Fear the Boot, RPG Podcast

* (0:29) White whales. * (2:09) What do you want to run but have never had the chance to? * (10:17) What do you want to play but have never had the chance to? * (18:14) What do you want to get published but never have? * (27:07) A big thanks to Chris Torres. * (30:06) How the lack of attention given to Amelie in the Skies of Glass AP led Dan to develop her more. * (43:14) Inverting the formula and letting player non-reactions create content. Hosts: Brodeur, Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:30) The Skies of Glass actual play is now public, and Lookout Radio has gone live. * (1:59) Some restructuring of our Patreon. A live-streaming actual play game is coming soon. * (4:47) Brodeur picks Gunslinger for a gestalt game, gets handed a pre-made. * (13:49) Developing as a Game Master by trying new things. Knowing when to fold ’em. Post-game feedback, and the vital nature of honest communication. * (23:48) Singing! Appealing to other senses and kinds of creativity. * (32:53) Elves and Dwarfs with John. [The Editor violently salivates at the thought of an actual Dwarf Fortress game and violently objects to any characterization of dwarfs inconsistent with Dwarf Fortress.] Hosts: Brodeur, Chad, Chris, Dan, John

* (0:33) Chad fired Brodeur, Dan is the head of HR, Broflake pending. * (6:26) Fear the Con X, post-con. Special thanks to Adam, Bob, and Derek. Also thanks to Beth, Julia, our Kickstarter backers, and everyone who attended. Derek’s beard. * (10:23) Some gaming advice that Dan learned at FTC: Hiring an agent of chaos. Over the berm, where Pat kills us all. * (17:10) Inspecting the Broflake. Brodeur’s reaction to ghosts. * (23:49) Chad’s topic: Darkenship. Nobody gets Dan’s jokes. * (27:39) Technical expertise and real-world knowledge when running a game. * (32:38) Never weaponize the information. Instead, use it as seasoning. Mr. Robot. For anyone not familiar, PerfMon is performance monitor. * (40:46) Weaving the information into the narrative. * (44:07) Pat getting possessed by Ted Kennedy. * (48:05) A quick round-robin of best games from the con. Hosts: Brodeur, Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (1:03) Brodeur was in a frat. He didn’t get paddled, strangely. * (2:51) Ending an ongoing campaign arc. * (8:52) The nature of the ending. What do the players actually want closure on? * (11:48) Pre-planning the beginning and end, even if the middle is unknown. * (23:03) Roleplaying games and the constant feedback loop with its consumer. * (31:03) Querying the players about the type of ending they want. * (35:32) Seek Chad. Hosts: Brodeur, Chad, Dan, Julia

* (0:34) After years of dodging anime, Dan falls in love with One Punch Man. Bill Burr give his take on the show (FAIR WARNING: NSFW language). Antonin Dvorak’s New World Symphony. * (8:01) Two things that could have messed up the feel of One Punch Man. * (16:47) Putting other anime on the table. * (18:06) Fear the Con X coming up on June 22nd – 24th! * (19:18) We’re attempting an actual player series that we’re marketing-testing on Patreon. Audience input is currently being taken here. * (25:04) The idiosyncrasies of Fantasy Flight’s Star Wars game. * (33:28) Willingness to take on complex games. What’s changed and why. * (43:51) A change in the gaming zeitgeist. * (46:14) Adding a third axis to the chart. * (53:56) The Gwent League. Five minutes of Chad’s “no index rage” noise. Dan’s dance remix of Chad’s noise. Hosts: Brodeur, Chad, Dan

* (0:24) Dan’s top three card games in a video game. Chad loses it for Gwent. You can sign up for the Fear the Boot Gwent league on the forums. * (9:28) Entertainment that sounds awful in concept but works well in execution. Persona 5. * (15:00) Gotham. * (22:04) Dredd. * (29:38) Kung Fury. * (29:57) Deconstructing execution of an idea, starting with honesty about what the material is. * (46:51) Trust and open-mindedness when the elevator pitch sounds awful. Hosts: Aisha, Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:29) Brodeur helps organize Geekway to the West. Vast: The Crystal Caverns, Twilight Struggle, and Battlestar Galactica. * (10:00) Fear the Con X. Charlie talks about Secret Hitler. * (11:59) Not caring what people think. Surviving Comic-Con. Pat meets Dr. Who. * (25:22) ‘Mechs, lantern rings, symbiotes, and the power-trading agreements among the hosts. * (30:15) The atmosphere of sports events. * (32:32) Keeping the current Skies of Glass game from becoming Star Trek. * (41:27) Defining the obvious trappings of a game and subverting them. Hosts: Brodeur, Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:40) A bunch of charity updates! Derek’s charity games (low level, mid level, and high level tiers). Pat’s GoFundMe page. Manicorn work provided by the Mitch STL salon. * (6:10) Explaining what a perk or bennie represents before it’s used. * (8:33) Deconstructing the Red Shirt. Creating emotional ante. * (12:23) Seizing narrative control. The goal: Make it descriptive. Tying it to traits instead of people. * (16:29) Making changes in the narrative to create consistency and plausibility. * (20:49) The Game Master getting a read on the players by watching how they interpret their re-rolls. * (29:29) Turning the named bennies into an in-character economy. * (32:50) Dry-erase table tents and other table props. Who do I have to be? Hosts: Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:28) Chad and Wayne are AWOL. * (1:20) Dan learns a whole lot about Fritz Tornow and Hitler’s dogs. * (4:03) Following up on Brodeur’s lack of combat in his game. * (5:53) Brodeur does everything wrong, but it works. * (9:22) Starting with the party asleep and fully divided. * (13:44) Mid-scene cliffhangers and spotlight bouncing for about two-and-a-half hours. * (21:14) The pacing of the game versus the dosing of the campaign. * (26:54) Let’s talk about that Bard-Warlock-Paladin. * (32:08) The epilogue and what Brodeur took away from it all. * (36:27) Players that are excited about each other’s characters as much as their own. * (39:25) The more you put into your character, the more you get out of the game. Hosts: Brodeur, Dan

* (0:27) Catching up on episodes and experimenting with a Skies of Glass actual play. * (2:51) A listener, Steve, asks about keeping characters engaged when their specialty isn’t of any use in a particular scene. * (7:06) Asking how the characters got in this position. * (10:11) Game Master tweaking of the player characters to give them some options. * (12:18) Adjusting the rules so people can contribute when they normally couldn’t. * (14:50) Not letting a scene linger too long. * (16:02) Complicating the scenario to give everyone something to do. * (19:32) Checking your planned scenes to make sure all of the characters can get involved. Hosts: Dan

* (0:23) Some more details on Derek’s charity games (low level, mid level, and high level tiers). * (3:04) Time to go bonus episode! The FAST test for stroke. * (5:10) Customers beat down Brodeur, illustrating the reason Dan became a programmer. * (11:26) Chad loves the customers. Or at least doesn’t hate them. Dan and Wayne just don’t generally get angry. * (22:56) A reality that doesn’t work for anyone involved. Wayne puts himself in high pressure sales vs Dan’s tactic for coping with them. Elmo’s work ethic. * (31:59) Chad gets threatened over a stranger’s girlfriend. * (45:29) Bottle it up for later. * (49:30) The GoFundMe page to help Pat and Beth with medical costs. His status updates on Caring Bridge. Hosts: Brodeur, Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (0:29) Why Brodeur is scared of Aisha. * (2:49) Some new information on Fear the Con X. Derek’s charity game (low level, mid level, and high level tiers). Booters and Shooters. Email Adam Gottfried if you’re interested in pre-con tourism. * (10:17) Chad’s anger. * (13:00) Games with too much RP and not enough combat. * (15:52) Combat that makes sense within the context of the game. * (20:37) Reasons combat can be important to the catharsis of an RPG. * (26:18) The tyranny of choice by which players opt out of combat they ostensibly want. The tyranny of moral complexity by which Game Masters strip combat of its catharsis. * (33:48) Zombie stories as an example of moral simplicity. * (38:38) Ma Carver as a counter-example. * (45:56) Why Brodeur’s players opt not to fight. The limiting factor of time. The three round limit. Hosts: Brodeur, Chad, Dan, Wayne

* (1:43) Introducing our topic from Lars-Hendrik: Groups that have been abused by their GM. * (4:10) Knowing about the problems prior to the first game versus finding out when the game is in progress. * (8:00) Mending trust through transparency, patience, and consistency. * (12:22) Intentionally making mistakes. Rolling above the board. * (16:12) The bad behaviors we learn when coping with negative people. * (22:57) Eric’s road to recovery. Realigning your view of the game. Cheating for the players and making deals. * (35:04) Picking the right game for a battered group. * (38:23) Handing off the GM seat. Hosts: Brodeur, Chad, Dan, Eric

* (0:28) Welcoming Zach. * (0:47) Brodeur gets on Facebook and buys a cell phone. * (17:55) Brodeur talks to the kids in a class about game design. After an introduction, they break up into small groups to play some RPGs. * (20:47) How far society has come in its acceptance of roleplaying games. * (26:54) Kids running games for other kids and adults. * (30:45) The variety of games the students had been exposed to. Aisha’s Emerald City Comic Con coverage. * (44:47) Tearable by Third Act, Ten Candles by Cavalry Games, and other RPGs being played at the school. Hosts: Brodeur, Dan, Zach

* (0:29) Welcoming Eric. What attracted Karla to Dan. * (3:28) Tabletop roleplaying games as a spectator sport. The showmanship of the Game Master. * (10:59) The most interesting games as a distraction. * (13:00) The attributes of a good GM that also make for a good public performance. * (19:20) Turning a spectator into a part of the game. * (21:40) Actual Play recordings and the two extreme editing models. * (29:36) How running an AP affected Eric’s regular gaming. The self-awareness created by self-editing. * (34:21) A regular gamer recording their own games. * (46:32) Feedback from an Actual Play, walk-on music, and essay writing classes. Hosts: Brodeur, Dan, Eric, Karla