Narrative Damage – Details, episodes & analysis

Watch as a full video interview on YouTube

Welcome to the first episode of Narrative Damage - a podcast where some of your favourite authors gather together to roll dice, craft worlds and tell stories together through the medium of tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs)!

For our first guest, we are delighted to chat with the brilliant Sydney Amanuel. Sydney is an actor and designer from New York. While she is usually spotted in films and TV, she also appears on multiple TTRPG podcasts on The Glass Cannon Network where she plays various characters full of improv comedy, fantasy and fun. 

Sydney tells us about how she sort of stumbled into the world of live TTRPGs and tells us about the avenues that these games give for storytelling. We talk about the many similarities between the writing process and roleplaying games, including how she crafts characters, worlds and more.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe to Narrative Damage on YouTube and on its own podcast feed as we have many more brilliant guests and our own live play games with authors coming very soon!

Links:

Listen to Sydney on the Glass Cannon Network

Follow Sydney on Instagram

Visit Sydney's website

Follow Narrative Damage on YouTube or its own podcast feed to get more interviews with TTRPG writers, creators and more, plus actual plays with some of your favourite authors: https://linktr.ee/narrativedamagerpg

Follow us on Instagram

Follow us on Bluesky

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Watch as a full video interview on our YouTube channel

Dennis Detwiller is an illustrator, writer and designer who has worked in the field of video games, card games and tabletop roleplaying games. He worked on Magic: The Gathering, and is a co-creator of the award-winning TTRPG, Delta Green, including being author of the legendary Impossible Landscapes campaign.

We loved having the opportunity to speak with Dennis, who told us how he stumbled into and then out of the world of video games, and how he created Delta Green. We talked about the impact of his philosophical views on his TTRPG writing, and discuss the whole 'railroading v sandbox' styles of storytelling in TTRPGs. Plus, he discusses why reading TTRPG books can help writers of all kinds, and we discuss how to make horror have an impact in writing.

Links:

Follow Dennis on Bluesky

Buy Delta Green now

Follow Narrative Damage on YouTube or its own podcast feed to get more interviews with TTRPG writers, creators and more, plus actual plays with some of your favourite authors: https://linktr.ee/narrativedamagerpg

Follow us on Instagram

Follow us on Bluesky

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Watch as a full video episode on YouTube

Descend into madness with us as our cast of three authors swap pens for dice in the first part of this Call of Cthulhu scenario.

"I must know why my son took his own life."

When Lord Gladstone calls three hardy investigators to his London mansion on a cold rainy evening in October 1896, they awaken old scars - and create new ones. What was the music that Charles Gladstone was working on before his death, and why is it so unsettling?

Cast:

- Tariq Ashkanani (author of The Midnight King) as Donovan Ramsbottom III

- Nicholas Binge (author of Dissolution) as Rev. Tobias Ashford

- David Goodman (author of A Reluctant Spy) as Lord Wilbur Linklater

- Marco Rinaldi as your Keeper of Arcane Lore

If you enjoyed the descent into madness, please subscribe and hit the bell icon! Part 2 drops next week!

Follow the madness on Instagram

Follow on Bluesky

This is a playthrough of Loki's Gift from the Cults of Cthulhu book from Chaosium.

Music from Monument Studios

Sound FX from Syrinscape

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Watch as a full video interview on our YouTube channel

In the final of our cross-over interview episodes with Page One, we chat with the brilliant Mike Mason!

Mike Mason is an award-winning game designer and writer, and the creative director for the Call of Cthulhu tabletop roleplaying game. As well as being the commissioning editor and lead writer for the line, Mike also works closely with artists and cartographers to shape the look and art for Call of Cthulhu.

It was great speaking with Mike and hearing how his love for storytelling and Call of Cthulhu led to him landing his dream job. He tells us about how he writes scenarios and campaign books, and how that differs (and doesn't differ) from writing other forms of fiction. Plus, we talk about writing effective horror, and discuss why mystery fiction of all kinds is so popular.

Links:

Follow Mike on Instagram

Visit Chaosium's website

Watch the trailer for our actual play of Loki's Gift

Follow Narrative Damage on YouTube or its own podcast feed to get more interviews with TTRPG writers, creators and more, plus actual plays with some of your favourite authors: https://linktr.ee/narrativedamagerpg

Follow us on Instagram

Follow us on Bluesky

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Watch as a full video episode on YouTube

Descend into madness with us as our cast of three authors swap pens for dice in the second part of this Call of Cthulhu scenario.

What drove Charles Gladstone to his death?

Our investigators continue their pursuit of the truth as they meet those who had contact with Charles Gladstone shortly before his death. What is the play Ernest Chillingworth asked Charles to work on? What does the actress Margaret Cornwall know? And can they track down Charles' fellow composer, Daniel Ridley? Plus, will Donovan's explorer skills finally come in useful?

Cast:

- Tariq Ashkanani (author of The Midnight King) as Donovan Ramsbottom III

- Nicholas Binge (author of Dissolution) as Rev. Tobias Ashford

- David Goodman (author of A Reluctant Spy) as Lord Wilbur Linklater

- Marco Rinaldi as your Keeper of Arcane Lore

If you enjoyed the descent into madness, please follow on your podcast app The final part drops next week!

Follow the madness on Instagram

Follow on Bluesky

Subscribe on YouTube

This is a playthrough of Loki's Gift from the Cults of Cthulhu book from Chaosium. All illustrations are used with permission of Chaosium and can be found in their Cults of Cthulhu and Cthulhu by Gaslight books.

Music from Monument Studios

Sound FX from Syrinscape

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Watch as a full video episode on our YouTube channel

Kat Clay is an ENNIE and ARPIA award-winning author of tabletop roleplaying games from Melbourne, Australia. Her Call of Cthulhu games, The Hammersmith Haunting, Resort, and The Well of All Fear, are bestsellers on DriveThruRPG. The Well of All Fear won the silver ENNIE in 2024 for Best Community Content, and was nominated for Best Adventure – Short Form. Resort, won Best Scenario at the 2025 Australian Roleplaying Industry Awards. She works as a freelance editor and graphic designer for game publisher, Chaosium.

We had a great time chatting with Kat and hearing about how she got into writing for TTRPGs, including how she brings her fiction-writing skills to the scenarios, and why she doesn't think you need to over-playtest scenarios. Plus, she tells us about how to make the horror in your games really land with players.

Links:

Buy Kat's A Well of All Fear scenario

Visit Kat's website

Follow Kat on Instagram

Don't forget you can still win a Call of Cthulhu Starter Set! All you need to do all you need to do is subscribe on YouTube and leave a comment below one of our Loki's Gift videos! Once we hit 250 subs we will pick our winner! Plus - double your chances: Head over to our Instagram to enter there as well.

Follow the madness on Instagram

Follow on Bluesky

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Damage Assessment - our look back at our actual plays, where we breakdown the scenario, talk about what went well, what could've gone better, and what might help you run the same scenario at your table.

Loki's Gift is a Call of Cthulhu scenario from Chaosium's Cults of Cthulhu book by Chris Lackey, Mike Mason and friends. Set in Late Victorian London in 1896, it focuses on the investigation into the death of Charles Gladstone, musician and son of Lord Richard Gladstone. Watch or listen to our playthrough now and then head back here to hear all about how our players went off track causing some panicked moments for our Keeper, and listen as we talk about what we might do differently if we were to run the scenario again.

Don't forget you can still win a Call of Cthulhu Starter Set! All you need to do all you need to do is subscribe on YouTube and leave a comment below one of our Loki's Gift videos! Once we hit 250 subs we will pick our winner! Plus - double your chances: Head over to our Instagram to enter there as well.

Follow the madness on Instagram

Follow on Bluesky

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Watch as a full video episode on YouTube

Descend into madness with us as our cast of three authors swap pens for dice in the final part of this Call of Cthulhu scenario.

The curtain rises...

After last week's traumatic ending, our investigators try to piece the final clues together - but can they find out the truth before it's too late? And will they finally see the play that everyone is talking about: Loki's Gift?

Cast:

- Tariq Ashkanani (author of The Midnight King) as Donovan Ramsbottom III

- Nicholas Binge (author of Dissolution) as Rev. Tobias Ashford

- David Goodman (author of A Reluctant Spy) as Lord Wilbur Linklater

- Marco Rinaldi as your Keeper of Arcane Lore

If you enjoyed the descent into madness, please follow on your podcast app The final part drops next week!

Follow the madness on Instagram

Follow on Bluesky

Subscribe on YouTube

This is a playthrough of Loki's Gift from the Cults of Cthulhu book from Chaosium. All illustrations are used with permission of Chaosium and can be found in their Cults of Cthulhu and Cthulhu by Gaslight books.

Music from Monument Studios

Sound FX from Syrinscape

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Watch as a video episode on YouTube

Welcome to Narrative Damage, the actual play TTRPG podcast where authors swap their pens for dice and see where the story takes them!

Four heroes, all scarred by one man: Gaedren Lamm. Last time, they were gathered together by mysterious Harrow cards, meeting Fortune Teller Zellara, who told them of a way they might gain revenge against Lamm. But first, they have to find him...

In part two of this our miniseries, we play through an adapted version of Haunted Fortunes, the opening scenario (written by Nicolas Logue) of the epic Curse of the Crimson Throne campaign for Pathfinder from Paizo.

To bring this world to life, we are using the brilliant Nimble system by Evan Diaz, a super-streamlined, tactical fantasy RPG.

The Cast

Anna Stephens: Author of the Godblind and Songs of the Drowned trilogies.

Annabel Campbell: Author of The Outcast Mage and its upcoming sequel, The Void Dragon (Out this October!).

Claire Shultz: Author of Even Your Bones Would Do (Also writing as Claire Rose, author of The Cove).

Modupe H. Ayinde: Author of the epic fantasy A Song of Legends Lost and its newly released sequel, A Dance of Burning Blades.

Credits & Assets

PC Character Art: Czepeku

Music: Monument Studios

VTT Assets: Featuring the Pathfinder Harrow Deck, played on Foundry VTT.

This podcast uses trademarks and/or copyrights owned by Paizo Inc., used under Paizo's Fan Content Policy (paizo.com/licenses/fancontent). This podcast is not published, endorsed, or specifically approved by Paizo. For more information about Paizo Inc. and Paizo products, visit paizo.com.

Thanks to DMDorga for their adaptation of Curse of the Crimson Throne to the Nimble system - get that conversion here: https://dmdorga.itch.io/nimble-curse-of-the-crimson-throne-chapter-1

Timestamps

0:00 - Last Time On Narrative Damage

2:04 - Welcome & Cast Chat

7:12 - The Adventure Continues...

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Watch as a full video episode on YouTube!

Welcome to Narrative Damage, the actual play TTRPG podcast where authors swap their pens for dice and see where the story takes them!

On the edge of Conqueror’s Bay sits the city of Korvosa, the jewel of Varisia. Ruled by a line of monarchs from atop the Crimson Throne, King Eodred II is its latest ruler. But as whispers of the King’s declining health concern the nobles of Highgate, people wonder if the deadly curse of the Crimson Throne will ever be broken.

Meanwhile, the vast majority of Korvosa’s citizens are preoccupied with a much more immediate task: surviving until tomorrow. In the slums of Old Korvosa and the West Docks, justice is often abandoned by the law and claimed instead by the desperate. Tonight, a story of haunted fortunes begins as we follow four such souls - individuals tied together not by blood or status, but by the scars left by a single man.

In part one of this three-part miniseries, we play through an adapted version of Haunted Fortunes, the opening scenario (written by Nicolas Logue) of the epic Curse of the Crimson Throne campaign for Pathfinder from Paizo.

To bring this world to life, we are using the brilliant Nimble system by Evan Diaz, a super-streamlined, tactical fantasy RPG.

The Cast

Anna Stephens: Author of the Godblind and Songs of the Drowned trilogies.

Annabel Campbell: Author of The Outcast Mage and its upcoming sequel, The Void Dragon (Out this October!).

Claire Shultz: Author of Even Your Bones Would Do (Also writing as Claire Rose, author of The Cove).

Modupe H. Ayinde: Author of the epic fantasy A Song of Legends Lost and its newly released sequel, A Dance of Burning Blades.

Credits & Assets

PC Character Art: Czepeku

Music: Monument Studios

VTT Assets: Featuring the Pathfinder Harrow Deck, played on Foundry VTT.

This podcast uses trademarks and/or copyrights owned by Paizo Inc., used under Paizo's Fan Content Policy (paizo.com/licenses/fancontent). This podcast is not published, endorsed, or specifically approved by Paizo. For more information about Paizo Inc. and Paizo products, visit paizo.com.

Thanks to DMDorga for their adaptation of Curse of the Crimson Throne to the Nimble system - get that conversion here: https://dmdorga.itch.io/nimble-curse-of-the-crimson-throne-chapter-1

Timestamps

0:00 - Opening Monologue: The City of Korvosa

1:39 - Welcome to Narrative Damage!

2:35 - Meet the Cast & Author Intros & Favourite Fantasy Cities

7:23 - Let the Adventure Begin...

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.