On May 30th, 2025, tabletop gamers and professionals gathered at Birmingham’s NEC for the first day of the UK Games Expo. This unique gathering of people proved to be the perfect backdrop to the first ever professional UK TTRPG networking event for industry creatives who identify as people of color (PoC).
Organized by CRIT Award Outstanding Community Member nominee, Taylor Navarro, and supported by big names in the indie TTRPG scene, this event linked up and coming PoC creators with industry professionals offering support and guidance.
Taylor was kind enough to invite me to attend and speak with the talented individuals present. Here’s what I found out and here’s why events like these are so important to PoC creatives and the games industry in general.
What Happened at the PoC TTRPG Networking Event?
After a busy day at UKGE, I made my way to Birmingham’s Resort Road, a short walk away from the NEC. As I got myself comfy, I recognized a number of industry professionals from UKGE, performances and from previous meetings. Despite the best of intentions, most people ended up sitting with people they already knew, eager for a familiar face after a long day. However, Taylor soon took center stage with a strong call to action. She spoke about the under representation of PoCs in the UK TTRPG industry and the importance of making networking opportunities for advancement:
When you’re looking for, financial support, jobs, mentorship, it’s always about who you know than what like can be learned, but somebody who is very knowledgeable but has no industry connections isn’t going to make it far.
Taylor Navarro is a champion of PoC in the UK TTRPG industry and organizer of the event.
Taylor had put a lot of steps in place to make sure attendees got the most out of the event. Her introductory emails included networking tips about managing your energy and knowing what you’re bringing to the table.
We were all given pamphlets at the event complete with profiles of everyone present. These profiles included bios of the attendees’ experience and skills as well as whether they are looking for support or offering support. The event was clearly set up with the intention of having these groups of people match up to develop mutually beneficial relationships. Throughout the event, Taylor was constantly on her feet, helping facilitate these positive interactions between people.
These pamphlets made it easy to see who was who and how best to approach people.
As Taylor put it:
A lot of these professionals want to help, and a lot of these creators want connections, but it’s that first introduction that tends to be the most difficult. And so this event was designed to facilitate making those connections.
This event was made possible by the support of sponsors: Rowan, Rook & Decard, Pelgrane Press, Soul Muppet Publishing, Three Sails Studios and Black Armada. As well as booking the venue and providing food and refreshments, they also helped with logistics. Taylor gave special mention to Grant Howitt and Matt Sanders who helped with planning the event and assembling the full roster of sponsors.
Why Events Like These Matter
I spoke with Taylor afterwards about her intentions for this event and why it was important to her. She spoke about being a part of similar TTRPG networking events in the USA such as Big Bad Con‘s PoC Meeting Group. Through that work, and through the mentorship of Anthony Joyce Rivera, she was able to establish herself on the TTRPG scene and help others do the same. Since then, she was determined to bring this sort of event to the UK so that UK PoCs could benefit from these kind of experiences.
For Taylor, PoC representation matters for PoC creatives and their careers but also for the TTRPG industry at large. Diverse audiences appreciate diverse voices. The more they can see themselves in games, they more they are able to connect with these games. Plus, having more diverse creative teams helps create more diverse and interesting stories!
Standout Attendees from This Year
I got the privilege of being able to talk to so many talented PoC creators. This included up and coming creators seeking advice and opportunities as well as more experienced professionals looking to help them. Here are some of the standout connections I made.
Finley J. Palaniki
Finley is a TTRPG designer and dice maker. They were at UKGE all weekend sharing their wares at Shrimp Fried Dice. Their design credits include their own solo RPGs such as Darling, You’re a Haunted House and Red Skies, a supplement for Hatched Games‘ GAST: Horror Zine Collection. As someone passionate about solo RPGs, they have helpfully put together a free and comprehensive catalogue of their favorite solo games for anyone to check out.
Finley is a TTRPG designer with a specialty on solo games, as well as a dice maker and games academic.
I also spoke with them about their Masters study which focused on solo RPGs. Their study analyzed narrative design, communities and elements of narrative therapy through the lens of queer/trans theory. Their expertise in this area has clearly fed into their career as a game designer. Looking ahead, they are looking to connect with marginalized creatives skilled in art, layout and proofreading to create even bigger and better games.
Chirag Asnani
Chirag is a TTRPG writer, streamer and co-founder of Desis and Dragons, the largest online TTRPG community in India. His credits include Adventures in Jalmeray for Pathfinder, Power Rangers: Through the Shattered Grid and Transformers: Technorganic Secrets.
Chirag is a TTRPG writer and co-founder of the Desis & Dragons community.
Chirag co-founded Desis and Dragons, along with Indrani Ganguly and Shubham Mehta. Their goal was to better represent and highlight South Asian creatives in the TTRPG scene. Chirag accredits his work with Desis and the work of his co-founders to getting to write Adventures in Jalmeray. He spoke with particular fondness about writing an adventure called Snakes at the Swayamvara. Here he was able to combine Indian culture with his love of mythology and feature a big Bollywood-esque wedding!
Looking ahead, Chirag is looking for more opportunities as a game designer and as an Actual Play performer.
Helen Gould
Helen is a TTRPG designer and sensitivity reader. They have worked with the likes of Rowan, Rook and Decard, Golden Goblin Press, Leyline Press and many more!
Helen is a TTRPG designer and sensitivity reader eager to help other creators.
Helen has a great love of horror and giving players opportunities to be silly and performative. You can see evidence of this in their game, An Old Friend for dinner.
That said, Helen’s main motivation is in helping other creators. You can find details of their work and what they offer on their website.
Wren
Wren is a TTRPG performer, cosplayer and storyteller. They have performed for Actual Play groups like Euphoria, Science & Sorcery, and The Heart is a Dungeon. Like many others, they discovered Actual Play during the pandemic. They started out performing fantasy characters on TikTok, responding to other performers and building stories through back and forth responses. Seeing their performances, you can clearly see they have a flair for imagination and world building.
Wren is a prolific storyteller and performer. Keep an eye out for them on the UK Actual Play scene.
You can see them in full flow playing Finley’s Darling, You’re a Haunted House on Euphoria. Don’t you love a good interconnected universe?! Looking ahead, Wren is keen to perform in more Actual Plays and to create their own production in the future.
Nathan Blades
Nathan Blades has earned his place as a household name on the UK TTRPG scene as “Your Androgynous Android Late-Night DJ!”. His accolades include being a TTRPG designer, streamer and voice actor. He has written for the likes of Rowan, Rook and Decard’s Spire: Shadow Operations, and Soul Muppet Publishing’s Orbital Blues: Rogue Anthems and has many original titles on his itch.io. He frequently appears on various Actual Play channels including Realms of Peril & Glory and The RPGeeks. However, he is probably best know for playing Captain Orimar on the Campaign: Skyjacks podcast.
Nathan is a TTRPG designer, streamer and voice actor. Look out for his upcoming City of Espers.
Be sure to check out his upcoming game, City of Espers, due to be produced by Three Sails Studios. He is also available for mentorship and guidance for PoC Actual Play performers.
Sebastian Yūe
Sebastian is a TTRPG writer, designer and editor. As someone who freelances and works as a publishing coordinator for Hit Point Press, they are uniquely placed to understand both worlds. Like many others, their career was turned upside town during the pandemic. However, they used this time to discover the joys of TTRPG content design. They started out developing resources for Dungeons and Dragons. Now they write for the likes of Pathfinder Lost Omens: Divine Mysteries and Apocalypse Keys: Doomsday Delights. They have been an editor for Daggerheart and Cosmere RPG.
Sebastian is a TTRPG writer, designer and editor with a wealth of experience in the industry.
As a two time ENNIE Award winner and Big Bad Con PoC Scholar, they are keen to help UK PoC TTRPG creators pitch to publishers, find mentorship and network on both sides of the pond.
Pam Punzalan
Pam is an influential writer, game designer, editor and consultant. Her credits include Dungeons and Dragons: Journeys Through the Radiant Citadel, Spires: Shadow Operations and Advanced Lovers and Lesbians. She is also a community organizer for marginalized creators, especially from the Global South, as well as an advocate for #RPGSEA. This hashtag has been used to promote, support and connect Southeast Asian creators in the RPG sphere.
Pam is an award winning TTRPG creator, consultant and advocate for marginalized communities.
Pam was very vocal about the TTRPG needing to do more for marginalized communities. She mentioned that industry supported networking events such as these are a great move in the right direction. However, funding needs to be directed to cover transport and accommodation costs to help creators attend without any financial barriers.
Tejas Oza
Tejas is a Video Game Designer who who doubles up as a TTRPG-designer in his spare time. He is currently part of a five person team called TacticsNChai, made up of other video game professionals from India. I really enjoyed getting to chat with him and the rest of the team about their current project, Bludgeon, a TTRPG inspired by Indian pop-culture and folk lore. There was also a strong element of customizability in character creation. You can create your own spells, move sets and songs using different elements, like you’re making your own custom recipe. Here’s what Tejas had to say about the game:
Everything in Bludgeon is self-made and self funded. The latter is in relation to the art where we worked exclusively with Artists from India. We feel passionately about supporting the ecosystem back home, such that it is.
Tejas is a video game designer bringing his expertise into designing TTRPGs.
Tejas is also a freelance writer who’s work can be seen in the upcoming Beside the Lesser Travelled Road by Hive Mind Games. If you are looking for game designs, project managers and writers for your projects, I would highly recommend keeping an eye out for Tejas and his offerings.
Dr. Khalil Thirlaway
Khalil is a performer, creative producer, science communicator and member of the Actual Play group, Science & Sorcery. His specialty is telling engaging stories at the intersection of science, nature, culture and politics.
Khalil is a science communicator who uses TTRPGs to tell stories to entertain and educate audiences.
It was a pleasure speaking with him about the vast amount of creative projects he’s been involved in in the TTRPG sphere. This includes the educational games he has created. His credits include co-developing New Genes Please, an audience participation game, with The RPGeeks‘ Shamini Bundell. He also co-developed Lice to See You, a board game about the environmental, economic and social impacts of fish farming, with Hana Ayoob. It’s clear he cares a lot about using games to help educate and inform us. This education includes scientific principles, but also the wide ranging impact of human activities.
Should you need an Actual Play performer, game designer or writer for any of your upcoming projects, be sure to check him out.
Was the Event a Success?
Taylor set out to create a TTRPG networking event where PoC creatives could feel empowered to make connections with industry professionals that would hopefully lead to further opportunities. Here’s what she had to say about whether she had achieved that.
When I got in the room, and I saw the mix of people, and I started to settle a little bit. They all started going and talking. The true aim of the evening was to help the people in the room. I’ve already been told about people who’ve sent in writing samples, and people who are discussing mentorship. So it was a success, because the people in the room have been helped.
Speaking to other attendees, it was clear that they got a lot of positive connections out of this event.
“I’ve had some fantastic conversations with brilliant people repping companies I never thought I’d get to speak to”
[Chirag Asnani]
Some of my first TTRPG writing connections were made through socializing with other designers at UKGE, and a more formal way of fostering those connections for those who otherwise wouldn’t have the avenues to make them is essential for diversifying the industry in many senses.
[Nathan Blades]
Plans for the Future
When I broached this topic with Taylor, it was clear she was keen to keep running these events. It was also clear she already had plans for making TTRPG networking experiences even more valuable for PoC creators. One of the things she was very clear on was offering bursaries for attendees to cover travel and accommodation costs. This year, out of the 33 invites she sent for the invite, she got 14 rejections, 10 of which were for financial reasons.
For future events, she is keen to get more sponsorship to compensate or cover these costs. She believes the less barriers there are to PoC participation the better.
It’s very important to me that everybody gets the opportunity to meet people who can change the trajectory of their career, because I got to through scholarships and through like networking events like this, and I want to be able to give everybody that opportunity.
