* (0:28) The Itty Bitty Writing Space Kickstarter.
* (3:47) A topic from Wendell on our Discord server.
* (4:49) Playing to genre, themes, and moods.
* (12:59) Hijacking the experience everyone signed up for.
* (18:54) The distinction between assenting to a social contract and losing agency. The Richard Pryor game.
* (23:26) Why one person may be playing out of sync.
* (31:06) When the contract turns into a railroad.
* (32:56) The limited recourse available when someone breaks the contract.
* (42:10) Freedom within limits.
Hosts: Chad, Dan, Wayne
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
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* (0:22) Catching up with how Chad’s campaign ended.
* (1:43) The steps taken to set the mood.
* (11:08) Pacing of the game.
* (15:36) Resolving the prophecies.
* (19:37) How the players helped the Game Master.
* (24:32) The things that went wrong. What Dan called “anticlimax” is more accurately “dénouement.”
* (31:33) A brick-wall ending.
* (40:38) What went right.
Hosts: Chad, Dan, Wayne
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
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* (0:28) Let’s hear it for Devastator!
* (1:23) An update on Fear the Con.
* (3:30) Game scheduling falls apart one session before the finale.
* (12:35) Recovering the game by bringing immediate intensity.
* (17:12) Shaping the real-world environment to set a mood.
* (22:46) Playing side content.
* (36:43) Controlling the recap.
* (47:27) The players’ role in helping.
* (1:02:47) Fear the Boot and Gamers Table Destiny 2 clan.
Hosts: Caleb, Chad, Dan, Wayne
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
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* (0:28) Finally all the way home!
* (0:48) The Actual Play actor’s studio.
* (3:33) Dan’s PCs are becoming more like NPCs.
* (11:34) Not giving up your own enjoyment. Misreading the situation.
* (17:27) Being a codependent player.
* (21:09) Strategies for helping the GM with your PC. Reading the GM.
* (30:39) Not dominating the game.
* (39:43) Playing NPCs as PCs. The appeal of Fat Tony.
* (47:29) Do bad PCs make good NPCs?
Hosts: Chad, Dan, Julia, Wayne
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
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* (0:28) Right place, wrong room.
* (1:23) Playing the hatred between two player-characters.
* (6:18) You aren’t a victim of your character.
* (10:04) Enemy Mine and Hell in the Pacific.
* (14:34) Programming a path to peace.
* (20:01) Giving the conflict boundaries without erasing its relevance.
* (31:36) Not all wounds have to be healed. Metering conflict in the meta-game.
* (39:57) Someone can’t cook.
* (46:22) Accepting defeat to keep the conflict from derailing the game.
* (48:04) Having a final fallback for when it all goes wrong.
* (56:00) Fear the Boot and Gamers Table Destiny 2 clan.
Hosts: Chad, Dan, Wayne
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android |
* (0:28) Recording at Julia’s.
* (1:36) Fear the Boot and Gamers Table Destiny 2 clan.
* (2:58) A fond farewell to Don Dehm of Pulp Gamer.
* (4:23) Wemic shoes, doo doo doo doo doo doo.
* (11:02) Dividing the hobby in an implausible way.
* (13:18) The value to the Game Master of players being in-character.
* (20:42) Letting a game descend into total silliness.
* (22:16) Flipping the narrative: The consistency players expect.
* (31:17) Remediating the situation in-character. Explaining the swimsuit episode.
* (34:02) Addressing things at the meta-game level.
* (38:48) Player awareness of what the Game Master is doing.
Hosts: Chad, Dan, Julia
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
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* (0:33) A bottle of bourbon and a letter from the Hellhounds.
* (8:11) Brodeur wants to blossom, plus something about Jenna von Oÿ.
* (9:13) Discord and the things we won’t do for you. A big shout-out to David for joining the hobby. starting a group, and then starting his own podcast, Next Generation Game Masters.
* (14:30) Chad is Gandhi. Eric from Gamers Table is running a Twitch show, Luncheon Crawl, for his game prep.
* (20:53) Making it through an RPG session when you aren’t feeling it.
* (23:04) Just muscle (march) through. Gaming as an escape, burden, or obligation.
* (31:12) Setting the right expectations for yourself.
* (38:51) Communicating how you’re doing and what you need.
* (44:43) Testing the mood with some marketing tricks.
* (55:39) An exercise in adapting to a player’s mood.
Hosts: Brodeur, Chad, Dan, Wayne
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android |
* (0:28) Reaching a milestone episode. A topic picked by our Patreon backers.
* (2:59) How the podcast started. Its first hosts and logo. The deep well of storytelling topics.
* (14:57) The show’s first major crisis. How the ebb and flow of our lives affects the quality of the show. A history of its hosting composition.
* (26:38) Show planning, social tone, and getting older. A changing industry.
* (36:30) Fear the Boot’s history of logos. The first boot, the color revision, the improved art, and the pinup girl.
* (40:22) An assortment of projects and technologies that came and went.
* (42:59) Actual plays.
* (45:32) The impact the audience has on us. Hanging onto stuff. John’s acceptance speech.
* (1:04:03) FTB FTW card game.
* (1:05:53) Thickening skin. The changing way we view other content creators.
* (1:22:38) The future of Skies of Glass and other side projects.
* (1:27:54) Things that have changed in 12.5 years.
* (1:33:20) Predictions for the future.
Hosts: Chad, Dan, Wayne
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android |
* (0:29) A topic inspired by a game of Bang. What it will take to make Dan stab someone in the back in a board game. The distinction between factions and a traitor mechanic.
* (10:29) Hiding your intentions as a Game Master.
* (15:54) The Simpsons, Family Guy, mailing pancakes, Russian manti, grilled cheese, Raddish Kids, and Uncle Dan cookies.
* (20:27) Showing or hiding intention as a player. How hiding harmless things can add productive tension.
* (28:01) Keeping the entertainment of the group as your central focus. The potential value of meta-gaming.
* (40:15) Using Reductio ad Absurdum to determine whether a secret intention is a good idea or not.
* (50:34) Falling off one side or the other.
Hosts: Caleb, Chad, Dan, Wayne
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android |
* (0:28) Fear the boot is now on iHeartRadio. You can get the regular show here and the actual play here.
* (3:02) A player’s response to an unintentional Game Master error. An example with a dragon.
* (10:50) Some quick advice to Game Masters: consider a ret-con and be prepared to own your mistake. Austin Powers speaking English English.
* (12:59) As a player, have sympathy for the GM.
* (18:04) What makes it right for the player. How the GM sets the tone.
* (32:25) De-escalation. Unpacking your reaction and metering your response.
* (41:30) Keeping the goal in mind: Restoring everyone’s enjoyment, not “winning” the situation.
Hosts: Chad, Dan, Wayne
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android |
