Dice Against Isolation

It's the final episode, covering the long term running of a campaign as well as how to end one! The ongoing game and the conclusion are some of the biggest challenges for a GM, but they absolutely can be overcome. I also dip a toe into life advice, talk about power at the table, vaguely criticise a popular film franchise, and mention one of the weirdest campaign finales I've ever run in this one. Transcript here.

As this is the final episode, a note: thank you so much for listening! If you've enjoyed this, or you've found it helpful, I'd really appreciate it if you shared or reviewed it. I get nothing but satisfaction from this and would love to know that it is reaching and helping people.

This may not be the end; I definitely need a break, but there's more to say, so stay tuned!

It's all been building to this! Sessions are living things, writhing things, and it's time to wrestle one. We get right down to the basics of interaction with the world in this episode, then into action outcomes and finally improvisation. Also featuring (briefly) Jerry the Spider Bartender and a crystal horse. Transcript here.

Next week will be the final episode of Dice Against Isolation's main series; if you're enjoying and finding it useful, please share! I'm not sure what comes next, but I don't think this will be it.

Sessions aren't just about narrative and gameplay; they're also about a group of people sitting down, at the moment at separate computers, and committing to being in a virtual room together for a bit. In this episode we'll talk more about emotional wellbeing in real time, self-care around a session, and the knotty problem of Player Versus Player conflict. Plus, get some dark hints and brief asides about my RPG horror stories! Transcript here.

Running sessions without any idea what's going to happen is hard mode, and there's always going to be some game-by-game prelimary work. This episode we're talking about prep - that is, everything that you need to do to prepare yourself for your own game. This is incredibly variable! (We also briefly touch on what to do if your players refuse to go to a popular Welsh beauty spot.) Transcript here.

It's all well and good knowing how to lay the groundwork for a campaign, but there's no point just endlessly making plans. In this episode we talk about actually pressing go on a campaign, from confidence to character creation, as well as how this early work can be used to help you later on. Transcript here.

With a lot of groundwork done, it's time to dig into the more granular creative part, so here is a very whistlestop tour of ways to think about systems, about setting, and about getting that first domino falling over on your story. These are really massive topics, and everyone has their own favourite workflow, so you'll find yourself branching out as soon as you find your feet. Transcript here.

One of the things that you have to think about before you're ready to hit play, sometimes even before you've done much creative work, is the practicality of the thing. Who are you playing with, when, and how? Games are great for staying in touch when we're all confined to our houses (and the internet), but there are a number of moving parts involved in getting them up and running. Transcript here.

Everybody brings something different to the table, and everyone has a different idea of what they're going to get out of it. Getting stuck in to what you, your group, and your system thinks is fun or expected is a useful and enjoyable part of getting set up with a game! We also have a quick look at some practical matters to get straight. Transcript here.

Even at the best of times, it's important to look out for each other while playing tabletop games; we all bring our own baggage and hurts to the table, we all need support and care, we can all get knocked off balance by something unexpected. This ain't the best of times. Respecting everyone at the table, their consent, their needs and hurts, is absolutely paramount, but our emotional needs can be really hard to talk about. The theme of emotional wellbeing will continue throughout this series. Transcript here.

In terms of content, this episode doesn't spend much time delving into specifics since it's mostly focussed on broad strokes, setting things up, and using safety tools, but does do a whistlestop tour of certain fraught subjects including sex, a brief rape mention, oppression, violence, and apocalypse.

Welcome to Dice Against Isolation, a podcast about running tabletop games in this current moment of global crisis! This introductory episode goes over the reasoning behind this podcast's existence as well as introducing some core concepts. Transcript here [direct PDF link].

GMing is for everyone - all of us can do it, and it's a free and easy way to have fun communally and create fun and connection even when times are tough. Whether you're experienced and just a bit flummoxed about moving online, or have never GMed before and want to know how to start, this podcast will offer both help and encouragement.