Epic Adventure

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I waved goodbye to Mike and Christina and made my way through the throngs of people getting their last chance to shop in the exhibit hall. By 1pm on Sunday of GenCon 2025 I was tapping out.

I was exhausted, hungry, and my capacity for patience was at an all-time low.

By the time I got back to my car and put Indianapolis in the rearview mirror I started to settle down and even though GenCon was only an hour behind me I realized I was already starting to miss...

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https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/godzilla-franchise-enters-new-era-with-multiple-sequels-in-the-works/ar-AA1ISBUf

Oh No, there Goes Tokyo, Go Go Godzilla.

No, this story isn’t about Blue Oyster Cult, but we could do a full episode on the Long Island Psychedelic Rock Band that gave us Don’t Fear the Reaper and of course Godzilla. No, this story is about Godzilla himself. There are 33 Japanese movies about Godzilla with another 5 English language films.

Currently a sequel to the fantastic Godzilla Minus One is in development along with a sequel to 2...

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I have a thing for Kickstarter. I find myself backing a lot of roleplaying games so it’s not unusual for me to browsing the new Kickstarters looking for something that might spark my imagination.

And that’s when I saw it. 

Singularity.

A brand-new massive adventure for Mongoose Traveller.

Longtime listeners know our love of Traveller on this show and you might have even listened to our three part “Anatomy of a Campaign” series where we talked you through our Pirates of Drinax campaign.

The...

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Let’s start with something different.

https://www.humanbrainproject.eu/en/follow-hbp/news/2023/09/04/learning-brain-make-ai-more-energy-efficient/

This article from the Human Brain Project outlines the power requirements for the human brain and the results are staggering. The human brain uses only 20 watts of power to work. That’s the equivalent of a computer monitor…on sleep mode.

In contrast an AI requires 2.7 billion watts just to simulate even basic cognitive functions.

This is the kind of article that just blows my mind and gets the creative juices flowin...

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Sisterhood: Nuns with Guns.

What a great title for a game. You’ve already heard Mike, Christina and I talk about this game when we saw it drop on Backerkit. We didn’t have a ton of information on the game, but the imagery and the concept were so evocative that both Christina and I backed it on the spot.

Fast forward to our 100th episode where we talked about wanting to do more interviews and the first interview I knew I wanted to do was with Parable Games. I wa...

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You know that news crawler that pops up in the right-hand corner of your computer screen for those of us two dumb to turn it off. Well, an article popped up that got my interest.

The 15 Best TTRPGs For One-Shot Sessions

MSN pulled an article from CBR that listed the 15 Best TTRPGS for One-Shot Sessions. It lists games like Crash Pandas, Alien, Mork Borg, Blades in the Dark and Dread. It also has D&D listed along with Call of Cthulhu. It’s just interesting to see an article ab...

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If you’ve followed the podcast from the beginning, you might notice a theme. We aren’t fans of D&D.

Sure, we started with the OGL Scandal and ever since then we have made fun of, complained about, and down right called out Hasbro, Wizards of the Coast, and Dungeons and Dragons. But, that’s just business, right? We must actually like D&D I mean everyone does. It’s the grandaddy of all roleplaying games.

Nope we hate D&D.

Just ask us.

Of cours...

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Welcome to you heard it here last, where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

We start this week off with news about a game world that both Mike and Christina love. The World of Darkness.

https://www.enworld.org/threads/jason-carl-on-white-wolfs-return-mage-the-ascension-plans.713655/

Paradox Interactive announced that it was rebranding its World of Darkness group to White Wolf, with further plans to build out the group and shift much of its development efforts in-house. White Wolf was the name of the original publisher of Vampire: The Masquerade, We...

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Our 100th Episode.

Jen and I were walking through the hallways of the Indianapolis Convention Center. We had just finished setting up the booth for GenCon and we had been talking about all things roleplaying.

“Hey, do you think you or Mike would be interested in doing a podcast. We could tie Oddfish Games into it and just chat about roleplaying in general.”

I threw out the question hoping she would be interested. I had done some podcasting already so it wasn’t a foreign concep...

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Welcome to you heard it here last where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

We are going to start with an article from Wolfgang Baur the CEO of Kobold Press. Now this doesn’t really constitute news, but I found it very interesting and thought Mike and Christina might agree.

https://koboldpress.com/state-of-play-in-it-to-print-it-what-to-know-to-get-your-game-printed/

The article: State of Play: In It to Print It. What to know to get your game printed. Is designed as a primer for first time game publishers looking to g...

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“Live Action Roleplaying, you’ve love it. We get together the first Saturday of the month and everybody is really cool.”

“I don’t know, I mean it’s one thing to play around a table, but I’m not sure about getting all dressed up and acting it out.”

“It’s not like that. Dress however you want; nobody judges you and everybody is chill.”

“Fine, I’ll give it a try”

That was the recruiting pitch I got for my first ever LARP. Live Action Roleplaying. The...

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Welcome to You Heard it Here Last where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo70cy9?Gen-Con-Preview-Blog

You may not realize it, but GenCon is just around the corner, and while the online chatter wants to turn the tariff issues into doom and gloom for GenCon, I tend to believe it will be as big as ever. Paizo’s recent announcement about GenCon events seems to bear out my sentiment.

Paizo has announced they are running a Starfinder Society Seco...

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William Gibson described Cyberpunk as a fusion of high-tech and low-life, exploring the intersection of technology, cybernetics, and computer networks on human society in a near-future, often dystopian setting.

If you don’t know who William Gibson is then shame on you.

Like most people out there, my first exposure to Cyberpunk was Blade Runner. The 1982 movie by Ridley Scott blew me away. After that I watched movies like Freejack and Johnny Mnemonic, Akira, and Ghost in the Shell. it wasn’t until the late 90’s that I started diving...

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Welcome to you heard it here last where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

Well it’s finally happened. 

I don’t want to talk about it. I said you can’t make me talk about it. But I guess when I started down this podcast road it kinda became my job to talk about it. So here we go.

Tariffs.

https://www.enworld.org/threads/do-tariffs-apply-to-rpg-books-maybe-maybe-not.712908/

EN World posted an article titled Do Tariffs apply to RPG Books? Maybe, Maybe Not.

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I think it was the James Bond Roleplaying game, or maybe it was Twilight 2000. My memory is a little fuzzy on this one, but there was a point in my roleplaying past where I started running adventures set in the modern era,

And I loved it.

Traditionally table top roleplaying games have focused on the Fantasy. Tolkien’s world or some variation of it has the been the centerpiece for TTRPGs from the beginning and many of you have never ventured outside of that setting. Other games over time ha...

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Welcome to you heard it here last where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

We are starting with a special request from Christina

https://www.mythicalmeats.com/snacks/dungeons-dragons-variety-pack/

She sent me this link along with the following sentence; “I will say I just got a targeted ad for official D&D branded 'adventure snacks' and was overcome by the need to rant at Hasbro.”

The Advertisement in question is for Mythical Meats (A bold name) and their “about page” says it all; 

“Fuele...

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In 2003 Shane Hensley and Pinnacle Entertainment released a brand-new generic roleplaying game. The game was called Savage Worlds and it kinda made a splash.

The game emphasized speed of play over detail. That may not seem like much today, but at the time it was revolutionary. You see Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 was also released in 2003, which would go on to birth Pathfinder. Steve Jackson Games had 5 years’ worth of source books available for their Generic Universal Roleplaying System. The market at that time was filled with games like Hero, Shadowrun, and Ro...

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Welcome to you heard it here last where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

Professor Dungeon Master on his YouTube channel Dungeon Craft announced that the New D&D 2024 Players Handbook only sold 3,773 books in its opening week. That’s right, what was announced as the fastest selling D&D book in history only sold 3,773 physical copies. The rest of those sales were digital over on DnD Beyond.

https://youtu.be/hmTKrCeaFC8?si=rJ_LZ4RbK8YAHAYD

He followed that news up with a recent repo...

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I couldn’t tell you the date, but I remember sitting in my parent’s basement, my buddy Dave was over and spending the night. We were staying up late, drinking why too much Dr. Pepper and eating all the popcorn we could get our hands on. We were watching late night movies and having a blast like most 10-year-olds.

That’s when we watched what I would later figure out, was my first Post Apocalyptic Film…The Omega Man with Charlen Heston.

It wouldn’t be my last.

The i...

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Welcome to You Heard it Here Last where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

In 1992 I was working night shift, which meant that on my days off I stayed up all night to keep my body in sync. What did you do to help you stay up all night in the 90’s…well you either drank, or watched movies.

I tended to do both.

But I had a buddy that worked at a movie rental place and he was always hooking me up with the new re...

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I started roleplaying in the early days. When character sheets could fit on an index card and the only rolls you made were for combat or avoiding traps. The games were one long dungeon crawl, slowly mapping out confusing underground caves with traps around every corner. Every time the space widened up into a 10 by 10 room you had a fight.

For no reason.

I mean, every single thing we came across was an enemy.

So, every single game was combat.

Sometimes it was short combats...

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Welcome to You Heard it Here Last, where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

I am a big fan of James Bond. I remember as a kid watching Dr. No on television and it blew my mind. Starting with Moonraker, I saw every James Bond film in the movie theater until the last one, No Time To Die. And while some were good, some were great, and some were just flat out bad, I didn’t care. I loved them all…well except the last one, that was hot garbag...

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Let’s Make a Game

When I first got into this hobby it was all about the game for me. The rules, the books, the miniatures, the dice, and of course the adventure.

Like most people once I settled on my game of choice…GURPS of course. I couldn’t get enough. GURPS 3rd Edition seemed to come out with a new sourcebook every month and my bulging bookshelf can attest to how many of those things I bought. I played the games and I loved the games...

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Welcome to You Heard it Here Last where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

https://www.enworld.org/threads/diamond-comic-distributors-files-bankruptcy-sells-alliance-game-distributors.709593/

Diamond Comic Distributors, the owner of Alliance Game Distributors has filed for bankruptcy. In a message from Chuck Parker the President of Diamond comic Distributors he outlines the necessity for the Chapter 11 Bankruptcy which would allow Diamond Comic Distributors to restructure and meet many of its significant financial obligations. While this could likely be very bad news for an already struggling comic book industry his message does ha...

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You know the old saying, Opinions are like assholes, everybody has one. And of course, if you have an opinion you gotta share that with as many people as possible, it’s the law.

Now that might sound somewhat hypocritically coming from the host of a podcast that is based solely upon sharing our opinions, but you know what, I’m gonna own that shit.

We love to talk about our favorite hobby and of course that means sharing on thoughts, ideas, and opinions. We try to make sure they...

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Welcome to you heard it here last where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

https://ennie-awards.com/revised-policy-on-generative-ai-usage/

It seems that the Ennies Awards, an annual fan-based celebration of excellence in tabletop roleplaying, has taken a stand on AI. In 2023 the Awards added some language regarding the use of Generative AI that was a bit confusing. In 2025 they have outlawed Generative AI in any of their award’s categories. That’s right, if your gaming product used generative AI in any of its creation it is no longer...

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Ok, You’re going to love it. It’s a great game. And, it’s easy to play.

First, Obtain a 20-sided polygonal artifact (hereafter referred to as the Orb of Random Fate), as well as a collection of various other polyhedral trinkets with sides numbering 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12. The Orb of Random Fate should be stored in an arcane pouch (or sock) when not in use. If you forget the sock, this is bad luck, and all rolls will be cursed unless you perform a dance of atonement

Next, Select one of...

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Welcome to You Heard it Here Last, where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

While doing a little research for news to talk about, I wandered down a deep rabbit hole.

https://www.enworld.org/threads/evil-genius-games-attempts-to-remove-bad-press.709776/

Evil Genius Games, the publishers of Everyday Heroes and a slew of IP content like Escape From New York, Crow, Highlander, and Pacific Rim have been in and out of the business news for more than a year now about problems at the company. Rumors of broken promises, no...

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I remember playing my first Call of Cthulhu game. It was at GenCon many years ago when GenCon was in Milwaukee and the Safehouse was the place to be.

At the time all I knew was that Call of Cthulhu was a horror roleplaying game. The idea sounded cool and the game fit into my schedule so why not.

I had a blast.

It truly was a wonderful game that fundamentally changed many of my thoughts around table top roleplaying. It wasn’t just swords and sorcery, th...

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Welcome to You Heard it Here Last where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

https://www.enworld.org/threads/diamond-comic-distributors-files-bankruptcy-sells-alliance-game-distributors.709593/

Diamond Comic Distributors, the owner of Alliance Game Distributors has filed for bankruptcy. In a message from Chuck Parker the President of Diamond comic Distributors he outlines the necessity for the Chapter 11 Bankruptcy which would allow Diamond Comic Distributors to restructure and meet many of its significant financial obligations. While this could likely be very bad news for an already struggling comic book industry his message does ha...

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I opened my email and Mike had sent me an email with a link. The first line of the email said

“Here's a first draft of a GM's AI assistant particularly geared to a) Pulp Cthulhu, and b) Masks of Nyarlathotep.”

The email went on to explain how to sign up for it and how Mike had already uploaded a ton of information to the AI

I tentatively followed the links and set up the AI program. I asked it a few game related questions and was impr...

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Welcome to You Heard it Here Last where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

I know this is supposed to be about gaming news, but I thought this article over at MIT Technology Review was really interesting.

https://www.technologyreview.com/2024/12/31/1109612/biggest-worst-ai-artificial-intelligence-flops-fails-2024/

The Biggest AI Flops of 2024 breaks down a number of issues and problems with AI and how it threatens the future of the technology.

The article starts with AI Slop…you know, all the crap AI that fills up the social medi...

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Rulebook…Check

Dice…Check

Maps…Check

Chips…Check

Dr. Pepper…Check

I was ready to run my first game.

I had been reading through the D&D Starter Set for months and I felt like I had a handle on how the thing was supposed to be played. I had gone over the adventure that came with it, “The Keep on the Borderlands” and couldn’t wait to get into this thing.

I had finally convinced a couple of friends to try a...

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Welcome back to You Heard it Here Last were we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

I just want to take a moment as we gently enter 2025 to say…

Holy Crap! 

Hasbro is at it again.

https://www.geeknative.com/170004/tales-of-riches-dd-partners-with-online-gambling-company-embroiled-in-spying-row/

Games Global is an online gambling site that has announced it has partnered with Hasbro to release “Tales of Riches” that is described as ‘inspired by the legendary fantasy world of Dungeons & Dragons’.

https://www.parents.com/kids/safety/kids-as-young...

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Go to oddfishgames.com today and check out all of the great products they have to offer.

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Season 2 Wrap

As we slide into December, literally and figuratively, it’s time to wrap up Season 2 of the Epic Adventure Podcast. Trying to get the gang together and record this time of year is tough. Family commitments, travel, work, and educational requirements take a big bite out of time and being able to just cozy up in front of your favorite holiday decorations and enjoy some downtime is very important. So, you wont hear a full episode from us until January of, sigh, 2025. 

Those numbers just kee...

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Running NPCs

“You see a long hallway made from stone, the ceiling is low and several of the supports along the walls look old and on the verge of collapse. What do you want to do?” the GM said in an ominous voice.

I looked over at Chris, “whadda ya think?”

“That’s got trap written all over it” he said.

“Yea, Lets have our NPC thief check it out and make sure it’s safe.” I looked at the GM.

He nodded his head a...

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Hello and welcome to You Heard it Here Last, where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

https://www.belloflostsouls.net/2024/11/its-canon-baldurs-gate-3-brings-dd-to-the-vatican.html

This week is starting to feel a little cold in the underworld. You see Mike and I grew up during the Satanic Panic years, where D&D was seen as the gateway to hell. They even made movies about how it would drive you crazy…thanks Tom Hanks for that one.

So to hear that Larian Studies has sold 2 copies of Baldur’s Gate...

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My generation was one of the first to grow up in front of a TV Screen. I guess that’s not necessarily a thing to brag about, but it was true. Saturday morning cartoons were a big deal for me. I would get up early and grab a big bowl of overly sugared breakfast cereal and settle down in front of the massive console TV in our basement for about 4 hours of formative brainwashing. That means my comedy sense tends to come from Loony Tunes.

Or at least it started with Lo...

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Welcome to you heard it here last where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.

This week is going to be a little different. Ok, it’s going to be a lot different. My partners in crime are all busy I needed to get something up, but in reality, I’m just the voice and they are the brains. It makes news a little one sided.

But what I am good at, is consuming my favorite hobby.

So instead of news you’ve already heard we are goin...