Quote from Shadomain Staff on December 2, 2024, 1:19 am

NOTE: the opinions expressed in interviews are those of the guests, not necessarily those of shadomain.com.

Today’s Tales From the Tavern interview is with Andrew Kolb, noted artist, writer and ttrpg designer. We wanted to ask him about his newest release. But let’s let Andrew tell you about his work:

Sure! So I’m Andrew Kolb, author/illustrator/designer/cartographer behind Wonderland: A Fantasy Role-Playing Setting, Oz: A Fantasy Role-Playing Setting and Neverland: A Fantasy Role-Playing Setting. When I’m not designing role-playing games I spend most of my time as an illustrator. Oh and I write a bit as well.
You can find me at @kolbisneat on instagram and twitter, https://kolbisneat.bsky.social/ on Bluesky

• Your latest book is Wonderland, following your previous RPG books, Oz and Neverland. Can you describe these books for people who might not be familiar?

  Of course! With each of these books I take a public domain work (or works) and reimagine it as a robust setting for TTRPG players to explore. The goal is for it to feel like you’re playing in the world of the source material, while still providing those who are familiar with a number of surprises. Practically speaking, each book is filled with enough lore, maps, NPCs, monsters, and random tables to provide you with months (sometimes years) of adventure.

• When you planned your first book, Neverland, did you have in mind that it would be the first of a trilogy?

  I mean a girl can dream, but it was never expected. Neverland getting published was already such a highlight and surprise that I don’t think I’d really planned much beyond that at the outset. Once it was well received and my publisher asked if I had further plans, that’s when I started thinking about this as a trio and how best to tackle their individual needs.
  

• Wonderland is a dungeon crawl, with a modular setup. How did you conceive of that, and could you describe how that works?
  
  With each of these books, I’ve tried to tackle a challenge that I myself have run into as a Gamemaster. The complexity of large dungeons always intimidated me so my approach was to break it up into more digestible pieces. How it works, without spoiling too much, is that Wonderland’s multiple levels are each broken up into “Blocks”. Each block has its own shape built around squares (think tetris blocks) and are joined together by doors. Separating these areas by doors means a Gamemaster can rotate and rearrange the blocks to build their own map of Wonderland to meet their needs. Folks familiar with videogame terms could also think of this as a roguelike setting.
  
• The map of Wonderland is designed as a chessboard. That’s a reference to the original text, but what drew you to this core design?

  The chessboard was the starting point for what ended up being the final approach to the map and setting. I’d originally conceived of the chessboard being the ENTIRE map of Wonderland, and that each square would be a different area/region. But after designing a few maps I realized 64 identically shaped maps would be a drag to design and even worse to run, so that was scrapped. Once I landed on the idea of multiple levels (a staple of classic dungeon design) and expanding the maps to include multiple chessboard squares (some Blocks are a single square, some are as large as 3x3) then it all felt right. It’s hard to explain but a lot of my design process is simply exploring bad ideas until I land on something that makes me think “oh this is so obvious!” and then never looking back.

• Do you look at your RPG books as system independent?
  
  I do. And I also appreciate that each of them say “5E compatible” on the cover. For me, I wanted to make it with a system in mind so that I had a direction, but only use what is absolutely necessary from said system so that folks could have an easier time migrating it to something else. And practically speaking I’m really only referring to the stat blocks of the creatures. 

• Wonderland is written to be a long form campaign, how do you think it lends itself to use in one shots or shorter sessions?
  
  Oh it’s funny you should say that because I really had convention play and one shots in mind when designing Wonderland. I think roguelike dungeon crawls just lend themselves to “get in, grab whatever loot you can, and get out before the end of the night”. The ever-changing nature of the map, along with the endless random tables, means players can explore the same 5 or 6 blocks multiple times and each delve will feel completely different. I’ve also seen a few “mini maps” of Wonderland that only use a few blocks so it’s also great for short-notice adventures where the Gamemaster doesn’t have more than a couple of hours to prepare.

• You do all the writing and illustrations for your books. Which came first, writing or art?
  
  An unsatisfactory answer but it’s often both at the same time. Or sometimes one informs the other. I’ve changed stat blocks to better reflect an illustration because I think it looks cool, and lots of designs are a result of the open space that remains. I try to do a lot of self-editing so whenever I’m stuck or need to lose something, it’s always whatever is the least interesting part of the page.

• Your books have a unified design strongly tied to the subject. How do you decide on appropriate fonts and color palettes?
  
  Thank you! That really means a lot. Part of any project, for me, is research. I want to honour the source material as well as acknowledge everything around it. Whether that’s material that inspired the setting, or material inspired BY the setting, I try to take as much in as possible. So for Wonderland, I looked at design from the 1860s, from books and advertising to playing cards and board games. I also look at the various interpretations of the source material so that I can see what’s come before me and develop my own perspective. Then it’s another case of trial and error until I see something that clicks. I knew I was happy with the title treatment, of Wonderland, for example when I modified a typeface so the W looked like it was made of two silver horns like a demon (which, without spoiling anything, hints at elements inside the book).

• Your books have optional rule systems, like mini-games that emphasize the settings. Do you enjoy game design?
  I do! Though a part of the design process is assuming each book is the first book a TTRPG player is picking up after deciding they want to run their own game. My hope is that someone sees these option rules and decides that they can improve upon them or make their own! Across these three books I have three different approaches to chase sequences. It’s not from thinking I need to improve from the previous iteration. Instead I’m trying to explore the best approach for that setting and reassure other Gamemasters that we’re all just sharing what works for us at our tables. The hobby is at its best when it's grassroots and bespoke. Nothing makes me happier than hearing about folks taking apart my settings and building it into something new for their players.
  
• Do you have plans for future RPG projects?
  To your earlier question, after Neverland I knew I wanted to make these three books. I knew what styles of gameplay I wanted to tackle (Neverland’s hexcrawl, Oz’s pointcrawl, and Wonderland’s dungeoncrawl) and what pillars of the hobby I wanted to feature (Exploration in Neverland, Social in Oz, Combat in Wonderland) and I’m really happy with them as a collection. All this is to say I haven’t yet found that next gameplay challenge or literary setting. Right now I’m in the research phase and know that when I do have something on deck, it’s because I feel passionately about sharing it with the community! Until then, I hope folks will have enough to explore in these three books.

• Do you have any other illustration projects you can let us know about?
  Sure! When I’m not writing/illustrating TTRPG books, I’m mostly illustrating picture books for various reading levels. If you type my name into most online bookstores then something should pop up, or you can go to my website (kolbisneat.com) where I keep everything up to date. You can also find my shop there as well as board games and other projects I’ve had the chance to work on.

  Thanks for having me back to chat about these worlds!

Thanks for entertaining our questions, Andrew!