Ego Check with The Id DM

Teos Abadia joins me to present his thoughts on visual aids in D&D adventures and how they may not accomplish their intended goals. He offers examples of graphics and flowcharts that do not seem to add helpful information to the DM as they attempt to run an adventure. We discuss player choice and the utility of the *illusion of player choice and how to incorporate both in a campaign. Teos address some common pitfalls in published D&D content and how that might be remedied in the future.

Dr. Katie Gordon joins me to discuss The Suicidal Thoughts Workbook, a fantastic collection of practical tools to reduce suffering, find meaning and increase hope. She talks about her initial interest in suicide research and how that evolved into writing the workbook. She describes how the tone of the book became more conversational with the reader over time and how the text has resonated with clinicians and patients since its release.

We start out 2021 by going in the "sorta-way-back machine" to discuss 4th Edition Dungeons & Dragons with Mark Meredith. He has been writing for Dice Monkey for over 10 years and recently started to rediscover 4e with his family. He talks about surprising aspects of the edition after years away from it. He speaks to the forward-facing design and energy from the tactile nature of combat. We highlight some of our memories of the edition and focus on positive elements of the 4e experience.

Ronen Givony joins me to talk about his latest book, Not For You: Pearl Jam and the Present Tense, which attempts to chronicle and place into context Pearl Jam's career. Ronen talks about his work his relationship to the music industry and how he developed the concept for Not For You. We share origin stories of our Pearl Jam fandom and then enter into a discussion about the structure of Not For You - and the various forces that shaped the band and our experience of them. We close with a discussion on why the band always seems to have memorable shows in Philly. This was a fun episode. Enjoy! 

Matt Forbeck joins me to discuss his career as a an author and game designer. He discusses his world of Dragon City, which has spawned numerous books and the recent tabletop roleplaying game, Shotguns & Sorcery. He speaks to his inspirations for the game and how he wanted to create a new iconic hero in Max Gibson. He details some of his successes as a freelancer over the years and describes why returning to Dragon City was important. Matt explores why racism very much exists in Dragon City and how that is fused into the game system. Matt talks about the reckoning that roleplaying games are having at this time with race and other issues that affect player safety. He offers a glimpse at what is next for Shotguns & Sorcery including a new monster book, a Pathfinder conversion, and other projects.

Kelly Carlin joins me to talk about her life as the daughter of famed comedian, George Carlin. She previously wrote a memoir, A Carlin Home Companion: Growing Up with George, which was published in 2015. She has earned a bachelors degree from UCLA and a masters degree in Jungian Depth Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute. Weaving in her psychological training, Kelly talks about her journey toward finding her own meaning while also managing the weight of her father's legacy. She speaks to basking in his glow as a child and later feel trapped in his shadow as an adult. She explores how we all go through confusion about our self-identity and how she pursued graduate education in psychology to further understand herself and the world around her. She talks about the powerful forces of "shame and greed" that hold us back and how we can overcome that to led meaningful lives.

Tomo Moriwaki talks about his career in videogame design and how his experiences led him to the latest endeavor, Epic Tavern. In Epic Tavern, players are tasked with building up a tavern to cater to adventure needs AND with sending those adventurers on quests. Tomo talks about his goals to design an engaging gameplay loop that encourages players to spend more time with Epic Tavern; it was fascinating to learn about the decisions that are made to create a successful gameplay loop that cultivates that "one more turn" feeling for players! He discusses obstacles to creating a game "like fantasy football for fantasty fantasy" and how the small team has overcome those challenges. Tomo educates me about the logic behind Epic Tavern gameplay, including the encounter system involved in questing.

I'm joined by Stacy King and Andrew Wheeler, two of the minds responsible for the wonderful Dungeons & Dragons Young Adventurer's Guide series. They talk about the latest entry, Wizards & Spells, and detail how they took the vast magical information in D&D and organized that into a clean framework for young readers (and us creaky adults!) to absorb. They talk about the joys of creating new Legendary Characters for the D&D universe and how choices were made to highlight specific spells and magical items. Stacy and Andrew speak about their contributions to all books in the series and explain how the books fit together to form a coherent and warm invitation to all readers to play D&D. They respond to the glowing reception the books have received by an audience ranging in age, and briefly mention plans for the next two books in the series. These books are a treasure for any fan of D&D! 

Keith Ammann joins me to discuss his book, The Monsters Know What They're Doing, which provides highly-detailed tactical guidance for monsters in 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons. He speaks about his interest in strategy games and how that influenced his approach to running gaming sessions. He discusses how to run monsters realistically to further engage players and make their achievement at the table more meaningful. We explore multiple aspects of combats including complexity, difficulty, and morality.

Dr. Connell comes back to Ego Check to talk about the developments in the therapeutic use of Dungeons & Dragons in therapy. She talks about how the game allows players to achieve personal growth through exposure. She offers insights into how to manage an improv-heavy campaign. We talk about balancing a professional life with hobby goals and values, and explore how to navigate the fatigue and burnout that can arise from generating content.

I'm joined by Elizabeth Kilmer (soon-to-be PhD) and Jared Kilmer, PhD this week as they discuss their use of Dungeons & Dragons in clinical settings with military veterans. They present how the therapy gaming groups are structured and the themes that come up during gameplay. They present examples from past sessions including stories of how veterans have processed through challenging emotional content with the help of in-game situations. They talk about their ambitions and plans to gather more data about their therapeutic D&D approach with veterans, and how they might expand this in the future with other populations. 

Dr. Rachel Kowert is a psychologist with years of published research examining the mental health effects of video games. She details how her research has NOT supported a variety of commonly-held and spread myths about video games. She discusses her role as Research Director for Take This, whose mission is to decrease stigma while increasing the support for mental health in the game-enthusiast community and inside the game industry. She talks about her history as a video game player and how she manages her personal use of games and that of her young children. 

Matt is the map designer for Loke Battle Mats, which has been releasing tabletop battle mats for roleplaying games in recent years. Matt talks about the origins for the product line and his inspirations while designing the maps. We discuss how Dungeons & Dragons and other systems have shaped Loke Battle Mats and how terrain has shifted in importance over the years for players. Matt shares his approach to preparing for games including routine use of a Dual-Dungeon Master technique. He shares excellent tips on getting the most out of battle mats and other terrain options!

Matt Dixon talks about his career as a freelance illustrator and his work in digital spaces leading to his work with Blizzard. He talks about starting on the World of Warcraft TCG and how he got hired again for the Goblins & Gnomes expansion in Hearthstone. He has been a contributing artist to Hearthstone since that time and talks about his creative process. He shares his influences and explores how technology has changed the way he approaches illustration. He talks about his need to bring "life" to an image and how he was drawn to computers and pixels at a young age. He speaks about specific illustrations completed for Hearthstone and what fueled their origin. He indulges me as we discuss one of my favorite pieces of art in Hearthstone, Hecklebot, and he references his earlier work on Annoy-o-tron as when Hearthstone "clicked" for him. We conclude by talking about his recent "speed paintings" and his stunning personal work on his series, Transmissions. 

Elisabeth de Kleer is an award-winning documentary producer and director that has experience working in the true crime genre. She has been working for the past two years on the subject of Dungeons & Dragons in prisons, and is attempting to Kickstart a documentary on this subject. She joins me to talk about the inspiration for this project and shares some of the stories from the 100s of inmates and prison personnel that she has interviewed thus far. We also discuss the purpose of prison, and the challenges that exist for reintegrating back into society. I share with her my background as a survivor of a violent crime as my father was shot and killed in the line of duty when I was eight-years-old, and we discuss the murky waters of how society deals with individuals that commit violent crimes after they have served their time in prison. We explore the potential rehabilitative powers of D&D for inmates, and the extraordinary lengths they have gone to play the game while incarcerated.  

Teos Abadia joins Ego Check once again to talk about how wonderfully diverse the tabletop roleplaying game hobby has become in recent years. He details how he got involved in the Acquisitions Incorporated book for Dungeons & Dragons, and speaks to the philosophy behind the unique approach to D&D content. He discusses his hand in refining the final segments of the AI adventure within the book, and how delightful it was to work with the other members of the team on the project.

Jim Zub, writer and creator, joins me this week on Ego Check with The Id DM to talk about the Young Adventurer's Guides for Dungeons & Dragons. The first two books in the series, Warriors & Weapons and Monsters & Creatures, release this month, and I was fortunate to get a preview copy from 10 Speed Press (the same company that published the amazing Art & Arcana: A Visual History).  Jim talks about  his work in comics over the last 20 years that have landed him writing for characters such as Conan, The Avengers, Rick & Morty, and Black Panther. He talks about his long relationship with Dungeons & Dragons that was summarized in a recent Tedx Talk he gave, which I encourage everyone to watch. He discusses the genesis of the Young Adventurer's Guides and how the idea grew from a simple pitch to a multi-book series that may continue to grow.  He talks about why he felt the books needed to be created, and the philosophy behind how the books were designed including why it was important to have new art and a different structure from the typical Player's Handbook and Monster Manual. Jim also discusses his work on the upcoming Descent Into Avernus adventure for Dungeons & Dragons. It was wonderful to speak with him and learn about the creative process behind the Young Adventurer's Guides. I truly believe they are a wonderful entry point for young readers into D&D AND a refreshing source of inspiration for long-time players. Enjoy! 

Grant Ellis joins me to talk about his efforts to create unique livestream tabletop roleplaying game content with a diverse cast of performers. He talks about his game design efforts and how playing and streaming games like D&D are different processes. We spend the vast majority of the show talking about a shared passion, A Knight's Tale - a film that arrived in 2001 and continues to warm our hearts. We talk about why the film persists in our minds and devote attention to the wonderful cast, characters and themes in the film.

Allison Spence joins me to talk about her early career as a journalist that resulted in her diving into a variety of difficult subject matters. She shares her views on the importance of emotional intelligence, and details how her work in journalism led her to start working for Thompson Coburn LLP, where she is current the Senior Marketing Communications Manager. She discusses her work for nearly 400 lawyers at Thompson Coburn LLP, and the challenges of getting a message to "stick" in the crowded, chaotic digital landscape. She offers a variety of suggestions for individuals and organizations that are looking to market and promote themselves, and details how technology has advanced rapidly in recent years to enhance her ability to connect with an audience. 

Jason Massey joins the pod to talk about his start with 4th Edition D&D and how that evolved into a full-time career in creating the actual play podcast, Dungeons & Randomness. He speaks about his enjoyment of 4th Edition, and elements of that system that complicated the creation of podcast content. He reviews how the shift to 5th Edition smoothed the podcasting enterprise, and details how his homebrew campaign setting, Theria, came to exist. He discusses the current Kickstarter campaign for The Adventurer's Guide to Theria, and explains how the book will be useful for those running D&D adventures.  

Dr. Ryan Kelly joins me this week to talk about his work on how to be use geek passions to grow. He is a psychologist and speaks about his work with a variety of clients including those that use videogames in problematic ways. We discuss the potential benefits and consequences of gaming and other hobbies, and offer suggestions for how to find a healthy balance.

Greg Leatherman, founder of VRECast, joins me to talk about his life as a gay man and what it's been like for him playing tabletop RPGs since the 1980s. He details the origins of the Very Random Encounters podcast, which randomizes as much as possible for character creation and storylines. He explains the concept of safe spaces and how his life as a gay man forces him to consider changing his behavior to blend in and decrease the chance of violence. We talk about the lack of male affection in popular media, and he offers a suggestion to listeners to begin to change this culture. Many thanks to Greg for being willing to share his experience and life with us. 

Adam Johns and Adam Davis from Game to Grow join the pod to talk about their years of experience running games for children on the autism spectrum and how their experience was funneled into the Critical Core tabletop roleplaying game. Critical Core is designed to teach children on the autism spectrum confidence and social skills, and it is now live on Kickstarter. Their Kickstarter runs for two more weeks and is knocking off Stretch Goals; the game is for any parent or educator that would like to use a RPG to teach skills to children. And stay tuned until the end of the episode for a bonus song by Dr. Ryan Kelly --- trust me!

Enrique "NewbieDM" Bertran joins Ego Check once again to talk about his new Patreon campaign. I wanted to talk with Enrique to discuss the success of Critical Role and how other intellectual properties might capitalize on that formula. We ponder how Star Wars and Fantasy Flight Games could produce a stellar stream of actual play to highlight their product. I prod Enrique to detail how he would run such a campaign, and his ideas are wonderful; I hope he lets me join as a player.

François Alliot, designer of the Reigns series of games, discusses his Tinder-inspired approach to probabilistic narrative game design. He talks about his quest to find a great "flow" for his games and how he wants to surprise players. We delve into the design of Reigns and ponder how adaptive game design might develop in the future. François shares his influences regarding the focus on emerging narrative games, and he also provides some news about what he is working on next - including a tabletop version of Reigns!

I'm joined by Jana Flesher, a professional nurse midwife who also happens to be both a player and DM in various RPG campaigns I've been involved with over the past three years. She talks about her 10+ years of experience running various RPG systems including Dungeons & Dragons and Dungeon World, and specifically offers tips for running tag-along NPCs and engaging the motivations of player characters. She explains why it's the "GM's job to remind players of their character's backstory" and examines why perceived invulnerability can negatively affect a campaign. She details her professional role as a midwife and speaks to how gaming has increased her ability to cope with any situation her professional work can deal to her. Throughout the episode, we both provide examples of games we share from both ends of the screen, which leads to some great conversation about principles of tabletop role-playing games. Enjoy!

James Haeck, Lead Writer for D&D Beyond and Coauthor of Waterdeep: Dragon Heist and Critical Role's Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting joins the pod to educate me about how Critical Role overlaps with elements of the RPG and D&D landscape - and how it also has carved its own niche. He discussed the evolution of Critical Role and how it only recently became an independent entity outside of Geek & Sundry and Legendary Digital Networks while also clarifying my prior misconceptions about Critical Role being "under" Wizards of the Coast and Hasbro. James and I ponder what Critical Role's success may mean for tabletop RPGs and empathize with individuals that may question the money that is being raised. I disclose my initial interest and envy from the success, and we both discuss the perils of focusing on the successes and failures of others while trying to create content. I thank James for delving into these questions, and we both acknowledge our lack of adequate solutions for these dilemmas. I shift gears with James to ask about how he got involved in Waterdeep: Dragon Heist, and prod him for suggestions on how to get the most out of the content provided in the book. I selfishly wanted this information as my group my find their way into an urban setting soon! This is a worthy conversation, and I hope you give it a listen!

Marc Allie joins me to talk about his history of "being geeky when geeky wasn't cool." He talks about his early memories of playing Dungeons & Dragons and how he jumped into the online community with his blog, The Learning DM, during the 4th Edition era. We spend some time remembering fondly elements of 4e D&D and talk about the transition to 5th Edition. Marc and I spend a good portion of the show talking about our shared enjoyment of Transformers, which hit us both in our formative year in the mid-80s. We talk about why Transformers persists while other franchises from that era have fallen in terms of greater public consciousness. He details his efforts to write a haiku for each episode of the original animated series, and we discuss our enjoyment (or lack thereof) of the Transformer films in recent years. We both agree that Bumblebee is wonderful, and hope the future is bright for additional films that will come from Bumblebee's creative team. Enjoy our stroll down the space bridge memory lane! 

Ed Grabianowski (aka, "The Grabster") joins me on the show to talk about his career as a freelance writer for outlets over the years including io9 and How Stuff Works. He speaks to his start as a writer for a local newspaper in Buffalo and how that led to other writing opportunities as he continues to work on a novel. He discusses the pressures involved in producing content for an online audience that is bombarded with an endless stream of content. Ed also talks about his musical project, Spacelord. Ed performs vocals for the band, and he details their journey in the independent rock scene. While Ed provides details about Spacelord's influences, a few samples of their music are including to give listeners a taste of their sound. The band is GOOD, and you should give them a listen! Ed shares a hilarious story about the cover art for the latest Spacelord album, and we close the show by rehashing our efforts in 2016 to narrow down to the best 12 songs from the Use Your Illusion albums by Guns N' Roses. If you haven't read our takes on this, then go do that now. 

I'm joined this week by Jase Nolan, also known as CinderAscendant on Twitter and Twitch. Jase talks about his style of preparing and running Dungeons & Dragons sessions. He shares how he got started casting Hearthstone matches, and how the skills learned in "Talkstone" help him narrate elements of a D&D session. He speaks to sources of potential burnout as a DM and highlights the need for DMs to know the adventure and setting they are running. He offers some of his tips and tricks for running effective sessions, and then we conclude the talk by discussing the Hearthstone community including how Jase has felt welcome as an openly queer individual.

Kevin Hovdestad joins the pod to educate me about his years of work in the realm of Esports. He talks about his years of experience as a freelance journalist writing about Esports and how that led to career opportunities as a Director of Market for Catalyst Esports Solutions and most recently an Associate Editor with Blizzard Entertainment. He discusses the rise of Esports in recent years, and the potential bubble in the industry. He offers solutions for some of what ails Esports such as the need for a "Netflix for Esports" and finding ways for more people to easily consume and pay for Esports content. We discuss how games are now designed to be an ongoing service rather than a stable experience in addition to the ever-shifting landscape of Esports, and how the relationships between developers, players, sponsors and promoters is complex. 

I'm joined this week by Kyle Newman, one of the authors of Dungeons & Dragons Art & Arcana: A Visual History. You may also know Kyle as the Director of Fanboys (2009) and Barely Lethal (2015). Kyle talked with me about the genesis of Art & Arcana and how the four authors came together on the project. He discusses how the book was originally organized and plotted out by the creative team, and how they navigated the balance between dissecting and celebrating the nostalgia of Dungeons & Dragons. I asked Kyle how mining nostalgia has been different in the Star Wars and D&D fandoms over the years. We focus on the segment of D&D history that covered 3.5, 4th and 5th Editions, and emphasis that we both enjoyed what 4th Edition had to offer. He clarified that he wrote most of the chapter on 4th Edition, and we discuss the community's relationship with that era of D&D and how it led to the current 5th Edition. I asked him about the past two years of his archaeological delve into D&D's history to learn where he thinks D&D will go next. Tune in for the full context of his comment, "There will be a 6th Edition." 

I am joined this week by Elizabeth Roithmayr-Clemens, the New Jersey Area Director for American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP). She shares her experience organizing community activities and advocating for greater suicide awareness and education. She speaks about losing a family member to suicide when she was 14 years-old and losing a friend to suicide more recently in 2013. Elizabeth describes her work for AFSP, and highlights how donations to the non-profit organization are used to educate the public, advocate for better policy, support survivors, and fund additional research on suicide. We discuss our ideas for reducing the stigma about mental health services, and increasing the likelihood that people will be willing to talk openly about mental health symptoms. 

I'm joined this week by Steve Lubitz, host of the Off Curve podcast, a show about Hearthstone that Steve records while driving home from his job. He talked about the creation of Off Curve and how he has been a fan of Blizzard games since the original Diablo. He shares his thoughts on the differences between Hearthstone and other card games such as Magic: The Gathering.  We talk about the shifting Hearthstone meta, and how resources like Vicious Syndicate and Hearthstone Replay have changed the game for both the players and developers. Steve highlights some of the current challenges in Hearthstone including the lack of tournament mode and engaging end-game content for veteran players. We explore some ideas for how to keep the meta fresh, and answer a listener question about the possible mechanics that could be added to improve the game.

I'm joined by Danny Rupp, co-founder of Critical Hits. I'm joined this week by Danny Rupp, co-founder of Critical Hits and a very active participant on social media discussing Dungeons & Dragons and other roleplaying games. Danny talks about the origin of Critical Hits and how it gained increased prominence in the early days of 4th Edition. We spend a good deal of time on his approach to worldbuilding and how his background in architecture helps him design dungeon and story elements for his gaming sessions. We discuss player management at the table, such as how to ensure that efforts spent by the DM to create an interesting world and plot connect with the motivations of the players and their characters in the game. We answer a listener question about worldbuilding and offer strategies to help DMs efficiently build his or her world while pulling the players into the setting.  Since we recorded on World Mental Health Day, Danny and I also talk about mental health issues and how they might affect gameplay at the table. We provide examples of how players bring everything to the table each game, including possible stress, anxiety, depression and suffering. We offer advice on how to be patient with players and cultivate an environment of trust for players to support each other. 

This week I'm joined by Aaron Retka, Managing Editor for Geeks Who Drink. For the uninitiated, Geeks Who Drink is "a homegrown Pub Trivia Quiz modeled after those in Ireland and the UK" that covers "everything from celebrities in trouble to wordplay to bad television." The quizzes are held in bars and breweries across the country, and Aaron spoke with me about how much effort goes into crafting each and every question. Aaron speaks about how he got started with Geeks Who Drink in 2006 as a freelancer, and how that evolved into his current role as Managing Editor. He discussed the elements that make a pub quiz good and relayed that the primary purpose of the quiz is to keep people entertained, "We want people to get the question right." He shares some tales about his years of being a Quizmaster, including some stories about dealing with unruly patrons and dressing up as Dolores Umbridge for a Harry Potter Theme Quiz.  I inquired about the growing popularity of pub quizzes, and how it might intersect with the toxic side of fandoms. Aaron provides some frank commentary on gatekeeping in any given fandom, and how the motivation of Geeks Who Drink is to be inclusive to a wide variety of players and fans.   I should also note that Aaron is family; I married his cousin in 2004! He's a wonderfully smart guy that is gainfully employed creating pub quizzes. I mean, how cool is that?

I'm joined by Eric Roth, a veteran of tabletop games such as Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering. Eric talks about growing up with a physical disablity that limits his mobility and kept him from traditional activitives such as sports growing up. Eric talks about being introduced to tabletop games approximately 18 years ago, and how those games have improved his social skills and given him confidence. He talks about the close relationship with his father and how the gaming community has welcomed him and provided "a healthy escape" for him over the years. He provides suggestions for other players when interacting with an individual with disabilities at a table - such as providing additional space and being welcoming and patient with those players. Eric closes the episode by talking about the upcoming Ravnica setting for D&D, and his eagerness to combine Magic: The Gathering with Dungeons & Dragons.

I was fortunate to moderate a panel with licensed mental health providers about the World Health Organization's (WHO) decision to classify Gaming Disorder as a mental health diagnosis. I'm joined by Adam Johns, LMFT, Megan Connell, PsyD, Ryan Kelly, PhD, and Anthony Bean, PhD. We start the conversation by discussing possible benefits of the WHO's decision to list Gaming Disorder as a diagnosis. The panel shifts to talking about elements of videogames that could be problematic or foster addictive behaviors, and then discusses the various functions that videogames serve including entertainment, stress relief, and social connection. The conversation concludes with an exploration of how we should all monitor and manage our time with videogames including possible warning signs that too much time and energy is being devoted to videogames. 

A special episode this week as I welcome Andy Hand from Limitless Adventures, which offers quality gaming products for 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons. Andy talks about the history of Limitless Adventures, and we discuss how we collaborated to create a new book, No Assembly Required. The book is available for purchase now, and the full cost of $5 will go directly to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. We discuss the motivations for donating the sales of the book to charity, and I share my story about my brother's suicide last year. We explore the challenges of converting 4th Edition monsters to 5th Edition and highlight some of our favorite monsters from No Assembly Required including the Dragonborn Pirate, Sliver, a multi-stage Construct, Wobet, and a legendary Ghost Dragon with multiple tricks to unleash on an adventuring party. Andy ends the show by talking about the final days of Limitless Adventures' latest Kickstarter campaign, which is titled 5th Evolution and features content to support 5th Edition game in three modern settings - World War II, 80's Horror, and Superhero adventures. 

Mike Shea joins the show once again to talk about the changing dynamics of tabletop roleplaying games. He explores how technology like streaming has advanced the hobby and spread its growth. We discuss the possible differences between what makes an excellent game to watch through streaming, and what makes an excellent game to play in with friends. He details his reasoning for launching his latest Kickstarter for Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master, and explains the purpose of its content. He emphasizes the importance of game masters focusing on the player characters in the game, and how that is now his first step during preparation for any gaming session. He offers advice for how to maintain a consistent, weekly gaming session while managing a rotating cast of players at the table.

Tom Eastman, President of Trinket Studios, joins me to talk about their new release, Battle Chef Brigade, which is now available on Steam and Nintendo Switch. Tom talks about the four-year development process for Battle Chef Brigade, and the challenges his team faced as an small independent company. He discusses the perils of marketing the game while fighting obscurity, and how Trinket Studios partnered with Adult Swim Games. Tom details how Battle Chef Brigade went through a rollercoaster in terms of scope and gameplay variations, and how they arrived at the current combination of mechanics and features. He answers my numerous questions about the design of the game, including how players are rewarded - rather than punished - for playing the game. We also get into the logistics of art design and voice acting. Tom concludes by talking about the mental toll of working on such a project and releasing it into the wild. If you have played Battle Chef Brigade or are simply interested in how games are developed, then this podcast is a must listen! And if you have yet to experience Battle Chef Brigade, go buy the game! It is an amazing experience that I am loving.   

Cedric (@cedflanders) joins me from the Hearthstone Championship Tour in Amsterdam to offer a live report on the tournament. He details his experience at the event, and how he collected autographs from professional players and members of the Hearthstone team on his iPad throughout the weekend. We delve into competitive play and his thoughts on how tournaments could be improved to allow a wider variety of player skill to shine. We discuss his expertise in Arena as he speaks about his efforts to appear in the list of top Arena players in the world for the month. He offers advice on how to string together successful Arena runs from understanding the current meta, drafting cards, and playing aggressively. 

Deven joins me to discuss her art, approach to cartography, and her interactions with the roleplaying game community. She talks about being introduced to Dungeons & Dragons at the age of 14 and the importance of finding a hobby and community that felt comfortable. She details her visual impairment, and how that has influenced her personal and professional life. She discusses how she transitioned from painting to woodburning to illustration in recent years, and how she drew the attention of the larger roleplaying game community. Deven talks about the initial pressures of interacting with fans, and how that has subsided over time. She closes by talking about her efforts to monetize her talents including how recent proposed changes to Patreon caused her to adjust her process. Enjoy the last episode of 2017! 

Greg joins me this week to discuss his career path before joining Wizards of the Coast in 2015, and details his roles and responsibilities as Senior Communications Manager for Dungeons & Dragons. He talks about his love of tabletop roleplaying games, and provides a compelling answer to the question, "What is D&D?" Greg discusses how D&D is built by a lean staff of approximately 25 individuals, and how many of those individuals have long tenures on the product and with each other. He speaks about the growth of streaming and video delivery services, which has allowed the tabletop hobby to expand into newer audiences in recent years. He briefly reviews some internal data that shows the average fan of D&D is skewing younger and more diverse, and he explores how Wizards of the Coast can continue to increase outreach and representation to broaden the fanbase. 

I'm joined this week by Dr. Megan Connell, a licensed psychologist who is currently using Dungeons & Dragons in two therapy groups to teach children social skills and empowerment. She speaks about motivations for pursuing a career in psychology, including her decision to join the military after the events of 9/11. Dr. Connell provides her insights into how dungeon mastering is essentially "people management," and how DMs can use specific skills to improve gameplay for all involved. She covers how important it is to talk with your players to establish ground rules and resolve potential conflicts. She details her use of a Session 0 for all new campaigns to accomplish these goals. We review how mental health symptoms can manifest for players at the table, and present some strategies on how to address these situations. She talks about her Psychology and D&D video series featured on YouTube and her stream, Clinical Roll, which features numerous mental health professionals playing Dungeons & Dragons. 

Jerry, known as The Dread Gazebo, talks about his views on the changing climate around tabletop and vidoegaming this decade. He speaks the lifespan of gaming blogs and the rise of streaming. He details his enjoyment of Shadow of the Demon Lord, and answers questions regarding gameplay. Jerry presents his thoughts on streaming culture, and how it often turns into a toxic environment. We explore the social contract of playing games like Dungeons & Dragons, and long for briefer gameplay experiences. We close the show by discussing the unique aspects of forming close bonds with others online because of gaming, and how those bonds can shift when we actually meet each other in person.

Duane has been cultivating Hammer Gaming, a community for like-minded players who wish to avoid the toxicity that is often found in online games. He speaks about consulting with other gamemasters like myself, and we talk through an example of how we collaborated to flesh out various characters in my Dungeons & Dragons campaign. Duane delves into his experiences as a person of color playing video- and tabletop games, and the obstacles he has encountered over the years while trying to engage with the hobby. He offers advice for other players and content creators to make gaming a safer space for a wider audience. He details how Hammer Gaming came to be created, and how it has evolved from a World of Warcraft guild to a vibrant community of 40-50 friendly gamers. We close the show by talking about Destiny 2, and he tries to convince me to dive in when it releases for PC.

Listen to Enrique Bertran, better known as NewbieDM, discuss the evolving Dungeons & Dragons landscape during the past 10 years. He shares his insights about how roleplaying games continue to get closer to "mainstream" status, and how 5th Edition D&D is a good system. We spend time reviewing D&D's latest adventure, Tomb of Annihilation, which Enrique says "is 5th Edition running on all cylinders" and "the best adventure Wizards of the Coast has put out... since at least 2008." He delves into the specifics of the adventure - without too many spoilers - and offers Dungeon Masters advice on how to run the game a bit differently than published to enhance the experience of the players. He speaks about the benefits for using online tools such as D&D Beyond and Roll20 to run his gaming sessions, and talks about his desire for official adventure content from Wizards to be briefer. He concludes with thoughts on a possible future project geared toward a roleplaying game for children. 

I'm joined by Jeff Chin, Co-Founder of Road to Infamy Games, and he speaks about lessons learned from successfully launching two prior games through Kickstarter. He details Road to Infamy's latest Kickstarter campaign, Bowties: The Dapper Drinking Game. Jeff talks about his inspiration for the game and the development process for taking the game from initial conception to playtesting and hopefully manufacturing. We discuss social behavior as it relates to consuming alcohol in public spaces - and playtesting games. He answers questions about the possible competition with other Kickstarter campaigns, and how he has embraced collaboration with other creators.

I'm joined by Ohad Zach (ZachO), General Manager of Vicious Syndicate and writer of the weekly Data Reaper Report, which provides comprehensive statistical analysis for Hearthstone. He spoke about his fandom of Blizzard games and joining forces with Vicious Syndicate to create a new type of meta report for Hearthstone. He discusses the initial concept for the Data Reaper Report, and how the report has improved since it launched in May 2016. He speaks to how the accurate data analysis in the reports have altered the Hearthstone landscape - from how tournament matches are called by casters to how the meta adapts and settles after a new expansion release. At various times throughout the interview, Ohad responds to my anecdotal perceptions of current Hearthstone gameplay with analysis based on tens of thousands of game results. For example, he details how the current Hearthstone meta is perhaps the healthiest it has ever been, why the Warlock class is in such a bad state at the moment, why Pirate Warrior in Wild is not as strong as people may think, and how Crystal Rogue shapes the Standard experience.  He talks about the latest addition to Vicious Syndicate, the Wild Data Reaper Report, which provides a similar type of statistical analysis to the Wild format. And we explore the casual and competitive allure of Hearthstone in addition to how Vicious Syndicate overlaps at times with Blizzard staff, streamers, professional players, and a thriving online community.

I'm joined this week by Katrina Ostrander, Fiction Editor for Fantasy Flight Games Fiction and Story Team Member for Fantasy Flight Games. She talks about her early experiences in gaming, which were mostly comprised of play-by-post games. She speaks about the benefits of her play-by-post games, and how she started to play in tabletop sessions. Katrina describes her experiences playing in gaming groups comprised of all-men and all-women, and how those groups tend to approach RPGs in different ways. She discusses her method for running quality games that engage player emotions, and offers advice for how to deal with the anxiety that comes with the duties of gamemastering. She details her roles over the years with Fantasy Flight Games, including her work on highly-scrutinized intellectual properties such as Star Wars and Legend of the Five Rings. She closes the interview by discussing potential future projects, including designing a game that would connect with the younger version of herself.