I Am Airborne
A few years ago, I bought a little condo in Las Vegas to be my home away from home. In those carefree days, I did a lot of travel down here, including a few industry conventions and productive dealings with the casino industry. I also had some vague plans for a semi-retirement involving lots of casino poker.
But since quarantine began, this place has been just another house to take care of. Luckily I can do my job from anywhere, such as it is. So thanks to some extremely cheap flights, I am spending the month in Las Vegas.
I come down once in a while, just to make sure the place hasn’t caught fire, and enjoy a few hours of online poker. If we ever get back to “normal,” whatever that is, I might even come here for fun.
It’s been a while since I posted a recap update for Crab Fragment Labs, so here’s what I’m working on right now.
Patreon Update
Last month I quietly launched a Patreon campaign! Many heartfelt thanks to the six patrons who have signed up so far. Over the next few months, I plan to market this thing a little more aggressively, but a few friends and dedicated fans have already slipped in to support Crab Fragment Labs.
This month, patrons got a sneak preview of secret games you’ll hear more about in March! Don’t you wish you knew what I was working on next month? I know I do! Please check out the page and decide if you want to be a patron.
Everway Card Games
My friends Richard Rowan and Jesse McGatha are kickstarting a 25th Anniversary Edition of the classic RPG Everway. Today they announced that their Fortune Deck will include two original card games of my design!
The Fortune Deck is a 36-card tarot-style deck at the core of this RPG, featuring a triangular distribution of 8 suits. Each card has a number indicating the size of its suit (like Pairs) as well as a set of elemental symbols: a mix of Air, Earth, Fire, and Water. I created two original games with this deck in 2019, including Succession, a sequence-based gambling game, and Elements, a traditional trick-taking game with rules for team play as well as cutthroat play.
Jesse and Rich will add these games to the Everway project when the campaign hits $85k. That’s less than 20k away, with just 15 days remaining in the campaign. Please check it out and help them reach their goals, to bring back Everway in a shiny new edition!
Article - Designing Traditional Card Games
Last week I posted an article at the Lecture Hall about designing games and card decks in the “traditional” style, like those I did for the Fortune Deck.
This article explores why I think the poker deck is so versatile, and how it compares to some of the original decks I’ve worked on, like those for Pairs, Renfield, the Island Deck, and this year’s new project, Fairmarket.
If you’re a game designer or even if you just want to talk like one, check out the design articles at the Lecture Hall.
Short Fiction - Henry at the Diner
There is a new short piece of fiction at the Library this month, Henry at the Diner. This one is from deep in the vaults: I wrote it in 1992.
This month I am hammering away at several short stories which will eventually reach the Library, but none of them is near finished yet. I expect I’ll keep reaching into the vaults from time to time, because it’s all new to someone.
Here All Week, Except This Week?
This month, Kelly and I took a short break from recording our podcast Here All Week, to bring you two special episodes: back-to-back compilations of the joke ads from 2020. You’ll find them in episodes 41 and 42. Next week we will return with special guest Captain Volume, AKA Shawn Carnes of Baba’s Share Show.
Much More to Come!
I’m working on some older games in the background, many of which you’ve never heard of, to see what might be a candidate for a Crab Fragment edition. Stay tuned to this blog, or join the Patreon to learn more!
As usual, thanks for following Crab Fragment Labs and let’s do great things together in 2021!