Role Playing Public Radio

Jeff Barber recently spoke to me about his new project, Blue Planet Recontact. It’s the new, updated, definitive edition of the classic science fiction roleplaying game set on the wild, frontier waterworld of Poseidon. Blue Planet is a compelling RPG journey into humanity’s precarious future on a distant waterworld where political unrest and a hungry alien ecology threaten the nascent colony effort. ‘ Back Blue Planet Recontact on Kickstarter! We talked about writing a new edition of the game, planning the Kickstarter, and the kind of work that went into it, from research to finding sensitivity readers. It was a great discussion and if you are thinking about running a RPG project on Kickstarter, this is the episode for you. Get the Quickstart guide here. Song: Edge by Street Cleaner

The first full Delta Green campaign, Impossible Landscapes, is finally out. I’ve long awaited this book, as I have been fascinated with Carcosa and surreal horror since I first read Night Floors years ago. I caught up with Dennis Detwiller and Shane Ivey of Arc Dream Publishing to learn more about the book.  Read the essay that began it all, the Road to Hali. Caleb also joined us to talk about his new project, Dead Channel, an upcoming Patreon focused on Delta Green products. This episode will spoil some of the contents from Impossible Landscapes Music: Everywhere at the End of Time by The Caretaker

This is Baz’s cat, heard at various points in this episode. News: RPPR episodes are going to be a bit slower because I want to ensure quality episodes. We should have some game designer workshops this year because Caleb and I are both working on various projects.  Our weekly livestreams (every Sunday!) on the RPPR Patreon Discord are going strong with better quality audio. Join the Patreon to get an invite to the Discord! Baz has set up a Minecraft realm for fans of his Twitch. Watch a stream to get invite info! At Night Clerk Radio, Birk and I have recently discussed themusic of Unsolved Mysteries and our upcoming episode reviews Yig, a Cthulhu Mythos album from Cryo Chamber. Synopsis: One page games are only growing in popularity but what makes a good one? Baz has an idea for his own one page game so Birk and I talk to him about it. We discuss some one page games and what we like in a good one page game. Some of our examples are: What’s a Vaporwave Party Monster, Monster Party Honey Heist Cthulhu Dark Shout Outs: Teardown: a game about destroying things and speedrunning. Pawn Sacrifice: a film about the 1972 World Chess Championship. Unemployed Wine Guy: An alcohol review and discussion Youtube Channel Monster Train: a deckbuilding video game that is very addictive tardiobscurus: a great Japanese music mix Youtube channel Tasting History: a food history and cooking Youtube channel Goodbye, Dragon Inn: a film about the last screening at a rundown theater in Taiwan. Cola Splash: an EDM DJ How the ‘Layers of Fear’ Dev Copy/Pasted Their Way to Notoriety: A video explaining what Layers of Fear ripped off Music: Void Wizards Saga Chapter 1 by Fornax Void  

News: Be sure to check out Good Brew Bad View’s episode with Caleb as a guest! Also, Maddy is streaming speedruns of Hades on Twitch. Synopsis: It seems a lot of tabletop RPG Kickstarters are 5E D&D compatible settings or standalone games based on established franchises. Hellboy, Stargate, and Middle Earth all have 5E games. Special guest Max from Good Views Bad Brews Podcast, Aaron, Tom, and I pick some franchises and come up with better game ideas than simply slapping 5E rules on it. We cover everything from Hellblazer to Great British Bakeoff to classics like Olympus has Fallen. Shout Outs Tacoma: A sci-fi game about uncovering the mystery of an abandoned space station Ghost Dog: A movie about an eccentric assassin Yakuza 0: a prequel game to the Yakuza series Southbound: An anthology horror film set in the Southwest Gunsmith: A vidya game about smithing guns Moonstruck: One of the best romcoms of the 80s Abattoir: a horror movie about haunted houses and a cult Silent Hill 2 Enhanced Edition: It’s Silent Hill but better Fuser: A new rhythm game about Djing Commander in Cheat: Trump cheats at golf. Huge shock I know. Song: Xenon by Master Boot Record

In this episode, we talk about potential games to make about Rio Olympics, plus part 2 of the Future King review, a review of Glory Hole Dwarven Mine from Judge’s Guild, and Tom brings in Mutazoids. We create a PC, Terry. Song: IBM Lotus Night by Lindsheaven Virtual Plaza If you enjoy this, consider supporting RPPR on Patreon. For only $2 a month, you can get an episode of After Hours plus more exclusive content, like art and access to our Discord! Terry has the following mutations: Mushroom Shaped Head – with a spikey head ornamentation A nose tongue, which is normal but missing (?) 2 Sucker mouths on shoulders Fangs Normal ears Nerve Bundles instead of eyes Normal arms Tiny tentacles for hands Normal torso, legs, body color Talon feet Fuzzy Thin skin Asexual reproduction Normal markings insect tail and wings Cannot hear gunshots has an alter ego FAN ART GO!

News: Check out the schedule for our schedule for livestreaming on the RPPR Patreon Discord! Also, we’ve been posting some banger episodes on the Mixed Six, so don’t forget to check that out if you haven’t already! Synopsis: Caleb and I have recently watched the classic Argento film, Deep Red, and it sparked a discussion on investigative games. It demonstrates the challenge of interpreting clues versus finding clues. It also shows the perils of chasing red herrings. If you’ve struggled to run a good mystery game, especially a Gumshoe Engine game, this episode is for you! Shout Outs Slay the Spire: An addicting deck-building roguelike game Hades: An addicting action RPG roguelike Carrion: An excellent horror-themed metroidvania game The Invitation: a thriller about a dinner party The Beach House: a horror flick about cosmic horror and awkward dinner parties The Wide Carnivorous Sky: a collection of horror short stories Radiant Dawn: A Delta Green-esque horror novel Song: The Welcoming by 2 Mello

Caleb has restarted work on Slingstone, his superhero-slaying RPG. We have some playtests of the first version of Slingstone on RPPR B-Sides volume 5 if you want to hear that. I have an idea for a zine system-free version of Night Clerk, one of our more popular AP episodes. We also talk about creativity in the age of Covid-19. Music: Private Caller by Saint Pepsi

News: If you haven’t listened to Night Clerk Radio in a while, check out our most recent episodes. We’ve fine-tuned our editing, so they’re even better than before! The RPPR Patreon is back on track, after a slight delay last month. Be sure to check out our latest After Hours episode where we playtest a game about making up bad game ideas. Synopsis: I am running a Blades in the Dark campaign so I got Aaron, Bill and Jeff Barber (who has run his own campaign of Blades in the Dark) to discuss the system and setting. We talk about our favorite parts, least favorite, and ideas for other games. If you’re curious about this game, give this episode a listen! Shout Outs He is a Good Boy: a weird epic comic from KC Green about a lil acorn. UVG: A weird fantasy RPG about traveling across a weird world. Lord of Light: A Rober Zelazny fantasy novel The Other Side of the Mountain: a weird fiction novella about a doomed expedition to the New World Tabletopia: A virtual board game app with support for many board games Rwby critique: Hbomberguy discusses the animu series for 2.5 hours The Edge Dawnfell: a tabletop wargame with cool factions and rules Odin Makes: a cosplay crafting Youtube channel Paratopic: a short weird horror video game stylized as a PS1 game. Song: Ancient Mechanized Citadel by Equip

News: My book Zombies of the World is out! Buy it today! Don’t forget to check out Night Clerk Radio as well. Synopsis: We are preparing for a Blades in the Dark campaign, so Caleb, Birk, and I talk about planning heists as players. Heists are harder for some players to comprehend because force isn’t always an option. Discretion and cunning are harder to learn than murderhoboery, but hopefully this will help! Shout Outs Sun Down Motel: A novel about a haunted motel and two women who investigate it Sentient: a comic about a generation ship, its AI, and the children it raises End of Policing: a nonfiction book about changing how we think about the police and the legal system Midnight Ultra: a psychedelic FPS about killing cultists and monsters in acid Quake graphics The Shallows: a book about how the Internet is changing us. Floor is Lava: A silly obstacle course show on Netflix Song: Apropos by Mittsies  

News: If you like this episode, consider backing the RPPR Patreon to get 4 years of After Hours episodes, plus early access to Actual Plays, and access to our Discord. I am streaming weird videos like my movie Motor Home from Hell! Also, my book Zombies of the World, is now out! Synopsis: Our listeners have been sending in some great review fodder, so Caleb reviews Cyberskelter, a scenario anthology for Cyberspace, the same RPG that was responsible for Death Valley Free Prison. I review part of the Future King, a batshit insane RPG/adventure that takes six very specific heroes from history to save King Athur.  We also discuss some Kickstarter-related topics, such as a certain con artist and the practicality of Chaosium’s Horror on the Orient Express. Song: Decay by HOME