Axe of the Blood God: An RPG Podcast

Victor is back from Final Fantasy XIV Fan Fest in Anaheim and he brought a lot of thoughts and even more interviews from listeners, friends of the show, friends of himself, and new friends! Look forward to appearances from Harper Jay, Fusionx, CrystAAHHL, and many more! It's an honourary episode of Sharlayan Dropouts as Victor and Nadia discuss what they're excited about from the announcements of EverCold, and why the Blood God has the best community around. Look, I know the sound on this one might be off in some spots; I made a lot of work for myself. But I hope you can forgive some sound quality for what I think is a wonderful cross-section of our community. I had a wonderful time making this episode and I hope you enjoy listening whether you're a Final Fantasy XIV or XI player or not.

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

Fusionx and 20 years of podcasting about Final Fantasy MMOs

EmUnArum and the importance of Final Fantasy XI

Many, many interviews with wonderful people

If you never warmed up to XIV's combat, EverCold might have what you want

We just scratch the surface of new character customization options like Action Skins

Timestamps:

6:08 - Main Topic

11:08 - Harper Jay not quite predicting the expansion title

25:28 - CrystAAHHL being absolutely delightful

32:20 - Fusionx on podcasting for 20 years

1:03:16 - Ash Paulsen on not knowing anything about FFXIV

1:04:58 - Derek Heemsbergen and I busting each other's chops like true friends

1:15:44 - Em on the Importance of Final Fantasy XI

1:31:28 - Sena Bryer being the most charming person on the planet

1:41:12 - Axe of the Blood God / Sharlayan Dropouts Community Meet-Up

And that's it, man. It's aaaall XIV talk today.

Music Used in this Episode:

Axe of the Blood God Theme - [Lena Raine]

Ride the Rhythm - [The Primals - Dark Decades - Final Fantasy XIV]

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Eric is joined by guest Austin Walker on a solo run to discuss Austin's upcoming TTRPG Realis.

Topics include:

Viewing Realis through the Shonen lens, (or Boss Babying Realis, if you prefer).

World-building in a tabletop space vs game dev space.

The art of creating a bunch of freaky little guys for your players to spec into.

Contribute to the Kickstarter for Realis, (up until April 30,) or preorder it here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/crum/realis

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

Timestamps:

9:18 - Main Topic

52:45 Random encounters

1:10:36 The Tavern

Music Used in this Episode:

Axe of the Blood God Theme - [Lena Raine]

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

The Boy in Green (Hunter x Hunter) - [Jack de Quidt]

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It's a very special episode this week as Victor interviews Bradly Halestorm, the founder of LionWing Publishing, a team that specializes in localizing Japanese tabletop RPGs both old and new. We learn all about his history with RPGs and what it's like to license and localize Japanese books from 20+ years ago. It's a real treat and we get into the weeds, especially when we discuss LionWing's upcoming release from their wildly successful Kickstarter campaign, Wares Blade; a fantasy mech tabletop from the 80s. I hope you all enjoy this episode of Axe of the Blood God!

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

The challenges of working through snail mail

The future of Shin Megami Tensei: Tokyo Conception

Finally, another guest that respects 7th Dragon!

Timestamps:

6:08 - Main Topic - Interview w/ Bradly Hale of LionWing

1:10:33 - Wares Blade

Music Used in this Episode:

Axe of the Blood God Theme - [Lena Raine]

VITALITY - [Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne - Incense Disc]

LUCK - [Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne - Incense Disc]

STRENGTH - [Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne - Incense Disc]

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Pokemon Champions is here and we have expert guests Casey DeFreitas and Kallie Plagge to get you up to speed.

We get deep into the tall grass of Pokemon competitive battling, and ask the question: How do the gatcha components of Pokemon Champions affect players new and old? The tension between serving the new player and fulfilling the seasoned player runs high!

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

Timestamps:

00:07:40 - Main Topic

01:02:40 - Random Encounters

01:03:53 - Tavern

1:26:42 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Axe of the Blood God Theme - [Lena Raine]

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Champions Music - [Pokémon Champions]

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Pre-order Nadia's book!
https://retrogamebooks.com/products/from-pixels-to-prose-what-video-games-taught-me-about-storytelling
Once you're done that come back and listen to a nice chill episode on a relaxing slow news week. Victor and Nadia discuss their favourite canine and feline party members in RPG history with plenty of help from our community! All that and so much more on this domesticated episode of Axe of the Blood God! And the name of the KTEH producer I was trying to think of was the late Karen Roberts.

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

From Pixels to Prose by Nadia Oxford

Animorphs

Weird Canadian TV

Final Fantasy Dissidia Duellum update!

Timestamps:

10:08 - Main Topic - The Best Cats and Dogs in RPGs

54:13 - Random Encounters

59:54 - Tavern - Nadia Wrote a Book!

1:23:00 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Axe of the Blood God Theme - [Lena Raine]

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Break it down - inside the cinema - [Persona Q2]

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Ride on! Victor and Nadia are joined by special guests David Oxford and Ash Paulsen to discuss the new Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection. Is this the best Mega Man collection yet in terms of raw options? Do we recommend jumping into the Mega Man RPGs from the Star Force series? Did we mention you can probably skip Star Force 2? All that plus a very exciting surprise segment, and much more on this cosmic episode of Axe of the Blood God!

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

The Mega Mandela Effect

Vector Translations' Xenosaga I&II DS fan-translation

Blue Reflection: Quartet

Tomodachi Life

Dissidia Duellum

How to play Boktai in 2026

Kura5

Timestamps:

11:30 - Main Topic - Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection

55:28 - ITS THE RAGTIME MOUSE

1:04:28 - Random Encounters

1:12:22 - Tavern - Tomodachi Life, Dissidia Duellum

1:36:32 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Ragtime Mouse - [Final Fantasy IX]

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Rise as a Hero - [Mega Man Star Force]

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With takes as hot as the desert sands, Eric, Nadia, Victor, and special guest Joseph Bradford discuss March's hottest RPG Crimson Desert. Does it work as a prequel to hit MMO Black Desert Online? Is it greater than the sum of its many many many parts? Does anyone like the main guy? All these questions and more answered on this sandy-but-not-as-sandy-as-you'd-think episode of Axe of the Blood God!

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

Dread Delusion

Animal Crossing City Folk

The Ratline

Dragon Quest X

Greiga Master's Mega Man Battle Network: Phantom of Network PC Port

I promise, I PROMISE, we will do our best to stop talking about how awful AI is but studios need to stop forcing our hand. We want to to be free from this curse.

Timestamps:

13:08 - Main Topic - Crimson Desert

1:22:48 - Random Encounters - AI in Crimson Desert

1:50:08 - The Tavern

02:10:08 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Having Fun - [Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors]

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Probably a good idea to start learning how to salvage a dead civilization and there's no better teacher than Ditto. Pokopia is here and Eric and Nadia have plenty to share about this new Pokemon spin-off from the developers behind the cult-classic Dragon Quest Builders.

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

It's always been Dragon Slayer

Slay the Spire 2

Final Fantasy XIV Dawntrail Patch 7.5 Live Letter

Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection

Timestamps:

11:12 - Main Topic - Pokopia

49:40 - Random Encounters

54:00 - Sharlayan Dropouts - Final Fantasy XIV Patch 7.5 - Trail to the Heavens

1:15:20 - The Tavern - Monster Hunter Stories 3

1:30:08 - Slay the Spire 2

02:07:26 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Celadon City - [Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen]

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Let's A some Qs.
From RPGs that deserve a fighting game adaptation to the importance of physical strategy guides; it's a jam-packed extra-long episode as Nadia, Eric, and Victor answer questions from our community and prove themselves incapable of effective time management -- to your benefit!

Further Reading:
Sharlayan Dropouts - Our FFXIV Fighting Game Roster

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and celebrate our 10th Anniversary with new merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

Gary Larson's Far Cry

I forgot to mention that the spin-off that I really want is a Final Fantasy Fitness Boxing

Eric's been playing Pokopia

Eric's been playing Slay the Spire 2

Timestamps:

12:00 - Main Topic - March Mailbag!

23:32 - Ys?

25:00 - Fan-translations

30:36 - Noping out

37:52 - The perfect Valkyria Chronicles/Sakura Wars

41:04 - Embarrassing games

47:20 - Challenges that elude us

52:12 - What RPG should be a fighting game

1:04:00 - The importance of old strategy guides

1:18:56 - The past few months of change

1:34:00 - Resident. Eeeevilll.

1:36:32 - Random Encounters

1:50:30 - The Tavern - Pokopia

2:02:26 - The Tavern - Slay the Spire 2

02:07:26 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Theme of Valkyria (Guitar Version) - [Valkyria Chronicles III]

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There's a cavalcade of indie RPG demos fighting for your attention this week and Eric, Nadia, Victor, and special guest Lucas White are here to help you find some of the ones worth wishlisting! From hardcore dungeon crawls, to neon musicals, to impressionistic adventures, and everything in-between! Plus Pokemon, Tales, Ys, and a whole lot more on this jam-packed episode of Axe of the Blood God!

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and celebrate our 10th Anniversary with new merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

Did Tales of Berseria need the Remaster treatment?

Pokemon 30th Anniversary announcements galore! Winds, Waves, HitClips!

Ys X: Proud Nordics might just have the sauce

Everything is Battle Network

Timestamps:

09:58 - Main Topic - Steam Next Fest RPG Highlights!

10:20 - Parasite Mutant

22:20 - Annihilated

29:12 - Zero Parades: For Dead Spies

44:00 - THREE VERSES^3

49:40 - Calamity Angel: Special Delivery

54:24 - Esoteric Ebb

58:16 - Vampire Crawlers

1:04:32 - Curse Chapter: Dawnthief

1:07:04 - People of Note

1:13:04 - Random Encounters

1:18:46 - Mini-boss! - Pokemon News Galore! Winds, Waves, HitClips!

1:26:24 - The Tavern - Ys X Proud Nordics

1:36:24 - Tales of Berseria Remastered

01:49:20 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Theme of Velvet - [Tales of Berseria]

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