A guy in a hat was going to tell us what was in the Gaming Hut this week, but then one of your PCs just shot him with a crossbow. That leaves us to figure out what to do when the players kill off their information sources. In the Book Hut , Patreon backer Andy Young asks us to name the essential reference books for any KARTAS listener’s library. Backer Frank Turfler Jr. uses Ask Ken and Robin to seek the secrets of the prodigious Hitean memory. Can we all learn his tricks, or would that require ...
Jun 09, 2017
We knew you were going to join us in the Gaming Hut , where we answer Patreon backer Bret Kramer’s question on running omniscient GMCs as allies or enemies of the player characters. In the Food Hut we look at cocktails, subject of a recently concluded quest by Robin. The Tradecraft Hut goes Gallic with the 101 on French intelligence services. Finally the Consulting Occultist looks at the arcane geography of 1930s Los Angeles times as manipulated by L.A. Times publisher Harry Chandler and reveale...
Jun 02, 2017
We know you want to hear about it, so Among Our Many Hats digs into the announcement that a certain Ken Hite will serve as lead designer for the new edition of Vampire: the Masquerade . But that’s not all the hats! Then Robin looks at ways to use the Story Beats web app , which allows you to easily create narrative maps as seen in Hamlet’s Hit Points and his upcoming Beating the Story . In an Ace Double of a segment, the Tradecraft Hut provides a backgrounder on the Trump intel spill. Then we sa...
May 26, 2017
The Gaming Hut has a thatched roof this time out as we riff a cast of pseudo-medieval villagers for your next F20. In The Business of Gaming we puzzle the mystery of the generic supplement. In the Food Hut we look at foodstuffs as treasure. Finally we pry open the bars of the Eliptony Hut for the story of Lulu Hurst, the Wonder of Georgia, who in the 1880s claimed that she gained superhuman strength through contact with the Force. Want to pose a question to the show? Get your priority question a...
May 19, 2017
In the Gaming Hut we look at premise rejection from a player perspective. How do you catch yourself doing it, and how do you find your way through it? We crawl over to the Cinema Hut to discuss the motifs of the war movie and how they’re adjusting to contemporary conflicts. In Ken and/or Robin Talk to Someone Else , Ken speaks with Keisha Howard of Sugargamers. Then we’re in for a rocky Ken’s Time Machine as Patreon backer Allen Wilkins asks our hero to fess up about his involvement in collapsin...
May 12, 2017
Our second consecutive all-request episode kicks off in the Gaming Hut , as Ray Slakinksi asks for tips on running Night’s Black Agents at conventions. In the History Hut Andy Young wants to know about the Mythos truth behind the death of legendary Canadian painter Tom Thomson. Rick Neal uses the kind offices of Ask Ken and Robin to find out about geek-friendly destinations in Toronto and Chicago. Then get ready to grab your picket signs as our Tell Me More segment enlists the Consulting Occulti...
May 05, 2017
Another all-request episode kicks off in the Gaming Hut , as Stewart Robertson asks how to make a BSM (Big Science McGuffin) integral to a game series. The History Hut , takes on a yurt-like configuration as Morgan Ellis demands the scoop on the Mad Baron Roman von Ungern-Sternberg. Joshua Hillerup convenes an installment of Ask Ken and Robin to wonder how “Gotham” might inspire a series in which a transformational hero becomes an iconic hero. Which leaves Kevin J. Maroney waiting patiently in t...
Apr 28, 2017
The Gaming Hut gets foundational as we discuss the meaning and implications of Gygaxian naturalism. Patreon backer Derrick McMullin meets us in the History Hut to ask for the hidden truth behind the Utah War. In Ask Ken and Robin , backer Steve K invites us to opine on what might have been lost in a move from gamification to story. Finally we check in on the Consulting Occultist as backer Wayne Rossi demands the occult truth behind the Elvis-Nixon meeting. Support the KARTAS Patreon ! Snag Ken a...
Apr 21, 2017
Get outside your own perspective and inside the Gaming Hut as Ken and Robin envision a gun that triggers out of body experiences. With espionage everywhere in the news, it’s time for that Tradecraft Hut primer on contemporary Russian intelligence. In How to Write Good we look enthusiastically at reluctant heroes. Then thanks to a well-filled requisition form from Dylan Hoover, Ken’s Time Machine heads back to 415 to rescue Hypatia of Alexandria. Support the KARTAS Patreon ! Snag Ken and Robin me...
Apr 14, 2017
Get ready to argue logistics as the Gaming Hut considers player planning. When is it prelude to play, and when is it play? The Crime Blotter opens one of the most famous cold cases of all: the Black Dahlia murder. Ask Ken and Robin features a query from Patreon backer Padriag Griffin about the plausibility of hidden societies of vampires or wizards in a world of pervasive surveillance. Finally the Eliptony Hut catches up on some recent news as we ask why a member of the Moorish sovereign citizen...
Apr 07, 2017
In the Gaming Hut Patreon backer Joan Guardiet asks us to make a game set in a warrior woman society work for a party of male PCs. Speaking of requests, in Ask Ken and Robin backer Kalin Kadiev seeks tips on researching Bulgarian occultism. Tell Me More teams up with the Cartography Hut for a tour of cursed places. And in a switcheroo, Robin dons the smoking jacket of the Consulting Occultist as we look at the cultists and gurus of 1930s L.A., as seen in Cthulhu Confidential . Support the KARTAS...
Mar 31, 2017
We creep into the Gaming Hut at the command of Patreon backer Alexander Permann, who assigns us the mission of envisioning a Night’s Black Agents spinoff featuring the Kingdom of Asturias. In a joint session of the Horror Hut and our Tell Me More feature, we look at that crowdsourced urban legend, Slenderman. Robin vents in the Narrative Hut about one of his least favorite terms: plot immunity. Then Ken’s Time Machine takes to the chrono-skies as Patreon backer Bruce Miller (no relation) asks ab...
Mar 24, 2017
The Gaming Hut goes abstract as we discuss metagaming. At the behest of Patreon backer Vana Stillwater, the Food Hut hosts a look at culinary crimes and scams. Then we paw through the contents of Ken’s Bookshelf , as acquired during his annual raid on the Bay Area. Support the KARTAS Patreon ! Snag Ken and Robin merchandise at TeePublic . Wish to introduce innocent children to the horror of the Mythos, while remaining on budget? Atlas Games is here to affordably twist young minds with a buy two,...
Mar 17, 2017
The Gaming Hut may seem friendly and bucolic, but this time it’s full of danger, as we riff a cast of conspiratorial small town NPCs. Take your seat and suppress your coughing as the Culture Hut gets classical. Patreon backer Noel Warford asks us for the scoop on such theosophically influenced composers as Henry Cowell, Dane Rudhyar and Leo Ornstein. In Ask Ken and Robin , Patreon backer Ronan Kennedy seeks advice on running an NPC as a member of the party. Then we enter the Eliptony Hut , which...
Mar 10, 2017
The Hoary Hosts of Patreon backer Elias Helfer command the opening of the Gaming Hut ! Therein we shall describe ways to portray weird and magnficent landscapes like those seen in the Doctor Strange movie in roleplaying sessions! Backer Alex Johnston penetrates the vaunted infosec of the Tradecraft Hut to demand our dossier on Nikolai Vavilov and the Nazi bio-pirates. You’d think this would be the last segment, but nonetheless How To Write Good looks at crafting climactic sequences. Then backer ...
Mar 03, 2017
Know us by our funny voices and exaggerated mannerisms as we meet in the Gaming Hut to discuss what makes a Game Master character easy to play. Grab a mojito and light a fine cigar as Ken supplies a Travel Advisory on his recent jaunt to Cuba. It’s Oscar time, and you know what that means. Months after the rest of the critical world, we take our seats in the Cinema Hut to reveal our Top Ten Movie lists for 2016. Support the KARTAS Patreon ! Snag Ken and Robin merchandise at TeePublic . Wish to i...
Feb 24, 2017
The Gaming Hut stands at the service of Patreon backer Vince Arebalo’s son Dax, who asks for tips on getting comfortable around unfamiliar fellow players. The CIA has finally put its trove of declassified historical documents in a readily accessible online database. In the Tradecraft Hut we find out what Ken searched for first. Backer Jeremiah Genest commands the opening of the Narrative Hut to talk about political horror, and what distinguishes itself from its better known cousin, the political...
Feb 17, 2017
In the Gaming Hut we ask ourselves how far rules and GM influence should go to prevent the players from idiot plotting their own characters. Speaking of gaming the system, esteemed Patreon backer Jeremy Forbing acts as a stalking horse for a certain shadowy figure to convene the Politics Hut . With a mysterious knowledge of Ken’s thought processes, Jeremy asks for his theory on how Trump will destroy the Republican party. On the Crime Blotter we find a report about Los Angeles organized crime in...
Feb 10, 2017
Another all-request episode starts in the Gaming Hut , where Patreon backer Gerald Sear wants us to consider the Mythos implications of the Disney corporation. Then assemble your miniature greenhouses and sail over to the History Hut , where we make up interesting facts about botanist and tea smuggler Robert Fortune at the behest of backer Steve Sick. Backer Theron Bretz revs up the projector in the Cinema Hut , as we tackle Spy Movies 101. Then the Consulting Occultist unfurls some alchemical w...
Feb 03, 2017
A surrealist sandbox and a structured mystery make a date in the Gaming Hut , as Josh Rose asks how to run Dreamhounds of Paris as a GUMSHOE One-2-One setting. Given that the world has turned into a spy novel, and not a particularly believable one at that, maybe it’s time to duck into the Tradecraft Hut for an update on espionage in the news. Ask Ken and Robin features a demand for parity from Drew Clowery, who wants a “how Robin runs games” segment to go with its Ken equivalent from Episode 220...
Jan 27, 2017
Patreon backer Zachary Joyner poses some Gaming Hut questions about improvising a GUMSHOE game. How quickly do you give out clues? How do you maintain pace without leading the players? Though our latest trip to London has faded into the mist of nostalgia, we would be remiss not to paw through the books Ken raided while there, in another edition of Ken’s Bookshelf . Still on a bibliophilic note, Ask Ken and Robin fulfills the desires of backer Christopher Kalley for the secret scoop on our person...
Jan 20, 2017
Gather in the Gaming Hut as we ask ourselves when one should take historical license when running or designing a game set in the real past. Spoiler: we also answer ourselves. In the Book Hut , Patreon backers Scott Haring and Kalin team up to demand a rundown on the works of Tim Powers. Sorting one’s research is an important part of How to Write Good , and thanks to a question from backer Trung Bui we discuss our methods for whipping it into shape. Finally, at the behest of backer Vana Stillwate...
Jan 13, 2017
The contents of this podcast become too horrible to correlate as we slip into the Gaming Hut to answer a question from Patreon backer Laurel Halbany about handling secret mythos knowledge in an age of ever-present information. In Ask Ken and Robin , backer Jeff Kahrs ask us to expound on the contradictions of opting out of challenging or uncomfortable subject matter at the gaming table. Then Ken and/or Robin Talk to Someone Else , in the ever so irrepressible form of Burning Wheel and Torchbeare...
Jan 06, 2017
Finally, after ceding all recent chapeaus to Ken, Robin seizes control of Among My Many Hats to talk about Cthulhu Confidential and the design of the GUMSHOE One-2-One system. Because it’s finally up for pre-order over at the Pelgrane store. While we’re mulling Cthulhu Confidential , Ken and/or Robin Talks To Someone Else has a word with Chris Spivey, creator of that book’s African American science investigator Langston Wright. And what fine timing, as Chris’ exciting new GUMSHOE project Harlem ...
Dec 23, 2016
If it’s December, Ken and Robin must be coming to you live from Dragonmeet, the little London convention that isn’t so little any more. Join us as Ken emerges triumphant from a draw of the nerdtrope deck that definitely, definitely happened exactly just as Robin describes it. Plus red herrings, steak, and more stupid gnomes. Also in a Dragonmeet tradition, the f-bomb gets dropped–and the dropper might surprise you! Support the KARTAS Patreon ! Snag Ken and Robin merchandise at TeePublic . Get tr...
Dec 16, 2016
In the Gaming Hut , urged on by Patreon backer Fred Kiesche, Ken takes us under the hood of his Rex of the Old 97 campaign. What does he do behind that Peter Frampton GM screen, and how does he do it? But stranger requests await us still! Patreon backer Jeromy French convenes a meeting in the Culture Hut , where Robin talks about the Toronto music scene. Listen to his Toronto playlist on Spotify . Next we delve into everyone’s new favorite four syllable word, as the History Hut serves up some ba...
Dec 09, 2016
Dirk the Dice rolls into the Gaming Hut to ask us how to make sword and sorcery monster encounters exciting. Don’t believe a word you hear in the Conspiracy Corner , as we look at the history and evolution of propaganda. Expand your consciousness in the Cinema Hut , where backers Andrew Collins and Adam Grotjohn invite us to rap about visionary filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky. Keep a careful watch as the Consulting Occultist whispers of Les Veilleurs, an Parisian occult group founded in the final...
Dec 02, 2016
Patreon backer Michael Kotschi pops a moony question over the Ask Ken and Robin transom, prompting us to look at 70s NASA from a Moon Dust Men perspective. The Politics Hut still has a hangover, but I guess we still have to address that thing that happened. In Ken and/or Robin Talk To Someone Else , Ken talks to blogger, podcaster, freshly minted game designer and snailologist Darcy Ross. Is the Eliptony Hut an odd place to talk about the Sybil case? The answer might surprise you! Support the KA...
Nov 25, 2016
Patreon backer Ethan Cordray rises from the Pacific waves of Ask Ken and Robin to pose a stumper: how to make Cthulhu scary again. Ken is back from an extended sequester in the Cinema Hut to talk about his favorites from the Chicago International Film Festival. Once more we learn How to Write Good , this time with a look at authorial commentary. Our hero saves America again as a Ken’s Time Machine after-action report details Timothy Pickering’s attempted New England secession of 1804, posed by P...
Nov 18, 2016
This week the Gaming Hut holds a special surprise: it’s not just a segment, but a free game in and of itself, as Robin teaches you how to run Death Spiral . In Ask Ken and Robin , Reiner Dobbelman asks us about mythic-level play. Then we again hear the protesting groans of Ken’s Bookshelf as we vicariously paw through his haul from his latest raid on Powell’s Books in Portland. Support the KARTAS Patreon ! Get trapped in Lovecraft’s story “The Call of Cthulhu” in Atlas Games’ addictive new card ...
Nov 11, 2016
