News: We’re remastering classic actual play episodes of RPPR! If you want to listen to Lady Gaga 2.0 with improved audio quality, download the episode here. If you want to pick which classic episodes are edited, back the RPPR Patreon before September 6. We’re running a special offer and I’ll be adding more rewards to the offer during this time. If the special offer does well, I’ll start remastering a lot of our episodes, including campaigns like Know Evil. Learn more on our Patreon post.

Listen to a clip of the original podcast with the remastered version here.

Synopsis: Gaming with the same people for years has its advantages and disadvantages. Aaron, Tom, and I discuss the differences between playing with regular friends versus new players. We also talk about how to avoid getting stale in long term game groups and how to add new players into groups.

Shout outs

  • The Empty Man: a horror film about a sinister cult and the power of the tulpa.
  • Patron: a new city builder video game
  • Green Knight: A new movie about the Arthurian poem Gawain and the Green Knight
  • Godzilla Singular Point: a Netflix anime series about Godzilla and it’s pretty great
  • Cooking Simulator: a video game about cooking
  • Faust: An amazing surreal re-telling of the Marlowe play. Directed by the legendary Jan Švankmajer
  • Caveat: An Irish thriller about a man trapped in a strange house with a stranger woman
  • No End House: Season 2 of Channel Zero, an excellent horror TV series. Architectural horror!

Song: No Rave Shit by 2 Mello

Cool villains are hard to pull off in RPGs, mainly because players tend to kill them as soon as possible. Aron, Tom, and I got together to talk about how to make villains more memorable in games. Perhaps they can’t be killed easily or come back after death (thanks raise dead spells!) or killing them won’t stop the plan. I also talk about some ideas for future Base Raiders projects!

Shout Outs

Music: Boss Fight, Title, and End from Night in the Woods OST Volume 3

News: We have a new series on the RPPR Patreon called Mashup Mayhem. We take different things and mash them together to make RPGs. Our latest episode merges the AvP franchise with the Cthulhu mythos.

In tabletop RPG industry news, a game designer, Zak Smith, has been accused of sexual assault and abuse by four women, including his former partner, Mandy Morbid. I believe them. He has been banned from Gen Con. Please do not buy any of his books. Much more information can be found here.

Synopsis: Railroading is a problem for the table. Whether it’s the GM railroading the players or a player railroading the rest of the table by refusing to engage with the premise, it makes the game not as fun as it could be. Bill, David, and I join with special guest Rob from the Orpheus Protocol to talk about railroading. Be sure to check out the same page tool and the X card.

Shout Outs

Song: Breakway by Starfarer