Kyle Wolfe On Story Engine 21 Apr 2026 00:33:11 In which Kyle and I discuss:
Using your character to motivate other characters.
Maintaining attention during play.
Playing a character outside your comfort zone.
Creating a character in an open system without archetypes.
Playing a character with questionable loyalties.
Not exceptionalizing the PCs.
Character motivations in the face of horrific injustice.
Characters relationships to violence that happens around them.
Being out of the action at a critical moment.
The moral qualities of situational fallout.
Looking forward to follow-up scenarios.
Pausing play to think through consequences.
Music
“The Best Jazz Club In New Orleans” by Paolo Argento
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Michael S. Miller
Vincent Baker
Ralph
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Greg Hellings On Fantasy For Real 07 Apr 2026 00:19:52 In which Greg and I discuss:
Bringing fresh ideas to player material
Setting up other players for character moments
Pace of developing a characters motivation
Considering other player characters’ motivations when acting.
Pushing for the fail moment.
Contingency planning or lack there of.
Character informing game decisions.
The morality of letting an NPC you could save die.
Processing the tone of a game.
Fantasy For Real as a GM training tool.
Having the perfect storm of players and game.
Music
“The Best Jazz Club In New Orleans” by Paolo Argento
Thanks To My Patreon Supporters:
Michael S. Miller
Vincent Baker
Ralph
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James Ritter On Blade Runner 03 Apr 2025 00:26:34 In which James and I discuss:
The professional and private life of a replicant blade runner.
Pushing beyond your limits for the job.
The complexity of interrogation scenes.
The politics of blade running.
Adjudicating beyond basic success.
Rules that occasionally disconnect from the fiction.
Music
“The Best Jazz Club In New Orleans” by Paolo Argento
Thanks To My Patreon Supporters:
Michael S. Miller
Vincent Baker
Ralph
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Sarah Kouklis On Crash Pandas 20 Mar 2025 00:27:27 In which Sarah and I discuss:
Developing scenarios from a minimal premise.
Creating personality profiles for background characters.
Managing colorful characters in a chaotic situation.
Resolving uncertainty outside the rules.
Building relatable characters in a silly context.
Music
“The Best Jazz Club In New Orleans” by Paolo Argento
Thanks To My Patreon Supporters:
Michael S. Miller
Vincent Baker
Ralph
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Episode 0: Welcome To The People I Play With 27 Feb 2025 00:02:35 A short introduction to the upcoming podcast: The People I Play With.
Music
“The Best Jazz Club In New Orleans” by Paolo Argento
Thanks To My Patreon Supporters:
Michael S. Miller
Vincent Baker
Ralph
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Sarah ChristianScher On Broken Tales 24 Mar 2026 00:20:06 In which Sarah and I discuss:
Developing a character from game cues.
Playing a protagonist that mirrors the antagonist.
Self-expression in an open magic system.
The morality of child vengeance and recruitment..
Developing an ethical framework in a villainous character.
Setting inspiration.
When player magic intersects with each other.
Watching inappropriate media in our youth.
Music
“The Best Jazz Club In New Orleans” by Paolo Argento
Thanks To My Patreon Supporters:
Michael S. Miller
Vincent Baker
Ralph
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Kodi Gonzaga On Ten Candles 10 Mar 2026 00:29:11 In which Kodi and I discuss:
Bringing emotions to the game.
Games as safe spaces for bad feelings.
Emotionally connecting with your character.
RPGs as “therapy” and self-expression.
Being emotionally disconnected from overly scripted moments.
Resonating with biracial themes in our game.
Struggling with awkward resolutions.
The difficulty with mixed-successes.
The myth of agency through narrative control.
Why math shouldn’t pace your games.
Thirsty Sword Lesbians, game or meta-game?
Music
“The Best Jazz Club In New Orleans” by Paolo Argento
Thanks To My Patreon Supporters:
Michael S. Miller
Vincent Baker
Ralph
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Season 2 Teaser 17 Feb 2026 00:02:34 Season 2 Is Coming March 10th!
Guests Include:
Kodi Gonzaga On Ten Candles
Sarah ChristianScher On Broken Tales
Greg Hellings On Fantasy For Real
Kyle Wolfe On Story Engine
Jeff Jones On Sorcerer
James Ritter On The Hour Between Dog And Wolf
Tea On Ex Tenebris
Bre Seale On Cthulhu Dark
Eva Wierzbicki On Bluebeard’s Bride
Music
“The Best Jazz Club In New Orleans” by Paolo Argento
Thanks To My Patreon Supporters:
Michael S. Miller
Vincent Baker
Ralph
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Christian Yetter On Bleak Spirit 12 Jun 2025 00:25:25 In which Christian and I discuss:
The joy of adding incidental details.
Finding the salient detail of scene vs playing toward one.
Formulating alternative consequences for conflicts.
The power of restricting conversations about in-progress play.
Following the creative focus of the group.
Discerning meaning within thematic resonance.
Processing and teaching rules texts.
Music
“The Best Jazz Club In New Orleans” by Paolo Argento
Thanks To My Patreon Supporters:
Michael S. Miller
Vincent Baker
Ralph
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Dawn Matheson On Sorcerer 29 May 2025 00:21:41 In which Dawn and I discuss:
The value of playing in familiar locations.
Playing fantasy selves.
Navigating NPC social pressure.
Forming meaningful connections between PCs and NPCs.
Assuming responsibility for your character’s actions.
Playing with family members.
Running a game without a plot.
Other historical contexts for play.
Music
“The Best Jazz Club In New Orleans” by Paolo Argento
Thanks To My Patreon Supporters:
Michael S. Miller
Vincent Baker
Ralph
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Adam McConnaughey On Shine A Light 15 May 2025 00:25:23 In which Adam and I discuss:
Vibing with other players.
Fighting contrarian impulses in play.
Aggressively casual creative prompts.
The value of time flow interruptions.
Backdoor GMing a GMless game.
Deliberate vs. informal scene framing.
Game structure as religious observance.
What does it mean to cope with death?
Death as resolution point vs. transformative moment.
Less literal implementations of source inspiration.
The joys of play variety.
Music
“The Best Jazz Club In New Orleans” by Paolo Argento
Thanks To My Patreon Supporters:
Michael S. Miller
Vincent Baker
Ralph
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Bre Seale On The Quick 01 May 2025 00:18:18 In which Bre and I discuss:
Playing from the hip.
Player agency within moments of fictional loss of agency.
Seizing a course of action and seeing it through.
Finding symbolic resolutions.
Seeking justice in supernatural contexts.
Honest vs obstructive play.
RPGs as safe space for self-expression.
Music
“The Best Jazz Club In New Orleans” by Paolo Argento
Thanks To My Patreon Supporters:
Michael S. Miller
Vincent Baker
Ralph
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Shaun Hayworth On Blade Runner 17 Apr 2025 00:28:28 In which Shaun and I discuss:
Coping with failure in investigation scenarios.
Trust in play.
Playing a physically disabled character.
Portraying a corrupt character.
The politics of the advancement system.
Constructing honest investigation scenarios.
Music
“The Best Jazz Club In New Orleans” by Paolo Argento
Thanks To My Patreon Supporters:
Michael S. Miller
Vincent Baker
Ralph
Lend Your Support
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