Scott - Minerva 🦉
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minervatabletop.co.uk
Scott - Minerva 🦉
@minervatabletop.co.uk
Board game designer and publisher from London, UK:
🥪 Crumbs! The Sandwich Filler Game
🎨 Swatch: The Abstract Game of Art
📝 Organiser of Playfest London and Playtest UK (South London)
🦉 https://linktr.ee/minervatabletop
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Hi! I'm Scott, board game designer, and publisher as Minerva Tabletop Games.

I focus on small-box and microgames; games that offer simple rules with surprising depth, and do a lot with few components. I have a background in art and design and favour distinctive art styles.

More about my projects 👇🏻
Reposted by Scott - Minerva 🦉
A weekend of playtesting at @protocon-bc.bsky.social has me thinking about how to be a good playtester and I'm workshopping some ideas for next year. What are your tips for how to be helpful and constructive as a playtester?
November 11, 2025 at 11:42 PM
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New game design 🎲✂️ just gone on Kickstarter! This is my super quick no-frills Christmas KS. I have a puzzle treasure hunt kit for kids, and a story-based cold case puzzle for teenagers/adults. The puzzle hunt can also come as PDFs only!

Delivered in the UK by 1 December. Yes, really.
November 11, 2025 at 1:28 PM
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I added a "game design resources" section to my site: www.petermcpherson.com/game-design-...

This is a collection of mostly free online tools I use regularly, as well as links to excellent podcasts, blogs, and YouTube channels. I hope people find something helpful here! 🎲✂️
Peter McPherson - Game design resources
Here’s a collection of online tools I’ve used over the years. This isn’t meant to be an exhaustive list, but I hope new and experienced designers can find useful tools to help their designs at all sta...
www.petermcpherson.com
November 4, 2025 at 7:20 PM
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Released my new 2 player trick taker today at Hamishcon in Warwick, UK.
Look out for copies soon on Travel-Games.co.uk !!
November 8, 2025 at 10:41 PM
Reposted by Scott - Minerva 🦉
[board game aisle] “Hey, I couldn’t help overhearing you talk about much you and your friends enjoy this cheap, readily accessible party game. If you like that, you should totally check these other games that are a little more fun, a lot more expensive, and you can only buy them at a special store.”
November 8, 2025 at 6:58 PM
Reposted by Scott - Minerva 🦉
youtu.be/ciIa0usT7wM?...
FIGHT WITH PLAYING CARDS. Introducing 52 Duels, a 1 or 2 player duelling game coming to kickstarter next month.

Sign up to get notified when we launch! www.kickstarter.com/projects/pos...
52 DUELS - A fight with playing cards for 1-2 players
YouTube video by Roll Them Bones
youtu.be
November 6, 2025 at 2:39 PM
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Altered, the trading card game which broke Kickstarter records with its €6.2m debut crowdfund two years ago, is running almost €2m short of the amount needed for its latest expansion - despite having raised more than 10x its crowdfunding goal from backers:

boardgamewire.com/index.php/20...
November 4, 2025 at 2:02 PM
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Board games are art. ETERNAL DECKS combines the ancient with the modern through design. It's a stunner; it's also a heck of a game. See for yourself.

www.moregamesplease.com/art-in-board...
Eternal Decks Board Game Art - Merging Ancient and Modern - Interview with Mujunsha Inc (Issue #78) — More Games Please
See the incredible artwork of the Eternal Decks board game, and discover how Mujunsha Inc crafted the illustrations and graphic design to incorporate ideas both ancient and modern.
www.moregamesplease.com
November 3, 2025 at 8:57 PM
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UK Games Expo promoted a tabletop RPG on Instagram that claimed to use "fully ethical and transparent" generative AI. Everything went downhill once the publisher began responding to criticism.
UK Games Expo criticized for promoting RPG with generative AI imagery
Gates of Krystalia’s creators insult commenters, struggle to explain provenance of LLM training material.
www.rascal.news
November 3, 2025 at 5:03 PM
Y’all aren’t ready for the most underwhelming playtesting shot ever.
November 2, 2025 at 11:47 PM
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New board game art interview coming tomorrow!
November 2, 2025 at 7:51 PM
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You can follow our Kickstarter prelaunch page for Roller Disco now!

It’s Mike’s birthday today, it would make his day if you follow along 🥳

www.kickstarter.com/projects/huf...
Coming soon: Roller Disco
A fun and fast-paced card game
www.kickstarter.com
November 1, 2025 at 7:44 AM
Reposted by Scott - Minerva 🦉
The students in my & @am0.bsky.social's tabletop design studio course are focusing on refining their games, and so I wanted to put out a request to y'all:

What's your best playtesting advice?

(I asked this awhile ago, and I loved the answers so much that I wanted to repeat the request). #🎲✂️
October 31, 2025 at 6:46 PM
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Our preview copies of Roller Disco have arrived and we couldn’t be happier! 🛼🪩

The shiny holo laminate has come out great for the disco vibe on the box and it was so much fun to get first couple of games played yesterday evening

Can’t wait to get out playing Roller Disco with more people soon!!
October 31, 2025 at 10:08 AM
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I wasn't going to say anything about the biggest TTRPG convention in the UK promoting AI slop, but then the slop makers said "everyone uses gen AI, we're just honest about it", and I fucking saw red.

Make your own art. Even if it's rancid garbage, it's still better than a machine's hallucination.
October 30, 2025 at 8:46 PM
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We ran a game of Spirit Island tonight where we sprinted to full terror for Halloween. You can feel the power creep with Breath of Darkness versus Bringer of Dreams and Nightmares but we had a good time.

And wouldn't you know once the colonists had fled in terror this happened.
October 31, 2025 at 2:50 AM
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kind of unfair that Thomas Manuel is so fucking funny on top of being an incredible writer
October 30, 2025 at 4:59 PM
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A letter article between Chase and Thomas wonders how The Dice Tower mistook punching down on small games as having professional standards.
Tom Vasel wants indie designers to stop guilt tripping him
Directives from an ivory dice tower.
www.rascal.news
October 30, 2025 at 4:43 PM
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WE MADE IT! Interstellar Adventures is now fully funded on Kickstarter. ✨

Thank you all for your support throughout the entire campaign. It’s been incredible to hear from so many backers, other creators and reviewers.

Your advice, moral support, reviews and cross-posting have been so valuable. 💚
October 30, 2025 at 10:11 AM
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Less than 48 hours left of the Interstellar Adventures campaign. 🚨

We are so close to funding! We just need a last push to get us over that line. Thank you so much to everyone who has already supported and shared, and said such lovely things about the game. 💚

www.kickstarter.com/projects/min...
Interstellar Adventures: A cooperative puzzle adventure
An out of this world cooperative adventure! Answer a mysterious signal from the unknown in this escape room inspired, tabletop game 🚀
www.kickstarter.com
October 29, 2025 at 5:46 PM
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If you are thinking of gifts for Xmas this year, my book about tabletop games, The Game Changers (UK, other territories) / Across the Board (US, Canada), is out in paperback, audiobook & ebook. I think it is good for anyone who loves boardgames old or new, or who likes stuff on culture & history.
October 26, 2025 at 10:40 AM
The Organisers of Playfest

Our fourth year running Playfest London, we volunteer our time for the event and donate all profits to charity. We do this for the love of the game(s), our only reward an immense feeling of satisfaction and in my case, the hope that someone will buy me a beer. We are: 1/3
October 23, 2025 at 5:22 PM
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Daytime playtesting in Bristol this Friday! 🎲✂️

Join us with a design of your own, or just as a playtester (those are VERY welcome!) - more details on meetup 👇🏼

meetu.ps/e/Pz5F2/Zm5X...
Bristol Daytime Playtest meetup, Fri, Oct 24, 2025, 10:30 AM | Meetup
If you're working on a game, whether it's an early idea or almost done, we want you! Board games, card games, puzzle games, silly or serious, short or long, any kind of gam
meetu.ps
October 22, 2025 at 12:53 PM
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New BTC podcast! I talk to Ross Connell about the vital role of art and marketing in game design—from how visuals shape a game’s identity to what publishers expect when reviewing a pitch. Find out how art and marketing can make your games stand out. thegamedesignroundtable.com/episode/btc-...
October 21, 2025 at 8:23 AM
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In today's video I talk about ways to level up as a game designer - practices I have seen in other designers and myself as they become more experienced and improve their craft. Hopefully useful whether you're just starting out, or reflecting on how far you have come!

youtu.be/qPWgQCNkRsM

🎲✂️
How to level up as a game designer
YouTube video by Matthew Dunstan
youtu.be
October 21, 2025 at 8:02 AM