By now you may have picked up on Outland Entertainment's intense growth the last few years. We have expanded our library of Novels and Anthologies, Comics and Graphic Novels, and RPGs and Tabletop Games immensely, not to mention expanding our Worlds, developing specialized imprints, and partnering with some incredible creators, authors, and artists. But all of that couldn't be possible without also expanding our Core Team to include editors, project managers, and more technical professionals.
At some point, though, you've got to take a step back and look at the big picture and how it's all going to work going forward.
Enter Anton Kromoff.
Anton has worked with us for a while as an RPG developer, but when we met him in person at Tremendicon, we were blown away.
After some deliberation about how Anton could be a larger part of our team, we decided he may be exactly what we need at this time. Someone who can take an objective look at the beautiful mess we've built and bring order and efficiency to it.
As Project Director, Anton will direct and integrate the activities of multiple, primary project operations. He will also ensure that the projects' efforts are generally cohesive, consistent, and effective in supporting the mission, goals, and strategic plan of an organization. He'll look for gaps, solve problems, and smooth out pain points to ensure that our team is able to produce the best work possible.
Basically, he's our Anointed One. (No, pressure.)
We can't wait to see where Anton's work brings Outland Entertainment.
We sat down with Anton for an interview so our fans and creators could get to know him a little better.
Welcome to the Team, Anton! Go ahead and tell us a bit about yourself.
Oh, this is easily the hardest question I ever get asked. I can spend hours telling you about space dwarves who live on the dark side of a moon in a solar system that runs on neon-magic energy... but trying to explain who I am normally turns into a list. I am a husband, a game designer, a storyteller, a writer, a cat dad, a disabled person... yeah.
Tell us how you got started in the TTRPG industry.
I have been creating tabletop games since I was in my single digits. As a disabled kid I figured out if I could apply rules and dice to simple stuff like action figures or Legos, if everyone who was playing—be it kids like me who could not get up and run around, or kids with sight impairments, or kids who could run around, or really anyone—had a set of rules we could all agree on and dice to define outcomes, suddenly we were all a lot more equal.
That childhood playstyle turned into more and more complex home-brew. I would save up money to buy TTRPG books or pull old books people threw in the trash and study them to figure out what I liked, what I thought worked, and what I felt could change or be spiced up.
I was offered a few opportunities and eventually made the transition professionally from sensitivity reader to contributing game designer while working on Kids On Bikes. From there I was asked to develop and work on some card and board games for various IPs, and eventually I started working with Outland as a lead game designer on various projects. That evolved to Projects Director over time.
So how did you get involved with Outland Entertainment?
One of my best friends and creative partners, Cullen Bunn, was asked to work on a Warlock 5 TTRPG and asked me to join the team as a game designer. It was a really great experience working with Outland's Creative Director Jeremy D. Mohler, and when he offered me another title, I gladly agreed. Jeremy and his drive to facilitate creators and the expansion of their worlds is a huge draw to Outland. When you find someone you can work well with, it's hard not to be drawn to the organization.
What Outland projects are you currently working on that you can tell us about?
Well, hahaha, as the Project Director, on some level I'm working on all of them. As a Game Designer, I'm currently working as the lead game designer on Galefire, Pileaus, Warlock 5 TTRPGs, and a few others we have not announced yet.
You're helping us in a businessy role, but what creative pursuits do you have?
I like making games, I like crafting worlds, and I'm always trying to tell the best stories possible. At the end of the day I really just want to make something that inspires someone somewhere who can go on to create their own cool stuff or have their own rewarding experience.
Where do you find inspiration?
I have a really solid group of friends who toss ideas back and forth. My players at my weekly games often latch onto an idea at the table, and that allows me to see what works with the voices outside of my head and build upon those ideas. I love reading books on folklore, strange science stories, and watching weird documentary shows on Discovery+ with titles like "Ice Boat Renegades" or something weird like "Alaskan Wild People who are also a family from Texas and also they train bees to knit." (That's not a show, but it totally should be.) Stuff like that really gets my brain in the space to create. I love slice-of-life stories; you can always find so much magic and wonder in the day-to-day.
Who are some of the people you look up to professionally?
Oh, I have some amazing creative partners and friends who inspire me daily. Matt Garbutt, Cullen Bunn, Bob Quinn, Emmeryn, Thomas Perkins, and Stephan Franck all drive me to create and inspire me to push myself to craft stories that I would want to read. Terry Pratchett is probably the architect of a lot of my storytelling sensibilities and tone, and his worldbuilding was so brilliant, so lived-in, and free. The Paizo team is constantly evolving and bringing new forward-thinking evolutions to the TTRPG space and is always on my radar.
And finally, where can people find you online?
You can find me on Twitter 24/7 at @AntonTaleTeller or drop by my site at AntonKromoff.com.
Expect to hear more from Anton, but for now, check out some of these blogs by Outland's Core Team:
Worldbuilders- A Discussion About Setting in RPGs by Games Director Christopher Helton
How to Meet Your Writing Goals by Senior Editor Scott Colby
"Why Does It Take So Long for the Next Book?" A Look at the Publishing Process by Editor in Chief Alana Joli Abbott
And if you're excited to see what Anton's going to be bringing about, take some time to catch up with these publications (ehem, spoiler alert):