Cole Wehrle | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | University of Texas |
| Occupation | Board game designer |
| Years active | 2015–present |
| Employer | Leder Games |
| Notable work | |
| Website | wehrlegig |
Cole Wehrle is an American board game designer and academic. At Leder Games, he has designed the board games Root and Oath: Chronicles of Empire and Exile, and he co-owns Wehrlegig Games with his brother, under which he designed the second editions of Pax Pamir and John Company.
Education edit
Wehrle studied journalism and English at the University of Indiana, and completed a 2017 dissertation at the University of Texas titled "The Narrative Dimensions of Empire: Time and Space in the British Imperial Imaginary, 1819–1855".[1]
Career edit
While studying at the University of Texas he began developing his first game, Pax Pamir, about Afghanistan during the fall of the Durrani Empire, inspired by the game Pax Porfiriana. The game was published in 2015 under Sierra Madre Games, with Wehrle working with Phil Eklund to do so, as he did for the first edition of John Company in 2017.[1]
Wehrle designed the game Root and released it in 2018 with Leder Games and with art by Kyle Ferrin. He has since designed a number of expansions for the game.[1]
Wehrle cofounded the Zenobia Award in 2020, intended to highlight and support underrepresented designers in the industry.[2][3]
In 2022, Wehrle published the second edition of John Company under Wehrlegig Games, having obtained $787,000 in funding for the game.[1] Slate called the game Wehrle's "magnum opus".[4] Following the release, Wehrlegig Games announced that the company would expand to publish other designers' works in the historical board game subgenre, including a board game adaptation of the art installation 1819 Singapore.[5]
In 2024, he intends to release Zenobia Award runner-up Molly House under Wehlegig Games, about molly houses and queer culture in Georgian England, for which he aided Jo Kelly in design.[1]
Design philosophy edit
Wehrle takes an academic and directly political approach to board game design, and has stated that he is "not interested in whether or not a game is fun", instead electing to focus upon his games being "compelling" in an emotional sense. He has considered some of his games, notably John Company, as satire.[1]
Games edit
- Pax Pamir (Sierra Madre Games, 2015)
- John Company (Sierra Madre Games, 2017)
- Root: A Game of Woodland Might and Right (Leder Games, 2018)
- Pax Pamir: Second Edition (Wehrlegig Games, 2019)
- Oath: Chronicles of Empire and Exile (Leder Games, 2021)
- John Company: Second Edition (Wehrlegig Games, 2022)
- Arcs (Leder Games, upcoming)
- Molly House (Wehrlegig Games, upcoming)
References edit
- ^ a b c d e f Winkie, Luke (2024-01-28). "Board but Not Boring". Slate. ISSN 1091-2339. Retrieved 2024-02-15.
- ^ Carter, Chase (2020-11-23). "A new historical tabletop award wants to spotlight and mentor underrepresented voices". Dicebreaker. Retrieved 2024-02-15.
- ^ Carter, Chase (2023-10-02). "Zenobia Award returns to highlight more underrepresented creators in historical tabletop design". Dicebreaker. Retrieved 2024-02-15.
- ^ Winkie, Luke (January 28, 2024). "Board but Not Boring". Slate. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
- ^ Carter, Chase (2023-02-02). "John Company, Pax Pamir maker to produce art installation 1819 Singapore as an actual board game". Dicebreaker. Retrieved 2024-02-15.