Dear Readers, Supporters, and Friends,
I have made a very difficult decision today. That is, Friday, October 31, 2025. I have decided not to push the article I have been fighting with for several hours to publication today. It’s just not up to the standard of quality I hold myself to. If I try to rush it out for the end-of-month deadline, I’m just going to make it worse. I can’t do that in good conscience. Unfortunately, it is the final day of the month and this feature is the fourth promised feature for the month. So, I’m coming up short.
That said, my supporters will see the completed article in a few days. I will continue to work on it through the weekend and publish it on Monday or Tuesday next week as an Early Access feature. It will then move to General Access some time after. I will then move on to working on my November features as planned and deliver all four promised features in November.
The point is, I’m not coming up short; I’m just delivering a feature a little late.
I will be processing crowdfunding support normally. Supporters who support me on a “per Feature” basis will be charged for the late feature as part of their October charges. Even though it will be published in November, no one will be charged for the extra feature next month. If you are uncomfortable with this, please contact me and I will refund you for the unpublished feature, no questions asked. It’ll be on me because I won’t be charging for it in November.
Those of you who have been following me for a long time know this is not a decision I’m making lightly. In the ten years since I started accepting support to keep my site up, I have only once failed to delivered on my basic promise to put out four articles by the end of the month. I pride myself on my integrity, honesty, and transparency. I also recognize that this position is one entirely of my own making. If I had not backed myself up against the deadline wall, I would have had the time to rewrite the article from scratch and deliver it all to you as promised.
Lots of you know that I’ve been struggling for a while. I’m not going to share my sob story again. I’m not making excuses here or making a play for sympathy. Instead, I’m acknowledging where I’m at. I’ve so far been able to say that, as bad as its been, I’ve at least managed to deliver my basic content promise. I can’t say that anymore. This lateness might seem like a minor thing to many of you, but to me it’s a rock-bottom moment. I have allowed my consistency and quality to slip. I have let projects fall by wayside. I have alienated people through lack of contact. There is no measure by which I am living up to the standards I choose for myself.
Over the summer, I did manage to turn things around and, for a while, I was trending in a positive direction. But I let myself fall back into the pit. I made promises to all of you and failed to deliver. Worse yet, I made promises to myself and didn’t deliver on them.
Through all of that more, you have stuck by me. Your patience and your faith have meant the world to me. You’ve let me know how much you value my work and how much hope you’re hanging on my grand plans for the future. I still believe in everything we’ve built together as a community and in everything I’m trying to accomplish. I said once that all I want to do is provide great content and great games to anyone who wants it and to receive only as much in return as each of you value what I do. That hasn’t changed. I just want to give you the best games you can possibly play and run.
The gap between my beliefs and my actions has grown vast, but not uncrossably vast. As the year fades, I remain committed to closing the gap and making myself worthy again of your support, readership, and friendship; and I remain ever grateful for the kindness, patience, and understanding you’ve shown me as I’ve weathered this awful storm.
Thank you all.
Yours In Determination and Gratitude,
Scott W. Rehm
October 31, 2025
G*d D*mn it Scott.
Face the demons and win. We are all standing here with you. We are ready to give you any hand you need. What we need is for you to look those demons in the eye and decide to win.
It is hard. I know. Lots of us know. We are in your corner in this fight and we will not accept less than you choosing to win.
Take a deep breath. Enjoy the kids in their super hero costumes. Then chose to be your own superhero.
It happens. Your health and satisfaction with the work comes first imo. If it requires more time, then it requires more time. I get feeling like this late article represents a failure to live up to standards, but I value the fact that you don’t turn out schlock just to meet a schedule. Take care of your health and your mental space, and satisfaction with what you do is a big part of that. Good luck, and remember, there’s always setbacks in a recovery, but it doesn’t mean it’s a complete regression.
Hang in there and know that you are loved. ❤️
You publish the best RPG articles ever published anywhere. Your corpus in unsurpassed.
I am looking forward to reading your work! Rooting for you Angry!
Thank you for your transparency and your dedication to crafting us great content.
Some minor scheduling bumps are nothing compared to this awesome and overall steady ride through the land of Less Sucky Games Runnage you are are take us on !
I wish you the best finding/carving/bridging a way out of this stormy gapping pit of yours (and maybe the next, and the one after).
Don’t you dare go hollow !
Angry,
I just wanted to share that I’ve been pouring over your True Scenario Designery series again over the past few days and have been in awe over your insight and ability to distill nuggets of wisdom into something truly game changing. I have been a paid supporter for a few years now and it has been worth every penny. I understand your reasoning in being down on yourself, but you’re worth every cent anyone has invested in sharing your craft.
Thanks from the bottom of my asshole heart
You may have missed on consistency this month – though your usual consistency earns you grace for the occasional slip – but you’ve not missed on integrity.
Specifically – you weren’t willing to push out an article you weren’t happy with, even if most of us wouldn’t have known. And you’ve been honest, and not blamed it on anyone else.
And that, sir, is integrity.
Praying you recover swiftly.
That’s rough. I know you were pushing hard this summer and it has to be demoralizing to slip back again. But you got into a better place once, and you can do it again, and hopefully then from the skid back what you can do to keep the momentum the next time. I will pray things continue to improve for you and I look forward to your future recover and content.
Thank you.
You got this. *fistbump*.
Your love of your craft, accountability and standards is an inspiration by itself. Thank you. 🙂
My dad used to say something like “the only choice you really make is what influence you listen too”. It’s sort of an unfair standard because it’s really really hard to be aware of what’s playing in our mind and then to replace it with something else. Especially since we rarely control our environment or our hardships.
I’m grateful you continue striving. You are an influence I actively, manually, choose to keep including in my life.
I’ve started viewing progress as something of an upward spiral – even as we continue on we circle around revisiting the same types of things again and again and again. And often when we think we’ve failed it’s actually that spiral revisiting topics more than it is actually moving backwards.
I don’t like when ideals start to also become shame and guilt, especially when its more than the amount that those things are actually useful. I appreciate the ideals of integrity and transparency but just in case you’re at that point know that you are worthy of the gentle versions of those influences / ideals.
In the end, anything that is dragging you down is attacking your long-term, restful, natural momentum, even if it pretends to be or even is a motivating force temporarily.
Love you, Angry!
Sending love