Privacy Policy

Last updated: August 26, 2026

1. Who runs this

"Thromblo Creates" ("I") is the name I release games and mods under, including AwayWard and the SWINC Mods. This policy explains how I handle information connected with thromblocreates.com and its projects generally. By using this site you agree to this policy.

2. What this policy covers

This policy governs this website and describes the practices common to every project here. Individual products may collect data specific to how they work and carry their own, more detailed policy, which controls for that product. See, for example, the AwayWard Privacy Policy.

3. Information I handle

This website

The site sets no advertising or analytics cookies and runs no third-party trackers, and fonts are self-hosted, so your browser makes no font requests to any third party. The home page does fetch a few live counts (community size, hero population and download totals) from my own AwayWard API, a community Discord service and GitHub. Loading those numbers sends your IP address to those services as a normal part of the request. The hosting provider may keep standard server logs.

Messages and update notifications

If you use a contact form or an update-notification ("notify me") form on the site, I receive the email address, name and message you submit. They are used only to reply to you or to email you when the product you asked about ships. These submissions are sent to my own API and stored in a PostgreSQL database hosted on Railway. A honeypot field and per-IP rate limits guard the endpoint against spam. You can ask for your submission to be deleted at any time.

The products

The downloadable apps, games and mods run on your device. Some collect no data at all (for example, the SWINC Mods run entirely inside your copy of Software Inc), while others have optional online features. AwayWard, for instance, has no accounts and uses a random device identifier plus the handle and stats you choose to share for its online systems; it also offers optional cloud saving and a Discord account link so one hero can carry across the game and the AwayWard Discord bot, each handled through my own API and stored on Railway. AwayWard's mobile versions (Google Play and the App Store) are also ad-supported through a third-party ad network and can have those ads removed with a one-time purchase; its desktop build shows no ads. What each product collects, and your controls for it, are described in that product's own policy.

4. Use of AI models

Thromblo Creates uses AI models as development tools, during the build, on my side of the work. Both hosted and locally run models are used:

• Hosted models: OpenAI (the GPT family), Anthropic (the Claude family) and Z.ai (the GLM family).
• Local models: the Qwen family, run on my own hardware rather than a provider's servers.

They are used for a specific and fairly narrow set of jobs:

• Generating SVG art for demos and proofs of concept. Where a project keeps that asset, the generated placeholder is replaced with real art over time.
• Code audits and adversarial reviews, where a model is asked to attack my own work and find the problems I missed.
• Sorting and organizing documentation.

How this is paid for:

• No paid support, donation or purchase goes toward AI usage. All of it is out of pocket.
• I prefer local models over frontier models wherever a local one is good enough, to cut waste and to push open, self-hosted tooling rather than deepen a dependency on someone else's API.
• AI is used as a tool, not handed the work. Direction, design and the final call stay mine.

To be clear about what this does and does not mean for you:

• These websites and shipped products do not send your personal data to any AI model during normal use. Models are used by the developer during the build process, not wired into the products to process your data.
• Your personal data is not used to train AI models.
• If a product ever ships a user-facing AI feature (for example, an in-app assistant or generated content), it will be processed under the relevant provider's usage policies, limited to what the feature needs, and disclosed in that product's policy before launch.

5. How information is used

• To run this site and its projects, and to show the live counts on the home page.
• To respond to your messages and to notify you about updates you asked for.
• To prevent abuse and keep shared features fair (rate limiting and input sanitization).
• To diagnose problems and improve what I build.

6. Sharing with third parties

Your personal information is never sold. Data is shared only as needed to operate:

• Hosting: Railway, which stores and serves my database and APIs.
• Code and releases: GitHub, which hosts the public release downloads.
• Community: Discord, if you choose to join or connect it.
• Payments: if you support these projects or buy something, it is handled by the relevant platform (for example Patreon, Steam or itch.io) under that platform's own terms. I do not receive or store your full payment card details.
• Legal: where required by law, or to protect my rights and the safety of users.

7. Storage and security

Data you send in is transmitted over encrypted HTTPS connections and stored in a PostgreSQL database hosted on Railway. Rate limits are applied and incoming values are sanitized. No online system is perfectly secure, and you share data at your own discretion.

8. Retention and deletion

Messages and notification sign-ups are kept only as long as needed for their purpose, and you can ask for yours to be deleted at any time. Product-specific data (such as AwayWard online records) is retained and deleted as described in that product's policy.

9. Children

This site and these projects are not directed to children under 13 (or under the minimum age of digital consent in your country, such as 16 in parts of the EEA). Personal information is not knowingly collected from children under that age. If you believe a child has provided information, get in touch and it will be removed.

10. Your choices and rights

Depending on where you live, you may have rights to access, correct, delete or restrict the processing of your personal data, and to object to certain processing. You can exercise these by getting in touch. Because this site uses no tracking, there is little to opt out of; product-level controls (such as AwayWard's Offline Mode) are described in each product's policy.

11. International transfers

The hosting and service providers behind these projects may process and store data in countries other than yours. Where required, appropriate safeguards are relied on for such transfers.

12. Changes to this policy

This policy is subject to change. As these projects evolve, and as products add online features such as AwayWard's cloud saving and cross-play, it may be updated to reflect current practice. The "Last updated" date above will be revised and, for material changes, notice will be given through the site or the community channels.

13. Contact

Questions or requests about privacy: get in touch in the official Discord server or through the contact form.

This policy is provided in good faith to describe my actual practices. It is not legal advice. If you are relying on it for a commercial launch, have it reviewed by qualified counsel for your jurisdiction.