The Vintage RPG Podcast

We decided to take a couple weeks off for the holidays, so we remastered a couple older episodes for your enjoyment. We'll be back with a new episode on January 9. Original show notes: Hey, we're weekly! We talk about what that means for the podcast going forward (forget that we say its December in the episode. It isn't. Schedules change, OK?). It would be rad if you joined us on our Patreon, because that definitely helps keep us going. We also talk about the classic D&D monster, the rust monster. It was born from a cheap Hong Kong "dinosaur" in the 70s and has since become the bane of adventurers everywhere.

We decided to take a couple weeks off for the holidays, so we remastered a couple older episodes for your enjoyment. We'll be back with a new episode on January 9. Original show notes: Happy holidays, folks! We're breaking from format this episode to dig deep into the nostalgia and look at the Sears Wish Book, an important part of our childhood Christmas experiences. Specifically, we're looking at the catalogs from 1982, 1983 and 1984, which contained, you guessed it, Dungeons & Dragons stuff. They are so much more than that, though, as you'll discover when you listen! And, while we have you, let us offer our tremendous thanks for following Vintage RPG on Instagram, listening to the podcast and making this whole project fun and rewarding on a daily basis. All the best this holiday season!

War hedgehogs! This week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we check out Dragonroar, the first major fantasy RPG out of the UK, and boy is it British. Beware, for man-eating penguins lie in wait. And war hedgehogs!

Fighting Fantasy? That's for babies. This week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we look at Advanced Fighting Fantasy, the full-fledged RPG rules derived from the (not really for babies) Fighting Fantasy gamebook series. There are three delightful volumes - Dungeoneer starts things off with dungeons rules, Blacksand! takes players to the city streets and Allansia explores the great outdoors. Lots of fantastic art by John Sibbick and Russ Nicholson, plus a lightweight and versatile system with a surprising modern legacy!

This week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we look at the amazing fantasy RPG-inspired art book, Down in the Dungeon (1981), by Don Greer. This amazing collection of art retells the adventures the author experienced while exploring Zarakan's dungeon after discovering it on a camping trip somewhere in the American Southwest. We talk about the enduring appeal of this sort of art and speculate a bit about what a book like this said about the broader RPG scene at the time of its publication. * * * A large number of the paintings from Down in the Dungeon can be viewed at the Monster Brains blog. And hey, you know what is awesome? The ownership of Noble Knight has agreed to recognize the union! We're firm believers in the non-controversial idea that all workers should be fairly compensated by their employers. Unionization and collective bargaining are an excellent way for workers to ensure they get that fair share, and we're psyched the NKG owners came around.

Horror stories on vinyl! This week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we digress a little bit to talk about Cadabra Records and their "nightmares on vinyl." These are spoken word readings or full cast audio plays of classic horror stories, set to atmospheric soundscapes and wrapped in evocative sleeve art. They're part of a larger tradition of (often horror-centric) storytelling recordings but, primarily, they're just plain cool as heck! Pick one up, dial the lights down low and have a spooky evening! * * * Our friends at Noble Knight are organizing a union and we support their efforts whole-heartedly! We're firm believers in the non-controversial idea that all workers should be fairly compensated by their employers. Unionization and collective bargaining are an excellent way for workers to ensure they get that fair share. For updates on the process, follow the union Twitter and put "We Roll Together" in the notes field of your online orders to show your support! (And just to be clear, we're speaking from the heart on this - no one is paying us for our solidarity)

Back to back heresy, just like we like it. Last week, we did Heirs to Heresy, this week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we're talking about John's new adventure Heresy of Rot, co-authored by Levi Combs and published by Necromancer Games. We talk a bit about horror in RPGs and we also briefly discuss Lodestar to Karamouska, a system agnostic RPG setting zine by Matheus Graef that Stu published through Unwinnable. Go buy the things! * * * Buy Heresy of Rot! You can also get it at DriveThru. Buy Lodestar to Karamouska!

They seem to be at the center of every occult conspiracy mystery ever written, so of course they have an RPG! This week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we take a look at Heirs to Heresy, Allan Bahr's RPG centered on the Knights Templars (and their persecution in 1312). We also talk a bit about Osprey Publishing's whole RPG line and some of the many surprises contained therein! * * * Our friends at Noble Knight are organizing a union and we support their efforts whole-heartedly! We're firm believers in the non-controversial idea that all workers should be fairly compensated by their employers. Unionization and collective bargaining are an excellent way for workers to ensure they get that fair share. For updates on the process, follow the union Twitter and put "We Roll Together" in the notes field of your online orders to show your support! (And just to be clear, we're speaking from the heart on this - no one is paying us for our solidarity)

In 2021, Call of Cthulhu turned 40 years old! This week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we're looking at some of the print products that came out in 2022 to celebrate that mind-blasting anniversary — the sinister-looking 40th Anniversary edition of the Keeper Rulebook, the Kickstarted reprint of the first edition Call of Cthulhu box set with its accompanying stack of scenario books and, mostly, the advice-filled Keeper Tips book, full of little anonymous koan-like thoughts on how to run good games. (Stu forgot all about the revamped 40th Anniversary Starter Kit and its handsome new cover, to his eternal shame. Whoops!)

FLASHBACK to October 29, 2018. Two friends in a remote club house. Lightning flashes. Thunder roars. The rain hammers the window in torrents. Within, they discuss…I6: Ravenloft! Yep, this week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we're airing a remastered repeat. One of Stu's microphone cables died under mysterious circumstances and we couldn't replace it in time to record a new jam. We'll be back next week with the Halloween episode Stu had been planning, and that's all right, since everyday is Halloween if you want it to be. The original, laborious show notes, featuring now inaccurate timestamps, follow: The guys start off with Ghost Fightin' Treasure Hunters, a co-op board game about finding treasure in a haunted house (01:33). Stu explains how it reminds him of another co-op game, Flash Point, about fighting fires (03:03). Hambone talks a bit about the games two expansion (04:41). Hambone introduces the main course of our feast, D&D module I6 - Ravenloft (06:23). He declares it the best stand-alone module for D&D, though Stu disagrees (06:42). An unexpected hypothetical interlude about the 1979 cult classic film, The Warriors (08:38). Back on track. Hambone explains how much he loves the idea of a dungeon crawl through Dracula's castle (09:55) and goes ga-ga over the maps (10:28). They discuss how experimental the module was for the time (12:00) and what kind of music Strahd is probably into (13:49). Stu breaks down how important Strahd is in terms of villain design (14:53). Hambone talks about how difficult it is to run Strahd as a master tactician (17:00). Curse of Strahd for 5E comes up (19:20). Stu offers his final thoughts on the module (21:00) and touches on House on Gryphon Hill, the sequel to Ravenloft (22:00). Castlevania: Simon's Quest comes up (24:10) and Bram Stoker's Dracula, too (25:34). Hambone briefly gets excited about Mixtape Massacre (28:00) and the guys say their farewells. * * * Clarification: Let's talk dates. Ravenloft came out in 1983. House on Gryphon Hill came out in 1986. Castlevania came out in Japan in 1986 and North America in '87 while Castlevania II: Simon's Quest came out in Japan in '87 and North America in '88. Judging from the art on the cover of Simon's Quest, it is pretty clear that Ravenloft was at least on the radar of the videogame developers.