Total Pebble Knockdown

Total Pebble Knockdown

By Total Pebble KnockdownLeisureGames
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Total Pebble Knockdown episodes

  • 121. The Dragon or The Egg

    On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:


    It's our first episode recorded in front of a live studio audience! Some folks listened in to our episode before we went on vacation and had some comments to add to this discussion of weird questions from Reddit.


    The player wants to kill off their character because they did stats bad. But, like, why would you do that? Perhaps they can just go to an adventuring tavern upstate.


    Can you hard boil a red dragon egg? What qualities would the egg have that are similar to the dragon? How did the poll for this question wind up so close?


    We are going to talk about chemistry. It is a completely normal, very simple conversation and not morbid at all. It may contain discussion of skeletons, necromancy, acid and decomposition. But in a completely normal, not weird way.


    Sometimes you create items in a game that are useful, but other times you create items that just mess with the players. We discuss some things that will make characters question their morality and annoy them profusely.

    1 hr 12 min
  • 120. Les Elementals

    On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:

    Nathan searched for "Total", "Pebble" and "Knockdown" at r/DMAcademy and found the first entry that came up. The results will shock you. Should you take away player agency or perform "total action denial"? Is it good game design for either the players or the monsters? We shall discuss this because we here at TPK still have a free action.

    How acceptable are total action denial and total action domination? - https://www.reddit.com/r/DMAcademy/comments/1abybt6/how_acceptable_are_total_action_denial_and_total/ 

    A DM wanted to give players a pet rock. This may be an incredibly mean thing to do. Let's explain...

    Would it be mean to give my party a pet rock? - https://www.reddit.com/r/DMAcademy/comments/1abybt6/how_acceptable_are_total_action_denial_and_total/ 

    We found a letter from a DM to the players, looking to break up with them. Why did this beautiful relationship end? What can we learn about the responsibility and respect we look for when playing TTRPGs? Also, unicorn tattoos.

    A Break- Up Letter to my Players - https://www.reddit.com/r/DMAcademy/comments/ci39ed/a_break_up_letter_to_my_players/ 

    56 min
  • 119. Papa’s Pocket Pizzeria

    On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:


    May 9 saw the release of at least 10 noteworthy indie games, at a time when AAA publishers are shuttering studios. We discuss whether the major releases are even interesting anymore and what smaller games we have been playing lately.


    A thread on new indie games -

    Ryan T. Brown 🎮🩷 on X: "There may never have been a day as big as today for indie games. On the back of mass layoffs of major AAA studios, today more high-profile and under-the-radar gems are releasing on May 9th than any other day in recent memory. They need your support. Here's a thread of 'em! 🧵 https://t.co/8vOMvS0BVc" / X (twitter.com)


    Sometimes you don't want to play a game, you just want to watch them be played. There's a whole industry around let's play videos. We talk about which games lend themselves to this kind of media consumption and which ones really won't.


    May 17 is Pizza Party Day, but I didn't need to tell YOU that. Anyway, we celebrate by building a whole tabletop RPG around a pizza parlor... and the apocalypse.

    1 hr 14 min
  • 118. The Superintendent of Family Values

    On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:

    Comedy is all over games, but some games rely on it far more than others. After playing Helldivers 2, Alex and Nathan decided to compare the humor seen in that game to some others, such as Borderlands and Breathedge. What is the difference between them and what works better?

    The Helldivers 2 we were NOT going to discuss at this time - Helldivers 2 on Steam now requires a PSN account to play - Polygon

    Hardcore and Ironman modes rely on an all or nothing way of playing games and frankly, the hosts of the show don't usually try them. Why do we have such an aversion to letting go of our progress in games? Also, why can't Nathan pull the trigger on Ending E of Nier?

    The Fallout TV show has garnered lots of positive feedback. Some of that came from Tim Cain, lead programmer of the original Fallout. One thing that Cain said during his review was particularly interesting regarding the criticism that it changed the lore of the Fallout universe. And so, let's discuss the idea of unreliable narrators.

    Tim Cain reviews Fallout TV - Fallout TV Show Review (youtube.com)

    A study on false memories - Gary Wade 2005 False Memory.pdf (hanover.edu)

    Fallout 76 changing things - Fallout Lore That Gets Ruined By Fallout 76 (screenrant.com)

    1 hr 14 min
  • 117. Game-ception

    On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:

    Candyland may not be a very feature-rich game, but perhaps it could be used as a mechanic for another game... for reasons. We look at a post suggesting this and ask the question about what these mechanics could be if we really wanted to whip out this board game from the back of the closet.
    Candyland as a mechanic? - https://twitter.com/riseupcomus/status/1783156398752203009
    How hard should you play with the mechanics of a game so you can do a very simple thing? How lost in the weeds can we get when playing with a system? Well, Nathan ran across a Reddit question from many years ago that takes minutia to a new level while making a D&D monster.
    Weird Question - https://www.reddit.com/r/DnD/comments/5qf5kw/weird_question_i_need_less_hp/
    Games can often prove frustrating for the sheer reason that they are difficult, but also suffer from a lack of saving. This was mentioned by The Librarian in relation to Rain World, but Nathan also has an example from his own experience last year: 9 Years of Shadows.
    The Librarian clip - https://www.youtube.com/clip/UgkxiOtqSi8wrm2s8hzUSfCS6jxQnv2hsiOQ

    53 min
  • 116. Hit F to Pay Devs

    On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:
    Fallout got a TV show and Nathan thinks it did a really good job at representing the series, even for people who have no previous experience with the series. Let's talk about how the characters help introduce many of the big themes about Fallout. Also, how can you adapt one medium into another, especially when you move from an interactive to non-interactive one?
    Demos can really help sell a game to skeptical players, but they need to succeed at a handful of things. What are those things? We are going to discuss what we look for in demos for them to work.
    KlaytonCalix gave us an odd article where the former president of Blizzard suggested tipping for great games. Nothing could possibly go wrong with this idea. There is absolutely no way to exploit this monetization. And so, let's discuss how game companies will absolutely make this work perfectly.
    https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/former-blizzard-president-suggests-you-should-be-able-to-leave-a-dollar10-or-dollar20-tip-for-the-devs-because-some-games-are-that-special/

    1 hr
  • 115. Two Left Feet in the Moshpit

    On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:

    Metroidvanias are coming back and Nathan recently found a few interesting mechanics that should be more utilized in examples of the genre. Why? Because Nathan needs his Metroids and Vanias!

    Alex got to play Ripout during a free weekend and frankly did not know how to feel about it. He spent 6 hours trying to figure out if he liked it or not. His conclusion? Listen to find out! Also, Nathan was bad at playing Metal: Hellsinger.

    Larian has shelved any future DLC for Baldur's Gate 3 and... that's probably okay. When should a game have DLC, when is it predatory and should it be expected? That is something we will discuss on this episode.

    Larian Started Work on Baldur's Gate 3 DLC, Then Canceled It: 'The Studio Was Elated' - IGN

    Baldur's Gate 3 passes Elden Ring and Breath of the Wild to become first game to win all five major GOTY awards

    Neil Newbon 'Isn't Done' With Astarion Despite Larian Moving on From Baldur's Gate 3 - IGN

    1 hr 17 min
  • 114. Godfather with Vampires

    On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown: After hearing about the horror that is the false hydra, Nathan started thinking about rectifying player knowledge versus character knowledge. If you know how to combat a monster that is imperceivable by normal means as a player, should your character prepare to fight it accordingly?

    Dungeon Dad explains the False Hydra - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PydSva7lHdk

    What is happening with Embracer Group? First they buy up a bunch of game companies, then they lose 40% of their stock value, now they are selling off or shuttering the same game studios they bought. Now, they are selling off big parts of Gearbox to Take-Two.

    Embracer divests from Gearbox - https://twitter.com/kerrblimey/status/1773192559122170214?t=R9xitbhW6BC2YntnP3gDoQ&s=19

    Embracer Group Stock Drops 40% After $2 Billion Mystery Deal Self-Destructs - https://www.forbes.com/sites/paultassi/2023/05/24/embracer-group-stock-drops-40-after-2-billion-mystery-deal-self-destructs/?sh=105d0853c540

    Embracer Group's Partner Who Walked From $2 Billion Deal Finally Revealed - https://www.ign.com/articles/embracer-groups-partner-who-walked-from-2-billion-deal-finally-revealed

    Saints Row And Red Faction Studio Shut Down After 30 Years - https://kotaku.com/embracer-shuts-down-saints-row-studio-volition-after-30-1850792734 Embracer Group Is Considering Selling Borderlands Dev Gearbox - https://kotaku.com/gearbox-software-borderlands-sale-embracer-group-1850824882

    Did the Monopoly man have a monocle? What color was C-3PO? Did Sinbad play a genie in the 90s? Question everything about your memory as we dive into the Mandela Effect, a collective misremembering of information. Then, we discuss how this attention to detail and altering of information could be utilized in your games as a fun layer of character design or world building.

    A list of prime Mandela Effect examples - https://www.entitymag.com/mandela-effect-examples/

    Before you comment about Fruit of the Loom - https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/fruit-of-the-loom-cornucopia/

    NOTE: This video is for entertainment purposes only. Yes, we know it's not actually called "The Mandala Effect", that's the joke.

    51 min
  • 113. The MacGyver Skill

    On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:

    Nine years ago we released the 1st episode of Delve, a podcast about game mechanics. On this episode we revisit some of our early topics from the show.
    What are some of the RPG skills that don't get represented in games? Can you build small machines or mediate a discussion between others? We talk about the skills that are often not listed in the player's handbook.
    We just keep going back to hit points. It's a problem and we understand that. Today we try to figure out why so many games will revert back to this system and how it is represented on the screen. Perhaps it should be hidden behind the screen? Perhaps this is also about user interface...
    The Design Delve video Alex won't shut up about - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHdY7956gwg
    In D&D there are two ways we determine Armor Class. One is by the armor you are wearing and the other is by your dexterity score. Although these are functionally different, they are mechanically the same in the game. Can we make them less similar? Maybe we can play off the different ways we derive this stat and how it affects our character.

    55 min
  • 112. Let's Play Rageball!

    On this episode of Total Pebble Knockdown:  

    To celebrate March Madness and our very good understanding of sports ball, we are talking about sports IN games. Namely, how could we create competitions in a role-playing game. And what D&D classes would be best suited for our fantasy Olympics.  

    Sometimes, even a straight-forward board game can have mechanics that derail the action and discourage new players. Nathan discusses a few he encountered when playing Catan, Carcassone and Ticket to Ride. We also discuss some D&D mechanics we hand-waved away in the past.  

    A new Reddit question came across Nathan's feed with a typical problem in RPG groups. What happens when you have a player leave and their character is still around? Should the GM take on the PC role? We have some personal experience with this, so let's discuss it in more detail.  

    The question in question - https://www.reddit.com/r/DMAcademy/comments/1bau05w/player_is_leaving_group_now_i_need_to_takeover/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3

    49 min

About Total Pebble Knockdown

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In weekly discussions that result in absolutely no clear answers, Nathan and Alex delve into the endless choices that make up games. What can we learn from video games, storytelling, and the real…