Special Guests

At BR&WL-CON, you’ll have the chance to connect with some of the brightest and most imaginative minds in game design. They’ll be leading events and hosting panels, offering you a front-row seat to explore their thrilling creations and delve into the brilliant, quirky perspectives of these masterful architects of adventures, strategies, and worlds.

Don't Miss!

The Special Guest Mix & Mingle for our BR&WL STAR VIP Badge Holders Friday Night!

Award Winning Game Designers

Bryan Young

Bryan Young (he/they) works across many different media. His work as a writer and producer has been called "filmmaking gold" by The New York Times. He's published comic books with Slave Labor Graphics and Image Comics and is co-writing the upcoming BattleTech series of graphic novels with New York Times Bestseller Michael A. Stackpole. He's been a regular contributor for the Huffington Post, StarWars.com, Star Wars Insider magazine, SYFY, /Film, and was the founder and editor in chief of the geek news and review site Big Shiny Robot! In 2014, he wrote the critically acclaimed history book, A Children’s Illustrated History of Presidential Assassination. He co-authored Robotech: The Macross Saga RPG and its companion Homefront and has written six books in the BattleTech Universe: Honor's Gauntlet, A Question of Survival, Fox Tales, Without Question, VoidBreaker and the forthcoming Lone Wolf and Fox. His latest non-fiction tie-in book, The Big Bang Theory Book of Lists is a #1 Bestseller on Amazon. His work has won two Diamond Quill awards and in 2023 he was named Writer of the Year by the League of Utah Writers. He teaches writing for Writer’s Digest, Script Magazine, and at the University of Utah. Follow him across social media @swankmotron or visit swankmotron.com.

Bryan Young is hosting:

John Wick

John Wick is a multi-award winning game designer and author. He has designed over two dozen RPGs, won the Origins Award four times, the Ennie eleven times, and the RPGA Players' Choice Award. His RPGs include Legend of the Five Rings, 7th Sea, Orkworld, Houses of the Blooded, Cat and Banners. His provocative and iconoclastic game master advice is collected in Play Dirty (volumes 1 and 2) and Letters to a Young Game Master. He collects orks, lives in Phoenix, AZ with three cats, a dozen monsters, and serves as the majordomo for the Dungeon of the Rah, and probably has an opinion about your favorite RPG. Just ask him.

John Wick is Hosting:

Savage Worlds & East Texas University

Writers & Creators

Ed Wetterman

Ed discovered tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs) in the late 1970s and has been hooked ever since—yep, he’s rolled some dice over the years! In 2000, he teamed up with the RPGA, crafting content for the Bandit Kingdoms, and by 2003, he launched 12 to Midnight, focusing on modern-day horror games and adventures. He played a key role in shaping the eerie Pinebox, Texas setting and penned a slew of adventures to go with it. In 2010, he co-created East Texas University and its campaign Degrees of Horror for Pinnacle’s Savage Worlds RPG. His writing creds don’t stop there—he co-wrote Agents of Oblivion and contributed to Realms of Cthulhu for Reality Blurs, plus tackled multiple Savage Worlds lines like Flash Gordon for Pinnacle Entertainment Group. Beyond that, Ed’s churned out gaming articles, edited stacks of manuscripts, and dipped into short fiction with tales like “The Witch of Linda Lane” in Pinebox Tales and “Hellfighter” for the Weird West. Alongside his writing buddy Preston Dubose, he recently wrapped up East Texas University: Fresh Blood and a graphic novel slated for release soon (details still under wraps!). Living in Caldwell, Texas, Ed teaches history in College Station and unwinds with fishing, football, war games, video games, and—of course—TTRPGs. He’s married and has two grown sons, David and Kevin, who’ve also caught the gaming bug!

Ed Wetterman is Hosting:

Indie Games

Writers & Creators

John Watson

John leapt into game design with Fiends at Fort Worth, an urban fantasy adventure for D3 Adventures. From there, he created Dark Fagara: Age of the Orc, a grim-dark fantasy setting published in Lester Smith’s D6xD6 RPG. His momentum continued when he joined Ulisses-Spiele as a contract designer for TORG: Eternity, contributing to numerous books, including the Tharkold Cosm Book, Blood on the Blasted Lands, Orrorsh Cosm Book, Operation: Soft Sell, and more—adding depth and danger to some of the game’s cosms. John is also a credited writer for Weird Frontiers, bringing nightmares to life in the twisted Weird West. Most recently, he partnered with the Ink Slingers to release The Wanting Wizard, a DCC-compatible zine packed with magical mischief and strange encounters. As the founder of Rugby-Melee Games, he’s released Hell Train under his own banner and is preparing to launch Dungeon Dwelling Creatures—a DCC-compatible RPG where players take on the roles of monsters—on BackerKit later this year. With more dark, wild projects in the works, John crafts stories that dare adventurers to face—and perhaps become—the unknown.

John Watson is Hosting:

Scott Plaskett

Get ready to unleash your ultimate roleplaying character with Trinamyk, a game-changer born from 8 years of passionate homebrewing and rigorous playtesting by Scott Plaskett! Trinamyk introduces fresh mechanics to act fast and stay engaged every round, blending special abilities with immersive roleplay actions. Join Scott at his electrifying interactive seminar to discover how Trinamyk revolutionizes roleplaying! Bring your questions, explore the system, and learn pro tips to supercharge your homebrew projects. Don’t miss your chance to redefine how you play!

Don't Miss!

Award Winning Game Designers

Bryan Young is hosting:

John Wick is Hosting:

Savage Worlds & East Texas University

Writers & Creators

Ed Wetterman is Hosting:

Indie Games

Writers & Creators

John Watson is Hosting:

Scott Plaskett is Hosting!