We reviewed Blades in the Dark a few weeks ago and now Baz has taken it out for a spin with his gaming group. For your delectation we present a bonus 'cast - an hour of actual play! Become a Patreon and we can get you the character creation audio too! Throw in a dollar or two to the Patreon fund , and we'll keep getting you more stuff. Email the guys Find them on the Twitters: @the_smart_party Direct download here!...
A fantastic German gaming retreat happens once a year in the old East, and Gaz was there once again. He comes back loaded with interviews, the first of which is a debrief of the event with Andrew Kenrick, former White Dwarf editor and Managing Editor at Cubicle 7 and publisher of the excellent Dead of Night rpg. We discuss the high quality of the event, why you should play Delta Green as well as Call of Cthulhu, the advantages of multi-cultural gaming and also a few writer tips for good measure!...
Episode 59 - Fria Ligan Interview with Tomas Härenstam This week, it's special guest time once again, and the the affable from The Free League came along to talk to us about Mutant Year Zero, Tales From the Loop, their new Kickstarter and more! If you're really quick, you might just be able to get in on the Forbidden Lands Kickstarter - an open-world survival tabletop RPG with art by legendary Swedish fantasy artist Nils Gulliksson and the masterful Simon Stålenhag. Help us get to Dragonmeet! Th...
Episode 58 - Blades in the Dark - with Iain McAllister of Giant Brain fame! The lads have been playing the excellent Blades in the Dark by John Harper, and Baz even went out of his comfort zone, running it as a low-prep game at a convention. Hear what is so good about this game anyway, and maybe a couple of foibles. You can find Iain's blog here: Giant Brain Game reviews, reports from UK Games Expo and more. Help us get to Dragonmeet! Throw in a dollar or two to the Patreon fund , and help us pa...
Episode 57 - Playing Up (a.k.a Player's advice for players) We have books full of gaming advice for GMs, but where is all the help for players? What can you do to help your fellow players out? Shouldn't we all just be helping each other have a great time? All this and more answered in this episode, with your genial hosts, Baz and Gaz! We don't do Kickstarters for the podcasts, but we do have a Patreon. Throw in a dollar or two to the Patreon fund , and help us pay for hosting and other sundries....
Episode 56 - ShaCon All Over (a.k.a Savage Worlds and ShaCon Convention) The UK's inaugural Savage Worlds convention has happened and Gaz was there as Guest of Honour! Baz asks searching questions about this Savage Worlds thing as may some people haven't yet heard about it or played it. It's not Earthdawn after all. Something weird happened with Gaz's mic this time round, but don't worry, the lads have thrashed the tech goblins and everything should be back to perfection next week! We don't do K...
Episode 55 - Licensed Games with Mat Hart If you've heard about Guild Ball and the Dark Souls board game, you'll have heard of record-breaking Kickstarters from Steamforged Games . The lads have an extensive chat with the loquacious Mat Hart about RPGs, licensed games, kickstarters and what he's having for tea. We don't do Kickstarters for the podcasts, but we do have a Patreon. Throw in a dollar or two to the Patreon fund , and help us pay for hosting and other sundries. Get us to $75 and Baz w...
Episode 54 – Counting Beans Special Guest time once more! The Gents speak to Paul Baldowski, joint creator of the excellent All Rolled Up gaming accessories, prolific blog writer, author of the Cthulhu Hack and more! We also chat about the latest games from Sweden and try to work out why we love them so much. Like Stranger Things? Play The Future Loop! Want a sweet Fanzine from The Smart Party? Throw in a dollar or two to the Patreon fund , and help us pay for hosting and other sundries. Email t...
The lads are back from holiday! They've been reading stuff, playing games, going to conventions. This week they just about Games Expo, ConDamned and not wearing pants. Also! Bonus content - preparing characters for a con game or maybe just rolling them up at the convention table. Why do one over the other? You can find out about ConDamned on t'Facebook group . If you fancy getting involved in UK Games Expo, their website is here . Want a sweet Fanzine from The Smart Party? Throw in a dollar or t...
Special Guest time again! We’re too good to you. This week the lads chat to Mike Mason, Line Editor for Call of Cthuhlu at Chaosium. Kult of Keepers – who or what are they? Secrets from Black Library and 40K roleplaying. What does a line developer actually do? Organised Play and being on different sides […]
Episode 51 – All Rolled Up & Swedish Gaming Special Guest time once more! The Gents speak to Paul Baldowski, joint creator of the excellent All Rolled Up gaming accessories, prolific blog writer, author of the Cthulhu Hack and more! We also chat about the latest games from Sweden and try to work out why […]
Episode 50 – Back to the Future Prepare to travel back to the times of Black & White TVs and only three channels on your TV. The Smart Party take us back to their roleplaying beginnings, through to what they’ve been playing at conventions only days ago. Guest comments, special features, Smart Party Healing Potions, […]
Episode 49 – Ten Things We’re Jonesing For (a.k.a. Chasing the Dragon) This week the guys talk about ten of their current favourite gaming things. Everything from Post Apocalypse to Super Heroes, trying new things, system specific conventions, alternate history, Asterix, blogs and more! Next time it’ll be our 50th episode! Drop us a line […]
Episode 48 – Ten Interesting Mechanics (a.k.a. Systems Are Doing It For Themselves) There are a plethora, nay myriad of systems out there, so what are some good ones? The lads chat through some of their favourite ways of rolling funny shaped dice. Thanks to the d20 Future Show for inspiring this week’s topic. Want […]
Episode 47 – The State of the Smart Party (a.k.a. You’re Safe From Fireballs on a Bus) This week the guys have a good old ramble through what’s going on in their gaming world at the minute, including new purchases, Baz’s game that he’s writing and more! Want more of the same? By becoming an […]
Well the Christmas lull is over, back to work and no time to be reading large tomes of gaming goodness. What's an avid gamer to do? How about get some products that allow you to roll up inspiration? Will that give us all we need? What are the advantages? Our intrepid duo go fell-running with d20s to find out.
A new gaming year awaits us! What’s hip, hop and happenin’? The lads discuss plans for the future, new releases, upcoming conventions and a couple of rumours and speculations! Want more of the same? By becoming an honoured Patreon, to keep us encouraged, or if you’re feeling fruity, simply drop the guys a line and […]
How do you get a game in a new town? The lovely Guy from Go Play : Leeds joins us this week to chat about his experiences and how he approached this perennial issue. Turns out if you look about your home town, it could easily be a mine of (until now) undiscovered gamers… Want […]
“It’s all about balance” as Gaz’s long-suffering manager used to say in the face of another “challenge” from his firebrand employee. Being a Libran, Gaz could relate to this. The lads engage in a hearty discussion on what balance means for games, if we’ve got it, and it it’s worth having. Want more of the […]
Baz and Gaz investigate the recent spate of hacks, including The Black Hack and Cthulhu Hack. Small press house rules for the masses, Emperor’s New Clothes, inspired pet projects? The lads have a wander through some of the recent offerings in search of what the new hawtness is all about. Want more of the same? […]
Contrary to popular opinion, Baz and Gaz don’t agree on everything. With the upcoming festive Halloween season nearly upon them, the lads chat about horror games and try to get to bottom of why Baz isn’t enamoured. Also mostly spoiler-free chat of Stranger Things and why it’s good! Want more of the same? By becoming […]
The Kraken is a fabulous Gaming Retreat (not convention) in Germany, about half way between Berlin and Hamburg. Run by Runequest Gesellschaft e.V. a non-profit organisation, the event has very much a family feel to it, with previous guests becoming part of the organising team and new attendees welcomed to the bosom of gaming like […]
Bonus Episode – Actual Play – Night’s Black Agents Special bonus edition! The lads are joined by Patreon’s Steven and Piers for a taster session of Night’s Black Agents. Join the gang for a dip into Warsaw’s seedy underbelly crossed with the Bourne Identity and some preternatural goings on. Warning – does contain some naughty […]
Episode 39 – Preparing for the Wurst (a.k.a. Gaz had too many sausages in Germany) This week the lads are back from jollies and are all full of beans (and wurst), but also hot tips on preparing games for conventions (or elsewhere really). Join The Smart Party on a post-summer enthused hour of talking all […]
Episode 38 – Continuum 2016 It was like getting the band back together – not only were Baz and Gaz at Continuum, so were a fistful of other Smart Party members and we cornered Pete to tell us about his experience and why Fate isn’t rubbish. Sound quality varies as we were live and direct […]
Episode 37 – What We Want From Books Gaming books aren’t what they used to be. Back in the old days summers were longer and hotter; and cricket balls were harder. RPG books gave you everything they wanted… Or did they? The Gents take off their rose-tinted glasses (sometimes) to talk about what they want […]
Episode 36 – Community Spirit This one is about you. No, not you, you. We’re all one big happy gaming community right? Everyone gets out what they put in. Well maybe the Gents are a little to old now, and they can’t get the old working man’s club feel they used to get. Perhaps communities […]
Episode 35 – Long Con, Short Con Convention season is upon us and the team have been to UK Games Expo and had a great time. More on that and then a discussion on upcoming events and conventions in general. Could we go for a short demo version of a convention? What’s happened to the […]
Episode 34 – Fate Accelerated (Walkthrough) As Queen would say, I wanna make a supersonic man out of you – or woman, or however you self-identify. Baz and Gaz deep dive into the wonderfully diverse-friendly Fate Accelerated; a quick and fast introduction to the Fate family of games. You can get it yourself on Pay […]
Episode 33 – Into the Odd (a.k.a A Merman Fell Down The Well) With a bunch of our gorgeous Patreons, and other hangers on, Baz led us through a session of Into The Odd and much hilarity ensued. Here we talk about our experiences and how the game shaped the play. Stay tuned to the […]
