 | Heartbreak In Stereo at 25 |
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In this newsletter | Arcane Sword Press | Ham & Egg Publishing | Solarian Games |
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Ham & Egg Publishing Heartbreak Is Forever: Heartbreak In Stereo’s 25th Anniversary |  | As much as my spirit may feel like that of a hopeful teenager, and my fashion sense is that of a child who dresses himself, I am 47 years old.
The reminders don’t often come in the form of cracking knees and back pain, as they do from folks making posts on Instagram that say, “Such and such album is 20 years old today.” Last week, it showed up as a message from an old friend about my 30th High School Reunion.
Safe to say, I’ve been around for a bit.
When I look in the mirror today, especially in sunlight, I no longer see “Hambone the Black”, as much as “Hambone the easing towards more Salt than Pepper” with fully white sideburns. But 25 years ago, on a Feria Starry Night, four of my best friends and I drove to Nada Studios in Newberg, New York, and recorded an album called Heartbreak In Stereo. |  |
Frank Iero, Tim Hagevik, Neil Sabatino, Shaun Simon, and I had a band called Pencey Prep. We had big dreams and an unshakeable work ethic. In the year leading up to the album’s recording, we might have actually practiced more than almost any other local band. At gigs, we were tight to the point of a near-psychic connection. |  |
Heartbreak was the culmination of that. It’s raw, it’s real, and it’s everything a bunch of late-era kids from New Jersey had in our souls. We left it all on the tape. The album may have sounded a lot different if there had been anybody there from the label to tell us no, but as it was, Pencey Prep had always been an afterthought in their eyes.
Still, 25 years later, the album is a crystal-clear window into a very specific place and time in our lives, now remastered for your listening pleasure.
While there were many albums that challenged me, helped me shape my tastes, and, in so many ways, made me feel less alone, Heartbreak In Stereo is the album that changed my life.
A quarter century ago, dear reader, I bet on a long shot. I bet on myself, I bet on my band, and I bet on our shared dream. Sure, it didn’t quite turn out as planned, but it’s the reason I am here today. The amazing friends I’ve made, my grand adventures, and the brilliant woman who chose me as her favorite Pokémon are all because 25 years ago, Pencey Prep shone very brightly, very briefly.
I’d still take that bet. | | | | | | | Solarian Games Tabletop Weekly |  | Tabletop Weekly recently hit our 100th episode, so I thought this would be a good time to encourage you to join us every Sunday. It’s the partners of Solarian, Jayson (me!) and Peter, talking about what’s happened in tabletop gaming each week.
We go live at 9 pm Eastern every Sunday, and the chat is always open. |  |
The show gets released afterward as an audio podcast, and the videos can all be found on the YouTube page – just go to TabletopWeekly.com to subscribe. This week, we talked about:
HBG Con – the mini con run by House of Books and Games in northern Connecticut, where I’ll be running a 1970s TV police drama as an RPG UK Games Expo 2026 saw tabletop creators push back against AI, as vendors put up “human made” signs, industry professionals spoke out against generative AI on panel discussions, and creators criticized UKGE leadership for lacking clear anti-AI policies. Wizards of the Coast is hiring for an AI engineer role, despite pledging not to use generative AI, and is reportedly preparing to put AI in customer-facing features on D&D Beyond. A new homebrew tool for D&D lets you use tarot cards to weave together character traits and personality quirks during character creation and even guide you with ideas during your game. The Wire meets The Shire in a new RPG called The Merryshire Detective Club, where you can play hobbits who are amateur sleuths in a “cozy crime” mystery game.
We love interacting with the audience during the show, and even have an afterparty on Discord for our Patreon backers. Tabletop Weekly is a great way to check in on what’s happening in gaming every week, so let us be your podcast companions! |  | | | | | Arcane Sword Press RPG Rediscovery! Returns with KILLER by Steve Jackson Games |  | I’m writing this as I wait for my return flight from BETWEEN TWO CONS. I’m in Portland while camping out at Dark Future/Black Water. Place rules! And luckily, they have a used copy of Killer!
$20 and it’s yours! |  | Okay, so back to the game- Killer. This game is kind of cheating because it’s not so much of a traditional RPG; it’s a LARP! Yes, that’s right, I am talking about LARPing. It’s a game where you pretend to be an assassin in your everyday life. The basic premise is that you are a secret assassin and you are assigned a friend to “assassinate,” but you are ALSO being “hunted”. This is a meta game, as in it is actively played while you live your life. So, any moment you see a friend, they might pull a squirt gun on you and complete their objective!
I actually ran this game years ago, back in 2009, using a website instead of the book. I knew about it as a college campus game, but I organized it around my friends in our hometown. I also had a reward for the last assassin standing to give players a motive. The main element of this game is the amount of paranoia that grows as you keep playing the game. There are designated “save zones” and specific weapons that count to help give some control to the game. But yeah, let’s dive into the “weapons”! |  |
The game encourages creative ways to “kill” your target. I’ve already mentioned squirt guns, but other examples are:
- Dart gun
- A Banana held like a gin
- A Rubber snake left in a bag
- Water balloons
- A pillow dropped from a window to be an anvil
- Hot sauce or salt in a drink as a poison
- Booby traps, like a strip of paper with “bomb” written on it, slipped between the pages of a book
- A flashlight as a “laser” for a sci-fi flare
- Etc. etc
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The book also includes scenarios for different goals, including free-for-all, team assassins, etc. My personal favorite scenario is The Agents from 2080, where some players are future assassins trying to alter history.
The book provides a lot of guidance for organizing a game of Killer, along with safety tools and fun roleplaying elements like contracts and death certificates. I was thinking of running a version of this game at the upcoming Under The Dice Fest (badges on sale now!), but I’m not sure I’ll be able to rope in enough folks. We will see!
Even if you don’t plan on organizing a game or Killer, the book is a lot of fun to flip through. There’s a great sense of humor running through it that really captures the charm Steve Jackson Games was known for in the early 1980s. It’s a great read, and honestly, a really novel concept. I don’t know if SJG were the real creators of the game, but they certainly wrote the complete guide for running it! Check it out! |  | | | Next up on RPG Rediscovery- Universe: The Role-playing Game of the Future by SPI
Until then! Bryan | | | Nominations are open for the 3rd annual Golden Fez Awards |  | The Golden Fez Awards are held every year at TotalCon gaming convention in Marlborough, MA. The 3rd annual awards are open to any tabletop RPG published in 2026. You can nominate your own game, or submit one that you just happen to be a fan of.
The Golden Fez is a tribute to Solarian co-founder James Carpio, who passed away in 2024. James loved all sorts of tabletop games, and we’ve crafted the categories to represent the qualities that he loved most in games.
Categories include: The Holy Hand Grenade AwardGiven for best new game mechanic.
The Pick Up and Play AwardEasiest game to learn. Honey, I Shrunk the Dice AwardFor micro-RPGs that will fit on one page or less. The Velvet Smooth AwardFor best design and production. The Hack the Planet AwardPresented to the most unexpected idea. Originality in any form, whether it’s rules, setting, design, or anything else. The Bucket of Blood AwardBest combat rules The Golden Fez Game of the YearGame of the Year is given to the one game published this year that we feel best embodies all of the things about gaming that James loved.
Nominations will be open from Tuesday, June 23rd, through Monday, November 20th, 2026. You can suggest one or more categories for your nomination, or let the judges decide.
Go to GoldenFez.com to nominate your favorite TTRPG or submit your own! | | |
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ShireCon North Canaan, CT – September 25th & 26th |
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ShireCon is celebrating its 8th year! Two days of role-playing and board games in the Berkshires! Come for a day and a half of OSR and modern gaming. Visit our vendors selling old and new games and enjoy the local fare in North Canaan, CT |
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Under The Dice Fest Enfield, CT – October 2nd, 3rd & 4th |
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Under The Dice Fest returns this October 2nd- 4th!
UTDFest is focused on independent tabletop gaming, with a focus on miniatures and wargames! The New England Mordheim Open returns, along with roleplaying games, game tournaments, workshops, live music, and more! You don’t want to miss it! |
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ArcaneCon Northampton, MA – October 16th & 17th |
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ArcaneCon is returning October 16th & 17th, 2026. Join us in a celebration of indie, old school, and old school-inspired RPGs, miniature games, board games, and more! ArcaneCon is Western Massachusetts’s premiere tabletop hobby convention! Game submissions are open now!!! See more information at Tabletop Events. |
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Keep on emailing us at hello@analogunion.com to let us know what you’d like to see more of/less of and to share ideas. If you enjoy the Analog Union newsletter, please tell your friends to sign up at AnalogUnion.com. Until next time! —JHM |
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