Grinning Rat Publications (Nate)
CREATOR
26 days ago

Project Update: UPDATE 9 ▫️ The One About A New Year & Supporting Friends


Hello hello hello,

Hope everybody has had a good beginning to 2026! Things have been pretty calm over here now, though some family illnesses and daycare closures have thrown a wrench over the course of January. Here's hoping February is a bit less chaotic!

Not a ton to update everyone on this time - work continues on Certain Fathoms and its accessories. As we mentioned at the end of December, all of these are going to be delivered via the mega-pledge manager coming Soon™️from Tuesday Knight Games. Once that's available, you should be able to download what's been completed so far.

As a reminder:



"Ah!", you may be thinking. "Are Secret Levels and Employee of the Month delayed!?"

Well... yes.

But it's for a good reason. Let me explain.


First, Employee of the Month is an expansion that allows for running Certain Fathoms solo (or as a Warden with one player). I have a rough draft of these rules, but there are some folks in the solo-roleplaying space who I would like to show it for potential edits.

The last thing I want to do is make some solo rules that amount to a worse version of what you can get in a generalist book, like Mythic GME or something.


Second, Secret Levels is a collaborative effort between myself, Watt, Snow, Alfred Valley, and Sam Sorensen. If you hadn't noticed, all of those people are either currently running a crowdfunding campaign or are in some phase of fulfilling a crowdfunding campaign.

Not to mention all the personal things on my end that required my attention, we put a little life pause on this while everybody (mostly me) could get their bearings.

That said, things are moving!

Watt has finished their lovely floor, "The Operation", featuring a group of women stuck in an experiment that nobody bothered to tell them was shuttered. And I've gotten confirmation from everyone else that their floors are underway as well.

That said, I'd like to take a moment to shine a spotlight on them because they're so cool and nice and they deserve support:

Sam Sorensen: A FAMILIAR TOWER


Sam Sorensen is providing work on the very cool looking A FAMILIAR TOWER, an escape room / puzzle dungeon adventure for Old-School Essentials.

Snow: SCREAMING METAL: VECTOR SOUL


Snow is (and has been) working on... well, I'll just let her describe it:

Screaming Metal: Vector Soul is a mecha ttrpg about toxic lesbians piloting living machines for exorbitant amounts of money so they can live lavish lifestyles before being torn to shreds by the poisonous arms of hyperspace. Click here to download the playtest and read for yourself!

Anybody that knows me knows this is right up my alley. Might even get to play it with some folks soon!

Alfred Valley: BRUTE FORT


Alfred ran a campaign for BRUTE FORT late last year that's still accepting late pledges last I checked! 

Exactly what you'd expect from the Valley of Alfred: stylish, clean, deadly simple to pick up and play. Plus you know I can't help myself when I see a soundtrack...

Watt: RUST WINGS


On March 3rd, Watt's launching the crowdfunding campaign for Rust Wings, a ghibli-inspired adventure ttrpg where you play as misfit teens who build and pilot their own planes from the scrap around them. Abandoned cities, sky pirates, and more await!

The inspirations (Castle in the Sky, Arcane, and Mega-Man) got me curious but the fact that it's an adaptation of the Mausritter rules has my attention. Very excited to see this!

Also, just have to shout out Watt for fulfilling all the Cloud Empress stuff - two campaigns! We always have to give creators a hand when they deliver on what was promised. Also the books are gorgeous and dripping with flavor and inspiration.


Obviously we live in a world of things costing an exorbitant amount - and increasing all the time. But when we have the opportunity to support indie creators, especially ones associated with the work we do, it's on us to show support in any way we can.

If you have the discretionary funds, please consider backing one (or all) of these projects! 

  • Sam and Snow's projects are currently underway as a part of Zinetopia 2026 here on BackerKit, so now's your chance to get some of the goods while they're hot! 
  • Meanwhile, Alfred's project is taking late pledges like I mentioned!
  • Following Rust Wings from Watt will ensure it has the strongest possible start when it kicks off.

If money's tight, there's other support you can give! Just sharing the projects around, getting the word out, and even reaching out to ask how you can help may make a big difference.

Anyway, that's about it for the update this month: continuing to work on Certain Fathoms, getting things ready for the mega-pledge manager, and trying to stay warm & healthy.

Oh, and finally getting around to trying Expedition 33 - what a game!

- Nate
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