Everybody on the Thornwatch team has been hammering away on the game and we have lots of new stuff to show/test at PAX South this week. I am in full on art production mode now. There's so much art that needs to be made for this game that I'm bringing in some very talented folks to help me out. Strip Search fans might remember Nick Trujillo from the show. He's on the Thornwatch team now and he's working on all the map tiles that need to be painted for the game. Each of these tiles is a little window into some strange part of the Eyrewood. When I sat down and talked with Nick about the direction for these I told him that each one of these tiles shouldn't just be random bits of forest. Each on needs to be a place in the Eyrewood that the Lookouts would have a name for. There is something about each one that is interesting or unique that would make it a point of interest in the wood. Ideally I want judges to be able to grab a handful of tiles and find in those paintings the inspiration to make up their own adventures. This tile Nick painted is a great example I think.
There will be dozens of these beautifully painted tiles in the game and each one will reveal some new strange part of the Eyrewood.
We're bringing a bunch of new adventures to PAX South in order to test mechanics and make sure that everything is working as intended. Eventually each one of these adventures will be accompanied by a series of comic book style storyboards that will guide players through the story. Here's an early example of one of these storyboards.
Obviously I don't have art for all the adventures yet but play testers at PAX South will be helping us nail down the raw mechanics of each of these stories. With that in mind I'd like to invite you to come and play Thornwatch at the show. Here's are the details you need if you're going to be at PAX and want to try the game:
Playtest signup sheets are going to be at Tabletop HQ.
Friday 8 PM to 10 PM: Playtest Session 1 Saturday 10 AM to 12 PM: Playtest Session 2
Saturday 8 PM to 10 PM: Playtest Session 3
This show is all business for the Thornwatch team so we don't have a panel this time. This is full on hardcore play testing and we need your help to get it done. I'll be over in Tabletop running games and playing with folks whenever my schedule and my frail human body allows. The more folks we can get to play what we've got right now and give us feedback, the better the final game is going to be. So if you're going to be at PAX this weekend, please stop by the Tabletop HQ and sign up to play some Thornwatch!
-Gabe Out
