The Covenant Cast

This week, Here Be Monsters TCG launched their Kickstarter campaign with a game-changing business model. Are they the first to solve the problem of TCGs without jettisoning all the upsides? We think that just might be the case! 00:00:00 Intro 00:08:32 Here Be Monsters TCG News 00:12:02 Zattic News 00:13:39 Alpha Clash TCG News 00:14:56 Flesh and Blood TCG News 00:19:07 Sorcery TCG News 00:19:31 Su...

It's time we addressed the perennial question. 00:36:38 Main Topic: Are TCGs Gambling? 

On a fateful Monday, BradW shared an ad for Rush of Ikorr, the TCG from Upper Deck, coming to their ePack platform. What's the ePack platform, you ask? An abomination. It's not what tabletop is, and it misses the point completely. Digital integration? We don't want it, and it's ruining the hobby. Join us for a direct message to publishers thinking this is the future—it isn't. 40:30 Main Topic

Our current crowdfunding and tcg-heavy tabletop gaming era necessitates a question: is there nobility in removing overtly FOMO-creating elements from your campaigns and product design, or are you just losing sales? 00:00:00 Intro 00:04:42 Sorcery TCG News 00:07:23 Warlord TCG News 00:07:44 Alpha Clash TCG News 00:08:03 Arkham Horror The Card Game & Marvel Champions News 00:21:42 FAB TCG News 00:22...

A few weeks ago, the Earthborne team came to our office to share a vertical slice of their new game, Earthborne Trailblazer, with us, our team, and three fans of Rangers. Now, with the launch of the Earthborne Trailblazer Kickstarter, we are excited to share our thoughts with the world! Earthborne Trailblazer Kickstarter: cov.link/earthborne-trailblazer 00:50:49 Main Topic: Earthborne Trailblazer...

Traditional distribution serves a critical function for tabletop gaming, but for many publishers it is often a hindrance to success—that's why we launched Covenant Fulfilled earlier this year. With the platform receiving a number of updates this week, including the addition of Earthborne Games, we're diving into exactly how our approach to distribution was a necessary improvement for indie publish...

All last week we stared at the beautiful Earthborne Trailblazer board, created by Evan Simonet and inspired by Jaro Hess's "The Land of Make Believe". This week we wake up to a fresh controversy involving long time Magic: The Gathering artist Dan Frazier. There is clearly a line somewhere between the kind of artistic inspiration that both grounds and elevates a project and sticking so close to you...

Fresh off of their Earthborne Trailblazer announcement, Andrew Navaro joins us to answer your questions and ours!

In the early days of crowdfunding, we were very hesitant to consider games that used the platform. Crowdfunding was seen as a negative. Somewhere along the way we entered an era where crowdfunding every game, or even every set, is seen as the standard. We wonder aloud how we got here and what the future holds. 00:07:15 Preview Pack 2026 Update 00:08:53 Sorcery TCG News 00:09:55 "What is Fulfilled?...

In this episode, we revisit the topic of LCG viability. Are there ways, tested or untested, that an LCG can prosper as a long-running game and also on the balance sheet of the local game store? After a week of reflection and so many good comments across the internet, there may indeed be some light at the end of the tunnel. We'll try to find it with you. 00:03:39 Announcing the Preview Pack 2026 00...

Gudnak has pulled off the pipe dream of LCG fans everywhere by creating a functional limited experience. Hubworld announced that every set will be also be a draftable cube. Arkham Horror continues to tweak how it's products are delivered. None of these games are taking a similar path, but we have to wonder, will any of these paths finally create an offering that is as appealing to the game store a...

Sorcery TCG has announced its Cornerstone events emphasizing Creativity, Mastery, and Wonder. Alpha Clash has gone international, announcing an even more open tournament scene in locations from Vegas to Dubai to the Philippines. FAB continues to deliver ever more on it's promise of high-level face-to-face competition. With all of this swirling in the wind, we ask ourselves, what does the perfect o...

First Sorcery TCG, then Altered TCG, and now Cyberpunk 2027 TCG. These games continue to break crowdfunding records, but what does that mean for the actual health of the game? Zach and Steven sit down for an all new podcast format where we talk about all things indie card games.

At the end of our 12-hour Gothic release stream, we got to chat with Erik Olofsson—founder of Erik's Curiosa and co-founder of Grinding Gear Games—about Sorery's new Gothic set and the future of the game. That content was over the archive limit for YouTube live, so we're releasing it here in its totality. Enjoy!

"I think as long as you're following your heart, your life will take you wherever you're intended to go."   Andrew Navaro, Former Head of Studio at FFG and current Head of Studio at Earthborne Games, sits down with us to talk about his journey so far. Join us as we discuss Netrunner, Asmodee, Earthborne Rangers, Hubworld: Aidalon and the many, many things in between. It's an inspirational intervie...

Ridge Kiley, co-founder of Rising Empire Studios, sits down with Zach to discuss their recently announced Alpha Clash comic book series and how the comics allow for a top-down design approach that will completely reshape the Alpha Clash trading card game. Find out more: https://alphaclashtcg.com/news/alpha-clash-comic-book-series-launcheswhere-lore-cards-and-fun-competition-collide Get the comics...

Garett Kiley, co-founder of Rising Empire Studios, sits down with Zach to discuss their recent move away from traditional distribution and into direct LGS relationships via their Champion Store program. This is the most honest accounting of what it's actually like working with traditional distributors as an indie publisher, and a must-listen for publishers and players of these games.

Tim O'Brien, co-designer of Gudnak, sits down with Zach for a far-reaching discussion that offers a behind-the-scenes look into Chaotic Great's journey as a new indie card game publisher. At the heart of the discussion is the inevitable question for this new round of "LCGs" - what has to change for this format to truly succeed?   Check out the second Gudnak Kickstarter campaign to see potential an...

Woodrow and Josh, the founders of Kingswood Games, are relaunching the AEG classic card game, Warlord, into the modern era. It's an incredible story of two longtime fans bringing back something that they clearly love, with serious echoes of FFG's Android: Netrunner relaunch. Catch our interview to hear the full story. Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/kingswoodgames/warlord-saga-of...

We're back after seven months with one of our favorite creators in the tabletop gaming industry, Andrew Navaro (former Fantasy Flight Games Head of Studio, founder of Earthborne Games), for a deeper look at independent publishing through the lens of someone who has been on both sides of the equation. Recorded in the midst of the second highly successful Earthborne Rangers crowdfunding campaign, An...

We've been following Alpha Clash since 2022, and have consistently been impressed with the drive and output of the people behind it. Join us for a conversation with Ridge Kiley, founder of Rising Empire Studios and creator of the Alpha Clash TCG, as we learn more about the game, Cirque de Soleil, collegiate wrestling, and the ambitious plans ahead.

A remarkable moment - a random comment on our Nighmare Before Christmas TCG stream turns into a conversation and relationship with its designer, Andrew Parks, who then blows us away with fascinating stories from the early days of tabletop (Z-Man, Ed Beard Jr., Iron Crown Enterprises, NECA, Wizkids, and more). Every conversation brings more context to this industry, how we got here, and where we're...

Zach has been taken in by the upcoming Lord of the Rings "Universes Beyond" set of Magic: The Gathering. So much so that he's now learning everything about what to buy, where to buy it, and where to play it. Join us for a conversation about how it has been going, and what things are like for a brand new player - even one quite experienced with TCGs.

Conversations around expandable games and the LGS continue to swirl online, especially amid things like Magic's continued embrace of direct sales, Flesh and Blood's presence (or non-presence) at retail, and Sorcery's "one set a year, play how you want" approach. Join us as we attempt to cut through it all and get down to the basics of how incentives for publishers, distributors, and retailers cont...

We recently hosted our first big event since COVID shut everything down (technically our biggest to date!). As those of you following for the past few years are certainly aware, we've been fascinated by the competitive v casual paradigm, especially as it relates to local events and our plan for Covenant Tulsa 3.0. We finally got a chance to test a lot of those theories during FuseFest, and in this...