The bells of Memoriam College ring out from high in the tower. At the top of the hour, The Diligent Peal marks the start and end of classes, ushering students from room to room. At half past, The Indolent Peal chimes, waking students who have slept in, letting them know exactly how long they have to get to class. The bells don’t ring cleanly; the first note is pitched differently to the third, for example. The fifth sounds as thought it belongs to an entirely different tower. There is a rumour t...
Aug 25, 2016•1 hr 37 min
Memoriam College only wears flowers for one week a year. On Sunday morning of that week, they send a man called Alexander to fetch them from the florists on Today-And-Tomorrow Street. He carries them back to the building and, balanced on a ladder, arms full of blooms, fixes the arrangements above the balconies. As he works, butchers and chefs down in the kitchens peer at yellowed recipe cards, trying to remember just how they made these dishes last year. In the empty refectory, Prelate Silas pra...
Aug 19, 2016•1 hr 45 min
For the baker, news of a brewing turf war is a good sign. Hungry fighters are mouths to feed, and so they tend to their ovens and wipe flour from their brows. For the smiths and armorers too, business goes up as neighbors and governesses double up on weapons kept behind doors and under desks, just in case, just in case. Fewer people play on the streets, but the music in pubs and cafes is louder than ever—a good fight deserves a little accompaniment. Flag-makers and seamstresses see a brief uptur...
Aug 12, 2016•1 hr 30 min
To look at a city from above changes it irrecoverably, and so it was for the passengers on Train Day. And say what you like, but the windows in the carriages seemed each to show a different city, a different nest of streets. Those in the engine room saw the smoke from the factories and furnaces, and Marielda hissed and smouldered. Those in the rear carriages looked down upon Canopy Row and wondered whether Chrysanthemum Parish had always been so close. Passengers in the dining carriage looked do...
Aug 06, 2016•2 hr 5 min
Marielda is a city filled with scoundrels. Bakers lean on the scales as they count loaves of bread. Men and women in pubs shoot loaded dice. Art dealers swear, solemnly swear, that this is a genuine Sabbatini, just look at the brushstrokes. No, scoundrels in Marielda are ten-a-penny. But sometimes, the sun smiles, and its light shines upon those who have something… particular about them. Look, there they are now. A strongman, binding up his fists in front of a mirror. A dancing master, marking t...
Jul 29, 2016•2 hr 37 min
For a while, everything was going just fine in Marielda. Sure, there was some dissent among the citizens—but what city is free of that? In general, people were coming together, rebuilding, taking care of each other. Canopy Row wasn't thriving, but it was definitely surviving. Knowledge was spreading throughout the city. Even them Cobbins had begun to find their place. And then, sometime in the middle of the year, everything seemed to turn. First, the marble-faced pala-din came marching from the ...
Jul 21, 2016•1 hr 55 min
In the time of fraught paladins and wavering wizards, of contemptible fighters and indignant druids, of wide eyed rangers… and of bards, the people of the continent of Hieron recover and rebuild in the aftermath of a cataclysm. But, after all, for every inside there is an outside—no disaster was the first of its kind, except, of course, for… well... And so, in the years prior to the event that would come to be called the Erasure, in a time of civil conflict, the people of Hieron faced calamity, ...
Jul 14, 2016•2 hr 6 min
With COUNTER/Weight firmly wrapped up, we take some time to answer fan questions, discuss the highs and lows of the season, and talk a little bit about what’s coming next for Friends at the Table! For those following along at home, make sure to check out the following things during the relevant segment of the show: This map of Mode City, September; this tweet which explains the actual, true origins of Divines and Riggers; this picture of a robot friend from Titanfall 2. This week on COUNTER/Weig...
Jun 26, 2016•2 hr 46 min
Hey everyone, we are taking a week off here at Friends at the Table but we do have an announcement to make. We're going to be doing a post-mortem for COUNTER/Weight that will be streamed live at twitch.tv/friendsatthetable on Tuesday, June 21st at 7 PM EST! We're really looking forward to looking back on the show and answering some of your questions so please send those questions in to friendsatthetable[@]gmail.com or via DM to our Twitter, @Friends_Table . We will be recording the discussion an...
Jun 16, 2016•8 min
15,000 years or so before the September Incident, it went something like this: Somehow, they'd survived. They'd peeled across the galaxy itself, launched by the combined force of a half dozen stellar combusters. Shielded by Rigor's endless mass, they'd subsisted on machine-assembled proteins and nutrients, suffering in the lonely dark at high speeds. They weren't quite candidates, but they were the closest thing Rigor had. So it stung, in so far as Rigor can be stung, when they slipped from its ...
Jun 10, 2016•2 hr 35 min
Fifteen years ago, soon after the the Golden War ended, Grace issued her ex cathedra prognosis: With Apostolos defeated (and ‘integration’ well in process) and peace firmly in place with the Orion Conglomerate, the Diaspora had finally brought into being the end of history as such. Certainly, there was still difference in how OriCon and the Diaspora operated, but the writing was on the wall: The Diaspora’s method of mechanized democracy was the final, universal form of governance that all true c...
Jun 02, 2016•2 hr 35 min
It has been four and a half years since the Chime confronted Rigor on the planet of September, an event that has been dismissed as insignificant, yet simultaneously has served as a key catalyst for immense change in the Golden Branch star sector. Living symbols of unity become increasingly erratic and violent. Empowered operatives, both public and hidden, take action against the most corrupt forces in the sector. Noble leaders threaten their own democracies through charm alone. And in the face o...
May 27, 2016•3 hr 27 min
“It is with great joy and humility that we make the debut of this machine today. For so long, so many have struggled here on the frontier. Food is scarce, and time is even more precious. A hard day of labor is a thing to be proud of, but it does not yet stretch far enough. Soon, though, we will thrive, prosper, and if we work with dedication and vigor, we may even profit.” -Chief Engineer Irene Klipsch-Dove, 100 years before the activation of the first Stellar Combustor This week on COUNTER/Weig...
May 20, 2016•1 hr 33 min
As the only clock that really matters ticks further and further down, The Chime find themselves facing one sealed door after another. But do the doors protect something precious or keep something dangerous locked safely away? AuDy makes one final attempt at convincing Maryland that the planet isn't a safe place. Mako finds too-brief refuge in the arms of another. Aria Joie’s investigation into Maritime Lapel leads her to a dark truth about someone close to her. And Cassander Timaeus Beranice wal...
May 12, 2016•1 hr 2 min
As ships pull into high orbit over September and an uncanny groan bleats from below it, The Chime pair off and move to complete their mission. Cassander and AuDy find themselves wondering if there's more to Dr. September's cabin than meets the eye. Meanwhile, Aria Joie and Mako Trig scrub through the past for an answer to the Institute's biggest mysteries. This week on COUNTER/Weight: Found Footage Do you ever wish you could rewind time? Hosted by Austin Walker ( @austin_walker ) Featuring Keith...
May 06, 2016•1 hr 7 min
20,000 years before The Chime met on Counterweight, long before the Golden War against Apostolos, the Automated Diaspora devised a plan to stop Rigor once and for all, and at great cost... This week on COUNTER/Weight: Visions from Windows, Or: The Last Time the Bomb Dropped Alright, alright. Now back to work! Hosted by Austin Walker ( @austin_walker ) Produced by Ali Acampora Cover Art by Craig Sheldon ( @shoddyrobot) Music by Jack de Quidt A transcription is available for this episode here. A f...
Apr 28, 2016•23 min
Throughout the Golden Branch Star Sector, leaders leap into action as news of a new, galactic threat spreads. Minerva's Steiger sisters move their invisible fleet into position. The Rapid Evening digs in deeper to their new outpost in the sector. Rigor stirs from it's slumber. And on Counterweight, Ibex knocks on a door. This week on COUNTER/Weight: Everything is Temporary Easy come, easy go Featuring Sylvi Clare ( @captaintrash ) and Andrew Lee Swan ( @andrewleeswan ) Produced by Ali Acampora C...
Apr 22, 2016•1 hr 51 min
Though the rain seems to clear over the September Institute, The Chime move with well-learned caution. Mako Trig walks familiar steps, only to find something very askew. AuDy and Maryland spar, first over the notion of leaving the planet, and then about more... esoteric things. And Aria and Cass find themselves facing the cost of brief, innocent indecision. This week on COUNTER/Weight: A Knock at the Door Light showers continuing throughout the day! Hosted by Austin Walker ( @austin_walker ) Fea...
Apr 15, 2016•58 min
Maryland September has been located and The Chime are safe but only for the moment. The storm rages outside and with it, threat hangs heavy in the air. In a space that is both familiar and unfamiliar, where does the real danger lie? A simple phone call, a little impatience, a forgotten responsibility, and a distant memory... what could be worse than a little rain? This week on COUNTER/Weight: Reaching Out What lies beyond the bounds? Hosted by Austin Walker ( @austin_walker ) Featuring Keith J C...
Apr 08, 2016•57 min
After a near death encounter with a mysterious shooter, The Chime finally makes its way onto the seaside campus of the September Institute. Mako Trig leads the team's investigation, guiding them down hallways real and virtual, old and new. Meanwhile, Cass manages his concerns (and his temper), Aria deals with a surprise reunion, and on an mechanistic instinct, AuDy plants a seed more important than they know. This week on COUNTER/Weight: A Fractal Garden and an Intercepted Message When you speak...
Apr 01, 2016•1 hr 26 min
Now that they've secured their entrance into The September Institute, The Chime has one last thing to do before investigating the campus: making sure their two newest bells are safe. The storm stays steady as night falls on September, is searching for Orth and Jacqui really worth the risk...? Of course it is! Cassander relies on his tech, AuDy makes themselves a target, Mako is reminded of a very bad day and Aria tries her best to help. This time on COUNTER/Weight: Through The Crosshairs Remembe...
Mar 24, 2016•1 hr 8 min
As The Chime makes their way towards The September Institute, they find that they'll need more than style and wit to get past the campus gates. In the years that have passed since Mako's time as a student, who remains for him to count on and at what will they ask in return? As the storm swells over September, time becomes more and more precious... This time on COUNTER/Weight: Expertize with a Z Keep it wavy, baby Hosted by Austin Walker ( @austin_walker ) Featuring Keith J Carberry ( @KeithJCarb...
Mar 17, 2016•1 hr 1 min
With the larger threat of Rigor rapidly approaching, The Chime have agreed to a truce with Ibex and his Righteous Vanguard. In exchange for this peace, they’ve taken on the most dangerous job they’ve ever had: Descend to September, locate the school’s missing founder, and figure out how to wound something they can barely comprehend. This week on COUNTER/Weight: Another Facility Among Trees Better get started… Hosted by Austin Walker ( @austin_walker ) Featuring Keith J Carberry ( @KeithJCarberry...
Mar 10, 2016•58 min
A Lion and a Man chanced to travel in company through the forest. They soon began to quarrel, for each of them boasted that he and his kind were far superior to the other both in strength and mind. Now they reached a clearing in the forest and there stood a statue. It was a representation of Heracles in the act of tearing the jaws of the Nemean Lion. "See," said the man, "that's how strong we are! The King of Beasts is like wax in our hands!" "Ho!" laughed the Lion, "a Man made that statue." --T...
Mar 04, 2016•1 hr 38 min
While Kingdom Come creeps through the dark, the Golden Branch explodes into violence and betrayal. In the peripheries of the sector, the Golden Branch Demarchy, the Hands of Grace, and the Rapid Evening seek to secure the power necessary to survive what's to come. On Counterweight, the Golden Branch's beating heart, Minerva Strategic attempts to undermine its rival, while Ibex's Righteous Vanguard makes its presence known. And in the shadow of September, an unseen threat sails on a sinister vect...
Feb 25, 2016•1 hr 32 min
As Ibex’s Righteous Vanguard lands on Counterweight, the Kingdom Come drifts away in a slow arc towards September. The trip is long and cold and quiet, and with a surplus of free time on their hands, The Chime turns towards introspection. Aria Joie is led into a new musical endeavor, Mako Trig unearths new truths about the history September Institute, and Cass considers both of his families. And in the cockpit, Automated Dynamics Unit 227 scours their databases, looking for an answer to the ques...
Feb 19, 2016•3 hr 11 min
The Divine Detachment circles the planet at a blistering velocity, its corresponding satellites watching over it. On board The Kingdom Come, The Chime finds itself in argument, and Detachment silently approaches. Aria faces off against the laws of gravity, Cass struggles to piece a plan together, Mako thinks it'd be a good idea if you call him Larry now, and parts of AuDy are lost and found. This time on COUNTER/Weight: Do You Have Room For Me? We are older than we know. Hosted by Austin Walker ...
Feb 11, 2016•1 hr 20 min
The Kingdom Come has left the surface of Counterweight, but it hasn't quite made it out of orbit. Between a furious unit out for revenge, and a stuffy military bureaucrat insistent in doing things by the book, the Chime will need to get creative to get away. Cass tries to justify his ownership of Apostolosian materiel, Mako goes on a covert operation with his new best friend, and Aria and AuDy try to keep everything from spinning out of control. This time on COUNTER/Weight: You Can Call Me Capta...
Feb 04, 2016•1 hr 29 min
With the newly formed Righteous Vanguard closing in on them, the Chime makes final preparations for escaping Counterweight. AuDy winds up working as a pawn in a much larger game while Cassander examines the state of the board. Elsewhere, Mako faces an uncannily familiar opponent and Aria Joie finds herself in an unexpected (but not unwelcome) rematch. This week on COUNTER/Weight: It's Still Dark Out Even the heart can be put in checkmate. Hosted by Austin Walker ( @austin_walker ) Featuring Keit...
Jan 28, 2016•1 hr 13 min
As the members of The Chime awake from the memory farm, they return to a world that has changed without them. Corporations may have restructured, empires may have fallen but the threat of Ibex remains and so there is no time to react, only to prepare. Cassander receives their inheritance, Aria turns a rival into a follower, AuDy trades a tray for a pilot's seat and Mako catches glimpses of himself everywhere. This week on COUNTER/Weight: An Astonishly Illegal Ship! The ducks are getting inline.....
Jan 21, 2016•1 hr 8 min
