I've wanted to create a TTRPG for a while now. I'm using the fact that my nephews are coming for Thanksgiving as an excuse / motivation to Do the Damn Thing.

My intent is to make it:

• Uncommonly simple - we are talking about kids (2 teens and 2 pre teens) so attention span is a thing. Also, this is without a screen and doesn't beep, so... challenging. I'm not trying to make it a one page (there are many out there) but... close.
• Universal - I'd like to make it flexible enough to be used for any genre of game play.
• Flexible - I want the players to have more input into their skills / abilities once they're comfortable with the system. As long as they keep balance in mind, they can make up things like spells, skills, and ancestral abilities.
• Fun - I mean, it's a GAME. But more specifically, here, I guess I mean 'cinematic' (though I HATE the generic nature of that term). I want to try to create those moments at the table where the whole group roars when one of the players rolls a 20, and they feel the story that their teammates tell...

Anyway, I'm working on a very rough draft, but I know some of you are gamers, so if you're interested in seeing what I've got so far, let me know, and I'll share a (Google Docs) link.

What poem by T. S. Eliot includes the line "Do I dare to eat a peach?"

What country, formerly known as French Sudan, once controlled an empire led by Mansa Musa?

What Shakespearean comedy includes the "All the world's a stage" monologue by Jaques?

What month lends its name to the 1825 revolt in St. Petersburg​​​​​​​?

The miniseries Daisy Jones & the Six is based on what rock group known for their off-stage drama in the 1970s?

Aleppo's ghar soap is handmade from what ingredient used in cooking?

Disney Parks guests can pay extra to spend less time in line using what alliteratively-named virtual queuing system?

The Allen wrench (or "hex key") was named for the Allen Manufacturing Company, based in what New England city known for its insurance industry?

My coworkers used to dabble in mechanical keyboards. Some of them claimed they could stop anytime they wanted. My friend C made no such claims. I don't think I ever saw the same keyboard twice. It's possible some of them were just alternate keycap combinations.

I, of course, grew up on mechanical keyboards, but I've put it behind me. I love my Macbook, the low travel keys are fast and the lack of CLACK is perfectly CLACK-ceptable, honestly.

So when I randomly spotted this cheap knockoff mechanical keyboard with one missing key for $5 at Goodwill, I thought: what the hell. A CLACK or two just for a laugh. First one's practically free...

CLACK CLACK CLACK CLACK CLACK CLACK CLACK

Oh dear. I think I really like the CLACK.

This is going to be a problem, isn't it.

Gee, this thing weights a ton.

With the help of my daughter, My Favorite Team was victorious.

What girl's name is the title of a 2016 song by The Lumineers and part of the title of a 2025 song by Taylor Swift?

What board game genre, characterized by the in-game purchase of components to be cyclically accessed later, was popularized by Dominion ?

What Shakespeare play begins with"Now is the winter of our discontent" spoken by the Duke of Gloucester, who is "determined to prove a villain" ?

What famous lawyer gave an eight-hour speech at the sentencing hearing of the murderers Leopold and Loeb, and later defended John Scopes in the "Monkey Trial" ?

For those who haven't seen it elsewhere:

I want to make a winter holiday themed coloring book, and I could really use your help!

Specifically, what are some of your favorite (fantasy) winter holiday creatures and/or characters? Let me know below, and they might just be in the coloring book (which will be free / PWYW)!

• I'm not looking for any religious themes / characters.
• Fantasy / High Fantasy for bonus points.

ETA (unrelated):

Still working on #Gobtober because I'm determined to finish, despite having not done so 'in time'. Today I did Day24 - dragon - and had a lot of fun with it, so I thought I would share the YouTube Short for it:

Given that the house renovation left us cash-poor, Kim looked into options for stretching our money and found out that a local food pantry will give weekly food items to anyone over 60, no questions asked. Some weeks are better than others; a month or two ago, we got some frozen 7-11 breakfast sandwiches, which we were not brave enough to try, and another time we got a sealed bag of Beyond sausage bits that, upon later inspection, was over a month past its expiration date.  Today's haul was three pounds of pinto beans (we're in the Rancho Gordo Bean Club and already have more amazing beans than we can handle), one pound of white rice, and six pounds of brown rice (plus a half-gallon of cow milk, some fruit, and some bread).

Unpacking proceeds apace. We'd like to host Thanksgiving so we probably need to hustle over the next three weeks.

Elevators are great art. They work on so many levels.

Did you hear about the Gen Z BDSM shop? It's called executive function.

I was going to buy a parcel of land, but it was kind of a lot.

How do you make fuckin' s'mores? With damn crackers.

Today I called my son by my cat's name. That's right - I failed a CATCHA.

I'm pitching a reboot of Pinocchio set in Brooklyn. It's called "the only living toy in New York."

People who think Mandela died in the 80's aren't from an alternate universe. They just have terrible death perception.

Here are links to the podcast episodes we made in a way that you can listen to them wherever you prefer. 
The Old Woman All Skin and Bones Ted's masterpiece. 
Like and Subscribe is my script of the year. 

More in a bit. 

The Griswolds pulled ahead in music trivia and My Favorite Team couldn't catch them at the end.  

What TV anthology, first aired in 1991, features a teenage group called the Midnight Society that tells stories around a campfire?

What is the real name of the Colorado hotel that inspired The Shining  by Stephen King?

What does the Spanish word "brujas" mean in the Halloween expression "Día de las Brujas" ?

What real-life fungus that zombifies insects is the scientific basis for the plague in The Last of Us​​​​​​​ ?