Meet the Keshanar Team

Dave Hadden, Warden of Worlds (CEO and Author)

CEO and Author

David Hadden is a successful serial entrepreneur and author. He has traveled to over 75 countries around the world, restoring ancient buildings, climbing mountains, sailing, playing music, and training healthcare workers through immersive simulations. World creation for RPG campaigns with an ancient Egypt theme combines all of his passions and experiences. He has been playing D&D since high school, and his current project, the Kingdom of Keshanar, has been in development for over 20 years. The incorporation of Orthane Productions, Inc. cements his commitment to bring this innovative setting and campaign to the TTRPG gaming community.

Marx Brothers, Architect of Adventure (COO and Writer)

COO and Writer

Marx Brothers (no relation) is a long time TTRPG enthusiast. He brings his operational experience from ten years in the tech industry, both startup and Fortune 50 companies alike, to the Orthane team. But his real passion is in the game itself, from adventure structure to the mechanical elements of the game like monsters and spells. Growing up on Broadway as the son of a stage hand, his philosophy is that a fully immersive play experience comes when story and system compliment and balance each other.

Mike Mearls, Grand Vizier (Senior Advisor)

Senior Advisor

Mike Mearls has over 25 years of experience as a TTRPG designer. He led the creation of Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition, the most successful version of D&D (mic drop). As Senior Advisor to Orthane Productions, Mike ensures that the content we create has great game mechanics, story structure and playability.

Emily K.C., Mistress of Mayhem (Operations Lead)

Operations Lead

Emily wandered out of the woods sometime in 2019 to attend college. She spent the next four years rigorously studying linguistics, theater, mathematics, and a variety of other subjects, while playing D&D at every available opportunity. After receiving a fancy piece of paper, she decided to immediately forgo academia for as long as possible, and instead delve into her love of TTRPGs, joining the Orthane team. When she’s not conducting research managing media deployment pipelines, scheduling meetings or agonizing over punctuation, Emily likes to take naps in tall grass and read Shakespeare, and is trying her best to turn into a forest gremlin.

Leo Andrade, Storymancer (Contributing Writer and Editor)

Contributing Writer and Editor

Leo spends most of his time crafting stories or immersing himself in them. He is a contributing writer and editor for Keshsnar and is constantly colluding with Dave and Andrew on ways to befuddle, delight and surprise players. Leo likes to lift heavy stuff in his spare time in an ongoing quest to take an IRL level of Fighter. The overprepared GM to professional game writer pipeline exists and he has traveled through it! You can visit his website at leoandradewriter.com.

Andrew Fields, Lore Master (Contributing Writer and Editor)

Contributing Writer and Editor

When he’s not working on his Ph.D. in English, Andrew Fields is busy making universes. Whether that’s helping with Orthane, running his own D&D games, or working on outlines for his own novels, he’s always writing new life into empty worlds.

Lady X, Grand Dame of Guilds and Shadows (Art Director)

Art Director

Lady X is Orthane’s Art Director and an expert in ancient Egyptian clothing and textiles. She emerged from a Midwestern cornfield sometime in the mid-1980s and everyone immediately regretted it. With the help of several dedicated (and fireproof) tutors, she managed to acquire education in the arts and history, as well as several gnarly sword scars. After spending several years trafficking in exchanging souls for books, she managed to acquire a family with two spawn and a certified demon-wrangler for a partner. Most of her days are spent making increasingly strange shrouds that she wears in increasingly strange ways. She currently resides in a bog in the Far North, from which she emerges for the purpose of making the local populace uneasy and to acquire offerings of fancy cheese and chocolate.

Dr. Jill Waller, Egyptologist in Residence

Egyptologist in Residence

Jill is a lifelong history nerd and earned her Ph.D. in ancient Egyptian Art and Archaeology from Johns Hopkins University. She has participated in excavations in Luxor, Egypt, Turkey and Israel. In addition to academic research and teaching, she also is a professional editor and GIS analyst. In the world of Keshanar, Jill reviews all content to create interesting connections to historical facts about ancient Egypt. You will find many fascinating footnotes throughout the setting and campaign books.

J. Yamil, Wandering Oracle

Wandering Oracle

J. Yamil is a writer and TTRPG designer based in Durham, North Carolina. He lives with his partner and their trio of feline familiars. He has worked with Stiff Whiskers Press, Goodman Games and Newsarama, where he has showcased his versatility and creativity. Yamil has participated in panels discussing diversity at the table and RPG safety tools at various conventions such as GaryCon and ConCarolinas. He is currently hard at work on various projects for 5e, Dungeon Crawl Classics, and Weird Frontiers.

Joze, Hand of Ptah, Designer of the Realm (Lead Illustrator and Architect)

Lead Illustrator and Architect

Joze Groselj is Orthane’s lead illustrator. An architect by training, Joze drew the architectural plans for most of the temples and monumental buildings in Keshanar. His work encompasses everything from maps to monsters. Being detail driven, he made sure all of the buildings were built in accordance with the Keshanar building code, ensuring a safe adventuring environment.

Rigel K., 20th Level Illusionist

20th Level Illusionist

Rigel is the Head of Video and Audio Production at Orthane and you only need to watch a few of our videos to appreciate his expertise. He shares a deep passion for Keshanar and it really shows in the quality of our videos.

Pat Gehman, High Priestess of the Sheshateen

High Priestess of the Sheshateen

Pat is a freelance artist for Orthane productions and co-founder of her own TTRPG company, Dieselshot. Pat is Orthane’s Middle Egyptian translator & Hieroglyphics expert. If you can read any of the inscriptions lining the walls of buildings in Keshanar, she appreciates your shared passion! Pat is also one of Orthane artists, conceptualizing and designing monsters and NPCs.

Bela, Keshanar City Planner

Keshanar City Planner

Bela created the first 3D version of Keshsanar City based on sketches and guidance from Dave. This was a two-year process and led to the development of the UNREAL engine version of Keshanar that we have today. Bela is an environment artist and creator of fantasy landscapes, architecture, and maps. Bela is a lover of history, a friend of nature, an explorer, and a connoisseur of geography. An old-fashioned, traditional artist using modern tools to express himself.

Dragomir, Master Dragon Trainer

(yes, that is his real name)

Dragomir (yes, that is his real name) is an early and influential artist for the Kingdom of Keshanar. His amazing architectural and environmental art helped inspire and evolve the style of Keshan architecture.

Mitchell Wierenga, 20th Level Digital Artificer

20th Level Digital Artificer

Mitchel is CEO of Masterwork Studio. Under his direction, the UNREAL Engine version of Keshanar came to life, He is also overseeing the production of Keshanar themed animated videos, STLs. and printed models and minis. Mitchell’s formal education is in game development and design from Georgia State University. He is continuously pushing the boundaries of 3D art and animation, reflecting a blend of artistic creativity, technical expertise, and business acumen. Learn more at masterworkstudio.com.