Season 1

April 16, 2021

Season 1 Wrap Up

Well, here we are, 25 episodes later and a whole lot wiser! This is the wrap up and retrospective for season 1 and boy, what a journey it has been. This episode doesn't feature a guest, but instead you can humour me for an ho...
April 9, 2021

Health

CW: In-game, player-character death, injury, harm, sexual identity, allusions to suicide and euthanasia. Player mental health & disorders and physical exhaustion. For this season finale, I'm joined by Cal a.k.a The Baron to t...
April 2, 2021

Fudging

This episode is (unfortunately?) not about the delicious sugary treat, but instead the DM tool of "fudging dice"; changing the outcome of a roll behind the screen. For this discussion, I'm joined by Bart Wynants, a.k.a @crito...
March 26, 2021

Agency

For this insightful episode I am joined by Scott, a.k.a @optionalrule , and we talk about the incredibly important topic of agency. It's a term that gets bandied around a lot, carrying with it an awful lot of weight. In this ...
March 19, 2021

Rules

Oh dear, hopefully we don't make any enemies with this episode all about the rules! Andrew Block and I discuss a range of topics interspersed with luke-warm takes and personal opinions. If that doesn't sell it, I don't know w...
March 12, 2021

Encounters

This meaty episode is all about encounters within your TTRPG game. I'm joined by @XhangoGames and somehow we manage to squeeze an awful lot into a little over an hour! We sandwich mechanical examples for spicing up encounters...
Guest: XhangoGames
March 5, 2021

Acting

For this special [natural] twentieth episode, it's my pleasure to welcome Ben, Darrel, Vicky, Grace, and David from No Small Rolls ( @nosmallrolls ), the amazing actual-play podcast where there are no small rolls ! It's a lau...
Feb. 26, 2021

Improvisation

This episode I'm joined by Daniel, a.k.a @eos_rakonto , and we talk about the fine art of improvisation. Starting with the frankly embarrassing realisation on my part that almost everything that happens in a given game is imp...
Guest: Eos Rakonto
Feb. 19, 2021

Space

A bumper landmark episode, as for the first time I'm joined by two guests! Two-thirds of Tabletop Journeys , Josh and Lewanika, join me to talk all about space within D&D 5e. They share their extensive experience of role play...
Feb. 12, 2021

Archetypes

For this archetypical chat, I'm joined by Adam Gumbert, a.k.a AdamGumby , where we go through a bunch of different stereotypes and styles of play. Even though some archetypes have negative connotations, when managed and viewe...
Feb. 5, 2021

Utilities

In this useful episode I'm joined by Phill, a.k.a Blue Munchkinite , to discuss all the different utilities DMs and players use to help them play and generally increase the quality of their experience. Everything from maps, m...
Jan. 29, 2021

Enhancements

This episode I am joined by the creator of the My Sound Delve mobile app, Christian Borchert, and we talk about all the tricks, tools, and talents used to enhance your gameplay experience. Although we have different approache...
Jan. 22, 2021

Progression

I'm joined once again by my DM confidant and close friend of 20 years, Jamie Mitchell, where we talk all about "Progression". We spend a lot of time talking about the age-old discussion of milestone versus XP. Despite the pro...
Guest: Jamie Mitchel
Jan. 15, 2021

Podcasts

In this meta-episode we find ourselves discussing "Podcasts". I'm joined by Mike Hibbert ( @MikeHDnD ), who has been in the TTRPG and board game space for 40 years, and had 1000 listeners on his first podcast 15 years ago. We...
Jan. 8, 2021

Homebrew

This episode is all about homebrew, and once again we manage to squeeze a surprising amount into a single hour. I'm joined by Kyle Wagner-Totty ( @MrBakudan ), a DMs Guild author with seven published products! If you've ever ...
Jan. 1, 2021

Time

Back on home turf with Tim Hill who plays Ulrik in our actual-play podcast Dungeons, Dice, and Dudes . In this episode we discuss not only the mechanical impact of time in-universe on topics such as split parties, but also al...
Dec. 25, 2020

Structure

The first European episode! Despite the relatively benign sounding topic of "Structure", Ian ( @thefoolishswamidm ) and I discuss many thoughtful and deep topics, such as empathy, care, and responsibility. In this episode you...
Dec. 18, 2020

Macro

This episode I talk about all the big things with Nathan Briggs, my DM from our Dungeons, Dice, and Dudes actual-play podcast. We discuss how Dungeons & Dragons has changed over the years, from "nerds in the basement" to prim...
Dec. 11, 2020

Emotion

Another international episode! I found my "Dungeon Master Friend" in Manny, a.k.a Growed Up Geek , who's enthusiasm is infectious. We cover the gamut from DM loneliness and anxiety, all the way up to eliciting those emotional...
Dec. 4, 2020

Mistakes

"A crazy babble of death and anteaters." My good friend of 20 years, Jamie Mitchell, joins me to talk about all the mistakes we've made on our parallel journey to DM-hood. How these mistakes have shaped us and the mitigation ...
Guest: Jamie Mitchel
Nov. 27, 2020

Happiness

This time I'm joined by Simon Eustace , and this episode is chock full of life lessons; you're going to come out the other side a better human being. Simon brings his four years of experience of playing unique D&D characters,...
Guest: Simon Eustace
Nov. 20, 2020

Roles

The second international episode! I'm joined by Howie, a.k.a the Blue Collar DM , and hooo boy do we hit some big topics. Everything from representing the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, to how to role play earnestly, and stayi...
Nov. 13, 2020

Design

A landmark episode! I'm joined by Karim, a.k.a FeverDreamStudios , and we get real deep into the design of D&D. How it's designed, how to design for it, and ways that PCs and DMs can design around and with each other. Too man...
Nov. 6, 2020

Experience

In this first of a two-parter, Ian Langton and I discuss how the "experience" of Dungeons & Dragons has shifted, not only since earlier editions, but also as the players mature. Ways to get "good" experience, and how differin...
Guest: Ian Langton