by Rachel

Not feeling much better today, but, I do have some good news: My old Olympus audio recorder has started working again! It died when the batteries exploded back when I was still in NY and I've kinda just held onto it. A mix of sentimental reasons and a bit of hopeful thinking. Not sure why I decided to check on it today, but I did. 2 new AAs and it was as good as new. As to why this is blog-worthy, well, I've stalled in my video making. My perfectionist side is certainly acting up. Having my trusty recorder back in action is nice. It gives me a more familiar option to record and re-record audio. And it's easier to work with the sound files. Hopefully, this new development results in some more videos. And better quality ones too.

And as promised, what should have been yesterday's full report:

Happy 3rd Friday of 2026, everyone!! And as always on Friday, here are the current Friday links: 2026 Friday on Friday: Play Friday EVERY Friday of 2026 and Friday on Friday, January 2026.

Hello, Level 2. Let's try this again, shall we?

I guess I'll have to try again once my sinuses clear up...

If they hadn't all clumped together I might've stood a chance...

My final score was -34 pts: 26 points from Fighting Cards, -15 points from Aging Cards, 0 points from lifepoints, 0 points for defeating neither pirate, and -45 points from Unbeaten Hazards.

---------------------------

Weekly Updates:


Challenge Updates:
:d10-1: 2023 Extreme Numerology Challenge / 2024 Extreme Numerology Challenge / 2025 Extreme Numerology Challenge: Wrapping up. Microbadges for 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025 will be awarded, please stay tuned! 2026 is live: 2026 Extreme Numerology Challenge
:d10-2: Fire in the Library- Summer/Fall 2023 Solo Challenge- Extended!!: Done! Stay tuned for a new series of mini challenges that include some more Weird Giraffe-themed fan promos. COMING THIS SUMMER! (2026)
:d10-3: 2025 Challenge: 25 un(der)played in 25: is Wrapped! If you spot errors or make updates, please geekmail me.
:d10-4: 2026 Challenge: 26 un(der)played in 26: is Active!
:d10-5: A special note on the Friday on Friday challenges: ALL owed microbadges should be system-awarded THIS YEAR. ALL microbadge reimbursements complete! Update: Stay tuned for progress on microbadges!


Designer's Corner:
:d10-1: The 7th Seal : Work continues. Slowly.
:d10-2: Finders Keepers: No new progress.
:d10-3: Charge the Circle: Ready for Pitching! & Currently re-working for self-publication via The Game Crafter in early 2026! Current timeline: I want this to be for sale by March 1st! Here's the sitch: the game is fine to pitch in its current form BUT needs quite a bit of work if I'm going to put this up on The Game Crafter and get the game noticed that way. The current art.. probably isn't enough to catch attention. I've got ideas... but I'm also open to ideas, so, if you've got anything you'd like to share or anything you'd like to see, please let me know! You can follow along with the ongoing graphic development and vote for your favorite versions here: A new edition coming in 2026!. Yes, there are currently some comments/feedback waiting for me that I haven't addressed. I will get there! Promise! I'm just juggling a lot of irons right now.
:d10-4: Bears love Bows: Merry Trashmas edition: Now pitching! Pitch still still ongoing? maybe no news is good news??? STILL STRESSING! Still working on a pitch video because at this point, it can't hurt... and I'm crap with video so the going is SLOW
:d10-5: Really Retail: No new progress.
:d10-6: Barricade Brigade: Playing catch-up! Please stay tuned!
:d10-7: The Boxcats of Meowazon : No new progress.
:d10-8: Contagion and Calamity: The Philadelphia Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793: formerly Philly Fever 1793: No new progress.
:d10-9: Read the Runes: Work on Inscriptions and Keystone Borders continues. 2.0 working rules and PNP files available. TTS is live! Sell sheet posted! Please stay tuned to Friday updates and the WIP thread for continuing developments :D.
:d10-1::d10-0: 10 Minutes to Midnight: I've still got feedback to address over in the WIP thread... *sigh* This has been lower on my priority list due to active contests...
:d10-1::d10-1: Eight Elephants: Ready for pitching! As much as I'd like this game to join Charge the Circle on The Game Crafter... the art pretty much disqualifies it. That said, I am looking into a re-skin/re-theme of either this or Eighteen Eggs. This may be an opportunity for Snow Storm/Snow Squall to evolve... Thoughts?
:d10-1::d10-2: Surfboard Stealin' Sea Otters: Officially my entry in this year's 54-Card Contest! Contest complete! #2 Best Family Game and #8 Best Overall Game! Woot! Post-contest: expect some minor revisions in the next month or so, then I plan on pitching the otters and seeing if I can catch some waves...
:d10-1::d10-3: Rolling Runes Rules/components still in-progress. Game delayed to 2026 Roll and Write Contest.
:d10-1::d10-4: Tricky Treats: Rules, Scorepad, Solo Mode Player Aid, and Sell Sheet all new/updated! PNP remains the same! TTS unchanged. Video still in-progress. Game now considered complete and officially Ready for Pitching!
:d10-1::d10-5: Defend your Dreams: (formerly Dreamcatcher Duty): No new progress.
:d10-1::d10-6: Squirrelly (formerly Woodland Warriors) : Contest complete! #3 for Best Art! 2 mini expansions available! Ready for pitching!
:d10-1::d10-7: Trick or Treat : No new progress.
:d10-1::d10-8: Last Leaves : No new progress. Planning on entering this is the 2026 Children and Family Game Design Contest- family category.
:d10-1::d10-9: Fireworks for the Fourth: Ready for pitching! No new progress, though it would be nice to get this on The Game Crafter before July 4th...
:d10-2::d10-0: Composer's Cat: New Year's Eve Concert: Lyricist reborn! 2024 In-Hand Game Design Contest: 5th Best Multiplayer Game; 6th Best Innovative Mechanic; 7th Best Use of Theme; and 4th Best Low-Ink Printing! Major revision in-progress ahead of entry into 2026 Cardboard Edison!
:d10-2::d10-1: Unnamed design: Involves the Titanic and Jenny the ship cat... No new progress.
:d10-2::d10-2: Nine Nopes: No new progress.
:d10-2::d10-3: Book it!: No new progress.
:d10-2::d10-4: Librarian's Cat: formerly Palm Library. formerly Littlest Library. 2025 In-Hand Game Design Contest: contest is complete... but I've got plenty of unfinished business to see to and I intend to see it all through! Please stay tuned! Sell sheet available.
:d10-2::d10-5: Elements: Ready for pitching! No new progress.
:d10-2::d10-6: Knick Knacks: Shaker Showdown : Contest complete! #3 Best Solo Game, #3 Best 2 Player Game, and #4 Best Family Game! Not bad, not bad at all, especially since I fell woefully behind on the comments... I do plan on addressing all of the feedback. And I do want to continue to refine and improve the game. There's a decent little game here and it's worth pursuing. Still working on additional revisions, including some interesting new twists to the gameplay.
:d10-2::d10-7: History Heist: On hold.
:d10-2::d10-8: Lost in the Labyrinth. No new progress.
:d10-2::d10-9: Critter Calls: Ready for pitching! And TTS is live! Video still in-progress!
:d10-3::d10-0: Dragon's Draw: No new progress.
:d10-3::d10-1: Push to the Peak: No new progress.
:d10-3::d10-2: Cardshop Caretaker: No new progress.
:d10-3::d10-3: Unlucky Spirits, Revised Edition: EXCITING TIMES: New thread posted! New working rulebook posted! New print and play files posted! Uncooperative Spirits campaign in-progress. Revised Edition formally entered in 2026 Two-Player Game Design Contest! Come on folks, take a look and help me get this game off the ground!
:d10-3::d10-4: Water always wins: Still ON HOLD.
:d10-3::d10-5: Sniper, take the shot!: No new progress.
:d10-3::d10-6: Abydos: Contest complete, game did not place... I'm disappointed, but I'm still committed to getting this game out there. Crunching the numbers and weighing my options, potentially coming to The Game Crafter in 2026...
:d10-3::d10-7: Nine Tails: Ready for pitching! And this is another game that might be a good fit for The Game Crafter...
:d10-3::d10-8: Puppy Pile: (formerly Dogpile). No new progress.
:d10-3::d10-9: Compound It!: No new progress.
:d10-4::d10-0: My Little Fish Tank: No new progress.
:d10-4::d10-1: Knick Knacks: Lovely Lamps : Sequel to Knick Knacks: Shaker Showdown. No new progress.
:d10-4::d10-2: Put a bow on it! No new progress.
:d10-4::d10-3: Gator Glory! No new progress.
:d10-4::d10-4: Eighteen Eggs: Contest complete, game did not place. *sigh*. Rain, Rain Mini Expansion and Player Aids available.
:d10-4::d10-5: Triskell (or maybe Triskellion): name not final: No new progress.
:d10-4::d10-6: Snow Squall: See Eight Elephants above.
:d10-4::d10-7: So, you want to be a mage...: No new progress.
:d10-4::d10-8: Cursed Cards: No new progress. Delayed until the 2026 contest. Again, I like this little game, but I need to concentrate my efforts elsewhere.
:d10-4::d10-9: Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice: My entry in Button Shy's 18-Card Cozy Contest! Finalists announced- PS&EN didn't make the cut. *sigh* No Button Shy for me... yet. Current rules, components, sell sheet, and pitch video still available while the real work begins. I'm going to yank all references to the Button Shy Bed & Breakfast, fine-tune the rules and graphics, re-do the logo, and then... this game is coming to The Game Crafter!
:d10-5::d10-0: Monk's Cat: The Book of [Pawprints]: The third game in the Cat Companion Card Game series, sequel to Composer's Cat and Librarian's Cat. Officially entrered in the 2026 In-Hand Game Design Contest! WIP up! Rough rules and components available! Made it! Currently re-working the art assets!
:d10-5::d10-1: War of the Wilds: No new progress.
:d10-5::d10-2: Unnamed Puzzle Game: multi-level campaign puzzle game in the vein of Abydos, Read the Runes, and Charge the Circle. Fuzzball-inspired. No new progress.
:d10-5::d10-3: Nine Lives: Open Owl is looking for solo game books and I'm going to throw my hat in the ring! Rough draft is in-progress.
:d10-5::d10-4: Who's ready for the owlidays?: Still working-ish. If I can get it playing smoothly, then it'll be my entry in the 2026 54-Card Contest...


Professional Projects:
:d10-1: Explosion in the Laboratory/Fire in the Library (2nd edition): Weird Giraffe Games: Campaign wrapped! Campaign fulfilled! Campaign complete!
:d10-2: Dreams of Yesterday: Weird Giraffe Games: Campaign wrapped! Campaign fulfilled! Campaign complete!
:d10-3: In the Shadows: Resistance in France 1943 - 1944: GMT Games: Complete! I still haven't managed to get this back to my table. Gah! In the meantime... see A Solo Sunday Salute - First Impressions - In the Shadows for a preview.
:d10-4: Crumbs!: The Sandwich Filler Game: Minerva Tabletop Games: Initial feedback in. First impressions and some extra crumbs: Solo Sundays- First Impressions: Crumbs!: The Sandwich Filler Game and Solo Saturdays - Continuing to make Crumbs. More formal review posted: Rachel Reviews It- Crumbs!: The Sandwich Filler Game. Campaign funded! Campaign ongoing. Fingers-crossed that Minerva Tabletop Games comes through... it looks like this is finally in the process of fulfilling...
:d10-5: Crystallo expansions and miniature edition: Light Heart Games: Initial feedback in. Previews and additional adventures shared: A crystal cavern at the garage aka mini Crystallo is here!, First Impressions: Crystallo: Untold Fortune, Solo Saturdays- First Impressions: Crystallo: Den of Dragons, and Solo Stories- Playing with all of Crystallo. More formal review posted: Rachel Reviews It- Crystallo: Untold Fortune and Crystallo: Den of Dragons. Campaign funded! Campaign ongoing... AND there's GOOD NEWS: Crystallo lives!.
:d10-6: Lost Adventures: Belltower Games: First Impressions and continuing adventures shared: Two-Player Thursdays- First Impressions: Lost Adventures, Two-Player Tuesdays- Getting Lost with Mom, and Solo Stories - Lost Adventures. More formal review posted: Rachel Reviews It: Lost Adventures. Campaign wrapped! Campaign fulfilled. Campaign complete.
:d10-7: Quirky Bird Games: The zine campaign funded! That's a wrap! Congrats Beth and Angel! Fulfillment ongoing. Keep up the great work!
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On my to-do for the weekend:
Check in on all of my active WIPs to address feedback, check in on the 1PG card exchange, get caught up here on BGG, submit my annual application for a GenCon Participation Grant (a yearly tradition at this point), continue working on videos, and get Composer's Cat's 2026 Cardboard Edison submission finalized.

Game Over On borrowed time...

Happy Friday Saturday and happy playing!
-Rachel

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by scolex

€20.00 for RPG Item: Shadowrun RPG 5th Edition Core Rulebook
Condition: Good
Location: Czechia

by sdonohue

Squeaks in the Deep is a 2022 release from Onyx Path Publishing. It is set in the Realms of Pugmire and is designed be compatible with Pugmire and Monarchies of Mau; in fact, you'll need one of those to play. The book lists the developer as Eddy Webb and a team of writers; likewise, there's a team of writers.

Presentation
This book is available in PDF and hardcover. the hardcover has color covers and glossy color interiors. It is well illustrated and the content is primarily a two-column layout. The book is about 156 pages.

Content
This book expands the Realms of Pugmire to allow players to create mice and rats as characters. About 60 pages of the book is devoted to the basics of character creation which are similar to those in Pugmire or 5E. Players can be mice or rats, which then controls some of their starting abilities. They then choose a calling, similar to a class. The callings are Analysts (scientifically minded, but with arcane magic), Psychic (divine casters with mental abilities), Rascals (similar to bards), Ruffians (warriors), Strategists (planners), and tricksters (typical rogues). Each calling grants access to range of skills, starting knacks, and a calling knack. The callings also suggest some ideas about how members of that calling are seen by others and how they see others. There's also a few ideas for characters with that calling.

From there, players choose a background for their character as well as a series of knacks. Knacks are special abilities and powers the rodent has access to and are described in this chapter.

The third chapter covers Psionics, which is new to the Realms. Rodents with psionics can choose from a list of more than 60 different powers. Each power is described with its college (there are 4 colleges: galvanism, humanism, insight, and parapsychology) and magnitude. There's also an activation tme, range, duration, and then a description of the game effects of the power.

Chapter 4, Life in the Margins, explains what it's like to be a rodent in the Realms, with breakdowns of attitudes and issues by location. This section also introduces "The Underneath", an area of tunnels and warrens which exists beneath the cities and villages of the realms.

The remainder of the book is really aimed at the gamemasters. It includes a lengthy section on The Underneath including ideas for successfully involving players in mega-dungeons (not really an element of the setting before this), More details on legendary locations and common features in the Underneath, a lengthy section on new enemies common in the Underneath. The section ends with some tips on how to create dynamic battles using locations, pacing, and climactic actions.

The book ends with a starting adventure "The Confluence of Cults". The synopsis is that some rats have found a way to have the Unseen make a club popular by controlling those who attend. The characters are asked to investigate the sudden rise in popularity of the club. The adventure has the characters work through the underneath until they can find the mice behind the whole thing.

Evaluation
First, I'm a big fan of Pugmire, so I'm prone to like this and I do. It's well-written and the rodents make interesting characters with a viewpoint and culture different from that of cats or dogs. Maybe that's part of the appeal -- different characters are easy to personify. This book isn't complete though and you'll definitely need one of the other two books to get there.

I like the callings and the knacks. I suspect that the psionic powers will create some arguments with rules-oriented players as there's not a ton of information on edge cases. Even so, the powers feel interesting and fun, which is more important to me. The advice for the GM is good, although much of it will probably be common knowledge for experienced fantasy gms. One thing I like about the adventure is that it has multiple starting points, which lead to the first scene. Each scene talks about what happens at that location, provides some trouble-shooting, and then explains which scenes are likely to be next.

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