Running GAGG Special Guests

Jen Adcock is a game designer and writer from Buffalo, NY. She is best known for The Price of Coal, the acclaimed storytelling game about labor rights and forgotten American history. She has also worked on a number of other games, including D&D, for which she was featured in Dragon+ Magazine. Check out Jen’s games at Running GAGG 30!

William Adcock is a gamemaster and scenario author who has specialized in cosmic horror scenarios for the Call of Cthulhu and Cthulhu Eternal RPGs. A historian by training, he uses his writing to explore the dark corners of humanity’s past, illuminating the lives and experiences of those who came before us and encouraging players to confront their own assumptions along the way. He’s written material for Golden Goblin Press, Cthulhu Reborn, and Forge of Ice as well as Chaosium’s Miskatonic Repository. A graduate of SUNY Geneseo, he credits the Geneseo Area Gaming Group and the support he received both as an active student member and as an alumnus for laying the groundwork for his success. William lives in Buffalo with his wife and cat, and can be seen in the microbudget independent horror film Snow Shark: Ancient Snow Beast. Check out William’s games at Running GAGG 30!

Ed Bond

Ed Bond of Horseheads is the owner of MetaDreams LLC, which has developed a line of chess variant games: MetaCheckers, MetaCheckers: Soccer, When Gods Collide and Puzzle Board Chess. His first game, MetaCheckers, was invented in a dream in which his wife rolled a pair of dice and then moved a checker as a knight. Excited by the innovation, he immediately tried to wake and tell her all about the dream, working out in more detail how the game could be played. It took a few moments to realize he was still dreaming – dreaming about a dream – which seemed a very meta experience.

Taking MetaCheckers out on the board game circuit, he saw that players wanted to innovate create within the game. This led to the invention of the puzzle board, a chess board made of tiles that changes shape every game. To develop the game pieces and the puzzle board, he acquired a laser cutter and can create a variety of custom, laser cut objects. Check out Ed’s games at Running GAGG 30!

Jackson DiCarlo

Writer, Director, Designer, and more, he’s a Jack(son) of all trades. Born and raised in Buffalo, New York, Jackson DiCarlo is an up and coming talent with an affinity for all things creative. Fascinated with storytelling from a young age, he’s dedicated an immense amount of time and energy to its various associated crafts.

He studied Video Production in college, with a specialty in Narrative Film. He spent countless hours scriptwriting, podcasting, and editing, for work and play alike. Here he was introduced to Dungeons & Dragons and other tabletop role-playing games, which immediately captured his interest and aspirations.

After falling in love with D&D and TTRPGs in college, he’s been lucky enough to be a freelance writer, designer, and editor for several of his favorite RPG Publishers, including Ghostfire Gaming, Goodman Games, Elderbrain Games, and more. He is a dedicated creator that is passionate about compelling characters, the wonderful worlds they inhabit, and the spectacular stories they can tell. Check out Jackson’s games at Running GAGG 30!

Aaron is a game designer polymath from Ithaca who also enjoys writing, coding, and creating art & music. He’s a father of two teens, and his card game Robot Hospital was initially designed to play with his son (then 4 years old). As a child, Aaron enjoyed playing the small-by-contrast variety of board games available in the 80s, often creating variants and inventing new games with his friends using blocks and game components from other games. Between that background, experience as a software developer and as an artist, his approach towards game design is a “prototype early and often” paradigm, focusing on rapid and early iteration.

In 2022, Aaron joined Stillfleet Studio, initially as a technical advisor, but then almost immediately as a writer and contributed The Rain Thieves as a first-run publication for the tabletop RPG Stillfleet (created by Wythe Marschall), co-released in the successful 2022 core rulebook kickstarter. Aaron continues to contribute to Stillfleet Studio as a technical advisor, writer, game designer, GM, etc.

You can find Aaron’s various online public presences at https://aaronh.me Check out Aaron’s games at Running GAGG 30!

Dan is a retired counselor with a lifelong interest in board, card, and role-playing games. He loves tabletop games because of the interaction they provide, as well as their non-linear direction. DPH Games Inc was founded in 2013 and has produced a number of titles that use different mechanics to provide a variety of experiences. Look for Dan and his funny hat! Check out Dan’s games at Running GAGG 30!

Brian is the Vice President of Business for Windmill Game Co. He got his start in the gaming industry because of Running GAGG. Brian came to GAGG and ran games leading to being invited to other conventions run by Dan Brace. He eventually ended up at Origins and met his current game company companions at Windmill. He became part of their Demo team and then was made VP of Business with a concentration on the sales and marketing side of the industry. He also is a writer and editor for the company, having just put work into their recent release ADGNEPSEF555 (if you like candy ask about this0. Without GAGG, Brian would be relegated to just an 8-5 job in Sales. Check out Brian’s games at Running GAGG 30!

Dr. Kevin Kreiner (he/him) is a co-founder of Carcosa Creations, a Lovecraftian LARP company with over 50 original convention-length scenarios, that runs games at conventions across the northeast. He is the primary writer and dreams up most of the horrors the LARP players will face. He is also one of the writers of Hometown Horrors, Volume One, a popular Call of Cthulhu supplement published through Miskatonic Repository, with other projects soon to be published in partnership with Miskatonic Repository. His secret identity is a professor of history at SUNY Cortland and Finger Lakes Community College. Check out Kevin’s games at Running GAGG 30!

Min Kreiner (they/them) is a co-founder of Carcosa Creations, a Lovecraftian LARP company with over 50 original convention-length scenarios, that runs games at conventions across the northeast. They are the company’s primary prop and sound designer, bringing the LARPs to life with hand made props and immersive live mixed soundscapes. They are also the Lead Storyteller for the By Night Studios official Discord LARP, Miami by Night, and official By Night Studios LARP liaison for Origins Game Fair and GenCon. Check out Min’s games at Running GAGG 30!

Eloy Lasanta

Eloy Lasanta is the owner/operator of Third Eye Games, bringing unique experiences to every gaming table. His perspective cannot be found anywhere else in the RPG Industry, and this has led him to win the ENies Judge’s Spotlight Award in both 2017 and 2018 for his dynamic personality and approach to gaming.

He has designed over a dozen games, including Part-Time Gods Second Edition, The Ninja Crusade Second Edition, Sins of the Father, and the Pip System. He has even contributed to other well-known properties like the Firefly RPG, Vampire: The Masquerade, and Into the Motherlands. He is a creative chameleon and has produced quality work for comedy, sci-fi, and horror… whatever the game, Eloy has a unique take on it to make the material engaging and original.

For years now, he has also taken his professional career to the next level, becoming an Industry Expert and teaching RPG game design through Central Michigan University and becoming a narrative designer in the video game industry on Subetrrain: Mines of Titan (Pixellore, Inc.) and Dream Tactics (Spectra Entertainment). Check out Eloy’s games at Running GAGG 30!

Wythe Marschall (founder and lead game designer, Stillfleet Studio) is an experienced writer, science communicator, anthropologist, and game designer. He created the sci-fi RPG Stillfleet, the underlying Grit System, and the Stillfleet Studio to blend two lifelong obsessions—Leftist politics and tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs). He is the co-developer of Blister Critters by Anthony Grasso and the cohost of Why We Roll with Christopher Pickett. Wythe is currently working on several new books, including PICARO!, an early modern fantasy game. Check out Wythe’s games at Running GAGG 30!

Shawn Merwin

Shawn Merwin is a full-time RPG writer, designer, and editor. He is a Game Designer for Wizards of the Coast, and was Managing Editor and Lead Designer for Ghostfire Gaming.

His early published credits include Designer in the WotC book Dungeon Delve and the co-Designer (with Bruce Cordell) on Assault on Nightwyrm Fortress. He also co-designed Halls of Undermountain with Matt Sernett. For 5e D&D, he was credited as a co-Lead Designer for the D&D Acquisitions Incorporated hardcover, as well as a Designer for Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus. He’s recently worked on the beginner-focused D&D projects Peril in Pinebrook and Borderlands Quest: Goblin Trouble.

For Ghostfire Gaming, Shawn oversaw design on Grim Hollow: The Player’s Guide, Grim Hollow: The Monster Grimoire, and Arora: Age of Desolation, as well as the updating of Grim Hollow for the 2024 5e rules refresh. He is also a co-host on the Eldritch Lorecast podcast and stream.

Outside of D&D, Shawn also contributed to projects as diverse as Star Trek Adventures and the Dracula Dossier. Shawn has written game-design articles for D&D Beyond, and he hosts a weekly podcast called Mastering Dungeons. He has an MFA in Creative Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts and has taught creative writing at the undergraduate and post-graduate level. He also teaches courses on Writing for RPGs and Worldbuilding at Fredonia State University of New York. Check out Shawn’s games at Running GAGG 30!

Ang has been a gamer for many decades and remains as obsessed today as the day she started playing. She writes for Gnome Stew, an award winning blog providing GMing advice and other gaming information. In addition, she can be heard on her podcasts, the Gnomecast and THAC0 with Advantage talking about all things gaming to help everyone run and play better games. Check out Angela’s games at Running GAGG 30!

Jonathan and Lola Myers have worked professionally as Fantasy illustrators for 25 years. They have created artwork for games, comics, puzzles, books, film and television. Some of the clients they have worked for include: Disney, Lucasfilm, Marvel Comics, Chaosium, Atlas Games, Z-man Games Dungeoneering Guild and many more. They have completed work on such properties as Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Spider-Man and Dracula Untold. They are currently working on The Arthuriad, a volume of work illustrating the adventures of King Arthur and the forthcoming RPG Futures End. The couple will be sharing their artwork and techniques and look forward to visiting with attendees of Running GAGG.

Author and Game Designer Brandon Osorio is best known for creating the Dark Refuge: The Adventure Game and the Time Shredders ttrpgs. They have written two video games and eight novels including the philosophical science-fantasy epics Godswords: Saga of the Bladed Sun and Day Earth Died.

Brandon was proud to join with the Wisdom Vault team and Meta-Game for the successful kickstarter of Seas of Kansas. A bleeding edge survival horror experience where heroes are rescue workers in a flooded city. Using a revolutionary relationship system, Seas of Kansas is a must play experience.

Their proudest moments include running the national Border Wars Campaign, bringing together hundreds of players, as well as designing products and taking part in speaking engagements that helped inspire a whole generation of new game designers.

Brandon is a Guest Speaker at conventions and colleges across the country, speaking on topics such as Independent Game Design and Creating Compelling Villains. Though of all the conventions that Brandon attends throughout the year, Running GAGG always feels like coming home. Check out Brandon’s games at Running GAGG 30!