The crew psychoanalyze each other at least twice during this episode of the Rascal Radio Hour, which features everyone but Rowan (she brought home an illness souvenir from Gen Con) wading through a dense thicket of tabletop news from the last two weeks. They discuss two new RPGs adapted from book licenses and what exactly is gained when making that jump. Later, they break down White Wolf's new creative director and an unfortunate (but ultimately not substantive) brush with AI.  Oh, also, Gen Con happened! The back half of the podcast breaks down some of the more interesting bits that happened at, and around, the biggest US convention of the year. Gen Con is staying in Indianapolis through at least 2030, Shadowrun goes solo, and Brennan Lee Mulligan takes the reins of Critical Role's fourth season. Somewhere amongst it all, the crew manage to spelunk through The Question Dungeon and finally answer a really important questions: are y'all burned out?

Also, it's History Week at Rascal! We've published some incredible articles to celebrate our August Subscriber Drive. You can get 25% off the first six months of a subscription by using code DJNAY.

--

Games we discuss:

Streets of Jade (unreleased)

Dungeon Crawler Carl RPG (unreleased)

Draw Steel

Cyberpunk Red/Cyberpunk 2077

Beyond the Pale

Mythic Bastionland

Reach of the Roach God

Daggerheart

Lancer

--

Hosted by Chase Taylor- Carter (@chasecarter.bsky.social).

Featuring Lin Codega (@lincodega.com), Thomas Manuel (@newmadras.bsky.social), and Caelyn Ellis (@caelyn.bsky.social).‬

Theme song by People Need Goals.

Cover art logo by Johan Nohr (@johannohr.bsky.social).

Rowan and Chase finally deliver a tight 60-minute podcast discussing itch.io's abrupt deindexing of explicit and games tagged as "NSFW" or "adult", among others, thanks to pressure from payment processors and right-wing citizen lobbyists from Australia. It's a strange and sad affair with ties to Steam, sex work, and the political wielded by corporations against individuals.

The pair also wade into Hasbro's latest earnings call with investors, where Chase sees the IP-addled brainworms leading to some weird decisions regarding Magic: The Gathering's future. Rowan is deep into trick-taking and also antifascist sex robots. Chase is unpacking boxes. Both of them dip briefly into the Question Dungeon to answer a question about bioessentialist game mechanics with the caveat that they are both white. Grain of salt, please!

--

Games we discuss:

Inspirisles

Magic: The Gathering

Cat in the Box

Mothership

SUZi (by Sage The Anagogue)

Vampire: the Masquerade

--

Hosted by Chase Carter (@chasecarter.bsky.social).

Featuring Lin Codega (@lincodega.com)‬.

Theme song by People Need Goals.

Cover art logo by Johan Nohr (@johannohr.bsky.social).

Chase and Lin Codega co-host an episode that is all about licensed games and this week's dirty word: franchise. The pair discuss the cancelled Tomb Raider RPG and what IP-scrubbed game might rise from its ashes, along with the continually disastrous Diamond Comic Distributors bankruptcy leaving some tabletop publishers bereft of consigned books. The big story of the week is D&D's apparent "full franchise" turn, which Chase argues is a meaningless distinction and Lin believes fits with Wizards of the Coast's past behavior. Both agree the word franchise is dumb.

They also discuss collaborative storytelling games and how different titles balance freedom against handrails for the inexperienced. Lin has been enjoying Daggerheart for what it is. Chase played a Cyberpunk LCG with a very enticing cooperative hook. Both tackle some questions about whether licensed RPGs are healthy for the industry, as well as their favorite ENNIE nominations from the recent shortlist.

--

Games we discuss:

Canceled Tomb Raider RPG

Dungeons & Dragons

Spindlewheel

Eat the Reich

Daggerheart

--

Hosted by Chase Carter (@chasecarter.bsky.social).

Featuring Lin Codega (@lincodega.com)‬.

Theme song by People Need Goals.

Cover art logo by Johan Nohr (@johannohr.bsky.social).

We're tackling a stuffed two weeks of news on this week's episode. Thomas and Caelyn join Chase in discussing Jeremy Crawford and Chris Perkins' professional shuffle over to Darrington Press, and what it does and doesn't mean for the future of Daggerheart. We also cover Rebel Scum's censorship on DriveThruRPG, Draw Steel's imminent public launch, and the complicated politics of a crowdfunding bundle benefiting a Ukrainian organization. Elsewhere, Caelyn's parter has lovingly persuaded her to play Magic: The Gathering, much to Chase's horror. Thomas is serving his players their just desserts at the end of the campaign. Chase has spicy thoughts about whether information on the internet should be free.

https://www.rascal.news/

--

Games we discuss:

Rebel Scum

Draw Steel

Daggerheart

Blades in '68

Harvest

Forbidden Psalm

Five Leagues/Fives Parsecs

Silver Bayonet

Rangers of the Shadowdeep

Heavy Gear (the old one)

Iron Kingdoms RPG

Lo, Thy Dread Emperor

Black Death Walking

The Dolorous Stroke 

--

Hosted by Chase Carter (@chasecarter.bsky.social).

Featuring Thomas Manuel (@newmadras.bsky.social) and Caelyn Ellis (@caelyn.bsky.social).

Theme song by People Need Goals.

Cover art logo by Johan Nohr (@johannohr.bsky.social).

Someone on this podcast doesn't like Belonging Outside Belonging games, and the other doesn't find much use in industry awards. Both Chase and Thomas showed up ready to ruffle feathers on this week's podcast, but only after discussing BackerKit's new self-crowdfunding plans, impressions of UK Games Expo, and what Cephalofair's Price Johnson is doing at the US capitol.

Elsewhere, the pair have been watching their friends reap what they sow in Blades '68 and describing a beautiful but largely meaningless ecology in Mappa Mundi. The Questing Dungeon befuddled our adverturers so completely that they forgot to do the diegetic bit, but they still somehow managed to defeat some of your questions -- and recommend a heap of tabletop-related media.

https://www.rascal.news/

https://moreblueberries.shop/en-gbp/products/rascal-anniversary-zine-preorder

--

Hollandspiele on YouTube

No Pun Included on YouTube

A.A. Voight on YouTube

Weird Place on YouTube

Game Studies Study Buddies podcast

Dice Exploder podcast

RTFM podcast

Daydreaming About Dragons podcast

Idle Cartulary's Playful Void

Analog Game Studies

--

Hosted by Chase Carter (@chasecarter.bsky.social).

Featuring Thomas Manuel (@newmadras.bsky.social).

Theme song by People Need Goals.

Cover art logo by Johan Nohr (@johannohr.bsky.social).

Magic: The Gathering's crossover with Final Fantasy drops on June 13, but unfortunately Chase doesn't know much about the storied Japanese RPG video game series. So, he brought in a couple of bona fide experts to talk about this already massively successful set. The Verge reporter Ash Parrish and TCGPlayer/ChannelFireball content manager Emma Partlow discuss FFxMTG's mechanical quality, the secret ingredient that uplifts fan service, a bevvy of blorbos, and so much more. Also on the docket is the effect of licensing fees on an already expensive hobby, the creeping takeover of Universes Beyond, and what other video games could make the jump to cardboard. Ash makes very good jokes about sports games to the wrong audience. Emma reveals herself as a screenshot hater. Chase regrets his past financial decisions.

--

https://www.rascal.news/

https://moreblueberries.shop/en-gbp/products/rascal-anniversary-zine-preorder

--

Hosted by Chase Carter (@chasecarter.bsky.social).

Featuring Ash Parrish (@adashtra.bsky.social‬) and Emma Partlow (@emmapartlow.com‬).

Theme song by People Need Goals.

Cover art logo by Johan Nohr (@johannohr.bsky.social).

Uh, oh. It's another episode with just Chase and Rowan. Time to get punchy, and we're not only talking about our favorite way to bully the disappointingly nerdy fascists ruling reality. The pair dig through a chunky layer of news that includes Rowan, Rook and Decard's decision to not attend Gen Con this year, Itch.io's negligence in distributing charity funds to a group saving lives in Gaza, and Goodman Games' ruffling a bunch of feathers by doing business with previously ostracized bigots. Later, they talk about a deliciously smooth Triangle Agency campaign and a solo RPG that pulls a neat magic trick. Rowan's a wrestling girlie now, thanks to Dimension 20. Chase still can't pronounce listener's names correctly. The Question Dungeon goes noir as they build a better Itch.io -- or a different one, anyhow.

https://www.rascal.news/

https://moreblueberries.shop/en-gbp/products/rascal-anniversary-zine-preorder

--

Realis

City State of the Invincible Overlord

Dungeons & Dragons

Triangle Agency

Mechs into Plowshares

Transgender Deathmatch Legend II

--

Hosted by Chase Carter (@chasecarter.bsky.social).

Featuring Rowan Zeoli (@rowanzeoli.bsky.social), Caelyn Ellis (@caelyn.bsky.social), and Thomas Manuel (@newmadras.bsky.social).

Theme song by People Need Goals.

Cover art logo by Johan Nohr (@johannohr.bsky.social).

The entire crew gather to mourn the sudden and untimely death of games media outlet, Polygon. Along with Giant Bomb and the Daily Dot, Polygon's sale to Valnet -- and the immediate layoff of nearly every staff member -- constitutes an unnecessarily tragic blow to games journalism. Included in the layoffs is Charlie Hall, the outlet's one-man tabletop desk and an indelible piece of Rascal's own creation. The team discuss what this loss means for the industry going forward, the limits of independent websites like Rascal, and how this cycle of executive malfeasance robs journalism of its own future. It's not all doom and gloom, though: the crew also delve into The Question Dungeon after discussing SALUTE, Hasbro's MTG-shaped tariff insulation, and Rascal's first real toe into OSR waters. Finally, Dungeon World is getting a sequel from a surprising team who want to take the game in a fresh direction. [Note: After Chase completely bungled speaking both Florence Smith Nicholls (they/them) and Mike Cook's (he/they) names, he then later accidentally misgendered Nicholls. He sinerely apologizes for the error.] https://www.rascal.news/

https://moreblueberries.shop/en-gbp/products/rascal-anniversary-zine-preorder

--

Games mentioned:

Dungeon World 2

ArchaeOS

Realis

MIRU

Doomsong

board games???

--

Hosted by Chase Carter (@chasecarter.bsky.social).

Featuring Rowan Zeoli (@rowanzeoli.bsky.social), Caelyn Ellis (@caelyn.bsky.social), and Thomas Manuel (@newmadras.bsky.social).

Theme song by People Need Goals.

Cover art logo by Johan Nohr (@johannohr.bsky.social).

Rowan rejoins Chase to unspool the myriad and unclear ways tariffs have already begun affecting the tabletop industry. From clarity on book exemptions and companies already shuttering production for the year to determined stands against economic despotism by Canadian designers, the Tariff Era (or maybe Tariff Wars? we're still workshopping) has arrived. Later they discuss what it means for Jeremy Crawford and Chris Perkins, the dual faces of Dungeons & Dragons, to retire from their very public posts. The pair also discuss building worlds where babies have jobs, dungeon delving on your birthday, and whether tariffs might kick off another surge of innovation in the virtual tabletop space. https://www.rascal.news/

https://moreblueberries.shop/en-gbp/products/rascal-anniversary-zine-preorder

--

Games mentioned:

In This World The Electric State

Dungeons & Dragons

Gloomhaven RPG

Wickedness

MIRU

Mazes

--

Hosted by Chase Carter (@chasecarter.bsky.social).

Featuring Rowan Zeoli (@rowanzeoli.bsky.social).

Theme song by People Need Goals.

Cover art logo by Johan Nohr (@johannohr.bsky.social).

Chase and Caelyn convene the first Brits-only episode of the Rascal Radio Hour, talking about everything but the April 2 tariffs (check the website for those bits). The pair go heavy on the deluge of miniatures news that came out of Adepticon 2025, including a shot in the arm for Caelyn's favored Star wars: Legion, an East Asian-inspired Warhammer 40k faction that doesn't immediately sour our tastes, and Battletech Goes Full Catholic. The most recent skirmish in the Question Dungeon reveals the surprisingly complicated topics of video games adapting tabletop RPGs and what the crew think is the next big innovation on the player side of the tabletop industry (hint: it's not virtual tabletops again). https://www.rascal.news/

https://moreblueberries.shop/en-gbp/products/rascal-anniversary-zine-preorder 

https://cannibalhalflinggaming.com/2024/08/15/invention-and-innovation-in-ttrpgs/

--

Games mentioned:

Cyberpunk: Combat Zone

RiverBank

Star Wars: Legion

Star Wars: Shatterpoint

Warhammer: 40K

Battletech

--

Hosted by Chase Carter (@chasecarter.bsky.social).

Featuring Caelyn Ellis (@caelyn.bsky.social).

Theme song by People Need Goals.

Cover art logo by Johan Nohr (@johannohr.bsky.social).