MCDM makes enough money to pay: * Good salaries for 11 full time employees * $0.35/word for freelance writers, AFAIK the industry best * Good rates for freelance art, layout, editing, sensitivity, etc. * 5 contract testers + 1 contract community lead, monthly That seems pretty successful to me.

For best results, know what everyone else at the table's heroic resource triggers are, and what you have in your arsenal that feeds those triggers.

The second issue of Ratcatcher is on Backerkit now. Some cool ideas by some familiar names. Check it out!

Draw Steel is a gonzo game. Heroes are hardier, more mobile, and can yeet foes easier than in 5e. That informs what players look for in maps. Bare minimum, if you put an object on the map, it has to hurt when folks slam into it. But you should really go further. Lean into dynamic terrain objects.

Pizza Friends Carl Who the heck is Carl?

Chances are that if you're following me, you already know about my friend Sam's Draw Steel project, but if you don't, go check it out: www.backerkit.com/c/projects/s...

A thesaurus is an incredibly powerful tool in a designer's arsenal. Especially in places where the word count is extremely limited, such as ability names, the right word can transform something from functional to really cool. The time you spend searching for the right word almost always pays off.

Want.

The volume of an Ajax edition is approximately 1.62 Blåhaj³. I have no idea what you're going to do with that information, but another tester shared a photo with a Blåhaj for scale, so I did the math, and it felt wrong not to share.

This has been my position on Facebook since Cambridge Analytica. I've got a lot of practice.

✨1.7k Followers Art Raffle!✨ Thank you all for following, let’s do this again!! 💚 Rules: -Follow + Like + Repost -Comment your OC references -Tag your friends! (Optional) -No giveaway accounts Two random winners will receive one portrait in this style! Ends: December 28th !

📝 <incomprehensible excited kobold noises>

Hooked on Crafting, a Draw Steel supplement designed to make it easier for Directors to incorporate crafting into their games, is funding through Itch. It's already close to its goal! (Yours truly will be contributing a small part of it.) Check it out: thedicesociety.itch.io/hooked-on-cr...

Our crowdfunder for Boggits of Kingsmire: A Swampy Supplement for Draw Steel will soon end! Consider backing if you still haven't, and help us have the strongest possible finish and unlock some stretch goals! Spread the word and repost for visiblity! Thank you all! www.backerkit.com/c/projects/t...

This meeting could've been a Draw Steel montage.

Boy, I sure am glad I live in a society led by people that view art purely as a fungible commodity...

If you deliberately misspell a word you know a lot of people have muted so that you can get your hot take in front of those people, you are a bad person. It doesn't matter what the take is. You are saying your need to be heard is more important than the safeguards other people set for themselves.

ChatGPT can rip my em dashes from my cold dead hands

Fwogs! www.backerkit.com/c/projects/t...

MCDM just released the symbols they use in stat blocks under a free license. mcdm.gg/DrawSteel/Dr... If you've never worked with a CC-BY-SA license, check out the thread for some guidance.

Haven is 90% off on Steam. It's one of those games where - if you judge it by its individual components - nothing really stands out. 7/10 art. 7/10 gameplay. 8/10 writing. 9/10 soundtrack. Etcetera. And then you finish it and put it down and somehow it's one of the best games you've ever played.

So many people wouldn't have art for their projects if not for Dean's reasonably priced stock art and holiday free giveaways.

Whomever at @backerkit.com came up with overtime mode is a genius.

Scum and Villainy. Every time I've run it, it's just been the best, most chaotic time. (Note that I run FitD games without position and effect rules. YRMV.) Triangle Agency is rapidly reaching that point too, but it has a lot more acclaim.

Itch has finally paid me.

Kobold Ancestry mini-update: @jeffstevensgames.bsky.social just sent the cross-collab weapons to everyone that backed both campaigns (except for four folks whose payments failed.) Later this week, I'll send the PDF out to everyone that filled out their survey. If you haven't done so yet, please do!

Due to a typo during prep, the heroes will be journeying to the Kingdom of the Elvis.

One of my goals for 2026 is to build time into my schedule to read what other people are designing and shout out the stuff I find cool. Not just people that are already my friends, or clients, but everyone and anyone. I'd love to hear advice from people that are already making that effort.

24 Hours Remain www.backerkit.com/c/projects/p...

@hellomcdm.bsky.social 's new TTRPG Draw Steel will be live on stage @paxaus.bsky.social in Naarm/Melbourne! Join us as @romanpenna.bsky.social Directs our Heroes through a (Panel length) adventure of the Fall of Black Bottom, live on stage for the first time this October in the Owlbear theatre!

For context, two decades ago Jimbo had the ability to override any decision the community made. He bungled that so often that the community stripped that away piece by piece and functionally shooed him off the project. It took years. Temu Elon Musk has very little power over Wikipedia anymore.

There are just three days left to back the Kobold Ancestry. Want a custom-made legendary treasure or stat block for Draw Steel? Those are available pledge tiers. www.backerkit.com/c/projects/p...

I didn't expect to spend the evening setting up a Ko-Fi store, but when life tries to steal your lemons, set up a lime shop. Or something. ko-fi.com/pestopublica... Get 20% off for the next two days with the code FIRST-48

Several people in the @itch.io discord are reporting similar or longer wait times. I'm only out $300 if they're actually unable to pay people, but there are folks that rely on Itch for a significant part of their livelihoods. I really hope this gets resolved quickly.

harpersfaerie.itch.io/chasing-rose... Folks I did it I committed to something for once

✨1k Followers Art Raffle!✨ Rules: -Follow + Like + Repost -Comment your OC references -Tag your friends! (Optional) -No giveaway accounts Two random winners will receive one portrait in this style! Ends: September 9th #raffle #giveaway #artraffle

PSA: It has been 28 days since I initiated a payout request from @itch.io, and I've yet to be paid. It's been 8 days since I reached out to support, and I've yet to receive a response. I'm not sure if they're having money, staffing, or technical problems, but this isn't acceptable.

Matheus Graef, the artist that illustrated the @hellomcdm.bsky.social kobolds (among other things), is releasing their own RPG in a few weeks.

Unleash the draconic blood running through your veins with the Kobold Ancestry for Draw Steel! As you adventure, unlock more draconic features until you can transform into a dragon. www.backerkit.com/c/projects/p...

Friends (esp if you live in CA) we REALLY need signatures on this petition supporting Bill AB412 - the AI Copyright Transparency Act. TLDR = this will require AI corps to be transparent about what is in their datasets! Signing takes 1 min. Once you sign, PLEASE SHARE!! tinyurl.com/4uxbp963

My precious murder babies!

The Kobold Ancestry crowdfunding campaign is just about halfway through. I'm blown away by the reception thus far, but it's not too late to back and get a custom leveled treasure or leader stat block. www.backerkit.com/c/projects/p...

My TTRPG hot take is that if you ask one of my friends "Do you read at a third grade level?", I immediately lose any interest in the points you're trying to make and block you. Life is too short for that shit.

Chekhov's pneumatic tubes is a TTRPG principle that every element you describe in a scene will be weaponized by the collection of gremlins you run for. For example, if you mention the space station has an extensive pneumatic tube system, one of your players will immediately shove a grenade in it.

Draw Steel is the collective work of dozens of folks at the top of their games. Today lots of folks are rightfully trading plaudits. My turn! We have the best testing team in the industry. Several hundred tests—several thousand hours—went into refining the books that hit your inbox this morning. 🧵

I'm $8 away from overtaking the Pesto's Guide to Testing crowdfunder, which is wild to me. This is an ancestry for a game that hasn't even formally released yet, and that was system agnostic, but written with 5e in mind. Hope this is a portent for DS's future. www.backerkit.com/c/projects/p...

Oh, right, I probably should do at least some marketing for my ongoing crowdfunder. Umm... *taps mic*... I have an ongoing crowdfunder. The Kobold Ancestry for Draw Steel. Gain new ancestry features as you play. Become a literal dragon. Check it out today: www.backerkit.com/c/projects/p...

Itch lets creators set their cut. I changed it to 0% when they started delisting LGBTQ content (let's call a spade a spade). Itch responded by turning all of my info panels greyscale. Looks like when my bandwidth frees up, I'll track down that Rising Tide talk about setting up your own storefront.

I converted or designed all 50 weapons in this collection. If you back both this and the Kobold Ancestry, you'll unlock two exclusive level treasures! Check it out: