The pen is mightier than the sword! This week we crack open that new book smell with a first edition copy of Vellum: the third-person literary hack-and-slash game. We navigate the maze-like stacks, pet some colorful wolf friends, and talk about how many puns is TOO many for understanding a game properly. Don’t be quick to judge a book by it’s steam store page! There’s plenty of spells and quills and swords, but remember: A game a lone a last a loved a long the-

Custom RSS

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

YouTube Music

Transcript

1:22 - game stats

2:50 - one sentence description

6:47 - Hub world complexity and literary theming commitment

12:37 - Overly complex terminology and ability descriptions

19:04 - Enemy design and literary theme implementation

25:33 - “One more run” phenomenon and replay motivation

29:17 - Positive aspects including UI and visual effects

33:00 - Inscription system and meta progression mechanics

38:26 - Vignette encounters and their effectiveness debate

42:54 - Tome selection system and special level rules

48:07 - Progression gating and attunement level complaints

55:39 - End game content and endless mode discussion

1:01:29 - Boss strategy discovery and magical lamp exploit

1:14:13 - rankings and final thoughts

1:22:08 - similar games

1:24:50 - listener correspondence: does the GROGPOD need a public discord channel?

Next episode: 2025 Summer Music Fest

Contact us at [email protected]!

https://grogpod.zone

Intro music: My Little Brown Book - Duke Ellington, John Coltrane

Outro music: Vellum OST - Boss Battle