The Workshop of James Ernest
Crab Fragment Labs is a harmless byproduct of designer James Ernest, who struggles against his better nature to create an implausible profusion of original tabletop games.
Welcome!
Congratulations! You have discovered Crab Fragment Labs, a tropical paradise dedicated to the exploits of James Ernest.
Read our latest newsletter here.
You’ll want to start at the Games Page or the Map Room. We have a lot of stuff here, and the list is growing all the time.
Crab Fragment Labs has tabletop games, design and travel blogs, instructional articles and videos, short fiction, and so much more. You’ll find dozens of free print-and-play games, mostly still in development, and a Shop with PDFs of historic Cheapass Games.
If you’d like to know where James Ernest is headed next, please check the Schedule page. And for news sent directly to your electronic mailbox, please subscribe to our newsletter, with the link below.
Recent News
December 1: New Video, Insights. James Ernest is back in the studio, cutting a new series of videos called Insights, about the challenges of game making. This five-minute clip breaks down his process for building a deck for The Curse of Poppy Hollow.
November 29: Deep Discounts at Greater Than Games: Some veritable gems of the Cheapass Catalog are 75% off at Greater than Games right now. Check out Pirate Pairs, Unexploded Cow, The Island of Doctor Lucky, and many more. Hurry! This sale runs only until December 3.
November 20: Introducing Paradise Road. Twenty years ago, in the fall of 2005, James Ernest invented a racing board game. The idea was cute, but it never really worked, either as a game or as a product. Now James is taking another stab at this hidden gem, with much better results. Read the details and play the game today!
November 8: Doctor Sweet Preview Page. We continue to craft the details of Doctor Sweet’s Carnival of Chocolate Horrors, but it’s not quite ready for open beta. James has three upcoming conventions in the next four weeks, and more is about to change!. However, we have at least built a landing page with the inklings of what’s to come.
November 6: Introducing the Blossom Deck. It’s another six-suited deck, so it lives on the Island Deck page right now, but the Blossom Deck is its own unique animal (and vegetable and mineral) and has two new games including Bulldog and Cowards. Check them out today!
October 29: TimeLine. Seems every ten years or so, we post a new version of this game. Today we made some new cards, and then we got lazy and posted the 2013 rules. Timeline is a clever little strategy game for 2-5 players about using time machines to change the future and make money. Check it out!
October 13, 2024: New Rules, Barcelona: It’s amazing how one new rule can completely change a game, but since Barcelona basically had only three rules to begin with, this makes sense. Check out the new 2.0 rules for this classic business-card game at the Ready Room.
September 23, 2024: Upated game, Sandy Diggs. We introduced this games as “Tomb of the Ancients,” but now we have changed the title and updated the artwork. Print-and-play the newest version of Sandy Diggs in the Pyramids of Madness today!
September 22, 2024: New page for Light Speed. A Cheapass classic returns to Crab Fragment Labs. You can now print your own cards for the original version of Light Speed (along with the orignal 2003 rules sheet), or you can order the deck from DriveThruCards.
September 17, 2024: Introducing Stage Blood. Manage a handful of Elizabethan stage actors in this lightweight strategy card game. Stage Blood has actually been in the works for years, and we’re finally ready to post a print-and-play version!
August 18, 2024: Introucing The Fractured Flat. A new abstract game from James Ernest! James was inspired to create something he could print on a sik square. This two-player area control game is brand new, and still rough around the edges, but we hope you will give it a try.
August 8, 2024: Gen Con Recap. This was James’ first year back to Indy since 2019. Read about what he did, who he saw, and his personal take on the “best four days in gaming,” in the latest blog post.
July 5, 2024: Reintroducing Mapple. Back in 2011, James Ernest created a free board game called Mapple. You only need the maps, and pocket change, to play. We have updated and collected the first five of these maps at a new page. Check them out!
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