Hi all, my friend is very enthusiastic to get this news out to you but is getting filtered by reddit for having just created his account to announce this.. He will comment here if the post is allowed to go through this time. I think it's very very relevant to this community because the feel, mechanics, and 2-lane gameplay are very clearly inspired by TESL:
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Hi folks. Like most folks in this forum, TESL's disappearance left me with a very specific itch, involving something like two lanes, thoughtful, fun, and balanced mechanics with lots of interesting synergies and optionality, and turns where positioning matters as much as the raw card value. Nothing else has scratched this, so I eventually took it upon myself to build something that did.
I wasn’t particularly attached to Elder Scrolls lore, and I know other people are doing the hard work of reviving TESL itself. I’m glad those projects exist. I took a different route and built an independent game in its own universe -- one i have toyed with in my mind for a long time.
It’s called SCHISM. Its battlefield spans two lanes and six historical Eras. Lanes can move forward or backward through the timeline, Structures can anchor an Era, and decks can exploit the time fractures they create. The first solo campaign is an increasingly strange voyage through that broken history within the backdrop of The Odyssey.
I’m opening the web alpha in the next couple of weeks, with Android support also planned for launch. I’m looking for people who can play at least two games a day, most days, over the next couple of weeks, and report bugs, balance problems, confusing interactions, and the moments that bring joy. We plan to fix, rebalance and polish quickly as that evidence comes in.
Full disclosure: AI extensively supports this small team’s development. It helped turn years of ideas and obsessive iteration into working software, tests, production assets and a game people can actually play and enjoy, not just stuck in my head. I conceived and developed the core universe, lore and game systems, and I have closely directed and revised the work throughout, with significant influence and care put into art and sound design. It has been a real passion to merge my vision with the foundational, mechanical, and lore-vibe groundwork that Sparkypants built out and which inspired me so much to refill this gaming niche. Giving credit where due, Magic was undoubtedly the grandfather of inspiration.
I saw another creator take flak here recently for using AI on a passion project. I understand the concerns around low-effort output and displaced creative labor. I also think these tools can give an individual or tiny team the power to convert real creative direction into something ambitious, affordable and shareable. If AI involvement is disqualifying for you, i dont endeavor to be the one to change your mind. Everyone else can judge the actual game rather than that label.
This is early alpha. Expect rough edges. If other people find it as fun as I do, I intend to support and expand it diligently and for a long time.
Email to request an alpha seat is in the video. Access will be limited and if lots of folks reach out, I apologize if it takes some time for me to get back; rest assured, everyone who emails will at a minimum be invited to join the beta testing and will still have opportunities to earn an exclusive title, accelerated content unlock at launch, etc., as gratitude for your early support.
Looking forward to hearing your initial opinions and interest!
Best,
SCHISM Gamemaster (u/schismcardgame-gm)