Dungeons & Tangents

Episode 30: Party Dynamics

January 2nd, 2018  |  31 mins 5 secs

What would the A-Team be without Hannibal?
The Fellowship of the Rings be without Gandalf?
Buffy the Vampire slayer without Giles?

Are there character archetypes that are necessary for a party to gel?
Are there character pairings that make parties fall apart?
We'll ask these questions and discuss general party dynamics today on Dungeons & Tangents.

Episode 29: Alignment (the inevitable episode)

December 19th, 2017  |  33 mins 52 secs

Most of you have seen your favorite fictional characters pigeon holed into a chart of the 9 Alignments.
Obiwan is "Lawful Good", Treebeard is True Neutral, The Joker is "Chaotic Evil".

Obviously that grid was popularized by D&D, but you may not know that it was not originally part of D&D.
We'll discuss that as well as how it fits into game play today on "Dungeons & Tangents"

Episode 28: Sports vs eSports vs Tabletop Streams

December 12th, 2017  |  29 mins 23 secs

esports, sports

Sports is a Trillion Dollar industry in the United States alone. And while Sports has been a part of our cultural landscape for more than a hundred years, eSports and tabletop streaming are very new industries that are vying for a very different audience. Can these new forms of entertainment satisfy the Nerd world's need for an alternative to Football, Basketball, and Baseball?
We'll discuss that and more, today on Dungeons & Tangents.

Episode 27: Running a "Theater of the Mind" Game

November 28th, 2017  |  38 mins 1 sec

We're planning on running an Actually Play in the future, but that means changing the way we play D&D. The main change is the removal of all visual aids from the game. Making the game purely audible. This episode we discuss how to run a "Theater of the Mind" style game and how it's different than running a game with Maps, miniatures, and other physical props.

Episode 26: DM for Hire & the Untapped Potential of D&D

November 21st, 2017  |  22 mins 22 secs

This episode we discuss a man named John Dempsey from Toronto Canada who has started making a living as a professional Dungeon Master. He charges clients for his time and efforts in prepping and running games of D&D. We also talk about the untapped potential of D&D as a form of entertainment and a viable platform for businesses like John Dempsey's

Knowledge History D&D - Episode 3: Birth of the Fantasy Game (1967 to 1972)

November 14th, 2017  |  16 mins 50 secs

This episode covers the events that lead Dave Arneson and Gary Gygax to meet and have the inspiration they needed to create the first drafts of D&D.

Episode 25: Massive Tangent #3 - Who's the best Joker

November 7th, 2017  |  6 mins 2 secs

Hey everyone and welcome to Dungeons & Tangents
Today Robert and Erik B.S. about Batman and the Joker.
This is a SUPER short Episode because it was a spur of the moment thing.
But we just had to share it because Erik does his impersonation of Mark Hamil's Joker.
Also, Erik will be on vacation for a week so we're padding out our schedule wink wink

Knowledge History D&D - Episode 2: Setting up the Pieces (1953 - 1967)

October 31st, 2017  |  14 mins 29 secs

dave arneson, gary gygax, history

This episode, we continue the new series "Knowledge - History - D&D". A chronological review of the creation of Dungeons & Dragons. We'll intro you to the people who created D&D and how they first got interested in table top gaming. We talk through the early days of Gary Gygax, Don Kaye, and Dave Arneson.

Episode 24: Criticals and Fumbles

October 24th, 2017  |  30 mins 53 secs

dming, game mechanics, running the game

This Episode we're talking about, perhaps the most overused phrase in D&D; "Critical Hit".
It's the moment in every D&D game where people scream and jump up and down. But Critical Hits haven't always been part of the game. We discuss the history, the mechanics, the narrative, and the different variations of critical hits and misses.

Knowledge History D&D - Episode 1: The Prehistory to D&D (500 - 1950)

October 17th, 2017  |  14 mins 45 secs

chaturanga, chess, history, kreigsspiel

This episode, Erik starts a new series called "Knowledge - History - D&D". A chronological review of how Dungeons & Dragons came into being.
We'll start by releasing episodes every other week.
This first episode starts with the prehistory of D&D from 500 AD to 1950.

Episode 23: Alternative Methods of Play

October 10th, 2017  |  38 mins 35 secs

This episode Robert and Erik discuss 4 Alternative Methods of playing D&D.
Play by mail, Flex groups,
We go through the good and the bad of each one. Of course we talk about our opinions and experiences. Because... that's kinda how this podcast goes.

Episode 22: THAC0 & Armor Class

October 3rd, 2017  |  33 mins 33 secs

character sheet, game mechanics

Remember THAC0? What a THAC0 crap.
In this episode we're going to recap the history of Armor Class and Attack Bonuses from 1st Edition of D&D through 5th edition.

Episode 21: Psionics & Dinosaurs

September 26th, 2017  |  26 mins 34 secs

culture, stranger things

The two of us get into a heated debate about Telepathy and T-Rexes in our worlds of Swords of Sorcery.

Episode 20: Initiative

September 19th, 2017  |  24 mins 5 secs

dming, encounters, running the game

Initiative is the D&D mechanic for deciding the order of play during an encounter.
As players of D&D we don't often question how initiative works or how it could be different.
But in this episode Robert and Erik do exactly that. Why do we use initiative? And what alternatives are there?
Is there a better way to run initiative?

Episode 19: Massive Tangent #2 - Rose City Comic Con 2017

September 12th, 2017  |  47 mins 7 secs

comic con, culture

This week Robert and Erik talk about the 2017 Rose City Comic Con.
Rose City Comic Con is an annual comic book and pop culture convention that takes place here in Portland, Oregon each September.
We went with some friends, saw the sights and wanted to share what we saw and out thoughts on Comic Cons in general

The content of this episode is not 100% Dungeons and Dragons oriented, but chances are, we'll touch on subjects you care about.

Episode 18: Death of a Character

September 5th, 2017  |  27 mins 12 secs

dming, running the game

This episode we discuss the most unfortunate thing that can happen in a game of D&D.
Running out of snacks.
I mean... A player's Character Dying.
We ask the question: "Can a game of D&D still be fun when a character dies?"
And then we answer that question.