Normally a post-Gen Con debrief takes up an entire episode. But since only one of us was there, Ken gives Robin the lowdown in a double-header Travel Advisory segment. In the Gaming Hut , beloved Patreon backer Mikey Hamm wants to emulate genres in which death is threatened but never actually happens. We conclude with Ken’s Time Machine , as our hero considers which figure of the Old West he would most like to save from untimely death, and what changes to the timestream his intervention would wr...
Aug 19, 2022•48 min
In the Gaming Hut we demonstrate how to dovetail player-created character hooks into your scenario, as Ken proposes a Freaking Weird Moment for his This is Normal Now character and Robin weaves it into a trio of mystery premises. The Culture Hut uncovers a Dreamhound of Chicago, 30s surrealist painter Gertrude Abercrombie. Then we duck into the Food Hut to make a list of defunct food products we might just use Ken’s Time Machine to stock up on. Our final stop takes us to the Eliptony Hut , as we...
Aug 12, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 509
On August 2, 2012, the first installment of Ken and Robin Talks About Stuff debuted to a waiting gaming world. For our recent 500th episode celebration, we held the traditional Lightning Round. For this extra special anniversary, we take a look back at the show, its topics and its origins with an A to Z of KARTAS. Want to pose a question to the show? Get your priority question asking access with your support for the KARTAS Patreon ! Our Patreon-backed Letterboxd list of all films mentioned on th...
Aug 05, 2022•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 508
In the Gaming Hut , Beloved Patreon backer Eric Jeppesen, or a clever facsimile thereof, kicks off an all-request episode, as he wonders how to run GUMSHOE One-2-One with a doppelganger protagonist. Stealthy backer Erik R gains access to the Tradecraft Hut to ask how to set Night’s Black Agents in Asia. Dimensionally resonant backer Nikolaj ducks into the Narrative Hut to find out what the sudden multiplicity of multiverses in movies and TV tells us about the present zeitgeist. And finally formi...
Jul 29, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 507
The Gaming Hut floats further from land than it ever has as beloved Patreon backer Alden Strock seeks the tabletop uses of Point Nemo, the planet’s literal middle of nowhere. In Ken and/or Robin Talk to Someone Else , Ken talks to author Ben Riggs about his history of TSR, Slaying the Dragon , now orderable from MacMillan . The Food Hut hops on a train to check out the oldest chain restaurant in America, along with the rest of the food and hospitality empire that was the Fred Harvey Company. Fin...
Jul 22, 2022•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 506
The next time you’re about to design a situation where the players can’t do what they want to do, you’ll recall this week’s Gaming Hut segment and think, “How do I let them do that without wrecking everything?” The Crime Blotter investigates a string of rhino horn thefts attributed to the Dead Zoo Gang. In Ripped from the Headlines , beloved Patreon backer Craig Maloney seeks the arcane secrets of Tik Tok tics. In a previous installment of Ken’s Time Machine , while fixing the Greek War of Indep...
Jul 15, 2022•57 min•Ep. 505
In the Gaming Hut we ask when the GM should apply a rules set’s cost system for actions, and when it is instead best to make it a freebie. The Command Hut provides a dossier on the Russian mercenary company called the Wagner Group. In the Horror Hut , beloved backers Derek Upham and Stuart Thomas (or lifelike computer simulations thereof) point us to the latest hit tulpa, a monstrous creation of AI image software called Crungus. Finally, estimable backer Robert Dean seeks the aid of Ken’s Time M...
Jul 08, 2022•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 504
Ken kicks us off with a Travel Advisory on his journey to Poland’s Pyrkon, with ancillary adventures in Poznan. Then the Gaming Hut subtly ratchets up the tension as we ask how long a horror scenario can go without anything overtly terrifying or supernatural happening. But a worse fright awaits in The Business of Gaming , where we look at the global paper shortage and its impact on adventure gaming. Then a slightly less bad fright creeps our way as, at the behest of beloved backer Scott Wachter,...
Jul 01, 2022•1 hr•Ep. 503
Surprisingly often, mysteries in other genres show clues landing in the detective’s lap. The Gaming Hut asks how to do this at the roleplaying table without leaving players feeling that they’re being led through the scenario. In our first combo segment of the episode, we find the Crime Blotter in the Architecture Hut , as beloved Patreon backer Joshua Randall asks how the torso murders connect to the developers of his Cleveland neighborhood, Shaker Heights. Ripped From the Headlines mines the sc...
Jun 24, 2022•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 502
The Gaming Hut mines a new source of mysterious, danger-laden plot hooks: Reddit’s WhatIsThis forum. The Horror Hut takes the unusual step of profiling a real person, as beloved backer Louis Sylvester asks for the lowdown on the explorer, linguist and polemicist Arminius Vambery, described by Bram Stoker in Dracula as a knowledgeable vampire hunter. In the Narrative Hut we find another way to define fictional characters, by the various outcomes we want for them. Finally at the behest of estimabl...
Jun 17, 2022•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 501
We don’t believe it, you don’t believe it, but it’s true all the same. Ken and Robin Talk About Stuff has reached that milestone of milestones, Episode 500. Which means, thanks to the perspicacious queries of our beloved Patreon backers, it is once again time for… LIGHTNING ROUND!!! Want to pose a question to the show? Get your priority question asking access with your support for the KARTAS Patreon ! Our Patreon-backed Letterboxd list of all films mentioned on the show is now up and running . A...
Jun 10, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 500
In the Gaming Hut , beloved Patreon backer Bill Durfy asks us to provide advice for budding professional GMs. The Tradecraft Hut looks at John Stonehouse, a British MP who spied for the Czechs and wound up ineptly faking his own death. In Ask Ken and Robin stylish backer Joe Webb asks Robin if his head exploded when the Met Gala paid homage to the era of the King in Yellow. Finally in the Eliptony Hut mysterious markings in the Sahara have discerning backer Michael Gemar wondering what lies behi...
Jun 03, 2022•59 min•Ep. 499
Beholders swoop around the futuristic spires of the Gaming Hut as beloved Patreon backer Ian Carlsen seeks tips on time travel in F20 games. Estimable backer Jason Thompson beckons us into the Culture Hut to ask if self-taught Chicago artist Joseph E. Yoakum might have been peering into the Dreamlands. Finally our hero returns from Austin laden with queso and books, and tells us about the later in another epic installment of Ken’s Bookshelf . Want to pose a question to the show? Get your priorit...
May 27, 2022•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 498
Beloved Patreon backer Ryan McClelland kicks of an all-request episode in the Gaming Hut , seeking advice on how to convincing players to treat former adversaries as questionable allies. In the History Hut , estimable backer Derek Hiemforth has discovered that two doomed airships, the R101 and the Hindenburg, used the exact same Duralumin, and naturally asks us who cursed it. Then it’s time for Ripped from the Headlines , as discerning backer Matthew Preston wants to know who’s in the lead-lined...
May 20, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 497
Beloved Patreon backer Urchin Prince beckons us to the shiniest throne of the Gaming Hut to ask about boons the PCs’ patrons might give them. The Architecture Hut faces cost overruns for its fiendish traps as estimable backer Tim Vert asks which famous architects we’d commission were we to build dungeons. An odd shrimp smell lures us to the forest, and the Monster Hut , to discuss the shapeshifting tunda of Colombia and Ecuador. Then we take a patented Ken’s Time Machine look at the Popish plot ...
May 13, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 496
The Gaming Hut investigates the difference between problems that rules sets should set out to solve and mere conceptual issues that never come up in play. The History Hut gets hairy as we reveal the secrets of the Chester Cat Hoax. Umbrage is entertained in the Narrative Hut as beloved Patreon backer Benjamin Rawls seeks our support on the misuse of the term “allegory.” And much mystery is found within three points as we enter the Eliptony Hut , at the urging of estimable backer Ed (Speaker in D...
May 06, 2022•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 495
In an episode dedicated to recreating for posterity the good half of an old installment that has since gone missing, the Gaming Hut looks at campaigns where most of the PCs are sidekicks to a superior hero. In the Tradecraft Hut we examine the career of former Putin aide Vladislav Surkov, the so-called Gray Cardinal behind Russia’s foray into postmodern authoritarianism, now under house arrest for Ukraine-related failures. The Mythology Hut rises from the waves at the behest of beloved Patreon b...
Apr 29, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 494
With the Gremlins franchise coming back, warnings are on the mind of beloved Patreon backer Bryan. He beckons us into the back room of the Gaming Hut to ask how to handle them at the roleplaying table. In Tour de Lovecraft: the Destinations , Ken tells us what Arkham was like during the period of HPL’s stories. In the Mythos Hut , we wonder what it looks like today. We meet estimable backer Charles Picard in the Culture Hut , to take in a production of artist Wassily Kandinsky’s synesthetic play...
Apr 22, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 493
In the Gaming Hut we provide advice on working with the GM to play a mastermind character. At the behest of beloved Patreon backer Drew, the History Hut goes all the way back to 2004 for the tale of the missing Sri Lankan handball team. We venture into the Food Hut to provide estimable backer Derrick Yates with the Mythos truth behind the mysterious McRib. Finally, we point Ken’s Time Machine at the 1822 Greek War of Independence to see what improvements he can make in the timeline. Want to pose...
Apr 15, 2022•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 492
In the Gaming Hut , we look at the elements that ought to go into an introductory scenario. Beloved Patreon backer Todd W. Olson has not left the building, but has rather entered the Culture Hut , as he asks how Elvis Presley’s 1968 Comeback Special might reverberate in Fall of DELTA GREEN. In Ask Ken and Robin , esteemed backer Neil Barnes wonders what kind of superhero universe might be shifted into existence by the dread machinations of the King in Yellow. Finally a Mother Jones piece by Rene...
Apr 08, 2022•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 491
In the Gaming Hut we lay out goals the GM should set for convention games and other one-shots. The Command Hut looks at an invasion of a smaller power by a larger one that has somewhat fallen down the memory hole: the Sino-Vietnamese War of 1979. Beloved Patreon backers such as Gabriel Rossman demanded that we address the escape of evil fox spirit Tamomo-n0-mae from the rock that imprisons her, occasioning a segment we call Ripped From the Headlines . Finally the Consulting Occultist examines th...
Apr 01, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 490
In the Gaming Hut we look at that most elusive of GM skills: knowing when to shut up. The smell of ancient newsprint pervades the Horror Hut as beloved Patreon backer Jamie Twine seeks the connection between the King and Yellow and his contemporary, early newspaper comics character the Yellow Kid. Finally, the imminence of the Academy Awards ceremony means it’s time for our annual tradition, our Cinema Hut roundup of our favorite films of 2021. Want to pose a question to the show? Get your prior...
Mar 25, 2022
Among My Many Hats looks at Ken’s latest work of Cthulhoid essays, Tour de Lovecraft: the Destinations, available as of March 22nd from Atomic Overmind Press. The Gaming Hut looks at ways you, the player, can find a way into a scenario when you don’t see a natural course of action. Then Ken’s Bookshelf finishes its look at our hero’s epic recent raid on the shops of Florida and California, from mid 19th century New York City to the exciting world of human hybrids. Want to pose a question to the ...
Mar 18, 2022•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 488
Beloved Patreon backer Chihiro Yamata has access to an Edwardian house with a creepy ghost plaque, and wants the Gaming Hut to do something about it. Esteemed backer Jake beckons us into the Cartography Hut to discuss the evolution of maps in WW2, as inspired by Ken’s recent review of Jeremy Black’s A History of the Second World War in 100 Maps . The Food Hut inquires into the career of early organic wine advocate, grape varietal namesake, and devoted Nazi Fritz Zweigelt. Finally sagacious backe...
Mar 11, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 487
The Gaming Hut gets a snazzy Architecture Hut retrofit as beloved Patreon backer Alexander Arebalo seeks tips for a game based around physical locations. In Conspiracy Corner we ask ourselves if today’s full-paranoia anti-vaxxers would have been yesteryear’s Gnostics. And finally our roving hero returns from the wilds of Florida and California with an honest to goodness actual haul from this here reality to add to Ken’s Bookshelf . Want to pose a question to the show? Get your priority question ...
Mar 04, 2022•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 486
The Gaming Hut gets a snazzy Architecture Hut retrofit as beloved Patreon backer Alexander Arebalo seeks tips for a game based around physical locations. In Conspiracy Corner we ask ourselves if today’s full-paranoia anti-vaxxers would have been yesteryear’s Gnostics. And finally our roving hero returns from the wilds of Florida and California with an honest to goodness actual haul from this here reality to add to Ken’s Bookshelf . Want to pose a question to the show? Get your priority question ...
Mar 04, 2022•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 486
Beloved Patreon backer Walter Manbeck chases a bad guy we thought we vanquished into the Gaming Hut , asking us how to keep recurring villains scary after the group has teamed up to defeat them. At the best of well-rounded backer Robert Wolfe, the Architecture Hut goes Dymaxionic with a look at Buckminster Fuller. Night’s Black Agents has bats, rats, and wolves. Trail of Cthulhu has cephalopods, rats, and hounds. In the Horror Hut , we select creepity animals to associate with The Yellow King Ro...
Feb 25, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 485
In the Gaming Hut we wonder how many possible player character choices the writer of published scenarios should provide guidance for. The Mythology Hut makes room for a round table as beloved Patreon backer Steve Dempsey seeks gaming inspiration from the kings and emperors whose stories make up the composite figure of King Arthur. We try not to spill ink in the Culture Hut as equally beloved Patreon backer Ruth Tillman seeks the behind-the-scenes on superstar actress Sarah Bernhardt’s sculptural...
Feb 18, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 484
In the Gaming Hut we look at GMing techniques to respond to that moment when one player makes a unilateral choice that causes the rest of the group to groan in protest. The History Hut acquires a pointy hat as beloved Patreon backer Bob J. Koester asks us to delve into Yale’s 1825 Conic Sections Rebellion. Estimable backer Ed Sizemore demands to know how and why Ken’s Time Machine erased Pope John XX from the timeline. And finally, at the behest of discerning backer Derrick McMullin, we enter th...
Feb 11, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 483
The launch pad has been positioned uncomfortable close to the Gaming Hut , as beloved Patreon backer Neil Barnes seeks ways to center a game around the Soviet Space Program. The Crime Blotter has to wait a little while longer for that immersion blender as we look at the recent media flap over package thefts from Union Pacific’s Los Angeles railyard. Our Mythos Hut series wraps up as we outline a gaming scenario to feature our newly spawned deity, Qotha-Nhur’rin, the Destruction at the Heart of C...
Feb 04, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 482
