Scott Mortimer
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scott.mortimer.name
Scott Mortimer
@scott.mortimer.name
210 followers 460 following 220 posts
Information Security geek, Old-School RPG nerd, and wannabe fiction writer.

https://scott.mortimer.name
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scott.mortimer.name
Here's a great short video dealing with GM cognitive load and is one of the primary reasons why I play lighter OSR-style games at the table with my cohort of busy adult players.

#shadowdark #osr

youtu.be/8CvBGZzom8U?...
Cognitive Load in Tabletop RPG Design
YouTube video by Chubby Funster
youtu.be
December 2, 2025 at 5:37 PM
scott.mortimer.name
I wonder if this could be gameable? 🤔

www.sciencealert.com/vampire-squi...
'Vampire Squid From Hell' Reveals The Ancient Origins of Octopuses
The elusive 'vampire squid from hell' has just yielded the largest cephalopod genome ever sequenced, a monster clocking in at more than 11 billion base pairs – more than twice as large as the biggest ...
www.sciencealert.com
December 2, 2025 at 8:18 AM
scott.mortimer.name
I just backed Dogs of War Bestiary for Shadowdark RPG on @kickstarter.com www.kickstarter.com/projects/dea...
Dogs of War Bestiary for Shadowdark RPG
200 stat blocks for your Shadowdark campaigns.
www.kickstarter.com
December 1, 2025 at 4:07 PM
scott.mortimer.name
Learn a lesson from the tech-snobs and partisan tech media that buying a quality Android phone is the best way to avoid being targeted by criminals and biased journalists with an agenda.

daringfireball.net/linked/2025/...
Life in London With an Android Phone
Link to: https://www.londoncentric.media/p/london-phone-thieves-prefer-android-iphone-l
daringfireball.net
November 28, 2025 at 5:55 PM
scott.mortimer.name
For me #shadowdark has been transformational in the way I game. It fully enables the OSR concept of "Rulings not Rules" by being so minimalist and well conceived.

I have termed it JEFA: Just Enough For Adjudication.
November 23, 2025 at 6:51 AM
scott.mortimer.name
If you are interested in a privacy-centric travel planning app with no AI nonsense, give SaveTrip a look.

savetrip.me

#privacy
SaveTrip: Smart Travel Planner & Organizer
Plan your journey with SaveTrip! Create itineraries, manage expenses, keep a photo diary, organize documents, and more. Your all-in-one travel organizer for smart and simple trips.
savetrip.me
November 22, 2025 at 9:45 AM
Reposted by Scott Mortimer
homelessrobot.bsky.social
"Would you like to come down to the wine cellar and try this rare Cask of Amontillado I obtained?"
skleinedler.bsky.social Steve K 🎃 @skleinedler.bsky.social · 18d
not clicking, any ideas?
Headline from WaPo: defuse political tension in your family with one simple question
November 21, 2025 at 3:01 PM
scott.mortimer.name
In a chaotic and distracting world of mixed and dangerous signals, you need some noise...myNoise:

mynoise.net
Background Noises • Ambient Sounds • Relaxing Music | myNoise ®
myNoise sets the standard for online background noise machines and interactive soundscapes.
mynoise.net
November 4, 2025 at 5:37 PM
scott.mortimer.name
Just bought this.
November 3, 2025 at 4:23 PM
scott.mortimer.name
Treat yourself to a #shadowdark AP podcast that rocks.

open.spotify.com/episode/7hM9...
Probably the Moon | Shadowdark RPG Episode 1 | The Glass Cannon Podcast
open.spotify.com
November 3, 2025 at 4:11 PM
scott.mortimer.name
After playing a few sessions of #shadowdark, I have made some major revisions to my house rules that better support play. Take what you want, use what you like.

blog.wyrdingmedia.org/index.php/20...
Shadowdark House Rules – Wyrding Media
blog.wyrdingmedia.org
November 3, 2025 at 2:21 PM
scott.mortimer.name
This is the most Lovecraftian bit of discourse I have heard since...well, ever: youtu.be/5PyhItuah2U?...
Willem Dafoe Monologue | The Lighthouse (2019) | Robert Pattinson, Willem Dafoe | Movie Clip 4K
YouTube video by VVS Films
youtu.be
November 1, 2025 at 7:29 PM
Reposted by Scott Mortimer
riseupcomus.bsky.social
The implied character classes of The Hobbit leave a lot of unanswered questions

(If you've never read it, read my essay on the subject, why not? riseupcomus.blogspot.com/2017/09/1937...)
"That would be no good," said the wizard, "not without a mighty Warrior, even a Hero. I tried to find one; but warriors are busy fighting one another in distant lands, and in this neighbourhood heroes are scarce, or simply lot to be found. Swords in these parts are mostly blunt, and axes are used for trees, and shields as cradles or dish-covers; and dragons are comfortably faroff (and therefore legendary). That is why I settled on burglary-especially when I remembered the existence of a Side-door. And here is our little Bilbo Baggins, the burglar, the chosen and selected burglar. So now let's get on and make some plans."
October 28, 2025 at 6:38 PM
scott.mortimer.name
Dropping some more lore-bits on the website as I prepare for the next chapter in Wytchbane.

blog.wyrdingmedia.org
“Yogh-Sothôt knows the gate. Yogh-Sothôt is the gate. Yogh-Sothôt is the key and guardian of the gate. Past, present, future, all are one in Yogh-Sothôt.”
October 13, 2025 at 2:07 PM
scott.mortimer.name
More important now than ever
October 13, 2025 at 7:40 AM
scott.mortimer.name
A bit of #worldbuilding lore for #hauntober

blog.wyrdingmedia.org/index.php/20...
Wisp – Wyrding Media
blog.wyrdingmedia.org
October 3, 2025 at 9:06 AM
scott.mortimer.name
Interesting comparison. Well worth the time to watch.
skallagrim.bsky.social Skall @skallagrim.bsky.social · Sep 24
Were crossbows even worth the hassle in medieval and renaissance times, when bows had so many advantages? Let's talk about it.
youtu.be/aAFSr1pdyks
The Only Reasons Crossbows Exist
YouTube video by Skallagrim
youtu.be
September 26, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Reposted by Scott Mortimer
riseupcomus.bsky.social
I like to think of gnomes as a sect of religious fundamentalist dwarves who practice, like, a Wicker Man religion. Like folk horror Mennonites.
Illustrations of the male and female woodland gnome from Wil Huygen's "Gnomes"
September 26, 2025 at 12:01 PM
Reposted by Scott Mortimer
reactorsff.bsky.social
We love libraries, from tiny neighborhood branches to sprawling, dangerous, otherworldly labyrinths that threaten your life and sanity! Here are seven strange, possibly haunted fictional libraries...what are your favorites? 📖

reactormag.com/seven-haunte...
Seven Haunted or Sinister Libraries You Should Check Out - Reactor
From bewildering labyrinths to eldritch horrors, beware of getting lost in the stacks...
reactormag.com
September 17, 2025 at 2:22 PM
scott.mortimer.name
I love me some rapier
September 17, 2025 at 1:14 PM
scott.mortimer.name
Online browser-based text adventures.

XYZZY!

writtenrealms.com
WrittenRealms
writtenrealms.com
September 12, 2025 at 2:53 PM
Reposted by Scott Mortimer
skallagrim.bsky.social
Time to rock the rugger!

So, uh... medieval stabby time, I guess.

youtu.be/w95RW5u8q8A
The Medieval Fighting Knife Almost Nobody Knows
YouTube video by Skallagrim
youtu.be
September 10, 2025 at 7:16 PM
Reposted by Scott Mortimer
thepandoraboxx.bsky.social
Ahhhh true love ❤️👽
September 8, 2025 at 6:16 PM
Reposted by Scott Mortimer
colinbrodd.bsky.social
Tanya got me these replicas for my birthday, and if you recognize them, your back probably hurts . . .
September 7, 2025 at 9:58 PM
scott.mortimer.name
I just updated my #shadowdark House Rules with a change to my Spellburn rules. I found that burning ability scores it was too fiddly and made tracking difficult.

blog.wyrdingmedia.org/index.php/20...
Shadowdark House Rules – Wyrding Media
blog.wyrdingmedia.org
September 7, 2025 at 2:43 PM