SHANE PLAYS: Recent Episodes
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A journey into the things we love: Podcast + blog! Get your geek on or discover your inner geek: games, video games, RPGs, comic books, movies, TV, books, oh so much more!
Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #283 – 5/15/2025 A RAD-SATURATED BONUS EPISODE! The Cold War gone hot! “Bam” Shane joins “Doc” Benny and “Boom” Mike on the Found in the Ruins podcast to execute maneuvers on the Twilight: 2000 RPG and reconnoiter other groovy post-apocalyptic stuff like PA books and movies. This is episode 9 […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #282 – 4/26/2025 Shane waxes eloquent (ok, he might rant mildly) on several aspects of the mainstream comic book industry including the direct market business model, variant covers, multiple characters with the same name, and constant status quo changes (plus the overuse of the word “iconic” these days, which isn’t […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #281 – 11/26/2024 Game developers Hannah and Joseph Williams join to chat about their new “Dark Crystal”-like CRPG Banquet For Fools. Shane jokingly laments a missing element from the game, but Joseph promises they won’t duck out from putting it in. Now that ten years have passed, how do they […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #280 – 10/23/2024 Star Trek Video Games: An Unofficial Guide to the Final Frontier with author Mat Bradley-Tschirgi. There are a LOT of Star Trek video games and Mat had some hard decisions and set boundaries on what games to cover in his book (by the way, a “notable” game […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #279 – 9/27/2024 RPG and tabletop gaming historian Jon Peterson returns for a fantastic conversation on D&D and RPG history, and his related current books and projects. A new edition of Playing at the World and Dungeons & Dragons – the Making of Original D&D: 1970-1977 are on the shelves. […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #278 – 8/22/2024 Merle M. Rasmussen, the man in the tux himself, joins to talk about the Top Secret RPG and his game design career. What was his first (mistaken) understanding of what D&D was? Memories of working at TSR. A no-nonsense discussion about the financials of his agreement with […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #277 – 7/22/2024 Shane, Chris Holmes, and Mike Stewart aka DM Mike (Save for Half podcast, Found in the Ruins podcast) shamble relentlessly through over 40 zombie and zombie-ish flicks in their inhuman hunger for horror. Plus a brief detour into the best on-screen Joker and multiple bad zombie jokes. […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #276 – 4/29/2024 Preston Poulter of Pocket Jacks Comics joins to talk comic books, the current status of his Comicsgate trademark lawsuit, and his reasons for pursuing it. Plus the economics and challenges of self-publishing comics, some tabletop RPG chat and we learn what a pocket jack is. Shane gets […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #275 – 3/29/2024 Wide-ranging geekout with David Finn of Signal of Doom!! Lots of comic book and MCU chat (like, a lot). Pi Day. Doctor Who, old and new. Google Gemini vs. ChatGPT. Judge Dredd satirizes fascism but can tell multi-layered stories. Godzilla finally wins an Oscar. Godzilla as a […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #274 – 2/29/2024 Despite what you might think from its famous box art, Greyhawk (the first D&D setting published by TSR) isn’t just knights and chivalry… so what is it then? Major Greyhawk fan Allan T. Grohe Jr. aka “grodog” joins to fill us in on all the setting’s fantastic […]
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Dig into the world of the D&D Greyhawk setting online and sooner or later you’ll run across mentions of an essay from 1996 called “Putting the Grey in the Hawk” by Nitescreed. However, the essay no longer seems to have a home online, just several forum posts mentioning it and a couple of forums posting […]
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Recently while doing some research for a writing project for Planet X Games (it’s not my beans to spill on what the project is, so we’ll have to wait for Planet X’s Levi Combs to splatter those particular leguminous seeds) I did a deep dive on the various kinds of poison in the AD&D 1E […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #273 – 1/31/2024 Strat-O-Matic Baseball might be one of the biggest games you’ve never heard of, and three-time champion William “Bill” Meinhardt joins to share his passion for playing it! How long has the game been around, and how many people play it? What’s the one mechanic Bill wishes was […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #272 – 12/29/2023 Star Fleet Battles is the Star Trek-based wargame that’s been in constant publication since 1979, leading to an expanded range of games and lore known as the Star Fleet Universe. SFB fan, expert, and contributor Bill Barsh of Pacesetter Games and Simulations joins to talk all about […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #271 – 11/20/2023 Discover the real Stan Lee (not the public PR persona) and his story in Tom Scioli’s amazing I Am Stan biographical graphic novel. Plus: Simple comic book character design versus convoluted and complicated design. Working for the big comics companies versus being an independent creator. The one […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #270 – 10/23/2023 All-around groovy geek and author Tracy Wilson (aka James T. Wilson) on his indie horror novel Zombie Bytes, also chatting about cool things like his involvement with the Star Wars costuming association the 501st Legion. The pain and timeline of writing a novel. What is “success”? What’s […]
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Transparency Note: I was provided an advance reader’s copy of this book via the publisher. Gather ’round, my friends, and listen to a story. What if… the world’s most famous tabletop role-playing game was in fact based on real monsters, magic, and stories from another world that spilled over into ours? What if… you moved […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #269 – 7/16/2023 Johnny Havoc (John McDonald) and Newt (Rebekah McDonald) of Simple Tricks & Nonsense join to discuss their incredible cosplay. What does cosplay mean to them? The economics of cosplay, including material and labor. Cosplay includes the challenge of taking something two-dimensional and making it work practically in […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #268 – 5/30/2023 Author and D&D historian Mike Witwer shares the details on his newest book The Legend of Drizzt Visual Dictionary, which is not only chock full of goodness on everyone’s favorite drow but the Forgotten Realms in general (as Mike puts it, “the Drizzt books are the greatest […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #267 – 5/12/2023 Chris Holmes has a unique historical perspective on fiction writer John Eric Holmes and Holmes Basic D&D, given that he’s JEH’s son. Chris is doing cool stuff in his own right, including his fantasy art and a day job where he gets to introduce kids to D&D. […]
The post Holmes Basic D&D, John Eric Holmes & Edgar Rice Burroughs with Chris Holmes – Episode 267 – 5/12/2023 appeared first on SHANE PLAYS.
Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #266 – 3/14/2023 Hey there, friend! If you’re into classic games and fascinating stories, you’ll love our latest podcast episode featuring the multi-talented Neal Hallford. Join us as he shares insider details on the renowned Betrayal at Krondor CRPG, and get excited about the game’s 30th-anniversary celebrations! This innovative game […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #265 – 2/9/2023 Zach Glazar (Frog God Games), Bill Barsh (Pacesetter Games) and Levi Combs (Planet X Games) share the personal impact (here’s a hint: “existential threat”) and professional impact that Wizards of the Coast’s recent OGL announcements had on them, and where they’re going from here. “Unprofessional” and “ham-fisted” […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #264 – 11/30/2022 RPG developer and publisher Allan T. Grohe Jr. (aka “grodog”) joins to talk AD&D retroclone OSRIC, the OSR, Black Blade Publishing, John Eric Holmes, and RPG goodness in general. Allan LOVES him some Greyhawk. The skills he learned tracking down early information on Greyhawk helped lead to […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #263 – 10/19/2022 Skeeter Green joins to talk RPGs, Skeeter Green Productions, the Independent Publishers Union of small RPG publishers, and his new Kickstarter. The Valley Out of Time is a series of ‘zine-sized RPG adventures borrowing heavily from classic dinosaur art, books, and movies (think Frazetta and Harryhausen). Tips […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #262 – 9/24/2022 Joseph Wolf of Reaper Miniatures talks Dungeon Dwellers, Reaper’s old-school style RPG using modern design. Also: some ReaperCon chat. Joseph has some interesting RPG design highlights, including Forgotten Realms, Deadlands, and Blood of Heroes. Love it or hate it, 5E is very successful at what it does. […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #261 – 9/9/2022 Champions RPG co-creator (and HERO Games co-founder) George MacDonald with guest co-host Michael Stewart (Victorious RPG creator; Save For Half and The Crusader podcasts co-host). The origins of Champions from the why, to the playtesting to the launch and beyond. Was the initial reception to Champions disappointing […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #260 – 8/15/2022 Dafydd Roche of Terrain-Tronics doesn’t just want to make cool terrain, he’s helping DMs and GMs bring delight to their players with easy DIY gaming terrain electronics for D&D and other RPGs. Game terrain as part of the storytelling. Theatrical D&D. The no-solder wire wrapping technique is […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #259 – 7/18/2022 Grindhouse Cinema with RPG publisher and cinephile Levi Combs. What is Grindhouse, and why is it called that? The market forces that led to the rise of Grindhouse theaters. Gritty movies, violent movies, Foreign movies, exploitation movies, Kung fu movies, BRUCEsploitation movies, more! New York City as […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #258 – 6/17/2022 Thrilling fantasy stories of the swashbuckling duo Mongoose and Meerkat with author Jim Breyfogle. Adventure fiction as opposed to “pulp” fiction (and what exactly does “pulp” mean, anyway). Who is Jim’s number one favorite writer from the past? Shane’s dirty little secret when it comes to Robert […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #257 – 5/27/2022 JAQ: Journey Adventure Quest is the new drafting board game with resource management, cool mechanics, challenging monsters, fun lore, and multiple paths to victory. Jesse Stacy, Tommy Noel and Brandon Beam from Triceratops Games join Shane to talk all about it (and demonstrate some actual play)! Also: […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #256 – 5/12/2022 Comics artist (and self-described art hobo) Brian Shearer has worked on such high-profile properties as Transformers, G.I. Joe, and Doctor Who as well as his own creations Gunship Thunderpunch and William the Last. How did Brian become a professional artist? Tips for creators to build an audience […]
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My 8-year-old son is soloing Valheim, and did a great job taking down Eikthyr (the first boss) on his first try. He had all leather armor on (pants, tunic, and helmet), had eaten three different types of food first, and used a crude bow with fire errors.
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DC’s Injustice animated movie dropped in October 2021. It’s based on the Injustice: Gods Among Us video game and the related comic book series. The plot involves Superman breaking bad after the Joker does a Really, Really Horrible Thing and heroes taking sides and beating the dog nuts out of each other with the fate […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #255 – 4/15/2022 RPG designer Bruce Nesmith discusses his career as a TSR veteran (Ravenloft 2E, Gamma World 4E, Dragonlance), Elder Scrolls Skyrim lead designer, and now novelist. Bruce’s first day at TSR was an experience, to say the least. What does he consider his biggest achievement while at TSR? […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #254 – 3/25/2022 RPG designers John Kennedy (Star Trek Adventures, Stargate 5E) and Sharene “Madfishmonger” Gilchrist (Capers, Vast Kaviya) join to talk their new Staged Heroism RPG: A Comedic RPG of Super-Heroics, Super-Villainy, and Failure at its Best inspired by shows like The Venture Bros. Plus: Designing not to fail […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #253 – 3/11/2022 Comics writer Paul Kupperberg is the very definition of prolific! He has written 1,400 comics over 4 decades, wrote for and was the editor of the Weekly World News, wrote Mad Libs, and is still staying busy writing books and novels. Paul’s credits include the Doom Patrol, […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #252 – 2/4/2022 Highlights: Stephen Chenault aka the Troll Lord of Castle & Crusades publisher Troll Lord Game joins to talk about what’s new with C&C and some wise principles he uses to run TLG that have helped them tremendously while other companies have encountered severe disruption during COVID. Plus: […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #251 – 11/19/2021 Highlights: A cool project to make 3D-printable RPG miniatures from Jeshield’s art. Plus! How did he build his RPG stock art business as the main part of his income? What was the RPG that influenced him to become an artist, and what piece of its art impacted […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #250 – 11/9/2021 Highlights: Gaming historian Jon Peterson works through the unhappy but fascinating drama of Gary Gygax, Dave Arneson, and TSR to bring us the facts of it all regarding the two most important personalities and the most important company in RPG history. The legal battles over royalties and […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #249 – 10/27/2021 Highlights: Writer and “horror bottomless pit” Mark Pellegrini joins for a great horror movie discussion. Essential found footage movies. What makes found footage different from other types of movies? Horror franchises that forget their roots. Horror films adapted to TV series. Overlooked horror gems in the slasher […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #248 – 10/15/2021 Highlights: Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition is the new RPG that adds depth and options to your 5E experience but avoids unnecessary complexity! Lots of love for the exploration pillar. Rethinking classes while keeping their core concepts. Meaningful decisions every time you level up. Modular heritage design. […]
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Here’s a list I made of when the Elvira segments are during all 4 movies of her 2021 Shudder special: Elvira: Mistress of the DarkBeginningMiddle – 50:52Ending – 1:44:20 House on Haunted HillBeginning – 2:30“Pour me some wine” – 16:32Middle – 38:56Ending – 1:19:29 City of the DeadBeginningMiddle – 39:19End – 1:21:10 (“Burn, Witch, Burn” […]
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Found footage movies. I’ll come right out and say it, I like them. It’s not even a guilty pleasure for me. A great found footage movie has a sense of reality unlike other styles and can get under your skin in a way other entertainment can’t. An average found footage movie usually has some good […]
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Visit the abandoned hanging gardens of Nangalore, complete with hallucinatory plants, carnivorous plants, eblis, and an eye-catching medusa. Black orchids. Locate Object targets. Do you identify spell scrolls differently than other magic items? A new patron means a new custom haiku! Support the Shane Plays RPG & Tabletop Game Videos Patreon and help Shane make […]
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Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #247 – 9/23/2021 Highlights: Ed Bickford aka Metal Robot is a tabletop RPG illustrator, syndicated cartoonist, comic book artist, and an award-winning illustrator and graphic designer. Ed’s great to talk with and he’s very open in sharing honest thoughts on the hopes and trials of creators in the trenches. The […]
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I couldn’t find this exact list anywhere else, so I made one for my own reference. Hope it’s helpful for you. This is a list of when dungeons unlock in The Elder Scrolls Online Dungeon Finder. When you play ESO you can enter dungeons as you find them in the wild, but to queue up […]
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