Casting Shadows

For this video version of this episode, I am joined by the host of the seemingly lapsed Hobbs and Friends, and the sadly sporadic Random Screed, by the Mr. Hobbs of Mr. Hobbs' Gamerhood: Jason Hobbs. He and I dive into some core elements of his recent foray into game writing with his release 'Bite the Bullet' which you can obtain PWYW on itch.io or DriveThruRPG. The game, a western-themed RPG based on Into the Odd, puts a tight focus on who the character is and what they will do to get what they want. We dig into that, and some of the approaches we might take to playing it in this discussion.

Relevant Links:

⁠Random Screed⁠

⁠Nerds RPG Variety Cast⁠

⁠Roleplay Rescue⁠

⁠Godless⁠

⁠Cole & Hitch Series⁠

⁠Spenser⁠

⁠Spenser for Hire⁠

CONTACT:

Leave a voice message via ⁠SpeakPipe⁠

https://speakpipe.com/castingshadowspodcast.com

Seek me out on BlueSky

https://bsky.app/profile/runeslinger.bsky.social

Visit the written blog

https://castingshadowsblog.com

Check out other episodes of this podcast

https://castingshadowspodcast.com

Still using e-mail?

runescastshadows AT gmail

For this episode, I am joined by the host of the seemingly lapsed Hobbs and Friends, and the sadly sporadic Random Screed, by the Mr. Hobbs of Mr. Hobbs' Gamerhood: Jason Hobbs. He and I dive into some core elements of his recent foray into game writing with his release 'Bite the Bullet' which you can obtain PWYW on itch.io or DriveThruRPG. The game, a western-themed RPG based on Into the Odd, puts a tight focus on who the character is and what they will do to get what they want. We dig into that, and some of the approaches we might take to playing it in this discussion.

Relevant Links:

Random Screed

Nerds RPG Variety Cast

Roleplay Rescue

Godless

Cole & Hitch Series

Spenser

Spenser for Hire

CONTACT:

Leave a voice message via SpeakPipe

https://speakpipe.com/castingshadowspodcast.com

Seek me out on BlueSky

https://bsky.app/profile/runeslinger.bsky.social

Visit the written blog

https://castingshadowsblog.com

Check out other episodes of this podcast

https://castingshadowspodcast.com

Still using e-mail?

runescastshadows AT gmail

THIS IS THE FULL, UNABRIDGED CONVERSATION.

Sean Kelley now host of the  @RPGSean  channel joins me for a natural discussion of seemingly tough topic: long-form and campaign play of cosmic horror RPGs. Drawing on experiences in our own play, using our own material, and such fantastic and lengthy campaigns as Impossible Landscapes and Masks of Nyarlathotep, we cruise through some core ideas, some foundational practices, and some notions of goal-setting, which might help alleviate some of that sense of impossibility~Relevant Links:Podcasts Mentioned in this Discussion:Gaming and BS Podcast - https://gamingandbs.com/GM Mastermind Podcast - https://gmmastermind.com/GoBag Podcast - https://www.gobagpod.com/Casting Shadows Podcast - https://castingshadowspodcast.comNerds RPG Variety Cast - https://open.spotify.com/show/4oPnUnwitpUqn9saEkFaNf?si=d135e19f4dc84e18Noteworthy Products mentioned herein:Call of Cthulhu - https://www.chaosium.com/call-of-cthulhu-rpg/Masks of NyarlathotepDelta Green - https://shop.arcdream.com/Impossible LandscapesThe Annotated King in YellowActual Play Playlists mentioned as examples:Impossible Landscapeshttps://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjzDW-FxA6k6oO9FbdREujogKfxkeVc68&si=4wGhQyoalNQDenBTTurn of a New Leafhttps://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZfuKgeD5fl7Rom3q-Mj0HMXGo-XL6XuE&si=gtBBCsPHUhp26sVINotes:An abridged but helpfully annotated version of this conversation with Sean is also available on my YouTube channel. The ink to that episode is here:

https://youtu.be/o55hwQ1PKH8If you would like to leave a voice message about this episode or any of the others, you can do so at the link below:https://www.speakpipe.com/castingshadowspodcast.com

This is an OctOSR-adjacent episode. Thanks go out to BJ Boyd, the Arcane Alienist, for being a guest on this episode to help frame and execute a discussion on the nature of memory and some key ways that can affect our play and understanding of RPGs. You can find BJ's podcast at the link below:

The Arcane Alienist

For more RPG investigations, visit the Casting Shadows blog

Watch Annotated Actual Plays, RPG discussions and debates, product overviews, and practical tips for playing and running RPGs on YouTube

Leave a voice message for the podcast via Speakpipe

LINKS relevant to this episode:

Things Gamers Say...

Things Gamers Imagine...

On the Caller in Early RPGs

An interesting and relevant link suggested by Jason Connerley of the Nerds RPG Variety Cast comes from SpectreVision Radio:Episode 6: Dungeons & Dragons, or the Reality of Illusions

This is an abridged version of a long overdue conversation with Scott Welker, long-time gamer and successful game designer with titles based in Savage Worlds, D20, Year Zero, and soon a system of his own making. Scott is one half of Thieves Guild Gaming. Our conversation is a full on, open-minded examination about focused attention in RPGs - otherwise known colloquially but ambiguously and unhelpfully as immersion. You can watch the full conversation, with its load of annotations and notes, on YouTube: https://youtu.be/LdqytLSQd9o

Scott likes to say "Immersion is impossible!" We get into what he means by that. I, as you know, Dear Listener, like to say that immersion, like so many other things, is frequently misunderstood. We get into that, too. For added value, one way we explore the topic is through Scott's games and how they were written. Useful links:Thieves Guild Games on DTRPG, has just launched a public beta of their new OPENSIX system and are looking for feedback. As a system, it is directly relevant to this discussion. The game is currently PWYW and can be found here:

https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/524225/opensix-zero-edition-take-back-your-imagination

First in a series of videos on Scott's first game, OS+R https://youtu.be/HaDi13UM21Y?si=dgRGHBnLRIDw6brd

Scott and I discuss the film: Zero Charisma https://www.youtube.com/live/dVXKIX78DIQ?si=oeIvKiePEcTp_WMI

My follow-up:https://youtu.be/X2TCg2cl9aI?si=PS_sEUrfL2wKmxYi

Scott's recent video on Autotelic Engagement: https://youtu.be/qHVyFOYRPgo?si=Lcuf10VFaZfFaT2v

Blog post summarizing my basic theory of "immersion"

On Immersion and Engagement in RPG Play https://wp.me/pTI80-3ke

A recent video from Bacon modelled on the above post and further exploring the points raised by Scott can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/live/iB_V-3V3KHc?si=7q83aGV8b93-Q_Mm

You can contact me by e-mail at runescastshadows via gmail or by leaving a voice message through Speak Pipe.

⁠Send a voice message to CastingShadowsPodcast

I am joined by 3 friends that I am fortunate enough to game with regularly, Brian Courtemanche, Brian Gregory (Stochastic Agency on YouTube) and the indefatigable Ivan 'More Bass' Podgwaite. We discuss some gaming topics for quite awhile (made less through the magical power of editing) before diving into some off the cuff inspiration and improvisation with the first few prompts of #RPGaDAY2025. I hope you will join us and stick through to the end!

You can find Ivan Podgwaite at ivanmike1968 on YouTube, where he talks about RPGs, playing bass, and life.

You can find Brian Gregory at Stochastic Agency on YouTube where he talks about playing RPGs.

You can find Brian Courtemanche on YouTube as well! So far, he has been reviewing short, light, takes on cosmic horror roleplay like the game he mentioned in this episode: Old Ones, Shoggoths, and R'lyeh.

You can contact me by e-mail at runescastshadows via gmail or by leaving a voice message through Speak Pipe.

Send a voice message to CastingShadowsPodcast

Mentioned in this Episode:

Roleplay Cafe + - YouTubeRPG with DBJ - YouTube

This episode possibly resumes more regular releases of the podcast while sharing thoughts on some topics I have missed recently and on that gem of a system, Chaosium's Basic Roleplaying.

Casting Shadows Blog

Send a voice message to CastingShadowsPodcast

Runeslinger - YouTube

Is Hindsightless THE most sporadic podcast on the Internet? I am not sure, this one must surely qualify for something in that category.

NOTE: The recap portion of this video has been subtitled for your convenience.

I have been putting up a in-depth videos on the YouTube channel lately about the nature of RPGs, so this weekend, with my thin strips of free time, I grilled up a recap as a sort of celebration of the great play I have been enjoying with Call of Cthulhu for the past year and a half, and as a possible on-ramp to getting into or at least enjoying the campaign vicariously, for those who don't enjoy YouTube. It was fun for me to go over our calendar of dates and events and spin that into a sort of StoryTime for the Casting Shadows Podcast. I hope you enjoy it, too.

If you would like to contact me, please consider leaving a voice message via SpeakPipe

https://speakpipe.com/castingshadowspodcast

If you prefer text, you can find me @Runeslinger on BlueSky, TwiXter, and YouTube or at my gmail address: runescastshadows.

Recommendation!

If you are curious about a great exploration of Chainmail in the context of playing it as the wargame it began life as, rather then the product shoehorned into OD&D, please consider checking out the Diegetic Advancement podcast.

This nearly 90-minute conversation was made possible by the open-minded attitude of TrilltheDM, the interest of MercuriousAulicus and Black Lodge Games, and I suppose, the letter X. In it, we discuss Trill's recent video: Mastering Player Choice in Mystery and Horror RPGs and take it further than the original 10-minute runtime would allow, dive into its specific context, and in general have an enjoyable and interesting discussion.

You can find the original video at this link:

CONTACT THE SHOW:

⁠⁠E-Mail⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Voice Message⁠⁠

FIND CASTING SHADOWS:

⁠⁠Blog⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Channel⁠⁠

LINKS FROM THIS EPISODE:

Mastering Player Choice in Mystery & Horror RPGs - YouTube

Sandboxes:

This episode is in three segments. The first presents links and reactions to just a few of the cool posts I have seen in response to the 2nd week of #RPGaDAY2024. This is part of a series for each week of the event. If you have suggestions for great posts, send me a message with the links! The second segment offers some tantalizing morsels stolen from the freshly unearthed Mordavia: Land of Horror supplement for Leagues of Adventure, Leagues of Gothic Horror, and Leagues of Cthulhu by Triple Ace Games. The final segment runs roughshod over my own responses to the #RPGaDAY2024 prompts in unseemly haste!

CONTACT THE SHOW:

⁠E-Mail⁠ ⁠Voice Message⁠

FIND CASTING SHADOWS:

⁠Blog⁠ ⁠Channel⁠

LINKS FROM THIS EPISODE:

⁠Autocratik Blog

Halls of the Nephilim

Stargazer's World

The Other Side

Stochasium

Triple Ace Games

Mordavia on DriveThruRPG