Grant Law
@grantlaw.bsky.social
I build weird systems—some float, some breathe, some evolve.
Game designer/ecologist/musician/sailor
Currently creating Disciples of Enki, a board game about alchemical horror, emergent monstrosity, and cooperative failure.
Beelzebubbadub.substack.com
Game designer/ecologist/musician/sailor
Currently creating Disciples of Enki, a board game about alchemical horror, emergent monstrosity, and cooperative failure.
Beelzebubbadub.substack.com
Introducing a new mechanic: the Ethometer.
It measures each player’s “resonance debt”, how much they’ve harmed or healed the homunculus. You can raise it, lower it, or strategically shift it… but when Ṣerû comes, you can’t escape it.
#GameDesign #IndiDev #BoardGameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #Ethometer
It measures each player’s “resonance debt”, how much they’ve harmed or healed the homunculus. You can raise it, lower it, or strategically shift it… but when Ṣerû comes, you can’t escape it.
#GameDesign #IndiDev #BoardGameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #Ethometer
December 5, 2025 at 7:55 PM
Introducing a new mechanic: the Ethometer.
It measures each player’s “resonance debt”, how much they’ve harmed or healed the homunculus. You can raise it, lower it, or strategically shift it… but when Ṣerû comes, you can’t escape it.
#GameDesign #IndiDev #BoardGameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #Ethometer
It measures each player’s “resonance debt”, how much they’ve harmed or healed the homunculus. You can raise it, lower it, or strategically shift it… but when Ṣerû comes, you can’t escape it.
#GameDesign #IndiDev #BoardGameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #Ethometer
The difference between a 1-D simulation and a 2-D world:
In code, the next discovery is a line away.
At the table, it’s a landscape.
Codex Entry 0014-C breaks down what happens when real humans out-think their algorithms.
#GameDesign #IndiDev #BoardGameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #CodexQuintessentiae
In code, the next discovery is a line away.
At the table, it’s a landscape.
Codex Entry 0014-C breaks down what happens when real humans out-think their algorithms.
#GameDesign #IndiDev #BoardGameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #CodexQuintessentiae
November 4, 2025 at 9:12 PM
The difference between a 1-D simulation and a 2-D world:
In code, the next discovery is a line away.
At the table, it’s a landscape.
Codex Entry 0014-C breaks down what happens when real humans out-think their algorithms.
#GameDesign #IndiDev #BoardGameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #CodexQuintessentiae
In code, the next discovery is a line away.
At the table, it’s a landscape.
Codex Entry 0014-C breaks down what happens when real humans out-think their algorithms.
#GameDesign #IndiDev #BoardGameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #CodexQuintessentiae
Three alchemists around a candlelit map. This was the first complete human playthrough of Disciples of Enki — ten hours from discovery to annihilation.
For the first time, the homunculus met its makers.
#BoardGameDesign #Playtesting #DisciplesOfEnki #IndieDev #Alchemy #Tabletop #CodexQuintessentiae
For the first time, the homunculus met its makers.
#BoardGameDesign #Playtesting #DisciplesOfEnki #IndieDev #Alchemy #Tabletop #CodexQuintessentiae
November 4, 2025 at 9:10 PM
Three alchemists around a candlelit map. This was the first complete human playthrough of Disciples of Enki — ten hours from discovery to annihilation.
For the first time, the homunculus met its makers.
#BoardGameDesign #Playtesting #DisciplesOfEnki #IndieDev #Alchemy #Tabletop #CodexQuintessentiae
For the first time, the homunculus met its makers.
#BoardGameDesign #Playtesting #DisciplesOfEnki #IndieDev #Alchemy #Tabletop #CodexQuintessentiae
Three alchemists. One awakened creation. Ten hours at the table.
The first full human playthrough of Disciples of Enki is complete, & the homunculus finally learned to play back.
Read the full record on Codex Quintessentiae. #BoardGameDesign #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki #Alchemy #TTRPG
The first full human playthrough of Disciples of Enki is complete, & the homunculus finally learned to play back.
Read the full record on Codex Quintessentiae. #BoardGameDesign #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki #Alchemy #TTRPG
The First Completion — A Milestone in Flesh and Cardboard
What ten hours at the table revealed about human ingenuity, emergent design, and divine retribution.
substack.com
November 4, 2025 at 9:07 PM
Three alchemists. One awakened creation. Ten hours at the table.
The first full human playthrough of Disciples of Enki is complete, & the homunculus finally learned to play back.
Read the full record on Codex Quintessentiae. #BoardGameDesign #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki #Alchemy #TTRPG
The first full human playthrough of Disciples of Enki is complete, & the homunculus finally learned to play back.
Read the full record on Codex Quintessentiae. #BoardGameDesign #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki #Alchemy #TTRPG
Containment breach in the archives. The familiar has claimed the fragments.
#BoardGames #GameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #Cats
#BoardGames #GameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #Cats
August 28, 2025 at 4:27 AM
Containment breach in the archives. The familiar has claimed the fragments.
#BoardGames #GameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #Cats
#BoardGames #GameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #Cats
Every alchemist requires a scribe. Mine insists on sleeping atop the codex.
#GameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #CatsSleepingOnBoardgames
#GameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #CatsSleepingOnBoardgames
August 28, 2025 at 4:25 AM
Every alchemist requires a scribe. Mine insists on sleeping atop the codex.
#GameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #CatsSleepingOnBoardgames
#GameDev #DisciplesOfEnki #CatsSleepingOnBoardgames
"Every border has a cost. Every number is a choice."
The DOE map isn’t just backdrop — it’s the leash of the homunculus.
#BoardGames #GameDev #TabletopGaming #DisciplesOfEnki #Maps
The DOE map isn’t just backdrop — it’s the leash of the homunculus.
#BoardGames #GameDev #TabletopGaming #DisciplesOfEnki #Maps
August 25, 2025 at 11:17 PM
"Every border has a cost. Every number is a choice."
The DOE map isn’t just backdrop — it’s the leash of the homunculus.
#BoardGames #GameDev #TabletopGaming #DisciplesOfEnki #Maps
The DOE map isn’t just backdrop — it’s the leash of the homunculus.
#BoardGames #GameDev #TabletopGaming #DisciplesOfEnki #Maps
Tracing coastlines, fitting continents into hexes, and wrestling with scale.
The DOE map wasn’t easy to build — but it’s finally ready for playtesting.
#BoardGames #GameDev #Tabletop #MapDesign
The DOE map wasn’t easy to build — but it’s finally ready for playtesting.
#BoardGames #GameDev #Tabletop #MapDesign
August 25, 2025 at 11:16 PM
Tracing coastlines, fitting continents into hexes, and wrestling with scale.
The DOE map wasn’t easy to build — but it’s finally ready for playtesting.
#BoardGames #GameDev #Tabletop #MapDesign
The DOE map wasn’t easy to build — but it’s finally ready for playtesting.
#BoardGames #GameDev #Tabletop #MapDesign
"The hardest part of Disciples of Enki has finally taken shape."
The DOE world map is both artifact and engine — a puzzle that shapes every decision on the board. #BoardGames #GameDev #IndieGames #DisciplesOfEnki #Maps
The DOE world map is both artifact and engine — a puzzle that shapes every decision on the board. #BoardGames #GameDev #IndieGames #DisciplesOfEnki #Maps
Codex Entry 0013-A: Drawing the World of Disciples of Enki
Tracing coastlines, balancing history, and finding beauty in the grid
beelzebubbadub.substack.com
August 25, 2025 at 11:13 PM
"The hardest part of Disciples of Enki has finally taken shape."
The DOE world map is both artifact and engine — a puzzle that shapes every decision on the board. #BoardGames #GameDev #IndieGames #DisciplesOfEnki #Maps
The DOE world map is both artifact and engine — a puzzle that shapes every decision on the board. #BoardGames #GameDev #IndieGames #DisciplesOfEnki #Maps
A close up of the Europe & The Ancient World region. And check out the potential sentience gains in the Frozen Wastes. Best not let the homunculus roam up there for long!
#BoardGames #IndieGameDev #DisciplesofEnki #TabletopGaming #MapDesign
#BoardGames #IndieGameDev #DisciplesofEnki #TabletopGaming #MapDesign
August 15, 2025 at 6:03 PM
A close up of the Europe & The Ancient World region. And check out the potential sentience gains in the Frozen Wastes. Best not let the homunculus roam up there for long!
#BoardGames #IndieGameDev #DisciplesofEnki #TabletopGaming #MapDesign
#BoardGames #IndieGameDev #DisciplesofEnki #TabletopGaming #MapDesign
The hand drawn Illuminati Track will help the players monitor the Illuminati’s tolerance of DOE’s activities.
#BoardGames #IndieGameDev #DisciplesofEnki #TabletopGaming #MapDesign
#BoardGames #IndieGameDev #DisciplesofEnki #TabletopGaming #MapDesign
August 15, 2025 at 6:00 PM
The hand drawn Illuminati Track will help the players monitor the Illuminati’s tolerance of DOE’s activities.
#BoardGames #IndieGameDev #DisciplesofEnki #TabletopGaming #MapDesign
#BoardGames #IndieGameDev #DisciplesofEnki #TabletopGaming #MapDesign
The DOE world map prototype is both structured design and experimental method — and it’s almost ready for playtesting.
#BoardGames #IndieGameDev #DisciplesofEnki #TabletopGaming #MapDesign
#BoardGames #IndieGameDev #DisciplesofEnki #TabletopGaming #MapDesign
August 15, 2025 at 5:57 PM
The DOE world map prototype is both structured design and experimental method — and it’s almost ready for playtesting.
#BoardGames #IndieGameDev #DisciplesofEnki #TabletopGaming #MapDesign
#BoardGames #IndieGameDev #DisciplesofEnki #TabletopGaming #MapDesign
The homunculus remembers.
The gate is open.
Disciples of Enki is a semi-cooperative board game of ambition, tragedy, and ritual containment — now fully revealed.
Check it out for detailed breakdowns of gameplay, design philosophy, and the lore beneath it all.
#boardgames #DisciplesOfEnki #GameDev
The gate is open.
Disciples of Enki is a semi-cooperative board game of ambition, tragedy, and ritual containment — now fully revealed.
Check it out for detailed breakdowns of gameplay, design philosophy, and the lore beneath it all.
#boardgames #DisciplesOfEnki #GameDev
Transmission 0012-E: The Monster Is You
An introduction to Disciples of Enki — a board game of hubris, consequence, and unstable cooperation.
open.substack.com
August 8, 2025 at 7:09 PM
The homunculus remembers.
The gate is open.
Disciples of Enki is a semi-cooperative board game of ambition, tragedy, and ritual containment — now fully revealed.
Check it out for detailed breakdowns of gameplay, design philosophy, and the lore beneath it all.
#boardgames #DisciplesOfEnki #GameDev
The gate is open.
Disciples of Enki is a semi-cooperative board game of ambition, tragedy, and ritual containment — now fully revealed.
Check it out for detailed breakdowns of gameplay, design philosophy, and the lore beneath it all.
#boardgames #DisciplesOfEnki #GameDev
The homunculus stirs.
The prototype Slate is complete. Players will track its awakening here — every stage more terrifying than the last.
#BoardGames #GameDesign #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki
The prototype Slate is complete. Players will track its awakening here — every stage more terrifying than the last.
#BoardGames #GameDesign #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki
July 30, 2025 at 7:26 PM
The homunculus stirs.
The prototype Slate is complete. Players will track its awakening here — every stage more terrifying than the last.
#BoardGames #GameDesign #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki
The prototype Slate is complete. Players will track its awakening here — every stage more terrifying than the last.
#BoardGames #GameDesign #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki
Finishing touches.
Edges blackened one by one. It’s slow, deliberate work, but it gives the chips weight and presence on the table. These pieces track the game’s most dangerous brews.
#TabletopGames #BoardGames #GameDev #DisciplesOfEnki
Edges blackened one by one. It’s slow, deliberate work, but it gives the chips weight and presence on the table. These pieces track the game’s most dangerous brews.
#TabletopGames #BoardGames #GameDev #DisciplesOfEnki
July 30, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Finishing touches.
Edges blackened one by one. It’s slow, deliberate work, but it gives the chips weight and presence on the table. These pieces track the game’s most dangerous brews.
#TabletopGames #BoardGames #GameDev #DisciplesOfEnki
Edges blackened one by one. It’s slow, deliberate work, but it gives the chips weight and presence on the table. These pieces track the game’s most dangerous brews.
#TabletopGames #BoardGames #GameDev #DisciplesOfEnki
Handwork phase continues.
Gluing, cutting, and edging decoction chips for Disciples of Enki. Each symbol represents volatile alchemical ingredients players will have to balance—or weaponize.
#GameDev #BoardGames #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki
Gluing, cutting, and edging decoction chips for Disciples of Enki. Each symbol represents volatile alchemical ingredients players will have to balance—or weaponize.
#GameDev #BoardGames #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki
July 30, 2025 at 7:24 PM
Handwork phase continues.
Gluing, cutting, and edging decoction chips for Disciples of Enki. Each symbol represents volatile alchemical ingredients players will have to balance—or weaponize.
#GameDev #BoardGames #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki
Gluing, cutting, and edging decoction chips for Disciples of Enki. Each symbol represents volatile alchemical ingredients players will have to balance—or weaponize.
#GameDev #BoardGames #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki
Printing day for Disciples of Enki.
Card backs, player aids, and a few unstable components from Padraig Malloran’s kit.
All printed up, hand-trimmed, and sleeved with care.
Low tech, high weirdness.
#GameDev #BoardGames #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki
Card backs, player aids, and a few unstable components from Padraig Malloran’s kit.
All printed up, hand-trimmed, and sleeved with care.
Low tech, high weirdness.
#GameDev #BoardGames #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki
July 26, 2025 at 4:56 AM
Printing day for Disciples of Enki.
Card backs, player aids, and a few unstable components from Padraig Malloran’s kit.
All printed up, hand-trimmed, and sleeved with care.
Low tech, high weirdness.
#GameDev #BoardGames #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki
Card backs, player aids, and a few unstable components from Padraig Malloran’s kit.
All printed up, hand-trimmed, and sleeved with care.
Low tech, high weirdness.
#GameDev #BoardGames #IndieDev #DisciplesOfEnki
What begins as a game becomes a lens—into fear, failure, and the fracturing of reason.
Our tabletop reconstruction of the Vienna Incident is now calibrated.
The data has been scrubbed. The damage remains.
#ttrpg #boardgames #simulation #quintessence #gamedev #indiedev #DisciplesOfEnki
Our tabletop reconstruction of the Vienna Incident is now calibrated.
The data has been scrubbed. The damage remains.
#ttrpg #boardgames #simulation #quintessence #gamedev #indiedev #DisciplesOfEnki
Resonance, Ruin, and the Rise of Serû
Results from the Vienna Incident simulation—and what comes next.
open.substack.com
July 20, 2025 at 12:51 AM
What begins as a game becomes a lens—into fear, failure, and the fracturing of reason.
Our tabletop reconstruction of the Vienna Incident is now calibrated.
The data has been scrubbed. The damage remains.
#ttrpg #boardgames #simulation #quintessence #gamedev #indiedev #DisciplesOfEnki
Our tabletop reconstruction of the Vienna Incident is now calibrated.
The data has been scrubbed. The damage remains.
#ttrpg #boardgames #simulation #quintessence #gamedev #indiedev #DisciplesOfEnki
Thorne extracts more than anyone.
Faster. Cleaner. Colder.
But high resonance draws Ṣerû’s gaze.
So he rewrites the record.
Normalize your extractions. Erase your signature.
Walk free.
#GameDev #BoardGames #AlchemicalTactics #DisciplesOfEnki
Faster. Cleaner. Colder.
But high resonance draws Ṣerû’s gaze.
So he rewrites the record.
Normalize your extractions. Erase your signature.
Walk free.
#GameDev #BoardGames #AlchemicalTactics #DisciplesOfEnki
July 18, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Thorne extracts more than anyone.
Faster. Cleaner. Colder.
But high resonance draws Ṣerû’s gaze.
So he rewrites the record.
Normalize your extractions. Erase your signature.
Walk free.
#GameDev #BoardGames #AlchemicalTactics #DisciplesOfEnki
Faster. Cleaner. Colder.
But high resonance draws Ṣerû’s gaze.
So he rewrites the record.
Normalize your extractions. Erase your signature.
Walk free.
#GameDev #BoardGames #AlchemicalTactics #DisciplesOfEnki
Internal Society Record, partially redacted:
Subject shows no evidence of remorse.
Claims emotional feedback during extraction is a “flawed interpretive layer.”
Has proposed a method for decoupling personal signature from metaphysical resonance.
Codename: The Scholastic Blade.
#BoardGames #GameDev
Subject shows no evidence of remorse.
Claims emotional feedback during extraction is a “flawed interpretive layer.”
Has proposed a method for decoupling personal signature from metaphysical resonance.
Codename: The Scholastic Blade.
#BoardGames #GameDev
July 18, 2025 at 3:34 PM
Internal Society Record, partially redacted:
Subject shows no evidence of remorse.
Claims emotional feedback during extraction is a “flawed interpretive layer.”
Has proposed a method for decoupling personal signature from metaphysical resonance.
Codename: The Scholastic Blade.
#BoardGames #GameDev
Subject shows no evidence of remorse.
Claims emotional feedback during extraction is a “flawed interpretive layer.”
Has proposed a method for decoupling personal signature from metaphysical resonance.
Codename: The Scholastic Blade.
#BoardGames #GameDev
“It is not suffering. It is signal.”
Professor Edric Thorne approaches the homunculus with surgical calm. No doubt. No pause. Just the slow removal of everything that does not fit the frame.
#DisciplesOfEnki #GameDev #BoardGames #AlchemicalHorror
Professor Edric Thorne approaches the homunculus with surgical calm. No doubt. No pause. Just the slow removal of everything that does not fit the frame.
#DisciplesOfEnki #GameDev #BoardGames #AlchemicalHorror
July 18, 2025 at 3:33 PM
“It is not suffering. It is signal.”
Professor Edric Thorne approaches the homunculus with surgical calm. No doubt. No pause. Just the slow removal of everything that does not fit the frame.
#DisciplesOfEnki #GameDev #BoardGames #AlchemicalHorror
Professor Edric Thorne approaches the homunculus with surgical calm. No doubt. No pause. Just the slow removal of everything that does not fit the frame.
#DisciplesOfEnki #GameDev #BoardGames #AlchemicalHorror
The DOE simulation is done. We’ve got balance. We’ve got data. We’ve got… regrets.
I’m now moving on to playtest fabrication: cards, slates, tokens, the whole catastrophic menagerie.
Published under: Annals of Alchemical Systems and Failures, October 1939
#DisciplesOfEnki #BoardGames #GameDev
I’m now moving on to playtest fabrication: cards, slates, tokens, the whole catastrophic menagerie.
Published under: Annals of Alchemical Systems and Failures, October 1939
#DisciplesOfEnki #BoardGames #GameDev
July 18, 2025 at 2:13 PM
The DOE simulation is done. We’ve got balance. We’ve got data. We’ve got… regrets.
I’m now moving on to playtest fabrication: cards, slates, tokens, the whole catastrophic menagerie.
Published under: Annals of Alchemical Systems and Failures, October 1939
#DisciplesOfEnki #BoardGames #GameDev
I’m now moving on to playtest fabrication: cards, slates, tokens, the whole catastrophic menagerie.
Published under: Annals of Alchemical Systems and Failures, October 1939
#DisciplesOfEnki #BoardGames #GameDev
Mechanically elegant. Strategically punishing.
Lady Montrose rewards long-term play, incremental influence, and weekend domination. Prestige fuels her actions; the world answers her debts. When her network activates, the others scramble to keep up.
#DisciplesOfEnki #BoardGame #GameDev #Characters
Lady Montrose rewards long-term play, incremental influence, and weekend domination. Prestige fuels her actions; the world answers her debts. When her network activates, the others scramble to keep up.
#DisciplesOfEnki #BoardGame #GameDev #Characters
July 12, 2025 at 8:22 PM
Mechanically elegant. Strategically punishing.
Lady Montrose rewards long-term play, incremental influence, and weekend domination. Prestige fuels her actions; the world answers her debts. When her network activates, the others scramble to keep up.
#DisciplesOfEnki #BoardGame #GameDev #Characters
Lady Montrose rewards long-term play, incremental influence, and weekend domination. Prestige fuels her actions; the world answers her debts. When her network activates, the others scramble to keep up.
#DisciplesOfEnki #BoardGame #GameDev #Characters
Hidden behind the chaos of the homunculus and the antics of her so-called colleagues, Lady Montrose quietly shapes the course of events. While the others travel, she pulls strings. And the Shadow Disciple is always there, unnoticed, until it’s too late.
#DisciplesOfEnki #lorepost #boardgame #gamedev
#DisciplesOfEnki #lorepost #boardgame #gamedev
July 12, 2025 at 8:20 PM
Hidden behind the chaos of the homunculus and the antics of her so-called colleagues, Lady Montrose quietly shapes the course of events. While the others travel, she pulls strings. And the Shadow Disciple is always there, unnoticed, until it’s too late.
#DisciplesOfEnki #lorepost #boardgame #gamedev
#DisciplesOfEnki #lorepost #boardgame #gamedev
“I offered no threats. I simply reminded him of the terms.”
Lady Phoebe Montrose has no need to raise her voice. Her influence moves through embassies, salons, and old agreements most have forgotten they signed. She does not seek power. She structures it.
#DisciplesOfEnki #boardgame #gamedev
Lady Phoebe Montrose has no need to raise her voice. Her influence moves through embassies, salons, and old agreements most have forgotten they signed. She does not seek power. She structures it.
#DisciplesOfEnki #boardgame #gamedev
July 12, 2025 at 8:16 PM
“I offered no threats. I simply reminded him of the terms.”
Lady Phoebe Montrose has no need to raise her voice. Her influence moves through embassies, salons, and old agreements most have forgotten they signed. She does not seek power. She structures it.
#DisciplesOfEnki #boardgame #gamedev
Lady Phoebe Montrose has no need to raise her voice. Her influence moves through embassies, salons, and old agreements most have forgotten they signed. She does not seek power. She structures it.
#DisciplesOfEnki #boardgame #gamedev