HTHRFLWRS #5 - Ghost Fish

Hey y’all! It’s me, Heather Flowers. You know, from school? Let’s talk TABLETOP GAMES.

Specifically, Crucible of Aether! One of my favorite TTRPGs in development right now, it’s a mystic-industrial fantasy game with an extremely cool and evocative character creation/building system that continues throughout the entirety of play. It’s got its Kickstarter prelaunch page up now — give it a follow!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/366614887/crucible-of-aether-a-mystic-industrial-ttrpg

I’ve played several games of CoA so far (I’m running a campaign for it right now, actually) and it’s a system that churns out compelling characters with incredible grace. I recently made a war priest from a drumming-based blacksmithing religion who’s on a quest for redemption after a war tore his homeland apart. He’s learned how to use his magic smithing drum to heat metal in battle, but can he use it… to mend what was broken??

Seriously, CoA rules. And you can play it right now! Check it out!

This week’s work

Recently I’ve been working on [REDACTED], which is very [REDACTED]. I appreciate that [REDACTED], especially since [REDACTED]. It’s a lot of fun, and I’ll be able to say more at some point!

I’ve also been working on the full version of FISH FEAR ME. The next stage of the game involves reworking the map some (the demo had a couple preludes to this, if you explored the Harbor/Reeds thoroughly) and introduces a new type of enemy: Guardians!

Guardians are stronger versions of regular fish with some extra-special properties. They appear in the mid-late game once you start toying with eldritch forces more directly. Essentially, the further you go in the game, the weirder and more obscure the puzzles will get. At the start, you’re catching whatever fish you want; then you get the Bounty Board and have to hunt down specific fish; then you get the Tacklebox and have to use your intuition to complete lure quests; then you get the Bell of the Deep and get to interface with the world in a whole new way. It’s been really fun watching people experiment with it in playtests, and still be finding secrets after several hours. This is turning into a big game!!

Last Week’s Discussion: Webcomics!

Last newsletter I asked y’all about what webcomics you were reading. Here’s a couple responses I enjoyed:

Evie Finch: the webcomic that has been absolutely destroying me is Please Forgive Me!!!. it’s technically a sequel to their previous webcomic It Hurts!!, but it’s also genuinely good on its own and doesn’t depend on having read It Hurts!!. the writing is unique as hell, i love the way that the dialogue cramps up against the speech bubbles, and a newer character has been delivering chilling moment after chilling moment.

gotyaoi: a few webcomics I'm reading are
* fairmeadow, d&d adjacent fantasy comic set in this commune that a soldier ends up in, trauma and drama stuff. it should be coming back from summer break soon.
* rising sand, the world is ending, but it wasn't a very good one anyway. but wait, mysteries, twists, surprises!
* ultraviolents (18+), who's got two thumbs, is gay and has severe social regulation disorders? everyone in this comic!

I haven’t finished all of these, but I’ve been enjoying digging into them. Thanks for the recs, everybody!

On to the question of the week: How was your Halloween? Get up to anything fun? Do anything special? Let me know! Same as before, I’ll collect some of your answers and put ‘em in the next newsletter. See you next week!

— Heather Flowers

Want to respond to the discussion questions? Email me at heatherflowersbusiness@gmail.com!