* (1:36) Wayne will be posting his first game for Fear the Con V this Friday.  If you’re interested in passing out flyers or hanging them up in your local game store, you can download them here.

* (6:21) Our Old Republic guild, House Nachash, is still going strong.  You can find details on our forum.

* (7:33) Poop sock?

* (10:11) Pat and his peach cider.

* (12:28) Resuming an RPG campaign after a long break.  Using the break as an opportunity for taking stock of what’s working, revising where needed.  Easing back in.  Keeping the game alive through outside conversation, or at least keeping the group in contact through a filler game.  The pitfalls when coming back, including social distractions and forgetting what was going on.

* (36:09) How to get the most out of different GMing styles.  Appreciating the distinctions and adapting your play-style to get the most from your Game Master.  Evaluating your GM style.  How to get the most honest feedback from your players.

Hosts: Chris, John, Karla, Pat, Wayne

* (1:17) Introducing our new game, Naughty or Nice to Chris.  We setup the background topic, explain the rules, and have an tangent on “sentient” versus “sapient”.

* (7:42) Chris restarts the episode.  I’m not sure why, but he’s in control.

* (9:12) We discuss player contribution to the game.  To what extent should players be allowed to add things to the game — even if they seem out of place — for the sake of their own enjoyment?  We start by jumping back to the contributions that break immersion for each of us.  The show goes completely off the ranch from there, and I don’t think we ever answered the original question.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, Johann, Pat, Wayne

* (4:44) Handling the logistics of a PC death.  We don’t debate whether characters ought to die but instead how to keep that person involved, manage the mood around the table, and minimize story disruption.

* (22:14) Taking advantage of the unexpected moments of great story and RP that happen during a game, without trying to squeeze them for too much.

* (28:45) Chad and modules.  Nature takes its course.

* (39:30) Managing player morale during the ebb and flow of a game.

* (45:34) The greatest game you’ve never played: Hot Lead!

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, Johann, Pat, Wayne

Once we get coherent (16:33), the topic is things we’ve not been able to do yet in our gaming career but really want to someday.

Hosts: Beth, Chad, Dan, John, Pat

FAIR WARNING: This episodes is quite a bit more crass and directionless than our normal episodes.

* (3:52) Dan offers Chris some unsolicited PR advice.

* (5:10) Following a suggestion from forum user, Concise Locket, we discuss going outside of the game-provided mechanics to resolve actions within a game.  How other metaphors can enhance or distract from the game, and some tips for making them blend.

* (21:57) Giving life and meaning to social events — such as parties or banquets — in an RPG.  Revealing scene, making memorable NPCs, and progressing plot through the event.  The difference between social events triggered by player action versus GM decree.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, John, Pat, Wayne

(Wayne’s future sorcerer: STR 16, DEX 10, CON 13, INT 11, WIS 13, CHA 15)

* (1:10) Fear the Con 5 registration is still up and running quite nicely.

* (1:32) An invitation to our Old Republic guild.

* (2:18) Method 0.5 character creation meets John’s bard.

* (4:02) Pat goes for Husband of the Year with his (properly placed) priorities regarding Star Wars: The Old Republic.  Also featuring the car story and fish story!

* (15:37) Gaming with significant others.  How bringing that special someone into a game can greatly benefit or drag down the experience.  We also present some strategies for getting the most out of it while preparing for potential pitfalls.  This leads into the romance and drama of Battletech.

Hosts: Beth, Dan, John, Karla

(John’s future bard: STR 11, DEX 10, CON 15, INT 13, WIS 10, CHA 9)

* (3:34) jim must defend his name, Y, and W.

* (6:05) Pat goes for Father of the Year by taking a break from World of Warcraft to devastate his kid in a family game.

* (9:43) Giving games the right degree of substance and meaning, without making them overly poignant.

* (18:42) The role of the GM, specifically as it’s been taught (albeit unintentionally) by the legacy of D&D.  First-person versus third-person roleplayers.  On a side note, this episode was recorded when Penny Arcade’s series, The Conflux, was only a few strips in.

* (29:53) The “second Renaissance” of roleplaying games.  Also the relationship and perception driven model preferred by many newer games.

* (41:34) The seven types of gamers.

* (51:32) The important synergy between designers and marketers that’s often missing from game development.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, Pat, Wayne

Guests: jim pinto

* (1:39) Chad and Pat’s horrifying idea for episode 300.

* (7:04) Yet  again, a “minor” topic unexpectedly dominates the show!  Wayne’s opportunity to defend his bard against the insults made in last episode turns into…

* (13:57) …a discussion on knowledge skills that reveal hidden or plot-important information.  We kick around whether to include them at all, how to let them be useful without breaking the game, and the open communication the GM and player ought to have during character creation.

* (38:43) The happy accidents of gaming, when unexpected actions of the player or rolls of the dice make the game better than the GM planned.  How to create room for such events and capitalize on them when they occur.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, Pat, Wayne

* (3:12) Chris is writing Skies of Glass serial fiction.

* (4:37) We give Pat a chance to prep for Beth coming onto Fear the Boot.

* (6:23) John gives an update on Bloodmoon Goblins.  This leads to a discussion about collaborating with other people during system or setting design, and how that can apply even to Game Masters running a well-established game.

* (13:47) Handling shopping in an RPG.  Various approaches to handling it without interrupting the flow of the game.  How to handle shopkeeper inventory, character inventory, and item availability.  Information on the Booter calls Chad mentioned can be found here.

* (45:52) Why Chad feels his character won’t work in the absurd game we’re contemplating.

Hosts: Chad, Dan, John, Pat

* (1:27) Fear the Boot is co-sponsoring a cruise through Gamer Adventures on March 24 through April 1, 2012, and we hope you’ll join us.

* (2:51) How to approach bridge games, meaning the games that fall between major plot points or heavy action, in which character advancement, bookkeeping, or roleplaying dominate the session.  Some approaches for tuning them to your group’s taste and recognizing the opportunities they present.

* (18:43) Handling large scale games.  Determining what’s important to deal with in detail versus abstracting out, how to keep track of resources, divvy up paperwork, and make major NPCs memorable.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, John, Wayne

* (0:59) An extremely deep, philosophical, scholarly debate over the hottest chick on Star Trek.

* (13:07) Using Wheel of Time and Lord of the Rings as a jumping off point for a discussion on “upward” versus “downward” fantasy and which trope more accurately describes the average fantasy campaign.  Side topics include high and low fantasy, the role of equipment, and the absurdity of most settings’ economies.

* (26:12) A reflection on the ridiculousness of ‘Mechs as viable combat machines juxtaposed against how just plain awesome they are to use in a game.

* (30:32) Dealing with “caster supremacy”.  Specifically, the idea that certain types of casters are significantly more powerful than non-casting classes in D&D 3.0, D&D 3.5, and Pathfinder.  Suggestions for keeping them in balance through gentleman’s rules, power reductions to casters, or power increases to non-casters.

* (59:36) The website for Fear the Con 5 is up and ready for you to create and join games!  If you’re looking to split a ride or room, be sure to check the thread on our forums where people are working out those arrangements.

Hosts: Johann, John, Pat, Wayne

* (2:09) The website for Fear the Con 5 is up and ready for you to start creating and joining games!  If you’re looking to split a ride or room, be sure to check the thread on our forums where people are working out those arrangements.

* (7:44) Zingers.  What more can be said?  They also talk about Halloween candy, costumes, and trick-or-treating.

* (23:04) Advice for GMs that need to run rude, hateful, or bigoted NPCs.  How to keep such characters believable without crossing any lines your group can’t stomach.

* (38:47) Adding detail to the smaller parts of the game which often get ignored as the group focuses on the big picture.  In case you’re not familiar with it, here’s an explanation of Chekhov’s Gun.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, John, Pat

http://www.feartheboot.com/ftb/index.php/archives/category/podcasts/feed

* (0:24) Introducing guest host, Willie.

* (0:49) Introducing Erik Mona.

* (1:34) The size, state, and explosive growth of the Pathfinder game and Pathfinder Society.

* (3:23) Erik’s more thorough introduction, including his resume in the gaming industry.

* (6:35) We ask Erik to explain exactly what the job title of “publisher” means and what specific roles he fills at Paizo.

* (9:10) How past experience with the RPGA and Living campaigns affected the formulation of the Pathfinder Society.

* (22:14) An after-school D&D club in 1983, how Erik’s parents fought to get him in, and how it affected the trajectory of his life.

* (30:44) Erik’s take on Pathfinder being called “D&D 3.75″.  We also talk about the possibility of a sequel edition.

* (36:09) The upcoming Pathfinder Beginner Box.  You can find details and see the unboxing video on their site.  We also talk about the market viability of box set products in general.

* (50:13) The history, purpose, and future intentions for the Paizo online store.

* (56:58) Future projects coming up at Paizo, including the Pathfinder Battles miniatures.

Hosts: Chad, Dan, Johann, Wayne, Willie

Guests: Erik Mona

* (0:30) Welcoming Adam from Kicked in the Dicebags.

* (1:40) The March of Dimes charity auction — with prizes sponsored by Gnome Stew — is still in progress.  Be sure to get in your bids!

* (2:03) Show transcripts are still being made for our episodes.  Links will be given a few days after each episode releases.

* (2:21) The site for Fear the Con 5 is live!  Get signed up and join us in St. Louis in May of 2012!

* (5:28) Custom fangs have become too cheap for Wayne’s taste.

* (7:09) The loss of a dropship in our Battletech game serves as the catalyst for a discussion on defeat in a roleplaying game.  We talk about its capacity for adding drama, realism, and emotion to the game, while conversely being able to discourage or drain the players.

* (20:00) Wayne commenting on some old gaming notes leads into Dan describing the collection of documents he typically uses when running a game.  With our usual disclaimer for potentially offensive content, here is a link to the pimp’s prayer.

* (26:20) Getting a brand new player up to speed on the hobby of roleplaying, their first setting, and a system — without overwhelming them in the process.

* (52:16) The video game giveaway will be ending on October 23rd with the winners drawn on October 24th, so this is your last chance to get entered.

Hosts: Adam, Chad, Dan, John, Pat, Wayne

* (0:35) Wayne tries to hijack the show to talk about Superman.  You know what that means: we talk about Batman instead!  The blog post on the hosting arrangement can be found here.

* (3:07) Alex (aka Lizard Farmer) is creating transcripts of the show.  Check the show notes a few days after each episode releases for a link to the transcript.  An explanation of his idea can be found on our forums.

* (5:39) Our next March of Dimes charity auction has kicked off!  Prizes for this auction are being provided by the Gnome Stew website.  As with the previous auctions, 100% of the funds raised will go to the March of Dimes.

* (8:06) Introducing Joe Wetzel and Keith Curtis!  Joe has been developing Hexographer, Dungeonographer, and DungeonMorph Dice.  Keith’s work can be found on his portfolio site or Bloodmoon Goblins.

* (12:02) The importance of maps for creating scale, consistency, fairness, and depth.

* (26:34) How to build and fill in a map when you’re starting with nothing.  The title Joe mentions is Dawn of Worlds.

* (35:10) Filling in the details when you have a map with major locations already set but nothing in mind to occupy the gaps between.

* (40:06) A quick survey of climatology and how different climate zones form on a planet.  The factors that figure into such estimations and just how important they ought to be when designing your game world.

* (52:48) Understanding scale when designing an area, particularly when you’re contemplating volume as opposed to surface area.

* (57:20) The projects Joe and Keith are working on right now.  Joe’s work — including things not already linked in the show notes — can generally be found on Inkwell Ideas.

* (1:03:27) The video game giveaway is still on, so be sure to get entered if you haven’t already!

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, Karla, Wayne

Guests: Joe Wetzel, Keith Curtis

The most popular sites for crowd funding are Kickstarter and IndieGoGo, though I’ve been told there are many others.  Depending on the site, a project may need to reach its entire funding before anyone gets charged, or conversely, be allowed to cash out shy of the goal.  Typically, rewards are offered to thank people that donate at varying amounts.  For example, you might get to contribute to the setting, receive an autographed copy, or even get a personal visit from the producer.

Let me start by saying I think this is a wonderful thing.  Podcasting allowed us to get out content that no radio station would have ever picked up.  And in the same way, crowd funding allows people to get the cash they need in the absence of a major financial backer.  Fans can suddenly open their wallets and enable the things they want to see, often through an aggregation of very modest donations from many people.  Publishers get a chance to see their ideas come to fruition and, by observing donations, get an early sense of how the product might do in the marketplace.

Unfortunately, I’m seeing several problems start to emerge.

First and most importantly, I fear that too many people are picking up on this.  The first Kickstarter project I remember seeing was Mikey Mason’s Impotent Nerd Rage.  Since then, I’ve seen many, many more.  The bulk of them are great ideas, and I have nothing but the utmost support for the people doing them.  But with an ever-increasing number of people kicking these projects off, how long before funding fatigue starts to set in and Kickstarter projects become background noise no different than the billboards along a highway?

It’s hard to find truly academic numbers on this sort of thing, but most estimates I’ve found say that only between 30% and 40% of crowd funded projects reach their goal.  And of those that fail, apparently a significant percentage don’t even raise a single dollar.  In an economy of finite currency, contributing cash is a lot harder than clicking “Like” on Facebook.

Second, I think many fundraisers outpace themselves.  When John first brought up using Kickstarter for Bloodmoon, we sat down and thought pretty hard about the goal.  How much will this project cost?  Where can we trim the budget?  Sure, we have an established fan base of a reasonable size, but how much money are we actually likely to get?

I think the situation is even worse for people that have a great idea but no public presence.  Outside of family and friends, projects end up with no contributors and fall embarrassingly short of the goal.  If the site requires full funding, that means you don’t see a single dime.  If the site allows partial funding, you’re left trying to explain what you’ll do with the money in your pocket that’s less than you need to meet your original promises.

With the dreary part out of the way, I want to offer some advice.  I’m sure it will be neither perfect nor exhaustive, but at least it’s better than stating the problem and walking away.

1. People are giving you their money, and they want to know how it will be used.  Talk openly about what you’ll be producing, what features your product will have, and generally how donations will be spent.
2. Set a budget.  Research what it will cost to take your idea from inception to publication.  Ask people in the industry to look over your flowchart to see if you’ve missed an expense.
3. Review your budget and decide if it’s a realistic goal.  Sure, your friends love your homebrew game, but that doesn’t mean the public will front $20,000 for you to make it.  Ask yourself honestly how much you can raise with the people you have access to.  If this is your first time out, maybe it’s better to try for a few hundred bucks, build a following from that project, and get more ambitious later.
4. Be prepared to find some wiggle room in that budget!  How can you get the amount down to something you’re likely to raise?  Maybe it’s time to consider a little less art or purely electronic publication.  The specifics are for you to decide, but make the financial and product goals align.
5. Before selling the product, you have to be able to sell the idea of funding the product.  How are you going to find people that are interested in the idea and likely to support you with a contribution?  And once you’ve got their attention, what sort of text or video message will you use to get them to commit?
6. If your project falls under its funding goal, have a plan already in place for the amount you raised.  I don’t recommend announcing that plan early (why give the impression you don’t believe in your project?) but know what you’ll say if you fall short.  Those people want something for their money, so maybe you can put together a less ambitious version of the original idea or maybe you’ll let contributors vote on a charity it goes to.
7. Be equally ready for the reverse situation.  If you happen to go over your goal, what are you going to do with the extra money?  Make the intended product better?  Put it toward another project?  Donate it?

The way we’re going to address this is by returning Fear the Boot to the description it’s carried in the RSS feed since Episode 1.

Fear the Boot is an irreverent, round table discussion of tabletop role playing games. In this weekly show we debate game-related issues, offer advice for improving your game, and poke fun at the hobby. Our cast changes a little from show to show, but we always assemble a group of dynamic individuals with divergent views, guaranteeing you will hear several perspectives on everything we discuss.

For each show, we will have 3 – 5 hosts present, drawn from the list given above.  That flexibility accomplishes two things.  First, we can make sure we’ve tapped the hosts with the most interest or expertise on a given subject.  Second, it allows the remaining hosts to take some weeks off to spend with family or pursue other projects, such as Fear the Con, Skies of Glass, Epoch of Rysos, and Bloodmoon Goblins.

I don’t expect this change to have any significant impact on the show.  All of the hosts will still be appearing on the show and active on the forums.  However, I wanted to explain in advance why the staffing will shift in seemingly random fashion from week to week.

http://thisjustinfromgencon.com/2011/10/02/tjigencon2011-bonuswrapup/

* (0:37) Introducing Ken Hite.

* (1:39) Contrary to what I said in the episode, This Just In…From Gen Con! is still editing the show I guested on.  I’ll post a link here as soon as it’s ready to go.

* (1:54) Our video game giveaway is still in progress.  Be sure to get entered!

* (2:21) Wayne presents Dan with a gift from Brian.  A big “Thank you!” from Dan for taking the time to send us the note and chainmail dicebag!

* (3:42) We kick off the interview by asking Ken about his rather unusual education and how it affects his work in the game industry.

* (6:51) Ken gives us his observations on the state of RPGs.  He also answers some questions about the rise of story-driven games.

* (15:19) A question about how Ken got started in GURPS leads to a discussion of professionalism (or more accurately, the lack thereof) in the RPG industry.

* (23:05) Ken begins settling long-running FtB marital disputes.  Chris kicks this one off with the GM screen, and then Dan asks about social mechanics.  Fortunately, Chris gives this some genuine purpose by questioning whether the way a person runs games affects how they write them.

* (30:54) Dan asks Ken for some tips on running horror games.

* (41:43) Following the suggestion of Ryan Dancey, we begin The Ken Hite Three Word Game!

* (48:49) Ken’s past, current, and upcoming work, including Night’s Black Agents and Star Trek.

Hosts: Chris, Dan, John, Pat, Wayne

Guest: Kenneth Hite

* (0:30) Happy birthday to Chris!

* (1:38) John announces the closing of Bloodmoon Goblins’ fundraiser and explains where things are headed next.

* (2:21) Quick updates on GAME convention and Fear the Con 5.

* (2:39) FlatCon is coming up on October 21-23, 2011 in Bloomington, IL.  All proceeds from the convention are donated to the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life.

* (3:15) Fear the Boot is giving away some free games, thanks to Tex!  If you’d like to enter for any of the titles mentioned, you can do so here.

* (7:31) The process of picking a system and setting when your group is starting a new campaign.  How to balance everyone’s interests.  Whether the GM should be able to make a take-it-or-leave-it pitch.

* (31:14) Collaboration in an established setting.  How to get the players involved and help them feel like they own a part of the game world without contradicting what’s in the books.

* (38:08) Revisiting the group template with some new and changed perspectives.  Explaining what it is, why it’s important, and how to build one.

Hosts: Dan, John, Pat, Wayne

* (0:00) A bonus episode disclaimer, followed by an explanation of why they don’t really work.

* (2:23) Explaining the so-called crimson (or scarlet) pumpkin.  You can find one here, in case you live near Chris.

* (4:47) Exhibit A: Chris’ first time out drinking.

* (12:09) Exhibit B: Chris and the character scars.

* (18:32) Exhibit C: Master Threeballs and the jocks’ junk.

Hosts: Chris, Dan, John, Pat, Wayne

* (2:05) Fear the Boot still plans on attending the GAME Convention in Springfield, Missouri, October 7 – 9, 2011.

* (2:42) If you’re interested in playing the Old Republic MMO, Fear the Boot has a guild already forming on the official game site.  You can see details and sign up to run with us here!

* (5:00) Why every roleplaying game should come with a pronunciation guide for all of its proper nouns.

* (10:42) Getting people in your gaming group to step up and take leadership roles in the party, particularly when they’re not naturally dominating.  The distinction between explicit and implicit leaders and how to work with both.

* (24:49) Chris reflects on his rant from the last episode and goes on to tell us a story about his childhood.

* (26:47) Rewarding players for doing extra prep or post-game work.

* (37:06) Helping someone create a character for a setting they’ve never played in.

Hosts: Chris, Dan, John, Pat, Wayne

* (3:22) Pat has a gift for Wayne’s birthday.  This leads to a conversation about comic collections, older comic storylines, and related tangents.

* (7:41) John’s Bloodmoon Goblins Kickstarter is still going strong and accepting donations, pre-orders, and other reward purchases!

* (8:35) With Wayne’s story concluded, Chris has launched a new series of serial fiction on the Skies of Glass website.

* (10:28) Revisiting invasion stories to pick up some discussion threads we either missed or didn’t explore sufficiently in the prior show.  We start off with invaders that lack depth because they’re more like a force of nature than a hostile culture.

* (14:34) When the invasion is a backdrop as opposed to the central plot.  The relationship between setting and story, and the inevitable bleed between the two.

* (17:09) Playing as the invader instead of the invaded.  Determining whether the characters agree with the invasion or oppose it, and keeping the game going either way.

* (33:27) Narrating the invasion event.  Working out the pacing in a way that makes sense for your campaign.  Educating your players about the two sides, particularly when the game is not based on a well-known setting or historical event.

Hosts: Chris, Dan, Johann, Pat, Wayne

* (1:55) Introducing (or reintroducing) Ryan Dancey.

* (7:16) Ryan has been writing a series of columns for EN World.  The links are provided at the end of the show notes.

* (7:44) Some information on the MMO he’s currently helping develop, including an explanation of what he means by a “sandbox game”, when used in the context of online play.

* (14:57) Chris harkens back to a promo item he received at the D&D Third Edition release party.  This leads into some questions about the overwhelming success of the OGL, even in the face of newer editions of D&D.

* (24:50) Revisiting Ryan’s previous list of predictions.  We also get a list of new predictions.

* (31:14) Some theories about the shifting demographics of gamers and their interests, using Gen Con 2011 as an anecdotal jumping-off point.

* (49:21) The lack of a WotC announcement at Gen Con raises some questions and also serves as a reminder of just how small the industry is.

Hosts: Chris, Dan, John, Pat

Guest: Ryan Dancey

http://www.enworld.org/forum/columns/299860-4-hours-w-rsd-who-am-i.html
http://www.enworld.org/forum/columns/301385-4-hours-w-rsd-who-sitting-your-table.html
http://www.enworld.org/forum/columns/302913-4-hours-w-rsd-realtime.html
http://www.enworld.org/forum/columns/304716-4-hours-w-rsd-take-note.html
http://www.enworld.org/forum/columns/306026-4-hours-w-rsd-lets-have-flamewar.html
http://www.enworld.org/forum/columns/308179-4-hours-w-rsd-get-some-feedback.html

* (7:28) If you’re playing Champions Online, consider joining the Fear the Boot guild, Awkward Confessors.  You can find out more on the forums.  My essay on MMOs can be found here.

* (11:17) Dan delivers a rant entitled, “Dammit, put that game down!”

* (16:57) Be sure to visit John’s Bloodmoon Goblins site, watch the promo video, and consider making a donation toward the effort.

* (17:51) Running a game where invasion is the primary plot line or setting feature.  Creating stories that are believable, yet still offer compelling opportunities for player success.  Starting the invasion, defining the invaders, and setting goals for the protagonists.  Drawing from real world history for inspiration.  Handling the pacing issues that can be caused by a resistance that builds momentum over a long period of time.

Hosts: Chris, Dan, Karla, Wayne

* (0:47) Why we’re doing a bonus episode, and Pat’s favorite (non-existent) Care Bears.

* (1:34) Introducing Bloodmoon Goblins, a Pathfinder supplement John is creating.  He needs our help funding it, so you can find the donation site, promo video, and reward options on his Kickstarter site!

* (7:58) Pat and Dan trade gifts (though Dan’s ends up with John).  This leads into a variety of stories that were probably best left untold.

* (19:10) Pat learns about the origin and history of the Bellamy salute.

* (22:08) The host division over the upcoming Rise of the Planet of the Apes movie.  (“Upcoming” when this was recorded, now in theaters.)

* (33:16) Conjecture about our weekly D&D campaign, whether it’s about to die, and (if that happens) what opportunities that presents for the show.

* (35:57) Two upcoming charity auctions.

Hosts: Dan, John, Pat, Wayne

If you were at Gen Con, you obviously know what the convention has to offer and have likely made up your mind about going back in the future.  However, if you’ve never been, I really can’t recommend the event strongly enough.  It’s one heck of a spectacle, and it’s also nice to have one weekend in the year where geeks take over a town, letting you know loud and clear that you’re not the only one that’s into the things you love.  I hope more of the hosts are in attendance next year, so we can provide coverage of the extraordinarily diverse events the con has to offer.

Last of all, to make up for our inability to cover all of the bases with half of the crew, we partnered with This Just In…From Gen Con!, helping finance their coverage of the con.  If you want some great interviews in podcast form, be sure to check their site!

Something else I observed is that while the dealer hall seemed to be a little bit smaller than in previous years, the gaming halls had grown larger.  If you come to this con and find yourself bored, you’re either really bad at simple tasks (like sitting down at tables) or just not a gamer.

Among the booter crowd, I saw the aforementioned Spin the Issues, along with Nuts, Paranoia, Star Trek, Battletech, and other games being enjoyed.  I personally played in several those, including a great Battletech scenario run by Chris Ings in which disgruntled Solaris fighters, Word of Blake zealots, and Lyran troops tangled in a three-way clash with a local militia caught between.  I’m proud of how my team (the Solaris fighters) performed, though ultimately I had to concede that the Lyrans had better map position in regard to the communication tower, which was the stated objective of the game.

I also ran a classic FASA Star Trek game, with a 50/50 mix of new and veteran players.  I decided to recreate the initial battle from The Wrath of Khan, with the Enterprise starting off unprepared and the Reliant losing its shields six turns in.  (16309?  What level of crappy encryption is that?)  Keith Curtis and Ed Sawyer ran the respective ships, and they both did an awesome job of roleplaying Kirk and Khan.  I noted some setup mistakes I made as the Game Master, but everyone had a great time.  I think I’ll be running this one again at Fear the Con 5.  And for anyone that’s curious, the Enterprise won.

If you’re into organized play, there was plenty of that going on as well.  Wizards of the Coast was running a con-wide game in which three forces clashed over the city of Neverwinter.  I also saw the Paizo/Pathfinder folks there in force.  And there were demo teams from just about every company you can imagine.

If you need something really different to do, there’s the live-action, puzzle-solving, monster-fighting, special-effects-bonanza known as True Dungeon.  We ran through that again this year.  It was enjoyable, though I’m not a fan of the increased group size.  Eight people were hard enough to organize, and ten is just a mob.  I wish I had some pictures or video of the various rooms and animatronic monsters, some of which were breathtaking.  Unfortunately, they don’t allow cameras back there.  The only tidbit I can give is that I wasn’t expecting the gargoyle to jump off its pedestal.  If you were there, you know what I’m talking about.

I never took a head count at any of the events, but between the TOFTBCH gatherings and random handshakes in the hall, I think I met around 100 listeners at Gen Con this year.  Fine people, one and all.  I’m sure there are also other listeners I just didn’t happen to bump into.  I won’t start listing names of people I met, because for every name I mention there will be one I forget.  But I can’t stress enough how great it was meeting some booters for the first time and connecting with others yet again.  If you’re one of those people, yes, I’m talking to you!

As for the general attendees, Gen Con is a great place to take the pulse of gaming.  This year, I was reminded that our hobby is evolving.  Every year I see more card games and board games, with a few less RPGs.  I don’t think that represents a decline in RPGs, so much as an increasing number of publishers.  Back in the 80s and 90s, there were a small number of companies that really dominated the scene, and they showed up in force.  Technology has made publication more approachable, leaving less companies on top with a growing number in the second and third string.  They’re putting out great products but might not be able to justify the cost of a booth at Gen Con.

Whether my guess is right or not, seeing the percentage of booths taken up by RPG companies receding ever-so-slowly makes me a little sad.  But the general attendance was up, and to know that the culture of tabletop gaming is on the rise warms my heart.  I also saw an increasing diversity in the age, gender, race, etc, represented which says that our culture is not only here to stay, but it’s reaching across divides it’s historically struggled to cross.  Is our hobby changing?  Sure.  That doesn’t mean it’s fading away.

The first convention I ever attended was a local, St. Louis con back in 1991.  I remember the first two thoughts I had upon entering the main hall: “Holy crap, I’m not the only one into this stuff!”…followed shortly thereafter by…”Wow, everyone here is so nice.”  Both are true of the Gen Con attendees as well.  Watching our subculture descend upon a town gives you a certain sense of being where you belong.  For once, loving D&D or knowing obscure things about anime gets the people around you energized instead of annoyed.  As a man that still struggles with some degree of “gamer shame”, that’s a refreshing feeling.

To close this post off, I’ll go ahead and deal with one of the things several people have already asked about: Pat’s Gen Con photo roll.  Fair warning that while these pictures are all PG rated, they’re…well…what you’d expect Pat to be taking pictures of.  So here ya go.

 Turnstile attendance was over 119,707 with 36,733 unique attendees present for 96 hours of gaming, cosplay, music, shopping and more. This positive spike in turnout represents a greater than 20% increase in a single year. Game event participation grew even more steeply, with over 250,000 event tickets yielding an over 26% expansion throughout the Best Four Days In Gaming!

I’ll come back soon with more posts detailing our experience gaming, shopping, and socializing at the con, so keep checking this space!  Also, I realize we haven’t put out an episode yet this week, so I’ll make it up to you guys by releasing two next week.

* (4:48) Integrating a comedic character in a serious campaign, without that character disrupting the flow and feel of the game.  The actual play Wayne’s involved in is Knights of Reignsborough.

* (17:59) Kyle sends in a question related to the series we did on dungeon design (here’s part 1 and part 2, for those of you that missed them), asking how to take a dungeon you’ve already designed and bring it to life.  How do you make the place feel exciting and interesting as you describe the trek through countless rooms and corridors?

* (58:29) Be sure to keep up with This Just In…From Gen Con! for convention coverage and at least one episode that will feature Fear the Boot.

Hosts: Dan, Johann, Mikey, Pat, Wayne

This will have absolutely no impact on the podcast itself, as those files are served by LibSyn.  However, when we flip the switch, it can take a day or two for your internet provider to pick up the fact that our forums, blog, email, etc, is now at a new address.  I’ll try to provide 24 hours notice when that’s about to occur, but if you can’t get to our site, just keep trying every so often until we appear again.

Also, we will be migrating all data along with the site.  So no blog posts, forum posts, user accounts, Con Planner entries, etc, will be lost.

* (3:03) Do geeks have an unusual habit of raging against the things they love the most, simply out of perfectionist zeal?

* (14:11) Being involved in multiple campaigns at once.  How to keep your characters and plots separate.  How similarities between the two campaigns can both help and hurt.

* (40:52) Some updates on Fear the Con 5.  It will occur in early May instead of March.  We’ll be moving to more conveniently located facilities.  And we’re also happy to welcome Danger Brewery as our new beer providers!

Hosts: Chad, Dan, Pat, Wayne

* (11:43) The guests pay more attention to the outline than the regular hosts do.

* (12:53) Art, layout, and page design.  How they help sell your product.  Some legal considerations you need to work out with an artist so it’s clear who owns what.  The best ways to compensate your artists, particularly when you’re on a tight budget.

* (24:45) Funding the project.  Using your own money, the patronage model, or websites such as Kickstarter.  How to get other people involved in supporting your work and rewarding them for their investment.  Building a budget for your product.

* (35:22) Marketing your game.  How to build it into the product right from the get-go.  Building and utilizing a fan base to help evangelize.  Keeping people excited and rewarding them for their effort.

* (53:34) Options for getting published, whether electronically or in print.

* (57:36) A final thanks to Ed and Derek.  You can hear more of Ed on Atomic Array or War Pig Radio.  You can hear more of Derek on his podcast, The Established Facts (referred to as Casting Robot during the show).  And be sure to take a look at the Palegain setting and consider helping out his Kickstarter project!

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, Derek, Ed, Pat, Wayne

* (2:52) Chris gives a shoutout to his nephew who’s landed the leading role in Highlander: The Musical.  If you’re interested in learning more, you can check out their website.  The reason Split Second needs a musical (some NSFW language).

* (9:26) With Gen Con coming up soon, don’t forget to subscribe to This Just In…From Gen Con! for some great media coverage.  And if you’ll be in attendance, be sure to get signed up for the TOFTBCH network and join us throughout the con for meals and pick-up games.

* (10:15) The writing process.  Translating your ideas and notes into a usable, well-organized document that’s fit for publication.  Finding good editors — including those that have experience in the RPG industry — and building a community of people that can help you.

* (28:00) The importance of playtesting to shake out the problems in your game.  Also, the importance of getting playtesters outside of your usual circle of friends, and ways to find strangers that will test the game.

* (34:11) Getting proper licensing to use established systems or settings.

* (38:33) Additional legal concerns, including forming a company, figuring out your taxes, and protecting your work by copyright.  The government website I recommended can be found here.

* (49:48) Some final words of warning and encouragement before we close out part 1 of this series.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, Derek, Ed, Pat, Wayne

* (1:06) Fear the Boot will be sponsoring This Just In…From Gen Con! during the 2011 convention.  Be sure to catch that show for some excellent convention coverage.

* (1:30) The Con Planner site is now ready to go for our activities at Gen Con.  Be sure to sign up if you want to be kept in the loop on the games and social activities we’ll be doing during the con.  All you need to do is visit this link, go to the Ticketing area to create an attendee, and make sure your profile includes a cell phone number for texting purposes.  If you have any questions, write to the email address listed on the site.

* (2:00) Fear the Boot is now a proud member of the Stitcher audio network.  Be sure to stop by their site, see if their app is something that interests you, and give us a positive review so others can find us!

* (3:52) Some background on Michael and the tabletop gaming scene in Japan.

* (6:36) The double-edged sword of D&D as the most recognizable title in our hobby.  Many of us play it and enjoy it, but it can also conjure up negative stereotypes among non-gamers, leading us to distance ourselves from the game.

* (22:03) Collaborative design of a roleplaying game’s antagonists.  Letting the players work together to build the villains, trading off some level of control for added buy-in.  How to keep the plot exciting despite the meta-game, player knowledge of the group’s enemies.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, Michael, Pat, Wayne

* (5:27) Fear the Boot will be at Gen Con 2011 with more events organized through our illustrious TOFTBCH network.  Expect details to follow in the next episode!  We’re also sponsoring This Just In…From Gen Con! which will be providing onsite coverage throughout the con.

* (9:07) Dan versus restaurant birthday celebrations.

* (20:07) Taking over a roleplaying game when the original Game Master steps down or leaves the group.  Some techniques for making the transition work, and the adjusted expectations players need to have when someone else is running a pre-existing game.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, Pat, Wayne

* (3:00) The upcoming reset and renumbering of DC comics.  Why we individually think it’s a good idea, bad idea, or mixed bag.

* (14:10) Rewarding the player characters in your RPG. We start by exploring the various ways of rewarding them such as roleplaying opportunities, personal goals, micro perks, gear, and stat advancement.

* (32:46) An intermission where we ponder why GMs don’t get rewards.

* (39:56) The best practices for handing out PC rewards, keeping them fair, and keeping them from later coming back to bite you in the butt.

Hosts: Chad, Dan, Pat, Wayne

The game supports two to five players and takes around 20 minutes to play.  As with the other games from Looney Labs, Seven Dragons is whimsical, easy to learn, and a lot of fun.

If you’re looking for a complex game with a long list of mechanics and choices, this probably isn’t for you.  The rules only take up a single sheet of paper and require just a few minutes to learn.  However, it fit our tastes wonderfully, and we also found that once play commenced, we needed a bit more observation and planning than we initially thought.

During setup, each person is secretly assigned a dragon they’ll be representing during the course of play.  Each of these five dragons bears a particular color: green, blue, red, black, or gold.  A silver dragon staring into a sort of magical mirror is placed in the center of the play field.  There are also rainbow dragons that pop up as wild cards, simultaneously representing every other color of dragon in play.  (There’s the seven dragons for anyone that’s counting.)

As with Fluxx, players are dealt three cards to form their hand.  During each turn, they play one card and draw one card.  The primary cards (featuring original paintings by Larry Elmore) have one, two, or four panels that show dragons of various colors.  When you play a card, you must place it adjacent to the other cards in play, with at least one panel touching a dragon of the same color on any adjacent card.

The silver dragon starts off colorless and thus legal to be in contact with any card.  However, to keep things interesting, players will also come across action cards that let you swap hands, rotate goals, reorganize cards on the field, or engage in similar forms of mischief.  These cards each bear a color that matches one of the five dragons.  When you play one, the silver dragon will see the magic in his mirror and morph to match the color on the action card.  This is an important part of play strategy, since he’s typically the center of the expanding play field.

In order to keep players from consistently skipping over action cards whose color are unhelpful to them, you have the choice of either playing the card normally, playing the card but ignoring its action (thus only changing the silver dragon’s color), or doing the reverse and requesting the action while tucking the card beneath the discard pile so the silver dragon retains his prior color.

As a side note, we invented a house rule that helped us keep track of the silver dragon’s color.  Instead of keeping a separate discard pile for used actions, we piled them on the silver dragon (poor guy) so we didn’t have to look in two places to see his current color.  That’s why you won’t see him in the picture I took of our game.

The objective is to get seven panels of your dragon in a contiguous pattern.  So, for example, if I’m playing the black dragon, I need seven black dragon panels which touch each other in an unbroken pattern.  Having three touching on one side and four on the other doesn’t count.  Nor can you move along diagonals.  However, rainbow dragons and the silver dragon (if he’s either silver or currently mimicking your dragon’s color) will help you achieve victory.

With the basics explained, I want to add two specific bits of praise and one minor criticism.

First, as I noted above, the game is more strategic than it sounds.  Matching dragon colors implies a game so simple that it’s moved from beer-and-pretzels into why-bother-playing.  However, Looney Labs has a track record of introducing simple ideas that keep play surprisingly fluid.  For example, we had someone deduce the player next to him was playing the gold dragon. He let them get very close to victory and then dropped an action card that allowed him to switch dragon colors.  In another game, the black dragon won simply by being very casual about her card placement along the bottom of the field while everyone else bickered over the silver dragon’s color and the matches along the top.

Second, for anyone that has kids, the game includes rules variants designed for young children.  The simplest one suggests using the dragon cards alone in a non-competitive format where the kids just look for matches, thus teaching colors and visual reasoning.  Another variant suggests changing the size of the chain needed to win based on the player’s age, leveling the playing field for gamers of varying age.  That’s a great addition for a casual game that’s just as likely to end up on the dinner table as in a gaming group.  I wish more companies would offer rules along those lines.

My minor criticism is that the action cards — while featuring lovely artwork in the middle — don’t take advantage of the black margins to write out an explanation of what they do.  So whenever a player wanted to use one of the five action cards, they had to refer back to the rules insert to see what their card would unleash.  The rules for each card are relatively simple, so an experienced group is likely to have them memorized after a game or two.  But for new players, a sentence of explanation would have made these cards much more user-friendly.

In closing, I suppose the highest praise I can offer the game was its reception.  My family had a great time playing it and has asked me to bring it back on future holidays.  If you’re a fan of Looney’s other offerings, I’d recommend spending the $15 to pick up a copy or at least tracking down someone that has it and giving it a try.  It’s a great product to tuck in your bag for downtime in your gaming group, a pick-up at a con, or some casual fun at a family gathering.

If you’re interested in grabbing a copy, Seven Dragons is set for release on June 24th.  You can get more information at your local gaming store or on Looney Lab’s own site.

* (2:49) Dan’s first awkward confession, plus Unicron, Arcee, and a seven-inch Voltron.

* (6:51) Pat rages against 3D movies, and the rest of us pretty much agree.

* (12:51) After a brilliant segue, Pat gives his take on the movie incarnations of Mystique.

* (16:47) Gaming as your family expands.  Not gaming with children (as we discussed in episode 207), but rather gaming when children or spouses are around, require regular attention, and so forth.  We look at how we’ve managed to make gaming work as our lives mature by tweaking our expectations and game execution.

Hosts: Dan, Karla, Pat, Wayne

* (5:24) The start of the next March of Dimes charity auction.  You have 10 days to bid on a complete Dresden Files set with a GM book, several player books, and plenty of Fudge dice.  The books will all be signed by Fred Hicks, Rob Donoghue, and the Fear the Boot hosts.  If you wish to make a donation apart from the auction, you can do so here.

* (8:08) Themes we’d like to see more often — or never again — in roleplaying games.  Topics discussed include romance, evil, mercenaries, redemption, addiction, friendship, moral complexity, tragic endings, ambiguous endings, discovery, world context, and the single-dimension quest.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, Pat, Wayne

* (5:10) Free RPG Day is coming up on June 18th.  Chris offers a bring-a-friend idea to help use this day to get new people into the hobby instead of just spreading products around people that already play RPGs.

* (11:26) A stage play within a game got us thinking a little more about narrative combat.

* (25:46) Willingly declaring failure during the course of narration, whether as the GM or a player.  The concern about negatively impacting the rest of the party.

* (33:37) A quick look at organized play.  What you can expect to get from it, and some tips on getting started.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, Pat, Wayne

* (1:35) Using narration instead of rules to resolve combat.  Being fair without dice to serve as an arbiter.  How to make it work without the players feeling cheated by the outcome.

* (39:01) Dealing with players that have the unusual, singular obsession of seeing their characters destroyed.

Hosts: Chad, Dan, Pat, Wayne

* (4:18) Kicking off the March of Dimes charity auction with a chance to set the topic, request an interview, and guest on an episode of Fear the Boot.  You can find the auction here!  If you’d like to make a direct donation instead of participating in the auction, you can do so here.

* (5:55) The next Gamer Adventure cruise is coming up on March 24, 2012.  We’d love to have some of you join us!  You can find more information here.  And if you think you can’t afford this trip, please contact Kim and see if she can use her travel agent prowess to help you out.

* (8:29) Chad takes us back to the D&D hotline.

* (10:04) Why won’t our campaign roll over and die like every other campaign we play?  Using our current game as a case study on why campaigns tend to fall apart and the various factors that can keep them together.

* (32:31) We pick up our conversation on lying again.  This time we focus on player-to-player lying, including whether social skills should be usable on fellow players.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, Johann, Pat, Wayne

Hosts: Chad, Dan, Mikey, Pat, Wayne

* (5:50) When a game, movie, novel, or TV show is taking a long time to get good, how long do you stick with it before giving up?

* (22:24) Deception at the gaming table.  We setup the topic, offer three categories of lying we’ll cover, and put a few boundaries on the discussion.

* (23:56) Game Masters lying to their players.  The complication caused by the many roles the Game Master fills.  The responsibility players have to not ask certain questions to avoid spoiling their own game experience.  The relationship between social deception done via roleplaying versus die mechanics.

* (45:50) The player lying to the Game Master as the Game Master, as opposed to a PC lying to an NPC simply played by the Game Master.

* (50:09) Last call for the charity auction!  Post your ideas on the blog or forum thread.

* (50:16) Also, a last call for Mikey Mason’s kickstarter project.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Dan, Johann, Pat, Wayne

* (0:57) Welcoming Chris Kluwe of the Minnesota Vikings.  Discussion about his history with Guitar Hero, Rock Band, and MMOs.  You can find his own band, Tripping Icarus, on their Facebook page.

* (13:34) Chris’ experience with roleplaying games.  Power-gaming and over-planning characters.  How tabletop gaming is affected by his career in professional sports.

* (20:10) Gamer shame and bullying (or the lack thereof) while being a successful athlete through high school, college, and professional athletics.

* (29:07) Wayne asks whether Chris has leveraged his position to meet famous people.  The possibility of a future career in the tabletop or video gaming industries, and also discussion of a combination board and card game he’s working on.

* (32:23) How Chris got into wargaming.  His experiences with Warhammer and Warmachine, including how he did in his first tournament.  Discussion about what makes a game store successful and the sort of shop he’d like to help open someday.

* (42:44) How often a punter appears in front of the media.  Chris’ checkered history with Twitter.  And if you’re interested in seeing his Twitter account, you can find it here.

* (49:38) Chris’ current game picks.

Hosts: Chad, Chris, Pat, Wayne

Guest: Chris Kluwe