Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond - Podcasts

02:40

Ep.29: Ravenloft myths, Homebrew

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2026/08/31

We continue our fantasy series with James taking the DM’s chair. This time, we look at one approach to homebrewing: preserving the conventions that give a setting its identity while modifying systems to lean further into them.Our actual play takes place in the Nameless Lands, a new Domain of Dread pulled from a world not altogether unlike our own. The Mists blur its borders, time has become meaningless, and names and histories are slowly wearing away. Two cursed wanderers are on their way back to

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02:48

Ep.28: dragonlance D&D

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2026/08/02

We continue our fantasy series with D&D. How could we not? Sean takes the DM's chair first. We play through the beginning of Shadow of the Dragon Queen, the 5e Dragonlance campaign: the road to Vogler, a memorial, and a party still finding its footing. Spoiler warning if you're planning to play it.This is the first of three episodes where each of us takes a turn running D&D,, looking at how we each run the same game differently. Afterward we get into D&D 2024, the ways we've each hacked

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02:39

Ep.27: Death & Dying

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2026/06/15

Have you had a character die mid-session? How did it feel, and had the table talked it through first? We all run games with violence of some kind, juggling different systems and different layers of mortality — and a lot of players read a death as an ending, an inconvenience, or a real emotional blow when a favorite character meets their end. This game, like many others, shows it doesn't have to be. In Episode 27 of Modern Mythology, Sean runs Turn of Fortune's Wheel — the official introductory

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02:05

Ep.26: Alignment

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2026/05/02

What alignment are you, and what does that mean? Does it drive your behavior? Does your character’s alignment drive theirs? We look at one of D&D’s most durable sacred cows: alignment as personality test, moral framework, table tool, campaign problem, and cosmology. Somehow, we try not to come to blows.We want to hear how alignment plays into your games.00:00:22 What Alignment Are You?00:07:45 Origins00:20:40 Descriptive or Prescriptive00:25:00 Character Dynamics00:31:25 Ubiquitous Evil

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02:54

Ep.25: Cypher Systems

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2026/04/03

In Episode 25 of Modern Mythology, we take on the Cypher System, a well-known universal tabletop RPG system with a strong reputation for flexible, narrative-driven play. Because Cypher isn’t tied to a single core setting, it gives us a good way to look at how a system’s mechanics shape story across genre—and in this case, through a fantasy lens.We’re joined by SJ McKean—author, fellow pro GM, professional voice actor, and streamer—who brings both GMing experience and firsthand familiarity with

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02:05

Ep.24: Setting & System

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2026/03/12

In Episode 24 of Modern Mythology, we dig into one of the biggest questions in tabletop RPG design: how setting and system actually interact at the table. This is a dense, nearly two-hour conversation about the ways mechanics shape player behavior, how they steer attention toward certain kinds of choices, and how that pressure can either reinforce the fiction or get in its way.As always, we don't come away with a final conclusion so much as many opened avenues of discussion. We spend a lot of time

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02:05

Ep.23: Burning Wheel

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2026/02/17

Burning Wheel has stayed Scott’s favorite RPG for a reason, and this two-hour episode digs into the specifics. We look at how the game’s tools reinforce each other at the table: lifepath character creation, goal-driven play, organic advancement, and combat with real risk. In combination, those systems tend to produce strong characterization and narrative momentum without forcing outcomes.Burning Wheel is an fantasy RPG designed by Luke Crane that pretty consistently shows up in many of the top lists

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02:05

Ep.22: Technology

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2026/02/03

Modern Mythology Ep. 22 — Technology takes a reflective look at how changing technologies have shaped tabletop role-playing games over time. From physical tools at the table to digital spaces that bring groups together across distance, we talk about what stuck, what faded, and why.Along the way, we explore how randomness, connectivity, and new creative tools altered player expectations and game culture. The discussion moves through technology adoption, miniatures, bringing technology to the table,

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02:05

Ep.21: Sci-fi Wrapup

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2026/01/05

Episode 21 closes our sci-fi season with a debrief: what we learned when theory met the table. We revisit the systems we ran—Coriolis, Freemarket, CBR+PNK, Mothership, Twilight Imperium among others—and pull out the through-lines that surfaced across very different design priorities, moving between genre, system, and setting.Across the season, certain levers kept showing up, including Dark Points and panic clocks. Downtime becomes a design layer, not just a breather. Tech and transportation aren’t

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02:10

Ep.20: Twilight Imperium RPG (Genesys)

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2025/12/23

This week is an interesting collision between board games and tabletop RPGs as we jump into Twilight Imperium: Ashes of Power, the Free RPG Day adventure built for the Genesys roleplaying system. Designed as an easy on-ramp, Ashes of Power comes with simplified Genesys rules and pre-made characters—so you can go from “what is Genesys?” to “roll initiative” fast.In play, we focus on what makes Genesys narrative dice work: a roll doesn’t just hinge on success or failure. It also includes story-driving

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01:11

Ep.19: Troupe Style Play

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2025/11/18

In this episode, Jamie and Scott dig into troupe-style play—campaigns where each player might run multiple characters over time instead of a single, fixed PC. We talk about what changes when you treat the cast as an ensemble instead of a party, and how that shift can affect spotlight, continuity, and the kinds of stories your table can tell.Using games like Ars Magica, Pendragon, Blades in the Dark, Street Fighter, and Call of Cthulhu as examples—plus related play styles like West Marches, (featured

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02:25:00

Ep.18: freemarket

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2025/10/29

Next in our first line-up of sci fi RPGs, we get to play a really exciting game in our catalogue – Freemarket by Luke Crane and Jared Sorenson. This is a system-forward, reputation-driven game that’s brilliant and notoriously opaque, at least at the outset. FreeMarket runs like an open-world sandbox. Your choices broadcast to the network; the network pushes back. Stakes aren’t hit points but status, access, and who will work with you tomorrow. The game excels in long-form play, but this session

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02:05:00

Ep.17: Trinity Storypath

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2025/10/13

All four hosts join the table as Scott storyguides Trinity Continuum: Æon by Onyx Path, marking the first full-group session in our sci-fi series. We put the Storypath system through its paces, showing how Attributes + Skills shape scene pacing and spotlight moments, while smart resource management heightens tension and demands sharper decision-making. It’s a clear demonstration of our story-meets-mechanics approach—and a preview of the tone and tempo you’ll see in our live-streamed sci-fi campaign

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02:15:00

Ep.16: CBR+PNK Actualplay

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2025/08/25

Recorded just before Episode 13 (Echoes of the Veil), this session has Scott running Mind the Gap—Emanoel Melo’s compact introduction to CBR+PNK—for James and Sean. The pamphlet delivers a self-contained cyberpunk heist in the Forged-in-the-Dark lineage, offering both a crash course in the system’s flow and a taste of its sharp, high-pressure style. We used it as a baseline for comparison with Raffi’s expanded version in Episode 13, highlighting what the core rules do well, where questions remain,

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00:55

Ep.15: Blank Page or Blueprint

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2025/08/05

Jamie and Scott dig into how we’re all wired to find creativity in different ways. This is a critical part of the process. Not only are we talking about how structure drives us all differently but communicating those expectations at the table. We circle back to some ideas we referenced early on and begin our exploration of OSR ideas and GNS.For more on the discussion of System and Style check out James' article series, Rules in Practice and Scott’s additional thoughts on specific systems on our

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03:05

Ep.14: mothership

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2025/07/24

Long‑time friend of the show and gamer Johnathan Lee drops in as we crack open Mothership, the d100 panic engine from Tuesday Knight Games. A brisk build phase shows how quickly you can assemble a potentially doomed crew. Then we plunge through a five‑scene drift where hull plates groan and heartbeat monitors spike. Note the scenes that kicked off TOMBS (Transgression, Omens, Manifestation, Banishment, Slumber). Afterward we really begin to dig into some of the push and pull between mechanics and

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03:05

Ep.13: Echoes of the Veil, a CBR+PNK Hack

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2025/06/20

On this special episode we bring fellow Philadelphia-based designer Raffi onboard to explore Echoes of the Veil, a new expansion that turns the Forged in the Dark masterwork of design CBR+PNK into a quick-fire mini-campaign engine. We jump straight into character creation, unpacking the new runner-growth track and “Weird" options, modular downtime boards, and other Veil-specific mechanics along the way—smart add-ons that deepen play without slowing the momentum that made CBR+PNK a cult favorite

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02:44

Ep 12: Launching Our Sci-Fi Arc

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2025/06/13

Episode 12 welcomes clinical-tech nerd—and lifelong D&D DM—Sean, deepening the Modern Mythology bench to four hosts. (Sean, James, and Scott are on-mic this time). A quick opening discussion uncovers Sean’s gaming roots and, in the process, reveals some of how each host hacks rules at the table, a topic we will surely return to. Scott—who has logged hundreds of systems—champions underrated mechanics and explains why he drifts from Dungeons & Dragons even as the podcast keeps circling back;

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01:46

Episode 11: Horror RPG Wrap-Up

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2025/05/27

Our horror TTRPG spotlight winds down—for now. Jamie, Mark, and Scott unpack game mechanics that subtly shape pacing and tension, exploring ritual framing, partial successes, player-facing rolls, and objective-driven rewards.We also discuss two cult-favorite horror rpgs we haven’t covered before—Unknown Armies and Kult—before diving into a brisk (~30-minute) actual play of Don’t Rest Your Head.Topics Discussed:01:30 Podcast milestone05:59 Honorable mentions09:25 Unknown

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01:22

Episode 10: Player Spotlight

Modern Mythology | Story & Setting in RPGs and beyond ·

2025/05/12

In Episode 10, Mark, Jamie, and Scott follow up our discussion on story-facing design by zeroing in on player spotlight: who talks when, who takes control of a moment, and how game systems shape pacing and participation. This episode asks a simple but essential question—how do you decide who gets the scene? From GM-led framing to player-initiated action, from systems that distribute authority to those that leave it to group consensus, we discuss how spotlight is shared, negotiated, or wrestled for

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