In this interview, Philip Reed and Ed Bourelle announce their latest collaboration: Mörkham Asylum.
EGG EMBRY (EGG): You have a new MÖRK BORG project coming to Kickstarter soon, and this is the first time you’re announcing this, correct?
PHILIP REED (PHIL): We do, yes! I’m working with Ed Bourelle of SkeletonKey Games to bring Mörkham Asylum to life. Ed and I started work on the book earlier this year, and I’ve been having a great time every step of the way.
EGG: This is a location sourcebook and more, yes? What can you share about the location? Is this a fantasy setting? Is this a steampunk world? More horror?
PHIL: Mörkham Asylum is a weird fantasy madhouse set on the outskirts of the decaying city of Gothambeck. The first rule we set for ourselves when we started work on Mörkham Asylum was that “have fun!” is the only rule of any significance. For that reason, Mörkham Asylum defies a simple and direct description. Every GM will need to adjust things to best suit their tastes, but I can say I’m focusing on the weirdness of the whole thing.
ED BOURELLE (ED): There is no outline for this book, and the plan evolves with every conversation Philip and I have and every piece of artwork we share. We’re embracing the madness of creativity with this one.
EGG: What type of denizens are housed in the asylum?
PHIL: There are all sorts of inmates held in Mörkham Asylum, and we’re detailing over a dozen of them in the book. While we’re not ready to hand over a complete list, we can totally touch on a couple of the patients you’ll meet when you visit Mörkham Asylum. We’ve got Herbert Haberdash, a lunatic who just so happens to be an amateur mage. Herbert found a trunk filled with magical hats and, when he’s free of the asylum, uses these magic hats to commit all manner of atrocities. There’s also Vyktor Kalt, a wizard who made a deal with the wrong demon and is now cursed to live in a frozen suit of magical armor. Using spells and strange weapons, Kalt wishes only to spread how own brand of icy hatred across the city of Gothambeck. Fortunately, he’s incarcerated in Mörkham Asylum . . . but for how long?
ED: On top of the inmates… er, patients of the asylum, we’ll have a new character class that players can use to put them back inside when they inevitably escape. The Mörk Knight uses stealth, cunning, and plenty of gadgets to keep Gothambeck’s streets safe.
EGG: What can you share about the adventure?
ED: There will be plenty for GMs to work with in Mörkham Asylum, including adventure hooks and encounter suggestions, but we aren’t doing a full-on adventure here.
EGG: Why use MÖRK BORG for this book? Why is that the right engine for this project?
PHIL: These days, I prefer the lightest of rules in my RPGs. Mörk Borg, for that reason, is often my go-to when it comes to game mechanics. On top of that, the visual style and the overall tone of Mörk Borg felt like the perfect fit when we asked ourselves: What if we created an asylum and stocked it with weird inmates? I don’t think either one of us ever doubted that Mörk Borg was the right tool for this particular job.
ED: The ease and flexibility of the Mörk Borg rules made it our first choice. And players that are already familiar with the game won’t be shocked by our out-of-the-box approach to the visuals we’re putting together.
EGG: You’re creating MÖRKHAM ASYLUM with Ed Bourelle, not just the RPG but the art as well. Why is Ed the right partner on this project?
PHIL: To be fair, and to give my own imposter syndrome a chance to shine, I’d say that we should be asking Ed why I’m the right partner for the job. But, that aside, I can instantly think of two reasons why Ed’s the perfect partner on Mörkham Asylum. Twenty years ago, at the dawn of PDF publishing, Ed and I often coordinated releases and cross-promoted our works. Five years ago, we coordinated the launch of Mörk Borg Kickstarter campaigns, and I think we both benefited from the cross-promotion that accompanied the simultaneous launch of our projects. The logical next step is to make something together. I also need to note that Ed and I have overlapping tastes in art, but there’s enough variance in our knowledge and tastes that I’m often learning something when we chat. It isn’t uncommon for our conversations to lead to me tracking down a book or checking out an artist. And for so long as I can remember, my chats with Ed are inspirational and often give me new ideas.
ED: Philip and I have had weekly conversations for years and contributed to one another’s projects here and there. We have a complementary creative flow, and frankly, it’s high time we co-created something.
EGG: You and Ed are getting together in real life to create to work on your ideas and create the artwork for this project. What is your collaborative art process like?
PHIL: We’re absolutely getting together to work on this, and I’m as excited as a kid on Christmas Eve. Once we sit down in the same room, we’ll no doubt push each other and make the work even better, and I fully expect to see multiple canvases passed around multiple times. (Starting around August 11th or 12th, you can expect to see pics and possibly videos as Ed and I sit together and create artwork. Follow SkeletonKey Games if you want to follow along as we work.) But, thus far, it has been all remote, as we each sketch out ideas and toss files back and forth. For those pieces of art that have been finished so far, we’re using a rather simple process in which one of us creates the underlying line art, and the other then paints the work. Our ultimate goal is that we both touch every piece of art in the book in some way. The shot of the Mörkham Asylum gates, for example, was sketched out by Ed. He designed the gates and general composition of the art, and then I took his linework and figured out what I wanted to do with it. I decided to take a stab at mixed media, and had the gates laser cut out of wood. Then, on a 12” x 12” canvas, I painted the background. The wooden gates and canvas were then mounted to a frame, and fake plants were added. The skulls you can see on the gate posts were resin skulls I just happened to have sitting around. When I realized they were the same size as the skulls Ed had illustrated on the original art, I knew I had no choice but to incorporate those skulls into the finished work.
ED: This is a big experiment. Back in May, during a weekend of gaming, Philip voiced the idea of getting together for a week of making art. When I saw a window in my calendar to host a week of creativity, I invited him out and, knowing that we are both project motivated, suggested we create something as a true collaboration. We landed on Mörkham Asylum, and he literally hasn’t left me alone about the idea since. I can’t wait until we are passing art back and forth across a table instead of via email. We’ve agreed to limit our work to finishing just enough to show for promotion and having drawings mounted and ready to paint when he gets here. The real magic is going to happen when we are face-to-face.
EGG: Among the many projects you’ve created, one that’s near and dear to me is Dank and Dark, your Tunnel Goon TTRPG that will be printed as a board book (thick cardboard paper children’s book). We did an interview about it last year. How is Dank and Dark progressing? Can fans still join the pre-order for Dank and Dark?
PHIL: Right now, late pledges are still open at Backerkit for anyone who wants to join us. Dank & Dark is coming along great, and I already have the finished samples! The printer is shipping the books as we speak, and we’ll have them in a few months. While I’m eager for the finished book to get into everyone’s hands, I’m most excited about the idea of making another RPG board book. Though expensive to manufacture, the format feels great in hand!
EGG: Beyond this, what else are you working on?
PHIL: On Kickstarter right now is the Deck of Old-School Encounters Set Four. This is 72 fantasy encounter cards, every one of which is useful for your OSR game, including classic D&D. The deck can be used on its own, or it can be shuffled together with the first three sets to create a 288-card draw pile. That’s a lot of encounters! The biggest thing I’m working on right now is The Gamemaster’s Tome of Infinite Treasures. This 120+ page book is basically a giant table of tables. I’ve designed the book so that the roll of 1d100 corresponds with the 100 core pages of the book, on which are seventeen different possible results. The book’s 1,700 prompts can be used to generate treasure hoards, aid you in designing magic items, help you puzzle out an encounter idea, or in any way you can imagine! There is a lot packed in the book, such as one magic item on each of the 100 pages, tables of mundane items and jewelry on each of the 100 pages, and even over 150 potion descriptions you can use as you see fit. The Kickstarter landing page is live, and I hope everyone will follow it today!
ED: For SkeletonKey Games, I am currently putting the finishing touches on Three from the Locker, a trio of Pirate Borg compatible pamphlets which include an adventure, rules for pirate flags in naval combat, and a series of scenarios for use when your ship sinks. We currently have the preview page up on Kickstarter and will launch later in August. Further out, I’ve got a CY_borg compatible deck of NPC cards in which I hope to use the backers themselves as reference for the character art. The CY_tizens preview page is also up on Kickstarter now and will launch sometime after Mörkham Asylum. I also continue to create my Arcane Scrollworks line of hand-finished scrolls based on D&D spells. We’ve released 15 new scroll designs already this year and have more in the works.
EGG: Thanks for talking with me. Where can fans learn more about your newest projects, Mörkham Asylum?
PHIL: Thank you for having us! As to learning more? Well . . . I hate, hate, hate, hate self-promotion. I wish I had a good answer, but there’s no website or social media channel I can point to and say, “go here!” So, instead, I’ll simply recommend following my work at DriveThruRPG and following me on Kickstarter. I swear I’ll have a website one of these days. Maybe.
ED: Yes, thank you for having us. SkeletonKey Games can be found on most social media platforms, and I’m trying to get better about keeping them up to date. We do have our own website and post blogs with news on our latest projects.
Egg Embry participates in the OneBookShelf Affiliate Program, Noble Knight Games’ Affiliate Program, Kobold Press Affiliate Program, and is an Amazon Associate. These programs provide advertising fees by linking to DriveThruRPG, Noble Knight Games, Kobold Press, and Amazon.
EGG EMBRY (EGG): You have a new MÖRK BORG project coming to Kickstarter soon, and this is the first time you’re announcing this, correct?
PHILIP REED (PHIL): We do, yes! I’m working with Ed Bourelle of SkeletonKey Games to bring Mörkham Asylum to life. Ed and I started work on the book earlier this year, and I’ve been having a great time every step of the way.
EGG: This is a location sourcebook and more, yes? What can you share about the location? Is this a fantasy setting? Is this a steampunk world? More horror?
PHIL: Mörkham Asylum is a weird fantasy madhouse set on the outskirts of the decaying city of Gothambeck. The first rule we set for ourselves when we started work on Mörkham Asylum was that “have fun!” is the only rule of any significance. For that reason, Mörkham Asylum defies a simple and direct description. Every GM will need to adjust things to best suit their tastes, but I can say I’m focusing on the weirdness of the whole thing.
ED BOURELLE (ED): There is no outline for this book, and the plan evolves with every conversation Philip and I have and every piece of artwork we share. We’re embracing the madness of creativity with this one.
EGG: What type of denizens are housed in the asylum?
PHIL: There are all sorts of inmates held in Mörkham Asylum, and we’re detailing over a dozen of them in the book. While we’re not ready to hand over a complete list, we can totally touch on a couple of the patients you’ll meet when you visit Mörkham Asylum. We’ve got Herbert Haberdash, a lunatic who just so happens to be an amateur mage. Herbert found a trunk filled with magical hats and, when he’s free of the asylum, uses these magic hats to commit all manner of atrocities. There’s also Vyktor Kalt, a wizard who made a deal with the wrong demon and is now cursed to live in a frozen suit of magical armor. Using spells and strange weapons, Kalt wishes only to spread how own brand of icy hatred across the city of Gothambeck. Fortunately, he’s incarcerated in Mörkham Asylum . . . but for how long?
ED: On top of the inmates… er, patients of the asylum, we’ll have a new character class that players can use to put them back inside when they inevitably escape. The Mörk Knight uses stealth, cunning, and plenty of gadgets to keep Gothambeck’s streets safe.
EGG: What can you share about the adventure?
ED: There will be plenty for GMs to work with in Mörkham Asylum, including adventure hooks and encounter suggestions, but we aren’t doing a full-on adventure here.
EGG: Why use MÖRK BORG for this book? Why is that the right engine for this project?
PHIL: These days, I prefer the lightest of rules in my RPGs. Mörk Borg, for that reason, is often my go-to when it comes to game mechanics. On top of that, the visual style and the overall tone of Mörk Borg felt like the perfect fit when we asked ourselves: What if we created an asylum and stocked it with weird inmates? I don’t think either one of us ever doubted that Mörk Borg was the right tool for this particular job.
ED: The ease and flexibility of the Mörk Borg rules made it our first choice. And players that are already familiar with the game won’t be shocked by our out-of-the-box approach to the visuals we’re putting together.
EGG: You’re creating MÖRKHAM ASYLUM with Ed Bourelle, not just the RPG but the art as well. Why is Ed the right partner on this project?
PHIL: To be fair, and to give my own imposter syndrome a chance to shine, I’d say that we should be asking Ed why I’m the right partner for the job. But, that aside, I can instantly think of two reasons why Ed’s the perfect partner on Mörkham Asylum. Twenty years ago, at the dawn of PDF publishing, Ed and I often coordinated releases and cross-promoted our works. Five years ago, we coordinated the launch of Mörk Borg Kickstarter campaigns, and I think we both benefited from the cross-promotion that accompanied the simultaneous launch of our projects. The logical next step is to make something together. I also need to note that Ed and I have overlapping tastes in art, but there’s enough variance in our knowledge and tastes that I’m often learning something when we chat. It isn’t uncommon for our conversations to lead to me tracking down a book or checking out an artist. And for so long as I can remember, my chats with Ed are inspirational and often give me new ideas.
ED: Philip and I have had weekly conversations for years and contributed to one another’s projects here and there. We have a complementary creative flow, and frankly, it’s high time we co-created something.
EGG: You and Ed are getting together in real life to create to work on your ideas and create the artwork for this project. What is your collaborative art process like?
PHIL: We’re absolutely getting together to work on this, and I’m as excited as a kid on Christmas Eve. Once we sit down in the same room, we’ll no doubt push each other and make the work even better, and I fully expect to see multiple canvases passed around multiple times. (Starting around August 11th or 12th, you can expect to see pics and possibly videos as Ed and I sit together and create artwork. Follow SkeletonKey Games if you want to follow along as we work.) But, thus far, it has been all remote, as we each sketch out ideas and toss files back and forth. For those pieces of art that have been finished so far, we’re using a rather simple process in which one of us creates the underlying line art, and the other then paints the work. Our ultimate goal is that we both touch every piece of art in the book in some way. The shot of the Mörkham Asylum gates, for example, was sketched out by Ed. He designed the gates and general composition of the art, and then I took his linework and figured out what I wanted to do with it. I decided to take a stab at mixed media, and had the gates laser cut out of wood. Then, on a 12” x 12” canvas, I painted the background. The wooden gates and canvas were then mounted to a frame, and fake plants were added. The skulls you can see on the gate posts were resin skulls I just happened to have sitting around. When I realized they were the same size as the skulls Ed had illustrated on the original art, I knew I had no choice but to incorporate those skulls into the finished work.
ED: This is a big experiment. Back in May, during a weekend of gaming, Philip voiced the idea of getting together for a week of making art. When I saw a window in my calendar to host a week of creativity, I invited him out and, knowing that we are both project motivated, suggested we create something as a true collaboration. We landed on Mörkham Asylum, and he literally hasn’t left me alone about the idea since. I can’t wait until we are passing art back and forth across a table instead of via email. We’ve agreed to limit our work to finishing just enough to show for promotion and having drawings mounted and ready to paint when he gets here. The real magic is going to happen when we are face-to-face.
EGG: Among the many projects you’ve created, one that’s near and dear to me is Dank and Dark, your Tunnel Goon TTRPG that will be printed as a board book (thick cardboard paper children’s book). We did an interview about it last year. How is Dank and Dark progressing? Can fans still join the pre-order for Dank and Dark?
PHIL: Right now, late pledges are still open at Backerkit for anyone who wants to join us. Dank & Dark is coming along great, and I already have the finished samples! The printer is shipping the books as we speak, and we’ll have them in a few months. While I’m eager for the finished book to get into everyone’s hands, I’m most excited about the idea of making another RPG board book. Though expensive to manufacture, the format feels great in hand!
EGG: Beyond this, what else are you working on?
PHIL: On Kickstarter right now is the Deck of Old-School Encounters Set Four. This is 72 fantasy encounter cards, every one of which is useful for your OSR game, including classic D&D. The deck can be used on its own, or it can be shuffled together with the first three sets to create a 288-card draw pile. That’s a lot of encounters! The biggest thing I’m working on right now is The Gamemaster’s Tome of Infinite Treasures. This 120+ page book is basically a giant table of tables. I’ve designed the book so that the roll of 1d100 corresponds with the 100 core pages of the book, on which are seventeen different possible results. The book’s 1,700 prompts can be used to generate treasure hoards, aid you in designing magic items, help you puzzle out an encounter idea, or in any way you can imagine! There is a lot packed in the book, such as one magic item on each of the 100 pages, tables of mundane items and jewelry on each of the 100 pages, and even over 150 potion descriptions you can use as you see fit. The Kickstarter landing page is live, and I hope everyone will follow it today!
ED: For SkeletonKey Games, I am currently putting the finishing touches on Three from the Locker, a trio of Pirate Borg compatible pamphlets which include an adventure, rules for pirate flags in naval combat, and a series of scenarios for use when your ship sinks. We currently have the preview page up on Kickstarter and will launch later in August. Further out, I’ve got a CY_borg compatible deck of NPC cards in which I hope to use the backers themselves as reference for the character art. The CY_tizens preview page is also up on Kickstarter now and will launch sometime after Mörkham Asylum. I also continue to create my Arcane Scrollworks line of hand-finished scrolls based on D&D spells. We’ve released 15 new scroll designs already this year and have more in the works.
EGG: Thanks for talking with me. Where can fans learn more about your newest projects, Mörkham Asylum?
PHIL: Thank you for having us! As to learning more? Well . . . I hate, hate, hate, hate self-promotion. I wish I had a good answer, but there’s no website or social media channel I can point to and say, “go here!” So, instead, I’ll simply recommend following my work at DriveThruRPG and following me on Kickstarter. I swear I’ll have a website one of these days. Maybe.
ED: Yes, thank you for having us. SkeletonKey Games can be found on most social media platforms, and I’m trying to get better about keeping them up to date. We do have our own website and post blogs with news on our latest projects.
Egg Embry participates in the OneBookShelf Affiliate Program, Noble Knight Games’ Affiliate Program, Kobold Press Affiliate Program, and is an Amazon Associate. These programs provide advertising fees by linking to DriveThruRPG, Noble Knight Games, Kobold Press, and Amazon.
