Chris Gardiner

Mandrake - A Mandrake by Any Other Name - Steam News Narrative Director Chris is here with the history of Mandrakes in the real world, and insight into how the people of Chandley feel about Mandrakes.

Read more about Mandrakes, the naming of things, and how to introduce a new world to a player without going too weird, too fast in our recent blog post by @chrisgardiner.bsky.social.

And if you, too, are enthralled by the magic of the Mandrakes then please drop us a wishlist; it's a great help!

A public domain black and white botanical illustration of a mandrake with root and leaf, entitled Mandragoras.

Here are some real and actual facts about Mandrakes:

- Their smell could drive away demons
- It was a popular component of fertility spells
- Witches used it in the unguents which gave them the power of flight

So: the perfect plant to name our new game and its protagonist after.

#indiedev

Yes! I just finished A Pirate’s Tale a few weeks ago – it was brilliant.

I LOVED Wild Card, too – such a perfect Star Wars idea.

Big same.

Things! GOLD TEETH Beta, Book Delay, Doomsong, Poor Old Jim Welcome, bold adventurers, to the TEETH newsletter! This is a (sort of) weekly transmission about our explorations in the very secret land of Tabletop...

I did a newsletter. But more importantly I DID A VIDEO. Riiiight out of my comfort zone, but entirely inspired and necessary because Doomsong is so fucking cool. Check it out (and also get yourself a copy of Wyrd Science issue 7):

Refuse to live in a world where I’m expected to pretend I understand what gilts are.

hey! i have space to do some freelance work next week! you want me to look at your steam page? you want to talk about indie game marketing and get some solid advice? let's talk!!

This is what we're talking about when we say we're excited to have honest-to-goodness sunlight in our new game, Mandrake.

Hope you got hazard pay.

They will be remembered.

In the abstract, obvs.

A miracle you’re still here to tell the tale.

Just seen some people are trying to spell “manoeuvre“ again.

Please don’t. Someone could die.

That word is only to be spelled by trained writers working in safe conditions and using specialist equipment.

I got to write another Exceptional Story for Fallen London!! Check it out!!!

”summoned an owl to rip someone’s throat out” IN THE FIRST FIVE MINUTES.

This is your official warning that Halloween approaches and the best thing you could do with your TTRPG group for a one off blood-shrine-hunting Regency romp is to buy and read TEETH: Blood Cotillion now

“HAVE YOU MET ANY PEOPLE?! THEY’RE FUCKIN’ *WILD*!”

Mandrake - The Chaos of Nature - Steam News Mandrake Art Director Toby Cook, who was also Lead Artist on Sunless Skies, shares our inspirations and references for the Mandrake setting.

You can read a full blog post about our visual development - and give us a wishlist - on Steam. It really helps!

An illustration from Mandrake. A ruined red brick archway in a lush green open space, with a river, brick bridge, simple wooden fence and dirt path.

We're making Mandrake, a rural life sim set in a beguiling new world inspired by British history and folklore.

Now we're not in the Fallen London universe (Sunless Sea, Sunless Skies), we had the opportunity to add sunshine! And trees! 😮 🧵

#wishlistwednesday

92% funded!
And at 100% we'll reveal the author & artist duo behind the 17,000 word bonus 'zine we're gunning to unlock as our first stretch goal...
www.backerkit.com/c/projects/b...

reading through bits of fallen london: the roleplaying game for approvals is truly a delicious gift, i think you all are going to LOVE all the lore we're capturing *and* all the new things going into it

Farage vows to scrap indefinite leave to remain, placing thousands at risk of deportation Reform UK plans to force non-citizens to apply for visas with high salary thresholds and no access to NHS services

This policy is stupid, cruel, immoral, chaotic, pointless and – as if more was needed – economically illiterate and destructive. Adopting it requires lying to people about what it would actually entail, and the media choosing not to discuss its horrifying costs.

www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Imagine an AU where young (not)Genghis gets his shit kicked in by a rival, loses his throne, and becomes a hunted outlaw across all of (not)Asia, that's Orhan Timur.

1) you can read em in any order
2) Dariel is SO GOOD at writing action, small scale or large
3) he makes wizards so gross, goddamn

This is a lovely piece (and I particularly enjoyed the fierce Dickens opinions) but be warned: by the end of it, my list of “books I have to read“ had expanded dangerously.

Girl By Moonlight: Hope, Transcendence, Transformation Ben Macready speaks to Andrew Gillis about Girl By Moonlight, a game of tragic struggles, defiant triumphs and personal transformation.

So, you know we've a new print mag out in a hot minute but that also means we can finally spend some time on our new website too

Kicking things off @macreadymusings.bsky.social speaks to @andrewgillis.bsky.social about Girl By Moonlight (@evilhat.bsky.social), hope, transcendence & transformation

It lives again!

DOOMSPIRAL Venture to the doomed land of Weftenhaal to reclaim Fate and slay the gods.

Very much digging the look of this. None of the TTRPG attempts to emulate Dark Souls so far have worked for me, but this one looks very, very promising.

Plus @soulmuppet.co.uk do great writing, ingenious narrative design, and beautiful books.

www.kickstarter.com/projects/sou...

Not only am I communications director at Failbetter Games, I am also available for indie games marketing help.

Typically I focus on Steam store pages. Get them right, and everything else becomes easier.

My services are as follows:

Mandrake - A Mandrake by Any Other Name - Steam News Narrative Director Chris is here with the history of Mandrakes in the real world, and insight into how the people of Chandley feel about Mandrakes.

Why call our new game Mandrake? And what's in the name Mandrake, for the people of Chandley?

Here's @chrisgardiner.bsky.social to answer whether a name is ever just a name.

Team Cherry: "What's Steam? Is it a software?"

One of my all-time favourite games. A complete reimagining of D&D from the ground up, beautifully imagined and written.

Plus it has an incredible range of support in the form of scenarios (all of which are fantastic) and articles collected in yearly annuals. It punches well above its weight!