Into the Shadows: Origins, Shadowdark, & Hades (S4E6)

Lair Of Secrets

It’s convention season, and David talks about Origins, a big-but-cozy game convention in Columbus, Ohio, meeting Shadowdark RPG creator Kelsey Dionne, plans for Gen Con 2024, and gaming with Jon Hook of the Modern Mythos podcast.

Meanwhile, Ken geeks out about dynamic lighting in Roll20 (and his hopes for using during the Lair’s upcoming Cyberpunk RED Elysium HQ run). Oh, and Ken actually completed a video game – Fire Emblem Engage – and started a new game, Hades (which apparently every other geek on the planet has already played)

But why stop there? Ken and David also talk about a bunch of other RPGs including Dragonbane, Eat the Reich, Star Wars d6, the, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Mission Kit, the Dread RPG, and You’re in Space and Everything’s Fucked.

Quotes

• “I finally completed a game! It feels like finishing a marathon for a 52-year-old gamer.”
• “Origins is like a cozy Gen Con—a perfect mix of games and geek culture without the overwhelming crowds.”
• “Shadowdark RPG is like 5th edition D&D but darker, with no dark vision and a real sense of urgency.”

Chapters

0:00 Intro
1:30 Ken’s Gaming Achievement
3:45 Origins 2024 Highlights
12:30 Jon Hook and Isolated Investigators
15:30 Shadowdark RPG and Game Discussions
22:15 Dynamic Lighting in RPGs
28:00 New Game Purchases and Interests
36:10 GenCon and Upcoming Events
42:00 Closing Thoughts and Stealth Promo

Show Notes

Main Topic: Origins 2024

• David went to Origins this year and has come back to our Lair to report on his findings after being away for more than a decade.
• Met with Jon Hook!
  • Jon ran games with the Lurking Fears group
  • Hung out much of the con. He’s also an enabler of game purchases.
  • Jon Ran one of his Isolated Investigator modules. Tons of fun with one Keeper and one player.
  • Jon was on a panel: “Beyond D&D – How and why are these other games different?”
  • How games like Shadowdark, Dragonbane, and others are different– and better? Than the world’s most popular RPG.
  • It was an interesting panel, lots of audience participation. Even the “GURPS guy” got a word in.
• Met Kelsey Dionne, creator of the Shadowdark rpg
  • David was able to talk with her for a bit, thanks to Jon being on the same panel with her
• Played a fair amount of Star Wars d6 games with the Sparks group

• So what about Origins?
  • It’s a cozy GenCon
  • It’s larger than a typical local con but also less dense than Gen Con.
  • You can stop in the middle of an aisle of the vendor hall and not block traffic
  • Was able to talk with people at the booths for extended periods
  • Hotel was close and I was able to relax or nap for a bit, then head back in again
  • Roll for Topic Podcast
    • How do you handle light sources?
• Gen Con 2024
  • David’s going … who else is going?

Obligatory Banner

• Fire Emblem Engage
  • Finally finished the latest entry in the Fire Emblem series.
  • Nostalgic take on the series, with characters carried forward from earlier games.
  • The story wasn’t nearly as compelling as Three Houses though, in part because it was super-linear..
• Hades
  • As the last geek in America to play Hades, Ken can confirm that yes, it’s good.
  • Picked it up on sale for Nintendo Switch
• Sci-Fi and Fantasy Novel Writing series is complete
  • David turned in his pages for the end of class, got some good feedback
  • Continuing his efforts to write at least 250 words a day. Not so many it’s discouraging, and he often writes more
  • Recommended if you have the time, money, and want to be serious about publishing what you write
• Cyberpunk Edgerunners Mission Kit
  • It’s on its way.
  • New rules for 2077!
  • Looking forward to quick hacks.
  • Check out our unboxing of the Edgerunners Mission Kit
• David’s Origins game purchases
  • Fallout dice
  • Fallout map set
  • Star Trek 2nd edition quickstart
  • Dread
  • Eat the Reich
  • You’re in Space and Everything’s Fucked

Outro

Thanks for attending our latest minion and future overlord training. Thanks for coming! If you were sitting near the old death ray, head over to dice.camp and follow us @lairofsecrets. We’ve got all you need for those Hyperion gamma burns.

Featured Image Meta

• Cover art from the Shadowdark RPG.

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