Ludonarrative Dissidents

CHICAGO BY NIGHT is a 2018 city sourcebook for Vampire the Masquerade 5th edition, written by Matthew Dawkins and a host of others, and published by Renegade Game Studios, who have the rights to do all this stuff these days. The most recent iteration of a sourcebook that first appeared in 1991, this edition is by far the longest at 357 pages. It describes the vampire culture, clans, people, locations, backstory and subterfuges of the eponymous city. (‘Eponymous’, because I always have to check, means ‘lending its name to’ a thing, not ‘taking its name from’). We talked about the latest edition of Vampire the Masquerade earlier this season and concluded that it did what it needs to in a suitable style, if you like that sort of thing. How does that fit with huge chunks of crunchy campaign-world detail like this? Don’t click that dial!Chicago by Night at DriveThruRPG (there’s more information here than at the publishers’ website)Vampire the Masquerade 5th edition at DriveThruRPGThe original Chicago by Night from 1991 at DriveThruRPGChicago by Night second edition (1993) at DriveThruRPGRead the full show notes here. Discuss this episode on our Discord.

Our livestream discussion for May, featuring special guest Jerry Grayson of Khepera Publishing. Check out the Godsend Agenda today.Watch the episode on Youtube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Discuss this episode on our Discord.

Our April livestream!Watch the livestream on Youtube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Discuss this episode on our Discord.

IN MEDIAS RES is a short modern-horror scenario (‘adventure’ is the wrong word for it) by John Scott Tynes, originally designed for Cthulhu Now and first printed in The Unspeakable Oath issue 10 in 1993. It was reprinted in The Resurrected #3 – Out of the Vault in 2003. Thirty years after its publication, it still lives up to its reputation as an unflinching piece of modern horror RPG design that’s genuinely horrific.Read the full show notes here.Discuss this episode on our Discord.

Our March livestream!Watch the livestream on Youtube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Discuss this episode on our Discord.

MAELSTROM is a paperback-format RPG written by Alex Scott and published in 1984 by Puffin Books, a division of Penguin Books in the UK. It contains rules for roleplaying in Europe, mostly England, at the time of the Tudors (the 1500s), with a solo adventure, a sample adventure and a herbiary. It is an interesting comparison to the other 1980s British RPG set in a faux-Europe of the early Renaissance, Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, which was published two years later.The game was re-released by Arion Games in 2008, and the company has also released an expanded version and several supplements, as well as standalone titles Maelstrom Domesday (set after the Norman invasion), Maelstrom Rome and Maelstrom Gothic.Maelstrom at Wikipedia Maelstrom at DriveThruRPGRead the full show notes here.Discuss this episode on our Discord.

We have a special guest, Adam Scott Glancy, one of the Delta Green co-authors! He clarifies a few points about Delta Green Countdown.Watch the livestream on Youtube⁠⁠⁠⁠Discuss this episode on our Discord.

Sponsor: Technical Difficulties Podcast - check out an excellent actual play RPG podcast, featuring Delta Green, Eclipse Phase, and many other fine systems featured on LND.Delta Green Countdown is a massive sourcebook for the original edition of Delta Green. It blows the doors off the world of Delta Green, reaching wider and digging deeper to map the terrain of the twisted pulp apocalypse we call the dawning of the 21st century. How has it aged since then?Read the full show notes here. Discuss this episode on our Discord.

Our first livestream of the year! We talk about new games we played and a grabag of topics. Watch the livestream on Youtube⁠⁠⁠Discuss this episode on our Discord.

ALICE IS MISSING is a self-contained one-session RPG for 3–5 players, designed by Spenser Stark and released in 2020 by Hunters Entertainment with Renegade Game Studios, after a Kickstarter that raised $138,000. It’s been described as ‘unique’, ‘sublime’ and ‘a little masterpiece’, and has won a bagful of awards including three 2021 Gold ENNIEs and the Indiecade award for tabletop design.Read the full show notes hereAlice is Missing homepageAlice is Missing online gameAlice is Missing at DriveThruRPGDiscuss this episode on our Discord.

Our monthly livestream for December! Watch the livestream here.⁠⁠⁠Discuss this episode on our Discord.

Gradient Descent is a module/campaign setting/megadungeon for the SF-horror RPG Mothership, released in 2020. It is written by Luke Gearing, with art by Nick Tofani and layout by Sean McCoy, and was published by Tuesday Night Games. Dimensionally it is a tightly packed 64-page digest-sized booklet, and the PDF sells for $20, or as part of the Mothership deluxe boxed set.Mothership homepageThe Mothership book range at at DriveThruRPGGradient Descent at DriveThruRPGRead the show notes here.⁠Discuss this episode on our Discord.

Our monthly livestream for November 2025. We talk about larping, new games in development and Dragonmeet!Watch the Livestream here.⁠⁠Discuss this episode on our Discord.

EABA (End All Be All) 2e is a generic roleplaying system with a core rulebook and a collection of sourcebooks designed by Greg Porter and published by his company BTRC (Blacksburg Tactical Research Centre). The first edition was released in 2003, the second – which is what we discuss in this episode – in 2012.Read the full show notes here.Discuss this episode on our Discord.

Our livestream for October 2025!Watch it on Youtube.⁠Discuss this episode on our Discord.

Our livestream for September 2025!Watch it on Youtube.Discuss this episode on our Discord.

Trabajo (Hebanon Games, 2019) is a 32-page ‘portfolio’, part sourcebook and part adventure pack, for the Red Markets post-apocalypse RPG of economic and undead horror, written by Ludonarrative Dissidents’ own Ross Payton. We analysed Red Markets last season and liked it a lot, as you can imagine, and this episode is an opportunity to hear more about how it looks in action, and get Ross’s insights into how he went about constructing this compact, intense supplement.Our previous episode covering Red MarketsTrabajo at DriveThruRPG Red Markets at DriveThruRPG, ridiculously good value at just $5Read the full show notes here.⁠Discuss this episode on our Discord.

Brindlewood Bay is a tabletop roleplaying game that combines Murder, She Wrote with H.P. Lovecraft. In it, you play a group of elderly women, members of the local Murder Mavens Mystery Book Club, who help the authorities solve murder cases in a picturesque New England Town.Read the show notes hereDiscuss this episode on our Discord.

JAILBREAK is a one-session scenario for Unknown Armies, originally written by Greg Stolze of this parish, in 1998 as a demo adventure for conventions, and subsequently published in the One Shots adventure anthology. It has since been described as one of the great horror adventures for any RPG. Greg is, of course, one of the creators of Unknown Armies, along with John Tynes, and his insights here into how the adventure came together, its structure, how it works and how it’s played are fascinating. Enjoy the episode! Read the full Show Notes HereJailbreak for UA first edition at Atlas Games, a free downloadThe full One Shots adventure collection on DriveThruRPG, also for UA 1eJailbreak slightly revised version (for the Elemental rules), also a free downloadThe Unknown Armies game line at Atlas GamesUnknown Armies 3e on DriveThruRPG

Our livestream for July! We talk about Gencon, the Ennies, and we get a surprise visit! Watch the episode here on Youtube if you want to see the visuals.Discuss this episode on our Discord.

RIFTS is a role playing game designed by Kevin Siembieda and originally published by his company Palladium Books in 1990. In this episode we examine the Rifts Ultimate Edition from 2005, a revised and expanded version of the original game rulebook. Like it, hate it or previously unaware of it, there’s nothing like it on the market today and we enjoyed the chance to delve into what makes it work.Read the full show notes here.See the original Rifts rulebook at DriveThruRPGSee the Rifts Ultimate Edition at DriveThruRPG. We can’t speak for other Rifts PDFs but this PDF is a scan of the print book, every page is an image, the text is not searchable, there is no indexing or bookmarking. It’s like an artefact from a more primitive time.See the Rifts game-line at the Palladium Books websiteSee Savage Rifts at DriveThruRPG

BLACK CHROME IS A 2023 gearbook for the Cyberpunk Red roleplaying game, written by James Hutt, Jay Parker, Turbo, J Gray, Anne Morrison, Chris Spivey, Fran Stewart, and Linda M Evans, and published by R Talsorian Games.Read the Wikipedia entry for the Cyberpunk RPGRead about Black Chrome on DriveThruRPGSee the Cyberpunk Red rulebook on DriveThruRPGRead the full Show Notes on the LND website⁠Discuss this episode on our Discord server!

We talk a bit about conventions - Greg visited a small con called Forge Midwest and Ross prepares for Gencon this year with 7 events. We also answer audience questions.Watch the livestream if you want to see the visuals.⁠⁠Discuss this episode on our Discord server!

Cyberpunk RED is the latest edition of the dystopian sci-fi RPG series originally created by Mike Pondsmith. Set in 2045 after a major war, characters in Cyberpunk RED can pull off jobs for secretive clients, roam the wastelands, or reclaim them. It contains everything needed to play.Full Show Notes are available here!⁠Discuss this episode on our Discord server!

James went on vacation to Pompeii, so he's sharing his photos and discussing ancient Roman history. If you want to see the video version with the photos, it's on Youtube. Discuss this episode on our Discord server!

The Yellow Clearance Black Box Blues is a 48-page adventure for the Paranoia RPG. It was written by John M. Ford, published by West End Games in 1985, and is generally regarded as one of the classic adventures for the game, and a milestone in the development of comedy in RPGs. It was re-released in 2017 for the rebooted edition of Paranoia that was co-designed by James Wallis, Grant Howitt and Paul Dean, and I swear that’s the first I’ve ever heard of that version, though it seems to be the only form in which TYCBBB is commercially available right now. $29.99 for a 48-page PDF from 1985. Read the Full Show Notes hereDiscuss the episode on our Discord!

THIS EPISODE COVERS DOGS IN THE VINEYARD, a 2004 game by Vincent Baker, who is better known as the co-designer of Apocalypse World, the game that the entire Powered by the Apocalypse (PbtA) RPG design movement is based on. Dogs in the Vineyard is no longer available for sale, for reasons that we discuss in the episode.“Mormon Judge Dredd” – Greg StolzeRead the Full Show Notes HereSee the Wikipedia entry for Dogs in the VineyardSee Vincent Baker’s homepageTalk about this on the LND Discord!Today's episode is brought to you by the Tabletop Arts Fund! The Tabletop Arts Fund is a community nonprofit dedicated to supporting independent TTRPG and actual play creators through professional development, networking opportunities, and charitable grants. Are you an independent creator with a game or scenario nearing the finish line? Submissions open February 15th for the first round of TTRPG Creator Grants, providing financial support for art, editing, layout, and other professional services. Full details on these and other projects are available at tabletopartsfund.org, or via social media at tabletopartsfund.org.

Our latest livestream! Greg talks about his new fantasy serial and we discuss zines, crowdfunding, and more! Watch it here if you want to see the visuals.Discuss it on the LND discord!

GROGS is a supplement for Ars Magica 5th edition, edited by longtime ArM line-editor David Chart, released in 2012 and still in print. Ars Magica is a roleplaying game of a community of wizards in a medieval world where magic is rare and feared by the general populace. This supplement presents systems and advice for expanding multi-character ‘troupe play’, a core concept of Ars Magica. Read the full show notes on our website! We explored Ars Magica way back in season 1, episode 9. It’s an important game in the history of RPGs, co-designed by Mark Rein*Hagen who went on to create Vampire: the Masquerade, and Jonathan Tweet who was lead designer on Dungeons & Dragons 3e. Click here to see Grogs on DriveThruRPG Click here to see Ars Magica 5th edition on DriveThruRPG This episode is brought to you by Laszlo Szidonya, who wants a shout out to his friend and longtime GM Aron Peterfy. We are enormously grateful to Laszlo (and Aron), and everyone else whose generosity helps to keep the podcast running. ⁠Please join our Discord server to discuss this episode!

We're discussing European RPGs, especially the new wave of Italian games like Outgunned, plus action cinema and more. Watch this episode on Youtube. Discuss it on our Discord.

This episode covers the roleplaying game VAMPIRE: THE MASQUERADE 5th edition, developed by Kenneth Hite and Karim Muammar, published in 2018 by White Wolf Entertainment in association with Paradox Entertainment and Free League. The original Vampire: The Masquerade was designed by Mark Rein•Hagen and released by White Wolf Publishing in 1991. It dominated the RPG hobby in the 1990s and remains one of the biggest RPGs of all time. Click here to see Vampire: the Masquerade 5th edition at DriveThruRPGClick here to see the original 1991 Vampire:the Masquerade, which we also discuss and which is still on sale for a paltry $9.99. Read the full show notes on our website It’s a fascinating read for anyone who wants to experience the origins of the World of Darkness. “It would have been like kicking a tiny puppy in a tiny corset” – Greg Please join our Discord server to discuss this episode!

Ross talks about RPGs in Japan and other things he encountered during his vacation there. James talks about Mappa Mundi, an upcoming exploration RPG and more! Watch it on Youtube to see the photos Ross shared and more!

Alien: Chariot of the Gods is an introductory/one-shot adventure for Free League’s Alien RPG, written by Andrew E. C. Gaska and set in the universe of most of the Alien/Aliens movies. It was published in 2019. READ THE FULL SHOW NOTES HERE Click here to see the Alien RPG on the Free League website Click here to see the Alien RPG on DriveThruRPG Click here to see the Alien: Chariot of the Gods adventure on DriveThruRPG This episode is brought to you with support from Brent, one of our Kickstarter backers, who wanted to give a shout-out to his Youtube channel @Rolewise. Thanks, Brent! ⁠Discuss this episode on the LND Discord!

Our livestream for October. Watch it on Youtube to see what we're talking about.

James Bond 007: Roleplaying In Her Majesty’s Secret Service was designed by Gerard Christopher Klug (known as Chris Klug these days) with development by Greg Gordon and Neil Randall, and was released by Victory Games between 1983 and 1987, selling over 100,000 copies. It is long out of print but available on the second-hand market at reasonable prices (as I write Noble Knight lists it at under $15 for the core rules) though the supplements are usually 200-500% more. This episode was made possible by our patron and friend Christian Bickle, who chose the game for us to cover. Huge thanks go out to him for letting us create a really fun episode. Full show notes are available here ⁠Discuss this episode on the LND Discord!⁠ ⁠Intro music by Arcane Anthems

Click here to read the full show notes! Night’s Black Agents: Double Tap is a ‘gear book’ from 2013, a collection of new equipment, background and game material for GM and players, written by Ken Hite and several others. It’s an expansion for Night’s Black Agents, an RPG of modern tactical espionage and vampires, also written by Ken Hite and published by Pelgrane Press in 2011. It’s a really interesting book whether you play NBA or not, and we think you’ll enjoy our far-ranging discussion of it and the issues it raises. Click here to see NBA: Double Tap on DriveThruRPGClick here to see the Night’s Black Agents RPG on DriveThruRPG

Our livestream for September. If you want to see the visuals, watch it on Youtube.

Savage Worlds Adventure Edition (SWADE) was designed and written by Shane Lacy Hensley with Clint Black, and published by Pinnacle Entertainment Group in 2023. It’s a generic rules system of cinematic action with a historied pedigree and an amazing range of sourcebooks, but how does it fare against more rules-y games like GURPS or narrativist darlings like FATE? We take it apart to see what keeps its motor running, mechanically and stylistically, then put it back together to discuss how that affects play.  As noted at the end of the episode, Greg and James were given PDF copies of the game by PEG and we are properly grateful for that. Click here to see Savage Worlds: Adventure Edition on DriveThruRPG Click here for Episode 3 full show notes ⁠⁠Discuss this episode on the LND Discord!⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Intro music by Arcane Anthems

We're talking about Gencon 2024 and new trends in games. Watch the livestream here for the visuals.

Delta Green: Convergence is a short adventure for the Delta Green RPG. Originally written by John Scott Tynes and published by Pagan Publishing in 1992, it is the first adventure ever set in the Delta Green universe, the original source, the motherlode, the primal zygote. In this episode of Ludonarrative Dissidents we are discussing the slightly updated edition released by Arc Dream Publishing in 2023. ⁠Click here to see Delta Green Convergence on DriveThruRPG FULL SHOW NOTES ARE AVAILABLE HERE ⁠Discuss this episode on the LND Discord!⁠ ⁠Intro music by Arcane Anthems

Heart: The City Beneath is a game of unconventional fantasy adventurers who are drawn to enter, explore and lose themselves in a very corporeal underworld beneath the city of Spire. They’ll face horrific foes, bizarre locations and a mysterious and eldritch subway system. It’s from the same designers and publisher as Spire, it’s an indie darling, but what will the Ludonarrative Dissidents make of it? Will they locate the life-ending revelation they seek in its fleshy realms? Will Heart find a place in their ribcages, or turn them into a big ol’ train? Heart: The City Beneath at DriveThruRPG Heart: The City Beneath at Rowan, Rook & Decard FULL SHOW NOTES ARE AVAILABLE HERE Discuss this episode on the LND Discord! Intro music by Arcane Anthems

Greg has an idea for a build a bag mechanic for a RPG, so James and I discuss some options for it. We look at board games that use this mechanic and how the mechanic could work.

We're discussing Choose Your Own Adventure, Fighting Fantasy, Lone Wolf, and other similar game books. This is an audio version of this Youtube livestream, if you want to see the visuals.

In this livestream, we reveal the topics for season 3! If you have questions about them, ask on our Discord. You can watch the livestream here.

Our Kickstarter for Season 3 is doing well but we have a long way to go! We livestreamed on March 10, which you can view here on Youtube, but this episode has cleaned up audio. We're looking at the free adventure released by NASA, The Lost Universe. We dive deep into it and answer viewer questions.

The Kickstarter is live! Back it today so we can have a full season of great episodes! The Lady in Blue, a mysterious figure of cosmic power, enlists a band of simple peasants for a strange task. They are to follow an invisible bridge until they arrive at a hole in the sky – and then jump through. Death awaits all but the bravest, strongest, and luckiest, but the Lady offers a reward beyond all the riches of the world: the chance to change the very stars these peasants were born under, and thus change their destiny. We're reviewing our first adventure for this season! We played it as the finale of last season and now you can hear what we think of the adventure as a published scenario.

We're back with more info on season 3 and here to talk about RPGs. https://www.ludonarrativedissidents.com/

We livestreamed back in December to update listeners about Season 3 and answer questions about RPGs. You can watch it on Youtube or just listen to it here. Enjoy!

The Lady in Blue, a mysterious figure of cosmic power, enlists a band of simple peasants for a strange task. They are to follow an invisible bridge until they arrive at a hole in the sky – and then jump through. Death awaits all but the bravest, strongest, and luckiest, but the Lady offers a reward beyond all the riches of the world: the chance to change the very stars these peasants were born under, and thus change their destiny. NEWS: On Saturday December 16th, at 23:00 UTC (18:00 EST, 17:00 Central) Greg, James, go live for an hour of discussion, conversation, and answering your questions. RPPR on Twitch RPPR Streaming on Youtube If you miss the livestream, the Youtube version will stay up afterwards. We are planning an episode 0 of season 3 to discuss this adventure so stay tuned for that! Get full show notes at our website! Discuss this episode on the LND Discord!

Pendragon is a game of Arthurian legends, first released in 1985. The sixth edition starter set was released in 2023, with a full released plan next year. It is set in a world of brutal medieval realism. Player characters are knights in King Arthur's court, striving to uphold the code of chivalry despite their passions and flaws pulling them in other directions. The starter set contains pre-made knight player characters, several adventures, and all the rules necessary to run the game.  Get full show notes at our website! Discuss this episode on the LND Discord! Our next episode is the season finale, an actual play in Dungeon Crawl Classics with two guest players!