Interview
David Tepher: The Exorcism at the House of Monkton Falls
Designer Interview
Can you tell us a little about yourself and your background?
Well right now I live in Burlington Vermont with my fiancé and work as a graphic designer. I studied art and design at Eastern Connecticut State University, which also happens to be where I discovered tabletop gaming.
How did you get into game design?
When I was 12 or 13 my brother and I stumbled on an old Warhammer Fantasy army book at the school playground. And being kids with no money and wide eyes instead of being able to buy and play Warhammer we decided to make our own “similar” game with our action figures. Ever since then I have been altering existing games and designing my own.
What are your goals as a game designer?
It’s kind of a 2 part goal. I think I echo what a lot of designers when I say I want to make the board game hobby more approachable for everyone. I think there are still way to many stigmas around board the board gaming hobby, and gamers. So a large part of what I do is try to bridge that gap and make games easier to approach and break down those stigmas. My personal mission, as a fan of the horror pop culture genre and horror storytelling is to explore horror storytelling in board games. I tend to feel that the horror genre is poorly represented in board games. With most of those games devolving into the Zombie or Cthulu camps of pasted on themes. But what I want to do is really see how we can tell frightful stories and create those compelling heart racing experiences in our games.
What is your process for designing a game?
I start with what I want the players to experience. Since my focus is on the horror genre I go into each game already knowing what my target theme will be (with variations on the specifics). So instead I look at what I want you to feel playing my games. Then I work backwards pairing down what mechanics would solve this problem of creating a particular experience.
What do you feel is your biggest challenge as a game designer?
My biggest challenge is overcoming obstacles in the design process. I can’t tell you the number of times I had gotten to the 4th or 5th iteration of a design to only hit a design problem that stalled my process for weeks. Sometimes it has me dump the whole game which kills the months already spent on design. Luckily I think all designers learn from these “failures” and find ways to use the things I like in future projects. I know that The Exorcism at the House of Monkton Falls contains several mechanics that were meant for earlier projects. And it had mechanics cut that I am sure will show up in my future designs.
How do you handle play-testing and development?
Everything in game design is about iteration. I know this is becoming an overused term but “fail early, fail often” is the way I look at the playtesting and development process. It is a constant loop of have an idea, make it, try it, see how it works, then make adjustments. And that at first is my every day, then my every week, my every month, and then it stops happening. As I get from iteration to iteration my playtest group expands. I start with playtesting by myself and then move slowly outwards to my partner, friends, family, and then the larger gaming community.
Do you have any advice for aspiring designers?
Don’t be afraid to fail. And if you aren’t failing in your design process, you aren’t trying hard enough. So much of what I do in my design process gets left behind. And some mechanics, themes, and concepts that you love aren’t going to work out. It is all part of the process. Don’t get discouraged, just keep building.
What are some of your favorite games to play?
I am a huge miniature war game fan. It is how I was first introduced into the hobby and it is still probably my first love. I am currently a huge Age of Sigmar addict and have been in the Games Workshop hobby realm for nearly 11 years. Outside of that my favorite games would be Lords of Waterdeep, Ascension, Citadels, and Carcassonne.
Do you have a favorite (local) game store?
Yes, absolutely yes. I can’t speak highly enough of Quarterstaff Games in Burlington, VT. The communities that, that store has fostered are irreplaceable. You know you have certainly hit a peak in the hobby when a store is as important to a community as the community is important to the store.
We saw sneak peeks of Monkton Falls. Just from what was seen — It looks fantastic. Anything extra you can share with our readers?
The Exorcism at the House of Monkton Falls is a pretty freaking difficult coop game. It got to the point that now at conventions we hand out special pins to the groups that win. The secret, is all about communication. Monkton Falls is not a game that you can bull through and overcome. You have limited actions and tons of threats. So having a plan, communicating that plan, and figuring out your moves ahead of time is the only way to win. In Monkton Falls the house doesn’t always win, but sometimes it can feel like it.
What are some of your interests outside of games and design?
Anything that involves food. Whether it is cooking, coffee, wines, or craft beer. Luckily I grew up in a home where my father was pretty adventurous when it came to introducing us to new foods. And my love for it only grew as I got older. I was that weird kid in college who had a kitchen instead of a meal plan and always went out of his way to look for the super obscure restaurant/coffee shop that was over an hour drive away.
But what does it all mean? Find out how we review the games we play!
