← Critical Role & Sagas of Sundry
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- [00:01]
Dan Casey
This show is sponsored by Better Help. Greetings, adventurers. It's a brand new year, and that means there are 365 pages in your story just waiting to be filled. Maybe you're ready for a plot twist, or maybe there's a part of your story you've been wanting to revise. That's where something like therapy can make a difference. It can be like an editorial partner helping you to pen new chapters and create the bold, meaningful story that you deserve to live. I personally have greatly benefited from therapy, giving myself the tools and structures needed to deal with complex and overwhelming feelings like grief. And finding a therapist that works for your needs is easier than ever, thanks to BetterHelp. BetterHelp provides access to a diverse network of more than 30,000 credentialed therapists with a wide array of specialties. BetterHelp is fully online and it makes therapy affordable and convenient, serving more than 5 million people worldwide. Write your story with BetterHelp. Visit betterhelp.com goblinmode today to get 10% off your first month. That's BetterHelp. H-E-L-P.com goblinmode what if there were a medicine that could heal almost anything? That would be great, but they didn't want you to know about it. Sorry, who's they? Some people are following me and I brought my tortoise. From executive producers Mike Judge and Greg.
- [01:14]
Amy Vorpal
Daniels and co creators Joe Bennett and.
- [01:16]
Dan Casey
Steve Healy comes an animated comedy thriller about what it takes to change the world.
- [01:22]
Amy Vorpal
Common side Effects New episodes Sundays at.
- [01:25]
Dan Casey
11:30Pm on Adult Swim, now streaming on Max. Welcome back to Question Answers, everybody. I'm Dan Casey and today we're going to do something a little bit different. Now, usually this is the after show for our ongoing actual play TTRPG series Sagas of Sundry Goblin Mode. But today we're going to be zooming out a little bit further. Going to look at the fine art of game mastering, GMing, DMing, narrating, storytelling, whatever you want to call the role. It's maybe the most important one at any table you're sitting down to play when you're playing a tabletop role role playing game. Now, joining me today to help talk about this unique craft from her unique perspective is the one, the only game master of Sagas of Sundry Goblin Mode, Amy Vorpal. Amy, how are you?
- [02:13]
Amy Vorpal
Hello. I'm doing great. I could talk about this for so long. I never get a chance to talk about my opinions about game mastering. So yeah, I want to. I want to really bad Good, good.
- [02:26]
Dan Casey
I had a feeling. Well, you. You made that abundantly clear the moment we stopped filming after each and every episode of Goblin Mod.
- [02:33]
Amy Vorpal
It's like, who. Who do I talk to? I need. I need. Well, I need to talk to someone, but also I need therapy. So. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, let's just do it, you know, a few months later. Many months later.
- [02:46]
Dan Casey
Yes, my hours are billable. Invoice in the mail after this. But why don't we start like any good therapist in the past, in perhaps your childhood or, I don't know, adolescence? We'll figure out. When did you, Amy, first get into the world of tabletop role playing games? What was your avenue into this?
- [03:04]
Amy Vorpal
Oh, I love this. I actually started later than I think most people have. I didn't start until my first day of my freshman year of college. So I was 18 and I had nine Lord of the Rings posters in my room, in my dorm room.
- [03:20]
Dan Casey
Yeah. One for each of the Rings of men.
- [03:22]
Amy Vorpal
That's right. And one Yoda mosaic poster. So fit that into, you know, Middle Earth lore. But I had a friend or a cousin whose friend, they were all coming to say hi first day of college, and the friend looked around my room, knew that I was an acting major and was like, have I got the game for you?
- [03:45]
Dan Casey
Just clocked you, then nuked you from orbit. Oh my God.
- [03:50]
Amy Vorpal
And. And it was that night or the next night. I really can't remember that. That they had already. They had put together a crew to play. And I think it was the Dungeon Master, his girlfriend, this friend Nathan, and his twin brother Brandon. And they were like, it would be nice to have another girl. And anyway, like, this, this woman seems perfect. So I did, I played and I was, I fell in love immediately. It was, it was a done deal from then. I played all throughout college. We. We hung out at college that summer and we just played pretty much non stop. We were all RAs over the summer, which just meant we had to pass out keys when people asked for them, which meant that we were in the office playing Dungeons and Dragons behind the desk. When we weren't doing that, we were playing the PlayStation 2 game, I think, of Dungeons and Dragons Gate. Dark alliance, it might have been. I can't remember the name because that.
- [04:43]
Dan Casey
Was like four player co op on single screen. I think it was Dark Alliance. Fantastic game.
- [04:47]
Amy Vorpal
Yes. And so it was like. We weren't doing. We didn't do anything else that summer. And. And it was, it was, it was one of those things where everyone, everyone else has these Stories of, like, how they were made fun of and they had to keep it secret. And it was just like, I. It was just at the forefront of my entire life. So I never. I never felt ostracized. It was like, me and my buds. That's what we do for a very long time.
- [05:12]
Dan Casey
Yeah, that's. I love that. It's so wonderful to hear because that's been sort of my experience as well. I started playing back in middle school. I remember my. My dad got me the, like, because I begged for. Because he played when he was a kid. I got the, like, AD&D box set, and I was just, like, I was an only child, so I didn't have anyone to play with. So I was just playing by myself in my room, just, like, exploring every single page and, like, making characters and being like, this is so cool. I wish there were more people to play with. And when I got to middle school, they had this one. Teachers founded the strategy gaming club and just exposed me to all of these incredible worlds, like Dungeons and Dragons, cyberpunk, all of these amazing things. And I'm so grateful for that because, you know, a lot of people. You know, you mentioned that some people felt like they were drawn to this because they feel ostracized, but I don't know. I think it's just. It's nice when it doesn't feel like on the other end of that, there's not gatekeeping. You're not being kept out. It was like, hey, drawbridge is down, everybody. Come on in. No Port Cullis.
- [06:12]
Amy Vorpal
There's a teacher's name.
- [06:14]
Dan Casey
I. It's. I wish I could remember my brain is pudding at this point just from, like, turning my brain into glass by staring at my phone for 19 hours a day and also having a small child at home.
- [06:27]
Amy Vorpal
Oh, which one of those is doing the heavy lifting, I wonder?
- [06:31]
Dan Casey
I'm doing the heavy lifting because he is basically just like a medicine ball that I must goblet, squat constantly and wrangle. Because he is much like Tippy, he's very agile and can elude your grasp at a moment's notice. And I apologize. I will go back and I will figure this out. I'll put in the comment section because I just blacked out middle school. I just woke up one day and I was here. It was fine. It was totally fine. And my apologies to that teacher. He was wonderful. But sorry you've been excised from history, buddy, and that's coming from a history major in college. But do you remember your first character in that campaign, do you remember what it was?
- [07:15]
Amy Vorpal
Oh, yeah.
- [07:16]
Dan Casey
Who was his character?
- [07:17]
Amy Vorpal
Her name was Nefariel Benedan, which I thought was so clever because it's nefarious and then the venom ain't good. And she was, yeah, chaotic neutral, halfling, rogue baby. And she talked like Audrey from Little Shop of Horrors.
- [07:32]
Dan Casey
Amazing.
- [07:33]
Amy Vorpal
On day one, I didn't know anything about this game. And they were like, build a character. And I was like, character, you say that means this to me. And yeah, they were like, nobody else ever did an accent. And although one guy played. He played a samurai, I remember him specifically. He played Jin the samurai. And he would. He would just lower his voice like Batman. And. And. But other than that, no other voices. And everyone was like, oh, my gosh, we found the right person, you know? So, yeah, Nefario Benedan.
- [08:02]
Dan Casey
No, I respect it, though, because it's always like a big swing sometimes when you show up to the table, especially if they're people you haven't played with before. I'm going to do a character voice. Then you're like, oh, no one else is doing one. Do I stop? And the answer is no, don't stop. If you want to do the character voice, you're here to play the character you want to play. Likewise, no one else has to do a character voice if they don't want to. If they don't want to do one.
- [08:26]
Amy Vorpal
And dad about. No one did. No one did.
- [08:29]
Dan Casey
It's okay as long as you're having fun and as long as they're not like, hey, you're freaking everyone out. You're too close to Audrey, too.
- [08:37]
Amy Vorpal
We're pretty worried.
- [08:39]
Dan Casey
We're worried for your vocal cords.
- [08:41]
Amy Vorpal
Yeah. She only said, feed me see more. So I don't know. It was okay.
- [08:46]
Dan Casey
Well, look, this is a. This is a good, I think, turning point as well, in terms of. We were just chatting a bit about ways to, as a player, what to do to feel comfortable. But, you know, there's another very important role at any table that needs to make sure that not just the players are feeling comfortable at all. The trains are running on time. And is that. Is the. The narrator, the storyteller, the dm, the gm, the narrator, whatever you want to call it. I said narrator twice.
- [09:09]
Amy Vorpal
Yeah, all the titles. Yeah.
- [09:10]
Dan Casey
Yes, all of the titles. Some proper nouns, some not. When did first. Do you remember when you first ran a game? How did you make that transition? What sparked that impetus inside of you to be like, you know what? I want to be behind the shield.
- [09:25]
Amy Vorpal
Okay. Great. I never did.
- [09:29]
Dan Casey
You were just like, hey, you got to do this.
- [09:32]
Amy Vorpal
I never wanted this. I did not ask for this. I wouldn't give it up now for the world, but I did not. I have two answers. So the first time I actually dungeon mastered, it didn't happen because I had a panic attack. So everyone came together. We were gonna play. I had bought a module from the gaming store and I was gonna run a module. This was. I had already moved to la. It must have been my first or second or third year here. Very early on, for reference, I've been here, like, almost 20 years now, and I got too scared. I never actually read the module. So we show up, and I knew. I was like, I'll open the book and whatever comes out, you know, I'd been doing improv. I could improvise this, and I couldn't. Like, I stumbled. I almost started crying. Like, it was bad. It was just bad. And someone was zooming in. I think we had four people, four players total, and it just didn't happen. It was like, sorry, guys. And then now I don't even know how to explain it because I don't remember, because it was actually pretty traumatizing. I mean, it was the definitive dream where you. You have. You're an actor, you go out on stage and you don't know your lines. That. That is what happened. And there's nothing to do. Like. And also because I am the source of the game, there's nothing for anyone to do if there's not a game to play. It was horrible. So anyway, I don't know, Hope maybe that helps someone.
- [10:59]
Dan Casey
I get it. I get it. It's. You know, it's nice to hear, though. It's like, look, even people that are doing this on a professional level sometimes stumble out of the gate. It's definitely. Yeah, there's a level. I'm definitely someone who relies on an ability to think on the fly and off the cuff in many situations. And there's certain situations where you cannot do that. You cannot. Yes. And your way out of every single situation, despite what certain upright citizens might try to tell you.
- [11:30]
Amy Vorpal
Yes, Harold. It didn't. Yes, Harold. Maude. It didn't go my way. It didn't go anyone's way that day. However, the next time. So that actually was years later when I did dm. And so the real, Real first time I ever dungeon mastered was on camera. Okay. And it was. It was for. It was for. We did a thing on Mothership called DD for the aarpg. And it was three seniors and one of our other writers for Mothership, Josh Flaum. And I was like, I'll DM for, you know, these people. I know enough of the rules at this point that nothing, nothing, you know, and this isn't the comedy. Like, the DND playing isn't going to be the comedy. So that. That was. I was still very nervous, and it was just like, I was the person on Mothership who could dm, you know, they could have maybe outsourced this. But at the time, there was budget, and I was like, just get Amy. She can do it. And I was like, I think I can. Like, I. And I don't. I think it's going to be horrible. You can still see it on the Internet. I'm not proud of it. I will say, like, I. It's there, what you did to those seniors.
- [12:40]
Dan Casey
Thank God.
- [12:41]
Amy Vorpal
It's not good, guys. Guys, it's not good. It's not good. But. But I guess it's. It's like, I'm not. When I say I'm not proud of it, I just mean, yeah, I could have done. I could have done better. Someone else probably would have done better. It really was my first time. You can't say that. You can't. There's no caveats on camera to be like, wait, wait. But it is my first time also. I didn't want the Mothership people to know that. And you got to come in with a level of confidence. So I faked it till I made it, and it was totally fine. Totally fine. But I look back and I go, yeah, there was a lot of Amy in that. There's. There's just a lot. There's a lot more now that I know that I can do with it, you know, like, rules to break and which rules to break, if not all.
- [13:23]
Dan Casey
And it really, to me, like, you know, we were chatting a bit before we started recording, and I've DMed a handful of times, like back in high school, a little bit. And a handful of one shots here and there, and it's terrifying each and every time I sit down because I do it so infrequently. It really is a muscle that you have to train just like any type of performance. Like, you know, the same way that when you're playing a character, you learn your kit, you learn your class, you learn what your character can and can't do within the bounds of this world. And when you are then responsible for painting every single scene from whole cloth, bringing characters to life, even when you have the Scaffolding of a module. It can be a lot.
- [14:09]
Amy Vorpal
Oh especially I'm. I almost. If I. If I were to give advice to a new dungeon master, I would. Who is planning on doing a larger campaign? A one shot. Do frickin. Just do a module. It's fine. But if you're gonna do a longer campaign, do homebrew. It's easier. And the reason is because if you're gonna run a module campaign or a pre written campaign, your entire job is memorization. Like that's it. That's your job. And that's not that fun. Homebrew. There's so much freedom. You actually have to prepare so much less and pretend that you've prepared more. And it's so. It's just way. Yeah, it's easier and it is more fun and you get the sense, you do get the sense immediately that okay, I'm not the only one telling this story, but in a module it can feel like you might be the only one telling the story and everyone else is out there to it up.
- [15:02]
Dan Casey
Yeah. Until. Until someone comes in and asks you what is your first and last name.
- [15:08]
Amy Vorpal
For every single NPC they made? Oh yes, yes. That. That wound up being in this. At least it wasn't like. Like in this normal midwestern town where everyone is just pretty nice come up with all of their names. It was like, you know, just throw some consonants and vowels at the wall and say the ones that stick come.
- [15:30]
Dan Casey
Up with the world's most disgusting compound names and we'll go from there.
- [15:35]
Amy Vorpal
Dan, what's your. Do you. Do you remember what your favorite goblin name is?
- [15:40]
Dan Casey
I go back and forth because I've listened down to and watched down the episodes so many times that they're just seared into my brain. I'm a big fan of Numby Gum Trunk. And for those of you who don't know, we're specifically talking about all of the myriad goblins we met in episodes 14 and 15 of sagas of Sundry Goblin Mode. A goblin by any other name and the Goblin Games. Yunk Jaggers. Pretty great. Nur Herfla Durg. An instant classic that prompted an apology to the nation of Sweden and God, there's a couple others that just tickled me.
- [16:16]
Amy Vorpal
Rart Huffmanth.
- [16:18]
Dan Casey
Rart Huffmanp. It's a disgusting name. Thinking it causes psychic damage. Saying it, it is uncomfortable to the palate. It is a bad mouth feel and you should be ashamed. It should be a forbidden word within most halls.
- [16:37]
Amy Vorpal
Yes, agreed. Agreed. A curse upon thy family.
- [16:41]
Dan Casey
The Huffmanp clan should be banished to the ethereal realm or whatever lies beneath that amaz. But I do appreciate your point that you were making about how with homebrew you can just sort of, you know, it can be less work. I can definitely understand the school of thought where you feel like it's going to be more work. I think that boils down to your own individual approach to storytelling and prep. I know for myself, for many years it's been something of a, I have so many projects left unfinished because I have this like stupid perfectionist tendency where I'm like, well, if it's not perfect, I can't finish it and if I'm not in the right conditions, whereas if I just sat down to work on it, then I would have something, a finished product that I could improve. But I think that's something that maybe holds a lot of people in place instead of just doing a rough draft or, you know, if there's something you like, say you really love Lord of the Rings, take the skeleton of that and graft it onto your homebrew world and mix and match as you want. Or even with like a, a pre written module. Like we, we just did a Curse of Strahd campaign of the last couple years with my home group and you know, we definitely went way off book in some really fun and exciting ways. So this, the world is truly your oyster.
- [17:53]
Amy Vorpal
Yes. Gosh, I, I, I've often said, like, your prep is your rough draft and actually while you're playing it, it's impossible. It's your rough draft too. And the moment you get to do a second draft is also right now, do you know what I mean? Like, like, like. And it's in encounters where maybe your guy is going down. Like they're all getting their roles and you're not getting any roles, but you're like, well, Mrs. Monster is actually really cool. Second draft give him more hit points. You know, like there, there, there are so many, there are so many ways to do second drafts and make it your version of perfect literally right now in the game. And there's, it's almost too much power as a dungeon master, but there's no dungeon master I know who doesn't end the fight when it's over and not when the numbers number out, you know?
- [18:43]
Dan Casey
So, yeah, I mean that, that to me, I definitely appreciate when people sort of opt towards the rule of cool with that as opposed to being sort of hard and fast, dedicated to what it says here. Asterisk. What's the asterisk?
- [18:56]
Amy Vorpal
Asterisk is that early game. And I would say that that could be. It's definitely levels one through five. But I would even argue maybe even maybe one through three or four or something like that. One through five. Let's say that those. Those are when I think. And. And I sure rule of cool. But. But I think rule of cool is being. I guess. Here's my hot take. Rule of cool gets toss. Oh, it's really cool. Really cool. And my. My take is early on, people should feel like they can do shit and whatever. But then you get to levels 5, 6, 7, definitely upwards in 9. Like level 9, the rules are cool. Like, the rules just are cool. So if you. If you go off too much, then. Then it's like, well, I'm pressing my. I'm pressing my video game controller button. And it's almost like, why did. Well, I guess it doesn't matter because someone else is, you know, just grabbed a spatula and someone thought that would be fun to, like, use as a web. You know, it's. But the rules are cool. I guess. That's my. That's my.
- [19:57]
Dan Casey
No, no, I. And look, your point is well taken. When I say rule of cool, I mean, what is going to make for the most enjoyable story that we are mutually telling together as the player and the dungeon master? Because I don't. I don't necessarily mean, like, well, if you're. If you're grabbing a spatula and you're trying to, like, fight the Vampire Lord, there better be an excellent reason for why you're doing this. Because, like, otherwise, I believe the coolest thing that can happen is you get appropriately punished for that or, like, it doesn't go how you think it's going to go. And I think it also depends on what game you're playing. You know, with Goblin Mode, we're using Dungeons and Dragons, but I love systems where your characters are really fragile. I love where there's a high risk that your character could die a horrible death. I remember I learned that lesson violently and early when I played Cyberpunk 2020 back in middle school. I'm like, oh, my God, my character just got annihilated by some guy with an Uzi in an alleyway. That was awesome. Let's go again. Yeah, so I think you have to modulate accordingly. When I say Rule of Cool, that's what I'm referring to. But I agree, when you. That's the whole point. You want to get to those levels so you can do the cool things. I feel like so many campaigns you know, people that go into a campaign because as we know, the hardest part of any TTRPG is making the time with other adults to sit down and make time for each other.
- [21:22]
Amy Vorpal
Yeah, yeah.
- [21:23]
Dan Casey
That's why it's like, okay, if you make it to those levels. Yeah, you should get to use the ability that you've taken so long to rightfully earn. But, dude, I'm.
- [21:33]
Amy Vorpal
I'm playing. I'm playing Strahd right now. I'm running it. And it is. It is a. It is a. It's a totally different experience from Goblin mode. Not in. Not in the gameplay.
- [21:44]
Dan Casey
I would hope so.
- [21:46]
Amy Vorpal
But I will say not in the gameplay because, you know, the players are appropriately chaotic, but in the prep and, like, what the session winds up actually being. Not to say, you know, Goblin mode is definitely a show. We're playing Dungeons and Dragons. It has a comedic lean just by nature of, you know, who the cast are. There's some moments of darkness, but because Strahd is also. It's dark with some moments of lightness. And it's also a home game, and it's also. It's not homebrew. It's not from my brain. It's something that is pre written, and I have done. I've done a couple of sessions. I am one of those dungeon masters that can't not prep. It is not fun for me not to prep. Okay? I know some people who are like, oh, I never prep. And I'm like, that would not be fun for me. I know that. I don't like. I don't. It's. I don't. That's not interesting to me either. And I don't think it's interesting to. Too many. Too many. Well, maybe it's interesting to players. I'm not gonna write anyone's. I'm not gonna put words in anyone's mouth, but it's not fun. I like building a playground. I like it being messed with, and I like building a playground and everything that I built never coming to fruition, that's totally fine. But to have. Have to have had zero prep. I. I think I like ideas. I like having ideas too. And if all of that impetus of ideas is happening either in the moment or by my. By my players, then when do I get to have fun? I like writing, you know, so that being said, I've done some games with Strahd where I'm like, I don't need to. Maybe I don't need to prep as much as I think I do. Wrong. Wrong. Not for Me, like, it's. It goes so much. I have way more fun when I do over prep and I memorize the townspeople's names because everything in. In it is connected. Like, Strahd has rooms in. In his castle that. That have, like, just so many noodles of lines drawn throughout everything that. That could even happen in Barovia. So it's anyway that it's. But do you think I do that for Goblin mode? I've got my, like, past lore, and then I'm like a kegger into a rager. Huh.
- [23:49]
Dan Casey
To be fair. To be fair, that was just the heist plan that Jason and Danielle insisted upon until it became our shared reality.
- [23:59]
Amy Vorpal
That's right. That's right. Yeah. Yeah. It's Yalls World, and I'm just in it. But it. Yes. So it's. It's many. It's a different ball game on so many levels, but the thing that stays the same is kind of the amount of prep.
- [24:15]
Dan Casey
Yeah. And that's. That's interesting as well. I mean, I can definitely relate to that. I've played a bit of 10 Candles, for example. Example, a game that I love. It bills itself as Zero Prep. And look, you can play it with Zero Prep, but I think it's a more rewarding experience if you do a modicum of prep. At least one person sort of like, hey, here's kind of the scenario. Or, like, the world we're going to be in. We will collectively build this together. Because that's a game that has shared narration rights and shared DMing built into its mechanics. But. But if you're all just kind of going in there, William Nilliam. I think it makes for kind of a less rewarding experience overall. But again, your mileage may vary. Everyone's different.
- [25:01]
Amy Vorpal
Everyone's different. But, I mean, it makes me. It makes me so nervous. I don't think I want to play any game with a DM who didn't prep anything, because I also play as a player. I build out my character, I build up my backstory, and I want things to mean things. You know, even if it is picking up a spatula, like, okay, well, how is that narratively important? And if. If the dungeon Master has prepped, then they can help me make things mean things, as opposed to going, I don't know. You're just. You're in a kitchen. Oh, you want to pick up. Oh, you want to pick up. Oh, okay, now it means something. It's like, you could plant. I like Easter eggs and planting and secrets. And I do say that Every genre of Dungeon of Dungeons and Dragons, but every genre of maybe not every TTRPG, but most TTRPG, every main genre of TTRPGs is mystery. And then everything below that, it's like, now you're a mystery. Fantasy, mystery, sci fi, mystery, whatever. Because the DM should know things that you don't know.
- [25:59]
Dan Casey
Of course. Yeah. And you're all sort of collectively revealing the narrative fog of war together, as every time you open a new door, a new area appears before your eyes. You have no idea what's going to be behind that door. Maybe you do, but I don't believe you. I'm curious though. What, what for you is sort of like the biggest unseen work that goes into prepping to run a session, whether it be a one shot or something that's going to become a campaign.
- [26:26]
Amy Vorpal
The unseen work, I guess for me it's the, the number, the walks and the percolating. Like I can point to my Google Doc and say, look, this is what I've prepped. But it's not accurate because I think about, I think about things. It's. And I, I taught at Dungeon Master school for four months last year and the first lesson I said was, DMing is not a solo operation. One at the table. It's not a solo operation. You've got your players. But I also believe that even your prep, you will get lost in the sauce so fast if you're the only one soundboarding yourself. And I think that's true for any writing. But I've never, I've never run something without even telling it a little bit to my mom, like, hey, this is what I'm thinking. Or a partner or a friend in the school, I encourage them to be each other's. I'm like, it takes 10 minutes. Like, I swear to God, it's not a lot, but, but you're. When you start talking about your ideas out loud to another person, there's energy exchange that actually starts creating. I guess you could do it to yourself, do it with yourself. I've done it on walks where to me I'm like channeling a bit of the, the spirit of the game or something. Like there's a dialogue happening, but, but there's, there's just no comparison to being able to speak out loud. Your ideas, get some feedback and, and, I don't know, clarify and go from there. Even, even with Strahd, even with something that's not true with Strawd, I don't need anyone else because it's just, it's me and the Book, baby. But. But, yeah, I think.
- [28:00]
Dan Casey
Yeah, but that's also you in dialogue with the authors of the module.
- [28:03]
Amy Vorpal
Okay. Yes, exactly. And that was my point all along, is that it's.
- [28:08]
Dan Casey
Yeah.
- [28:10]
Amy Vorpal
Thank you, Dan. No, but the. For Goblin mode, obviously. I was so blessed to have story producers Rin and Siwan. And Rin particularly. We had so many conversations about what happens next. She was so, so, so, so helpful with the Goblin Games. It was her idea to make them, like. I knew it was going to be a tournament, but she had it. She was like, in the. Like, in the. In the Southeast, in the south, there are these, like, fairs and clinics. And she also, like, like, the Scottish games, they've got some weird stuff. And so she was just like. She knew what I was going for. And then, yes, handed it so much that it turned into what it actually is. And then the other part, I remember this phone call so vividly. It was when Tippi died, and we knew Ross was coming on the next episode. And so we just had, like, this moment where a character died, which. What the hell do you do with that? And then, not to mention, was not.
- [29:14]
Dan Casey
Planned, as we, as people know, was.
- [29:16]
Amy Vorpal
Not planned for at all. No. It was also like. I mean, we were joking in the green room, like, does Jason still have a job? Ha ha, ha, ha. And it's like. And then no one's ready to make, like, dan, you can't make that call. Not really. And then Graham is like, I don't know, Amy, what do you think? And I'm like, no, no, not me. Can anyone have a thought about this? And. And. And so. But that phone call was the longest phone call we had. I was walking around my neighborhood for two and a half hours on the phone with Ren, and. And what we came up with was. I think. I think. I think that's why episode 12 is, like, probably my favorite episode, because it was Trial by Fire and it came out even better. But yes, having help on any level, just having discussions is the biggest unseen work of a dungeon master. The brainstorming and just the percolating.
- [30:05]
Dan Casey
Oh, no, I love that because it's also. Look, when you sit down at the table with your players, you're going to be vocalizing this story. And why not? You can view it as a dress rehearsal or just. It always helps to talk through certain things. I definitely find that to be very valuable in my own creative process.
- [30:21]
Amy Vorpal
Well, you're. You're. Someone's going to go, well, what if this happens? Or I would just do this. Why were they why do they have to go there? And you're like, oh, my entire idea, you're right. I need to put a different objective or a different motivation. Like, there's going to be holes that are totally solvable.
- [30:35]
Dan Casey
Yes.
- [30:36]
Amy Vorpal
But you might want to know what those holes are.
- [30:40]
Dan Casey
I. I'm open as a player, I'm open to a certain level of railroading, for lack of a better term, if. Because, you know, I recognize that the Dungeon Master, the Storyteller, has put a lot of work into this story and I want to see where it's going. But at the same time, you all have to develop that shorthand and figure out, okay, how much rain do I want to give my players to wreak havoc in the sandbox I've created? Are they going to help me build this sandcastle or am I okay if they kick it over?
- [31:11]
Amy Vorpal
I think another thing is, is that, that this happened. This came up a few times in the Dungeon Master school, is the appropriate level of mean to be to the world and to the players. So you always get these memes and like the Internet going, I'm the Dungeon Master everyone. I can kill everybody. Hahaha. And it's like that, hahaha. But also you should, you know, like, actually, you should exercise that right when necessary. But. But you do have leverage. Like if people are doing shenanigans, okay, now it's not 12 guards. It's the entire city watch and it's a hundred. And like that you, you're gonna die like, or get brought down to zero. Like, like do the consequences. If. And also if the characters have the ability to do something, that means there's at least one other being in the world who has that ability. So, you know, if they're gonna, you know, cause chaos or do whatever they're gonna do, this isn't, it's not. They don't exist in a vacuum. They're not, you know, plot protected. So make it just be like, great. You want to do that? Oh, that's a good one for me to know that I also can do. And here are these other. This other group who's well organized and probably has some level 5, level 10 people there too. They can do that too. And, oh, and you. And you doing it taught them that they could do that too. So.
- [32:29]
Dan Casey
Yes, no, I take your medicine as someone who loves medicine, please, Advil. I'm accepting sponsors. Any and all. Ibuprofen, you make my body possible. No, I love the idea that for every player action there is a NPC reaction. This level of narrative physics at work because, you know, there needs to be, There needs to be a sense of actions have consequences and that what you do as a player matters. Because that's why I love tabletop role playing games, is because you're building a shared story. Like, yes, in many cases, you are like a player, a character within the larger world of this omniscient storyteller. But your actions are writing things that they need to respond to in real time. And that's the beauty of it. It's a collaborative storytelling mechanism, unlike most things that I've experience, and I find it endlessly rewarding. So, yeah, yeah, just, just be prepared if you're gonna live that murder hobo life. Some hobos may murder back.
- [33:39]
Amy Vorpal
Well, that's well said. Yes.
- [33:40]
Dan Casey
Yeah, I guess. I guess it was well said.
- [33:43]
Amy Vorpal
That's exactly.
- [33:44]
Dan Casey
It was well, comma said.
- [33:45]
Amy Vorpal
It was well said. The, the, the other part of that is to be mean to the world. And being mean to the world by that, I don't just mean, like, if you're going to play Skyrim, that's fine, but why not play the Witcher where there are real problems and people are just outside crying? Like, because, because if everything is. It was a note when people would pitch things, I'm like, but it. Even, even if this is post apocalyptic and this happened, this happened, it does. The way you're pitching it, it seems like everything's kind of okay. Like, if everyone has everything all figured out for the most part, what are the players even doing then? What problems would they want to solve? So if players aren't biting on your plot hooks, the reason is most likely that you haven't been mean enough to the players or mean enough to the world around the players.
- [34:37]
Dan Casey
I would just also like to say that Skyrim does have a very real problem that people need to solve, and that is how quickly can I eat 50 entire wheels of cheese?
- [34:46]
Amy Vorpal
It's a problem. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- [34:48]
Dan Casey
It's a problem that defies time. It defies in space itself.
- [34:51]
Amy Vorpal
Also, also, if you. So you can carry that weight. That weight was once in your backpack. Now you've just put it in your body. There's no, like, rules for bowels or, or, you know, releasing things from body.
- [35:01]
Dan Casey
Odds for that, Amy.
- [35:03]
Amy Vorpal
Okay, but, but the weight didn't go anywhere. Like, you just reallocated the weight, but in your back.
- [35:09]
Dan Casey
That's why you hire someone to follow you who's sworn to carry your burdens.
- [35:13]
Amy Vorpal
That's why. Yeah, yeah. They're, they're, they're proponents of codependence and skyro. And that's okay.
- [35:20]
Dan Casey
Look, it's. It's an important lesson that people need to learn. Speaking of important lessons, I'm curious, Amy, what is. You mentioned some stuff that you would give advice to people for if they're sitting down to DM for the first time. What would you. What's a piece of advice that you wish you knew when you first started out, especially for building towards a campaign. What is a piece of advice you would give someone who's interested in building out a campaign once they've decided to maybe go the homebrew route, for example?
- [35:49]
Amy Vorpal
I think, I think what I would say, and this is true, I think for a lot of D and D and prep, when you get to. You're gonna want to invest. Not invest, but read something about the hero's journey, whatever form that is. The Harmon Circle, I think is a really.
- [36:06]
Dan Casey
Story circle.
- [36:07]
Amy Vorpal
Yeah, story circle. That's like a really, a really bite sized version of it. That's totally fine. Anything else? The heroes, the hero's journey, even Saved by a cat. It's all the same format in different, in different words. But I would, I would read something like that and then know that you're going to be prepping kind of. If, let's say there's 12 and so you're going to be prepping kind of one through maybe six, then you're not going to prep these. These are for the players to mess with. And you might prep 12, you might prep like the end, but with options where they're going. So. But that's true for the campaign. So you're going to want to prep 12. Like what is the big thing that's happening that's affecting a lot of people? That would be the lore. Maybe deities, maybe. Maybe, you know, McGuffin. I think Goblin mode is a very magical item. Heavy story, but there. But Strahd, like you would want to prep like what's Strahd's deal? And then forget about how they're going to get there, all of that, but prep like what they want. Why they would say no, why they ultimately would say yes to the journey and then, and then what they want. But they, they might get what they want, but it's not what they need. Maybe prep that and then, and then you're done. Like the how of it. The Act 2. Act 2A, Act 2B. No, no, don't touch it. Like, don't worry about it. They'll, you know, have. How you think you would solve it, and then they'll have a much better way of solving it. But There's. It's. Act 2A and Act 2B are actually the most difficult things to write in narrative. And in D and D, you actually don't have to write them to prep. You play them out with the characters, and their movements are going to be miles and miles better than anything that you could think of.
- [37:48]
Dan Casey
So, yeah, and that, that makes sense to me in particular, especially in the context of something like ttrpg, because you don't know what these little gremlins at your table are going to do. You know where they're going to start, you know where you want them to end, what happens in between. That's the beauty of it. It's just like atoms colliding and just figuring out how you use that momentum.
- [38:10]
Amy Vorpal
And the other thing I will say is, is spend. I I When I started Strahd, it was. Some people had never played before, and it's still fun. And I got lost in, In Session two, where I was like, what is this missing? And I realized, oh, it's missing. It's missing actual player characters. They had formed great characters, all of that. And I was like, I don't know how to punish them. I don't know how to pull their strings. So I got on the phone with each one of them for 30 minutes to an hour, and we built full back stories. And now I know. Now I know what to do. Even in Barovia, that does not exist on this plane or the planes that they're using to. I don't, I realize I don't know how to play a game without characters with backstories. So do that, you know, and then let that tell the story. Because even if you've got your really cool big bad guy and all of that, if you can draw the lines and tie the strings all the way, like, do your little red line, you know, crime scene board thing. It's, it's, it's gonna be way, way, way, way more fun for, for me as a Dungeon Master, you know, it's. All I know is my experience, but I think it'll be more fun for the players.
- [39:22]
Dan Casey
No, I, I, as someone who's primarily a player, I 1000% agree. And something that you did that I really appreciated when we started Goblin mode was you sent around sort of like a survey of, like, here's a bunch of questions I'd like you to answer about your character. And it caused me to think about fibs in a way that, that I might not have until I sat down at the table. Because left to my druthers, I would have been like, I have like the 60 second rundown of who fibs is in my head. But this made me think about who was he? Like, how does he exist? What's the context of his life? What are his goals, what are his aspirations? Like, who are his friends, who are his enemies? And it's stuff, it's stuff like that where even if it doesn't come into play, it's useful to me. It's useful to you as the storyteller. But what's really exciting, and this is something that happened to me in like not just in Goblin mode, but also in like my home game. You know, a detail, like an offhanded detail I made up for my character in my Curse of Strahd game came back to be a major plot point like two years into the campaign. And it blew my mind because as soon as he, as soon as the DM mentioned it, I was like, like, no way. This is so cool. This thing that I thought was just kind of like a detail in the tapestry of my life is now something that is like weaving in this cool new thread. So.
- [40:47]
Amy Vorpal
And you know, that person had been sitting on that, you know, and just like waiting for the time to be right.
- [40:52]
Dan Casey
Yeah. And it's just like, it's just something that needed to be in like. And this is in the context of like an existing module. They just kind of grafted this onto an existing character and sort of replaced that character in a way where I'm like, oh, that's super cool. I didn't realize. And now it just adds this level of depth and investment into a side character that made the whole campaign so much better for me as a player.
- [41:19]
Amy Vorpal
It is literally that's my journey with Stroud. So we've played five times now. And what I realized, and so I'll just say this, I'm learning as I go because I've never played a pre written campaign in my life. So I've been reading articles about how to play it well and there's something that's missing from that advice and from what I'm learning is every time you. So every genre of TTRPGs is a mystery and it's the dungeon master who needs to know what's really going on. And you see that in pre written adventures, people, there'll be a title that says what's really going on. And it'll be really early on. It will be very early on. And so you do need to know what's really going on as a Dungeon Master now in Strahd or a pre written campaign, what's really going on is the characters backstories are getting with. That's what's really going on. So. So you actually. I didn't realize this initially. I was like, it's pre written, this will be great. Maybe it was that trauma from when I first tried to do a pre written campaign that I never did it before. But this time after session two, the thing that was missing was backstories. And then I was like, now I can. Now I can write what's really going on. Someone was interested in the Raven Queen. She's gonna play a part even in Barovia where there's no Raven Queen. It's like, yeah, there. Yeah, there is. You know, and, and so you can mess with it. Tldr, look, it's Ravenloft. Oh, it is Ravenloft. That's right. But what's really going on is up to the Dungeon Master and it always. What's really going on should be like absolute fuckery with, with people's backstories. And even if someone's dead in their backstories, if they don't know how that person died now, they're. They just might not be dead. So. Oh no. Oh no. All these fictional grandparents I just created, they. Yeah, it might be way more devastating. They left you on purpose. Yeah.
- [43:15]
Dan Casey
They all slept in one giant Willy Wonka style bed. They all died in it because of Strahd. I'm curious as well. What is your. For you, what's the most rewarding part or what is your favorite part of running a game? Whether it be a home game or something for a wider audience.
- [43:37]
Amy Vorpal
It's the, It's a cop out answer. But it is the theater kid energy that is just. It feels like. I don't know what your experience was. I know you did plays in school. We, when we would do plays and musicals, it's like that, that feels. It's the closest as an adult I've ever gotten to that feeling of people. You know, we have the things we have to do, you know, say our lines, rehearse, know the blocking. And then there's times when you're just in the audience passing notes back and forth or stretching or like who's got a crush on who or. Or you know, someone brought a guitar and now everyone's singing. It's like, like it's the theater. It's the theater kid energy that anywhere else would be so annoying. But it's so loved and beloved and like, and hallowed in a D D space. So cop out.
- [44:27]
Dan Casey
No, I, I can appreciate that. I think there's like, my brain instantly. I'm like. When I think theater kid energy, like, I think it's been. I've been so long out of like the high school theater, I was just like, yeah. Oh, God, they're gonna ruin rent for me. They're gonna ruin for me. But they won't shut up about singing these songs. But look, there is just. There is that joy about being silly or being dramatic or being just like emoting openly and creating something together in a very performative way. Even if you're not doing like big, grand character gestures, you're still collectively imagining and putting yourself in this space to create a story that you're putting on for each other if no one else. So I can, I can appreciate that.
- [45:10]
Amy Vorpal
I guess. I guess. I also want to say I've never seen more like, unmasking than at a D and D table.
- [45:17]
Dan Casey
You should watch Mission Impossible.
- [45:20]
Amy Vorpal
They love pulling off masks. Ethan Hunt.
- [45:24]
Dan Casey
What are you doing here? How did you get this accurate replica of my face?
- [45:31]
Amy Vorpal
Yeah, Philip Seymour Hoffman, but you know what I mean? Like, we're in a community of like, really neurodivergent people. Or especially in la, like, everything feels so charged with politics or I've got to be good at this. Or even in. Even in spaces where it should only be creative, it's charged with success or not. And at a DND table, it's like none of that stuff exists. And even people with high levels of any version of like, anxiety or depression, it's really. It's gone like. I don't know, it's pretty. It's pretty magical.
- [46:07]
Dan Casey
No, it's. For me, it's always exciting when you sit down to play with someone that you know in a very different context. And seeing someone really take to a tabletop role playing game because it's liberating. You get to just be someone else. You get to do something different and you just get to really just try and embody this character and just create some beautiful chaos together.
- [46:28]
Amy Vorpal
I also have a rule at my table. This is kind of on that. On that note where I don't have any rules around phones. So I get out your phone, do your phone thing, dissociate. I don't do whatever you got to do. I have no rules around it because I also know sometimes it's just not your turn. And that has to be okay that you check out sometimes. Like, it's four hours. My brain's going so constantly one. I can't keep track. I'm not going to be like a schoolmarm being like no phones. But also I've been a player before and there are boring moments, moments when, especially when it's, I mean, you, you give your attention to your friends and.
- [47:04]
Dan Casey
All that NPC's talking.
- [47:06]
Amy Vorpal
Boring. No, Amy's NPC, let's be clear. But, but you know, there are just times when you, you get, you know, you still. You've got a life to live and this is a four hour freaking game. And then there are times when you're in Strahd and you're describing some horrible body horror stuff and you need that escape outlet at points or, or you just like your phone or, or anything. And I don't have. And I. But I've just been there and I don't need anyone to explain. It's like, why would I. It's in a class. If someone's gonna go to the bathroom, you just go, yeah, you're go to the bathroom. That's how I feel about phones.
- [47:39]
Dan Casey
No, I get it. For me, I'd almost rather structure in some sort of like regular breaks. I appreciate that as a. Not me. Yeah. Well, just for me, I know that like, if I don't want to be left to my own devices because I don't want to be consumed by my devices because I take enough sort of psychic damage from them all day long anyway. And I have. I am, I will be less attentive to the things that will draw me into the game. If I am like fiddling with my phone for some reason, which why I find. Sorry, go ahead.
- [48:13]
Amy Vorpal
Hot tip. A great way to bring people back to the game. If everyone, if it feels like people are checked out, text them. You text them. You just get on your phone, you join, you meet them where they're at. And if they are at a digital space, you just go to the digital space. No, you, you say there's an animal there, any animal, doesn't matter. And you give it a name. Boom, we're back. Interesting, because, because Mr. Scruffles, they, they people will want to write it down. It's like almost. It's like what people write down in their notes. They almost write down very little else on a consistent basis. Pet animal names will be written down. And that's just hot tip from me. You're welcome.
- [48:57]
Dan Casey
All right, duly noted. And look, as I will say with Goblin mode, y'all wrote all of them down.
- [49:04]
Amy Vorpal
I just listened to the talk back, and everyone, like, at the top of the episode was just everyone reading off their list of names, and you all had the same names. And I was like, oh, my gosh, you got it and you're getting them.
- [49:13]
Dan Casey
All right.
- [49:13]
Amy Vorpal
This is amazing.
- [49:14]
Dan Casey
For this game, I made the conscious decision. I'm like, look, I want to be locked in. I'm going to take as many notes as I can. And I. I filled a good chunk of a notebook and it. It is definitely rewarding because as a player, like, helps me prep for the next session, but also just helps me feel more invested in the world because I'm like, oh, this is Lore. That matters.
- [49:33]
Amy Vorpal
It.
- [49:33]
Dan Casey
It doesn't feel like I'm blasting or like. Like pressing the X button to get through the quest prompt as soon as possible just to figure out what's going to appear on my mini map, which. Exactly. You want. It. It helps me as a player feel more invested and hopefully makes the DM feel more rewarded for the work they put into it as well.
- [49:53]
Amy Vorpal
No spoiler. This. This is a bit of a spoiler, but you get me. You get me in an episode that has not been released yet, and in a way that like, like, freezes me for a second. And everyone's like, amy's not getting emotional about this, is she? And it's like, have you ever felt like a player recite lore back to you in an accurate way, in the way that you meant it, and you thought you were just planting a seed and everyone, of course, forgot it, and then the player just. Just, like. Just, like, stabs you right in the heart with your own lore. Yeah, Amy is getting emotional about this.
- [50:31]
Dan Casey
So players, remember, if you write things down, you can stab your DM with an emotional Lore knife. This is in the rules, and it's totally legal in every state and some territories. All right, I want to wind things down a little bit. I'm curious. You know, we. We've been talking a lot about TTRPGs in a grander sense, but especially D and D, because that is the system we're using for Goblin Mode. You know, we mentioned a few others here and there. Is there another system out there that you really love running that you wish more people would give a shot or one that you think is overlooked?
- [51:11]
Amy Vorpal
I wish. I wish I had a good answer for this.
- [51:13]
Dan Casey
It's okay.
- [51:14]
Amy Vorpal
Yeah. No, I mean, not. I think there are tons of them. I haven't run. It's. It's not. It's not in my, like, back pocket at all. So. Have I run anything.
- [51:24]
Dan Casey
Or as a player, something you've played, you're like, I. I wish more people would run this because, yeah, rewarding, I think.
- [51:31]
Amy Vorpal
I mean, it's not. I really do enjoy Call of Cthulhu, which I think is in any of the White Wolf games. Like, they're all. They're all very similar. The way that they stack skills really, really makes it feel like you've got a unique character for people at home.
- [51:48]
Dan Casey
You're talking about, like, Vampire, the Masquerade, Werewolf, and all of that.
- [51:51]
Amy Vorpal
Yes, yes, yes, Werewolf. Specifically Werewolf. I think I've only played Vampire once, but I know it's a beloved game, and I wish I had more information about it right now. But any of those. I think those mechanics are really good. The Genesis system, that's the same as the Fantasy Flight games with Star Wars 2. Both of those are really good. That make you feel like you've got a unique character with what I call unique video game controls, where the buttons you can press are special and it gives the dm. Because another thing I like to do as a DM is I look at character sheets, and I think people should just. This is how you DM and this is how you prep. You look at character sheets and you put things in the way that make the characters push their video game controllers and push the buttons that they specifically have. So other than that, there's not really a whole lot. Like, if you're a new dm, it's like. Yeah, I mean, there are little ways we can break it down and, like, get into the nitty gritty of it. But your whole job is to get your character, your players feeling like they're interact. Yeah. They're pushing the video game control buttons. So. But I think, yeah, Fantasy Flight, I still am really passionate about Dungeons and Dragons, and I think the main reason is because of. Because of how long it's been around. They've got the magic system freaking down. Like, it's so balanced and so cool. And. And if you think there's something that you want to do, there probably already is a way to do it. I know there are, like, really cool things out there, magic items and spells being written that. That. And. And it is. It's like a. Just a fertile ground for creativity. And the base rules are plenty. Like the. Them. Just the magic system and what you can do and where your imagination goes. You can move through plants. Like, if you look at the spells that you get, have access to. And really, I don't want to say meditate on them. But if you think about what the heck that means, it's, it's really cool. So I really like, I really like Dungeons and Dragons.
- [54:01]
Dan Casey
Yeah.
- [54:02]
Amy Vorpal
Oh, I just thought of one other thing.
- [54:04]
Dan Casey
Go on.
- [54:04]
Amy Vorpal
And this is, this is about. I had to think about this. I wrote a campaign book for alchemy rpg. It's called Dark Symmetry. Everyone check it out. I'm really proud of it. The one thing they, they wanted, they had pitched me like the city underwater. And one of the main things that I had to. They also wanted it to be sci fi and any world building. I can't watch a movie without thinking about this. Now when you're defining your world, the magic systems might be built in to your game. So that's fine. You should think about magic if it's not and just what those rules are. But then the other thing you should think about, which is very similar, is materials. What materials people have access to. So like in fantasy, for me, it's, it's wood, bone, metal. And then, and then anything you can make, plants, fibers, things you can make from that, and then anything synthetic, which includes plastic and rubber, those don't exist. They just don't. Unless they do. And then you have to find a way of like, how did they do, did they, did they like harvest oil from the ground the way that we know it? Or was it this other being whose secretions are plastic? Like, and you just have to be, you just have to be. Because there were, there were a lot of discrepancies that I, I just had to like, I was like, what is going on here? I can't wrap my head around what this looks like or how this is formed or why is this, how is this smooth? I guess. Is it.
- [55:30]
Dan Casey
Why are all these beings secreting so much?
- [55:33]
Amy Vorpal
I mean, it's, it's like, it's something that I didn't realize how important it was to just decide like that you, if you have access to sand, you have access to glass, fine plastic, how rubber? That's all, that's all synthetic. Like all of this is a man made material, which is fine epoxy, you know, on boats, like things like that, you've just got to be really judicious. And now even when I was watching Planet of the Apes, the new one, I was like, if this person can handcraft a freaking bronze necklace, this person can handcraft. Like, why, where are the smithing? Where is, where are we doing blacksmithing? That this person gets access to this, but the other people don't. And other apes have electricity. But These apes, like, I, I'm out. Like, it made me so. It made me so. I just. Yeah, it broke my brain because you see materials that people, if people have access to them, they either made them, found them. I know they were arguing that, but it's like not quite so like just, just logic it out. It doesn't have to take very long.
- [56:36]
Dan Casey
I, I appreciate that as sort of like a world building thing that you might not consider otherwise because I think it'll just open up new ideas for you. Especially if you think about those limitations there.
- [56:48]
Amy Vorpal
The amount of people and I had this experience too in Dungeons and Dragons who are writing homebrew shit. And we have all researched how to mine elements and what that actually looks like, what a vein of copper means. You know, we've all played Skyrim, but like what, what how and how would you know? And, and, but the amount of DMs I've talked to or writers who have done research into actual mining, it's. We've all done it. So like maybe just read a Wikipedia on, on, on mining, become an armchair.
- [57:24]
Dan Casey
Metallurgist and, and you can put that on your LinkedIn and I will endorse you for it if you ask me to.
- [57:30]
Amy Vorpal
Yeah, yeah. There's just certain things like I don't think everyone needs to learn exactly what a halberd is. Things like that. But it could be fun. And if that kind of thing interests you, great. Materials matter and it takes about five. Oh, and laws, sorry, laws can be. You can make four laws that are just like, don't if you hurt anybody. And, and then the consequence of that, if you just spend a little bit of time and come down like, I think Candlekeep does it really well because they're like, there's just no fire. There's no fire here. It's magically protected from fire because they know it's a thing of books. And if you bring up fire, man, like, is any of that fun? You know, just set the library. Yeah, you're gonna set the library on fire. I got it. Okay. Haha. So they just said no fire. And you're like, yeah, if I can do stuff. Oh, and don't run a town where there's no magic. It's not fun unless you're like, yeah, it's not fun for anybody. Actually I've tried to do that a few times. I played in that too. And it actually. You think, oh, everyone's gonna get real creative with the way they solve this. And it's like, no magic was the Fun part.
- [58:34]
Dan Casey
They'll just kill people in different ways.
- [58:36]
Amy Vorpal
Magic was the fun part.
- [58:37]
Dan Casey
Yeah, exactly.
- [58:39]
Amy Vorpal
Sorry.
- [58:39]
Dan Casey
In the real world.
- [58:40]
Amy Vorpal
Yeah.
- [58:43]
Dan Casey
Oh, I'm trapped.
- [58:44]
Amy Vorpal
I mean, I'm saying things very like, cut and dry. I'm sure there's more to it, but, like, I have experienced some of these things and it's like you think you're being creative and it's, it's just like.
- [58:55]
Dan Casey
Or.
- [58:55]
Amy Vorpal
Or just play the game.
- [58:57]
Dan Casey
Look, I'll. I think, hopefully it goes without saying all of this is caveated with your.
- [59:01]
Amy Vorpal
Caveat, which may vary, but, yeah, our mileage may vary. My, you know, asterisk. Amy Vorpaugh. And the views of this podcast are not representative, you know, whatever, but they are my opinion. So, yeah, grain of salt.
- [59:12]
Dan Casey
All right, well, the earth has been salted so that nothing may grow except some cool new ideas for campaigns and storytelling. Amy, thank you so much for joining us today on Question Answers, telling us a bit about your process, about Goblin mode, about the fine art of DMing, GMing, whatever you want to call it. You mentioned alchemy. Is there anything else that you want to promote or where can people find you on the world Wide web?
- [59:35]
Amy Vorpal
Yes, there is something I would like to promote. You can follow me @vorpalsord. I'm mostly on Instagram these days. I think everything else burned down and I think Twitter's not.
- [59:46]
Dan Casey
They were outside of Candlekeep and they all burned down.
- [59:48]
Amy Vorpal
They all burned down. Yeah. Fire was available. Yeah. So it's at vorpalsword. And the main thing that I've been working on is, well, reels. That's fun. Making little comedy things, mostly about gaming. And then the. The other thing is I'm writing a video game and you can. You can play a demo. It'll be released in June. We already had one demo. And this. We had a page. I did a page one rewrite based on the gameplay that I think is going to be so much more fun and so much better. None of the themes are different. Like, the characters are the same. What happens in the thing stays the same. But the way that you go around the how of it is, is. Is magical. It's so. It's so cool. And you can find that@playvesper.com you can also, when I do these reels, every, like, third one, I. I collaborate with Play Vesper and you can follow them on Instagram too. So they're at. They're at playvesper.
- [60:44]
Dan Casey
Fantastic. Well, folks, go check that stuff out. I'm so excited to experience it. Myself. And thank you everyone for joining us. Now remember, you can catch new episodes of not just Question Answers, but more importantly, Goblin Mode on Mondays and both geek and sundry's YouTube and wherever fine podcasts are served. As for me, I'm inside your computer. That's where I live. You can find me here each and every day. And until next time, Neck Breaker Rules.
- [61:09]
Amy Vorpal
Neck Breaker Rules.
- [61:21]
C
You should listen to the GamesReady biz microcast more people are playing games than ever before. They've never been more popular. And yet the business business behind it is facing some real challenges and changes. There's been tens of thousands of layoffs, hundreds of studio closures as major companies face rising costs and falling sales. There's uncertainty around the future of game consoles. There's legal and government intervention into how games are even being paid for. The role of AI is changing how games are being made. There's the impact of games like Fortnite and Roblox dominating everyone's time. And then there's the desperate wait for Switch 2 and GTA 6. And that's just 2024. Two leading business journalists with a combined 35 years of experience offer you a weekly guide through all of this and more. I'm Christopher Dring, head GamesIndustry Biz. I'm James Batchelor, editor in chief of GameStry Biz, and you can join us every Monday for the GamesIndustry Biz Microcast. The most important stories, expert guests, exclusive market data, and all in less than 30 minutes. Usually the Gamesindustry biz microcast every Monday on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
- [62:22]
D
Hi, I'm Sarah Gabrielli and I've traveled to every single lesbian bar in the country for my podcast Cruising.
- [62:30]
Amy Vorpal
Dancing was a no, no, no women dancing. That would be something that, yes, the cops would grab you for.
- [62:37]
Dan Casey
There were no black owned female gay bars.
- [62:41]
Amy Vorpal
We needed a place to follow on in those days. We went to the bars to socialize because there was no other way. When you went to Brady's Bar, you knew you were safe.
- [62:53]
D
This is Cruising, a documentary podcast about queer spaces, history and culture. Each episode of Cruising features a different space space and tells the stories of the humans that run it and the humans that call it home. You can listen to Cruising on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Season one and two are available now, so be sure to binge them before season three, which will go beyond the bars to queer bookstores, farms, peace encampments and more. Premiering February 4th. From the podcast that brought you to each of the last lesbian bars in the country and back in time, through the sapphic history that shaped them, comes a brand new season of cruising beyond the bars. This is your host, Sarah Gabrielli, and I've spent the past year interviewing history making lesbians and queer folks about all kinds of queer spaces, from bookstores to farms to line dancing and much more.
- [63:46]
Amy Vorpal
For 11 years, every night, women slept illegally on the Common. We would move down to the West Indies to form a lesbian nation. Meg Kristen coined the phrase women's music, but she would have liked to say it was lesbian music music. And that's kind of the origins of the Combihe ver collective.
- [64:05]
D
You can listen to cruising on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes air every other Tuesday, starting February 4th.