This B.C. Indigenous carver is adding board games to his repertoire

A Prince Rupert-based sculptor, painter, and carver has turned his attention to tabletop games.

Luke Parnell of the Nisga'a and Haida First Nations is preparing to distribute 3 Ravenz, a game that uses a central board and specialized playing cards decorated with Northwest Coast art. 

"It requires strategy, collaboration, and guile and it'll bring you from the heights of joyfulness to the depths of despair," Parnell said, adding that the random nature of card dealing means players can go on a winning streak or find themselves in a losing slump.

He describes 3 Ravenz as a complex "lifestyle" game designed for a group of three to five players who play together on a regular basis. It's a "modern trick-taking game" akin to hearts, spades and euchre. It's designed for players aged 14 and up, and takes about 60 minutes to play.

The artist began designing games during COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns.

"I sort of lost motivation to make art, but I'm still a creative person," Parnell said.

"Maybe it was because I was, like, alone. I started thinking of this game that you play with other people and I sort of started developing this game … [and] I discovered the whole world of hobby board gaming."

Since then Parnell has designed about 100 games, most of which he says are "really bad." 3 Ravenz is the first game that he plans to sell commercially.

He said the hardest part of developing 3 Ravenz was writing the rule book so he hired an editor to help him.

"My first rule book, that was so bad. I still can't believe I gave that to people," he said.

He plans to start an online fundraising campaign for 3 Ravenz on May 7.

Parnell is among an emerging group of Indigenous creators who've been drawn to designing tabletop games. James Darin Corbiere of the Wikwemikong First Nation recently released a game called The Truth in Truth and Reconciliation. 

It took him seven years from inception to publication. He first developed the idea when he was working as a teacher in Ontario and decided to take the game to a broader audience. 

His advice for other Indigenous game designers is to be patient and stay flexible.

He said if a designer decides to have their game released through an existing game publisher, it's important to trust their expertise and be open to their ideas.

"They know their audience and they're going to make the changes based on wanting to make you successful, right?"

Corbiere said not giving up was a key component of his success. The market for Indigenous-created tabletop games is still emerging, which makes it especially challenging, he added. 

"It takes a long time. Maybe because, you know, it's never been done before," he said.