Mark Casiglio
@markcsigs.bsky.social
He/Him. Retired dad, husband, grandpa. TTRPG fan, forever GM by choice. Occasional blogger. Proud New Englander.
Ask about Schadengard, my online Shadowdark West Marches campaign (campaign banner art Eon Fontes-May YCBN Games)
Ask about Schadengard, my online Shadowdark West Marches campaign (campaign banner art Eon Fontes-May YCBN Games)
Pinned
Mark Casiglio
@markcsigs.bsky.social
· Apr 29
Dear ttrpg community...
PLEASE STOP TELLING PEOPLE THAT THEY'RE HAVING FUN WRONG.
Thank you.
PLEASE STOP TELLING PEOPLE THAT THEY'RE HAVING FUN WRONG.
Thank you.
More Mythic Bastionland content! #ttrpg
Mythic Bastionland - Preparations and Analysis
My group had its second session of Mythic Bastionland this past Thursday.
open.substack.com
November 22, 2025 at 3:39 AM
More Mythic Bastionland content! #ttrpg
Just me recommending another Shadowdark adventure.
Two of my Favorite Shadowdark Adventures II
Finally the other one! I know you shiver with antici...
open.substack.com
November 18, 2025 at 4:02 PM
Just me recommending another Shadowdark adventure.
He gets me! He really gets me! @slyflourish.com summing up my feelings exactly about OSR style play and OSR style games and the OSR community and overcategorization in general. AND he pronounces “Primer” correctly!!
What Is the OSR? – Lazy RPG Talk Show
YouTube video by Sly Flourish – The Lazy Dungeon Master
youtu.be
November 18, 2025 at 2:23 PM
He gets me! He really gets me! @slyflourish.com summing up my feelings exactly about OSR style play and OSR style games and the OSR community and overcategorization in general. AND he pronounces “Primer” correctly!!
Going to be doing a live stream of this afternoon's #Shadowdark game on my friend's Twitch stream. Come check it out if you're interested 1:30 - 5:30(ish) EST www.twitch.tv/onlyhowardmoon
OnlyHowardMoon - Twitch
Got two hours to game, lets go
www.twitch.tv
November 15, 2025 at 6:25 PM
Going to be doing a live stream of this afternoon's #Shadowdark game on my friend's Twitch stream. Come check it out if you're interested 1:30 - 5:30(ish) EST www.twitch.tv/onlyhowardmoon
Ran my first game of Mythic Bastionland last night!
First Time Running Mythic Bastionland
My Thursday night group started a campaign to finish out 2025
open.substack.com
November 15, 2025 at 3:18 AM
Ran my first game of Mythic Bastionland last night!
I link the Atlantic article I reference in the Substack, but I'll also put it in the second half of the post for easy reference.
Tabletop Gaming and Revisionist History
From someone who was actually there.
open.substack.com
November 11, 2025 at 5:22 PM
I link the Atlantic article I reference in the Substack, but I'll also put it in the second half of the post for easy reference.
Wrote about my ArcaneCon experience on Substack. Spoiler alert: It was awesome!
ArcaneCon - Recap and Review
An amazing weekend of RPGs! Unaffiliated links galore!
open.substack.com
November 10, 2025 at 10:16 PM
Wrote about my ArcaneCon experience on Substack. Spoiler alert: It was awesome!
I mean, how can you *not* get behind mice and mechs?!?
Mechritter: An Expansion for Mausritter
A modular mech-building simulator and urban adventure setting for Mausritter.
www.backerkit.com
November 8, 2025 at 7:53 AM
I mean, how can you *not* get behind mice and mechs?!?
Chatting with @nightnoon.games reminded me that I never shared my latest write-up here.
Two of my Favorite Shadowdark Adventures
A review of two adventures I've now run multiple times each - part one
open.substack.com
November 7, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Chatting with @nightnoon.games reminded me that I never shared my latest write-up here.
Recap of the last RPG convention I addended. Four great games!
HBG-Con X Recap
Four of the best game sessions I've ever played!
open.substack.com
October 26, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Recap of the last RPG convention I addended. Four great games!
Overheard today at the Verizon Store:
Sales Associate: "Can I get your e-mail address?"
Older Customer: "I don't have e-mail."
SA: "Oh, uh ..." starts to mention ways to get past not having an e-mail address.
OC: "I don't have e-mail. But I do have G-mail, will that work?"
Sales Associate: "Can I get your e-mail address?"
Older Customer: "I don't have e-mail."
SA: "Oh, uh ..." starts to mention ways to get past not having an e-mail address.
OC: "I don't have e-mail. But I do have G-mail, will that work?"
October 3, 2025 at 10:36 PM
Overheard today at the Verizon Store:
Sales Associate: "Can I get your e-mail address?"
Older Customer: "I don't have e-mail."
SA: "Oh, uh ..." starts to mention ways to get past not having an e-mail address.
OC: "I don't have e-mail. But I do have G-mail, will that work?"
Sales Associate: "Can I get your e-mail address?"
Older Customer: "I don't have e-mail."
SA: "Oh, uh ..." starts to mention ways to get past not having an e-mail address.
OC: "I don't have e-mail. But I do have G-mail, will that work?"
What if it really was The Rapture yesterday, but just nobody qualified?
September 24, 2025 at 1:07 PM
What if it really was The Rapture yesterday, but just nobody qualified?
Another amusing (I hope) anecdote from my ttrpg playing career.
Tales of Hilarity: Unexpected Guests
Funny RPG Stories? I've got a million of them.
open.substack.com
September 12, 2025 at 7:27 PM
Another amusing (I hope) anecdote from my ttrpg playing career.
Logan’s Run needs a sequel where people who had their food, shelter, clothing, child bearing and parenting, etc. done for them - suddenly getting “freedom” from AI never knowing anything more than recreation and pleasure.
It's a “that happy ending isn’t as happy as you think” kind of film.
It's a “that happy ending isn’t as happy as you think” kind of film.
September 12, 2025 at 5:28 PM
Logan’s Run needs a sequel where people who had their food, shelter, clothing, child bearing and parenting, etc. done for them - suddenly getting “freedom” from AI never knowing anything more than recreation and pleasure.
It's a “that happy ending isn’t as happy as you think” kind of film.
It's a “that happy ending isn’t as happy as you think” kind of film.
Holy shit, it worked! :o
We Paid Some Etsy Witches to Curse Charlie Kirk
If the far-right misogynist with a bad haircut wants to villainize independent women, Jezebel is more than happy to be the hag of his nightmares.
www.jezebel.com
September 11, 2025 at 1:43 PM
Holy shit, it worked! :o
This week's Rulings, Not Rules - looking for lessons from a campaign session 37 years in the past.
Looking for Lessons from a Difficult Game Session. From 1988.
A memorable session - but for the right or wrong reasons?
open.substack.com
September 9, 2025 at 4:02 PM
This week's Rulings, Not Rules - looking for lessons from a campaign session 37 years in the past.
Old man shares funny story from the old days.
Tales of Hilarity: The Noxzema Incident
Funny RPG stories? I got a million of them
markcasiglio.substack.com
September 4, 2025 at 8:51 PM
Old man shares funny story from the old days.
My latest column dredges up a tired subject after a positive discussion on Discord gives me hope for better conversation. #RulingsnotRules #Shadowdark
My Orcs Are Going to Be Whatever I Want Them to Be, Thank You Very Much.
A fresh take on an old argument? Probably not.
open.substack.com
September 2, 2025 at 8:54 PM
My latest column dredges up a tired subject after a positive discussion on Discord gives me hope for better conversation. #RulingsnotRules #Shadowdark
NPC meant to throw a PC into a hot spring filled with dangerous creatures. He got advantage on the check. This was his roll.
September 1, 2025 at 9:46 PM
NPC meant to throw a PC into a hot spring filled with dangerous creatures. He got advantage on the check. This was his roll.
Going to be honest, I backed #1 with a "Whatever. It's not expensive, why not?" approach. But it really blew me away! Definitely an "under the radar" Shadowdark zine.
Very much looking forward to #2.
Very much looking forward to #2.
Witch-Lords of Skull Mountain #2: Malkova Wilds #Zinequest
Issue #2 of the sword & sorcery hexcrawl #zinequest for Shadowdark, DCC RPG, and OSR games
www.kickstarter.com
August 28, 2025 at 8:17 PM
Going to be honest, I backed #1 with a "Whatever. It's not expensive, why not?" approach. But it really blew me away! Definitely an "under the radar" Shadowdark zine.
Very much looking forward to #2.
Very much looking forward to #2.
Big, big fan of YCBN adventures. AND art.
I love these little #osr adventures and always keep copies in stock at the Phantom Mill distro shop (along with the rest of Eon's zines)! ninepinpress.com/products/tal...
August 27, 2025 at 8:20 PM
Big, big fan of YCBN adventures. AND art.
Latest installment of Rulings, Not Rules gets into extended travel in a West Marches campaign.
Abstracting Travel in my West Marches Campaign
An abstract system for my Schadengard campaign (Shadowdark) to get us into the dungeon crawl as quickly as possible.
open.substack.com
August 27, 2025 at 7:19 PM
Latest installment of Rulings, Not Rules gets into extended travel in a West Marches campaign.
I've got no issue with Critical Role or D&D 5e. But regardless, this was maybe the best and most intense AP I've ever watched. (And shorter than a season of CR).
Instead of being pissed about a big AP playing D&D, maybe give a smaller—but still excellent—AP a chance? Start here: youtube.com/playlist?lis...
The Between - YouTube
An actual play of The Between by Jason Cordova, in association with The Gauntlet. Featuring Jess Jewell as Dr. Eveline Mortimer, The Mother Michelle Kelly as...
youtube.com
August 22, 2025 at 4:10 AM
I've got no issue with Critical Role or D&D 5e. But regardless, this was maybe the best and most intense AP I've ever watched. (And shorter than a season of CR).
My wife: "Not everything they say on my crafting shows is a double-entendre!"
Woman on crafting show: "I prefer 10" in the front, and 12" in the rear."
Woman on crafting show: "I prefer 10" in the front, and 12" in the rear."
August 21, 2025 at 4:05 PM
My wife: "Not everything they say on my crafting shows is a double-entendre!"
Woman on crafting show: "I prefer 10" in the front, and 12" in the rear."
Woman on crafting show: "I prefer 10" in the front, and 12" in the rear."
Rulings, Not Rules - Thinking about what makes a TTRPG complex or not.
Complexity is a Grid, Not a Line
An inelegant article about TTRPG complexity
open.substack.com
August 19, 2025 at 11:32 PM
Rulings, Not Rules - Thinking about what makes a TTRPG complex or not.