The Overlords take a look at The Electric State, including Simon Stålenhag’s original art/fiction book, the just-released role-playing game, and the upcoming 2025 Netflix movie. The mood in the lair fluctuates between the majestic vastness of the book’s decaying alternate 1997 America and the apocalyptic, virtual-reality plagued world that feels eerily resonant today. Ken and […]
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David unboxes The Electric State role-playing game by Free League Publishing, delving into its dystopian aesthetic and immersive world-building. He also discussed the game’s focus on an ongoing apocalypse, contrasting it with the traditional post-apocalyptic games. Based on the book by visual artist and author Simon Stålenhag (Tales From the Loop), the game uses Free
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Campaign prep is something every dungeon master a needs to do … even if “prep” is something you throw together five minutes for the session starts. On this episode, we talk about our individual game prep strategies, from structured approaches like Chris’s multi-phase plan to Ken’s adrenaline-fueled last-minute inspiration. Josh and Erin share insights into
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Get in. Do a thing. Get out. Look awesome doing it. That’s your typical cyberpunk adventure, and it always involves some sort of security. On this episode, we discuss real-world hacking inspiration, cinematic heist scenarios, and strategies for balancing game difficulty. We dive into the nuances of netrunning, social engineering, and how even the best-laid
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So your Dungeons & Dragons campaign went on hiatus … how do you restart it? In this episode of Campaigns & Coffee, Ken, Chris, and Josh talk about how to re-engage with a not-quite-dead-yet role-playing game campaign. They dive into how a game can lose momentum, with real-life interruptions causing campaigns to stall or be
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For a game in which half of the missions involve some sort of infiltration (or the consequences of a fail infiltration, you’d think you’d think there would be more of a focus on doors, locks, and other physical, non-network security in the Cyberpunk RED. You’d be wrong. The core Cyberpunk RED rulebook dedicates pp. 213-216 of the Netrunning
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In the latest expedition through the Lair of Secrets, David Moore, Ken Newquist, and Chris Miller delve into the art of map design, specifically focusing on the peculiarities and challenges of modern and near-future maps in gaming. The discussion kicks off with Ken recounting his creation of the “worst best map ever” for a Mothership
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If you’re playing Dungeons & Dragons online, and not doing theater of the mind, you’ll need a battle map. Finding battle maps is time-consuming, especially the day of the game. You can front load that effort by browsing for maps ahead of time and storing them in Pinterest. In this video, Ken looks at finding
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The edgerunners are at Elysium HQ. All they need to do is descend through three sub-levels of the abandoned corporate headquarters and flip a switch on an old server. But first they have to get past these cybernetic corvids … and the remains of the edgerunner crews that came before them. Quotes Chapters 0:00 Intro
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Setting the mood for your Dungeons & Dragons campaign can be hugely important, especially when pitching a new game to your players. In this video, we walk through using Pinterest to create mood boards for Dungeons & Dragons with Ken’s Elemental Apocalypse campaign as an example, as well as a side trek to look at
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