November Break Announcement

Helloooo everyone. Just a short announcement to let you know I'm taking November off from releases and will be back in December with at least a Perspective Checks episode, a holiday one-shot, and my yearly recap & resolutions.   Join the DMs After Dark Discord to vote on my first/main solo series for 2027. Currently my own game Gardens of Rust is the frontrunner, but other games like Twilight Sword and Daggerheart are on the poll, and you can write in other ideas, too!    January of next year is going to get even wilder, but we can't wait to show you what we've been up to!   ----more----   Join the DMs After Dark Discord channel! and Get Wicked Good Adventures!   I made a Ko-Fi if you feel absurdly generous and want to help cover podcast hosting costs & all the upkeep. I'm still working on whether I want to offer anything special over there or just give my extreme gratitude (maybe some stickers or something in the mail) to those who donate, but no pressure whatsoever :)   Where to Follow Rene Plays Games: LinkTree |  BlueSky | Threads | Instagram | Facebook | DMs After Dark Rene's Games: MECH | MECH Cities 2 | One Last Quest | I Know I Know You, But I Don't Know How... email: [email protected]   Music in the Episode (in order of appearance): Rain Cafe Lo-Fi by Aaron from Pixabay

Welcome to another episode of Perspective Checks where I sit down with friends and folks from the TTRPG world and discuss what they love about this wonderful hobby!   This rare 2nd Perspective Checks in one month is one that I wanted to put out sooner rather than wait for because Rangers of a Broken World is currently crowdfunding over on Backerkit from Leon Richardson a.k.a. Blind Snake Studio a.k.a. the artist formerly known as Cat (Peach Garden Games if you're familiar) through Evil Hat, and it looks awesome, and I wanted to spread the word as much as possible before the crowdfunding ends.    First, Leon and I recently played a one-shot of Raccoon Sky Pirates over on friend of the show Undercommon Taste's podcast which is where we met, and when I realized he was behind this really amazing looking game, I reached out to talk about it with him immediately! Leon is, in their own words, "a workhorse, a busy little pony," and it shows. Leon is the designer behind the Carta SRD, which is a game system you've heard me play on this channel a few times (Dragon Dowser & BOW from Hatchlings Games), as well as numerous other solo TTRPGs, group games, and now video games! I can't wait to check out Stalk the Rushes and play a great blue heron...   And Rangers of a Broken World is a game about a post-apocalyptic fantasy world where the PCs act as Rangers - people who brave the wilds between settlements and venture on pilgrimages to the slumbering gods within Deiliths, who grant powers and task these gifted people with the power to change the world. It is a very environmentally minded game and the worldbuilding for it is SO GOOD. I want to play it right now!   Leon is also the coordinator behind the amazing charity bundle Solo But Not Alone, and the 7th annual bundle is coming soon, so keep your eyes peeled!   We also talk about Leon's foray into video game design, doing things their own way, being an impulsive creator, as well as their love of tarot, and the JRPGs we love from our childhood. It was a great chat and I hope you like it!   Go back Rangers of a Broken World and support Leon!   ----more----   Join the DMs After Dark Discord channel!   I made a Ko-Fi if you feel absurdly generous and want to help cover podcast hosting costs & all the upkeep. I'm still working on whether I want to offer anything special over there or just give my extreme gratitude (maybe some stickers or something in the mail) to those who donate, but no pressure whatsoever :)   Where to Follow Rene Plays Games: LinkTree |  BlueSky | Threads | Instagram | Facebook | DMs After Dark Rene's Games: MECH | MECH Cities 2 | One Last Quest | I Know I Know You, But I Don't Know How... email: [email protected]   Music in the Episode (in order of appearance): Rene Plays Games Theme written & produced by Dan Pomfret | @danfrombothbands

Slowly adding players to the spooky month episodes, this time I'm joined by returning guest (and wife, I guess that's important) Lynn for a game of Ghost + Human by friend of the pod Dan Bronson-Lowe a.k.a. Almost Bedtime Theater.  This is a wonderful little hack of Badger + Coyote by Pandion Games that sees a human and a ghost working together to solve mysteries. It has asymmetric mechanics for each role and lots of fun tables to roll on to generate a fun spooky (or silly, or both) session for two players and no GM. My favorite kind of game!   Check out more of Dan's games on his itch linked above, listen to his all ages friendly podcast also called Almost Bedtime Theater or hear him on other friend of the pod Michael Low's Stories RPG!   ----more---- Join the DMs After Dark Discord channel! and Get Wicked Good Adventures!   I made a Ko-Fi if you feel absurdly generous and want to help cover podcast hosting costs & all the upkeep. I'm still working on whether I want to offer anything special over there or just give my extreme gratitude (maybe some stickers or something in the mail) to those who donate, but no pressure whatsoever :)   Where to Follow Rene Plays Games: LinkTree |  BlueSky | Threads | Instagram | Facebook | DMs After Dark Rene's Games: MECH | MECH Cities 2 | One Last Quest | I Know I Know You, But I Don't Know How... email: [email protected]   Music in the Episode (in order of appearance): Cinematic Atmos 1 Hour Mix by Monument Studios Rene Plays Games Theme written & produced by Dan Pomfret | @danfrombothbands

Welcome to another episode of Perspective Checks where I sit down with friends and folks from the TTRPG world and discuss what they love about this wonderful hobby!   This month's episode is one that took months of scheduling (it is the BBEG of TTRPGs after all) to make happen, but I am so happy to share my conversation with Mistress Winter, the GM of the incredible Monsterhearts 2 actual play All Our Faults from the Tabletop Talespinners Network! You may remember me gushing about All Our Faults in my interview about community with Kat the Dungeon Mom, and now we're talking with Winter about the show's inspiring exploration of depth, trauma, and walking right up to those lines & veils and content warnings without fear to feel something at the table. Could be a very fitting topic for lots of topics that happen in spooky month games!   Mistress Winter's GM style is very intense throughout All Our Faults, but a major factor of what we discuss in this episode is the importance of pre-campaign discussions about expectations, in-session check-ins with moments that confront the agreed upon traumatic topics, and after-session chats and check-ins to make sure everyone's happy moving forward.   Beyond that, we discuss a lot of other media and how it has shaped Winter's style. I hope you enjoy!   ----more----   Join the DMs After Dark Discord channel!   I made a Ko-Fi if you feel absurdly generous and want to help cover podcast hosting costs & all the upkeep. I'm still working on whether I want to offer anything special over there or just give my extreme gratitude (maybe some stickers or something in the mail) to those who donate, but no pressure whatsoever :)   Where to Follow Rene Plays Games: LinkTree |  BlueSky | Threads | Instagram | Facebook | DMs After Dark Rene's Games: MECH | MECH Cities 2 | One Last Quest | I Know I Know You, But I Don't Know How... email: [email protected]   Music in the Episode (in order of appearance): Rene Plays Games Theme written & produced by Dan Pomfret | @danfrombothbands

Spooky month is upon us, and thus we play horror!   It begins alone, and, in this game, it ends alone. Blood in the Margins by Chris Bissette is another of his incredible Wretched & Alone games about a student who, along with some accomplices, killed another student at their prestigious academy recently, but has to make it through the final year of their academic career without unraveling from the guilt or being caught by the authorities.   It's a terrible premise, truly awful, and there are too many current parallels for crimes and horrible things happening in the world of higher education right now that I almost didn't put this episode out, but stay until the end of the episode if you want my feelings on that.   As a game, this journaling game had my chest tight the entire time I was playing it and it does a fantastic job of making you feel like the noose is tightening around you with every flipped card. Give it a shot if you feel like giving yourself stress for a while!   Oh and fuck Cornell.   ----more---- Join the DMs After Dark Discord channel!   and Get in on playing some Wicked Good Adventures!   I made a Ko-Fi if you feel absurdly generous and want to help cover podcast hosting costs & all the upkeep. I'm still working on whether I want to offer anything special over there or just give my extreme gratitude (maybe some stickers or something in the mail) to those who donate, but no pressure whatsoever :)   Where to Follow Rene Plays Games: LinkTree |  BlueSky | Threads | Instagram | Facebook | DMs After Dark Rene's Games: MECH | MECH Cities 2 | One Last Quest | I Know I Know You, But I Don't Know How... email: [email protected]   Music in the Episode (in order of appearance): Cinematic Atmos 1 Hour Mix by Monument Studios Town Bell by Monument Studios Dark 1 Hour Mix by Monument Studios

I'm squeezing in one more episode for Solo September and it's one of the games I've wanted to play (and solo!) the longest - Primal Quest by Diogo Nogueira!   There are also a bunch of supplements for Primal Quest, including the solo supplement Primal Quest: Feral from Exalted Funeral, which has lots of great oracles and tools for you to play your Weird Stone & Sorcery game!   This game rules. Stone Age old school vibes but with cool dice pool tag mechanics, an amazing setting called Thaia, which you can read more about on Diogo's blog, and I played one short little starter event and it's made me want to play more of this sooo bad... Hope you enjoy!   Should I? Still not sure what I'm going to do through the end of the year or next year, so if you're reading the podcast descriptions, definitely join the DMs Discord or reach out to me to let me know what you think I should play next!   ----more---- Join the DMs After Dark Discord channel!   I made a Ko-Fi if you feel absurdly generous and want to help cover podcast hosting costs & all the upkeep. I'm still working on whether I want to offer anything special over there or just give my extreme gratitude (maybe some stickers or something in the mail) to those who donate, but no pressure whatsoever :)   Where to Follow Rene Plays Games: LinkTree |  BlueSky | Threads | Instagram | Facebook | DMs After Dark Rene's Games: MECH | MECH Cities 2 | One Last Quest | I Know I Know You, But I Don't Know How... email: [email protected]   Music in the Episode (in order of appearance): Lost Continent by Monument Studios Shuttle Crash by Tabletop Audio Dinotopia by Tabletop Audio Skull Island by Tabletop Audio Fire Dance by Tabletop Audio Rene Plays Games Theme written & produced by Dan Pomfret | @danfrombothbands

Solo September rolls on and this week's one-player one-shot is the Exploration & Ecology RPG Mappa Mundi by Three Sails Studio!   This game was thrown at me A LOT during its crowdfunding, and I totally get why. The pitch is a game about exploration and observation of wildlife and rediscovering a world after a mysterious event fractured different cultures and places for a century or more. Now, the Mappa Mundi Institute sends out Chroniclers to journey through the world, find wildlife, locate legendary creatures, and return with information about their habits, behaviors, and ecological niches.    It was pitched in another interview as "What if Pokemon but no battling?" Just the Pokedex quest, and ... yea sign me up.   The solo supplement is a little crunchier than my usual preference, but I think that there's a lot of cool stuff in this game that probably translates to group play very well. It's incredibly collaborative, narrative, and the skill tree progression looks pretty cool! Check it out, and I hope you enjoy my little trek to find the ornery Vodyanyk!   ----more---- Join the DMs After Dark Discord channel!   I made a Ko-Fi if you feel absurdly generous and want to help cover podcast hosting costs & all the upkeep. I'm still working on whether I want to offer anything special over there or just give my extreme gratitude (maybe some stickers or something in the mail) to those who donate, but no pressure whatsoever :)   Where to Follow Rene Plays Games: LinkTree |  BlueSky | Threads | Instagram | Facebook | DMs After Dark Rene's Games: MECH | MECH Cities 2 | One Last Quest | I Know I Know You, But I Don't Know How... email: [email protected]   Music in the Episode (in order of appearance): Distant, Part Two by Vindsvept Windswept Realms Vol. II by Vindsvept Rene Plays Games Theme written & produced by Dan Pomfret | @danfrombothbands

Solo September is fully in swing! Time for another one-player one-shot and this time it's one of the solo games I've had in my collection and on my list for the longest: Princess With a Cursed Sword by Anna Anthropy!   In this solo journaling game, you play a - you guessed it! - princess given a cursed sword and tasked with finding where it belongs to get rid of it. I had a great time making Princess Camille and delving into the dark tombs of the past to see an ancient deal finished. I hope you enjoy, and DEFINITELY think you should try this one.   ----more---- Join the DMs After Dark Discord channel!   I made a Ko-Fi if you feel absurdly generous and want to help cover podcast hosting costs & all the upkeep. I'm still working on whether I want to offer anything special over there or just give my extreme gratitude (maybe some stickers or something in the mail) to those who donate, but no pressure whatsoever :)   Where to Follow Rene Plays Games: LinkTree |  BlueSky | Threads | Instagram | Facebook | DMs After Dark Rene's Games: MECH | MECH Cities 2 | One Last Quest | I Know I Know You, But I Don't Know How... email: [email protected]   Music in the Episode (in order of appearance): Village Festival by Tabletop Audio Paragon Dark Dulcimers by Monument Studios Through Time (Bonus Track) by Vindsvept Dungeon C by Monument Studios The Mad Harvester by Vindsvept Puzzle Dungeon by Tabletop Audio Conflict Braam Loop by Monument Studios The Undercroft by Tabletop Audio A World Divide by Vindsvept A World Unbound by Vindsvept

Welcome to another episode of Perspective Checks where I sit down with friends and folks from the TTRPG world and discuss what they love about this wonderful hobby!   This month's episode is with the incomparable SuperDillin, host of One Shot Podcast as well as one half of Dorkspawn, the video game book club podcast! Oh and he also recently cowrote the newest addition of the Ultimate Roleplaying Series - The Ultimate RPG Villain Backstory Guide with James D'Amato. Besides being just very cool, Dillin plays a lot of games over on One Shot and appearing elsewhere as an AP icon, and we talk about games as a hobby, a community, and a preferred vehicle for exploring all things about the human experiences.   This chat is honestly mostly just me gushing over all the cool things Dillin is involved with, but we do talk about some really interesting things in the world of tabletop games from the intentionality and creativity of indie games, the "everyone's hot and nobody's horny" problem that drives Dillin to encourage sexuality and romance heavily in his games, and more.    Here's a list of some (hopefully most) of the things we talked about in this episode: Rom Com Drama Bomb by More Blueberries (Elliot Davis) Be/Hold - TTRPG Music Voices in the Wood by Tales Yet Told DIE RPG by Kieron Gillon/Rowan, Rook, & Decard RPG Major Podcast Perils & Princesses by Outrider Creative Force of Extinction by 12 Sided Studios Hinterlight by Tyler Lamb Stewpot by Takuma Okada The Last Smile in Sunder City by Luke Arnold A Land Once Magic by Viditya Voleti Campanions by Spilled Coffee Creatives   ----more----   Join the DMs After Dark Discord channel!   I made a Ko-Fi if you feel absurdly generous and want to help cover podcast hosting costs & all the upkeep. I'm still working on whether I want to offer anything special over there or just give my extreme gratitude (maybe some stickers or something in the mail) to those who donate, but no pressure whatsoever :)   Where to Follow Rene Plays Games: LinkTree |  BlueSky | Threads | Instagram | Facebook | DMs After Dark Rene's Games: MECH | MECH Cities 2 | One Last Quest | I Know I Know You, But I Don't Know How... email: [email protected]   Music in the Episode (in order of appearance): Rene Plays Games Theme written & produced by Dan Pomfret | @danfrombothbands

Beneath the Tree of Woe, the wicked towering tree at the heart of the forest of Eryn Vorn, Iorlas wields his ancestral blade, Nimloth's Tear, against the Flame in the Dark, an ancient nameless thing of evil.    With a sword named for a white tree, a memory of light, Iorlas goes into battle against a shadow that has accumulated the dark shadows of hate for Ages.   Learn more about The One Ring 2e by Free League Publishing.   ----more---- Join the DMs After Dark Discord channel!   I made a Ko-Fi if you feel absurdly generous and want to help cover podcast hosting costs & all the upkeep. I'm still working on whether I want to offer anything special over there or just give my extreme gratitude (maybe some stickers or something in the mail) to those who donate, but no pressure whatsoever :)   Where to Follow Rene Plays Games: LinkTree |  BlueSky | Threads | Instagram | Facebook | DMs After Dark Rene's Games: MECH | MECH Cities 2 | One Last Quest | I Know I Know You, But I Don't Know How... email: [email protected]   Music in the Episode (in order of appearance): Fallen by Vindsvept The Gaping Maw by Tabletop Audio Terror in the Woods by Tabletop Audio Troll Grotto by Tabletop Audio Action 1 Hour Mix by Monument Studios Dream of Paradise feat Celestial93 by Vindsvept Passion by Monument Studios Rene Plays Games Theme written & produced by Dan Pomfret | @danfrombothbands