Play to Find Out

On 10/21/2018 we'll be concluding our three-part Legacy Weapon Actual play. Tune in at 1:00pm Eastern Time at Twitch.tv/ArtProjects Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art. Come join the conversation on Discord!

Daniel Sell, author of Troika and head of the Melsonian Arts Council joins the show to discuss what he thinks about when designing (and playing) tabletop games. Relevant links: Character Sheets by Jim Magnusson, commissioned by Christopher Mennell and shared on G+ Melsonian Arts Shop Melsonia Discord Server Troikan Bumble-Logic on Daniel's Blog Mavira the Magnificent's Mega Mart Doomhammer 1e Doomhammer 2e Palace of Tigers Troika Desert Backgrounds Troika Community on Google+ Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art. Come join the conversation on Discord!

This week, we talk items! We talk loot! We talk tone! And we savor the gingery spice of life! Relevant links: Dungeon World new item tags (Adam Koebel) The Dragon Prince Discern Realities Annual (source for several of the items) Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art. Come join the conversation on Discord!

Undead monsters have gotten stale. How do we spice them up a bit and bring them back to the spotlight for a modern, discerning player-base? This, and more, on Play to Find Out. Relevant links: Undead Legions The Dungeon World Kickstarter Planarch Codex Begging in Paradise Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art. Come join the conversation on Discord!

When we want to change the core ways in which Dungeon World behaves, what do we need to do to preserve the spirit of the game? How do we steal great ideas from other games? What should the open road feel like at the table? All this, and more, on Play to Find Out. Relevant links: Silent Titans Ultraviolet Grasslands Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art. Come join the conversation on Discord!

How do we keep our unique settings from losing touch with our players? How do we keep our table comfortable and positive? What's the weather going to be next week? All this, and more, on Play to Find Out. Relevant links: Dragon Whelp Six Dimensional Weather Ultraviolet Grasslands Gauntlet Con A Special Character Sheet Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art. Come join the conversation on Discord!

How do we tackle high-quality characterization in our games? What does it look like to prep an NPC? How do we leverage archetypes and tropes in new ways? Why do the hosts keep on talking about flavor? All this, and more, on Play to Find Out. Relevant links: Deep Carbon Observatory Temple of the Moon Priests The Sky-Blind Spire The Lenses of Heaven Food Related NPC's from Dungeon Rations Shadowrun Hong Kong Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art. Come join the conversation on Discord!

Sometimes, it's nice to let the dice do the talking. We should be cautious, however, that they not say too much. Relevant links: Troika! DW Improv Into the Odd Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art. Come join the conversation on Discord!

Tired of GM's getting in the way of your fun? Tired of traveling the darkest depths of the world without horrific mutant dwarves antagonizing your party? Then this is the episode for you! Relevant links: Derro Microscope Downfall Noir World The Quiet Year Fall of Magic Follow Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art. Come join the conversation on Discord!

This week, we debut Adventure Workshop: Menagerie, and discuss Player Skill and Character Skill during Meta Talk. Relevant links: Otyugh Goblins webcomic A Red and Pleasant Land (review) Memento (IMDB) Decktet Whispering Deck (Decktet for Dungeon World) How to play Othello Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art. Come join the conversation on Discord!

We return to the wilds of twitch for the second time, braving a live audience and technical difficulties to answer your questions and follow Willem Wellmet's continuing adventures. Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

Dungeon World's Last Breath move is one of the most fraught rolls any table is likely to come across. Arthur and Eamon discuss this move, and others, on Play to Find Out. Don't forget! On July 3rd, we'll be putting on the second Play to Find Out Live Call-In show. We're expecting to get started around 8:30 PM EST. Relevant links: Disembodied Fear (highlight from A Woman With Hollow Eyes) Aid or Interfere on Last Breath? Grim World Discern Realities Annual Joe Banner on Love Letters Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

Today, we discuss the fighter, and then chat about how to signal threats. Relevant links: One Shot World Sixteen HP Dragon The Hoard Scene Plundergrounds Issue 3: The Hoard Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

In the second zine-style episode, Arthur and Eamon pitch each other on dangers at all scales. Campaign fronts, defy danger triggers, monsters, and more on this episode of Play to Find Out. Relevant links: Escape the Oubliette by Glynn Seal Michael Crichton Books Monsterhearts RPG (emotional danger) KSBD (mimic door trap) Tarrasque City sound hole (A Woman With Hollow Eyes) Raven Queen Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

How do we sustain our campaigns? What tools do we use? What habits should we avoid? Arthur and Eamon discuss. Relevant links: The Play to Find Out Spell Contest on Twitter Mini Settings Froblins Void's Rite of Rivening Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

When we play combat scenarios in our game, the scenes often fall on a spectrum. On one side, we have the sporty style of play, where encounters are balanced and the PC's can think on their feet and improvise. On the other side, we have a more war-minded approach, in which victory is earned by meticulous planning and through unflinching, ruthless tactics. Today, Eamon and Arthur discuss some of the ways this spectrum appears in Dungeon World, and the simple ways to embrace both ends. If you want to hear a bit more about combat as sport vs war, check out the excellent video from Web DM linked below! Relevant links: Combat as War or Sport? By Web DM (great video that inspired a lot of this conversation) Into the Odd by Chris McDowall (check out the sidebar of this blog for links to paid and free version) Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

It's so easy to fall into a rut. Unoriginal PC's, uninspired monsters, or game mechanics repeated over and over and over kill player fun and can stop a campaign dead in its tracks. Today, Arthur and Eamon try to help shake things up. Relevant links: Vornheim, the Complete City Kit Tucker's Kobolds Rethinking the Ettin Shadow of Mordor's Nemesis System The Book of Plundered Pages Crossword Spell Research Bingo NPC Interactions Technoir Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

Sometimes, the players aren't the only party in a game. From balls to festivals, town fairs to town hall debates, social encounters appear throughout our games - so how do we handle them? Arthur and Eamon discuss. Relevant links: Jeremy Strandberg's Revised Parley Blades in the Dark Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

With Willem Well-Met and the Actual Play episode on their minds, Arthur and Eamon discuss Bards. Also: Food, parties, and... fronts? Relevant links: The Legacy Weapon Expansion on DriveThruRPG Mulciber's Flute Bard Hack (Anthony Giovanetti) Sentinel_Greg's survey responses (making food interesting) Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

Arthur and Eamon take a break from discussing Dungeon World and decide to play instead. Relevant links: The Legacy Weapon Expansion on DriveThruRPG Mulciber's Flute Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

On May 1st, Arthur and Eamon will be playing Dungeon World's Legacy Weapon live on Twitch, while taking your calls. To tune in, join us at twitch.tv/artprojects. Don't forget to join us on Discord! Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

After discussing red bananas last week, Arthur and Eamon have food on the brain! Join us for a discussion about food in tabletop gaming. Relevant links: Forgotten Realms wiki on Beholders Yoon-Suin /u/ScribNibbler21's d100 Soups d100 Signature Tavern Drinks Freebooters on the Frontier Land of NOP's Cryptomancer Drowning and Falling by Jeremy Strandberg The Dungeon World Syllabus Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

It's a diversion from our usual format today as Eamon and Arthur dedicate an entire episode to Picture This. Relevant links: Veins of the Earth Grim World Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

PAX East is in town, so Arthur went in with a notebook and a player's kit to report his findings. Relevant links: A Spell Called Catherine Slumbering Ursine Dunes Veins of the Earth Dungeon World Guide Dungeon World Syllabus Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

With Eamon away on assignment, Arthur holds down the fort with two mini episodes. Interviews with new players! Subverting tropes for better NPC's! A disgraced warrior from a foreign land? All this and more, on Play to Find Out Relevant links: Happy Jacks Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

Favorite cinematic techniques! Tropical escapades! When do gameplay hacks cross the line? Eamon and Arthur discuss. Relevant links: Ray Otus' Plundergrounds Moonshae Isles Rhapsody of Blood 16 HP Dragon Lachiel's GM Resource Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

This one's for the players! And the DM's, GM's, viewers, listeners, and everybody else. It can be hard to make the switch from player to DM/Facilitator. Eamon and Arthur come up with strategies for this challenge, and then point towards some tools they like. Relevant links: The Best Fantasy City Generator Ever Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

What do you do when somebody goes missing? When a player can't make it? When life gets in the way of a full group? Eamon and Arthur discuss. Also: zines and other fan curation, and twists on a core fantasy race. Relevant links: Perilous Wilds Lore and Lords Plundergrounds by Ray Otus Other Zines Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

In most DW campaigns, somebody ends up using magic. This week, Arthur and Eamon talk about magic users in their games, and share some lessons they've learned. Relevant links: The Alchemist's Repose (video explanation with link to PDF) Maze Rats (DriveThruRPG) Maze Rats Instant Characters The Inheritance Cycle Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show, and to the DW Discord's am_draw for our title art.

How do you start a long campaign? How do you keep a group together? Arthur and Eamon discuss. Relevant links: Ritual Idea (Reddit post), Baahubali Trailer (video), Base Classes without races (Google Drive folder), Far Below (G+ community) Thanks to John Gilmore for the music featured on the show.

Covered: The Nightmare Below, playing with a Druid in the party, Single Player DW, Snakes are Books.