Episodic Adventures: TTRPG Module Reviews

Weekend bonus episode Surprise Round! In this con special, Sean follows up with three of the wizards of Wizard Staffing Co., a cohort of tabletop roleplaying game enthusiasts and event runners, to discuss their time at Gen Con 2026. Mel, Jonah, and Evan discuss games played and ran, con highlights, and lessons learned.

Note: A database of the ENTIRE, LIFETIME catalogue of Gen Con events is available through the Best 50 Years in Gaming! Enjoy, fellow lookie-loos!

Wizard Staffing Co.

Mel’s IG: @MeltheGM

Jonah’s links 

Evan’s links

Evan’s IG: @lecture.stone and @linguaarcanattrpg

Theme music credited to Zane Little.

New to the show? Check out our links: https://linktr.ee/episodicadventures

Have gaming opinions or questions? Email us at [email protected].

Follow Lisa, Jordy, and Sean as they stumble into nostalgia with the DIE RPG quickstart. We discuss multi-layered characters, improvised encounters, and memory–in both a poetic and practical sense.

Note: While we do not refer to it in the review, the name of the module in the quickstart is “The Dreams We Had As Children.” Also, in the comic, the dictator can affect the other players with her ability. Scary!

CW: Derealization, toxic friendship dynamics

Interview with Kieron about DIE the comic and DIE the RPG 

DIE: The Roleplaying Game and its quickstart are created by Kieron Gillen and Stephanie Hans, and published by Rowan, Rook and Deckard.

Intro excerpt adapted from “DIE RPG Quickstart”.

Theme music credited to Zane Little.

New to the show? Check out our links: https://linktr.ee/episodicadventures

Have gaming opinions or questions? Email us at [email protected].

On this week’s Sidebar episode, Sean and Lisa examine - gasp - GMs who don’t run modules. We discuss when to run or bail on a module, creativity challenges, and our con updates.

GMs who never run prewritten adventures

Theme music credited to Zane Little.

New to the show? Check out our links: https://linktr.ee/episodicadventures

Have gaming opinions or questions? Email us at [email protected].

Hail, listeners! This week, Jordy, Lisa, and Sean seek the myths, honor the seers, and protect the realm in “What a Horrible Knight,” an introductory “choose-your-own-adventure” module for Mythic Bastionland. We discuss hyperlinked, spiral-bound, higgledy-piggledy caves, the quest for glory, brutal traps, and rolling on the ominous noises table.

Note: While we are no longer active on Instagram, we have a shiny new YouTube channel, complete with all of our episodes! You can also find us on Bluesky.

Quinns Quest Review of Mythic Bastionland

“What a Horrible Knight” is produced by Afterthought Committee and published by Plus One Exp.

Mythic Bastionland is written by Chris McDowall and published by Bastionland Press.

Theme music credited to Zane Little.

New to the show? Check out our links: https://linktr.ee/episodicadventures

Have gaming opinions or questions? Email us at [email protected].

Welcome to Season 2 of Episodic Adventures! Lisa, Jordy, and Sean are kicking things off with a sci-fi noir investigation in “Murder In Metal City,” a deluxe introductory boxed set adventure for Starfinder Second Edition. We discuss adventure paths, lore dumps via handouts and frantic Wikipedia scrolling, and an evasive, shadowy villain.

Note: With Meta sinking to new lows (what’s new?), we are planning to move away from Instagram and towards Bluesky as our social media platform of choice. Catch us in the skies!

“Murder In Metal City” is written by Jenny Jarzabski and published by Paizo.

Starfinder Second Edition is published by Paizo. 

The Gaming Gang flip-through and review of the box set

Intro excerpt from “Murder In Metal City.”

Theme music credited to Zane Little.

New to the show? Check out our links: https://linktr.ee/episodicadventures

Have gaming opinions or questions? Email us at [email protected].

For our final summer bonus episode, Lisa joined Chase on Gamestorm, a game design podcast from Storygames Chicago, to build an impromptu larp/board game about multilevel marketing using Yahtzee's dice mechanics. Calling all boss bros/babes!

You can find all the Gamestorm-developed RPG releases on Itch!

Chase on Bluesky 

Storygames Chicago on DriveThuRPG

New to the show? Check out our links: https://linktr.ee/episodicadventures

Have gaming opinions or questions? Email us at [email protected].

We called for adventurers, and the city answered. Last March, Lisa, Jordy and Sean attended a local player/GM matchmaking event hosted by the Chicago Tabletop Gaming Association with mic in hand to ask our fellow hobbyists about the adventures they adore. This collection of interviews is their response!

Chicago Tabletop Gaming Association

Ben Guest

Theme music credited to Zane Little.

New to the show? Check out our links: https://linktr.ee/episodicadventures

Have gaming opinions or questions? Email us at [email protected].

In this very special bonus episode, Lisa and Sean interview Bruce (Lisa's dad) about the creation of his Christian RPG: Soul Guardian. We discuss the satanic panic, two realms of play, playtesting with two children under the age of 10, and fighting baddies.

Note: The link to the Dragonraid RPG.net entry below includes a few excellent reviews of the system, including some mechanics that Soul Guardian adapts, such as ability attributes named after the fruits of the spirit and using bible verses for “spellcasting.”

Soul Guardian is written by Bruce Hartman, with contributions by Mike Hammond.

Dragonraid

Theme music credited to Zane Little.

New to the show? Check out our links: https://linktr.ee/episodicadventures

Have gaming opinions or questions? Email us at [email protected].

Dear Listeners: Season 1 of Episodic Adventures is a wrap. Join Jordy, Lisa, and Sean as look back over a treasure trove of reviews, award superlatives to notable modules, and portent what’s next to come… in Season 2!

Scheduling Note: For the month of July, we’ll be on a brief break from our weekly release schedule. Stay tuned for a few delightful bonus episodes in the interim. H.A.G.S.!

Theme music credited to Zane Little.

New to the show? Check out our links: https://linktr.ee/episodicadventures

Have gaming opinions or questions? Email us at [email protected].

Jordy, Lisa, and Sean return to the dank basement of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons with cheetos and twinkies in tow as offering for the grandaddy of all modules: “G1 Steading of the Hill Giant Chief.” We discuss tactical mapping, Gygaxian naturalism, beefy slaps, and insane manticores.

CW: slavery, references to child death

“G1 Steading of the Hill Giant Chief” is written by Gary Gygax and published by TSR. 

Intro excerpt from “G1 Steading of the Hill Giant Chief.”

Theme music credited to Zane Little.

New to the show? Check out our links: https://linktr.ee/episodicadventures

Have gaming opinions or questions? Email us at [email protected].