Ferne Milton
Creative Freelance
About
A creative designer and artist with a critical eye and a passion for game mechanics which are thematically relevant to their game. I am an avid gamer and roleplayer, with an appreciation for unique or clever narrative methods.
I taught Game Design and Game Art for more than 5 years before stepping away from teaching to focus on tabletop rpg development.
I am available as a creative freelancer or consultant and specialise in content for tabletop games.
Get in touch!
Graphic Designer
I have studied taught and worked with graphic elements for years and have produced work for my own games and companies as well as for outside projects.
I am particularly invested in creating visually accessible game icons, sheets and elements that help communicate the game states and enrich the play experience.
Game designer
I am lead game designer at CobblePath Games, making tabletop rpgs including the narrative horror system Locus. I also make games in my own time including the free Legend of Zelda fan-rpg Heroes of Hyrule.
Writer
Below are some Sample excerpts of my writing for tabletop rpg games and supplements.
Excerpt from the upcoming Locus: Sci-Fi settings guide published by CobblePath Games (2021)Discord ♣
As populations explode living space becomes a premium resource, both on the crowded streets of the mega-cities and in the finite spaces of the void-bound stations and spacecraft. Discord ♣ shifts slightly here—away from being about secrecy and shrunken, duplicitous egos, to more of a focus on the divisive and disorienting structures of the communities of tomorrow.
Here, Discord ♣ becomes a cacophony of noise and neon light, a heady mix of flashing signs, greasy metals, and the whirring sounds of the taxis that clog the roads. Neon signs illuminate the apartments opposite them, preventing sleep. Isolation is paradoxically easy in the crowded future, coated in the brightly coloured veneer of digital relationships and solitary convenience.
In this genre, community and humanity are often characterised by quiet earnestness, with the cacophony of future urban living an ever-present and disruptive norm. Discord ♣ becomes that sound and fury, a noisy, chaotic, headache-inducing force.Discord ♣ vs Activism — The Cyberpunk lens
On the surface, it may seem that Discord ♣ can be linked directly to activism and the chaos of riots, as well as the demographic groups that are commonly depicted at the heart of subgenres like cyberpunk. However, it is important to note that activism is not actually, innately Discord ♣, and can be its opposite.
Activism is usually about a community coming together and fighting for something they find important despite adversity. This underlying motivation for beneficial progress and change means that it runs completely counter to Discord ♣ because Vices are about the driving force behind a Haunt, not the actual outcome or fallout of the Haunt.
The imagery of Discord ♣ is an inherently dystopian view of the future, and the neon-lit streets and noisy dark roadways are not intended to be aspirational. These spaces are prisons, and present a direct challenge to the bonds of community. Therefore, consider the following for any activism-oriented Haunts: many (though not all, see [[Malice ♥]], Page xx) riotous acts are as likely to originate from well-intentioned Community ♣ focused Virtues as they are disruptive, Discord ♣ oriented Vices, so take care not to pigeon-hole these scenarios and events into Haunt-only material.
Excerpt from the Locus story Sticks and Stones published by Cobblepath Games (2021).The TunnelDeep within the dell is a stone tunnel built between a pair of sharp dirt hills. The tunnel is where the younger sibling went to hide from the stinging rain, where they sat to rest after receiving their injury, and where they died, alone and betrayed.
The tunnel is a dark and unpleasant place. Even when not raining, the ground is thick sludgy mud, and the whole area feels darker than it should.
One end of the tunnel has sticks poked into the dirt, like bars of a cage. These can be easily broken and moved but will be replaced by the time the characters return to this location.First Layer
In the first layer, this is an odd site. The Tunnel seems to lead to nowhere other than an easily accessible second part of the clearing. There is little to be found within the tunnel other than a few dolls - including one half made - scattered in the mud.Second Layer
In the second layer, the tunnel becomes truly treacherous, the mud becoming more than just an inconvenience. The sticks at the other end are more like thin branches, and if broken, split into strings of living wood rather than snap.
If a light source is brought into the tunnel, a red bloodstain can be found on the inner wall.Third Layer
In the third layer, the mud practically flows through the tunnel, and characters will find themselves sinking into it almost up to their waists if they venture in. The bars of wood, now thick root-like structures, have knotted across the exit. They would need an axe to break, but while they are in situ, prevent the flow of mud from exiting the tunnel, causing it to pool up at the far end. Around halfway down the tunnel, the skull of the doll maker can be found.
Artist
I am an artist available for hire. I can work both digitally and traditionally and am flexible in terms of style and format.
I specialise in character art and concept design.
Consultant
I offer consultancy for all my creative fields but in particular am available as a Game Design consultant for tabletop rpg creators.This is aimed at newer creators who are interested in making their first games, or more complex supplements who would like an experienced hand to review and discuss their projects with.Please contact me via twitter or the email below if you're interested!
Contact
I am available for hire as a creative freelancer or consultant.
Please feel free to get in touch by email.