Star Trek Adventures Playtest Begins

Modiphius has kicked off the playtest for their upcoming Star Trek Adventures RPG. Not only is it a playtest, it's a "Living Playtest," in which the playtest reports from gamers will influence characters and maybe even events in future adventures.

When you sign up, you choose between one of four playtest ships. Your choice determines what kind of missions you'll receive, from combat missions to science missions to a balanced mix.

I'll be running each playtest mission as Modiphius releases them, so if you're in Memphis, feel free to join me! (My ship is the USS Venture, featuring a broad range of missions in the Next Generation era.)

You can sign up for the playtest on the Star Trek Adventures playtest page.

Game Creators Endorse Hillary Clinton

Mike Selinker and more than 300 other creators of games (both tabletop and electronic) have posted an open letter endorsing Hillary Clinton for president. In addition to urging Americans to vote for the Democratic candidate, the letter describes Hillary and Trump in gaming terms.

The full letter, along with the list of game creators who support it, is at this link:

The Only Game in Town

The list of creators includes some of the game designers I admire the most, including:

• Mike Selinker (Betrayal at House on the Hill)
• Rob Heinsoo (13th Age)
• Jonathan Tweet (D&D 3rd Edition)
• Andrew Looney (Fluxx)
• Allen Varney (Paranoia)
• Matt Forbeck (Dungeonology)
• Sean K. Reynolds (Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting)
• Sean Patrick Fannon (Savage Rifts)
• Dennis Detwiller (Delta Green)
• Steve Kenson (Mutants & Masterminds)
• Jonathan Gilmour (Dead of Winter)
• Bruce Cordell (The Strange)
• Shanna Germain (No Thank You, Evil!)
• Greg Stolze (Unknown Armies)
• Keith Baker (Gloom)
• James Earnest (Cheapass Games)
• John Kovalic (Munchkin)

I'm with you, creators. Sure hope we win this one.

NaNoWriMo 2016

National Novel Writing Month is here!

This is my fifth year participating. My first was 2004, my latest was 2010, and the only year I "won" was 2007. (I take a stab at making that one publishable now and then, but it's still a mess.)

If you haven’t heard of NaNoWriMo, here’s the gist of it: In November, crazy people try to write a 50,000 word novel. This is short as novels go, but was chosen as an achievable target and a solid accomplishment. Participants “win” if they reach that word count; this is very much an honor system achievement, and the only prize is a sense of accomplishment. (What else do you need, really?)

I’ve spotted a few gaming industry folks who are participating this year, including Barbara Blackburn, Todd Bogenrief, Phil Brucato, and Ian Lemke. (If I missed you, please let me know!)

Back to novel writing now. If you’re participating, please let me know in the comments, and add me to your Buddy list. (Here's a link to my author page. My ID is KeithGarrett.)

Wish me luck!