JAILBREAK is a one-session scenario for Unknown Armies, originally written by Greg Stolze of this parish, in 1998 as a demo adventure for conventions, and subsequently published in the One Shots adventure anthology. It has since been described as one of the great horror adventures for any RPG. Greg is, of course, one of the creators of Unknown Armies, along with John Tynes, and his insights here into how the adventure came together, its structure, how it works and how it’s played are fascinating. Enjoy the episode!
Our livestream for July! We talk about Gencon, the Ennies, and we get a surprise visit! Watch the episode here on Youtube if you want to see the visuals.
RIFTS is a role playing game designed by Kevin Siembieda and originally published by his company Palladium Books in 1990. In this episode we examine the Rifts Ultimate Edition from 2005, a revised and expanded version of the original game rulebook. Like it, hate it or previously unaware of it, there’s nothing like it on the market today and we enjoyed the chance to delve into what makes it work.
Read the full show notes here.
BLACK CHROME IS A 2023 gearbook for the Cyberpunk Red roleplaying game, written by James Hutt, Jay Parker, Turbo, J Gray, Anne Morrison, Chris Spivey, Fran Stewart, and Linda M Evans, and published by R Talsorian Games.
We talk a bit about conventions - Greg visited a small con called Forge Midwest and Ross prepares for Gencon this year with 7 events. We also answer audience questions.
Cyberpunk RED is the latest edition of the dystopian sci-fi RPG series originally created by Mike Pondsmith. Set in 2045 after a major war, characters in Cyberpunk RED can pull off jobs for secretive clients, roam the wastelands, or reclaim them. It contains everything needed to play.
James went on vacation to Pompeii, so he's sharing his photos and discussing ancient Roman history.
If you want to see the video version with the photos, it's on Youtube.
The Yellow Clearance Black Box Blues is a 48-page adventure for the Paranoia RPG. It was written by John M. Ford, published by West End Games in 1985, and is generally regarded as one of the classic adventures for the game, and a milestone in the development of comedy in RPGs. It was re-released in 2017 for the rebooted edition of Paranoia that was co-designed by James Wallis, Grant Howitt and Paul Dean, and I swear that’s the first I’ve ever heard of that version, though it seems to be the only form in which TYCBBB is commercially available right now. $29.99 for a 48-page PDF from 1985.
THIS EPISODE COVERS DOGS IN THE VINEYARD, a 2004 game by Vincent Baker, who is better known as the co-designer of Apocalypse World, the game that the entire Powered by the Apocalypse (PbtA) RPG design movement is based on. Dogs in the Vineyard is no longer available for sale, for reasons that we discuss in the episode.
“Mormon Judge Dredd” – Greg Stolze
See the Wikipedia entry for Dogs in the Vineyard
Talk about this on the LND Discord!
Today's episode is brought to you by the Tabletop Arts Fund! The Tabletop Arts Fund is a community nonprofit dedicated to supporting independent TTRPG and actual play creators through professional development, networking opportunities, and charitable grants. Are you an independent creator with a game or scenario nearing the finish line? Submissions open February 15th for the first round of TTRPG Creator Grants, providing financial support for art, editing, layout, and other professional services. Full details on these and other projects are available at tabletopartsfund.org, or via social media at tabletopartsfund.org.
Our latest livestream! Greg talks about his new fantasy serial and we discuss zines, crowdfunding, and more!
GROGS is a supplement for Ars Magica 5th edition, edited by longtime ArM line-editor David Chart, released in 2012 and still in print. Ars Magica is a roleplaying game of a community of wizards in a medieval world where magic is rare and feared by the general populace. This supplement presents systems and advice for expanding multi-character ‘troupe play’, a core concept of Ars Magica.
Read the full show notes on our website!
We explored Ars Magica way back in season 1, episode 9. It’s an important game in the history of RPGs, co-designed by Mark Rein*Hagen who went on to create Vampire: the Masquerade, and Jonathan Tweet who was lead designer on Dungeons & Dragons 3e.
Click here to see Grogs on DriveThruRPG
Click here to see Ars Magica 5th edition on DriveThruRPG
This episode is brought to you by Laszlo Szidonya, who wants a shout out to his friend and longtime GM Aron Peterfy. We are enormously grateful to Laszlo (and Aron), and everyone else whose generosity helps to keep the podcast running.
We're discussing European RPGs, especially the new wave of Italian games like Outgunned, plus action cinema and more. Watch this episode on Youtube. Discuss it on our Discord.
This episode covers the roleplaying game VAMPIRE: THE MASQUERADE 5th edition, developed by Kenneth Hite and Karim Muammar, published in 2018 by White Wolf Entertainment in association with Paradox Entertainment and Free League. The original Vampire: The Masquerade was designed by Mark Rein•Hagen and released by White Wolf Publishing in 1991. It dominated the RPG hobby in the 1990s and remains one of the biggest RPGs of all time.
Click here to see Vampire: the Masquerade 5th edition at DriveThruRPG
Click here to see the original 1991 Vampire:the Masquerade, which we also discuss and which is still on sale for a paltry $9.99.
Read the full show notes on our website
It’s a fascinating read for anyone who wants to experience the origins of the World of Darkness.
“It would have been like kicking a tiny puppy in a tiny corset” – Greg
Ross talks about RPGs in Japan and other things he encountered during his vacation there. James talks about Mappa Mundi, an upcoming exploration RPG and more!
Alien: Chariot of the Gods is an introductory/one-shot adventure for Free League’s Alien RPG, written by Andrew E. C. Gaska and set in the universe of most of the Alien/Aliens movies. It was published in 2019.
Click here to see the Alien RPG on the Free League website
Click here to see the Alien RPG on DriveThruRPG
Click here to see the Alien: Chariot of the Gods adventure on DriveThruRPG
This episode is brought to you with support from Brent, one of our Kickstarter backers, who wanted to give a shout-out to his Youtube channel @Rolewise. Thanks, Brent!
Our livestream for October. Watch it on Youtube to see what we're talking about.
James Bond 007: Roleplaying In Her Majesty’s Secret Service was designed by Gerard Christopher Klug (known as Chris Klug these days) with development by Greg Gordon and Neil Randall, and was released by Victory Games between 1983 and 1987, selling over 100,000 copies. It is long out of print but available on the second-hand market at reasonable prices (as I write Noble Knight lists it at under $15 for the core rules) though the supplements are usually 200-500% more.
This episode was made possible by our patron and friend Christian Bickle, who chose the game for us to cover. Huge thanks go out to him for letting us create a really fun episode.
Full show notes are available here
Click here to read the full show notes!
Night’s Black Agents: Double Tap is a ‘gear book’ from 2013, a collection of new equipment, background and game material for GM and players, written by Ken Hite and several others. It’s an expansion for Night’s Black Agents, an RPG of modern tactical espionage and vampires, also written by Ken Hite and published by Pelgrane Press in 2011. It’s a really interesting book whether you play NBA or not, and we think you’ll enjoy our far-ranging discussion of it and the issues it raises.
Click here to see NBA: Double Tap on DriveThruRPG
Click here to see the Night’s Black Agents RPG on DriveThruRPG
Our livestream for September. If you want to see the visuals, watch it on Youtube.
Savage Worlds Adventure Edition (SWADE) was designed and written by Shane Lacy Hensley with Clint Black, and published by Pinnacle Entertainment Group in 2023. It’s a generic rules system of cinematic action with a historied pedigree and an amazing range of sourcebooks, but how does it fare against more rules-y games like GURPS or narrativist darlings like FATE? We take it apart to see what keeps its motor running, mechanically and stylistically, then put it back together to discuss how that affects play.
As noted at the end of the episode, Greg and James were given PDF copies of the game by PEG and we are properly grateful for that.
Click here to see Savage Worlds: Adventure Edition on DriveThruRPG
Click here for Episode 3 full show notes
