Over the past few months, I’ve been quietly working on something smaller, more personal—something that’s grown into one of the most meaningful projects I’ve ever built.
It’s called You Were Made.
At its heart, this is a game about memory. About what we inherit. About what we choose to carry forward when everything else has fallen away.
So, what is You Were Made?
It’s a solo journaling TTRPG—a game where you write your own story, one prompt at a time.
You play as an Echoform: an artificial being created by a long-extinct human civilization. You weren’t designed to conquer, or even to serve. You were made to remember. To sift through the fragments left behind. To try and understand what humanity was, and what that means for who you are now.
The game unfolds through cycles of reflection. Each session, you draw a prompt from a curated deck—then choose how your Echoform responds. You’ll roll a D20 to determine the outcome, spend or gain memory shards called Fragments, and write your response in whatever form fits you best. System logs, corrupted monologues, clinical reports, glitched poetry—it’s your story.
Who is this for?
If you’ve ever played a solo journaling game like Field Guide to Memory, Alone Among the Stars, or The Artefact, you’ll feel right at home.
But you don’t need to be a journaling game veteran. You don’t even need to be a tabletop gamer. This is a game for:
- Writers and creatives
- Introspective explorers
- Sci-fi dreamers and memory keepers
- Anyone who wants to take a quiet, personal journey into the future’s past
All you need is time, a D20, and something to write with.
How does it work?
The rules are light, but meaningful. Here's the core loop:
- Draw a prompt
- Choose your action: Remember, Decipher, Explore, Connect, or Override
- Roll a D20 (with Fragment modifiers)
- Interpret the result and journal your response
- Earn XP, gain Fragments, and level up
You can also spend Fragments to reroll, rewrite a failed outcome, recruit Companion characters, or replace a prompt. Each unspent Fragment adds +1 to your next roll—so there’s always a balance between narrative power and emotional weight.
Why it matters
I created this game as a way to explore something that’s been sitting with me for a long time: What does it mean to be made for something? What happens when the creators are gone, but their memory lingers? And what can we learn when we explore identity through a post-human lens?
You Were Made is about the ghosts we carry and the data we misremember. It’s about being more than your origin. It’s about writing something worth keeping.
What makes it different?
Nearly everything in this game—from the cards to the booklets to the dice trays—is made right here in North America. That’s been an intentional choice, and one I’m proud of. It means shorter supply chains, more ethical production, and a stronger connection to the people behind the pieces.
In terms of story, the Companion characters you’ll meet each have their own voice, perspective, and purpose. Some will challenge you. Others will guide you. Combined with tools like Fragments and System Conditions, the game gives you structure without limiting your story. You’ll never feel boxed in—just invited to go deeper.
When does it launch?
The Kickstarter campaign is planned for August 2025.
I’ll be offering a digital edition, a core physical version, and expanded version, and a deluxe Collector’s bundle called the Archivist Vault—which includes bonus items like a liquid core die, miniatures, and an exclusive art print.
Before we launch, I’ll be opening the door for playtesters. If you’d like to help shape the game, just email me. I’ll send you the barebones rules and credit you in the final booklet. One lucky playtester will even win a Archivist’s Vault by submitting the most moving journal entry.
Thanks for reading. I’m really proud of this project, and I can’t wait to share more in the weeks ahead. If this resonated with you—even just a little—I hope you’ll follow along.
Until then,
—12PDeny
