In this installment of the podcast roundup we’re looking at podcasts that generate ideas on how you can improve your game, from sharpening your GM and storytelling skills to how to turn your hobby into a career.
Stories of the Fifth Age examines how you can add depth and vibrancy to the narrative of your game, both as a GM and as a player. They cover a variety of topics from deep dives on specific character classes and races, to how to add layers of complexity to your game world by introducing criminal factions, different government types and a more complex approach to law and order. From a narrative point of view they address topics like scene arrangement, pacing and how to deal with shifts in tone without disrupting your game. There is a fantastic amount of well thought out advice to take in, and listening to this podcast has certainly improved my games.
The Crit Academy offers you advice on roleplaying, GMing, storytelling and game mechanics. The advice is split into four general sections. In Let's talk about blank the guys take in questions from fans on social media and try to answer them. Then the main topic of the show is addressed in, unsurprisingly, Main Topic! Followed by Unearthed Tips & Tricks where the team shares ideas that you can use on your next adventure. Including character concepts, monster variants, magic items, encounter ideas, DM tips and player tips.
The Paid to Play Podcast styles itself as the “The antidote to the don’t-give-up-your-day-job blues!” The host, Rob Farquhar, talks to his guest about how they gave up their day jobs to pursue their nerdy passions. The guests range from games designs and producers to fantasy authors and illustrators, and they are all great examples of how you can turn what you're passionate about into more than just a hobby, and something for which you can get paid. The most recent episode interviews Chris Birch, founder of Modiphius, who produce Achtung Cthulhu, Star Trek Adventures and Fallout Wasteland.
The Dungeon Master's Block is packed choc-full of advice for dungeon masters of all levels. The hosts, DM Neal and DM Josh, invite other GMs onto the show to discuss their experiences of games mastering and what additions to their games have had the greatest effect on the players. Much like Crit Academy the show is split into different sections, so there will always be something to listen to, even if the main topic of the episode isn't to your liking. Listening to the experiences of other GMs and how they solved their in-game problems is a great way to learn, and the show really delivers on GM advice.
The RPG Academy podcast is built on three pillars. Firstly, to educate their listeners on how to play RPGs and/or how to be better at playing RPGs. Secondly to inspire our listeners to pick up the mantel of being a DM/GM for the first time, and thirdly, to entertain their listeners while doing it. They mix Gm focused episodes on how to run the game with actual play episode where they put those ideas into action. The most recent episode features Mike Shea (aka Slyflourish) discussing the various options for running RPG combat and how to keep it fresh and exciting, even at level 20.
Stories of the Fifth Age examines how you can add depth and vibrancy to the narrative of your game, both as a GM and as a player. They cover a variety of topics from deep dives on specific character classes and races, to how to add layers of complexity to your game world by introducing criminal factions, different government types and a more complex approach to law and order. From a narrative point of view they address topics like scene arrangement, pacing and how to deal with shifts in tone without disrupting your game. There is a fantastic amount of well thought out advice to take in, and listening to this podcast has certainly improved my games.
The Crit Academy offers you advice on roleplaying, GMing, storytelling and game mechanics. The advice is split into four general sections. In Let's talk about blank the guys take in questions from fans on social media and try to answer them. Then the main topic of the show is addressed in, unsurprisingly, Main Topic! Followed by Unearthed Tips & Tricks where the team shares ideas that you can use on your next adventure. Including character concepts, monster variants, magic items, encounter ideas, DM tips and player tips.
The Paid to Play Podcast styles itself as the “The antidote to the don’t-give-up-your-day-job blues!” The host, Rob Farquhar, talks to his guest about how they gave up their day jobs to pursue their nerdy passions. The guests range from games designs and producers to fantasy authors and illustrators, and they are all great examples of how you can turn what you're passionate about into more than just a hobby, and something for which you can get paid. The most recent episode interviews Chris Birch, founder of Modiphius, who produce Achtung Cthulhu, Star Trek Adventures and Fallout Wasteland.
The Dungeon Master's Block is packed choc-full of advice for dungeon masters of all levels. The hosts, DM Neal and DM Josh, invite other GMs onto the show to discuss their experiences of games mastering and what additions to their games have had the greatest effect on the players. Much like Crit Academy the show is split into different sections, so there will always be something to listen to, even if the main topic of the episode isn't to your liking. Listening to the experiences of other GMs and how they solved their in-game problems is a great way to learn, and the show really delivers on GM advice.
The RPG Academy podcast is built on three pillars. Firstly, to educate their listeners on how to play RPGs and/or how to be better at playing RPGs. Secondly to inspire our listeners to pick up the mantel of being a DM/GM for the first time, and thirdly, to entertain their listeners while doing it. They mix Gm focused episodes on how to run the game with actual play episode where they put those ideas into action. The most recent episode features Mike Shea (aka Slyflourish) discussing the various options for running RPG combat and how to keep it fresh and exciting, even at level 20.
