Max Lander and Aaron King dig through RPGs of yore to bring you valuable nuggets of mechanics, lore, and strangeness. They read the fucking manual so that you don't have to.

We're joined by Aaron Voigt to talk Apocalypse Keys, mechanized feelings, hungry worms, and hurting God with your sins.

This episode is sponsored by ⁠Ratti Incantati, an excellent distributor of RPGs, zines, and literary ephemera⁠.

If you want to chat about the episode, join our Discord. And check us out on Patreon for extra episodes!

Due to scheduling kerfuffles and holiday travels, here's a different kind of episode. No Promises focuses on campaign planning and running the game. In the premier episode, Aaron talks about picking a new game for a long-running two-player, one-GM group. The game is Sagas of the Icelanders by Gregor Vuga.

If you want to chat about the episode, join our Discord. And check us out on Patreon for extra episodes and, in the case of this episode, game supplements.

Max Lander and Aaron King dig through RPGs of yore to bring you valuable nuggets of mechanics, lore, and strangeness. They read the fucking manual so that you don't have to.

We're joined by Kait Tremblay to talk about Thousand Year Old Vampire, breaking rules, medium conventions, and "Lightning Crashes" by Live.

Check out Kait's book, Collaborative Worldbuilding for Video Games!

This episode is sponsored by ⁠Ratti Incantati, an excellent distributor of RPGs, zines, and literary ephemera⁠.

If you want to chat about the episode, join our Discord. And check us out on Patreon for extra episodes!

This episode is sponsored by Ratti Incantati, an excellent distributor of RPGs, zines, and literary ephemera.

Max Lander and Aaron King dig through RPGs of yore to bring you valuable nuggets of mechanics, lore, and strangeness. They read the fucking manual so that you don't have to.

Adam Vass of World Champ Game Co joins us to talk about Bloodbeam Badlands by Viditya Voleti. Including:

Check out Adam's Kickstarter, 1978 (a final girl two-player RPG) here! If you want to chat about the episode, join our Discord. And check us out on Patreon for extra episodes and a zero-ad experience!

This episode is sponsored by Ratti Incantati, an excellent distributor of RPGs, zines, and literary ephemera.

Max Lander and Aaron King dig through RPGs of yore to bring you valuable nuggets of mechanics, lore, and strangeness. They read the fucking manual so that you don't have to.

For Mutants in the Now by Julian Kay, we're joined by Aaron Fiskradatz and Pete (just Pete). These two educators talk to us about hidden curriculum, (dis)respecting churches, and game designer permissions. It's our most contentious episode since Fiasco.

If you want to chat about the episode, join our Discord. And check us out on Patreon for extra episodes and a zero-ad experience!

RTFM just learned about indie RPGs. Have you heard of this shit? They're so cool! RTFM's biweekly Zine Club will be hosted on Pateron, where hosts Max Lander and Aaron King each bring an RPG zine to discuss. Like show and tell but with swears.

This episode is our little sampler for everyone, and it's all about Amanda Lee Franck's zines, focusing on Mouth Brood (a hex crawl mutant biome) and Vampire Cruise (a boat crawl monster vacation).

Max Lander and Aaron King dig through RPGs of yore to bring you valuable nuggets of mechanics, lore, and strangeness. They read the fucking manual so that you don't have to.

Sen Holiday joins us to discuss Monster of the Week. The game has a laser focus, but it's a popular D&D off-ramp. What's the deal with that?

If you want to chat about the episode, join our Discord.

Max Lander and Aaron King dig through RPGs of yore to bring you valuable nuggets of mechanics, lore, and strangeness. They read the fucking manual so that you don't have to.

Ghostbusters International! It's Ghostbusters. We talk about caving to audience demands, sex comedies through the decades, and how bustin makes us feel. (Spoiler warning: it feels good.)

If you want to chat about the episode, join our Discord.

Max Lander and Aaron King dig through RPGs of yore to bring you valuable nuggets of mechanics, lore, and strangeness. They read the fucking manual so that you don't have to.

Jonathan Levstein joins the conversation on Monster Care Squad from Sandy Pug Games. How many player choices are too many? How does layout affect the reading experience? What's the best monster, and why is it the one who wants people to live in it?

If you want to chat about the episode, join our Discord.

Max Lander and Aaron King dig through RPGs of yore to bring you valuable nuggets of mechanics, lore, and strangeness. They read the fucking manual so that you don't have to.

Haunted house time! Natalie Zina Walschots joins us to talk about Bluebeard's Bride. What's the deal with men? Can you consent to a book? Can tone go too far?

If you want to chat about the episode, join our Discord.