In October 2026, I will be conducting a limited playtest for The Meidlands.
The plan is to provide a near-complete copy of the rules sections, some lore summary documents, some starter monsters, character sheets, a starter adventure, and additional design notes/survey material as needed.
The objective is to allow GMs to not only try out the rules, but provide any feedback (or point out any typos, mistakes and goofs) they may have.
I am also planning on setting up a playtest Discord channel, so that I can provide clarification and feedback that may be relevant to everyone.
Although my objective is to concentrate the playtest to roughly 6 weeks, if testers are happy (and keeping it up isn’t too much to handle while finishing up the final details of writing and layout), I will welcome keeping any willing playtesters to provide ongoing feedback and trickle additional penultimate draft material (and nerd out on lore).
How to be selected as a playtester?
Although I am a massive nerd and would legitimately love every person on the planet that wants to play to participate, that would likely be too daunting of an undertaking for myself (in addition to work, family, and continuing work on The Meidlands book). As such, I am looking to select roughly 5-8 GMs with groups to run a minimum of 2-3 sessions in 6 weeks, which should be enough to get a feel for the rules. I could be persuaded to add those with particular interest and experience with game design or solo play without groups.
Simply, fill out the questionnaire, give me a sense of who you and your group are (as having a mix of different backgrounds, experience, etc. can be very useful), and sit tight. I intend to keep this open until October 10, 2026, at which point I will notify the playtesters. I then intend to deliver the complete playtest packet within 2 weeks (ideally by October 20), so that GMs could run the game for Halloween, if they so choose.