Many RPGs use cards in their mechanics, from playing cards to Tarot to custom decks of cards. We discuss some of these games, the types of mechanics we’ve seen and the history of card-based games. If you enjoy this episode, back our Kickstarter for Season 2 of Ludonarrative Dissidents. This podcast is only possible with the help of backers and this time we’ll have a private RSS feed for early access to all episodes, plus other great rewards! All of Season 1 is now available if you missed it. This episode will be the only one posted on the RPPR feed. Some of the games mentioned in this episode Everway * The Mystery Creature of Claytonsville * Whimsy cards * Aces and Eights * Savage Worlds * Lace and Steel * Upwind * Best Friends * The Beast * Conspiracy X Zener cards * The Mind
The Terminator RPG was released as a PDF recently. A special guest, Jacqueline Bryk and I went through the game. It contains a lot of rules, including a dense system for hacking, something I hadn’t seen since Shadowrun and Cyberpunk. What makes a licensed game good or bad? We talk about the highlights and lowlights of the game and other licensed games out there. Plus shout outs! Shout Outs * God Talker Nobody: A solo journal writing game about becoming a prophet of an obscure god. * Mad God: A stop motion horror film of a descent into Hell * Chase the H0ll0w: A game stylized after creepy pasta * FIST RPG: Freelance Infantry Strike Team – a game of paranormal mercenaries * Dreaming the Devil: a LARP about a witch trail in 16th century Italy * Dueling Fops of Vindamere: A new game from Greg Stolze about fops who duel, oddly enough. * Changeling: A visual novel “about love, reconciliation, and trying to survive in a dangerous supernatural world“ * Project Sparrow: Jacqueline’s upc...
News: The RPPR Patreon just finished a six part podcast series on the mega dungeon Castle Greyhawk. It’s a very funny and weird module and we had a lot of reviewing combing through it. Patrons at the $10 level and higher can get one on one RPG design/advice consultations in May and June. If you want Ross to look at your project, here’s your chance! We are also offering remastered actual play episodes of some classic episodes, like Somewhere Lane. Back the Patreon today to get all of these rewards and more! Synopsis: Outcasts are a common theme in many RPGs, but how do you handle them, both as a player and as a GM? Tom and I talk about the various flavors of outcasts, from cosmetic back story to immersive games about being an outcast. We talk about outcasts in D&D, Mutants in the Now, and Vampire, among other game settings. Shout Outs * Mutants in the Next: A supplement for Mutants in the Now,Kickstarting now! * The Devil’s Candy: A brilliant book on the film making process. Find ...
Castle Greyhawk (module WG7) might be the worst official D&D module of all time. A massive dungeon of 12 levels, each written by a different author, sounds like a great hack and slash module, but Castle Greyhawk has a twist. It’s supposed to be…funny. Puns, pop culture references and other ‘jokes’ populate the pages of this adventure. Caleb, Rob, and I read the first two chapters to see what this infamous module had to offer. It’s fart-powered rocket monsters, adversarial GMing, and a NPC reaction table you won’t believe. Dare you brave the halls of Castle Greyhawk? If you enjoyed this episode, back the RPPR Patreon to listen to more episodes of After Hours! We also have other cool rewards like a community Discord server, early access to podcasts, and online games run by Ross Payton. Follow us on Twitch or Youtube to get notified about our livestreams – every sunday at 6 pm CDT! Watch recordings of older episodes on the RPPR Patreon. Check out Caleb’s projects. Rob’s podcas...
The public domain expanded this year and Caleb and I dive into it to find gameable material. Anyone can use these books, images, or music, for whatever project they can imagine. I found a list of characters from pulp fiction magazines with such interesting heroes like the vigilante Crimson Clown, and a group of French boy scouts who explore the hollow earth. News: We’re doing a weekly livestreams on Twitch and Youtube! The first episode is available publicly here. We’ll be looking at RPGs on DrivethruRPG and other sites for the best and the weirdest. If you miss the livestream, the videos will be available for RPPR patrons to watch whenever you want. Check out Caleb’s Dead Channels Patreon for a Delta Green campaign, Insolent Impulse. I’m playing in it! Shout Outs * Inscryption: A roguelike deck building and escape room puzzle video game. * Berserk: legendary dark fantasy manga series * LuLaRIch: A mini series about the MLM company LuLaRoe * Sifu: A martial arts action game with...
Quake 1 is an incredibly influential video game, not just to other video games, but to tabletop RPGs as well. We played Slipgate: Chokepoint recently. Now that we’ve re-played Quake 1 and a RPG inspired by it, Chris and I discuss the thematic and mechanical differences in translating pixels to a paper game. (on a personal note – I plan to post more episodes here more frequently. The last few months were extremely hectic but now that the wedding is over, I can focus more on RPPR podcasting. I have a lot of great topics for upcoming episodes so stay tuned!)
A new crew of smugglers start taking jobs in Duskvol. They call themselves the Blind Eyes and specialize in the weird and the occult. As the gang grows in power, they learn of an invisible war for control over the city between supernatural beings and ruthless factions and an incredibly powerful artifact that can change the course of history. This episode, the players and I talk about what worked and what didn’t work in our 24 episode campaign of Blades in the Dark, both in game mechanics and the story of this particular game. If you missed an episode, check our the campaign page to find download links. This group portrait of The Blind Eyes by Patsy McDowell. From left to right: Vimes, Salvage, Salty, Flake, and Audra Baz – Salty / Oberon Matias Declarmont the Spider Birk – Audra the Whisper Aaron – Salvage the Leech Caleb – Flake the Cutter Bill – Vimes/Seth the Slide
My friend Chris (the voice of Ab3 in our early radio plays and a cool guy on Twitter) had an idea for a new series on RPPR. Tabletop RPGs have influenced video games since their creation. Video games have influenced tabletop RPGs for a while as well. In Pixel 2 Paper, we will focus on specific video games and their connection to tabletop RPGs. In the first episode, we will look at the video game, then in the second episode, we will do an actual play of a tabletop RPG linked to the video game and in the third episode, we’ll talk about both. For our first game, we’re looking at Quake 1, the influential FPS from Id Software with Lovecraftian undertones. Its story is barely more complex than its color palette, but its incredible action and innovations changed video games forever. (On another note, I talked about the Quake 1 soundtrack on my other podcast, Night Clerk Radio, so check out that too!) Listen to part 2, our actual play of Slipgate Chokepoint, here.
A cluster of enclaves in Missouri faces annihilation at the hands of a massive horde of the undead. Their only hope is to prepare for war, a job for their preeminent taker crew, the D4s. The crew uses an armored vehicle to take the largest scores of valuable goods they can find, no matter what gets in their way, whether it’s undead, human, or mother nature. In this episode, Jason B, Aaron, Maddy, David, and I talk about this campaign. How did Jason get the idea for it, how it was run, what we liked and what we would have changed, if anything. If you missed the campaign, here’s a page with links to all of the episodes. Music: The Dead Walk by John Carpenter
News: Check out Cody’s Kickstarter, Lose Your Own Paradise, a multiple choice adventure novel! Cody’s back and we’re examining an interesting Ravenloft scenario, The Created. It’s about an evil puppet trying to murder all the adults in a village. Only a group of heroic adventurers can stop it! Cody and I review this scenario and talk through its unusual design. If you like this episode, check out the RPPR Patreon and get access to many more episodes of RPPR After Hours. Song: Alive after Death by John Carpenter