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Recent episodes
Building Theory-Craftable Worlds: Lessons from Deltarune and FNAF
May 8, 2026
14m 46s
Steal Everything: One Piece Lore
May 1, 2026
16m 50s
One Piece Season 2 is a Chaotic D&D Game
Apr 25, 2026
18m 53s
Failure to Thrive
Apr 17, 2026
29m 00s
Meditations on Evil
Apr 10, 2026
33m 51s
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| Date | Episode | Topics | Guests | Brands | Places | Keywords | Sponsor | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5/8/26 | ![]() Building Theory-Craftable Worlds: Lessons from Deltarune and FNAF✨ | world-buildingnarrative techniques+3 | — | DeltaruneFive Nights at Freddy’s | — | theory-shaped holescharacter gaps+3 | — | 14m 46s | |
| 5/1/26 | ![]() Steal Everything: One Piece Lore✨ | One Piecelore+3 | — | One Piece | — | One Piecelore+3 | — | 16m 50s | |
| 4/25/26 | ![]() One Piece Season 2 is a Chaotic D&D Game✨ | One PieceD&D+4 | — | One Piece | — | One PieceD&D+4 | — | 18m 53s | |
| 4/17/26 | ![]() Failure to Thrive✨ | philosophygames theory+3 | — | Defy the GodsRaccoon Sky Pirates: Total Chaos Edition+1 | — | failuregames theory+3 | — | 29m 00s | |
| 4/10/26 | ![]() Meditations on Evil✨ | evil class optionsD&D+3 | — | D&D | — | D&Devil+3 | — | 33m 51s | |
| 4/3/26 | ![]() Badaptation✨ | media adaptationsfantasy+3 | — | Wheel of Time | — | adaptationsmedia+5 | — | 37m 56s | |
| 3/27/26 | ![]() Tabletop Adaptations - What works and what doesn't when adapting an IP to the game table?✨ | tabletop gamesadaptations+4 | — | Magic's Universes Beyond | — | tabletop adaptationsromantasy series+3 | — | 42m 11s | |
| 3/20/26 | ![]() Seasons of Dungeons & Dragons - Examining the Change to the Publication Format✨ | Dungeons & Dragonsseasonal release schedule+3 | — | Dungeons & Dragons | — | Dungeons & Dragonsseasonal release+3 | — | 33m 57s | |
| 3/6/26 | ![]() Why We Like Nazis✨ | tabletop campaignsfascist-coded villains+4 | — | No Plot, Only LoreD&D | — | Nazisantagonists+6 | — | 50m 20s | |
| 2/28/26 | ![]() Too Much Lore: Sumo 2, Fatter and Sassier✨ | Sumo historyYokozuna rank+3 | — | JSA | — | SumoYokozuna+5 | — | 40m 35s | |
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| 2/20/26 | ![]() Too Much Lore: Sumo Part 1✨ | professional SumoShinto rituals+4 | — | Shintosamurai culture | Japan | SumoShinto+5 | — | 51m 07s | |
| 2/13/26 | ![]() AI Re-revisited: Gray Ooze and the Enshittification of the Tabletop✨ | Generative AITabletop RPGs+4 | — | Wizards of the Coast | — | AIgray ooze+5 | — | 36m 45s | |
| 2/6/26 | ![]() AI Revisited: The Turd in the Digital Pool | The Honeymoon Phase is Over.This week, Josh and Kris revisit their stance on Generative AI. While early adoption promised a reduction in cognitive load for DMs, the reality has shifted toward a "net negative" across nearly every metric. From the environmental impact of data centers to the "enshittification" of search results, the hosts break down why the "word guessing machine" is failing the people it promised to help.Topics covered include:The Admission: Kris publicly admits Josh was right about the "AI bubble".The Tech Cycle: Late adoption vs. the "new toy" syndrome.Art Theft: Evaluating the "British Museum" argument for AI training.Linguistic Limits: Why English is a "hoarder language" and how "burstiness" keeps AI detectors effective.The DM’s Craft: Why the "lonely fun" of manual world-building remains an essential, deeply human artistic act. | — | ||||||
| 1/30/26 | ![]() Darkest Dungeon Board Game Disaster: Why Kickstarter is Killing Tabletop Companies | In this episode of No Plot Only Lore, Josh and Chris dive into the recent collapse of the Darkest Dungeon board game by Mythic Games. We discuss the $5 million failure, the "wave two" cancellation, and the broader crisis facing tabletop crowdfunding.Topics covered:The Darkest Dungeon Debacle: How overconfidence and poor math led to one of the biggest Kickstarter flops in recent history.The "Infinite Kickstarter" Trap: Why companies like Tasty Minstrel Games (TMG) failed by using new projects to fund old debts.Brick & Mortar vs. Digital Noise: The vital role of local game stores as filters for quality in an era of social media hype and AI-generated shovelware.Success as a Double-Edged Sword: How overextending through stretch goals and secondary locations can sink even established brands.Wormwood’s Pivot: Why industry leaders are moving away from the "perpetual Kickstarter" model toward sustainable retail.Visit us at: www.noplotonlore.com Listen on: All major podcast platforms. Rate, review, and share if you enjoy the show! | — | ||||||
| 1/23/26 | ![]() Kickstart Your Life - The Impact of Kickstarter on the Tabletop Gaming Space | Josh and Kris talk about Kickstarter, the good, the bad, the really bad, and Exploding Minions. | — | ||||||
| 1/16/26 | ![]() The Walled Garden - The Open Gaming License, History and Future | We're back! We're doing audio and video now like a couple-a lunatics! We're doing a deep dive on the open gaming license and its impact on the entire tabletop RPG world, and we're blaming it on Kevin Siembieda! Not really. Maybe a little. | — | ||||||
| 12/12/25 | ![]() December Sads | Look, December low-key sucks when it comes to a lot of things, and gaming is no different. But it doesn't have to suck completely! Come hang out with us and we'll talk about it. | — | ||||||
| 12/5/25 | ![]() Winter Celebrations (That Aren't Christmas!) in Tabletop Role-playing Games | This week Josh and Kris take a look at some of the non-Christmas winter traditions around the world and discuss ways that those traditions could be utilized in your own games, as well as starting a conversation about how holidays mark the passing of time for a people. | — | ||||||
| 11/28/25 | ![]() Best TTRPG Holiday Gift Guide 2023 | Lancer, Daggerheart & Dice! | Josh and Chris for their second annual Holiday Gift Guide dedicated to the coolest tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs) and accessories for 2023.Hear their takes on the year's biggest releases and hottest picks, including the tactical giant mech RPG Lancer, the Critical Role-backed Daggerheart, and the OSR darling Mythic Bastion Land.Plus, get recommendations for:TTRPG Books: Dive into the Cosmere RPG (Stormlight) Starter Set and the hilarious goofball game Pigeons 11.Accessories: Explore Hexbound aluminum dice, beautiful Dispels astral thread dice, gorgeous notebooks from Rook & Raven, and detailed minis from Arch Villain Games.Stocking Stuffers: Discover dry-erase condition rings, initiative trackers, and the Twice Dead King (Warhammer 40k) omnibus.If you're shopping for the D&D player, role-playing gamer, or TTRPG enthusiast in your life, you need this guide! Available on all podcast platforms and at noplotonly.com. | — | ||||||
| 11/21/25 | ![]() Attention Economy and TTRPGs: Are We Krill in the Critical Role Pond? | Hosts Josh and Kris tackle the Attention Economy and its uncomfortable role in the TTRPG space. From recognizing their place as "krill" in the same ecosystem as giants like Critical Role to debating whether the attention economy is "evil," they discuss how DMs can use its tricks—like rewarding quiet moments (the Mrs. Pots dinner scenario)—to keep players engaged and honor their time, without resorting to constant chaos. Plus, a tangent on Telltale's Dispatch and terrible modeling advice from grandmothers. | — | ||||||
| 11/14/25 | ![]() The Ecology of Goblins: Deconstructing 'Goblin Mode' & Millennial Burnout | What is the difference between Goblin Mode and Goblin Core? Dive into the ecology of the internet's most feral archetype. We explore why embracing your inner "cozy swamp creature" is a coping mechanism for millennial burnout and the pressure of perfect adulting. | — | ||||||
| 11/7/25 | ![]() The Problem With Progress: OPR's Sentient Bugs and Fan Backlash | One Page Rules (OPR) started as a quick, simple alternative to Warhammer 40,000, but now it’s charting its own path with unique lore. The results? A minefield of mixed audience reactions.In this episode, we dive into the difficulties OPR faces transitioning from a '40k knock-off' to an original game system, and how the inherent differences in audience expectations—especially those conditioned by the constant feedback loop of the internet—make that transition so volatile | — | ||||||
| 10/31/25 | ![]() Anime Powers for TTRPGs: Can Groundhog Day Death & Turbo Granny Work in D&D? | Welcome back to No Plot Only Lore! This week, your hosts Josh and Chris dive deep into the most chaotic and complex anime powers to figure out how to import them into your favorite TTRPG (like Dungeons & Dragons). If you love D&D mechanics, worldbuilding, and outlandish character concepts, this episode is for you.We break down the rules and roleplaying challenges of:The Social Credit Hero: A power set based entirely on a character's popularity and public trust. What happens to a superhero's power when their social score tanks?Death & Reset Mechanics: Examining the genre of "Groundhog Death Day" anime where a character resets time upon death, including the protagonist who killed himself 4,000 times to power up.Magical Garbage: Analyzing the unique ability to imbue mundane trash with extraordinary TTRPG powers.The Turbo Granny Problem: How to run an encounter against a villain with a bizarre, high-speed power, and the logistics of powers drawn from the series Dan Da Dan.Discover the best (and worst) ways to integrate these plot-bending abilities into your next D&D campaign or tabletop adventure. | — | ||||||
| 10/24/25 | ![]() Cringe: Why Sincerity Still Matters at the TTRPG Gaming Table | Let’s talk about being cringe! Pretend play is an essential part of growing up and learning social roles and shit.This goes back to Piaget and Vygotsky - pretending is how we experiment and try on identities and learn empathy and problem-solving. Adults often repress that because it’s fucking cringe as hell.Sitting down to play a role-playing game reactivates that early developmental muscle, but it’s occasionally awkward and weird.Kids: The floor is lava! Adults: If I do enough pretend violence I might be able to afford pretend real estate! Irony is the Armor of SincerityMemes, quotes, and in-jokes make the table feel safe — a shared cultural shorthand.Emotional detachment also feels safe. Not caring about fake people is cooler than caring about fake people, and we usually want to be cool.But irony can also block emotional engagement. If everyone’s half-laughing through their character arcs, no one has to risk being sincere.The Cringe FrontierWhy do we generally cringe at sincerity? Is cringe just a way of enforcing emotional conformity? Can being cringy be brave, or is it always the absolute worst? We both come from improv backgrounds where being cringe is kind of a necessity. Has that better prepared us for cringe at our tables? Circle of SafetyI was reading a post recently from someone who was wondering if maybe we’d gone a bit too far on making game tables a safe space. I’m pretty sure I disagree with that person, but I will agree that the tools we have aren’t ideal and probably never will be.What are your personal safety mechanisms? How do you invite people to be sincere without forcing them to “act” at the table? What is the DM’s role in creating an emotional stable space for Big Feelings? Huizinga’s Magic Circle suggests that normal rules, even rules about social conformity, are suspended during play. Does that work if the real space (outside of the liminal shared imagined space of play) is not safe? How can we support emotional safety in service to enabling bravery? | — | ||||||
| 10/10/25 | ![]() Bring out the Clowns: Humor and Jokes at the TTRPG Table | We was talking clowns and that got me on the ha-has. The Party as a Comedy TroupeMost D&D tables accidentally become improv comedy theater.“Every game starts as Game of Thrones and ends as Monty Python.”Long campaigns kind of naturally develop bits and recurring gagsPlayers have a tendency to start to fall into roles associated with ensemble comedy subconsciously.QuotesI don’t know what to tell you, man - people are gonna quote D20, Critical Roll, Monty PythonThey aren’t necessarily meant to be funny? They’re more like a cultural shorthand and rituals for belonging.They say “I am one of you, I know the right scripts, I can do the call-and-response!” It’s like a meta-textual handshake of sorts.Often, the quotes mutate or change over time to become more specific to your group.The BitsEvery group, whether gaming or not, develops an internal economy. A bit is currency - you can buy attention or affection with it.You trade a bit for laughs or groans or the DM watching their soul evaporate into sighs.In some ways, tables will self-regulate this economy.Good bits live on, bad bits die, Legendary Bits may transcend this table or this game and be used at others. Modern table comedy is deeply parasocial.Many players have internalized the cadence of Brennan Lee Mulligan, Aabria Iyengar, or Matt Mercer.Quoting or mimicking them isn’t laziness — it’s a way to align tone and show respect.But it can also blur identity: Are we referencing their games, or ours?Is the humor derivative, or are we participating in a shared meta-culture of play?This creates a kind of folk comedy canon — the oral tradition of Actual Play media.The Function of Comedy in Collaborative PlayIt defuses tension, reinforces bonds, and stitches continuity across long gaps.Laughter is a feedback loop of participation — even disengaged players rejoin the moment when someone lands a good bit.Table humor = the heartbeat of the group.In many ways, the group’s sense of humor defines its culture more than its ruleset.The Meta Bit: When the Table Knows It’s a ShowFor Actual Play games, humor becomes performative.The “table” has a secondary audience.Every joke carries dual awareness:Does it land here?Does it land out there?The bit becomes both a bonding mechanism and part of the brand.You joke different if you know your joke could be on a mug forever. | — | ||||||
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