Rascal News

Book club episode! We discuss Deathmatch Island by Tim Denee & Evil Hat. Read more here. 
As always participate in the talkback episode, either post in the discord thread associated with this podcast or write to [email protected].
Discussion Questions
What do you think of Deathmatch Island? What do you think of its GM section?
Do you think that it needed a more robust GM section? Do you agree that the combination of a tight procedure and clear setting is much more robust GM support than any generic advice?
What do you think of the idea of player advice? Do you think that there is the sense that "players don't read" or "players don't want/need advice" and that's why we don't really have a well-established format for giving that kind of advice?
What's your favorite bit of player advice that you received within a game?
Show Notes:
Decaying Orbit by Sidney Icarus
The music used for this show is by Nihilore and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. The opening track is So Does Hope and the closing track is Something Beautiful Is Going To Happen.
For more from us, visit Rascal News.

Suffuse with expected ribaldry is the only way to describe this episode, where Thomas and Caelyn join Chase to create a Rascal trifecta. The news? Discussed. The Question Dungeon? Delved. Tangents and meanderings? Absolutely assured. From the cancelled Neopets RPGs to pedantic arguing over the definition of a licensed RPG, the crew cover all expected bases.
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Hosted by Chase Taylor-Carter (@chasecarter.bsky.social).
Featuring Thomas Manuel (@newmadras.bsky.social) and Caelyn Ellis (@caelyn.bsky.social).
Theme song by People Need Goals.
Cover art logo by Johan Nohr (@johannohr.bsky.social).
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Games we discuss:
Girl Frame
Children of Time: The Roleplaying Game
(Cancelled) Neopets RPG
Esoteric Ebb [video game]
Tacklebox
City of Winter
Pendragon
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Chris Cocks in full cosplay during an Exodus actual play episode
Former Neopets RPG worker alleges payment problems and other issues within Geekify

This is the talkback episode for our Rascal Reading Club about the MC section of Apocalypse World. Listeners wrote in with responses to the discussion questions. As usual, there was a range of responses: people agreeing, disagreeing, finding stuff I didn't see, telling me about stuff I didn't know. Today, I'm joined by my colleague and journalist Lin Codega as well as game designer Luke Jordan. Check it out!
Show Notes:
Games mentioned: Harvest, Grand Guignol, The King is Dead, The Emperor is Undead, Sorceror.
Vincent Baker article about What is PbtA? and the one about Narrativism
My review of Harvest by Luke Jordan
The music used for this show is by Nihilore and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. The opening track is So Does Hope and the closing track is Something Beautiful Is Going To Happen.
For more from us, visit Rascal News.

Despite what Chase says in the intro, this is the 32nd episode of the Rascal Radio Hour. He and Thomas welcome Joe Parlcok, editor-in-chief at new TCG website Booster Pack, to talk about tabletop's most vibrant and financially dubious product category.
Later, the crew discuss alleged unfair labor practice against members of Kickstarter's union, a final look at how Dungeons & Dragons will be releasing books and supporting the RPG in 2026, and a discussion of what we've been playing recently.
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Hosted by Chase Taylor-Carter (@chasecarter.bsky.social).
Featuring Thomas Manuel (@newmadras.bsky.social) and Joe Parlock (@joeparlock.bsky.social).
Support independent TCG journalism at Booster Pack.
Theme song by People Need Goals.
Cover art logo by Johan Nohr (@johannohr.bsky.social).
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Games we discuss:
Pokémon Trading Card Game
Magic: The Gathering
One Piece Card Game
Dungeons & Dragons
Coriolis: The Great Dark
Kala Mandala

Book club episode! We discuss Apocalypse World 2nd edition.

To participate in the talkback episode, either post in the discord thread associated with this podcast or write to [email protected].
Discussion Questions
1. What do you think of Apocalypse World? What do you think of the MC section?
2. What do you think about the game's statement: "follow these as rules"? Do you think that sentence makes its MC section different from other games?
3. What does "play to find out" mean to you? Do you think its a universal aspect of games? 
4. What is your favorite or least favorite principle and why?
5. What was your first reaction to the idea of GM moves? What do you think about it now?
Show Notes:
The Daily Apocalypse blog
Don't Prep Plots on The Alexandrian (blog)
Vincent Baker on the philosophy of PbtA (blog)
 Transcript for the episode
The music used for this show is by Nihilore and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. The opening track is So Does Hope and the closing track is Something Beautiful Is Going To Happen.
For more from us, visit Rascal News.