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Narrative Control - Episode 0 - Introduction to the Show

Sean Nittner — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 20:54:33 -0400

Hi, Welcome to Narrative Control. This is our first episode. It focuses on what the show will be about, a continuation of a conversation. What conversation you ask? Stop reading and go listen to the show.

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Justin Evans

Liner Notes

[0:28] Show introduction
[0:36] Dedication to Kristin Sullivan (of This Modern Death)
[0:58] Main Topic: What is this show about?
[1:16] The But-one-Justin
[1:50] Being a pretentious ass Name dropping Ryan Macklin of the Master Plan Podcast
[2:52] rpgpodcasts.com (Sean got the name wrong and called it .net, Tool!)
[3:30] Sean: This show is about our gaming experiences and our reactions to those.
[4:38] Justin: One big conversation about a hobby we all love
[5:00] Inspiration from other podcasts
[5:40] Who might be interested in Narrative Control
[6:32] Can we expand on the Agony and Ecstasy of games
[8:53] Show Notes vs. Shnotes
[11:00] Who is Sean? Why is Sean?
[12:38] Good Omens A group of GMs that Justin and Sean are part of.
[15:57] Who is Justin Evans?
[18:15] Why is Justin podcasting?
[19:39] Geek Philosophers or Pretentious Tools?
[20:42] Justin expands on keeping the conversation going
[22:40] Wed like to hear what you have to say
[22:56] Closing

Links

This Modern Death
Master Plan
RPGPodcasts.com
Good Omens

Direct download: NC_Episode_000.mp3
Category: podcasts -- posted at: 11:23 PM

Just an intro.

Bohica — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 13:36:20 -0400

I just wanted to start a thread saying I'm the current noob here. I found Narrative Control through the This Modern Death podcast. Just finished listening to all of This Modern Death and I've just listened to the latest two episodes of NC. As far as gaming goes, I don't do much right now, due to lack of time, but soon as my schedule frees up I'll be getting back into it.

I "grew up" with ShadowRun 3e (haven't found anyone playing 4e yet), with the occasional group for old World of Darkness. Been reading up NWoD, and I find it interesting. Thanks to This Modern Death, I'm looking to get into a few of the indy games they mentioned. I've got Burning Wheel on order, and as it turns out, a few friends back home play. I've also got Dread and Don't Rest Your Head coming in on the same shipment.

Anyways, I just wanted to say hi to everyone on here.

~ Bohica

A question about the podcast RSS feed.

Sylfar — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 15:38:05 -0400

Hey guys, love your show; perfect length to listen to on a bicycle ride around town. I just have one problem though; I subscribed to the RSS feed through my Zune player, and got all the episodes downloaded and saved(which isn't a big deal with a 120GB MP3 player), but I came back later and I have a second copy of each episode, whether I played it or not. Is there a problem with the RSS feed or am I just slow? I mean, I even went into the podcast folder and deleted all the clone episodes that had (1) at the end of the name. So yeah, any help would be appreciated. =)

Narrative Control - Episode 56 - Can't Touch This

Sean Nittner — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 00:41:01 -0500

Hi and welcome back to Narrative Control. This week we're talking about the sacred cows at the gaming table. What are the things that a player doesn't want to see changed about their character. Brought to you by a conversation between Sean and Leonard Balsera.

Length: 38:59

[00:27] Welcome back to the show. We talk about the RPGGeek's GoldenGeek Award. We didn't win, but congratulations to YSDC: Cthulhu Podcast

[01:28] Shout out to Leonard Balsera of Evil Hat, lead system designer of the Dresden Files RPG and assistant designer of Spirit of the Century.

[02:05] High stakes gambling in Vegas! Wagering on RPG minutiae at Neoncon.

[03:37] The crux of the episode: What changes result in the character not being fun anymore

[03:48] Advancement versus change

[04:04] Examples of change in Golden Geek winner Dresden Files and in Dogs in the Vineyard.

[05:28] Changing a core concept of a character. Does it break the character?

[06:27] What is fixed and what's open to change. Fred Hicks' concept of "the character sheet as a love letter to the GM"

[07:10] Beliefs in Burning Wheel; more about what is your character going to do.

[08:11] An example of a persistent trouble: Alcoholism in Iron Man.

[08:42] An example of a more evolving trouble.

[09:10] Fattig's favorite foibles.

[11:52] Why would we change a persistent character element.

[12:26] Dresden example: A compelling plot twist that makes sense. But it affects the character to the detriment of the characters fun.

[13:47] Mage game. Changing a character element that doesn't break the character. On the contrary, it drives the character forward.

[15:34] Sean drives a player bonkers in Silver Age Sentinels

[18:05] Players want to change on their own terms.

[18:25] Finding the untouchable elements on your own character sheet.

[20:29] Make no mistake though, change is critical.

[21:02] Communicate with your GM. Let them know what is core that you don't want to let go of.

[21:29] The character sheet won't tell you what the character wants to change versus what they want to hold onto.

[22:27] As a GM, pay attention to the brainstorming sessions, and ask questions.

[24:28] "Just because your characters really good at something, may not be what they're about. It may be about not doing it."

[25:15] The Odd Couple: a recurring problem.

[26:38] Reading into a player's favorite issues based on tone

[27:25] What to do when communication fails, and a sacred cow gets trampled in play.

[29:40] A core concept changed in play in a moment from Burning Wheel.

[31:28] Recognize that something's gone wrong, and talk about it afterwards.

[35:59] If you do change something about the character as the GM, give the player options.

Direct Download: NC_Episode_056.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 61 - Embrace Your Doom

Sean Nittner — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 15:21:22 -0400

Hey, I'm going to really try and push RPG Crosstalk, so I'm going to post the discussion for this podcast of there and we'll see how it goes. Episode 61 on RPG Crosstalk

Narrative Control - Episode 60 - The LOST Episode

Sean Nittner — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 12:48:29 -0500

Welcome to the LOST EPISODE. The one that should have come before, but didn’t. Because sometimes there are things lost between the GM and Player. We’re talking about that communication.

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Joe Harney

Length: 32:38

Show Notes
[00:24] Welcome Joe Harney. The Lost Episode
[00:45] When things are lost between the players and GMs.
[01:13] GM as the window to the world.
[1:40] You walk into a cargo bay. What image in evoked?
[01:58] The cargo bay of Serenity.
[02:30] Value of a license setting. Establishes setting, tropes, situations,etc.
[02:58] Challenge: License settings are great… assuming you know them!
[03:28] Licensed settings require that you get everyone to a baseline understanding.
[03:45] The Battletech universe. Over 100 books. Outside our normal scope of understanding.
[04:20] Medieval Fantasy – more commonly understood setting and topes.
[05:08] Using a setting with reflexive knowledge.
[05:54] The strength of the World of Darkness settings.
[06:25] The Tolkien Syndrome – Detailed descriptions that bore the players.
[07:14] And effort to “show not tell”.
[07:48] Focus on what the scene is about.
[08:12] The opening scene from CSI – Displaying a lot of information.
[09:00] Announce what a scene is about. You enter the scene to do X.
[09:37] Players trusting the GM to give them the information they need. GMs trusting players to take information and push forward in with it, not…
[10:02] “I attack the gazebo”
[10:34] We’re not all looking to tell the same story, but we want our stories to be compatible.
[11:12] Discrepancies about what is actually happening in a game.
[11:42] Be willing to back up a step, if necessary.
[12:35] All the work GMs put in to their games, sad if it doesn’t come to fruition.
[13:16] Benefit of not planning a game. Nothing holding you to a plan if things change.
[13:40] Middle ground: Planning a game based off flags presented by the players.
[14:09] Discrepancy in expectations of consequences. A bugbear to untangle
[15:25] GMing Seminar with Robin Laws and John Wick on what happens when GM and Players have different expectations of consequences.
[16:41] Easier to undo a calamity before it happens.
[17:10] The mood of the game can also shift into a different space if not held in check
[18:04] This isn’t the game I thought I was playing.
[18:18] Inspiration for this episode: A LiveJournal post. Stakes not agreed upon in advance.
[19:15] Sacred cow turned into sacred-cow-burger
[19:42] Why are we here? What is this game about. Are we playing to tell a cool story? Are we playing to win?
[20:46] Are those goals tied to game styles (traditional – narrative games)?
[21:43] Games that have specific mechanics to add story elements: Fiasco plot twists.
[22:36] Joe does some brain surgery.
[22:54] Win conditions, however, are easier to mechanize
[23:20]Agree about what the game is focused on. Can I trust the GM to make mistakes.
[24:35] Secrets. Do you trust the GM to expose them? Burned players.
[25:28] They downward spiral of mistrust.
[26:01] GM afraid to offer up game elements that the players will “break”.
[27:46] The Superman metaphor
[28:18] Tangingting… again. Player fulfilling power fantasies.
[29:32] Know where you are on the spectrum of “do you want win?”
[30:41] Hording the cool. Afraid that the cool will be lost if you spend it.
[31:15] Wrap up. Thanks Joe!

Direct Download: NC_Episode_060.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 59 - Player vs. Player Awesome

Sean Nittner — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 00:43:19 -0500

Welcome to episode 59. Fattig and I are talking about Player versus Player awesomeness in games. We’ve got fears, trepidations and we talk about how we’ve overcome then and the amazing stories we’ve seen come out of doing so.

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Eric Fattig

Length: 54:58 (yep, sorry another long one, but it is worth it)

Show Notes

[00:22] I stab your character in the back… Well I stab YOU in the face!
[01:17] Intro to the show: Player vs. Player
[01:26] Player vs. Player baggage. Lots of bad experiences.
[04:11] But… pvp can make for the most awesome experiences in the game.

Examples of great PVP.

[05:06] Example the one: L5R – Al-Saleen and Tso Lou discuss balancing love on the edge of a blade.
[09:02] Example the two: L5R – Rei and Tso Lou opposite sides of empire building.

Why player versus player is awesome.

[14:26] Knowing that players are your antagonists raises the stakes and the tension at the table. Players are more alert and attentive throughout.
[15:59] Players can do more when they have meaningful interactions between the other PCs because they aren’t limited to the GMs bandwidth.
[17:06] PVP gives the GM a chance to step back from center stage and manage the game. Gives the GM a chance to see the bigger picture.
[19:03] It is more fun for the GM if he or she doesn’t have to be the only source of antagonism.
[19:24] Players make the BEST antagonists! NPCs take a lot of work to portray and players can easily dismiss them.

[24:00] How do we do the good and not the bad

[25:50] Ensure there is never a one-sidededness between PCs, they must always have a chance and always have something to lose.
[26:50] Creating constraints. Players need a sandbox that will demonstrate what are appropriate actions and consequences.
[29:35] Plenty of external threats to make the player conflicts precious and dangerous.
[30:44] Use a system where players can bounce back from defeat. Apocalypse World: Player vs. Player moves. Burning Wheel: Explicit stake settings that are negotiated. Smallville stress just ups the ante and makes the conflicts more intense. Dogs in the Vineyard relationships can move from problematic (d4) to beneficial (d6+) as the result of fallout.
[38:38] Player versus player conflict should not be a zero-sum game. We can give and take different things that we value differently.
[43:29] Examples of games that bring player versus player action.
[43:43] The Gift
[46:54] Duneville
[50:15] So much awesome that can come out of player conflict. The game doesn’t need to be about PVP, just make a safe space for it to happen and watch the magic.

[51:30] News of the !

[52:17] Dundracon coming up! – You can be a god in my game!
[52:50] Good Omens 10 year anniversary
[53:01] GM Seminar in March at EndGame.
[53:33] EndGame Minicon April 9th – 5th anniversary of Minicons

Direct Download: NC_Episode_059.mp3

Tips for My Life with Master

DMK — Sun, 16 Jan 2011 13:11:26 -0500

So I have this game, My Life with Master, and I've read through it a couple times, but I'm still trying to wrap my mind around it. I've read some actual play reports on the Forge, but I am still "missing something." It's not that complicated a game really. I want to GM it. I may even be able to convince a few friends to do a one-shot in the written game setting. I also want to run a crossover (surprise, surprise) of it for some die hard Amber friends as My Life with Oberon, but want to get the basics under my belt.

So, does anyone have any quick tips, suggestions, or actual play podcasts? What's worked for you?

Thanks,
-David-

Narrative Control - Episode 58 - Social Antagonists

Sean Nittner — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 13:37:21 -0500

Welcome back to Narrative Control in 2011. After a break for the holidays we're back and talking about Social Antagonits. How to make them work and why the are so awesome.

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Eric Fattig

Length: 54:07

Inspired by Ryan Macklin's article on Making Sypathetic Antagonists

Show Notes

[00:22] Intro to the show. Happy New Year!
[00:38] Topic: Social Antagonists

News of the Episode

[00:59] What just happened? Dead of Winter
[02:35] EndGame Minicon
[03:19] Pimping Duneville. Check out Smallville
[05:17] Big Bad Con Book Rooms here: Hilton Oakland Airport
[05:59] Gazebo Deathmatch
[06:56] RPG Crosstalk – A shared Podcasting Forum
[09:04] Finding Ryan Macklin’s post on sympathetic antagonists via twitter.
[11:14] A reading from Macklin’ post. His three reasons for sympathetic antagonists!
[12:39] Our discussion drifted to Social Antagonists. People you can’t punch in the face.
[13:20] The recurring villain you don’t have to sell. Conflicts bind the characters together rather than splitting them apart.

Examples of social antagonists

[14:57] Uther Lightbringer: The moral authority.
[15:79] Tsuruchi Nadu. Our lord and commander in L5R. A terrible leader.

Characteristics of good social antagonists

[24:25] The social antagonist is part of the same rigid organization that the players are (your boss, your lord, your co-worker, your schoolmate, your business partner, your family, etc).
[27:07] The social antagonist is not secretly EVIL.
[33:31] The social antagonists needs a sympathetic drive. A reason to exist that is legitimate.
[35:13] Social antagonists can do more interesting damage. Turning you friend against you, steal your money, demote you, attacking your other relationships, etc.
[38:09] Social healing is also more interesting. Repairing from a cut is pretty boring. Repairing a relationship is fun and makes for more exciting interactions. One persons’ gain is the others’ loss.
[39:44] The conflicts with social antagonists are ones we can relate to. We’ve all been in conflicts like these.
[42:59] Sometimes you work together. Social antagonist that are “on the same side” or have the same goal that is really important.
[49:56] Social antagonist can escalate conflicts and then de-escalate.
[52:24] PCs can fill these roles. The players can be each others’ social antagonists.
[53:26] Go discuss it… on RPG Crosstalk

Continue the conversation... Here

Direct Download: NC_Episode_058.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 57 - Apocalypse World

Sean Nittner — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 16:12:05 -0500

This episode I've got Rob Donoghue and Judd Karlman on skype talking about the NewHotSexy Apocalypse World.

Hosts: Sean Nittner, Rob Donoghue and Judd Karlman

Length: 46:35

Show Notes

[00:27] Sean sits down with Judd Karlman and Rob Donoghue to talk about Apocalypse World.

[01:03] What about Apocalypse World sparked interest?

[01:28] Short answer: Vincent Baker, the author of Apocalypse World.

[02:55] On Vincent's writing style and how it informs the game.

[04:30] Enumerating your tools so you can use them better.

[05:39] Judd feels Vincent moves share a kinship with Bangs from Sorcerer.

[06:17] These principles work in other games as well.

[08:35] It's OK to ponder what happens next as the MC.

[08:55] Judd and Rob compare Apocalypse World to Dogs in the Vineyard, Vincent Baker's previous game.

[10:36] Using examples in game text.

[11:10] Examples of not only how to do things right, but how things might go wrong.

[12:30] Writing for player versus player.

[13:33] The Apocalypse World character dynamic: "We're not talking about a party"

[15:30] Rather than attacking the character directly, assaulting their interests.

[18:04] The Apocalypse World conflict system. Greater costs means every conflict matters.

[20:05] A core conceit of Apocalypse World: playing your character like a real person.

[21:33] Curing indifference through giving players stuff.

[22:08] Relationships emerging in Judd's game

[23:13] Encouraging the MC to ask probing questions.

[24:39] Two player trends: Focusing on the narrative versus focusing on the moves.

[27:59] Some of the vagaries of the system: highlighting certain moves for experience.

[29:13] "The ability to change what's the focus of the character that session is huge."

[30:15] The process of choosing what stats get highlighted.

[31:22] The legend of Ryan Macklin. Thirty XP!

[33:49] Visible experience makes it easy to identify which players have had the spotlight for a while and which need more love.

[36:43] A D&D example: negotiating a truce with an enemy army. "Well we defeated them. So we want their XP"

[37:16] Apocalypse World avoids XP shenanigans by making every roll count.

[40:36] Some final tips from Rob and Judd for running Apocalypse World.

Direct Download: NC_Episode_057.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 55 - Player Trust

Sean Nittner — Sat, 13 Nov 2010 23:10:58 -0500

Hi and welcome back to Narrative Control. This episode starts with a rather raspy intro as I lost my voice while doing the editing, but rest assured the main portion of the show was done with all voices intact. This episode Ryan Macklin came on to talk with me about a tweet he made regarding player trust. It resonated with me and I knew it would make for a good show.

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Ryan Macklin

Length: 33:27

Show Notes

[00:27] Intro to the show. Sean’s raspy voice
[00:52] On with Ryan Macklin. In front of the mic rather than in front of the coffee. Responding to this tweet.
[01:39] Player trust. What are we talking about? How did it resonate with Sean?
[02:02] Reactions one: Players jealously guarding their parts of the story.
[03:13] Reaction two: Players ignoring other player’s plot threads.
[03:58] Ryan’s confessional – Way back when he was a wee babe.
[04:32] What it feels like when people won’t validate your offers. Why players turn away from each other?
[05:19] When story elements have mechanical effects, they become more precious.
[06:14] What to do when players are playing their own private game.
[07:35] Causes for players not to trust each other.
[08:36] “Why’d you eat my girlfriend?”
[09:12] Ryan’s game. A Fate Heist game.
[09:59] Game started with the characters distrusting each other.
[10:46] Players not familiar with collaborating on the narrative. Oh... and I narrowly dodged being knifed by Ryan.
[11:49] Players all trying to do their own thing, intentionally separate from each other.
[12:20] Trusting the GM not to pull a “gotcha”. Player-GM baggage.
[13:49] Assertions of players being rejected/ignored.
[16:32] Secrets – notes passed. Making a public secret to encourage players to make their characters vulnerable.
[17:42] How do we address this distrust? Player-GM baggage, Player-Player baggage. “in character” distrust.
[18:14] It starts with the GM, who has to start forging connections between PCs by asking them questions.
[20:57] Game rewarding players for taking risks or doing things together (example: compels)
[23:00] Players building trust by backing another player’s offer.
[24:51] In a game of hyper competent sexy cool people, make the first thing you do make them look like hyper competent sexy cool people.
[25:18] Two set of advice here. How to encourage it as a GM and as a player
[26:10] What do we do if we realize in the middle of the game that this has happened? GM pulling back and creating interactions between the PCs.
[28:15] As a player, talk to the table about what’s going on in the game. This is risky: Schrödinger’s cooperative game.
[29:28] Advice to players who don’t want to share. You’re characters will be more awesome if they have changed and gone through trials.
[30:31] John McClain is the dude who gets the crap kicked out of him and is awesome because of that.
[31:19] Or just bring a taser…
[32:26] Closing, thanks to Macklin and a few bits to date the show.

Direct Download: NC_Episode_055.mp3

Star Wars and Dogs in the Vineyard?

DMK — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 17:54:36 -0400

What's worked and what hasn't worked for anyone who's tried crossing Star Wars with the Dogs in the Vineyard game?

I'm interested to learn because I'm considering running this sort of thing at a local convention and am searching for good setup info and character concepts.

-David-

Narrative Control - Episode 5 - Hacking Systems

Sean Nittner — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 01:22:59 -0400

Hi, and welcome to Narrative Control. This week Justin is back and as usual we're giving our own spin on a much beloved topic. We're talking with me about hacking systems. Everything from porting games into different settings to combining our favorite mechanics.

Liner Notes

[0:28] Introduction to the show. Hacking systems.
[0:50] The show is a bit long. Let me know if it is too long. Email us: narrativecontrol@gmail.com
[1:42] RPGPodcasts.com bumper
[1:58] What we mean by hacking systems.
[2:36] Justin's current game. A hodgepodge of games:
[2:52] Cadwallon - Setting and Dice pools
[3:28] Wushu mechanics - Detailed bad ass combats on the fly.
[3:52] Fate - Stunts
[4:04] Shadows of Yesterday - Experience Keys for experience and character flags.
[5:00] How has this been accepted by the players? Pros and Cons
[6:17] Is this play testing a new game?
[7:08] Sean's accidental hack of Prime Time Adventures with Exalted.
[7:39] Removing screen presence to allow equal importance for con games
[7:53] Allowing every player narration rights.
[8:30] Changes made specifically for the con environment.
[9:07] Change fan mail to allow the producer to grant fan mail.
[9:40] Other reasons to hack games? Games that don't have strong social conflict mechanics.
[10:38] Hacking Duel of Wits from Burning Wheel
[10:55] Why? Players want to do actions in a game that involve a complex and fun mechanic.
[11:38] Brining it together. Molding mechanics to fit in the core game so players aren't learning completely separate systems.
[12:33] Systems that are very easy to borrow from: Wilderness of Mirrors, Fate
[15:17] Games with great mechanics and situations screaming to be ported into other settings: Dogs in the Vineyard
[15:34] Using In a Wicked Age by swapping out Oracles
[17:03] A Battlestar Galactica oracle on www.sinistergame.com
[17:25] Don't get Sean started on shnotes
[17:36] My Life with Master has a very thin setting, easy to move. Sean ported it to My Life with Joker.
[18:47] Some games that are tightly coupled with their settings. Value in playing the game as intended?
[19:08] Dozens of setting hacks for Dogs in the Vineyard but the original setting has so much character, don't discount the value of playing a straight dogs game.
[22:10] Settings that have benefited from different systems: Exalted using Prime Time Adventures and Wushu/Wuxalted
[23:30] Exalted Unplugged
[24:12]Shadowrun alternative systems: Prime Time Adventures, Burning Wheel and Don't Rest Your Head
[29:46] Our parting worlds on hacking systems. Try it!

Links

RPGPodcats.com
Cadwallon
Wushu
Fate
Shadows of Yesterday
Prime Time Adventures
Burning Wheel
Wilderness of Mirrors
Dogs in the Vineyard
Sinister Game
My Life with Master
Exalted
Wuxalted
Shadowrun
Don't Rest Your Head

Download:NC_Episode_005.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 52 - Indirect Effects

Sean Nittner — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 12:56:02 -0400

Hi and welcome back to Narrative Control. This week Fattig and I are responding to a blog post and follow up email from Loyd Case. The topic: Indirect Effects. Also, I’ve got some news about Neoncon, notably that I’m attending AND that I’ve started up a new show “This Just in… From Neconcon”. Also, check out the official Iron GM. The regional qualifiers tournament will be hosted at Neoncon.

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Eric Fattig

Length: 30:16

Show Notes

[00:26] Introduction to the show – Indirect Effects from Improbable Insights.
[00:46] I’m going to Neoncon and I’ve got a show to go with it. This Just in…. From Neoncon.
[01:00] First show is an interview with Rone Barton about Iron GM. The contest is still open. If you’re going to NeconCon, sign up!
[01:52] Who is Loyd Case? How I met him?
[05:50] A reading from Loyd’s blog post. Or… where the show begins.
[06:33] We’ll be talking about indirect effects in terms of conflicts were number of actions is limited. (Combat rounds, scene economy, etc)
[08:10] Reminiscent of the Teamwork episode when we talked about the combo move merits.
Examples of Indirect Effects
[09:03] Burning Wheel – Linked Tests
[10:34] Fate – Blocks and Maneuvers
[12:26] Combat maneuvers common to many systems – Disarm, Grapple, Knockdown
[14:29] Dungeons & Dragons 4E – Conditions and movement.
[17:01] The appeal to the Indirect Effect. Richer fiction, more player collaboration, the fun of plan coming together.
[19:27] Indirect effects that change the playing field, open up new options, close off others or change the cost and benefit of existing options.
[20:26] A board game example: Attack cards in Dominion.
[22:42] Pitfals of indirect effects. Delaying the awesome. The moves not amounting to much. Or the effect doing too much.
[27:04] GMs need to be mindful of intent with indirect effects.

Direct Download: NC_Episode_052.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 54 - Mad Props (Part 2)

Sean Nittner — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 18:06:53 -0500

Hi and welcome back to the second Narrative Control props show. This episode we're continuing the conversation of props in your game. We'll be talking about food, music, pictures, props you can hold and skype + wierd stuff!

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Eric Fattig

Show Notes

[00:28] Intro to the show. A continuation of Episode 53. More props.

[01:05] Food! Breaking bread while you bash some heads. This segment will make you hungry.
[02:09] Sushi in an L5R game.
[02:50] Sean brought coffee and doughnuts to his Dresden Files Chicago PD game.
[02:57] Division through beer: Sean's running of The Gift.
[04:08] Be a rock star and drink a Rockstar. Sean's Exalted Unplugged game.
[04:26] Root beer kegs. It turns out they contain a lot of root beer.
[05:06] A little game music.
[05:15] Sean's Matrix game: even a ringtone can evoke a sensation.
[05:42] Recording audio for use in games. Simulating a telepathic link in Mage: the Awakening
[08:03] A game where music is central to the game: Sean's Exalted Unplugged game.
[09:20] Where music falls short. An example from a Buffy game.
[09:58] Sean recalls a misstep from his Mage game.
[10:32] Avoiding mistakes in music. Also, Fattig mispronounces Haydn.
[11:40] One last example of music used well in an L5R game
[12:17] Pictures!
[12:30] How pictures can help your games.
[13:27] Brainwash your players! Or maybe not.
[13:43] Bringing the swamp to life in Apocalypse World.
[16:14] Stuff you can hold. Adding some weight to your games.
[16:47] The objects of Apocalypse World. Turns out rusty crap is mostly free.
[17:45] A skull and gas mask for an Apocalypse World game. Not as free, but re-usable come next Halloween.
[18:07] One man's garbage is another man's prop.
[18:51] Keep your props safe to handle.
[19:33] An box of evidence from Sean's Dresden cop game. Variety is key.
[21:21] Tailoring the prop to the setting. Variety versus a central object.
[21:59] Weapons as props. Usually a bad idea, but Sean did it once. His story.
[23:40] Draped cloth in The Gift. Turning an ordinary chair at a con into throne.
[24:43] Mouse ball! A prop used in an icebreaker for Mouse Guard.
[26:17] The miscellaneous category. Props that defy categorization.
[26:42] Gods and Heroes. Using Skype in a game.
[30:35] How not to use props.
[31:51] Finding inspiration for your game through props.
[32:33] A cautionary tale of a terrible prop. Warning, moderately gross.
[34:29] Players should always be able to engage a prop if they want, but don't force it on them.

Direct Download: NC_Episode_054.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 53 - Mad Props (part 1)

Sean Nittner — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 03:13:35 -0400

Hi and welcome to Narrative Control. This episode and the next are all about props we’ve used in games. This show we’re talking about maps, apparel and dressing up existing game elements like dice, character sheets, etc.

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Eric Fattig

Length: 34:00

Show Notes

[00:28] Intro to the show. Talking about props.
[01:40] We already talked about some of this in Episode 17 – Included props on the cheap, documents and customized character sheets. Check it out
[03:30] Maps… the forgotten prop. [04:39] Map of Bel in Apocalypse World:

[05:29] Island map for Agon. Showed which gods held dominion. Blank version.

[06:31] The Map of Rokugan showing off all the problems we had to handle.

[08:28] Territories in Mouse Guard. Big Map:

Little Map:

[10:30] The map of our memories in 4E. I put in mud pots for you Babe
[11:50] Dress like the fiction. Costumes.
[13:06] Gnome spies got (from such classics as Gnomes Like Us, Dr. Gnome and Gnome Impossible) got different hats for each important NPC
[12:48] Put on a Chiton when you play a Greek. Dressing up for Agon:

[15:30] Liberty spikes and “distressed” wear for Apocalypse World:

[16:22] Laurel wreaths for the gods: Laural wreaths at Amazon.
[17:02] Getting costumes at local costume shops, like this one at UC Davis: Enchanted Cellar
[18:21] Mons in our L5R game. Badges of office, clan, family or post.
[20:07] More subtle effects. Dresden Files cops game, I took the role as the police chief, I kept adjusting this:

[22:07] Dressing up the existing gaming elements: Dice, character sheets, game currancy (style dice, fate chips, artha, etc).
[22:50] Police Dresden game: Badges on Fate chips made with Token Tool
[23:31] Used Gwendolyn and Liam for Persona and Fate in Mouse Guard:

and

[24:05] Matrix: There is no spoon. Currency in RAM:

[24:49] More generic. Poker Chips: Discount Poker Shop. [25:43] Apocalypse World: Shotgun Shells.

[26:53] Mouse Guard – Dice color matched the cloaks:

[27:51] My Life with Joker: Purple and Green Dice at Chessex
[28:12] Burning Empires. Blue became the color of the common people. Nobody wanted the blue dice.
[29:03] Burning Wheel. The Gift. Dwarves get red dice, Elves get blue.
[29:44] Character tents
[30:00] Pretty character tents. Clear picture frames at Bed, Bath and Beyond
[30:36] Including other bits like characters keys (from Shadow of Yesterday), aspects (from Fate), etc.
[31:12] “Dude, where’s my sword?” Players poking each other in the keys.
[32:23] Aspects on sticky labels to add to character tents. Here’s my Mouse Guard traits:

[33:26] A hint of the topic to come soon.

Direct Download: NC_Episode_053.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 23 - Video Games

Sean Nittner — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 21:52:43 -0400

This episode Justin and I talk about what weve learned from video games and how we can draw inspiration from them and learn from their pitfalls.

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Justin Evans

Length: 29:49

Show Notes
[00:28] Introduction to the show Inspiration from video games
[00:40] Some great discussion on our boards about conflict resolution here and here.
[01:05] Format of the show, inspiration, pitfalls and some personal stories.
[01:29] RPGPodcasts.com Promo
[01:37] Justins thrilling adventure.
[02:52] Seans protest. Video games dont have the story or role-playing that tabletop RPGs do.
[04:00] Seans use of images, lore, etc from World of Warcraft in his Burning Warcraft game.
[05:00] Erik Woodburys LARP: Peace at Arathi Basin. Video game setting, using the strengths of a LARP.
[06:15] Comparing the guessed budget of Feng Shui and Grand Theft Auto.
[07:34] Level design as an analog for quests.
[08:17] Set pieces in games, the main encounters.
[08:56] The boss fight. A spotlighted encounter that required fighting with different tactics.
[10:11] How this can backfire. Make sure the characters matter.
[12:53] Save points. Logical places to stop a session. Ending the story on a high point.
[14:30] Mouseguard session structures encapsulates the mission goals and makes sure they are resolved by the end of the session.
[15:15] A warning: avoid the grind. Examples of the grind in video games and then in popular role-playing game.
[18:30] Justins fresh can of hate. The Keep on Shadowfell.
[20:21] Some advice from Dungeons and Dragons insider: Every encounter should be meaningful to the story and have stakes the characters care about.
[22:04] A question of scaling. Does the opposition scale with you?
[22:57] Different systems scale in different ways. In some systems this isnt an issue. Examples of Burning Wheel, Dungeons and Dragons and Scion.
[25:19] Justins story playing Oblivion. A Minotaur in the inn?
[26:40] Fallout 3, how scaling has changed in video games.
[27:28] Seans analog in a D&D game where his character DID become more powerful than the status quo. Oh crap, its Sadric!

Direct download:: a rel="nofollow" href=" NC_Episode_023.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 51 - Iron GM

Sean Nittner — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 14:35:09 -0400

Hi, welcome back to Narrative Control. This week, in addition to a whole bunch of news, Fattig and I are talking about the Iron GM competition held at EndGame. Isikoff vs. Macklin!

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Eric Fattig

Length: 26:45

Show Notes

[00:27] Intro to the show. Actually skip to 8:10 if you want to skip the news and get to the topic: Iron GM
[00:55] We have a news segment?
[01:10] Narrative Control is up for a Golden Geek. Please vote for us!
[02:11] Forums have changed. Upgraded to a new version of Vanilla and moved hosts.
[03:20] Game Chef. Sean is an entrant. Check out my game “Burning Your Skin”
[04:56] Big Bad Con – Less than a year away.
[06:06] Fattig’s Life: Nothin
[06:24] EndGame Minicon 10/16
[07:28] Today is 10-10-10 – Congratulations Erik and Ammy.
[08:10] Iron GM – Our Topic
[08:52] Iron GM: The gauntlet is thrown – How it started.
[10:15] Iron GM: Competition format compared to the show.
[13:59] Iron GM: The Play Experience – Made of awesome
[19:33] Iron GM: Results – Brian Isikoff is the Iron GM. Matt Steele and Mike Bogan are the next challengers.
[22:44] Iron GM: Wrap up and review
[24:12] Post game analysis: Sean’s Actual Play, Tim’s AP, 2d6 Feet’s Episode with Brian and Ryan
[25:09] Iron GM will be at Big Bad Con

Direct Download: NC_Episode_051.mp3

Following Discussions

furashgf — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 09:20:47 -0400

If possible, please enable some kind of "subscribe to discussion" feature. A lot of forum tools have that.

Narrative Control - Episode 40 - Character Death

Sean Nittner — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 18:47:09 -0500

This episode Erik Woodbury and I are talking about character death and how that affects the players in the game and the story ramifications. This was inspired by an article from Judd Karlman on the Burning Wheel forums.

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Erik Woodbury

Length: 27:15

Show Notes

[00:27] Intro to the Show. My celebration of holiday cheer. Our thoughts on how to make Character death more satisfying in game.
[01:44] Whats up Justin? I mean an intro to Erik Woodbury.
[02:38] Judds post. A discussion took place on both his LiveJournal here: http://judd-sonofbert.livejournal.com/462520.html and the Burning Wheel forum thread here: http://www.burningwheel.org/forum/showthread.php?p=76980#post76980
[03:00] An excerpt from Judds post.
[03:55] Putting Erik on the spot. Characters of his that have died.
[04:44] What character death means to Sean? The end of player agency in the story.
[05:11] Agency is the ultimate currency in any RPG. Doing stuff is what makes it fun.
[05:35] Erik recalls his characters death
[07:00] An unfinished story is incredibly frustrating
[07:11] The crap death a meaningless, unexpected, and one that doesnt advance the story.
[07:50] What about games where death isnt permanent? Resurrection, Cloning, etc. Satisfying in games that address it in the fiction. In other games though, Death becomes cheap.
[09:45] Were not advocating pulling punches though. Death is a powerful effect on the game.
[10:01] The crap death though leaves a player feeling cheated. Roll or die situations are way to binary. Worse the confrontation is meaningless.
[10:40] Seans mini rant on PCs that rush headlong into violence in games where death is very setting appropriate.
[12:33] For the death to be satisfying, its got to be meaningful to the players. The good death. My death meant something.
[13:10] A TPK minus one. Awesome Deaths where everyone sacrificed themselves to make something happen that was needed in the story.
[14:50] Dying and feeling like you achieved something that doesnt make you lose agency. Something changed specifically BECAUSE your character died.
[16:00] What to do after death? Balancing a new character. Re-integrating with the existing group.
[17:57] Characters die and then sometimes players will keep trying to tell their story. Gaming after death? OOTS (http://www.giantitp.com/) does it, but does it work in an RPG?
[19:35] Find a way to wrap up the characters story. Allow for player narration and story crafting. Man we like the word agency.
[21:04] Song of Ice and Fire books, the last three (of four books) are all about a single characters death.
[21:38] Total Party Kills (TPK). This can be awesome, but most of the time it means there has been a breakdown in communication.
[24:02] A mis-designed encounter on the GMs part. When challenging becomes overwhelming. This is largely affected by system.
[25:07] How does character death vary in one-shot games vs. campaign games?

Direct download: NC_Episode_040.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 50 - Why not go to 11?

Sean Nittner — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 18:41:17 -0400

Hi, welcome back to Narrative Control. It’s our 50th show! Commence fanfare now! This episode is another response to a post from Rob Donoghue. Why I try not to go to 11?

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Eric Fattig

Length: 37:21

Show Notes

[00:27] Intro to the show. We’re 50!
[00:47] I remember the excitement of my first con. I want to bring it to you at Big Bad Con
[01:17] Intro to the show. Why I try not to go to 11? By Rob Donoghue
[02:29] Excerpt from Rob’s post
[03:11] One of my favorite games to run is “The Gift” , which is all about instigating conflict.
[04:13] This came to our attention because of a Fiasco game we were in. 4-Ever “I don’t think these guys really have it.” Our outcomes were really mediocre but we loved it!
[08:02] We sustained excitement throughout the game because our victories were so minor (in comparison to other Fiasco games) but so important to our characters.
[08:57] No murder and no sex in this game… it was downright puritanical for Fiasco.
[09:29] Other Fiasco games where we have slapped on gratuitous violence and sex and it always feels slapped on and artificial.
[11:50] Player egos get involved. Feeling like you need to impress the others at the table.
[12:06] This happened in a Burning Wheel game (in the Burning Warcraft game) where the stakes got blow out of proportion.
[14:14] NPCs that go to 11? The quickly become one-dimensional and they are hard to scale back down.
[19:09] Players that go to 11? Become “that guy” who always goes over the top, or has the same reaction. Makes it hard for your character to grow.
[20:41] Gaming is about what you are going to do in a situation. If you’ll do the same thing every time, what is the point of putting you in that situation.
[23:24] Sean’s regrets having the “crazy” character.
[25:42] Some games really push towards conflict, like Burning Wheel. The 24 Effect! We become immune to 11.
[29:30] Dig a little deeper into the system and into the characters by taking a break from the game and reviewing the character’s beliefs. Ask the questions, what do you think should happen next?
[30:59] Re-evaluate the stakes of your conflicts. If they feel over the top, consider bringing them back down to a personal level.
[33:06] I think you know it when you’ve crossed the line. You feel less confident in your actions, they seem farfetched.
[34:05] Its okay if you’re doing something over the top to stop, rewind a bit and dial the stakes down a bit.
[34:36] Apocalypse World says in the text “you should act like your character is a real person.”
[36:06] Closing: Why not go to 11? To make the characters feel more real. To highlight their moments of awesome. To keep them from becoming one dimensional.

Direct download: NC_Episode_050.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 20 - Horror

Sean Nittner — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 14:13:37 -0500

Hi and welcome back to Narrative Control. This episode is a long one. Justin and I are talking about Horror elements in stories and how to bring those into your games.

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Justin Evans

Length: 53:23 - Told you it was a long one

Show Notes

[00:28] Introduction: Horror in RPGs. Breaking down the horror genre, distilling the elements and then talking about systems that back up those themes
[01:33] Sean trying to scare Justin. Can you just make a fear check?
[02:10] Are we trying to scare the character or the player, or both?
[02:40] Call out to Rich, who asked us to talk about genres and the games that fit into them.
[03:30] What makes a horror story? Different types.
Definitions: Horror Genres.
[04:00] Splatter horror. Buckets of Blood! Going for shock value.
[05:35] Haunted House. Alien: A Haunted House in space. Suspense horror, hidden from the audience as well as the protagonists. Excitement of piecing the clues together and the edge of the seat suspense.
[06:50] Psychological Thriller. Getting into the mind of the killer. Warning: Spoilers. Looking into the protagonists. External conflict serves to spotlight the internal issues.
[08:18] Pimping the Dresden Files one more time!
[08:49] Monster hunter story. Action/Suspense vs. Horror?
[09:53] Survival Horror. Hunted by the monsters. The end is never certain.
Elements of a Horror Story
[11:27] Suspense. Will we make it out of here alive? Not a very interesting question. Only relevant in games where death is possible.
[12:30] Spiral into insanity. Getting into the mind of the killer. What happens to you?
[13:12] Investigation. Following the trail of clues.
[13:44] Paranoia. Who can you trust?
[14:50] Inevitable doom. The story is about the struggle.
[16:08] Hope and Despair. Balances the story, give the protagonists a reprieve or a allow them to accomplish something important.
Systems that support Horror Stories
[18:08] Justins game in the Fate System. This Modern Death said this wasnt possible. How will Justin use Fates internal mechanics to tell a horror story? Cuts himself to feel alive is still an aspect!
[20:20] Making the story personal to the characters. Players handing out aspects to each other, using back story, etc.
[23:13] Sanity decks. A consequence for failing a resolve roll. The cards give an aspect that reflects youre loss of Sanity. (Available at sinstergames.com soon).
[25:29] Dresden Files RPG will be much grittier than Fate.   There are fewer Fate chips and the GM is given license to really pound on the protagonists. Not quite horror.
[26:35] Call of Cthulhu. One of the first games to offer a mechanic around sanity loss. Sean has to get over his dislike of percentile system, but the sanity system was novel in creating consequences.
[29:25] Unfortunately Cthulhu became an inside joke. Ryan Macklin talked about this on Master Plan on his episode on emergent play.
[30:55] Gumshoe. A game system designed specifically to facilitate investigation. Each clue is found and then leads to another scene.
[33:32] Roanoke. Uses a Doom Counter to measure the final endgame. Allowing players to put nails in their own coffins.
[37:08] Dread.   The pull created an increasing level of danger for everyone. This makes the danger present visible to everyone.    Also, allows for a brief reprieve after someone dies. Models survivor horror very well and creates a pacing system.
[41:18] Dont Rest Your Head. Uses Despair to make bad situations worse, but that fuels Hope, which can buy a brief reprieve. Creates an economy of despair and hope.
[43:58] Dont Rest your Head again. Players also have the ability to bring in horrific elements: Exhaustion and Madness.   Trading power for self destruction. Players have to balance success against risking their characters sanity.
[46:55] World of Darkness. How unimpressed Sean is by the lack of Horror on WoD games. Very hard to create suspense. Can work when playing mortals, but much less so than when playing monsters. There is some support from the system: Willpower, Virtue, Vice, etc.
[52:00] Wrap up. Looking for other suggestions for shows. Email us or get on the forums.

Direct Download: NC_Episode_020.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 49 - Teamwork

Sean Nittner — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 10:37:28 -0400

Hi and welcome back to Narrative Control. This episode I’ve got Shaun Hayworth on from This Modern Death and we’re talking about teamwork as it compares to niche protection in terms of giving each player a roll in the game and each character spotlight in the fiction.

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Shaun Hayworth

Length: 38:24

Show Notes

[00:27] Intro to the show. Teamwork vs. niche protection
[00:53] We have our obligatory bad joke. At least we kept in under a minute
[01:25] Inspiration for this show. Our Atlantic City Dresden Files game.
[03:40] Every game, at its core, has an intention that players get to play.
[04:36] Original idea of how to keep everyone involved: niche protection. Some examples: Dungeons and Dragons, White Wolf, and Shadowrun.
[05:42] Where niche protection fails. One role eclipses another or one role isn’t important in the game.
[06:32] Example: Non-combat concepts in games that are built around a combat system.
[08:33] One alternative to niche protection is to focus a game around a character’s motivations rather than role in the party. Shaun super fanboy waxes poetically on Burning Wheel.
[10:36] We’re all in favor of driving characters by motivation. It doesn’t have any real downside, but it doesn’t always give everyone a role when all the character are involved in a scene or conflict.
[11:16] Some mitigation: tie the characters together. Make sure the players are talking.
[14:10] Sean defines teamwork as: The overall goal of the group is not achieved until everyone has put their efforts in and the outcome reflects those efforts.
[15:19] Mouse Guard conflict system. In each volley of an exchange a different mouse takes lead and the others support him or her.
[18:27] Burning Empires. Firefight is all about teamwork. One character makes a command role to issue out actions to others (who can intern aid in that command role to give themselves more actions).
[20:44] Swashbucklers of the 7 Skies. Vehicle Duels bring in all members of the crew to make it work.
[23:30] Freemarket. Ganging up on the Super user.
[25:54] World of Darkness games. Teamwork merits in Hunter and Werewolf.
[28:26] The game that inspires a lot of teamwork…. Dresden Files. Partially the fate system but specifically in the “using help” section of Thaumaturgy. This is huge. Adventure worthy!
[37:59] Teamwork is manageable in games, where niche protection isn’t always.

Direct download: NC_Episode_049.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 48 - Inescapable

Sean Nittner — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 13:20:44 -0400

Hi, welcome back to Narrative Control. This episode starts with a response to an interview with Kenneth Hite and continues with Fattig and I describing games and stories that scare us, and our attraction to them.

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Eric Fattig

Length: 48:38

Show Notes

[00:27] Intro to the show. Our response to Canon Puncture #57, an interview with Kenneth Hite.
[01:19] A clip from the Canon Puncture show. “What is it about Cthulhu that is so grabby to gamers?”
[02:14] Ever get the feeling that nothing you do matters? Why we’re drawn to this subject.
[03:04] Do things that are meaningful and exciting to you and your life will have meaning… or it won’t.
[04:13] Referencing the Canon Puncture show. Horror techniques in the latter half of the episode. http://www.canonpuncture.com/?p=57
[04:48] Why do we come to horror in the first place?
[05:36] We tell ourselves stories to marginalize our own fears and separate them.
[08:00] A common sense of insignificance.
[09:11] An apathy we experience knowing we’ll never stop the universe from falling apart.
[10:28] Horror lets us try to punch inevitability in the face.
[11:26] Agent Smith from the Matrix: The symbol of inevitability.
[14:08] The “One Ring”: A symbol of corruption.
[17:38] To fight the evil, you need to pick up the sword: The man apart.
[19:21] The protagonists of RPGs a usually outside of the society they protect.
[20:16] Showing PCs in relationships they can’t maintain because they are different: Gaming Gold.
[20:34] L5R Example: Samurai who cannot maintain families.
[24:32] Dresden Files example: Balancing mundane and supernatural worlds.
[29:08] A powerful and moving evil must stand for something. The evil exist as a theme of the setting.
[34:59] The bad guy is a good thing. Getting all the evil in one place so it can be punched in the face.
[37:24] Example of the bad guy having a lot of meaning: Buffy, the hyena episode: The Pack
[39:21] “It is not enough to succeed, others must fail” – Gore Vidal
[42:27] The bad guy you know is right. ala Watchmen

Direct download: NC_Episode_048.mp3

Narrative Control - Episode 47 - Flavor vs. Crunch

Sean Nittner — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 23:29:26 -0400

Hi, Welcome to the show. This episode Fattig and I are talking about another Rob Donoghue article: Druid’s vs. Color. What happens when the description of a power all flavor and has no mechanical effect?

Hosts: Sean Nittner and Eric Fattig

Length: 24:38

[00:29] Intro to the show. Flavor vs. Crunch. Inspired by Rob Donoghue ’s post
[00:46] Excerpt from Rob’s article. http://rob-donoghue.livejournal.com/335247.html
[01:56] Rob’s stuff. Don’t read it all or your head will explode as per Panty Explosion
[03:09] The cons of a disconnect between a powers description and its effect: breaks suspension of disbelief.
[04:18] Pro: gives players total liberty to add in any flavor or description to the game.
[05:45] A moment of silence
[05:47] Ahhh… the Druid. I loved the wild shape power so much… and then I found it did nothing (or Rob told me so).
[06:67] Wild shaping doesn’t mean anything. You can be a Bearmotar!
[07:44] Bearmotar can make diplomacy rolls!
[08:21] Beast form powers balanced with human form powers
[08:32] Sean’s major problem. Beast Form powers are powers that only a druid can do anyways. So how does wild shaping do anything?
[09:50] Narrative Control’s first split. Fattig disagrees. He’s wrong. But he’s got an argument. Giving mechanical effects can get broken very fast. His proof: Pun-Pun
[11:24] Why Wizards did this? Balance. Druids work exactly like every other class.
[14:01] Where do they give back some oomph to the Bearmotar? Feats. Is this enough? That you can spend a feat to make your power actually mean something mechanically?
[16:17] We still don’t agree. Sean’s story of Sadric
[17:27] Fattig: “Well, you can die inside a little. Cause I think it’s just fine.”
[17:53] Skills in octaNe mean nothing.
[18:44] I hate mechanics that feel like they are just wasting time. Most combat mechanics.
[19:51] Fattig gets the soggy Doritos! Customizing powers to suit your character is awesome.
[21:04] The evolution of 4.0 from 3.5 putting a focus back on the narrative and away from the mechanics.
[21:41] An all flavor game that I LOVE: Wushu gave me a lot of freedom. Here we come soggy Doritos.

Direct download: NC_Episode_047.mp3