Episode 197 – Building Wizard City

Every wondered what Heart of Darkness would look like if it were an RPG campaign set in northern Europe? That’s the hook behind Ice and Steel: Voyage to the Frozen North, an upcoming Ars Magica/5e campaign by Kevin Hassall and Alban Cadu. Kevin and Alban join Chris and Andy to talk about their upcoming Kickstarter … Continue reading "Episode 206 – “Ice and Steel” with Kevin Hassall and Alban Cadu"

Halloween is coming soon, which means some Halloween one-shots! But first, Chris and Andy get a little finicky about the game systems they want to use.

Let’s reflect on Roll for Topic Con 2026! Chris and Andy walk through each of the interesting RPGs they played in at the con, which ranged from homebrew playtests to a Soulslike to a game about Atlantis that featured a giant punch bowl on the game table slowly filling up with water. With some added … Continue reading "Episode 204 – RfT Con Postmortem, Plus: When Do You Need a Statblock For Your Flashlight?"

Roll for Topic Con 2026: Wizard City was on Sept. 19th 2026! Andy, yet again, did trivia this year and it was a blast! Show notes:

Andy asks Chris for help with a problem: sometimes coming up with cool consequences and improvising die roll results is exhausting! Chris and Andy discuss ways to take pressure off the GM. Also: it’s not too early to start planning your Halloween one-shot!

Chris gets a real-life taste of what it’s like to explore a mysterious location! Also, Andy asks for recommendations for a straightforward sci-fi RPG that isn’t space horror.

Chris talks about Dungeon Crawler Carl again and then Andy and Chris talk about getting rid of their collections of stuff! It’s episode 200! Thank you for listening!

Chris is second-guessing a tough choice he made in a recent game. What makes for a good, genuine tough moral choice in an RPG? Is it something the GM can (or should) deliberately create and build toward? This, plus discussion about which D&D class best describes Lyndon B. Johnson.

Chris somehow manages to bring his obsession with the World Cup into the podcast. Andy humors him and they talk about running games within games.

What’s actually useful for a GM to know about a city or other adventuring location? Chris and Andy discuss how to take the “Wizard City” theme of this year’s RfT Con and turn it into a gameable place. Plus, more on GMing with kids.