Jonathan Tweet
@jonathantweet.bsky.social
Grandmother Fish (Macmillan 2016), the first book to teach #evolution to preschoolers, plus science games for kids (www.grandmotherfish.com). Over the Edge, #TTRPG of surreal urban danger (atlas-games.com/overtheedge). D&D 3E, Ars Magica, Everway, etc.
That's where the cave fisher first appeared, I think. It looks a lot like the sort of creature one could build from the Eeeeks! set from Mattel, so I wonder if it's another monster inspired by a toy, like the rust monster, owlbear, and bullette.
November 28, 2025 at 3:54 PM
That's where the cave fisher first appeared, I think. It looks a lot like the sort of creature one could build from the Eeeeks! set from Mattel, so I wonder if it's another monster inspired by a toy, like the rust monster, owlbear, and bullette.
Here's a lovely indie RPG from Clinton R Nixon (Clinton Dreisbach) from 2004. Shadow of Yesterday is about people, not monsters; and the people are pretty interesting!
I moved when I got married again, so old games from my basement are now up on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
I moved when I got married again, so old games from my basement are now up on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
November 25, 2025 at 6:04 PM
Here's a lovely indie RPG from Clinton R Nixon (Clinton Dreisbach) from 2004. Shadow of Yesterday is about people, not monsters; and the people are pretty interesting!
I moved when I got married again, so old games from my basement are now up on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
I moved when I got married again, so old games from my basement are now up on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
FWIW, "fae" is older than "fay" or "fairy".
www.etymonline.com/word/fay
www.etymonline.com/word/fay
November 25, 2025 at 5:40 PM
FWIW, "fae" is older than "fay" or "fairy".
www.etymonline.com/word/fay
www.etymonline.com/word/fay
Of all the words that aren't recognized, this one makes me the saddest for some reason
November 25, 2025 at 5:23 PM
Of all the words that aren't recognized, this one makes me the saddest for some reason
Did a fun interview about 3rd Edition, etc, for an Italian production. Here's a sneak peak at my office. Behind my left shoulder, people in my family who have passed. Behind my right, photos of certain authors I respect. Bonus points if you spot the hand-assembled walktapus. 1/2
November 25, 2025 at 1:32 AM
Did a fun interview about 3rd Edition, etc, for an Italian production. Here's a sneak peak at my office. Behind my left shoulder, people in my family who have passed. Behind my right, photos of certain authors I respect. Bonus points if you spot the hand-assembled walktapus. 1/2
that's the half-elf cleric in an epic-level battle from my 3E Elysombra campaign (1999–2004)
November 18, 2025 at 3:28 PM
that's the half-elf cleric in an epic-level battle from my 3E Elysombra campaign (1999–2004)
It’s nice to see that the game recognizes this word, although I suspect that it’s not referring to a warrior employed by the magi in Ars Magica (a _custos_)
November 18, 2025 at 3:23 PM
It’s nice to see that the game recognizes this word, although I suspect that it’s not referring to a warrior employed by the magi in Ars Magica (a _custos_)
One fun part about working on D&D minis was doing minis for huge monsters. I’m fond of metal figures, but plastic lets you do really big models. These are official D&D minis from 2004, and I'm partial to the Nightwalker.
These & lots more from my collection on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
These & lots more from my collection on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
November 18, 2025 at 2:45 PM
One fun part about working on D&D minis was doing minis for huge monsters. I’m fond of metal figures, but plastic lets you do really big models. These are official D&D minis from 2004, and I'm partial to the Nightwalker.
These & lots more from my collection on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
These & lots more from my collection on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
The kids’ evolution apps we do are free & ad-free. Clades Solo lets you play Clades & Clades Prehistoric on your devices. It includes a new way to play, and you can play the two decks together or separately. Featuring Karen Lewis’s lovely art. #kidsgame #evolution
www.ideategames.org/Clades/
www.ideategames.org/Clades/
November 17, 2025 at 4:56 PM
The kids’ evolution apps we do are free & ad-free. Clades Solo lets you play Clades & Clades Prehistoric on your devices. It includes a new way to play, and you can play the two decks together or separately. Featuring Karen Lewis’s lovely art. #kidsgame #evolution
www.ideategames.org/Clades/
www.ideategames.org/Clades/
Got my 10-sided die to stand on edge. I don't care enough to get good at it, but I'm pretty happy with myself.
November 17, 2025 at 4:46 PM
Got my 10-sided die to stand on edge. I don't care enough to get good at it, but I'm pretty happy with myself.
Here's George Lucas's THX 1138 (1971), where the protagonist visits a computer Jesus
November 12, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Here's George Lucas's THX 1138 (1971), where the protagonist visits a computer Jesus
The feral minotaur & the unspeakable demon were no problem, but the badass elf archer with more drow scimitar sisters were a tough fight. The paladin went down with no resolves left to come back up. Luckily a fighter had joined the party. 1/2
November 11, 2025 at 4:34 PM
The feral minotaur & the unspeakable demon were no problem, but the badass elf archer with more drow scimitar sisters were a tough fight. The paladin went down with no resolves left to come back up. Luckily a fighter had joined the party. 1/2
D&D minis have gone back & forth between being licensed to third parties and being produced in-house. When I worked on D&D minis, they were in-house. Here are some in-house TSR monster minis from 1989 & 1995. These and a lot more gems from my basement now on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
November 10, 2025 at 6:48 PM
D&D minis have gone back & forth between being licensed to third parties and being produced in-house. When I worked on D&D minis, they were in-house. Here are some in-house TSR monster minis from 1989 & 1995. These and a lot more gems from my basement now on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
The elf is off to confront his traitorous twin sister, hopefully before she desecrates a sacred shrine. The party made short work of the death's-head toad and the drow scimitar sisters. The spider stag & dark fairy archers didn't do so well against the party, either. From my "Mighty Ones" game.
November 4, 2025 at 3:34 PM
The elf is off to confront his traitorous twin sister, hopefully before she desecrates a sacred shrine. The party made short work of the death's-head toad and the drow scimitar sisters. The spider stag & dark fairy archers didn't do so well against the party, either. From my "Mighty Ones" game.
Who wants to play a minotaur? Maybe a minotrice huntress or a tattooed albino maze mage. What I love about the OGL is creators sharing their weird ideas in an accessible format. I collected lots of OGL stuff back in the day. This book & more now on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
November 4, 2025 at 3:19 PM
Who wants to play a minotaur? Maybe a minotrice huntress or a tattooed albino maze mage. What I love about the OGL is creators sharing their weird ideas in an accessible format. I collected lots of OGL stuff back in the day. This book & more now on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
Starting in the '80s, Mayfair Games released unlicensed adventures & supplements for AD&D. For a while Mayfair obliged TSR to allow this, under certain negotiated conditions. This deal fell apart in 1993, and here is one of the last Role Aids supplements released.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
October 28, 2025 at 3:48 PM
Starting in the '80s, Mayfair Games released unlicensed adventures & supplements for AD&D. For a while Mayfair obliged TSR to allow this, under certain negotiated conditions. This deal fell apart in 1993, and here is one of the last Role Aids supplements released.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
OK, these are all real words, and they're not proper nouns. A lich is a corpse (the "form" or the "like" of the deceased). An "ettin" is a giant, a monster that eats, like the Norse "jotun" ("devourer"). We geeks are being robbed.
October 27, 2025 at 10:19 PM
OK, these are all real words, and they're not proper nouns. A lich is a corpse (the "form" or the "like" of the deceased). An "ettin" is a giant, a monster that eats, like the Norse "jotun" ("devourer"). We geeks are being robbed.
"Vivamort" for all you Glorantha-heads out there. Geeks are losing out.
October 27, 2025 at 10:12 PM
"Vivamort" for all you Glorantha-heads out there. Geeks are losing out.
Cthulhu is of course a proper name, so that's fair.
October 27, 2025 at 7:44 PM
Cthulhu is of course a proper name, so that's fair.
Geek culture gets a little loving, but not too much.
October 27, 2025 at 7:42 PM
Geek culture gets a little loving, but not too much.
OK, but a “wight” is not an apparition. It’s a sentient being, especially a human being.Tolkien’s barrow-wights were “tomb-creatures”.
A wraith is an apparition.
A wraith is an apparition.
October 25, 2025 at 7:33 PM
OK, but a “wight” is not an apparition. It’s a sentient being, especially a human being.Tolkien’s barrow-wights were “tomb-creatures”.
A wraith is an apparition.
A wraith is an apparition.
Also I'm a devoted to the idea that players should draw their characters, even if the players can't really draw. RPGs are singular in the degree to which they elicit creativity from players, in a world where entertainment corporations want to dominate your imagination. Here's one of mine. 2/2
October 24, 2025 at 3:40 PM
Also I'm a devoted to the idea that players should draw their characters, even if the players can't really draw. RPGs are singular in the degree to which they elicit creativity from players, in a world where entertainment corporations want to dominate your imagination. Here's one of mine. 2/2
On my honeymoon last year, I bought an artsy glass dish, and at the game table I keep my dice in it. There's a fancy TSR d4 for # of color spray targets, a d3 for # of mana storm targets, Imajewels for marking enemies w ongoing effects, and three d20s for attacking multiple targets.
October 21, 2025 at 2:55 PM
On my honeymoon last year, I bought an artsy glass dish, and at the game table I keep my dice in it. There's a fancy TSR d4 for # of color spray targets, a d3 for # of mana storm targets, Imajewels for marking enemies w ongoing effects, and three d20s for attacking multiple targets.
Remember when @atlasgames.bsky.social and @greenroninpub.bsky.social published the first for-sale d20 adventures at the same time the Player's Handbook debuted in 2000, one by John Tynes and the other by @chrispramas.bsky.social? These pieces of history are now on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
October 20, 2025 at 1:50 PM
Remember when @atlasgames.bsky.social and @greenroninpub.bsky.social published the first for-sale d20 adventures at the same time the Player's Handbook debuted in 2000, one by John Tynes and the other by @chrispramas.bsky.social? These pieces of history are now on eBay.
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_...
