An Interview with Tim Kask
Hoi and Jeff interview Tim Kask, the co-compiler of the Appendix N list, who gives us some interesting insight into its history!
Jun 28, 2020•1 hr 14 min
Appendix N Book Club
Jeff, Hoi, and a rotating roster of special guests discuss the adventure, fantasy, horror, science fiction, and weird fiction that inspires our gaming
Episodes
Episode 72 – Leigh Brackett's "The Best of Leigh Brackett" with special guest Stacy Dellorfano
Stacy Dellorfano joins us to discuss Leigh Brackett's "The Best of Leigh Brackett", the OSR, Boris Vallejo, women writing for male audiences, early antiheros, Eric John Stark as the outsider, Pocahontas, using life experiences in monster design, the balance of crunch and fluff, underwater adventures, Lovecraftian horror, and the future of Contessa Con in the quarantine era, and much more!
Jun 14, 2020•1 hr
Episode 71 – Clark Ashton Smith's "Poseidonis" with special guest Evey Lockhart
Evey Lockhart joins us to discuss Clark Ashton Smith's "Poseidonis", dark + quirk, Northern California as Mythic Greece, pulp colonialism, circus folk, horny 15 year olds, Irony as a rollable stat, Troika's resolution system, bug collecting magic, Pathfinder vs. Dungeon World, the joy of a well-designed wizard's tower, and much more!
May 30, 2020•59 min
Episode 70 – Jack Vance's "Star King" with special guest Sean McCoy
Sean McCoy joins us to discuss Jack Vance's "Star King", police violence, pulp crime, spaghetti westerns, sci-fi RPGs, Intelligence vs. Wisdom, a future controlled by corporations, off-screen sexual violence, the future of Mothership, and much more!
May 17, 2020•58 min
Episode 69 – Fritz Leiber's "Swords and Ice Magic" with special guest Angela Murray
Angela Murray joins us to discuss Fritz Leiber's "Swords and Ice Magic", avoiding the GM system mastery trap, unlikable protangonists, women as sex objects, learning more about characters than just their physical descriptions, Norse mythology, Death as an adversary, being upfront about campaign setting elements, the player's role in story generation, the GM's responsibility to follow the player's lead, playing a Dragonborn Cleric who worships a god who hates dragons, reading fiction when you are...
May 04, 2020•1 hr
Episode 68 - L. Sprague de Camp's "Conan the Buccaneer" with special guest Carmin Vance
Carmin Vance joins us to discuss L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter's "Conan the Buccaneer", barriers for entry into the hobby, weird descriptions of breasts, sword and sorcery as escapism, black amazon warriors, reading non-Howard Conan stories, the man-eating trees of Nubia, ritual magic, the bellybuttons of the Easter Island statues, reading with an open mind, and much more!
Apr 19, 2020•59 min
Episode 67 – Edgar Rice Burroughs's "Tarzan at the Earth's Core" with special guest Chris Holmes
Chris Holmes joins us to discuss Edgar Rice Burroughs's "Tarzan at the Earth's Core", contemporary fantasy fiction, the Holmes Basic set, the varying levels of dignity given to the black characters, IP crossovers, surprisingly positive depictions of Germans, "Mahars of Pellucidar", magic dirigibles, the developmental biology of reptiles, informal vs codified ways of encouraging heroism in RPGs, the incredible speed in which pulp characters learn new languages, and the future of Pellucidarian fan...
Apr 05, 2020•1 hr
Episode 66 – Lord Dunsany's "The Charwoman's Shadow” with special guest Shanna Germain
Shanna Germain joins us to discuss Lord Dunsany's "The Charwoman's Shadow", Dunsany's evocative prose, shadow magic, fairy tales, the impetuousness of youth, walking 25 miles in a day, love potions, esoteric prices, the lifelong pursuit of magic, the value of reading something you normally wouldn't, and much more!
Mar 22, 2020•1 hr
Patron Book Club 65 - Andre Norton's "Web of the Witch World"
Thanks to Noah Green and Adam Styers for joining our Patron Book Club to discuss Andre Norton's "Web of the Witch World"!
Mar 15, 2020•1 hr
Episode 65 – Andre Norton's "Web of the Witch World" with special guest Humza Kazmi
Humza Kazmi joins us to discuss Andre Norton's "Web of the Witch World", elven fighters, mind reading, the power of love, reclaiming lost power, the culture of Estcarp, domain game play, internal consistency, talismans, character agency, and much more!
Mar 08, 2020•58 min
Episode 64 - J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Return of the King" with returning guest Daniel J. Bishop
Daniel J. Bishop joins us to discuss J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Return of the King", the fundamental misunderstandings of the Peter Jackson movies, Tolkien's Christianity, Frodo and Sam's gay love, the racist legacy of the Lord of the Rings, bringing our own life experiences to what we read, the value of gaming post-climax, "useless" characters, the appendices, and so much more!
Feb 23, 2020•58 min
Episode 63 - Lin Carter's "The Enchantress of World's End" with special guest Todd Bunn
Hoi and Jeff chat with Todd Bunn about Lin Carter's "The Enchantress of World's End", flipping expectations, one-shot adventures, sphinxes, and introductory RPG systems!
Feb 08, 2020•56 min
Episode 62 - Gardner Fox's "Kothar and the Demon Queen" with special guest Elizabeth Chaipraditkul
Hoi and Jeff chat with Elizabeth Chaipraditkul about Gardner F. Fox's "Kothar and the Demon Queen", demon summoning, cheesy erotica, sword and sorcery traditions, and much more!
Jan 24, 2020•57 min
Episode 61 - A. Merritt's "Dwellers in the Mirage" with special guest Jeannette Ng
Episode 61 - A. Merritt's "Dwellers in the Mirage" with special guest Jeannette Ng
Jan 12, 2020•59 min
Episode 60 - Fritz Leiber's "The Swords of Lankhmar" with special guest Jen Brinkman
Hoi and Jeff chat with Jen Brinkman about Fritz Leiber's "The Swords of Lankhmar" and get a behind-the-scenes look at DCC Lankhmar.
Dec 30, 2019•55 min
Episode 59 - Robert E. Howard's "Conan the Adventurer" with special guest Agatha Cheng
Hoi and Jeff chat with Agatha Cheng about Robert E. Howard's "Conan the Adventurer", orientalism, past life regression, and slavery in RPGs.
Dec 16, 2019•1 hr
An Interview with Michael Moorcock
Hoi and Jeff have the supreme pleasure of interviewing Michael Moorcock, author of the Elric and Hawkmoon stories among many others, and the youngest and only living author from the Appendix N list, who is also celebrating his 80th birthday in Dec 2019!
Dec 02, 2019•1 hr 13 min
Episode 58 - Michael Moorcock's "The Singing Citadel" with special guest Dirk the Dice
Hoi and Jeff chat with Dirk the Dice about the multiverse, Stormbringer RPG, Law vs Chaos, and Michael Moorcock's "The Singing Citadel"!
Nov 18, 2019•1 hr
Episode 57 - Roger Zelazny's "The Guns of Avalon" with special guest Ethan Schoonover
Hoi and Jeff discuss PVP gaming, turning classic troupes on their head, and the act of imagination and its limits in Roger Zelazny's "The Guns of Avalon" with special guest Ethan Schoonover!
Nov 04, 2019•59 min
Episode 56 - Poul Anderson's "The Broken Sword" with special guest Tim Deschene
Hoi and Jeff discuss nature versus nurture, invoking Satan, and skin changing in Poul Anderson's "The Broken Sword" with special guest Tim Deschene!
Oct 21, 2019•58 min
Episode 55 - Philip José Farmer's "A Private Cosmos" with special guest Eric Daum
Hoi and Jeff discuss character morality, action scequences, and female sexuality in Philip José Farmer's "A Private Cosmos" with special guest Eric Daum!
Oct 07, 2019•59 min
Episode 54 - Fletcher Pratt's "The Well of the Unicorn" with special guest Strix Beltrán
Hoi and Jeff discuss liminal spaces, war, peace, and fear of masculine vulnerability in Fletcher Pratt's "The Well of the Unicorn" with special guest Strix Beltrán!
Sep 23, 2019•59 min
Episode 53 - H.P. Lovecraft's "The Case of Charles Dexter Ward" with special guest David Baity
Hoi and Jeff discuss multiple timelines, necromantic reincarnation, and sanity checks in H.P. Lovecraft's "The Case of Charles Dexter Ward" with special guest David Baity
Sep 09, 2019•59 min
Episode 52 - Edgar Rice Burroughs's "Tanar of Pellucidar" with special guest Noah Green
Hoi and Jeff discuss race coding, the laws of gravity, and monogamy in Edgar Rice Burroughs's "Tanar of Pellucidar" with special guest Noah Green.
Aug 26, 2019•59 min
Episode 51.5 - J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Two Towers" with returning guest Daniel Bishop
Yes, for the Two Towers, we're doing Two Episodes! For Round 2, Hoi and Jeff discuss character fame, the halfling class, and foreshadowing in J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Two Towers" with returning guest Daniel J. Bishop.
Aug 12, 2019•1 hr
Episode 51 - J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Two Towers" with special guest Anna B. Meyer
Hoi and Jeff discuss demagogues, war, elves, dwarves, and wizards in J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Two Towers" with special guest Anna B. Meyer.
Jul 29, 2019•1 hr
Episode 50 - Extra Credit - Clark Ashton Smith's "Hyperborea" with special guest Jeffrey Talanian
Hoi and Jeff discuss living dungeons, world building, and using evocative setting descriptions at the table in Clark Ashton Smith's "Hyperborea" with special guest Jeffrey Talanian.
Jul 15, 2019•59 min
Episode 49 - Margaret St. Clair's "Sign of the Labrys" with special guest Katie Shrieves
Hoi and Jeff discuss fungus, hallunications, dream logic, dungeons levels, and hippie culture in Margaret St. Clair's "Sign of the Labrys" with special guest Katie Shrieves.
Jul 01, 2019•1 hr
Episode 48 - August Derleth's "The Lurker at the Threshold" with special guest Jon Hook
Hoi and Jeff discuss Elder Signs, Lovecraftian gaming, and summoning spells in August Derleth's "The Lurker at the Threshold" with special guest Jon Hook.
Jun 17, 2019•58 min
Episode 47 - Fredric Brown's "Martians, Go Home" with special guest Sean Kelley
Hoi and Jeff discuss impossible-to-kill enemies, player agency, and unsolvable puzzles in Fredric Brown's "Martians, Go Home" with special guest Sean Kelley.
Jun 03, 2019•1 hr
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