I’m so happy to hear you’re enjoying the journal! I hadn’t considered using it for solo games, that’s a great idea!

Hello, all!

What is everyone considering for their game? I’d love to hear your ideas: the duo, what changes you’re making or systems you’re adding, or more.

The original game that spurred the Badger + Coyote SRD and this game jam! Feel free to look over it for inspiration.

And remember, you’re always welcome to message us with questions (@pandiongames on all socials, email at: hello at pandiongames dot com, or join our discord community!)

That sounds amazing! I can’t wait to see how it turns out - definitely let us know when you release it. I really like the idea of having a table of clues being shared between Scoops like that! Brilliant.

Hey WillowWren! Thank you, I’m glad you like them! We do plan to release future packs and physical cards once we wrap up some other projects.

Ahahaha, I was waiting for this comment! The images are indeed guinea pigs! This was a simpler, lower budget project for us and the artwork we had was for guinea pigs. However everyone really loved the name “Hamsters and Himbos” rather than “Himbos and Cavies”. So we decided to take some artistic license and live with the mix up of the art vs name.

To answer your question you play as the president of the local book club trying to solve the mystery of why the giant hamsters (or guinea pigs!) have arrived in Willowdale.

Thanks for letting me know! I have updated the permissions.

Thank you! I’m glad you like them! I’d love to see what you end up making with it!

Hey Lady Tabletop! We have had some discussion around that on our Discord, and there are several ways to make the clue gathering easier or harder. As designed, I tried to strike a balance while erring on the side of more clues than fewer. That said, here are some ways to tweak the difficulty:

• The total Clues available
• When Skill Dice degrade
• Resetting Skill Dice
• Deduction dice starting size
• Target number for success

The total number of Clues available to the player This is impacted by the number of locations, and whether a player can collect 1 or more clues per location, or if some locations can be ‘duds’ without a Clue to gather, but just a complication to overcome.

Skill Dice degradation You can increase or decrease when a Skill Die decreases. In the game that inspired the skill dice, Breathless, the dice actually degraded after every roll regardless of outcome. That said, I wouldn’t reduce the starting die value. Because failures reduce the die a step, starting lower runs the risk of rolling a ton of failures and depleting your die quickly.

One mod I’ve made for Jester King’s Dance is a 10+ roll gives you 2 clues. That will still be rare, and early on. Or right after a Refill Your Cup, but it’s the whisper of a chance to catch up if you’ve rolled poorly earlier.

Resetting Skill Dice The “Refill Your Cup” mechanic resets their skills to max. After a certain number of locations, it becomes mechanically impossible to gather more clues as their skills drop. If you have fewer locations, or want a harder game, consider removing this.

The start value of your Deduction Die The Start value can be anything you choose, starting at d0. You can adjust not only how high the Deduction Die goes, but when do they start adding modifiers? Modifiers remove the swingy-ness of the final roll, and can be removed entirely in favor of larger die probabilities vs. guaranteed success.

The Target Number of their final roll needs to hit. If you are expecting players to achieve a d100 + 10 on their final roll, bumping the Deduction Roll’s target number from 5+, to 15, 20, 25+ or even higher is another option. Or, combine the two: After the Deduction Die reaches a certain size, instead of adding modifiers, begins reducing the high target number for success for each additional clue.

I hope this helps! And if you think of any other ways to tweak the difficulty, I’d love to hear them.

Thank you! I’m glad you like them! We were definitely channeling the tarot booklets when writing the companion.

Hey Benji, I’m glad to hear you like the premise! We are definitely swapping up the fonts, and accessibility and readability are important to us with this new design.

If there’s anything else that you found difficult or confusing, let me know, and I’ll make sure we address it.

I just finished watching it! Thank you for sharing this! Loved the pen test you put it through. And you’re right: It’s a big, chonky journal.

Definitely! Glad you like it!

Thank you! I’m glad you like it. The hope was absolutely to give people a starting point that they can then adapt to their own needs.

No problem! It took us hundreds of hours of procrastination and disorganized frustration to set this up. Figured I’d try to save someone else that struggle. :D

Thanks! I’m glad you’re enjoying the system!

I wasn’t planning on adding a theme for this Jam.

One thing I’m excited about with Hints and Hijinx and the jam is the wide array of theme possibilities: A lighthearted romp, an exploration of evil deeds, a traumatic wilderness mystery, a classic murder mystery, fanciful space operas. We even have a Sandman inspired game submitted, and I know of a Cold War era game under development, too.

That said, if you’d like help picking a direction to go, I’m always happy to chat through the ideas you’re mulling about.

Thank you so much! Definitely let me know what you make! I’m so excited to see what people do with this system.

Thanks! We were a bit worried with this release because it’s so different from our usual fare. I’m glad you’re enjoying it!

The font is called “Artefak Vintage Typeface”, and we used its ligatures for those effects.

Hey there! We’ve added more community copies!

Added! Thanks for the heads up, Jimmy!

This is a really slick design. Love what you’ve put together!

Your comment really made my day. Thank you so much!

Not a problem! I appreciate you asking these questions because it means others probably have them too, and I need to organize all this better.

There is a lot of extra content in there for people who want to make their own props to print (such as making their own creature cards, or pre-made Camper/Spirit cards). That’s what the templates are all there for.

You can absolutely print token sheets and badges for use on the maps and character sheets!

In the rules we encourage people to draw, sketch, and color on the maps, but supply the token sheets for people who would rather cut and paste those on the map instead.

We’ve had many players who draw their earned badges on their character sheet, but we provide the badge sheet to print out and use. Also, we offer a sticker sheet for the badges players can peel and stick onto their character sheets as they earn them.

Hi! Thank you for reaching out. I agree, the folder organization is a bit of a mess and is something we’re looking at making simpler. Apologies about that.

For print and play I’d print:

In “Additional Formats & Print Friendly Folder”

• CharacterSheet_PrintFriendly.pdf (one for each player)

In Map Files -> Maps

• GroveMap_USLetter.pdf (1x)
• FragmentDetailMap_USLetter.pdf (7x)

In Extras -> Print & Play

• BG_SpotList.pdf (one for each player)

In Extras -> Print & Play -> Camper and Spirit Cards

• CamperandSpiritCards_SingleSided.pdf

Let me know if you run into any issues or have any more questions. I’m happy to help.

Stunning game and wonderful execution. Very excited to see this live!

I am enamored with Clean Spirit! Fantastic writing, the layout and digital accessibility is amazing (the adorable tabs are clickable!), and the gameplay gets the wheels turning. I cannot wait to play through this one with my group! Really great work, Cassi!

That sounds wonderful! I’m really excited to see all of this come together (and I’m a sucker for pamphlets).

I’m glad the document and resources are organized well. After being so close to everything for so long you never know until a fresh pair of eyes looks it over.

And yes, you are welcome to make work outside of the Jam! Just shoot me a message and I’ll send a link to add it to the Jam submissions. I’m also planning to create a Banda’s Grove Content collection and keep everything people make in there regardless if it’s made during the Jam or not.

Nope! You don’t have to buy it to participate. We still have free community copies of the full game, which I encourage you to grab, a free version of the game and the creator’s guide that outlines all the mechanics and systems of the game without you needing to own Banda’s Grove at all.

Definitely grab a community copy or the demo version, though!

What is everyone thinking about making for the jam?

We are going to submit a new Facility, Spirit, and Quantum Event that are related to each other: The Quantar, Cleft, the musical water spirit, and an adventure in the strange aqueducts in the Undergrove that water spirits normally move along to explore the fragments of the Grove, but something has happened to them…

Can’t wait to see what everyone else makes!

I absolutely adore lost and found games, and Philippa Mort does an incredible job with Lost Post. From the moment you open the game, Philippa sets the mood with art, color, and wonderful prose.

There is an amazing set of options throughout. All the prompts - from the opening Act and all the different Carriers of your lost letter - are beautifully written. The writing drawing you in and making it easy to imagine yourself as the letter trying to find its way.

This game is definitely worth your time.

Hey ZaneByZane! Happy to brainstorm a title with you! Can you give us a description for what you’re submitting? And we can throw out some suggestions.

We wanted to provide an update for the solo rules! They’ve grown into so much more than what we originally intended, but we’re very excited about them.

We’re adding rules for the core game as promised: Tables, written rules for playing, etc. However, Armanda Haller is also creating a whole new solo mode: Be a Festival Planner or Contractor & travel around the Grove preparing for a Festival or working to build a new Facility!

Every Facility and Festival in the game will have a to-do list that you need to accomplish for it. There will be two custom playbooks just for solo players. Pick a Festival or Facility to accomplish tasks for each play session.

In each Fragment of the Grove you attempt to complete one of your tasks. There are 7 Fragments in the Grove - each you can generate with tables. After visiting each Fragment and completing your tasks, you hold the Festival or have a Grand Opening of your Facility!

Your solo sessions can take place in the same Grove you play with your fellow players or a different one! You can use the tasks for each Festival or Facility to expand out your group play, or keep them just for yourself.

Here’s the Substratum playlist!

FRACTURE OBSERVATORY LOG

It happened so suddenly. The Apocalypse was not what we thought it would be.

The molten core of our planet was consumed to power an interdimensional portal.

While the cracks that split the planet open are letting them out, we will make our way in.

You are the best and brightest scientists we have left. You need to figure out how to fix this as you head down, reach the portal, and close it.

▶ TEAM SIZE 2-5 SCIENTISTS

▶ EXPEDITION TIME 2-4 HOURS

▶ REQUIRED DICE D4, D6, D8, D10, D12, D20

We’re designing a sci-fi subterranean horror game. Scientists in exo-suits. A portal consumed the core of our planet and while the cracks to the surface are letting them out, we will make our way in.

Congrats! It’s on my calendar!

This is the perfectly quaint game to start your morning to while you steep your tea or brew your coffee. And the rules are easily adaptable to your own mad libs to spice up your morning routine again and again!

Thank you for making this!

I absolutely love this. Concise, but full of great combinations. Using card draws instead of dice rolls for your generation table is top-notch - even incorporating card suits for egg color! Love it.