Side Passages

In this thrilling episode of Campaigns and Coffee, David and Ken delve into Ken's epic Elemental Apocalypse D&D campaign. The heroes are on a quest to reunite a fallen angel with its lost sun sword amidst a world torn apart by elemental forces. Ken shares his creative process, discussing map-making with Incarnate, integrating skill challenges inspired by Blades in the Dark, and setting up an adventure filled with moral dilemmas and high-stakes encounters, including a confrontation with a shadow black dragon. The episode is a captivating blend of strategy, storytelling, and the adventurous spirit of Greyhawk.

0:00 Intro1:20 Campaign Overview1:45 Hunting a Fallen Angel3:13 Using Incarnate for Maps5:00 Skill Challenges and Gameplay7:25 Upcoming Dragon Encounter10:00 Game Mechanics and Liberation Dice12:30 Q&A: Mind-Controlling Dragons19:00 Moral Dilemmas in Greyhawk20:09 Closing Remarks

https://youtu.be/7IStOTYExqc

Mind the crates; we’re still unpacking Season 4 of the podcast! On this episode, Ken talks about playing Monster of the Week mysteries, David flips through his Dreams and Machines rule books, and we delve into our respective reading lists.

Chapters

0:00 Intro

0:20 Ken’s New Lunchtime Game: Monster of the Week

1:41 David Discusses 'Dreams and Machines'

3:01 Book Discussions and Recommendations

6:43 Strategies for Managing Multiple GMs

8:10 What’s on Their Reading List?

13:06 Alien Novels and Cyberpunk Gaming Insights

19:17 Diving Deep into Cyberpunk 2077

22:29 Insights from Sci-fi Novel Writing Class

27:31 Closing Remarks and Goodbye

https://youtu.be/UK-oQul-uJ4

Show Notes

Game - Monster of the Week

Ken's lunchtime gaming group is racking down horrors in a small New England town

Monster of the Week website

Game: Dreams and Machines

David played several learning games

Got the full game and have been reading through it

Rules seem pretty solid, I’m not having the same issues with them that I did the Starter Set

Unfortunately, some issues with editing/misprints

Errata should be coming out soon (or now) according to the Modiphius Discord

Game - Dungeons & Dragons

Ken's Elemental Apocalypse continues with two apocalypses for the price of one!

Alternating game masters and characters as we switch between regions.

Makes it easier to tag in another game master when one of us is busy.

Dungeons & Dragons website

Books: Eric Carter series by Stephen Blackmoore

Eric Carter is a necromancer who comes back to his hometown of LA and things go sideways from there.

Similar to the Dresden Files in feeling, but has a higher body count

Burned through a ton of them, waiting on the next book.

Eric Carter series website

Book - Alien: The Cold Forge by Allen White

A secret corporate space station is experimenting on Xenomorphs in the darkest depths of space, nearby a star could incinerate them in a moment. What could go wrong? Ken's reading this one.

Alien: The Cold Forge website

Book: The Three Body Problem by Chixin Liu translated by Ken Liu

Feels a lot like 1960’s and 70’s sci-fi

Interesting concepts and a window into a culture most of us have never really seen

It's a heavy read. David's looking for a lighter fare in next next book to compensate.

Netflix trailer: The Three Body Problem

Video game: Spider-man 2 (PS5)

Ken returned to New York City with two Spider-men: Peter Parker and Miles Morales. 

Despite being the third time slinging around New York City, it doesn’t feel old.

Spider-man 2 website

Writing class

David’s second writing class in sci-fi novel writing.

Lots of techniques for brainstorming plot and world-building that David is going to see about adapting to tabletop gaming

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Our cozy, Saturday morning show continues with a discussion of cyberpunk, but different from our usual cyberpunk. Instead of the dystopian future of R. Talsorian's Cyberpunk RED, hosts David, Ken, and Chris talk about Chris's homegrown, Cleveland-based, cyberpunk campaign which uses the Cities without Number rule set.

We explore the challenges of learning different systems within the cyberpunk genre and share techniques for learning a new system and setting. We also discuss the importance of designing sessions to road test new mechanics and balancing rules with fun.

Chapters

0:00 Intro: Cyberpunk, But Different

1:40 Meet "Cities Without Number"

4:20 Challenges of learning new RPG systems

7:00 Adapting personal experiences into game settings

10:30 Strategies for engaging with game mechanics

13:00 Community Q&A: Integrating hobbies into a dark persona

17:45 Closing thoughts and outro

https://youtu.be/5smOxStFztM

Show Notes

Introduction to the Episode

Main Topic: Exploring new tabletop RPG systems and integrating personal experiences into game settings.

Chris's Journey into Cities Without Number

Transition from familiar cyberpunk settings to OSR (Old School Revival/Renaissance).

Development of "Terminal City," inspired by Cleveland.

Utilizing random tables from 'Cities Without Number' to enhance game creativity.

Deep Dive into Learning New Systems

Discussion on adapting to different rule sets within known genres.

Strategies for mastering new systems:

Immersive playtesting

Collaborative learning with rule-savvy players

Integrating personal narratives and local elements into game worlds.

Challenges and Solutions in RPG Adaptations

Balancing rule complexity with game play fluidity.

Leveraging player strengths to complement game play dynamics.

Anecdotes from running various systems including Cyberpunk Red and Savage Worlds.

Community Engagement

Opening the floor to listeners for tips and experiences in adapting to new RPG systems.

Addressing listener questions on incorporating side hobbies into a "dark persona" with humor and creativity.

Closing Remarks

Recap of key insights on adapting to new RPG systems and creating rich, personalized game worlds.

Invitation for further discussion and listener engagement in future episodes.

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Season 4 kicks off with this episode as we experiment with a new format and geek out about everything from death rays to Dragonbane. We rundown the role-playing games we hope to play this season, review the games we delved into during the hiatus, and geek out about technology in our campaigns.

Chapters

0:00 - Intro and Overview of Season 41:28 - Unveiling the New Format3:45 - Tech Talk: Gadgets and Geomorphs10:26 - The Board Game Bonanza Begins17:06 - Deep Dive into Dragonbane22:00 - Exploring Tech Tools for Tabletops27:00 - What's Next: Upcoming Games and Gadgets31:13 - Viewer Interactions and Requests38:04 - Post-Apocalyptic Game Picks43:25 - Wrapping Up and What to Expect Next

https://youtu.be/eoPtrnBmPbM

Show Notes

Welcome to Season 4

Playing with the Format

Different kinds of episodes, with content released as a podcast and on YouTube.

Main Show (30-40 minutes, the main topic comes first, then the banter)

Campaigns and Coffee (20 minutes, random topics)

Interviews (20-30 minutes)

Shorts (1-5 minutes - Mirror Universe Advice!)

Actual Play (2 hours)

Demos / Walkthroughs / Unboxing (5-20 minutes)

Role-playing Games in Season 4

Continuing with Cyberpunk RED.

Where did we leave off again? 

Dreams and Machines

Dragonbane?

Mutant Crawl Classics?

Mothership?

What do you want to see us play?

Obligatory Banter

Technology Annex

Ken’s new iPad Pro

He’s using it to map the next Cyberpunk RED adventure

The Apple Pen helps with this. 

So do Traveller GeoMorphs!

And ProCreate!

And Continuity

And Astropad Slate (turns your iPad into a drawing tablet)

When not making apps, Ken is reading comics in Marvel Unlimited, in a desperate attempt to get caught up on his X-Men reading

And he protected it with a case:

ESR for iPad Pro 11 Inch Case

David is using Obsidian heavily for game design and the Dreams and Machines' game

He's trying to limit the amount of plugins he is using or he won't get anything done

Ken’s been using Zettler, but it’s clunkier.

The Game Room

Seems like we need to upgrade this place. Maybe “The Polyhedral Cathedral”?

Dragonbane RPG

Ken continues to reconnect with his Swedish roots.

Dragonbane is a translation of Drakar och Demoner, Scandinavia’s first and biggest tabletop RPG, originally launched in 1982.

Wouldn’t it be cool to get a Swedish gamer on to talk about the original game? 

David made a character.

David picked up a lot of game related things at the end of the year

Microscope

So You Want to Be a Game Master

Mutant Year Zero: Ad Astra

Bangarang and the Gutterlands

Youtube: Bill Making Stuff

Owlbear Rodeo 2.0

David’s been using the new version for Dreams and Machines

Outro

Thanks for attending our latest minion and future overlord training. Thanks for coming! If you were sitting near the old death ray, head over to dice.camp and follow us @lairofsecrets. We've got all you need for those Hyperion gamma burns.

Fallout - the post-apocalyptic game set in an alternate, atomic-powered reality - kicks off our new Campaigns & Coffee short-format podcast.

We talk about the new streaming series on Amazon Prime, the video games that inspired it, and the session zero for our upcoming Fallout RPG campaign.

To start things off, we look at how the gore-filled kill shots of Fallout 4 and the deep story lore of the video games manifest in the streaming series. While avoiding spoilers, we get into what we loved about the new series, including its use of gore for shock value and it's enjoyable storytelling. As mutant hounds howled in the background (no doubt drawn by our semi-maniacal laughter), we transition to talking about Modiphius' Fallout role-playing game.

Using review copies provided by Modiphius, we look at the game's mechanics, the joy of character creation, and how to balance the grit and humor that defines Fallout game play. We get into the specifics of the Fallout 2d20 system, like the use of S.P.E.C.I.A.L stats, perks, and the dice mechanics that make the Fallout RPG a faithful translation of the video game experience into a tabletop format.

Check out our Fallout 2d20 Campaign & RPG Resources

Chapters

0:00 - Intro: Diving Into Fallout's Universe

1:10 - Fallout TV Show Review and Impressions

3:38 - Transition to Fallout RPG Gameplay

7:58 - Deep Dive into RPG Mechanics and Character Creation

14:58 - GM Techniques and Gameplay Strategy

19:48 - Insights and Challenges from Session Zero

24:43 - Building a Formidable and Sustainable Empire

29:12 - Outro

Listen to the Episode

Watch the Episode

Watch the Gore and Lore in Fallout - Campaigns & Coffee on YouTube.

Show Notes

Fallout TV Show Discussion

General impressions and impact on desire to engage with the game

Comparison of violence and gore levels between the TV show, Fallout 4, and other media

How the TV show balances violence with storytelling

Transition to Fallout RPG

Motivations for playing the RPG based on the TV show depiction

Initial reactions and comparisons to video game elements

RPG Mechanics Deep Dive

Detailed exploration of character creation

Discussion on RPG stats and perks

Adjusting from video game mechanics to tabletop RPG mechanics

Game Mastering Techniques

Strategies for introducing combat and maintaining game pacing

Use of radroaches as beginner adversaries

Character Building and Session Insights

Experiences from the group's session zero

Challenges faced and lessons learned during character creation and early game play

Looking Ahead

Introduction of new characters and potential plot developments

Overlord Strategy Discussion

Considerations for building a formidable and sustainable empire in the game world

Our Cyberpunk RED Recap episode looks at the first season of our actual play campaign. We talk about our favorite moments, how the characters grew, reversals we didn't see coming (or did, and loved anyway) and more.

Need to know who’s who? Check out the Cyberpunk RED campaign page.

Looking for answers to your Cyberpunk RED questions? Visit our FAQ page.

Want ways to pump up the role of your Media character in the game? Learn how to create a screamsheet.

How about maps, character generators, plot generators, and more? Visit our Cyberpunk RED Resources page.

https://youtu.be/wiE--P4FKzY

Join us for a lookback at our Savage Worlds-powered actual play campaign, Sundered Horizons! In this podcast retrospective, the crew discusses the three episode arc and asks one of the most important questions you can ask in a campaign: should we continue or try something else?

Sundered Horizons was our first "Side Passage" adventure - the game we'd play when we couldn't get the full crew together for Cyberpunk RED.

Need to know who's who? Check out the Sundered Horizons Campaign Page.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RsQqwFLhcY

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The edgerunners finished their latest big gig, securing black box tech for the Maker Enclave and surviving an encounter with a Zetatech "negotiation response team". With the run complete, they're looking for some much needed downtime.

In Chapter 5 of our Cyberpunk RED actual play podcast, we try out the games downtime rules, which allow players to rest, recover, and earn a few Eurobucks when they're not gunning for trouble. Meanwhile, we introduce the city-wide Rocketblade competition, which the nomad Omen is eager to participate in.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMgaQHK_B48

Watch us play!

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Featured Image Meta

Cover art for Chapter 5, generated using Adobe’s Firefly software.

At Gen Con 2023 we interviewed Dave Scott, owner of Evil Genius Games, and several of his compatriots  about their new Everyday Heroes role-playing game.  The game updates d20 Modern – the modern rules game released in tandem with D&D 3rd Edition – to 5th Edition rules. The update was done in collaboration with Jeff […]

Our Cyberpunk RED actual play campaign continues with Chapter 4: Aftershocks. In our last chapter, the edgerunners cracked open the Titan 1X prototype self-driving tractor trailer and secured the Zetatech blackbox that the Maker Enclave hired them to acquire. As they moved the black box to their vehicle, they caught site of a Zetatech-branded AeroCop air vehicle inbound. The armored attack craft landed, and its leader Isabela "Izzy" Cordero explained they'd tracked the payload here specifically to make the edgerunners a deal: 10,000 EBs upfront to spy on the Maker.

The edgerunners rejected the deal, and a firefight broke out.

Through grit, luck, and a lot of bullets, the edgerunners made it away. Atlas took a critical wound after being shot, but survived. Many of the Zetatech operatives went down, but Izzy survived ... and swore vengeance.

The team is now preparing to meet with Omen's Nomad cousins.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgbCSPe5OG8

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Featured Image Meta

Cover art for Chapter 4, generated using Adobe's Firefly software.