GROGS is a supplement for Ars Magica 5th edition, edited by longtime ArM line-editor David Chart, released in 2012 and still in print. Ars Magica is a roleplaying game of a community of wizards in a medieval world where magic is rare and feared by the general populace. This supplement presents systems and advice for expanding multi-character ‘troupe play’, a core concept of Ars Magica.

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We explored Ars Magica way back in season 1, episode 9. It’s an important game in the history of RPGs, co-designed by Mark Rein*Hagen who went on to create Vampire: the Masquerade, and Jonathan Tweet who was lead designer on Dungeons & Dragons 3e.

Click here to see Grogs on DriveThruRPG

Click here to see Ars Magica 5th edition on DriveThruRPG

This episode is brought to you by Laszlo Szidonya, who wants a shout out to his friend and longtime GM Aron Peterfy. We are enormously grateful to Laszlo (and Aron), and everyone else whose generosity helps to keep the podcast running.

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We're discussing European RPGs, especially the new wave of Italian games like Outgunned, plus action cinema and more. Watch this episode on Youtube. Discuss it on our Discord.

This episode covers the roleplaying game VAMPIRE: THE MASQUERADE 5th edition, developed by Kenneth Hite and Karim Muammar, published in 2018 by White Wolf Entertainment in association with Paradox Entertainment and Free League. The original Vampire: The Masquerade was designed by Mark Rein•Hagen and released by White Wolf Publishing in 1991. It dominated the RPG hobby in the 1990s and remains one of the biggest RPGs of all time.

Click here to see Vampire: the Masquerade 5th edition at DriveThruRPG
Click here to see the original 1991 Vampire:the Masquerade, which we also discuss and which is still on sale for a paltry $9.99.

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It’s a fascinating read for anyone who wants to experience the origins of the World of Darkness.

“It would have been like kicking a tiny puppy in a tiny corset” – Greg

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Ross talks about RPGs in Japan and other things he encountered during his vacation there. James talks about Mappa Mundi, an upcoming exploration RPG and more!

Watch it on Youtube to see the photos Ross shared and more!

Alien: Chariot of the Gods is an introductory/one-shot adventure for Free League’s Alien RPG, written by Andrew E. C. Gaska and set in the universe of most of the Alien/Aliens movies. It was published in 2019.

READ THE FULL SHOW NOTES HERE

Click here to see the Alien RPG on the Free League website

Click here to see the Alien RPG on DriveThruRPG

Click here to see the Alien: Chariot of the Gods adventure on DriveThruRPG

This episode is brought to you with support from Brent, one of our Kickstarter backers, who wanted to give a shout-out to his Youtube channel @Rolewise. Thanks, Brent!

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Our livestream for October. Watch it on Youtube to see what we're talking about.

James Bond 007: Roleplaying In Her Majesty’s Secret Service was designed by Gerard Christopher Klug (known as Chris Klug these days) with development by Greg Gordon and Neil Randall, and was released by Victory Games between 1983 and 1987, selling over 100,000 copies. It is long out of print but available on the second-hand market at reasonable prices (as I write Noble Knight lists it at under $15 for the core rules) though the supplements are usually 200-500% more.

This episode was made possible by our patron and friend Christian Bickle, who chose the game for us to cover. Huge thanks go out to him for letting us create a really fun episode.

Full show notes are available here

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⁠Intro music by Arcane Anthems

Click here to read the full show notes!

Night’s Black Agents: Double Tap is a ‘gear book’ from 2013, a collection of new equipment, background and game material for GM and players, written by Ken Hite and several others. It’s an expansion for Night’s Black Agents, an RPG of modern tactical espionage and vampires, also written by Ken Hite and published by Pelgrane Press in 2011. It’s a really interesting book whether you play NBA or not, and we think you’ll enjoy our far-ranging discussion of it and the issues it raises.

Click here to see NBA: Double Tap on DriveThruRPG
Click here to see the Night’s Black Agents RPG on DriveThruRPG

Our livestream for September. If you want to see the visuals, watch it on Youtube.

Savage Worlds Adventure Edition (SWADE) was designed and written by Shane Lacy Hensley with Clint Black, and published by Pinnacle Entertainment Group in 2023. It’s a generic rules system of cinematic action with a historied pedigree and an amazing range of sourcebooks, but how does it fare against more rules-y games like GURPS or narrativist darlings like FATE? We take it apart to see what keeps its motor running, mechanically and stylistically, then put it back together to discuss how that affects play. 

As noted at the end of the episode, Greg and James were

Click here to see Savage Worlds: Adventure Edition on DriveThruRPG

Click here for Episode 3 full show notes

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⁠⁠Intro music by Arcane Anthems