GamingPerspectives

     Jolene and Saul were lucky enough to have back on the microphone, Christoffer Sevaldsen author of the Black Void RPG.  Christoffer has a new Kick Starter campaign to further support his "Esoteric Dark Fantasy" rpg called the Black Void.  The new project is "Black Void: Under Nebulous Skies- A Voidfarer's Travelogue, Campaign and Sourcebook".  Saul and Jolene really enjoyed talking to Christof...

       In this episode Saul and Jolene discuss Houserules in rpgs.  Saul uses his boyhood rules of Monopoly which were actually heavily houseruled.  It wasn't until he played much later as an adult that many of the rules as he knew them were not actually official rules of Monopoly.  Saul then moves the conversation to Original D&D and how immediately many people started houseruling this set of rul...

   The Ideal GM, what is it and why does it exist.  Saul and Jolene discuss the idea of having a player compare their GM from their past and comparing them to the current GM usually in a way that conveys that current GM does not measure up.  Usually this is a player that has been playing a good amount of years.     On the other hand it could be a new player that has seen popular actual plays and w...

     In this episode Saul and Jolene tackle the idea of playing a Dragon, God or AI.  Something that can be so alien to us that it really is incomprehensible to understand, as humans, their motivations.  So we humans give these beings human like traits.  In roleplaying games, playing some so alien is daunting.  Saul and Jolene discuss how they RP their NPC Dragons, Gods, AI and even Aliens, not Xe...

     The Wayward Player, is discussed by Saul and Jolene.  The single player that takes their character on their own side quest without discussing it with the other players/characters.  Should the GM be stuck with running two separate games or splitting time between one player and the rest of the group?  Saul and Jolene talk about what would make a player do this and how to handle this situation....

     The Ideal group size is something that has come up in Saul and Jolene's rpg games.  As both GM games, Saul a bit more than Jolene, they both tackle this question in their home games and their convention games.      To them there are three factors that play into what is the ideal group size.  At one point Saul goes into a lengthy digression about classic Traveller, but Jolene brings him back t...

    Saul and Jolene talk about why groups should make the GM Dad play.  GM Dads are the players that are become the leader of the RPG group you play in.  Usually this person is the one that GMs, he gets the group together, reminds players of play location(pre C0vid) and time.  They call, email and generally keep the group going by herding cats, the players.      So why is it important for the GM D...

     In this episode Saul and Jolene talk about Generic RPGs.  Why would one want to buy and use a Generic RPGs like GURPS, Cypher System, Hero, FATE and others.   These RPGs are able to handle different genres with relative ease.  What are some good selling points and how do they differ from game systems geared or made for a specific genre.     As Always, we want to thank you all for listening an...

     Game stories, every RPG gamer has one, if you started playing back in the 70's with the "Three Little Books" or last month, you have a gamer story.   So what makes a game memorable?  Saul and Jolene discuss this topic on this week's episode.  For many it is what RPGs are for, telling stories.  Others its that nostalgic story of playing when you were a kid, with your friends from school, or yo...

     In this episode Saul and Jolene talk about Solo and One Player RPGs.  Saul starts with his first sight of Tunnels and Trolls Solo adventures he saw at a Northern California game convention known as Pacificon.  Also Solo adventure rpgs remind Saul of the old "Choose your Own Adventure" series of books.        Jolene was asked by a friend to do a Solo adventure in preparation for a CoC game he...

    In this episode Saul and Jolene talk about Hit Points.  What are they, or what do they represent, where do they come from?  In this episode Saul and Jolene discuss the beginnings of hit points and how games have handled what they represent in different games.        As always, thank you all for listening and please share our podcast.     Music by Jim Gaven, song Happy and Healthy off the album...

     What is the impact of age on a character in RPGs.  Saul and Jolene tackle the concept of character age and how that impacts your character in an RPG.  From D&D to Call of Cthulu rpgs deal with the concept of character age differently.  Some game try to be "realistic" while others completely ignore the subject of character age.  Saul and Jolene talk about players and their choices of how old t...

     Tension in RPGs, is it only for Horror and Mystery RPGs?  Saul and Jolene talk about how to create tension and how it just not for Horror RPGs anymore.  Tension can be a great way to keep players engaged in the game.  Also in games where the players feel tension it usually make game memorable.  But how do you make games tense?      Saul discusses situations where he created tension in games a...

      Almost every rpg gamer knows the words, "Don't Split the Party".  It is a phrase that I have heard for a very long time.  An Order of the Stick graphic novel was even titled "Don't Split the Party."   Saul and Jolene discuss where this phrase comes from and if it really is good advice for a group of RPG players.       Saul, as he tends to do, digresses a bit on the subject but Jolene is alwa...

    In this episode Saul and Jolene talk about the killing of NPCs in your RPGs.  Player Characters may at some point kill an Non Player Character in your roleplaying game.  What happens when PCs either by accident or on purpose kill an NPC.  For Saul, a lot depends on the genre and the circumstances of NPC death.        Jolene has an example where a GM was asking about what to do with a PC who ac...

      This week Saul and Jolene discuss ways to bring your RPG character to life.  Ways and tips that you as a player can do to make your character seem more real or realistic.  Mainly to help new players to the hobby but can be of use to the old grognards that might try something new or different.        As always thanks for listening and all we ask is that you share on your favorite social media...

      Saul and Jolene discuss Traps! in your RPG games.  Saul discusses how he has never really used traps in his fantasy RPGs.   Saul talks about his earliest recollections of playing D&D and how traps had not played a big role in his early games and how that directed him to not include them in his games when he started running games.        Jolene tried to keep Saul on topic but allowed him to d...

     Technology has greatly advanced since the introduction of RPGs in the mid 1970s.  Saul and Jolene discuss the pros and cons of having today's tech at the gaming table.  For the most part the discussion is positive about technology at the table.   From laptops, cell phones, tablets and HD TVs technology at the game table can really help in running an RPG.  Things such as PDFs of the rules, mus...

     Saul and Jolene talk about sticking to canon in RPGs.   Saul usually tries to be a rebel but feels sticking to official "canon" of a setting or IP is important.  It may not be really important to Saul as a fan of a genre, but when he runs RPGs, he feels that staying close to canon is important.  One of the  reasons it is important is because when you list or describe your game being set in a...

     Saul and Jolene talk about "Backtracking" in your RPG, also known as RetConning.  Jolene read about a GM asking about advice on a situation where a two player game resulted in a TPK and one of the players wanted a do over.        Jolene was surprisingly harsh and was against the idea and Saul was open to the idea.  As the discussion progressed, Jolene was able to convince that allowing the do...

     The classic Druid class in D&D is discussed by Saul and Jolene in this episode.  Though not a favorite of Saul or Jolene they have had a number of players in their groups who played druids.  From Saul's  the cavalier childhood friend to the critical thinker druid played by the son of a friend.  Each character were was played very differently due to how each player interpreted what a druid was...

     This is our 100th Episode which means we are only four weeks away from 2 years of podcasting which is a pretty good milestone in podcasting. People like the big round numbers so this is 100 weekly episode, which does not include interview or recordings from gaming conventions.       Paranoia is this crazy, wild game of a "Humorously Dark Future."  Saul bought the box set one summer in 1984, t...

       Saul and Jolene talk about "Realistic" Post Apoc RPGs.  Having discussed this genre when they talked about Gamma World we decided that another sub genre needed to be discussed in detail as they can tell a different kind of story.     As always thanks for listening.       Music by Robert Vasley,  song The Seedling.      Available at Tribeofnoise.com  

       Today Saul and Jolene talk to Marcus Bone.  Like Saul, once Marcus saw the cover of Dark Conspiracy RPG in 1991 he had to have it.  Though Saul liked the theme and the game overall Marcus was a true fan.  At first one of three co-creators of Demon Ground, then author of DC supplement "Of Gates and Gods" and even owner of the license to publish Dark Conspiracy itself.        Dark Conspiracy...

    In this episode Saul and Jolene discuss "Saying Yes AND..."  as GM tool to keep the players engaged in your roleplaying session.  Of course Saul has to relate it to the ancient history of his first days of playing D&D and how playing D&D back in the late 70's and early 80's was a different experience than roleplaying games of today.  Leaving the Dungeons to playing outside in an open world cau...