Epic Adventure

Send us Fan Mail
YHIHL S4E17
Let’s start off with some news that made me give an audible “Ohhh!”
Renegade Games Studios has announced they will be launching Ann Rice’s Immortal Universe Roleplaying Game later this year through Backerkit.
https://www.enworld.org/threads/anne-rices-supernatural-world-is-coming-to-a-ttrpg-near-you.719998/
That was one of those announcements that had me at hello.
I am a huge fan of the Ann Rice novels. I’m typically not a fan of sparkly vampires, but when I first picked up a copy of Interview with a Vampire in college, I was hooked. I dove into The Vampire Lestat, Queen of the Damned, The Tale of the Body Thief and then really enjoyed the Mayfair Witches. I pretty much trailed off after that; I have always had a soft spot for those books. This is one of the IPs that I never really thought of, but as soon as I read it, I realized it was just spec written for modern roleplaying.
Christina, I know you are a big fan of the urban fantasy, vampire stuff. What’s your take on this announcement?
Kick to Christina
Mike, Vampire the Masquerade is a game you love, does this announcement tickly your fancy?
Kick to Mike
In another interesting bit of news, Chaosium just unveiled a new source book for Call of Cthulhu. Innsmouth. Innsmouth is the definitive guide to the rotting seaport town—one of the most iconic settings for Call of Cthulhu. And the most exciting part…it’s available right now!
https://www.enworld.org/threads/chaosiums-new-book-on-lovecrafts-innsmouth-is-the-definitive-guide.720001/
No Backerkit. No Kickstarter. No wait.
By the time listeners here this I will have my grubby hand on it.
Christina, what do you think about this release?
Kick to Christina
Mike, Will you want to play our Halloween game in Innsmouth this year?
Kick to Mike
An there you have it, all the news you’ve already heard.

Send us Fan Mail
On our last episode we started talking about turning roleplaying into a career. If you haven’t listened to that would I would recommend going back and diving into it. We planned on keeping it pretty conventional and immediately went off the rails into a deep dive on, well, starting a career in anything. For a quick recap I think we ended up with a few tips. One, Work Hard. Two, Be Patient. Three, Don’t Give Up. And Four, Look for opportunities.
But we never got into chatting about some of those non-traditional careers that roleplaying can play a big part in. So today we are going to dive in and spend some time chatting about those and why roleplaying games can be so beneficial in helping you accel in those career fields.
Mike, You want to talk about Roleplaying as Therapy and since that was on my list for the last episode let’s not waist any time. Start us off.

Send us Fan Mail
Welcome to You Heard it Here Last where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.
https://www.enworld.org/threads/pathfinder-is-ending-its-relationship-with-archives-of-nethys-updated.719899/
We start off with more Paizo News. Specifically, Paizo has ended its 8-year relationship with the Archives of Nethys, citing lack of earnings and financial issues. The Archives of Nethys has been the online repository of all things Pathfinder and Starfinder providing free rules and early access to products. 
Archives of Nethys isn’t going away, but it’s official licensing with Paizo has ended as of July 24th, 2026.
You should remember that just recently Paizo had to lay off 12 employees due to the Diamond Comics Bankruptcy debacle.
Mike, is this just more of the same, a company trying to stay afloat or is there something else going on here?
Kick to Mike
Christina, what’s this look like to you?
Kick to Christina
Our next bit of news relates to some new crowdfunding releases that are still available to back.
https://www.enworld.org/threads/rpg-crowdfunding-news-%E2%80%93-deathbringer-sly-flourish-garys-appendix-and-more.719895/
First up, Professor Dungeon Master’s Deathbringer is back on Backerkit. The most anticipated TTRPG release of 2026, Deathbringer is Professor Dungeon Master’s take on old school, high-lethality fantasy RPGs. Using a version of Shadowdark RPG where there is no magical healing and surviving death unlocks the greatest powers. This one wraps up on August 13th.
The next one that jumps out is from someone Mike likes to mention. Sly Flourish and The Rise of the Lazy Gamemaster. This one wraps up crowdfunding on August 6th. The master of minimal game prep is remastering one of the best GM guides in gaming! Behold, Rise of the Lazy Gamemaster! If you run TTRPGs, this book, and Sly Flourish’s other tomes, are a time-tested source of tips, tricks, and ways to organize your campaigns and adventures so they don’t eat your free time.
Mike, Any of this interest you?
Kick to Mike
What about you Christina?
Kick to Christina
And there you have it, all the news, you’ve already heard.

Send us Fan Mail
On this episode Mike, Christina and I are going to talk about professions that you can get into either directly involved in the roleplaying game industry or those professions that roleplaying will help you get into.
Or at least that was the goal. You will see that we went an entirely different direction.
Christina, as a Dr. of Education games and game designing has played a prominent role in your profession. When did you realize that was going to be your thing and that gaming was going to be a big part of it?
Kick to Christina
Mike, You own a gaming company so we have to say that this topic is right in your wheelhouse.
Kick to Mike
Takeaways: Work Hard, Be Patient, Don't Give Up, Look for Opportunities.

Send us Fan Mail
Welcome to you heard it here last where we talk about news, you’ve already heard.
Our first news article is going to kill two birds with one stone.
https://ttrpgfans.com/origins-awards/
The Origins Awards winners were announced at this years Origins convention that was held in Colombus Ohio June 17th through the 21st. The Origins Awards are an annual award that recognizes excellence in the tabletop gaming industry, including board games, card games, miniatures and roleplaying games. First presented in 1975 at the inaugural Origins Game Fair in Baltimore, the awards are currently managed by the Game Manufacturers Association or GAMA.
The winner of the Roleplaying Game of the Year is the Land of Eem Deluxe Box Set by Exalted Funeral. 
Notably, Land of Eem is a rules-light TTRPG created by authors Ben Costa and James Parks (and based on their Rickety Stitch and the Gelatinous Goo graphic novels). It’s described as a lighthearted blend of Lord of the Rings and The Muppets, with a dash of Adventure Time thrown in for good measure.
The Winner of the Roleplaying Supplement of the Year is Call of Cthulhu: The Sutra of Pale Leaves – Twin Suns Rising from Chaosium.
The Sutra of Pale Leaves – Twin Suns Rising is a campaign supplement for the Call of Cthulhu RPG, set in 1980s Japan. It reimagines the iconic King in Yellow mythos by having a lost, ancient scroll resurface with ties to a sinister entity. The book features three interconnected scenarios and, in addition to featuring many of the familiar Lovecraftian tropes, also explores the unique cultural and historical setting (which is a radical departure from the traditional 1920s setting of New England).
But before we dive into the winners and the long list of nominees, Dr. Christina attended Origins this year. Christina, how was the convention this year?
[Kick to Christina]
Mike, any thoughts on this year’s winners
[Kick to Mike]
Christina, what about you, thoughts on the 2026 Origin Awards Winners?
[Kick to Christina]
Our next news item will make Dr. Christina very excited.
https://ttrpgfans.com/masks-a-new-generation-rpg-second-edition/
Ten Years ago, Magpie Games released Masks: A New Generation, the ENNIE award-winning tabletop RPG of teenaged angst and superhero action.
Now, after more than a decade, Magpie has officially unveiled details for a new Masks Second Edition. The upcoming core rulebook will include new mechanics, character options, GM advice, artwork and lore for the setting of Halcyon City. The project will first land on crowdfunding, but you can sign up for alerts now on Kickstarter or the Magpie website.
Christina, on a scale from 1-10 just how excited are you about a second edition of one of your favorite roleplaying games?
[Kick to Christina]
Mike, I know this isn’t up your alley. But when Christina gets the second edition are you going to suck it up a play a session or two?
[Kick to Mike]
And there you have it, all the news, you’ve already heard.