Awards & Immigrations

Thomas Manuel

I. Spotlight

This is probably the realest thing the newsletter will ever share: Ema Acosta, the designer of multiple charming takes on the Forged in the Dark framework, writes about immigration and awards. Acosta said that Crescent 2e being nominated for an Ennie was something they “had been part anticipating, part fearing for months.”

Here’s an excerpt:

“The reason the possibility of an Ennies nomination has been weighting so heavy on my mind since January is not because it feeds my ego, or because it affords me recognition, or because I get to share in the victory with my friends, or because it will please my publisher. I’m not even particularly concerned about the fact that awards impact game sales (namely, the main reason a Winsconsin 8pm convention panel holds such importance to tabletop publishers and designers in the first place.) While all of those things are kind-of-nice, the actual reason I hope I win is so I improve my chances of not getting a deportation order come September.

The in and outs of the violent immigration system the global north runs on is besides the point for the purposes of this discussion. Suffice to say, one of the things I must prove every year in order to “earn my keep” is that my existence in the European Union is of continued economic and cultural attractiveness to the state. Thus, something like an Ennies award makes a huge difference on whether I’m left in peace or blackmailed into boarding a plane.

It’s not that the Ennies singularly define what happens to me. I’m not setting out to create a victimized narrative—after all, I’m lucky enough to be in a position now of resistance thanks to improvements in my health—but the Ennies are exactly the kind of thing that can tip the scales from discard this one, to maybe this one is useful.“

I think today is the last day to vote.

II. Media of the Week

  • Quinns talks at an event in Spain about how, as both designers and players, thinking about play expansively leads to more interesting outcomes than just thinking within the box of games.

III. Links of the Week

  • Stu Horvath digs up some real weird RPGs on his newsletter.
    • He talks about Tom Moldvay’s The Future King from 1985: “Players take the role of six heroes summoned out of time — Nostradamus, the Viking Harald Hardraada, the Welsh freedom fighter Owen Glendower, Doc Holiday, Cyrano de Bergerac and Bruce Lee — who are tasked with finding a number of magical items.”
    • And an adventure called Raid on Rajallapor from 1984: “It’s practically a Delta Green scenario. The frame is pretty simple: attack the estate of Roger Dalton (gee, I wonder where they got that name) in (fictional) Rajallapor, India, and steal his golden statue of Shiva.”
  • The Guardian writes D&D players raise millions in real-life campaign against ‘corporate elite’. It’s about the recent rise of D&D and RPGs being used to raise money for progressive candidates in the USA.
    • A big chunk of this is Brennan Lee Mulligan running games for DSA-LA. It doesn’t mention it but I also feel like he volunteered for Zohran Mamdani and Kat Abughazaleh in a personal capacity as well, trying to use his platform for them too. In a similar vein, the Working Families Party sponsored the Transplanar actual play channel. So there’s a lot more happening here than you’d think!
    • I will say the word “millions” in the headline is a teeny bit misleading as that seems to come from Jes Wade’s work raising money through itch bundles which didn’t really get the full focus of the article.
  • Indie Game Reading Club reviews three one-shot games: the Star Trek-like larp Strange Gravity by Jay Treat, the sad sci-fi For the Queen hack Decaying Orbit by Sidney Icarus, and the courtly intrigue game Uneasy Lies the Head by Adam Bell.
  • d100 ways that these two wizards know each other.
  • At Rascal, I interviewed Chris McDowall about Intergalactic Bastionland and I really liked what I heard. Very excited for this game now.
  • I also wrote about Finland recognizing roleplaying as a part of their living heritage and culture.

Misc

V. Small Ads

All links in the newsletter are completely based on my own interest. But to help support my work, this section contains sponsored links and advertisements. If you’d like your products to appear here, read the submission form.

  • Virtual Battle Mat: the simplest VTT online. Drop a map, place tokens, play. Voice and video built in. No rules engine, any system. Feels like a real table. vbm.games

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Hello, dear readers. This newsletter is written by me, Thomas Manuel. If you’d like to support this newsletter, share it with a friend. If you’d like to know more about my work, check out the coolest RPG website in the world Rascal News or listen to me talking to other people on the Yes Indie’d Podcast.

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