Mad Jay
@madjay.bsky.social
Plays Games Fearlessly. Often pretends with Strangers. A Game designer.
WIP: Lifted: Indomitable. Catch me on www.patreon.com/madjayzero and playfearless.substack.com #ttrpg
WIP: Lifted: Indomitable. Catch me on www.patreon.com/madjayzero and playfearless.substack.com #ttrpg
Reposted by Mad Jay
Roll for Origin: Supers TTRPG History: Ep. 6 Godlike & Wild Talents
In this ep @madjay.bsky.social and I cover Godlike, the WW2 supers game that leans into realism and consistency. Second Wild Talents, which can follow that first game's history or be recast into a generic supers RPG.
#ttrpg
In this ep @madjay.bsky.social and I cover Godlike, the WW2 supers game that leans into realism and consistency. Second Wild Talents, which can follow that first game's history or be recast into a generic supers RPG.
#ttrpg
Around the Hearth | Roll for Origin: Supers TTRPG History: Ep. 6 Godlike & Wild Talents
Roll for Origin: Supers TTRPG History looks at two related RPG systems. First Godlike, the World War II supers game that leans into realism and consistency. Second Wild Talents, the evolution of th...
aroundthehearth.openhearthgaming.com
January 20, 2026 at 2:03 PM
Roll for Origin: Supers TTRPG History: Ep. 6 Godlike & Wild Talents
In this ep @madjay.bsky.social and I cover Godlike, the WW2 supers game that leans into realism and consistency. Second Wild Talents, which can follow that first game's history or be recast into a generic supers RPG.
#ttrpg
In this ep @madjay.bsky.social and I cover Godlike, the WW2 supers game that leans into realism and consistency. Second Wild Talents, which can follow that first game's history or be recast into a generic supers RPG.
#ttrpg
Your best NPCs aren’t planned.
For me, they’re often player consequences.
A failed roll created Bennie.
Three sessions later, he’s an emergent antagonist with ambitions.
I wrote about letting the table grow your villains vs forcing them.
Good Monday, Gamers!!
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
For me, they’re often player consequences.
A failed roll created Bennie.
Three sessions later, he’s an emergent antagonist with ambitions.
I wrote about letting the table grow your villains vs forcing them.
Good Monday, Gamers!!
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
Monday Musings #135 🤬
Why the Most Dangerous NPCs Are Player-Generated
open.substack.com
January 19, 2026 at 5:59 PM
Your best NPCs aren’t planned.
For me, they’re often player consequences.
A failed roll created Bennie.
Three sessions later, he’s an emergent antagonist with ambitions.
I wrote about letting the table grow your villains vs forcing them.
Good Monday, Gamers!!
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
For me, they’re often player consequences.
A failed roll created Bennie.
Three sessions later, he’s an emergent antagonist with ambitions.
I wrote about letting the table grow your villains vs forcing them.
Good Monday, Gamers!!
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
2025 by the numbers.
Not the games I bought or meant to play.
The ones that actually hit the table — plus what readers told me they need most right now, a check-in on play, people, and what really mattered.
What counted most at your table this year?
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
Not the games I bought or meant to play.
The ones that actually hit the table — plus what readers told me they need most right now, a check-in on play, people, and what really mattered.
What counted most at your table this year?
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
Monday Musings #134 🤬
Stats, sessions, and what survived contact IRL
open.substack.com
January 13, 2026 at 12:04 AM
2025 by the numbers.
Not the games I bought or meant to play.
The ones that actually hit the table — plus what readers told me they need most right now, a check-in on play, people, and what really mattered.
What counted most at your table this year?
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
Not the games I bought or meant to play.
The ones that actually hit the table — plus what readers told me they need most right now, a check-in on play, people, and what really mattered.
What counted most at your table this year?
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
🎷 Start Strong. Stay Out Late. 🍽️ Dive into Kansas City Restaurant Week (Jan 9–18) with prix-fixe menus & jazz vibes. Discover the best spots to start & end your night. Book early, stay late! More details: www.secretkc.com/p/start-stro... #KCRestaurantWeek #SecretKC
Secret KC: Restaurant Week, Jazz & Late Night Vibes - Jan Guide!
Discover KC's vibrant Restaurant Week: Dive into prix-fixe menus, hidden cocktail gems, and spontaneous nights that transform from first sips to unforgettable urban adventures!
www.secretkc.com
January 8, 2026 at 5:29 PM
🎷 Start Strong. Stay Out Late. 🍽️ Dive into Kansas City Restaurant Week (Jan 9–18) with prix-fixe menus & jazz vibes. Discover the best spots to start & end your night. Book early, stay late! More details: www.secretkc.com/p/start-stro... #KCRestaurantWeek #SecretKC
First Monday of 2026.
No resolutions. No “must-play” list. Just a new IRL Monster of the Week table.
Wrote this week’s Monday Musing about starting the year with play instead of promises.
What are you carrying into your 2026 games?
open.substack.com/pub/playfear... #ttrpg
No resolutions. No “must-play” list. Just a new IRL Monster of the Week table.
Wrote this week’s Monday Musing about starting the year with play instead of promises.
What are you carrying into your 2026 games?
open.substack.com/pub/playfear... #ttrpg
Monday Musings #133 🤬
Why I’m starting 2026 with a table instead of a checklist
open.substack.com
January 5, 2026 at 4:45 PM
First Monday of 2026.
No resolutions. No “must-play” list. Just a new IRL Monster of the Week table.
Wrote this week’s Monday Musing about starting the year with play instead of promises.
What are you carrying into your 2026 games?
open.substack.com/pub/playfear... #ttrpg
No resolutions. No “must-play” list. Just a new IRL Monster of the Week table.
Wrote this week’s Monday Musing about starting the year with play instead of promises.
What are you carrying into your 2026 games?
open.substack.com/pub/playfear... #ttrpg
🎉 Happy New Year!! 🎉 Dive into 2026 with SecretKC's guide to KC's best nights out! From First Fridays to jazz lounges, let's celebrate all month long. Check out the full scoop: www.secretkc.com/p/happy-new-... #KCnights #FirstFriday
Secret KC: NYE Bash, Yachties & Vibrant City Vibes - Welcome 2026!
Discover KC's cozy New Year kickoff: Winter jazz vibes, Knuckleheads NYE magic, and insider nightlife secrets that'll warm up your January adventure!
www.secretkc.com
January 2, 2026 at 6:03 PM
🎉 Happy New Year!! 🎉 Dive into 2026 with SecretKC's guide to KC's best nights out! From First Fridays to jazz lounges, let's celebrate all month long. Check out the full scoop: www.secretkc.com/p/happy-new-... #KCnights #FirstFriday
Like most years, my ambitions far exceeded my calendar. Some games hit the table. Some lived in notebooks. Here's what worked—and my one secret weird trick for campaigns that actually get played.
🎲 Good Monday, Gamers!
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
🎲 Good Monday, Gamers!
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
Monday Musings #132 🤬
What got played, dropped and what's next.
open.substack.com
December 29, 2025 at 5:09 PM
Like most years, my ambitions far exceeded my calendar. Some games hit the table. Some lived in notebooks. Here's what worked—and my one secret weird trick for campaigns that actually get played.
🎲 Good Monday, Gamers!
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
🎲 Good Monday, Gamers!
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
Reposted by Mad Jay
Legitimately the single best FPS campaign ever made.
If you've never played it, get it.
If you've never played it, get it.
Titanfall 2: Ultimate Edition is $4.49 on Steam buff.ly/tfDLZi8
US PSN buff.ly/P0RyNye
XBL buff.ly/HT6MQwE
Deck playable
US PSN buff.ly/P0RyNye
XBL buff.ly/HT6MQwE
Deck playable
December 27, 2025 at 7:17 PM
Legitimately the single best FPS campaign ever made.
If you've never played it, get it.
If you've never played it, get it.
Make a Bond movie casual
Live and let Dance!
Live and let Dance!
Make a Bond movie casual
Graphite Is Forever
Graphite Is Forever
Make a Bond movie casual
THE WORLD IS PLENTY, THANK YOU
THE WORLD IS PLENTY, THANK YOU
December 26, 2025 at 6:41 PM
Make a Bond movie casual
Live and let Dance!
Live and let Dance!
Last two Mondays of the year are easy to skip.
But I’m still here — coffee in hand, Bolognese sauce simmering, writing words...
open.substack.com/pub/playfear... #ttrpgs
But I’m still here — coffee in hand, Bolognese sauce simmering, writing words...
open.substack.com/pub/playfear... #ttrpgs
Monday Musings #131 🤬
Musing on the Penultimate Monday!!
open.substack.com
December 22, 2025 at 4:19 PM
Last two Mondays of the year are easy to skip.
But I’m still here — coffee in hand, Bolognese sauce simmering, writing words...
open.substack.com/pub/playfear... #ttrpgs
But I’m still here — coffee in hand, Bolognese sauce simmering, writing words...
open.substack.com/pub/playfear... #ttrpgs
Dogs walked, coffee brewed. back to discovering the shape of this cyber-hacker deckbuilder thing. Night club system nodes at the top, card 'deck' at the bottom. Thinking about card resolution mechanics, turn structure, stealing from Netrunner and SR:Crossfire until I figure it out. #indiegamedev
December 21, 2025 at 2:25 PM
Dogs walked, coffee brewed. back to discovering the shape of this cyber-hacker deckbuilder thing. Night club system nodes at the top, card 'deck' at the bottom. Thinking about card resolution mechanics, turn structure, stealing from Netrunner and SR:Crossfire until I figure it out. #indiegamedev
🎷✨ Winter Date Night Vibes in KC! Cozy up in igloos, sip holiday cocktails, and enjoy live jazz. Perfect for a magical night out. Naughty or nice, see you at the bar! More info: www.secretkc.com/p/winter-dat... #KansasCity
Secret KC: Winter Date Night Vibes - Igloos, Jazz & Holiday Magic!
Discover KC's winter magic: Cozy rooftop igloos, jazz-filled nights, and secret pop-up bars offering the perfect date night escape this holiday season!
www.secretkc.com
December 18, 2025 at 6:18 PM
🎷✨ Winter Date Night Vibes in KC! Cozy up in igloos, sip holiday cocktails, and enjoy live jazz. Perfect for a magical night out. Naughty or nice, see you at the bar! More info: www.secretkc.com/p/winter-dat... #KansasCity
Reposted by Mad Jay
My friends! The Apocalypse World 3rd Ed kickstarter ends on Friday night. We launched with a Q&A on Reddit and I think we'd like to wrap up with a Q&A here.
Ask me anything! Ask @megueyb.bsky.social anything too!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
Ask me anything! Ask @megueyb.bsky.social anything too!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
Apocalypse World: Burned Over
The 3rd edition of the groundbreaking original.
www.kickstarter.com
December 16, 2025 at 1:11 PM
My friends! The Apocalypse World 3rd Ed kickstarter ends on Friday night. We launched with a Q&A on Reddit and I think we'd like to wrap up with a Q&A here.
Ask me anything! Ask @megueyb.bsky.social anything too!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
Ask me anything! Ask @megueyb.bsky.social anything too!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
It might be nothing.
But it doesn’t feel like nothing.
This week’s Monday Musing is about:
🎲 LFG IRL
🕰️ Scheduling is the real end-boss
📚 William Gibson’s Jackpot trilogy
⚡️ dumb random inspiration
Scheduling: weekly, bi-weekly, or sporadic?
Good Monday, Gamer!
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
But it doesn’t feel like nothing.
This week’s Monday Musing is about:
🎲 LFG IRL
🕰️ Scheduling is the real end-boss
📚 William Gibson’s Jackpot trilogy
⚡️ dumb random inspiration
Scheduling: weekly, bi-weekly, or sporadic?
Good Monday, Gamer!
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
Monday Musings #130 🤬
Musing on inspiration strikes and LFG
open.substack.com
December 15, 2025 at 4:56 PM
It might be nothing.
But it doesn’t feel like nothing.
This week’s Monday Musing is about:
🎲 LFG IRL
🕰️ Scheduling is the real end-boss
📚 William Gibson’s Jackpot trilogy
⚡️ dumb random inspiration
Scheduling: weekly, bi-weekly, or sporadic?
Good Monday, Gamer!
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
But it doesn’t feel like nothing.
This week’s Monday Musing is about:
🎲 LFG IRL
🕰️ Scheduling is the real end-boss
📚 William Gibson’s Jackpot trilogy
⚡️ dumb random inspiration
Scheduling: weekly, bi-weekly, or sporadic?
Good Monday, Gamer!
open.substack.com/pub/playfear...
Reposted by Mad Jay
Day 14
When the first babe was born glowing, the world changed. We didn’t know, at first. We, who dug in the ruins of What Was, daring monsters & each other. Lilah Blackthorn said it could live, and we would watch to see what would follow.
What followed was more. So many more.
#AW3rd #ttrpg #pbta
When the first babe was born glowing, the world changed. We didn’t know, at first. We, who dug in the ruins of What Was, daring monsters & each other. Lilah Blackthorn said it could live, and we would watch to see what would follow.
What followed was more. So many more.
#AW3rd #ttrpg #pbta
December 14, 2025 at 4:42 PM
Dumb, stupid, random Inspiration. Comes at you like a train when it's ready. Gets you off track from the thing you doing, the thing you need to be working on. Got ya all wide-eyed, how didn't we see it before?!
Happy Saturday. Me, coffee, fresh field notebook, riding this bullet train.
Happy Saturday. Me, coffee, fresh field notebook, riding this bullet train.
a cartoon drawing of a white and blue train going down the tracks
ALT: a cartoon drawing of a white and blue train going down the tracks
media.tenor.com
December 13, 2025 at 3:52 PM
Dumb, stupid, random Inspiration. Comes at you like a train when it's ready. Gets you off track from the thing you doing, the thing you need to be working on. Got ya all wide-eyed, how didn't we see it before?!
Happy Saturday. Me, coffee, fresh field notebook, riding this bullet train.
Happy Saturday. Me, coffee, fresh field notebook, riding this bullet train.
Reposted by Mad Jay
Looking back fondly on the Horde Knight and the Vulture Knight with @newmadras.bsky.social and @madjay.bsky.social, whose young knights were violent jocks from the jump, having just defeated the Ogre...
youtube.com/clip/Ugkx7c-...
youtube.com/clip/Ugkx7c-...
December 7, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Looking back fondly on the Horde Knight and the Vulture Knight with @newmadras.bsky.social and @madjay.bsky.social, whose young knights were violent jocks from the jump, having just defeated the Ogre...
youtube.com/clip/Ugkx7c-...
youtube.com/clip/Ugkx7c-...
Easy Sunday morning. Working my Advent coffee calendar and 'discovering the shape of fun' in a prototype for a deckbuilder game that should already exist. Discovering things you can do with a digital card deck that you can not or wouldn't do with a physical one, like destroying a card! 👀🤬
#indiedev
#indiedev
December 7, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Easy Sunday morning. Working my Advent coffee calendar and 'discovering the shape of fun' in a prototype for a deckbuilder game that should already exist. Discovering things you can do with a digital card deck that you can not or wouldn't do with a physical one, like destroying a card! 👀🤬
#indiedev
#indiedev
Reposted by Mad Jay
Reminder applications for our yearly turn-based games festival, Steam sale, & showcase are open now until Dec 12th.
412 games submitted so far, hope to see even more #IndieDev / #GameDev applying over the weekend.
Gaming content creators, we have visibility + keys for you too, check it out!
412 games submitted so far, hope to see even more #IndieDev / #GameDev applying over the weekend.
Gaming content creators, we have visibility + keys for you too, check it out!
The 4th annual #TurnBasedThursdayFest will be March 9-16!
Hundreds of excellent games & discounts on Steam, Let's Plays & giveaways, & our first ever Featured Reveals trailer showcase!
Help us spread the word? ❤️🔃
Developer & content creator signups are open, 🔗 in replies 👇
Hundreds of excellent games & discounts on Steam, Let's Plays & giveaways, & our first ever Featured Reveals trailer showcase!
Help us spread the word? ❤️🔃
Developer & content creator signups are open, 🔗 in replies 👇
December 5, 2025 at 5:27 PM
Reposted by Mad Jay
Vincent is threatening to write a beginners guid to designing a game the Powered by the Apocalypse way and I'll be honest, I kind of need y'all to step up so that goodness can come into the world. Just, like, 10.000 dollars more to go.
December 5, 2025 at 3:45 PM
Vincent is threatening to write a beginners guid to designing a game the Powered by the Apocalypse way and I'll be honest, I kind of need y'all to step up so that goodness can come into the world. Just, like, 10.000 dollars more to go.
Secret KC: Jazz, Festive Vibes & Cozy Holiday Magic!
www.secretkc.com/p/a-holiday-...
www.secretkc.com/p/a-holiday-...
Secret KC: Jazz, Festive Vibes & Cozy Holiday Magic!
Discover KC's holiday magic: XO HiFi's sleek winter sounds, jazz rooms, festive cocktails, and cozy city moments that transform your weekend into an epic urban adventure!
www.secretkc.com
December 4, 2025 at 8:23 PM
Secret KC: Jazz, Festive Vibes & Cozy Holiday Magic!
www.secretkc.com/p/a-holiday-...
www.secretkc.com/p/a-holiday-...
Who's making this a game!!
Wow!
A book from the 19th century that depicts the Rhine Valley by creating an impression of three-dimensionality and spatial distance.
@MasayukiTsuda2 #globalmuseum #books #travel #19thcentury
@MasayukiTsuda2 #globalmuseum #books #travel #19thcentury
December 3, 2025 at 2:13 PM
Who's making this a game!!
Reposted by Mad Jay
Apocalypse World: Burned Over
The 3rd edition of the groundbreaking original.
www.kickstarter.com
December 1, 2025 at 3:50 PM
I had some thoughts post-turkey, and pumpkin pie:
Story first is prolly alright, and Break!! RPG is even better!
Plus some stuff you might have missed!
Good Monday, Gamer! open.substack.com/pub/playfear... #ttrpg
Story first is prolly alright, and Break!! RPG is even better!
Plus some stuff you might have missed!
Good Monday, Gamer! open.substack.com/pub/playfear... #ttrpg
Monday Musings #128 🤬
Prepping Break!! and Game vs Story thoughts.
open.substack.com
December 1, 2025 at 3:16 PM
I had some thoughts post-turkey, and pumpkin pie:
Story first is prolly alright, and Break!! RPG is even better!
Plus some stuff you might have missed!
Good Monday, Gamer! open.substack.com/pub/playfear... #ttrpg
Story first is prolly alright, and Break!! RPG is even better!
Plus some stuff you might have missed!
Good Monday, Gamer! open.substack.com/pub/playfear... #ttrpg
Reposted by Mad Jay
Good morning! Meg and I just added community copies to all of our games on Itch.
I always say "if times are tight," but we all know that times are tight.
lumpley.itch.io
I always say "if times are tight," but we all know that times are tight.
lumpley.itch.io
Meguey & Vincent Baker, et al
lumpley.itch.io
November 28, 2025 at 2:46 PM
Good morning! Meg and I just added community copies to all of our games on Itch.
I always say "if times are tight," but we all know that times are tight.
lumpley.itch.io
I always say "if times are tight," but we all know that times are tight.
lumpley.itch.io