The Vorthos Cast

It's time to welcome Seanan McGuire home to the podcast for another interview to discuss all things Duskmourn. We cover character choices, world building, and influences for this terrifying House. Come step into the parlor, take a seat, and enjoy listening to our conversation. Pay no attention to the way the chair won't let you go... Please go read the Magic story! You can find all episodes of Dus...

The twisting halls of Duskmourn contain many cautionary tales and grim nightmares, and today we're talking about these side stories that help flesh out the walls of the House. Children born into a world with no dawn or dusk, lost travelers who find no comfort in a moment of respite, elves who can only watch as their world is enclosed in eternal night, and even the miracle of kindness among the mon...

We conclude the main story of Duskmourn this week with our heroes coming face to facade with the elder demon of the house, Valgavoth. Do they all escape the House? And if they do escape, at what cost? Also, we discuss what it means for the narrative of Magic to have planeswalkers when there are paths between planes for non-planeswalkers to walk. As always, please click through and read the stories...

We slip once more through the halls of the House this week as our survivors face their greatest fears and terrible monsters. Not all of them do a very good job of surviving these episodes... Duskmourn story can be read for free on the Magic website at magic.wizards.com/en/story and you can find Mira Grant's DVD Extras on Seanan McGuire's blog at seananmcguire.com/blog/. If you like our show, consi...

On August 27th, 2014, the first official Magic Story web fiction was published: The Madness of Sarkhan by Jennifer Clarke Wilkes. This story was the first chapter in the Khans of Tarkir story, which would be the first time the main story for a Magic set was published entirely online and for anyone to read it. This year, to mark it's 10th anniversary, The Vorthos Cast has created a mini episode loo...

It's time for our journey into the House to begin. The story for Duskmourn gave us a jumpscare with a release a full week earlier than anticipated, so we're going to start our coverage a full week early, too! But we haven't forgotten our promise of worldbuilding details, so every week we will also include a little bit of the Planeswalker Guide for you to keep you comfortable in the reassuring wall...

This week we've activated the special interests of Jay and Loreley to talk about horror movies, and specifically how Duskmourn is informed by the rich history of scares on the screen! We're breaking down the big subgenres, the movies you may want to be familiar with, and how they play into the world design of Duskmourn. If you like our show, consider subscribing to our Patreon at Patreon.com/TheVo...

The world of Bloomburrow is vast, colorful, and furry. This week we're looking at the worldbuilding of this brand new plane, from the landscapes of the valley to the people who inhabit those lands and to the history they all share. If y'all like this kind of worldbuilding episode, let us know! We cover a lot of the basics of the plane in this episode, but you can learn more through the three Plane...

It's time to dig into the many treats on offer from Bloomburrow! We're talking legends, baguettes, and fistfighting giant pandas on this installment of our flavor gems series! I promise it all makes sense if you listen! If you like our show, consider subscribing to our Patreon at Patreon.com/TheVorthosCast, where $1 a month gets you access to our Discord server, and $3 a month means you can listen...

We're welcoming back Valerie Valdes this week to talk about her work on writing the Bloomburrow set story! Valerie has been on the show before to talk about writing the story for Lost Caverns of Ixalan, and this week she's back to talk about the very different experience in writing Bloomburrow, including her influences for the story that combines epic quests with wholesome family dynamics. If you...

The story of Bloomburrow is only five episodes long, but they're five great episodes and give us a lot to talk about! This week we're wrapping up the set's story and sharing our thoughts on this start of a new arc, the world of Bloomburrow in a wider Magic context, and where things might go from here. You can find all episodes of the Bloomburrow story right now on the Magic website for free! Just...

We're back from our vacation to start talking all things Bloomburrow story! This week we're covering the first three episodes of the story by Valerie Valdes, what we think about the first glimpse of this new world, and what animalfolk we think the Lorwyn Five and friends would be on this plane! You can find all episodes of the Bloomburrow story right now on the Magic website for free! Just go to h...

Thank you Wizards of the Coast for our free preview cards for Bloomburrow! We're happy to introduce the world to our two all-star uncommons, Mabel's Mettle and Quaketusk Boar! You can find full images of the cards and art on our Twitter at Twitter.com/TheVorthosCast

We have our resident Assassin's Creed expert, Jay Annelli, here to tell us all about the flavor gems of the Universes Beyond: Assassin's Creed set! Who better to tell us the ins and outs of this special booster release than a loremaster who worked on the creative text team for the set and also has a long, documented history as a sociopathic murderer. My lawyers are telling me that I cannot call Ja...

We've made it to 300 episodes, and to thank you, our dear listeners, we're answering your questions! We've got the full roster of co-hosts to answer the hard-hitting questions, like "Does Bolas know about the Fomori?" and "What's Kellan's fursona?" Seriously, though, thank all of you so much for your years of support, all the way to 300 episodes! We love making this show, but we wouldn't do it wit...

Thank you to Wizards of the Coast for our free preview card for Universes Beyond: Assassin's Creed! This is a deep cut character from the lore, so of course Jay had a lot to say about him!

It's our Pride special! This week we're talking about queer characters in Magic story, where you can read more about them, and how Wizards of the Coast has done with representation in their stories and cards. Things get real gay. If you want to support the podcast, you can sign up to our Patreon at Patreon.com/TheVorthosCast, where $1 a month provides access to our Discord server, where Vorthoses...

Our second part of what turned out to be a two-part series of Flavor Gems from Modern Horizons 3! We cover new legends, deep-cut callbacks, and cute mechanical references to Magic's past. Thank you for listening, and if you think we missed any incredible Flavor Gems you can always reach out to us on Twitter, @TheVorthosCast, or through email, TheVorthosCast@Gmail. Com. If you want to support the p...

This is our first of (maybe) three episodes exploring the flavor gems of Modern Horizons 3! Modern Horizons sets have always been full of the deepest lore references and a place for old characters to get new cards. This time around is no different, and we've dedicated an entire episode just to legends from the past returning or premiering in this set! If you'd like to support The Vorthos Cast, the...

Modern Horizons 3 previews are underway, and as with previous Modern Horizons sets there are so many deep lore references and stories to be told! This week we're tackling the five transforming planeswalker cards from the set and what we know about these characters and how their sparks ignited. If you want to support us as we continue to make weekly episodes, you can find us at Patreon.com/TheVorth...

This is a special free preview episode of the Vorthos Cast for Modern Horizons 3 featuring our preview card, Ajani Fells the Godsire! You can find the full card on our Twitter at https://twitter.com/TheVorthosCast

We're taking one last look back into the sunset as we wrap up all discussions about Outlaws of Thunder Junction in an interview with the author herself, Akemi Dawn Bowman! You may remember Bowman's work back in Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty, where she wrote about a young man trying to find someone he'd lost while getting wrapped up in a multi-planar story featuring a villain's first-time story appearance...

With the end of Outlaws of Thunder Junction, we also finished the first story arc since the end of March of the Machine! We've got Roy Graham, Story Lead at Wizards of the Coast for Magic, on the podcast this week to talk about leading the story through the omenpaths and into a new era, including creating and growing Kellan, setting up the BIG reveal, and what we can expect going forward. If you l...

With Modern Horizons 3 on, well, the horizons, we're turning our vast and endless eye upon the story of the Eldrazi, cosmic horrors from the blind eternities whose purpose--if it exists--remains unknown. To know your enemy, you must know their history, and this week we'll discuss the story of the Eldrazi in Magic, as well as what we know to be true about these terrors from beyond the thin veil of...

We're rustlin' up some grub with the flavor gems of Thunder Junction! Were you wondering about some of these Western tropes, curious about how many of these legends have been seen round these parts before, or just want to know where you can get some Halo out on the range? Bring your own tin can and we'll serve up some answers on this week's episode. If you want to leave your servers a nice tip, yo...