Excelsior, True Believers! The Fab Four Halflings take a dive into that first licensed Superhero RPG of the 1980s, the Marvel Super Heroes Roleplaying Game box set by TSR. Published in 1984, it took a few directions that Supers RPGs hadn’t yet tried such as ranks for both attributes and powers, Karma as both XPs and die roll mods, and of course getting statistics for your favorite Marvel heroes. Well, 8 of them anyway. Sit back and...
Read MoreEpisode 31: Marvel Super Heroes by TSR
Episode 30.5: North Texas RPG Con 2021
Normalcy is usually overrated, but not this time. The 13th North Texas RPG Con is happening June 3-6, 2021 and the goal is a return to normal con-gaming. As ever, BadMike/Satan is here to regale us with details: the food trucks, an open bar and Starbucks, and most of all gaming! Listen as your Halflings find out the skinny on the con, its Virtual track for those stuck at home, and a promise that his brother won’t be wearing speedos...
Read MoreEpisode 30: Alma Mater by Oracle Games
School’s out…of its mind? It sure seems that way as your Four Halflings take a dive into one of the oddest RPGs from the early 1980s; that of Alma Mater. Classes, teachers, social cliques, and other hazards for your freshman PC await you in this episode of the podcast. Oh, and a few tables to roll on. Just a few. No Losers were harmed in the making of this podcast, despite the game’s constant encouragement to do so!...
Read MoreEpisode 29.5: The Elusive Shift with Jon Peterson
Friend of the show (and author) Jon Peterson joins the Halflings in a wide-ranging discussion of fanzines, RPG theory, and…oh yeah, his new book from MIT Press called The Elusive Shift. When did Dungeons & Dragons stop being a fantasy wargame and become a roleplaying game? Who contributed to the shift? Did they know what they were doing? Was it a smooth transition, or fraught with controversy? Will we ever stop asking questions...
Read MoreEpisode 29: Cosmic Encounter by Eon Productions
No, it’s not a Spielberg movie. It’s the board game sensation of the 1970s adventure gaming industry, Cosmic Encounter by Eon Productions. A simple yet innovative system lets each of the alien races a player chooses change powers and goals to ensure no two games are the same. Your Fab Four totally normal humans from Earth review the game, how it’s aged, and what inspiration 21st century gamers can find in its mechanics....
Read MoreEpisode 28: Space Patrol by Gamescience
Space, the final frontier — or the first, as far as RPG space gaming went. Gamescience’s Space Patrol beat Traveller to the punch in 1977, but was lost in the shuffle of its better known rival’s little black books. But this little game has some good points to consider, even for today’s jaded gamer. Listen in as we cover aliens, planets, a startling lack of starships…and equipment with no cost? No Kzinti were harmed...
Read MoreEpisode 27: Dresden Files by Evil Hat Productions
It’s time for your Fab Four Halflings to accept their fates…FATE Core, that is! We sit down and cover our first FATE game in the guise of The Dresden Files RPG, based on the bestselling book series by Jim Butcher. We learn about Fate Dice, Aspects, and how DM Jim’s questions leave DM Corbett with answers that involve a lot of the word “maybe”. Wizards complaining about fireball ranges, vampires in bowling...
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Greetings weary travelers! This episode we are privileged to interview Kenzer & Co. CEO Dave Kenzer, and talk some Hackmaster. Dave tells us all about it, including the latest on Hackmaster 25th Anniversary Edition that is live on Kickstarter. Listen to the episode, get excited, and go back the Kickstarter! Links mentioned in this show:...
Hello Crawlers! What do you do when life changes? A lot? Namely when you get kidnapped by aliens and forced to fight in a Magical-tech dungeon where power and loot are the only ways to keep living? You prep by playing Shadow Crawler Carnage of course! This game by Bill Harvat for the Dark Space/Shadowdark RPG is a setting based on Game Lit...
Here’s something a bit…unexpected. A podcast about a print APA??? This episode the Halfling Four discuss issue #9 of the (mostly) print Amateur Press Association ‘zine Anchorite! How do you review an APA? Very carefully, but your Fab Four discuss the good, the bad, and the weird NPCs within. Come for the game articles, stay...
Get ready for spells to make opponents (and DMs) cringe with fear! This supplement for a popular unnamed Fantasy RPG of 1979 says ‘Hold my beer!’ to only 9 levels of Magic User spells. No, we have 15 levels! Come for the Flaming Black (Fill in the Blank) spells, stay for the exploding eyeballs! No PC Magic-Users were harmed in...
