Gamer's Haven Podcast

We take care of necessary business with this special edition show all about KantCon 2012!  We are joined by the Prize Mistress, Becca, and the Food Czar, Beth, and we talk about the upcoming events at this year’s KantCon, and we talk what’s new and what’s old. It’s all about KantCon this time, and no Three Parter for this show. Next time, it’ll be the KantCon Awards Ceremony 2012! Total running time on this episode is 125 minutes. [flgallery id=2 /]

We are joined in studio by none other than Chris Perrin, creator of the Mecha RPG available from Heroic Journey Publishing.  Chris discusses his new Kickstarter project, Mecha Combiners, and we talk KantCon a little.  We talk inspiration for Mecha, and other place where Mecha can be found in games. In the Three Parter, Nathan talks a bit about What We’re Into with the Kickstarter projects Leisure Suit Larry, Shadowrun Returns, Wasteland 2, and Spaceventure – Guys from Andromeda and also talks about a book he just read, Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker.  Jeremy talks the News.  Ethan and Chris, meanwhile, hit you all up with some shameless plugs for Mecha Combiners and the Superpowered Dossiers. Total running time on this episode is 138 minutes. About Mecha Metal and Flesh In battlefields on Earth, in space, and on realms known only to imagination, brave men and women answer the call of fate. They leave behind their simple lives and become pilots of giant armed robots, called mecha, opening a world filled with excitement and danger. Live and Die No matter their beginnings, mecha are tools of war! Pilots will soon learn that with the awesome power of their mecha, comes the awesome responsibility to fight the evil gods of the Living City, put down the Separatist Guard’s shameful rebellions, topple unjust kings and his lackies, the Arbor Defense Force, find love with the Cheerleader Captain, and get to class before the Vice Principal finds out. Such is the life of a mecha pilot. Together As One No pilot faces these trials alone. A pilot will always have his mecha to be strong where he is weak and protect him in the face of unspeakable danger. Also, the pilot will always be there for his mecha, who needs to be led to glory on the battlefield. Mecha… The RPG This is mecha-style anime role playing at its finest. Grab some friends, some dice, and this book and get ready to relive the best robot anime you’ve ever seen and tell mecha anime-stories no one has dreamed of yet. This is Mecha. Buy Mecha on IPR Buy Mecha on RPGNow About Mecha Combiners Mecha combine and form blazing weapons! Do you remember how cool it was on Saturday mornings to watch five robot lions come together to form a mighty robotic warrior? Did you marvel when that robot hero formed its blazing sword and hacked giant evil creatures to tiny bits? (Did I just reveal my age…if so, search for Voltron on Netflix!! ) Welcome to Mecha Combiners, the second published supplement for the Mecha Role Playing Game by Chris Perrin. These rules have long been the most asked-for supplement for Mecha, because, let’s face it, there’s something pretty awesome about playing a team of pilots that can come together to form a giant robot. Support the Mecha Kickstarter Project About Leisure Suit Larry Leisure Suit Larry is a series of adventure games written by Al Lowe and published bySierra from 1987 to 2009. The main character, is Larry Laffer who, though still somewhat lovable, is a balding, dorky, double entendre-speaking, leisure suit-wearing “loser” in his 40s. The games follow him as he spends much of his life trying (usually unsuccessfully) to seduce attractive women. About Shadowrun Returns Jordan Weisman, the creator of Shadowrun, is back and Shadowrun Returns (forApple & Android tablets and PCs) is the game that Shadowrun fans have been waiting for a long time. A graphically rich 2D turn-based single player game with deep story interaction, meaningful character development, and highly-contextual tactical combat, Shadowrun Returns is not only going to make some old geeks (like us) very happy but it will introduce new players to a dynamic gaming universe that is beloved around the world. About Wasteland 2 Wasteland 2 is the direct sequel to the first ever post-apocalyptic computer RPG. The original Wasteland was the inspiration for the FALLOUT series of games, and the first RPG to allow players to split parties fo[...]

No, we’re not dead, just busy. We tackle this episode with some more freestylin’ and hit up some news, reviews, and chat a bit more about 5th edition.  It’s an aimless episode, but we needed to get together to record, and it’s been two months … life has been busy. In the Three Parter, Jeremy reviews the new D&D supplement, Player’s Option: Heroes of the Elemental Chaos, Ethan takes a look at the new DC Adventures/Mutants & Masterminds book, Heroes & Villains Vol. 2, while Nathan (and Ethan and Jeremy) talk a bit about What They’re Into … We wrap things up with a few Random Encounters! Running Time on this Episode is 137 minutes. About D&D Player’s Option: Heroes of the Elemental Chaos Masters of fire and earth. Lords of air and water. This tome is the definitive sourcebook for creating and playing characters with ties to the Elemental Chaos and the primordial beings that dwell there. It shows how the elements can influence heroes of the natural world and presents elemental-themed character options for players. In addition to discussing elemental power and presenting new character themes with strong story hooks, this book includes new class builds — including the elementalist and the sha’ir — and new feats and paragon paths designed to tie existing characters more closely to the Elemental Chaos. About DC Adventures Heroes & Villains Vol. 2 The DC Universe features a dazzling array of characters who have thrilled readers for generations. The two-volume Heroes & Villains set details more than 500 of those characters for use in your DC Adventures games, all featuring character stats fully compatible with the award-winningMutants & Masterminds RPG. Vol. 2 picks up where Vol. 1 left off, covering characters from the League of Assassins and Legion of Super-Heroes to Zatanna and Zauriel. With Heroes & Villains in-hand, you will never lack for characters to use in your game, from heroic guest-stars and villainous foes to heroes suitable as ready-to-play characters. You’ll also have a comprehensive guide for modeling your own DC characters based on existing examples along with a collection of animals and monsters useful for mimics and shapechangers. It’s the comprehensive guide to the heroes and villains of the DC Universe no fan should be without!

We all sit down after nearly three months to record our next episode, with some reflection and reservations … which are thrown out the window with a discussion on the announcement of 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons!  We talk about what we’ve been doing, and try a new thing with the show … current events!  So, if you like this episode, please comment and let us know if you want more like it! In the Three Parter, we really do a Four Parter when Jeremy reviews the Dungeons & Dragons 4th Editon Player’s Option: Heroes of the Feywild (and a bit about the Faeries book from Bastion Press way back when), Nathan and Becca both talk about Star Wars: The Old Republic, Nathan goes on about Planescape Torment, and Ethan wraps it up with a trifecta of reviews of Sentinels of the Multiverse from Greater Than Games, Martian Dice from Tasty Minstrel Games, and Cards Against Humanity from … well, Cards Against Humanity. Finally, we bring things to a close in this extra long episode (making up for lost time) with a few Random Encounters! As always, please rate and review us on iTunes, comment on posts, head over to the forums and chat with other listeners, or visit our various affiliate stores on Amazon, Noble Knight Games, and RPGNow. Until next time! Total running time on this episode is 152 minutes. About D&D Player’s Option: Heroes of the Feywild Player’s Option: Heroes of the Feywild enables players to weave elements of the Feywild into their existing and future characters, in much the same way thatPlayer’s Option: Heroes of Shadow gave players reasons to explore their characters’ dark connections to the Shadowfell. This book contains exciting new character builds and options that are thematically rooted to the Feywild, a wild and verdant plane of arcane splendor, full of dangerous and whimsical creatures. Characters who trace their origins or backgrounds to the Feywild gain access to unique feats, powers, and mechanics. The book explores what makes fey-themed characters so fun and distinct. Buy Heroes of the Feywild from Amazon.com or Noble Knight Games About Star Wars: The Old Republic Star Wars: The Old Republic, abbreviated as TOR or SWTOR, is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game based in the Star Wars universe. Developed by BioWare Austin and a supplemental team at BioWare Edmonton, the game was first announced on October 21, 2008, at an invitation-only press event. The video game was released for the Microsoft Windows platform on December 20, 2011 in North America and part of Europe. Early access to the game began one week before release, on December 13, 2011, for those who had pre-ordered the game online; access opened in “waves” based on pre-order date. Although BioWare has not disclosed development costs, industry leaders and financial analysts have estimated it to be between $125 million and $200 million. If accurate, this would make it the most expensive video game ever developed. Buy Star Wars: The Old Republic from Amazon.com About Planescape Torment Planescape: Torment is a computer role-playing video game developed for Windows by Black Isle Studios and released on December 12, 1999 by Interplay Entertainment. It takes place in Planescape, an Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (AD&D) fantasy campaign setting. The game’s engine is a modified version of theInfinity Engine, which was also used for BioWare‘s Baldur’s Gate, a previous AD&D game set in the Forgotten Realms. Planescape: Torment is primarily story-driven; combat is given less prominence than in most contemporary role-playing games. The protagonist, known as The Nameless One, is an immortal who has lived many lives but has forgotten all about them, even forgetting his own name. The game focuses on his journey throughout the city of Sigil and other planes to reclaim his memories of these previous lives. Several characters in the game may join The Nameless One on his journ[...]

Sentinels of the Multiverse Ethan, Nathan, and Jeremy were able to sit down with Christopher Badell, Adam Rebottaro, and Paul Bender, otherwise known as Greater Than Games, creators and publishers of Sentinels of the Multiverse, a cooperative superhero card game and talk game design, development, and exactly what constitutes a superhero game. It’s a fun discussion, and Chris, Adam, and Paul were great sports.  As soon as we are able to, we will be posting a review of Sentinels of the Multiverse (who, by the way, are sponsoring us this month).  In the discussion, things get a bit long-winded, and Jeremy and Nathan try to get GTG to commit to a Canadian Crusaders expansion of the SotM game. Plus, here’s some art from the upcoming Rook City expansion for Sentinels of the Multiverse provided exclusively for the Gamer’s Haven Podcast! Driving Mantis is exclusive artwork from the upcoming Sentinels of the Multiverse expansion set, Rook City! In the Three Parter, Ethan has a not-so-shameless plug in asking listeners to donate to St. Jude’s Children’s Charity in the name of KantCon, Nathan reviews the new Batman: Arkham City video game on the X-Box and PS3 (and PC), and Jeremy talks a bit about what he’s into. Things are wrapped up in this episode with some Random Encounters. Total running time on this episode is 110 minutes. About Greater Than Games & Sentinels of the Multiverse Greater Than Games, LLC, aka >G, is all about making the games that we have always wanted to play.  We love playing games, and we love our ridiculous process of game creation.  The most important thing to us is making the sorts of games we want to play available to everyone. Our first product here at >G is Sentinels of the Multiverse, a cooperative card game in which 3 to 5 players control a team of super powered heroes battling a dastardly villain.  Sentinels of the Multiverse, or SotM, provides players with an innovative, streamlined game play experience that is easy to learn but requires strategic, team-based thinking.  The game comes with ten different heroes, allowing players to build myriad hero teams and find new ways to challenge the villains.  There are four different villains, each with unique mechanics and challenges, and four dynamic environments in which the battles take place.  This flexibility adds enormous replay value and ensures that no two SotM games will play the same. About Batman: Arkham City Batman: Arkham City Batman: Arkham City is a 2011 action-adventure video game developed by Rocksteady Studios. It is the sequel to the 2009 video game Batman: Arkham Asylum, based on the DC Comics superhero Batman. The game was released by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. The game was officially announced during the 2009 Spike Video Game Awards and was released worldwide for consoles, beginning in North America on October 18, 2011, with the PC version scheduled for November. A Wii U version is set to release in 2012. Arkham City was scripted by veteran comic book author Paul Dini, who also scripted Arkham Asylum. It features a main plot and side-missions that develop their own sub-plots. The main storyline revolves around Batman’s imprisonment in Arkham City, a sprawling new super-prison five times bigger than the original asylum and enclosing a wide variety of industrial districts, iconic locations and Gotham City landmarks. He must now stop mishaps occurring around this chaotic enclosure, mainly caused by his arch-nemesis The Joker. The game has received universal critical acclaim, making it one of the highest rated video games released in 2011. [flgallery id=2 /]

Ethan, Nathan, and Jeremy continue the cavalcade of guests with a Skype-in of Chris Dias of Dias Ex Machina Games.  They talk about Amethyst in it’s current and future forms, as well as Chris’s open letter to WotC.  They talk about game design, setting, and all things gaming, as per usual! Here are some links in reference to what Chris talked about: Best of Techan Podcast Techan Game Forum Thread Questioning Piracy Part One Two Three Four Five and Six An Open Letter to Wizards of the Coast Follow-Up to An Open Letter to Wizards of the Coast And, as promised, here is the picture from the book that we spoke about (click to enlarge): In the Three Parter, we are hit with a trio of reviews starting with Nathan’s take on iTabletop, then Jeremy’s look at Amethyst: Evolution, and finally Ethan’s look at the Mutant & Masterminds Gamemaster’s Guide. Total running time on this episode is 150 minutes. About Dias Ex Machina Games Dias Ex Machina was formed during sushi in May of 2007 with the soul intent of being the vehicle for an Amethyst role playing game (based on a long running campaign). In July of 2008, the company’s founder and its co-writer made the decision to abandon the previous D20 Amethyst in favor of adopting the GSL and converting Amethyst to 4 th Edition Dungeons and Dragons. Soon after, the company formed an alliance with Goodman Games for print distribution. Amethyst Foundations was released in 2010 is extremely favorable reviews. Along with Amethyst, DEM also produces the upcoming NeuroSpasta role playing game—promising a universal Modern/Science-Fiction adaptation of 4 th Edition D&D rules. DEM considers itself the source for alternative games utilizing the Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition architecture. About Amethyst Which side will you choose? Which weapons will you wield? Venture into lands once claimed by skyscrapers and factories, now overrun by elves, goblins, and dragons. Ride gracefully on horseback or plow through the wilderness in an armored transport. Earth is torn between the order of science and the chaos of fantasy. The realm of magic has invaded our world, forcing man into the last few bastions of technology. These two worlds cannot mix. Will you embrace the wonder of legends and myths or accept the reality of refrigerators and washing machines? For 500 years the planet was locked in stalemate, but no more. The Stones of Amethyst have risen. When brought together, they could decide the future of the planet, cast off the remaining shred of technology, or close off the world of magic forever. Choose your path and commit to the quest. Monsters will hunt you; machines will track you. No gods will help you; no prophecies will choose you. The fate of the world rests with you. Buy Amethyst: Foundations from RPGNow or Noble Knight Games Buy Amethyst: Evolution from RPGNow About iTabletop We’re sure there are many different ideas out there, but we’ll just tell you what it means to us. As Gamers ourselves, we’ve seen time after time members of our game groups move out of town, go into the military, get so busy they can’t even make the trip from across town, have family responsibilities that keep them home, etc., etc., etc. One by one the group dwindles and eventually dies. We’d be willing to bet you’ve probably seen the same thing happen in your groups at some time or another. So for us, an Online Virtual Tabletop, or VTT, first and foremost allows folks to play their tabletop games with their group, no matter where they are or when it’s happening. Of course there are a few more things that we think are important for an Online Virtual Tabletop: It has to make you feel like you’re really there,in the same room, with the other players The software has to take a back seat to the group interaction – meaning its so simple, easy to use and non-distracting, you pretty much forget it’s there It’s prefera[...]

Welcome to the raggedy edge of human space, The Orion Frontier. This is the edge of human exploration. Rimward from here, There be Dragons! No star chart or encyclopedia tells us what lies beyond, only whispered tales of scouts and pirates provide us myth- inspired answers. In this episode, Ethan, Nathan, and Jeremy are joined by Mike Cross and Chris Stevens from Terra/Sol Games.  The topic of discussion in the show are their line of products featuring the Twilight Sector setting, and, to a lesser extent, Netherell, a setting contained within Twilight Sector.  They talk game design, and setting evolution, as well as hit upon developing hard science fiction settings. In the Three Parter, Jeremy takes some time to rant a bit on his application to join a server in Minecraft.  Nathan takes a look at the new Ogre Kingdoms book for the Warhammer Tabletop Battles game.  Ethan wraps up the Three Parter with a short review of the newest addition to the Song of Ice and Fire book series by George R. R. Martin, A Dance With Dragons. Finally, they wrap things up with a catch-up on Random Encounters! Total Running Time on this episode is 128 minutes. About Terra/Sol Games Terra/Sol Games evolved out of a long running RPG campaign. The reason that’s important to note is because the fact that we evolved from a RPG campaign colors the philosophy of everything we do. RPGs from the beginning have been defined by sets of rules. To me that has always seemed backwards. While we love to see a movie in IMAX, if the movie isn’t any good no amount of IMAX magic is going to save it. I think the parallel to RPGs is obvious. At Terra/Sol Games we want to help change that. We’re about campaigns, hence our motto: “Because the Campaigns the Thing”. Terra/Sol Games will strive to bring our customers the best in RPG campaigns. From settings to adventures we will bring to you deep, coherent, ongoing campaigns. So whether you want to sit back and let us do the driving or you want to play in the sandbox yourself, we will give you the tools to run a campaign the way you want, and hopefully you’ll come to agree with us, that rules are nice, “But the Campaign’s the Thing”. Buy Twilight Sector from RPGNow, Amazon.com, or Noble Knight Games Buy Netherell from RPGNow. About Warhammer Tabletop Battles Warhammer: The Game of Fantasy Battles (formerly Warhammer Fantasy Battle and often abbreviated to Warhammer, WFB or WHFB) is a tabletop wargame created by Games Workshop. It is the origin of the Warhammer Fantasy setting. The game has been designed with regiments of fantasy miniatures. It uses stock fantasy races such as humans (The Empire, Bretonnia, Kislev), Elves (Dark Elves, High Elves, Wood Elves), Dwarfs, Undead, Orcs and Goblins, Vampires, as well as some more unusual types such as Lizardmen, Skaven and the daemonic forces of Chaos. Each race has its own unique strengths and flaws; Wood Elves, for example, have the most powerful archers in the game but have poor overall defence and Bretonnia have the strongest cavalry but weak infantry. Since first appearing in 1983, Warhammer has been periodically updated and re-released with changes to the gaming system and army lists. The current official version is the eighth edition, released on 10 July 2010. About the Ogre Kingdoms An Ogre is a large humanoid creature in the Warhammer Fantasy fictional universe. They are based on the ogres of mythology. Prior to the release in 2005 of Warhammer Armies: Ogre Kingdoms for Warhammer Fantasy Battles tabletop game Ogres appeared only as mercenaries or Auxiliaries to other armies. The Ogre Kingdoms book expanded the history and character of the Ogres and they can now be fielded as a single army of their own, although the option to use them as mercenaries in other armies remained. However, the option to field allies or use mercenaries in general has since been dropped from the core Warhammer rules, with the discontinuing of the Dogs of War and the Regiments of Renown. Furthermo[...]

Beth had the chance to sit in on a seminar at Gen Con all about making players know fear, and evoking fear in your game.  It was a fascinating seminar. This is another in a series of seminar recordings from Gen Con 2011. [flgallery id=2 /]

Ethan had the chance to sit in on a seminar about technology in gaming, featuring the guys from Obsidian Portal and several others. This is another in a series of seminar recordings from Gen Con 2011. [flgallery id=2 /]

Ethan had the chance to talk with the publishers of Square Shooters, C.J. Calvert Designs & Heartland Consumer Products, LLC.  Square Shooters is a cool set of dice that is actually a complete deck of cards. This is another in a series of short interviews from the floor of Gen Con 2011. About Square Shooters SQUARE SHOOTERS® is a complete deck of playing cards on dice! Each die has 6 faces. Nine dice together have 54 faces – a complete deck of 52 playing cards plus 2 jokers. Our patented design places the playing card faces on the dice in such a way that popular card hands from poker to rummy can be rolled. For instance, every straight and royal flush card for every suit is on a different die; and every rank card is on a different die! You can use SQUARE SHOOTERS® to play almost any game you usually play with cards! Of course, you can make up your own new games! Click here to learn how to play the Square Shooters® game we’ve invented, and other great family games! Click here to learn how to play Texas Cut-Throat™ and other games of chance that you can play with your adult friends… SQUARE SHOOTERS® is coming soon to a retailer near you! [flgallery id=2 /]

Ethan had the chance to talk to Michael Mendes, head of Tasty Minstrel Games at Gen Con 2011.  Tasty Minstrel Games publishes a number of board games geared toward families and strategic gamers alike. This is another installment in a series of short interviews from the floor of Gen Con 2011. About Tasty Minstrel Games Tasty Minstrel Games is, simply put, a game publisher. We concentrate on board games, card games, fun games, addicting games, family board games, and any non-video game that can be imagined. Our criterion for publishing a game is that it must be a fun, intuitive, and an addicting game. A game must be replayable and have good value compared to other entertainment such as video games and movies. [flgallery id=2 /]

Ethan had the chance to talk to Gamers For Humanity, a charity organization at Gen Con 2011.  Gamers For Humanity does a lot of work with other charitable organizations and has several projects to help get board games and video games into homes after natural disasters.  They do great work and help support volunteer work around the globe. This is another installment in a series of short interviews from the floor of Gen Con 2011. About Gamers for Humanity Gamers, you say? Gamers. Players of games. Board games, card games, computer games, role-playing games, even fantasy football. If you have ever enjoyed a game of Trivial Pursuit, you are a gamer.?Life, anyone’s life, is made far more enjoyable with games. And people who are able to regularly play games are very lucky people indeed. Gamers For Humanity is a way for us to help other people who aren’t so lucky. If you don’t have a home of your own, if you’re displaced from your city and job…well, games–fun and enjoyment–become a pretty low priority. [flgallery id=2 /]

Ethan had the chance to sit in on the Pinnacle Entertainment seminar at Gen Con 2011.  Pinnacle Entertainment went over their plans for their various game lines, including Deadlands Reloaded and the long awaited Hell on Earth Reloaded.  Also in attendance at the seminar were the licensees of the Savage Worlds game system, including Reality Blurs, Savage Mojo, and many others, and they detailed what they have in store for their various product lines. About Pinnacle Entertainment Pinnacle began in 1994 with Fields of Honor (a historical miniatures game) and The Last Crusade (a collectible World War 2 card game designed by John R. Hopler). Certainly what we’re best known for is Deadlands, which has now been going strong since 1996. Deadlands has appeared as a roleplaying game, a miniatures game, a collectible card game, a collectible disk game, and a comic book. The roleplaying game can be found in its original “classic” edition, in the d20 system, and “Reloaded” for our current house system,Savage Worlds. It has also been translated into Steve Jackson Games’ popular GURPs system. [flgallery id=2 /]

Ethan had the chance to stop off at the Mercs Miniatures booth at Gen Con 2011, and talk with Keith Lowe about the new miniatures game. This is another installment in a series of short interviews from the floor of Gen Con 2011. About Mercs Miniatures MERCS began over some pizza, a few sketches from college, and some big ideas. 3 years and many pizzas later, the MERCS figure line is a reality. Someday we’ll tell you the long version… [flgallery id=2 /]

Ethan had the chance to sit in on the Fantasy Flight Games seminar detailing their current plans and announcements for the third largest game company in the world. This is another installment in a series of seminar recordings from Gen Con 2011. About Fantasy Flight Games Roseville, MN based Fantasy Flight Publishing was founded in 1995 by its CEO, Christian T. Petersen. Since the release of its first game product (Twilight Imperium) in 1997, the company has been doing business as Fantasy Flight Games (“FFG”).  Since that time, FFG has grown to become one of the biggest names in the hobby games industry, being a marketplace leader in board games and maintaining strong businesses in the card game, roleplaying game, and miniature game categories. FFG is known for its quality of game components (often enhanced with highly detailed plastic miniatures and beautiful artwork), innovative gameplay, professional dedication to customer service, and a cutting-edge online presence providing information and support for its many products. FFG’s best-known titles include games based on licenses such as Battlestar Galactica, World of Warcraft, and The Lord of the Rings, proprietary titles such as Arkham Horror and Descent: Journeys in the Dark, as well as re-releases of classic titles such as Cosmic Encounter, Fury of Dracula, and DungeonQuest. In 2008, FFG formed an exclusive partnership with industry-leading, UK-Based Games Workshop (“GW”), to represent its acclaimed IPs (Warhammer and Warhammer 40K) in the hobby games market, publishing new versions of classic titles such as Talisman and Horus Heresy as well as brand new games such as Warhammer: Invasion and Chaos In the Old World. FFG’s business is a global one, with the majority of its revenues generated from international sales. [flgallery id=2 /]