TTRPG Show for Jan 5, 2026. What elements make for a great experience with an RPG starter set? Plus, a look at how big tabletop predictions shook out in 2025, Warhammer: The Old World, Blood Magic for Shadowdark, and Daggerheart.

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2025 Predictions https://icv2.com/articles/columns/view/61293/rolling-initiative-prediction-scorecard-2025

Warhammer: The Old World https://icv2.com/articles/news/view/61300/cubicle-7-plans-starter-set

ENWorld Most Anticipated https://www.enworld.org/threads/its-time-to-vote-for-your-most-anticipated-ttrpg-of-2026.716726/

Daggerheart https://www.enworld.org/threads/daggerheart-sold-out-in-two-weeks-has-three-year-plan-in-place.716975/

Blood Magic for Shadowdark https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/greatosradvs/blood-magic?ref=section-homepage-view-more-discovery-p1&category_id=Q2F0ZWdvcnktMzQ=

What are your gaming resolutions for 2026?

Plus, RPG subsystems’ impact on storytelling and Hope Springs Eternal for Daggerheart from Eric Lazure. 

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Which aspects of the RPG hobby made our nice list and which ones are naughty?

Plus, voting is open in ENWorld’s Most Anticipated Games of 2026 survey, and a Thundercats RPG is funding on Kickstarter

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Chris and Jeremy tackle five different ways to establish party cohesion. Plus, Steve Jackson Games announces Toon 2e, MCDM's Draw Steel: Crack the Sun Backerkit campaign surges past its crowdfunding goal, and Orphaned Bookworm Productions is funding the Warmage, a new class for Pathfinder 1e.

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Help us choose which game to feature in our next season of Thieves’ Cant: Capers. We’ve narrowed the list to four finalists.

Plus, ENWorld’s list of most anticipated games of 2026, WizKids’ Kong, Crisis Protocol’s new starter sets, and Draw Steel’s upcoming crowdfunder.

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This week, we’ve got big news for the show: starting January 5, Thieves’ Cant will drop episodes Monday through Friday, with bonus Saturday episodes when Capers is in season. 

Plus, we dig into the HPLHS’s prop-packed Call of Cthulhu release The Spark Devil, new Draw Steel content from MCDM—including the Summoner class and The Fall of Blackbottom—and the DarkSpace Kickstarter bringing Shadowdark into space. And in Unearthed Obscura, we explore Centralia, Pennsylvania—the ghost town still burning from the mine fire that started in 1962.

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DarkSpace: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dmingtheworld/darkspace-sci-fi-rules-for-shadowdark

The Centralia Fire: https://www.businessinsider.com/centralia-pennsylvania-underground-fire-town-photos?utm_source=chatgpt.com#centralia-is-a-borough-in-the-northeastern-mountains-of-pennsylvania-1

This week, we ask: digital or analog—what’s your preferred way to game? We debate VTTs vs. physical mats, digital character builders vs. pen and paper, and what tools actually make RPGs better. Plus, we cover new Draw Steel content, upcoming Forgotten Realms releases, and M.T. Black’s Temple of the Lightbringers Kickstarter.                                         

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MCDM/Draw Steel: https://www.patreon.com/c/mcdm/home

Fantasy Grounds https://www.fantasygrounds.com/

Ed Greenwood/Forgotten Realms: https://mythmakers.com/realmsbound/

M.T. Black/Temple of the Lightbringers: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1367769523/temple-of-the-lightbringers?ref=discovery_newest&term=roleplaying%20game&total_hits=61966&category_id=34

Chris and Jeremy return to the Forge of Creation to roll up a brand-new cursed magic item for both Draw Steel and 5e. Plus, a peek at Into the Cess and Citadel, some Listener Feedback, and a Question of the Week about what to do when your dice go cold.

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Into the Cess and Citadel: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wetinkgames/into-the-cess-and-citadel?ref=section-homepage-view-more-discovery-p1&category_id=Q2F0ZWdvcnktMzQ=

Chris and Jeremy unearth some real-world lore about a deadly 1518 dancing plague, and explore the potential story hooks it offers. Plus, Draw Steel’s Beastheart class hits public playtesting, Free League announces a new One Ring adventure, and WotC files a new trademark claim for Dark Sun.                                                              

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Beastheart for Draw Steel:   Beastheart Public Playtest.pdf 

Hands of the White Wizard: https://us3.campaign-archive.com/?u=2dcfb24fb7c8d0fb9c2f52040&id=f2723d747d

Dark Sun: https://www.enworld.org/threads/wizards-of-the-coast-re-registers-dark-sun-with-uspto.716113/

The Dancing Plague: https://www.history.com/articles/what-was-the-dancing-plague-of-1518

Chris and Jeremy talk cursed items, and roll up a few of their own using the Tome of Adventure Design. Plus, a look at World Wide Wrestling on Kickstarter, scary gaming moments, and a round of listener feedback.                                                              

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