About this episode
Welcome to Gehenna: It's Like Hell, but With Worse Real Estate and More Bureaucracy" Announcement: Missed an episode? Repent your sins and redeem yourself on YouTube, where archived episodes of The RPGBOT.Podcast are now available for your listening pleasure. Come for the laughs, stay for the existential dread. Show Notes – Episode Title: "Gehenna: Evil Slopes and Infernal Bureaucracy" Summary: In this infernal episode of the RPGBOT.Podcast, the hosts return from Gen Con only to plummet straight into the burning basalt slopes of Gehenna—a plane so depressing it makes the Shadowfell look like Disneyland. They dive into the lore of the plane's inhospitable geography, wildly impractical city design, and the kinds of inhabitants that only a sadistic game designer could love. Along the way, we meet Nymicry (a city that wants to eat you), the Tower of Arcana (where bureaucracy is tattooed into your skin), and the city of Portent (built on a corpse, because why not). The hosts explore the goddess of torture, debate whether the Rogue class needs therapy or just a rebrand, and try to answer the ultimate question: "Why would anyone go to Gehenna… on purpose?" 2014 Dungeon Master's Guide ( affiliate link ) 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide ( affiliate link ) Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes ( affiliate link ) Forgotten Realms Wiki - Gehenna Ghengis Sean RPGBOT.Podcast Episodes The Abyss Archeron Arcadia The Beastlands Bytopia Carceri Celestia The Ethereal Plane The Feywild Hell Part 1 Hell Part 2 Limbo Mechanus Pandemonium The Shadowfell Key Takeaways: Gehenna is the DMV of the multiverse—agonizingly slow, unbearably hostile, and absolutely full of paperwork. Gen Con was great! Unlike Gehenna, which is a hostile volcanic rockslide with a bad attitude. Every layer of Gehenna slopes downward, because gravity hates you too. Nymicry is a mimic the size of a city, proving once again that your GM can be too creative. The Tower of Arcana is where contracts are etched into skin, because parchment is for cowards. Portent is a yugoloth-shaped city with a throne that whispers spoilers into your ear. The only native species are bar guests, who seem suspiciously like people who got stuck at Gen Con after dark. Leviatar, the goddess of torture, rules with cruelty and creativity—think "Hellraiser meets HR onboarding." Torch is a city where crime is a feature, not a bug. Bonus: there's a blood swamp. Rogues are cool, but maybe need a PR team—they're mechanically solid but struggle to stand out. Gehenna is full of flavor, if your flavor is emotional suffering and lava. At RPGBOT.net and The RPGBOT.Podcast, our brains are made of real meat. We are not the fever dream of a rogue algorithm trying to understand humor. We are, tragically, real people—with dice in one hand and sarcasm in the other. RPGBOT: It's Soylent Green for the RPG crowd—made from actual humans, not generative AI. Want more planar deep-dives, class analysis, and volcanic despair? Visit RPGBOT.net for guides, breakdowns, and the kind of nerdy brilliance that even Gehenna can't melt. If you enjoy the show, please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts , Spotify, or your favorite podcast app. It's a quick, free way to support the podcast, and helps us reach new listeners. If you love the show, consider joining us on Patreon , where backers at the $5 and above tiers get ad free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT.Podcast, can chat directly to members of the RPGBOT team and community on the RPGBOT.Discord, and can join us for live-streamed recordings. Support us on Amazon.com when you purchase products recommended in the show at the following link: https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ Meet the Hosts: Tyler Kamstra – The tactical mind behind RPGBOT.net, Tyler sees the Pathfinder action economy like Neo sees the Matrix. Randall James – Technologist, lore enthusiast, and fully prepared to duel Peter Jackson over which LotR edition reigns supreme. Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare. Fueled by sarcasm and sweet, sweet table-flipping energy. How to Find Us: In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net Tyler Kamstra BlueSky: @rpgbot.net TikTok: @RPGBOTDOTNET Ash Ely Professional Game Master on StartPlaying.Games BlueSky: @GravenAshes YouTube: @ashravenmedia Randall James BlueSky: @GrimoireRPG Amateurjack.com Read Melancon: A Grimoire Tale ( affiliate link ) Producer Dan @Lzr_illuminati