Drawn from the Undertow (fka Eidolon Playtest)

For the month of July, we are accepting submissions for a Fan Art Contest ! The rules are as follows: From July 1st to July 31st , send us a message on Patreon that includes a new piece of DFTU fan art you created! This can be for Threadspinner, Eidolon, or anything else related to the podcast! From August 1st to August 7th , we will run a poll for the audience's favorite piece of fan art! Any fre...

We never said we'd get it in one! While we're very happy with the core mechanics of Threadspinner, as we continue to record episodes across all three campaigns, we've begun to take note of some design flaws that need addressing. One of the dangers of making the game rules diegetic is that the PCs know that they're in a story and can try to exploit the narrative structure to shortcut the game! We d...

Iris, Crystal and Maxie meet up to talk about Angel's Egg , a classic experimental animated film created by Mamoru Oshii and Yoshitaka Amano. It's a movie that deliberately leaves us with far more questions than it does answers, and it leads us to contemplate the purpose of the characters, the visual language it uses, and what philosophy means to us. Edited by Iris This episode is possible thanks...

Few glow as strong as Commander Vespula, the heroic wasp who felled countless feathered dragons in defense of his hive. His short life of glory passed, and in his eternal afterlife he hungers to conquer the miniature civilization that dwells within the walls of the Threadspinner's Guild. Three tiny Threaded explore a lush paradise of magical flora, where a secret organization guards the key to the...

Luke, Maxie, and Iris discuss some of the music that Luke sent to Maxie as inspiration for the Threadspinner Playtest soundtrack, which draws from sources such as Dark Souls, Death Stranding, Hollow Knight, Raising Arizona, Twin Peaks, Tenet, The Big O, and more! Listen to the playlist here! Edited by Iris This episode is possible thanks to all $3 and up Patreon subscribers! If you're listening to...

Warfare changed forever when Dr. Lorien Lovejoy invented chemical gas that rendered an entire battlefield silent and dead in a matter of minutes. Now, the engineer who erased a generation whiles away in his laboratory, preparing to unleash even greater horrors upon The Wake. Three newly-Threaded heroes step out onto the streets of Mother-of-All, wandering a sinkhole that's been converted into a ne...

Long ago, the Razorback King conquered Loromir with the power of flame. The country and its King faded into myth, and their spirits passed into the afterlife. Now, the Razorback King rises again, gathering power to set aflame even the land of the dead. A novice Threadspinner leads three undead adventurers to map the long-dead spirit of a prosperous seaside city-state, where a great foe dwells. CRE...

Welcome to Threadspinner GLOW, the bug-themed playtest of Threadspinner, the Souls-inspired afterlife exploration RPG! In this episode, our players introduce us to the cast: a highborn bartender, a lord of thieves, and a sentient fungus! CREDITS: Lexi Waltner as Stan Stickley, aka... Mike Painter as Velnias Molly Rhinebeck as Heiress, Discarded Queen of the Golden Haven Luke Varner as The Threadsp...

Welcome to Threadspinner SPARK, the urban fantasy themed playtest of Threadspinner, the Souls-inspired afterlife exploration RPG! In this episode, our players introduce us to the cast: a young film starlet, her bodyguard, and a disgraced Threadspinner seeking to write her biography! CREDITS: Zoe Tunnell as Magnolia Kane Morgan Taylor as Love the Uncut Crystal Zaslavchik as Reverie, the Waking Drea...

One of Morgan's favorite films is the 2000 cheerleader classic Bring It On , so she showed it to Crystal and Iris! They discuss the film's earnest love for cheerleading, potential for heartbreaking lesbian fanfiction, and progressive views on race, gender, and sexuality! Edited by Crystal Content Warning: This episode contains use of homophobic slurs. This episode is possible thanks to all $10 and...

The Year of Threadspinner keeps on Threadspinnin'! Luke has now run multiple sessions of the game, and the major take away: game's good! Game works! That said, there's lots of small revisions that we already need to make. We also start laying out the ideas for character development for the Threadspinner! Edited by Luke This episode is possible thanks to all $3 and up Patreon subscribers! If you're...

Welcome to Threadspinner FLAME, the medieval-themed playtest of Threadspinner, the Souls-inspired afterlife exploration RPG! In this episode, our players share the characters they've created: a paladin of love and creation, a wizard seeking primordial power, and an executed traitor whose chains compel supplication! CREDITS: Iris Christianson as Syr Violet of the Coiling Vine Max Knightley as Thist...

Luke, Molly, Crystal and Iris return to rank the second rock-opera album from The Protomen: The Father of Death . Unbeknownst to Luke, however, betrayal lurks just around the corner. A villain in their midst sharpens their knife, waiting to stab Luke through the heart. Will their coup succeed? Or will Luke's friends mostly think this album is pretty alright? Tune in for the thrilling continuation...

🎶 0 - The Fugitive's First Dance by Max Knightley 🎶 🪲 Threadspinner GLOW 🪲 Lexi as The Master Thief : Stan Stickley, aka Denny Deciduous, aka Benny Bonsai, aka Lenny Leafless Molly as The Mixologist : Heiress, Discarded Queen of the Golden Haven Mike as The Fae : Velnias GM: Luke Editor: Mike In the walls of the Threadspinner's Guild exists an entire miniature world unto itself, a vast civiliz...

Mike and Luke sit down with Crystal for an interview about their recent miniseries! They discuss their favorite miniseries, their approaches to GMing, and their preferred types of narratives! Plus, they share their goals for Threadspinner Playtest! Edited by Crystal Buy our book! Support us on Patreon! Join the Discord!

🎶 17 - If It's Not Your Lucky Day, At Least It's Always Someone Else's by Max Knightley 🎶 ⚡️ Threadspinner SPARK ⚡️ Crystal as The Dream Interpreter : Reverie, the Waking Dreamer Morgan as The Blade Magician : Love the Uncut Zoe as The Divinity : Magnolia Kane GM: Luke Editor: Luke In the heart of The Wake stands Mother-of-All, the capital city governed by the Threadspinners. Peoples of all pl...

Zoe and Iris sit down with Crystal for an interview about their recent miniseries! They discuss their creative development over six years of Drawn from the Undertow, and evaluate each other as players and GMs! Zoe and Iris played in each others' miniseries, so they also ask each other plenty of questions! Edited by Crystal Buy our book! Support us on Patreon! Join the Discord!

🎶 13 - Death Beyond Death by Max Knightley 🎶 🔥 Threadspinner FLAME 🔥 Iris as The Hero : Syr Violet, Knight of the Coiling Vine Maxie as The Executed : Thistle, the Bastard Daughter Tyberius as The Conjurer : Xalatan, Sage of Wind and Shadow GM: Luke Editor: Iris To tame the endless chaos of the Wake, the Threadspinner's Guild recruits three undead adventurers to explore the spirits of long-dea...

Crystal and Maxie sit down for a candid discussion about their recent miniseries! They discuss their creative influences, GMing techniques, proudest moments, and lessons learned. Learn the secrets behind your favorite series, and listen to Crystal and Maxie philosophize on what it means to be an adult! Plus, since Maxie is our composer, we talk about the miniseries themes, and the upcoming music f...

The podcast formerly known as Eidolon Playtest is now Drawn from the Undertow ! Welcome to Undertow Update, your monthly newsletter describing what awaits you in the next month of Drawn from the Undertow. This month, we've got a lot! Threadspinner is now ready for a full playtest, and we're going to do it in not one, not two, but three long-form campaigns that will serve as the backbone of this po...

Our heroes, newly reunited, at last confront the heart of The Machine, learn its true purpose, and fight for the future of the human race. 🎶 This city now will fade away It's crying out, it's much too late This city now won't last the night Don't let it die without a fight 🎶 CREDITS: Molly Rhinebeck as Cascade Incursion Iris Christianson as Tacit Dragoon Crystal Zaslavchik as WiFi X Luke Varner...

Mike sits down with Molly and Crystal to talk about their all-time favorite band and the inspiration behind Eidolon TOOL, the seminal prog-metal band Tool! The Long Song Pervert has logged on and they will not be logging off! Listen to the playlist here! Edited by Iris This episode is possible thanks to all $3 and up Patreon subscribers! If you're listening to the 5-minute preview of this episode,...

This month, we work on filling in some gaps that we left out of Draft 1 of Threadspinner, since making it ready for Session 0 was more important than getting every single aspect of it finished. Specifically, we further build on what it takes to develop an Artifact, and work up elevator pitches for the 22 types of Devils that players can encounter when they allow their Malaise to climb too high. Ed...

WiFi X turns against its friends, no longer certain of what it believes in, its faith in the path of the hero lost. As the revolutionaries battle on the ground floor, the Machine's most loyal servant waits patiently for the winner to meet her on the 50th floor, for the Machine's Inventors to bare witness to the final battle. 🎶 Do not say this is how it has to be 🎶 CREDITS: Molly Rhinebeck as Cas...

Cast deep into the bowels of The Machine, our heroes race to climb back to the ground floor before they're incinerated, taunted all the while by Tacit's long-lost wife, who has joined The Machine for reasons unknown. 🎶 If there's a way out of this somebody tell me now I know it's all gonna end but I swear I don't know how You keep outrunning your past 'til it hunts you down 🎶 CREDITS: Molly Rhin...