The Analog Dungeon Podcast

The mystery of what exactly happened to Cynidicea is officially solved in part two of B4: The Lost City, and we have good news! The eldritch horror-turn-cult figure responsible for the downfall of this particular civilization is just Zargon, the coolest dude ever, who’s vibin’ on a higher frequency and providing top quality za to his couchlocked disciples. Then the boys meet the other two factions opposing the high lord: the magically limited magi of Usamigaras and the warrior maidens of Madarua, who are just waiting to lay the smack down on your candy ass.

In the final episode of Steading of the Hill Giant Chief, Russell and Jeramy come face-to-shin with Chief Nosnra and 8 metric tons of his best buddies, liquored up and looking for a fight. Then they venture down into the lower level of the steading where clues to the mystery at the heart of the G series await, along with a literal army of orcs, a weird temple looking to drive you crazy, and the true horror of the module: carrion crawler coitus.

Gary Gygax called it one of his favorite creations. Stephen Colbert has declared his love for it. Wizards of the Coast has called it the greatest D&D adventure of all time. And did we mention it's the first module TSR ever wrote and released? Russell and Jeramy tackle G1: Steading of the Hill Giant Chief, the granddaddy of them all, to see if it (and its author) can live up to the incredible hype and, if so, what makes this adventure so freakin' great?

Holy tonal shift Batman! Part 3 of Palace of the Silver Princess goes from poetry fragments and hat pins to Uncle Travis’ Murder Emporium faster than you can say weapon-tailed marmoset. Russell and Jeramy then head to the tower to meet its weird, alignment-obsessed alien(?) guards and the infamous three-headed, multigender Ubues, which turn out to be more wacky than salacious.It all leads up to the climactic discovery of that colossal, fortune-making ruby from the beginning of the module… which turns out to be less “dragons hoard” and more “impulse buy”.

Deemed “too SPICY for 1980”, Russell and Jeramy dig into B3: Palace of the Silver Princess, one of the most infamous D&D modules of all time. So why did TSR print thousands of copies only to try to dump them all in the Lake Geneva landfill the next day? It’s a behind-the-scenes story with so many twists and turns it makes Real Housewives of Beverly Hills look like the Beverly Hillbillies. In their first 4 part epic, the guys tackle the controversy head on, en route to a dungeon truly unlike anything you’ve seen before.

If Russell and Jeramy had a nickel for every time they’ve lost all their worldly belongings in this module only to regain them all again, they’d have two nickels. Which isn’t much, but it’s still weird that it happened twice, right?In part two of The Forest Oracle, the guys find treasure inside the monsters and get pick-pocketed by a body of water on their way to meeting the guy who’s name is written on the cover of the book. But to save The Downs, they are asked to do the unthinkable: go back the way they came.

Russell and Jeramy finally add some evil to all the chaos as they cap off the legendary Keep on the Borderlands! Featuring a cadre of sexy orc muscle mommies, a hipster gnoll microbrewery, and an awkwardly named shrine full of undead that would make even the holiest cleric utter a few select four letter words. The epic finale will leave you with just one question: Did Gary Gygax know how alcohol works?

It’s one of the most iconic modules in Dungeons & Dragons history, responsible for teaching millions of the earliest players the ropes: Russell and Jeramy dive into Gary Gygax’s legendary B2: Keep on the Borderlands from 1979! In episode one, we learn how the keep came to be, meet a bunch of nameless NPCs with spicy secrets, and prepare for the journey outside the walls and into the iconic Caves of Chaos!

Russell and Jeramy strap on their 3D glasses for a trip back to the 80s, when D&D tried to leap off the page and onto your tabletop with 3D Dungeon Dragon Tiles, including the adventures The Kidnapping of Princess Arelina and its sequel The Revenge of Rusak! Featuring a haunted house where every sofa hides a classic D&D foe and the bathroom has a secret backstage entrance, they trace a winding line from flimsy pop-out walls and googly-eyed monsters all the way to one of D&D’s most popular campaign settings, proving that sometimes even the goofiest gimmicks can leave a big mark on the game.

In Part 2 of In Search of the Unknown, Russell and Jeramy continue their delve into Castle Quasqueton, rifling through jars in a wizard's lab, inventing a few cursed magic items, and taking a detour through the infamous Room of Pools. Along the way they finally answer that age old question: what would YOU do with a pickled cat in a jar?

In the finale of Tomb of the Lizard King, the module finally lives up to its name! Jeramy and Russell tackle a dungeon featuring ambushing brigands, fanatic cultists, a well stocked library, and a banquet hall full of lizard men who only attack if you fail the vibe check. Once the secret of the Lizard King is revealed, only one question remains: does anyone know the knock spell? Otherwise, everyone is screwed.

In the very first part of the first episode of The Analog Dungeon, Jeramy introduces Russell to the 1982 masterpiece Tomb of the Lizard King, by Mark Acres, a module so dangerous it comes with a “special warning” and stable of decked out pre-gen characters so you can spare your favorite creations from a grisly death.