By Adriel Lee Wilson & Heather O’Neill
9th Level Games started the LevelUP Fund in 2025 to highlight and support unique and underrepresented voices—game creators who are often overlooked by the industry. The LevelUP Fund offers these talented independent TTRPG writers and designers the use of 9th Level’s polymorph™ licenses, promotion for their games, and grants funded by donations and profits. We look for games that shine a new light on an old idea or bring something new to the table.
The State of the LevelUP Fund
Funding to print Level 1 anthology books for Free RPG Day, and provide stipends to the designers in Level 1, comes from Level 1 sponsors, polymorph™ license fees, sales of previous years’ Level 1 anthologies, and donations. The profits after paying for these costs will be given out as grants to game designers and writers through the LevelUP Fund.
To be transparent, we want to share the current LevelUP Fund numbers with you. We collected a total of $9,318.13 through those various sources. Our cost to print was $10,409, and we paid Level 1 designer stipends of $750, for a total of $11,159 in costs. That means we had a loss of $1,840.87.
Not generating a profit this past year means we will not be able to make a grant this year. But we’re not giving up! We’re going to keep the LevelUP Fund going for one more year and assess the state of things to see if this is a viable program to continue.
Featured LevelUP Designer
Meet Patric Henson, our first LevelUP Fund recipient.
About Patric Henson
Tell us a little about yourself.
I love RPGs! I have played all manner of systems and have been designing my own for years, although I have never published one. I think the polymorph ruleset works great for telling superhero stories, so I have worked feverishly on a game that has already been professionally edited and is going to be very polished. I am very laid back and I enjoy seeing what kind of unique characters the other players come up with when I play. My wife says "You'll hang out with anyone as long as they play RPGs," and she's not wrong. 😆
What kind of TTRPG would you like to design?
A superhero RPG where you can be a street level vigilante, a citywide hero, a national superhero, or even a cosmic hero.
Do you have any social media to share?
I had a Star Trek Adventures fan page for a while, but otherwise, nothing RPG related website-wise. I really don't post anything on social media, but I use it to follow many different RPGs and I get a lot of kickstarter ads for new games coming out.
What’s your TTRPG publishing history?
I have not yet published anything, but I am eager to get into the RPG publishing business and have been making good strides toward getting that established.
What else would you like to tell everyone?
I really love the system you've created and I can't tell you how much it would mean to me to get this license. I have had unsatisfying and underpaid jobs my whole life, and while RPG design might not be a gold mine, it was what I desperately want to do for a living! I hope this will be a stepping stone toward that end.
Going Forward
This year, we would love to be able to support more independent projects in getting the resources and promotion they deserve, but we need your help!
Do you love TTRPGs created by historically underrepresented voices? Would you like to help more of these creators get the resources and platforming they need to bring their creations into the world?
Here’s your chance!
Our goal is to have at least $750 to spread amongst the selected applicants. If we receive more than our goal, that will go to stipends as well.
You can be a part of helping this strong community of independent TTRPG creators in a few ways:
1. Spread the word! Share this post with a friend or on social media.
2. Buy a previous Level 1 anthology (or all of them!)
3. Donate to support next year's anthology
4. Sponsor The 2027 Level 1 anthology (Contact us for more information)
5. Submit your Romantasy RPGs to the 2027 Level 1 Anthology by September 30th.
You can learn more about the LevelUP Fund, including how to apply, at our LevelUP Fund FAQ.
Thank you for being part of a gaming community supporting new and exciting voices!