Austin Ramsay got into writing TTRPGs by trying to recreate D&D 2e from memory in 6th grade after playing it for a week at a March Break D&D camp. She’s now a queer TTRPG designer and AP podcaster best known for the award-winning game Beam Saber. Recently, she wrapped up CalazCon, a mega game Beam Saber AP with 30 players spread across 6 play groups.

Beam Saber is a Forged in the Dark game about the pilots of powerful machines in a war that dominates every facet of life. Players create custom vehicles for their pilots and work together in a squad to do their part and hopefully get out before the war takes them. It won The People’s Choice Award at Dicebreaker’s 2022 Tabletop Awards and was a 2023 winner in The Awards. Ramsay describes receiving the physical copy of Beam Saber after the 6-year journey it took to make it as one of her proudest moments.

When asked about her current project, Ramsay said she’s working on a game about an immortal being and the mortals they befriend on their long quest to save the world. The project is tentatively titled Time Passes.

“It mixes Forged In The Dark, Mothership, and Belonging Outside Belonging to tell a fantasy adventure about inevitable grief and the need to carry on,” Ramsay said about the game. “It's inspired by Frieren: Journey's End and the music video for Johnny Cash's cover of Hurt.”

Ramsay says her 11 years of actual play and podcasting experience influence her design identity and she takes her inspiration from music, documentaries, anime, or whatever other media she’s currently consuming. Her creative process is mostly a solo endeavour but her partner Christine Blight often assists her with both editing and design work. When asked what that process looks like, Austin Ramsay said, “I take a lot of notes when I have an idea, then ask myself questions about those notes, answer the questions, and then repeat until I have no more questions. I then organize the notes under appropriate headings, and begin the process of turning them into prose that other people can understand.”

Her biggest struggle is getting her WIP documents to the playtesting stage. She’s hoping to be able to run playtests of Time Passes at Breakout Con 2026 where she’ll also be running Beam Saber and Battletech.

Fun Facts

First TTRPG Played: D&D 2e

Dream Collaboration: I don't really have one. If I want to work with someone, I tend to commission them to make something for me.

Fave Canadian drink/snack: A Caesar, whether alcoholic or mocktail, is a great beverage.

Best Advice for New Indie Game Designers: Eat the elephant one bite at a time. Spend an hour a day working on your game design, and only work longer if you're in the zone.

You can check out Austin Ramsay’s work on Itch or find her on Bluesky, Tumblr, Youtube, Mastodon, or Twitter.