Fear the Boot

* (0:30) The distinction between GM exposition and NPC voice. * (7:12) Confusion borne from seeing the same person say everything. * (11:14) Distinguishing the source and type of information. * (12:51) All parties being flexible. * (15:57) The nuance of truthful—but misleading—communication. * (25:20) When the player disbelieves. * (33:07) Earning the right to deceive. * (53:13) Summarizing the gaming advice. Hosts: Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:28) Dan's chewing monster. * (0:51) Making a lot of money on motion sickness medications. * (11:11) Creating a world where order remains in spite of the players being agents of chaos. Dan's magic trick. * (20:01) An example of competing freedoms. * (27:33) Counterfactuals as a tool in RPGs. * (35:22) Soft concepts versus hard fact. * (38:04) The finite reach of the player characters. * (41:29) Describing motivation in simple, flexible terms. * (44:23) Giving NPCs Maslow's hierarchy of needs. * (54:24) Fear the Boot's actual play site. Hosts: Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:28) A possible online convention in place of this year’s Fear the Con. You can place your vote and find out more on Discord. * (1:04) Cell phone jammers. * (4:13) Accept creative solutions. * (12:36) Control the table. * (20:53) Don't confuse delay with plot. * (23:02) Don't always make the players roll. * (27:22) Get me back in the action. * (36:24) Love the PCs more than your NPCs. * (42:11) My backstory should matter. * (47:24) Your obsession is not the group's problem. * (52:51) Be invested in each other's characters. Hosts: Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:54) A possible online convention in place of this year's Fear the Con. You can place your vote and find out more on Discord. * (5:07) An episode of Gamers Table inspires a topic (special thanks to Gaming with Gage). * (15:17) Whether to keep an NPC or remove them. * (20:35) Keeping the NPC in the periphery * (26:53) Leveraging an NPC's ties to other characters. * (34:10) Camp followers. * (37:34) The right way to dispose of an NPC. * (41:21) Tying an NPC to the plot. * (47:19) When adopting NPCs goes wrong. Hosts: Caleb, Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:28) Secretary Chad brings a glorious gift. * (3:50) Give a backstory the GM can use. * (5:47) Be open to the GM's input on your character. * (12:06) Learn something about the rules. * (17:18) Bring something to the table. * (22:30) Put away your electronics and don't make me repeat myself. * (27:44) Try to engage. * (39:20) Humor me. * (42:10) Don't be a speed bump. * (49:31) Be creative. Hosts: Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:29) Wayne learns object permanence. * (2:14) A player gets voted off the island. * (9:12) Not invested in the game or not invested in the group? * (12:16) Picking the kicker. * (22:40) Evaluating how the person responds to getting kicked. * (35:29) Along came an X-card. * (58:07) Final judgment. Hosts: Brodeur, Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:28) The Itty Bitty Writing Space Kickstarter. * (3:47) A topic from Wendell on our Discord server. * (4:49) Playing to genre, themes, and moods. * (12:59) Hijacking the experience everyone signed up for. * (18:54) The distinction between assenting to a social contract and losing agency. The Richard Pryor game. * (23:26) Why one person may be playing out of sync. * (31:06) When the contract turns into a railroad. * (32:56) The limited recourse available when someone breaks the contract. * (42:10) Freedom within limits. Hosts: Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:22) Catching up with how Chad's campaign ended. * (1:43) The steps taken to set the mood. * (11:08) Pacing of the game. * (15:36) Resolving the prophecies. * (19:37) How the players helped the Game Master. * (24:32) The things that went wrong. What Dan called "anticlimax" is more accurately "dénouement." * (31:33) A brick-wall ending. * (40:38) What went right. Hosts: Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:28) Let's hear it for Devastator! * (1:23) An update on Fear the Con. * (3:30) Game scheduling falls apart one session before the finale. * (12:35) Recovering the game by bringing immediate intensity. * (17:12) Shaping the real-world environment to set a mood. * (22:46) Playing side content. * (36:43) Controlling the recap. * (47:27) The players' role in helping. * (1:02:47) Fear the Boot and Gamers Table Destiny 2 clan. Hosts: Caleb, Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:28) Finally all the way home! * (0:48) The Actual Play actor's studio. * (3:33) Dan's PCs are becoming more like NPCs. * (11:34) Not giving up your own enjoyment. Misreading the situation. * (17:27) Being a codependent player. * (21:09) Strategies for helping the GM with your PC. Reading the GM. * (30:39) Not dominating the game. * (39:43) Playing NPCs as PCs. The appeal of Fat Tony. * (47:29) Do bad PCs make good NPCs? Hosts: Chad, Dan, Julia, Wayne