Appendix N Jam 2026: Submitted!

I'm proud of this cover.

Yes, it's that time of year again, and I've submitted my entry for the Appendix N Jam. This year I pulled the title "The Tomb Tappers", and once again, I went completely literal with two different definitions of the word "tapper". Now I'm downloading other entries and rating them.

Speaking of which, if you're also a part of the Jam, you can rate The Tomb Tappers and leave a comment, both of which I would greatly appreciate. If you're not a part of the Jam, go download a copy and challenge yourself to design a gonzo fantasy/sci fi adventure next year.

I had a brainwave when I started jotting ideas down: What if the tappers were aliens who could fold space? And what if there were a few tombs they wanted something out of? And what if I could use the format of the printed pamphlet to simulate that folding space?

My First Retail Display

Proof of Retail Placement

So a few weeks ago I bit the bullet and asked my FLGS if they'd be interested in selling some of my gaming zines. I went in for a meeting with a bunch of copies printed, and walked out with some cash. Last week I heard that they put the display out, so I went in to take a photo to brag about it.

So here I am, sharing the photo I took of the zines I made being sold by my local game store and bragging about it. I'm reaching out to other local retailers, so we'll see what happens with those inquiries.

"Local Designer T.W.Wombat" has a nice ring to it.

If you're local to Worcester, MA, you can run over to That's Entertainment on Park Ave. to pick up a physical copy of some of my titles. After that, download a PDF from the links below. If I've moved away from Pay What You Will pricing when you get there, email me with what you bought, and I'll send you a code to get the PDF for free.

Huge thanks to Sorana and the That's Entertainment crew for taking a chance on my oddball titles.

Taberna Celeris Is Out Now!

I even printed a few copies.

I've hit the Publish buttons on my Itch store and my RPG Trader store to get Taberna Celeris out into the world. I realized I didn't publish Tabula Mortis to my DriveThru RPG shop, so I'll rectify that oversight this week for both trifold products.

Go grab a copy while it's still Pay What You Will:
Get Taberna Celeris On Itch, and At RPG Trader.

I told y'all it would only be a few days, and here we are.

Yes, this is title number 2 in what I'm calling the Trifold Triptych. It'll be three trifold zines containing random tables for generating things in your TTRPGs. I'm still brainstorming a topic for #3, but stay tuned. I'm hoping to get that one published sometime in September.

Rolling Up a Pub

Taberna Celeris's cover image
(via Old Book Illustrations)

I'm doing the final proofing read-through of my new trifold Taberna Celeris. It's a collection of random tables to name and detail a Bar, Inn, Tavern, or Publick House (Pub). I'm viewing this as the second entry in a Random Table Trifold Triptych of Zines (yeah, it's a mouthful), starting with Tabula Mortis, (available in my itch shop) and ending with a third thing that hasn't even been named yet.

So let's grab some dice and roll up a drinking establishment with the latest draft of Taberna Celeris.

(As a quick aside, Taberna Celeris literally means "Quick Tavern", but it also translates as "Fast Food Restaurant". I love that, and I'll take it.)

What's It Named? The Silent Rudder Pub. A black rudder hangs over the door with a dark grey cloth tied around it like an bandit's face mask.

What's Its Vibe? Gaudy and tired. It catered to thieves and pirates when it started years ago, but that was before the owner went straight. Now it's a shabby, declining pirate-themed pub that needs a deep cleaning. The Rudder tries way too hard to be edgy, with weapons and pirate flags all over the walls, but the patrons and staff stopped caring years ago, and it shows.

Republishing Old Projects

So I've been re-releasing a few old projects on my itch store. I want everything I've made in one place, and I've settled on itch as my publishing home for now.

NanoRegent

First up, NanoRegent (originally mentioned over here) strives to create a more free-form domain management game. Players take on the role of nations on an international stage. The nations ebb and flow, conflicting and cooperating, mostly through creating and using Aspects to fuel or resist changes as directed by Edicts made by each country. Actions resolve through a roll of 4 Fate Dice, with the victor being able to narrate the results. The game ends by mutual agreement when the story seems to have run its course.

It's not for everyone, since all of the creative burden falls on the players rather than the system, but I'm excited to see if this resonates with the more adventurous groups out there.

State of the Wombat: Been Sick. Oy!

There's this strain of flu going around which doesn't cause a fever worth mentioning, but it makes you feel sick for a couple of weeks. And guess what I've had since just after Christmas! My apologies to those who came to Game Day for the possible infection.

Despite that, I'm getting things done.

• I'm feverishly churning out piles of little notebooks for the March Mythoard box as organized by +Jarrod Shaw. How can I say no to getting paid while advertising Wombat's Workshop to 300 gamers? I'm stamping them with skulls and calling them Tombstone Notebooks, though I'm open to other name ideas. You can stand them up to mark your fallen PCs on the battle map and scribe a remembrance inside after the encounter's done.

Tombstone Notebooks, ideal for tracking PC deaths.

Ideas Into Action

You have to have an idea of what you are going to do,
    but it should be a vague idea.
        – Pablo Picasso

Image from talkingholistic.com
via Pinterest.

Ideas will flow thick and furious if you let them. Open yourself to the possibilities and shut your internal judge up for a minute, and you can hear ideas crawling out of the woodwork. Most of them are crappy, but let them come. Write them down or they'll fade like morning dew.

Explore them. Turn them around in your mind. Scribble down doodles and chicken scratches inspired by them. Milk the possibilities out of each. Make vague plans for your most promising ideas. Get excited.

Now here's the tough part:

Do something with them.

I'm a train tumbling and making mistakes,
    But my choices are mine and that's why I have brakes.
Collisions, reversals, I keep scraping by.
    I'd rather be wrong than forget how to try.
        – The Doubleclicks, "Unstoppable Force"

I'm still fumbling my way through setting up Wombat's Workshop. Some things work, and some "great ideas" I had turned out to be total duds. But I made a thing, and now it wants to walk on its own, taking me along for the ride.

All in all, Wombat's Workshop is proceeding apace. I have an Etsy store to set up, new designs to tinker with, Tombstone Books to design and market, zines and RPGs to print and bind, and new products and partnerships explore. It's a rush, and it takes time to do correctly. I've slowed down posting in here in favor of working over there. That's not to say I don't love you, my loyal Gaming Den of Iniquity readers, but my priorities have shifted in recent weeks.

Tease: New products and parternships.
More in January. SQUEEEE!

So I'm not dead, merely distracted. These little notebooks ain't gonna make themselves, and I've got orders to fill.

In random gaming news, I received my copy of the D&D 5e Dungeon Masters Guide, and I'm starting a Classic Traveller play-by-post game. I have a few editing gigs lined up for next year, including a DCC zine and a Kickstarter project, but I'm waiting for triggers to be pulled. Stay tuned.

Gaming is happening, it's just a little squeezed for time in recent days.

And I'm learning. I'm always learning. If I ever stop learning, please bury me so at least my body will provide nutrients for the plants. If I'm ever arrogant enough to believe I know everything, please shoot me, then bury me as above.

Until next time, game on.

Thanks for reading!