update

Been playing around with GIMP, open source Photoshop, seems good but only have vaugest sense of what I'm doing with software. First iteration was text book map, regional borders, a few highlighted rivers, margin art, all done. Not in keeping with new slant towards historical feel. First thought, Jerusalem as center traditional view. Skewed too far south. Going with optical illusion of curved surface. regions to left and right of center slightly smaller, center slightly larger subtle lines impressing curve. Also funnels conflict into center.

Finished again.

Didn't just listen for enjoyment this time. Listened with a critical ear. Very satisfying. Heard more quibbles more nit picks, inconsequential. Depth of meaning, appreciation of skill required for difficulty of on the fly creation, increase great. Going to actively seek out other dragon moon press titles someone there has an eye for gem finding maybe chaff separation, is podiobooks a mine or a field of wheat?
Feel ready to make public reviews, going to write out, edit, rewrite edit. Not word spasm of blog. Absence of pronouns inappropriate for public consumption. Insertion of self similarly inappropriate.
Comment, review, share for correct reasons. Toothless is great flat out. Reinvigorates, more than one tired genre. Humor, black as pitch not tongue in cheek.
Also need conciseness. Avoid hyperbole as tempting as it is.

a bend of direction.

Thinking about the tactile post I made a day... maybe two ago... I've been chasing dice and shakers and cards, accessories all, to get the feel of things. While the board and pieces are just slightly better versions of what is already out there, boring.
Everything should be in mediums available at the time. Clay, wood, bone, metal, cloth, hide. Bring to bear modern techniques on the materials and tools of the time... idea.

phew...

Been at this thing with the zealots' ferocity. Passion of the newly converted. Wake up thinking about the project go to sleep thinking about the project. Once I was trying to sleep and couldn't too many stratagems/reverses. I've learned more, thought more, explained more in the past month than I have in almost a decade. I've sent more emails, solicited favors, talked up people I've been fairly sure just could not give a damn on the chance of misconception, and then not cared much . Fearful of burn out. Made a toothless haiku today... perhaps that is a bit much. Going to play casual (f'ing casual) games on facebook with a work friend to expand potential auidence. Trying to construct a framework that will support the sputtering and dimming of the inspiration. Where I can't say just forget it and quit.

Why this medium?

Why choose to make a board game to express fandom? Why not video game or music or more strictly visual piece? It's tactile, Toothless has a heft to it, a weightiness that many aspire to, few capture. Edges, weight, smooth and roughness all expressed as metaphors other medium. Optical illusion, constructions of the mind, impression that this is so. Sculpture has actual reality but the closer to actual scale the more likely to observe rather than touch. Smaller than life, usable.

character design, rule number one.

No giant shoulder pads.

reference crazy

Google image is a dangerous time sucking thing, but the labors of the year will give the season table a lot more character sense of setting.

biggest problems...

First part of the game is set, very psychological (I know that you know but do you know that I know) time as resource management for templars. Many things to do not enough time to do all type of game play. For the yew it's about gathering,watching, guessing, chuckling evily in the corner, throwing wrenches into works. Mechanics set. Like it.

Problem is once forces come into conflict. Want the stakes high but don't heroes and demons dying in first contact, or at least not every time, possible but unusual. Most strategy games have all or nothing combat. Heroes of might and magic system, strategic over map tactical battlefield map, adds level of complication without adding same level of fun. Some games have an clunky save against damage system. Only want one maybe two rolls to resolve conflict. Finding that thin line between interesting/complicated and simple/boring is key. Other big problem is art assets, want a combination of abstraction of concepts, photorealism, and recreation of period styles. Tall order.

seasons: flow of the game.

When making a game in which one side is almost always at an advantage need to make some kind of balance. Seasons seem to be elegant solution. The yew, yews forces are a force of nature, more subject to cold, able to propagate plaque during summer. Extra movement/abilities for yew during summer movement restrictions/penalties during winter. Two turns per season, works with map scale, gives opportunity to press advantages, gives ebb and flow that's satisfying. Spring, fall place holder seasons chance to prepare for enemies' next push season. Little season dial in marginalia (word? should be if not) simple solution to keeping track plus adds character uniqueness to board.

guillaume

f'ing my touch deleted all! Again... guillaume Templar hero +6 attack +5 defense +4 hp, going to be one of the more robust templars but leadership skill will be upgrade 1 low level unit to medium not very good leadership. map skill setting ambush points get to attack invading yew forces first if set. Dark fate: disillusioned, after loss of 2 relics monasteries or fortresses must roll under 6 on 1d6 to stay Templar +1 for every 2 items lost to yew. very unreliable once things go bad, as they will.

Also bought...

Zombies!! 100 pack design not even close to what I want for shamblers but good place holders convey idea, also bought arkham horror dice really like design of these want to make similar custom jobbers out of traditional pig knuckle bone... project within project... still good place holders. Total official spent for game. $20.00. More to come.

creation in a vacuum.

Shouldn't be done. Have lots of play testers lined up, friends and family enthusiastic because I'm enthusiastic, some ideas bounced off j.p. (very busy working on centinial horror) good leads but not game designer okay with compromised vision for game play? Game board geek gigantic overwhelming source of information too much potential to lose own vision in a sea of good ideas. All problems. Potential solution found, went to game cafe (www.playgamecafe.com) independence Missouri game store inquired about play testing, found out gurushargames.com local game designers put out own game, will get/play soon. Talk to them soon discuss design from similar point of view in person get out of echo chamber of own head.

could bore...

You with details of battle test bore self as well, won't. Ultimately ruin destroys six militia rarely taking damage whoever attacks first. Going to give ruin special ability to attack twice in turn add drawback when damaged chance to smash lower level yew forces. Expect temptation to be to solo ruin but collection of Templar knights and sargents make quick work of ruin alone. demon heroes have chance to wreck own forces templars have chance to disappear when most needed, most powerful units also biggest chance to disappoint. like this tension fits well with toothless fiction.

::sigh::

listening to toothless again on chapters seven and eight. Just as difficult, will welcome relative respite from awfulness book two offers.

results promising... design problem solved

set of stats provided good initial results like the balance. More importantly solved vexing problem regarding npcs. always have wanted third party interaction thought had solved with cards. unsatisfying board felt too empty just templars/yew but who wants to play low level spear holders? Solution: refugee npc automatically move slowly away from yew toward Templar fortresses give yew extra forces low cost give Templar reason to fight bad odds (to keep from having worse odds) also provides opportunity for moral dilemma Templar can slaughter refugees keep high yield resource from yew, at personal cost. Next entry results of battle tests.

slow day at work

People not dying so much today, free time is plentiful will start modeling battles. Going to use random number generator app. try 2d6 unit stats modify roll. Ruin (yew demon hero unit)vs. 6 militia (lowest lvl Templar unit)
3 stats govern combat attack, defense, hit points (want to give last stat more symbolic name "life points" meh, h.p. for now hope elegant solution presents itself). ruin attack 9 defense 4 (leathery demon skin but only loin cloth defense not so high)h.p... 7 (ruin wounded often not killed til concentrated effort) can lose 7 rolls in encounter (all h.p. back to full after each encounter) think ruin's special combat should be 2 attacks, maybe 1h.p. regeneration at end of round try both. militia attack 1 defense 2 hp 1. looks grim will run test post results.

subtitle: a game in three books.

Going to have 3 distinct phases of game, going to call them books. First book roughly 2-5 years before yew times, second roughly books 1-2 of toothless, 3rd equivalent to book 3. Like this convention evocative of toothless, prepares players for longer time scale.

naming the game: the dark yew vs. the black yew

The change in naming convention may seem slight but it's an important difference to this project.
Cutting straight to the chase i want this game to be named after the big bad, and I think, as a focal point, the dark yew is more evocative than the black yew. It's also an homage to the dark tower, (the game not the book series) It features a group of heroes running around completing a series of tasks in order to gain access to the dark tower. This is a mechanic I am borrowing, with the twist that the yew is mobile, also coming for heroes.

proof of concept

As the board concept/design is fairly set, only forsee minor game play tweaking issues, going to manufacture a few test boards. while many details of other aspects of game art will benefit greatly because of fan input, cartography not one of them. Also board will act as personal affirmation and solid bedrock on which to build house of zombie cards.

Thoughts on setting/board design: regions v. hexes

These are the images that J.P. used as reference for Toothless. They are just about perfect for what I have in mind. A europe that is both familiar yet very different works well. My original plan involved hexes but in order to get both the artistic look and strategic feel the hexes just kept getting bigger and bigger till the whole thing was an unwieldy mess. My goal is to make the game feel large not because of the table area taken up but the tough decisions the players will have to make. Regions offer much more of the illusion of freedom, region touches region that defines point of contact but when the border is a wandering line instead of a straight one I think the idea of freedom of movement is heightened. While hexes do offer the flexibility of two sides I find terrain creation to be one of the more tedious aspects of games with hexes. Hexes also offer replayability by changing the setting, it is more interesting to me to change other variables for game play and evoking a strong sense of time and place through map art and design is just more satisfying. Hexes also evoke a certain war game feel, and while this is a game about a war, it is not a war game, if you catch my meaning. Now it may seem like I'm just hating on the hex but ultimately it's just not for me, especially if I have to set it up, or watch some one set it up. That's what computers are good for and when civ five comes out I will welcome those regular intervals with open arms.

Here there be spoilers!

If you've not finished Toothless do so now. The majority of posts to follow will be full of spoiler and breakneck and curdle and all the rest so be warned: Details will be discussed
http://www.jpmooreonline.com/

Here we go.

This is the first post in a blog about The Dark Yew. A board game fan service dedicated to J.P. Moore's podcast audio book Toothless. If for some unknown reason you stumble onto this blog before his you must listen to his excellent tale of medieval horror right now. I'm not particularly a fan of horror or fantasy or any "genre" fiction and while Toothless has plenty of elements that, in a sensible world, should wedge it firmly into at least one of those categories Moore's prose, narration and ability to set a mood never let's things be that easy.

While watching the trailer for Toothless with Scott Purdy's illustrations, with the music of the Monster's Symphony playing, I realized I wanted to make a game of this world. It came so easily and with so many key elements in place that despite never having attempted such a thing before I began designing right away.

Though this is my freshman effort towards making a game I've got thousand of hours of gaming consumption and an equal or greater amount of thought on what makes a game work/not work fun/not fun. So this is intended to be a record of a gamer's transition from consumer to producer, an experiment to see if an amateur can put out a professional grade game, and how much it will cost. Also by publicly stating goals, accountability to complete goals goes up. How long will it take a internet luddite, who finds facebook tiresome, into a shameless self promotor in order to share his unasked for opinions? Tune in next time to find out.