The end of the campaign but not of the game

Create for Dementia comes to an end, making this game gets personal and what’s next…

I thought it would be tough getting a complete draft of Yacht Rock - The Roleplaying Game done during Create for Dementia, and the challenge proved a little too tough. A big part of that was, halfway through this month my father-in-law passed away from Alzheimers. It was his battle against this cruellest of diseases that motivated me to take part in Create for Dementia, and I am stoked to say that I exceeded my fundraising target. Even if the game isn’t quite finished.

And raising over $500 to support the mahi of Alzheimers NZ is really important. The support they gave my in-laws over the past 5 years was invaluable and they do this for countless whānau all over New Zealand every day. A big thanks to all my donors and they’ll get a special mention in the final version of the game.

What did I get done?

Pretty much the whole game from a player’s perspective. I completed the section on character creation, band creation, music writing and all the basic mechanics. I also broke the back of the section on how to run the game. Plus I’ve completed the character sheet design!

About 11,000 words so far.

I’ve also laid out a fair chunk of the book. All the completed sections have been laid out as I went. This is something that motivates and inspires me. I like to see things become “real” as I go. And look is also important to me.

Interestingly I interviewed Tim Denee, a game designer I very much admire and the creator of 2 of my favourite games Odyssey Aquatica and Deathmatch Island. During that interview it turns out that Tim follows a similar process. If you’re interested, you can watch that interview here.

What’s left?

I’ve got to finish the section for the A&R (what we’re calling the GM) and provide some adventure starters, sample NPCs and look at some basic history of the period if tables want a historically accurate experience.

Then lay that out.

Once I’ve got it all in hand there will be playtesting. I’ve got some willing playtesters lined up to give things a go.

Another thing I’d love to do is find an artist who can replace the AI images in the game. I’m not sure how I feel about selling something with AI art, neither is the rest of the world. I’ve got to grapple with that some more, I think.

I’ll be back on here to talk about the final stretch, unpack playtesting and look at the hybrid system I’ve put together and some of, its influences.

Looking back on what’s happened this month there is a silly game here, niche again, but something I think will be fun to play.

And raising over $500 for charity makes it cooler.