Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns

@napel

I design tabletop games from my apartment in the Netherlands. (he/them) Subscribe to my newsletter:

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Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· 8d

O wait no sorry it's exactly that.

Six years in the making!
Big Walk is our attempt to capture our favourite parts of playing games together online. We started working on it during covid lockdown, when playing games was the main way we’d spend time together. We wanted to make a game for friends that pushes you into finding new ways to communicate and connect with each other. It’s a game with a big open world, full of challenges and things to do, but whatever you are doing, the focus is always on the people you are playing with.

Our hope is that Big Walk has some of the loopy energy of being on the second day of a hike and feeling like normal life is very far away, and all that matters is the friends with you and the world around you. As part of our research for the game, each year we went hiking in Wilsons Prom — the place the game’s landscape is based on. It’s a beautiful place, and we hope we’ve captured that in the game.

[A photograph of the team looking out over a mountainesque view.]

(Photo credit: Kalonica Quigley)

When we started work on Big Walk back in 2020, we thought we were making something small and quick, as a way to learn the ropes of online multiplayer games. We figured we’d spend a few months making this talky-co-op thing, and then move on to a different Big Ambitious Game. But we just kept having so much fun playing it that we didn’t want to stop working on it.

It was clear from pretty early on that the core activity of walking and talking paired pretty well with having a big open world full of interesting stuff, so we took the plunge and decided to make one. The end result is something much bigger than we could have ever imagined. Six years later, we still love playing Big Walk together, and we hope you will too!

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· 12d

We shouldn't be too down on a game like Dungeons & Kittens winning an Ennie even though it lacks imagination or innovation. We should be down on it because the game re-introduce the civilized-savage dichotomy into a setting about talking adventure cats on the first page of its introduction.

Humans have disappeared from the planet, leaving only a few remains dotted throughout the newly lush vegitation. [...] However, humans did leave something for animals: the gifts of speech and imagination, the ability to anticipate and predict, the power to invent. But not all creatures accepted those gifts. There are animals who speak, walk, and use objects and tools; and there are beasts, who remain speechless and fierce, and kept their original nature.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· 18d

Working hard to give my own twist to the stuff Hellsing did so well for our bonus episode of Eat the Reich (the vampires go drink all of Mussolini's blood).

Exorcistae Ordinis Iudae Iscariotae
These priests wrapped in linnen shrouds adorned with the outline of their own bloodied face are trained to exterminate the worst abominations against God. They bring blessed steel blades, holy water splash traps, and the miraculous powers granted them by the splinter of the cross embedded in their foreheads.
- THREAT: 8
- ATTACK: 6
- ANATHEMA: This enemy generates two attacks on a 6.
- SOLO: This enemy does not use the reinforcement rules.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· 24d

😬 napel.itch.io/family-meal

A Powered by the Apocalypse style Basic Moves sheet for a game called Family Meal. The Moves are named: Read, Comfort, Share, Prepare, Prcess, Court Disaster, Opening, Hands!, Fire it, Run it, Court Disaster, Fuck Around, In the weeds, Get through the night, Closing.

A character sheet for a game called Family Meal. It has space for a Position, Name and pronouns, Stats, Looks, Moves, a Role, Marks, Harm, Advances, and something called Regard.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· 26d

I hope The Odyssey is at least decent because I am genuinely looking forward to parodying my favorite TENET review. It's a very dumb but enjoyable feeling.

A letterboxd review by Olivia Craighead of the 2020 film TENET. No stars. A heart. It reads:

oh you don’t like it because it “doesn’t make sense” and the dialogue is “all expository”? grow up! score is sick. looks good as hell. plane goes into a building. pattinson is blonde. they do some kind of sailing only rich people know about. branagh is being insane. car drives backwards!! like a lot of nolan movies, it’s about a group of people banding together to do the impossible. chill out! this shit goes so crazy in imax, can’t recommend enough.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Jun 28

If you would play Archipelago III in Blades '68, what do y'all think the elements would be? 'The Paranormal', obviously. Would 'Factions' be an element? Or would it be better to split them up into groups? Or would you define your campaign more closely and isolate elements like 'espionage'?

A screenshot out of Archipelago III's rule book. Under the heading 'Defining a new setting' it says: 'Talk about what sort of setting you want. High fantasy or science fiction are suitable genres, though if you want to experiment with other genres, go ahead.

Decide what elements of the setting are central, and need someone to take ownership of them—someone wha can say what fits and what doesn't. This is to make sure that the setting has integrity, that there's a uniting vision for these elements. Decide who owns what. Ownership is a responsibility, so make sure the right people own the right things.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Jun 26

Last Four!

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Jun 12

At least I got a weird letterboxd review out of the ordeal

My letterboxd review for my rewatch of No Country for Old Men (rated five stars and a heart):

The plumbers were supposed to come by for maybe two hours. They stayed for six. They're coming back tomorrow to do the actual fixing and they'll leave before they can fill the two holes they made to find the problem. That'll come next week.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Jun 5

Now this is a vibe:

A detail from the quoted webcomic: a box saying 'to be continued if I feel like it'.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· May 26

I wonder how long it'll take before I watch CERTAIN WOMEN again now that it's streaming...

Laura Dern, in a car, in a scene from CERTAIN WOMEN.

Michelle Williams, in a car, in a scene from CERTAIN WOMEN.

Lily Gladstone, in a car, in a scene from CERTAIN WOMEN.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· May 25

Ahem

A screenshot of the post Thomas is reacting to, with both the words 'Burned Over' and 'its discord' circled.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· May 24

I'm following a discord thread where Vincent is going in depth—and I mean depth—on Catching Someone's Eye, a Hx Move that just got added to the Burned Over preview playsheets, and it's some of the most interesting discussion and explanation of moves design that I've ever read.

Hx: CATCHING SOMEONE’S EYE
When you catch someone’s eye, roll+Hx. (If an NPC, roll+Cool.) On a 10+, choose 2: they’re provoked, inspired, alerted, charmed, unsettled, or reassured — or else choose 1 that they are, but 1 that they aren’t. On a 7–9, choose either 1 that they are, or 1 that they aren’t. Either way, tell them what you hope or expect them to do about it, then ask them what they actually do. On a miss, the MC might have you choose 1 anyway, but ask them what goes wrong.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· May 15

Been having a very good movie time lately.

My last four watched on letterboxd:
- The Firm (three and a half stars)
- The Captive (four and a half stars, plus a heart)
- Problemista (five stars, plus a heart)
- Preparations to Be Together for an Unkown Period of Time (four stars)

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· May 5

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Mar 20

Last 4️⃣ watched

My last four watched on letterboxd: Dead Man's Wire (four stars), Double Happiness (three and a half stars), Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation (three stars), Watership Down (three and a half stars).

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Mar 13

Last 4️⃣ watched

My last four watched on letterboxd: Watership Down (three and a half stars), Sound of Falling (three and a half stars and a heart), Chris Fleming: Live at The Palace (four stars), Marty Supreme (five stars and a heart).

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Mar 13

With these reaching me, a whole chapter of my return to role-playing games comes to its lavishly illustrated end. Joining a playtesting campaign of what would become @ema-acosta.com's EXILE as a complete nobody was an enlightening and beautiful experience I will forever be thankful for.

A photo of my hand holding two hardcover books with painterly illustrated covers. One is titled Crescent 2e and features a T-Rex, a bunch of rowdy kids, a boomerang and a crab with a pirate's hat. The other is titled Exile and features a bat-winged goth with a sword.

My name in the acknowledgements of EXILE.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Mar 2

Oof, that subject matter might be a little too weighty for us. Maybe we should try something with a bunch of different options, like this

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Mar 2

I really want to get this to table but my players say they don't know if they're into "cozy games"

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Mar 2

Hm, I don't know about that, but I really enjoyed this with my regular group

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Feb 22

Pristine, in Paris' 9e

A photo of several 'two tops' with simple wooden chairs, a countertop and a kitchen area with deep green tiles on the wall.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Feb 20

Listen, are you into Slugblaster? No? Fat chance, bozo. You probably are. And if so, you owe it to yourself to check out these extra's. Still not convinced? Well then. Even Mikey Hamm is out here shilling for Big Shiny Scores. You know. The creator that game you like so much. Slugblaster, was it?

"Michael's work is punchy, flavor-blasted, and loaded with hooks. Every bullet-point is its own short story, every item could seed an entire adventure. That's what he brought to Slugblaster, and that's what you'll get here, too. Of course, I prefere when I can pass his work off as my own, but I guess the jig is up."
– Mikey Hamm, Creator of Slugblaster.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Feb 16

I'm aaalmost ready to go for my first test

A screenshot of a digital whiteboard with divided into Special Moves, Common Moves, Sisters, Responsibilities and Backgrounds.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Feb 16

A panel from 'The Enigma of the Amigara Fault' of an unclothed person in glasses looking over their shoulder with a distraught look on their face.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Feb 13

#LetterboxdFriday I honestly would have never thought I'd rate my Tenet rewatch that high, but I think it's just a lot more fun and also weirder than I gave it credit for before?

A screenshot of my last four watched on letterboxd:
- Tenet, four stars, rewatch
- Fragments for Venus, three-and-a-half stars
- A Kight's Tale, four stars and a heart, rewatch
- Only Yesterday, five stars and a heart

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Feb 9

@rvgames.company hey neighbor 👋

A spread of data points. Two dots that are closest together are highlighted: @napel.itch.io and @rvgames.company

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Feb 7

I recently watched 'Rabbit à la Berlin' or 'Mauerhase', about the rabbit colonies that survived for generations in the dead zone between the two sides of the Berlin Wall—and today excellent Copenhagish coffees helped me write a playset for The Warren about exactly those rabbits. 🧵

A brown rabbit next to a part of the defences within the dead zone.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Jan 30

Daring the gamers out there to role-play the faithful:

Lift Up Your Eyes

When you look for consolation through prayer, flip a coin.
On heads, regain one Patience and ask the MC how your prayer is answered: through feeling, thought, sign, or vision. If you truly believe the answer came from the Lord, also regain Faith.
On tails, spend Faith to regain one Patience and reflect on your prayer: was an answer what you needed most? Or, come up short and look to the MC.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Jan 28

Getting to the meat of this game:

A partial screenshot of a notes app. It reads:

"Remain Pious
When you strive to remain pious, despite provocation or temptation, flip a coin.
On heads,"

A cursor is ready to write what happens on heads.

Hendrik is writing an ashcan about nuns@napel· Jan 23

Some very potent rewatches and one of the most beautiful experimental films in history.