The Vintage RPG Podcast

Ships and desert islands and sea shanties and secret treasures: we're getting nautical on this week's episode of the Vintage RPG Podcast. First up, N4 — Treasure Hunt (1986), one of the finest introductory scenarios for first edition Dungeons & Dragons. It's one of the only modules to successfully pull of the "you've been captured and lost all your stuff" trope and introduces the underloved idea of zero-level characters (at least until Dungeon Crawl Classics came around). Good stuff all around! We also chat with Tristan Zimmerman about his unusual nautical RPG, Shanty Hunters, in which you attempt to preserve sea shanties that magically defend themselves by manifesting the subjects of their songs to stop you. It's pretty wild and on Kickstarter right now! * * * Be sure to check out Tristan's Ennie-nominated RPG blog, Molten Sulphur.

This week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we're talking 3, 2, 1… Action! with 3, 2, 1… Action! creator Hambone! You probably remember Hambone kickstarted an adventure for the system, Rocket to Russia, back in February during ZineQuest. That scenario is a prelude to Point Nemo, which is hitting Kickstarter on Tuesday. Follow now to be notified on launch! We chat a little bit about Point Nemo and a lot about the underlying system, which is rules light and aims to be welcoming for players of all levels of experience. Check it out!

Halloween is nearly upon us! For the last few years, we've reserved this week to chat about Ravenloft, but this year we thought we'd talk about a game that seems truer to the spirit of the season: Babes in the Wood, from World Champ Game Company. It's a delightfully spooky game about being a child lost in the woods on an endless Halloween. What could be better? But that's not all! Comic writer Mark Sable is back for a chat, this time to tell us about his new comic, Chaotic Neutral, which ponders the question: what if Dungeons & Dragons was everything the Satanic Panic thought it was? It's on Kickstarter now!

Have you seen the Yellow Sign? We sure have. This week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we tackle the massive new Delta Green campaign Impossible Landscapes (2021). It instantly takes its places as one of the definitive RPG takes on Robert W. Chambers' infamous King in Yellow, delivering an unprecedented, mind-bending experience — and that's just reading the book. Playing the campaign is likely something the folks at your table will never forget. A solid gold modern classic. Stu doesn't generally care about spoilers but in this case tried to minimize discussing them. Still, if you're planning on playing this, or think you might down the line, maybe be ready to stick your fingers in your ears while listening. We've also got a new Indie Elevator Pitch! Sadia Bies and Banana Chan pop on to chat about their anthology of live action horror RPGs that tackle themes of suburbia, food and consumption. Coming to Kickstarter soon!

This week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we have such sights to show you. Wait, no, wrong horror franchise. But pretty close — we're talking about Kult, the mature existential urban horror RPG imported from Sweden by Terry Amthor and Metropolis Ltd. The designers clearly had Clive Barker on their minds. We honestly barely scratch the surface, though, talking more about the edginess of the 90s, the trend of investigating secret histories in RPGs and all that pre-millennial tension that was in the air. We'll be taking another, closer look at Kult down the line for sure.

We're excited to have game designer and artist Amanda Lee Franck back on the Vintage RPG Podcast this week! Amanda's got a big old pile of exciting projects to chat about, from a zine about vacationing vampires (Vampire Cruise!) to another about exploring a mysterious domed habitat (Mouth Brood!). And that's just the start!

This week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we're taking a look at Goodman Games' series of alphabet sourcebooks: The Dungeon Alphabet, The Monster Alphabet and The Cthulhu Alphabet. These are system agnostic design tools, full to brimming with random tables and amazing art, all aimed at helping you stoke your imagination to make cool things for your players. A must for every GM's shelf.

Space is a place that wants to kill us, be it with the vacuum, the cold, the hostile exo-environments, the hubris of humanity or a good old fashioned xenomorph. That's right, this week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we take a look at the Alien RPG. The latest permutation of Free League's Year Zero Engine is refined to be even deadlier. It boasts frameworks for both traditional campaign play and more directed cinematic play. There's a pretty excellent stress and panic system. It all comes together as a pretty excellent survival horror/sci-fi RPG!

"Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn and caldron bubble!" This week, we're doing a bit of black magic and calling up demons. Specifically the demons in the Ars Goetia, the 72 kings, dukes, presidents and barons of Hell. We run down the history of this notorious book of demonology, its unlikely origins and its connections to pop culture and roleplaying games.

Choo-choo! Stu recently wrapped up running the Call of Cthulhu campaign Horror on the Orient Express after about a year and a quarter of weekly sessions. A momentous occasion! This week on the Vintage RPG Podcast, we thought it would be cool to chat about it. Who survived? What was left of them? Just how on rails was it? Were the flashback scenarios as good as advertised? We discuss, and manage to do it relatively spoiler free. We also check in with Tony Vasinda from Plus One Exp about Down We Go, a new game currently crowdfunding on Gamefound.