Passive (Aggressive) Perception
🎲System-agnostic tabletop roleplaying game discussions. Level up your TTRPG sessions with topic deep-dives, news, and tips for D&D and so much more. 🌲New EVERGREEN episodes every Wednesday. 🤹‍♂️Always as goofy as they are sincere, Ivan and Steve are two forever GMs obsessed with making your next TTRPG session the best one yet. 🗣Covering topics including •metagaming •interviews with industry leaders •bringing real life socio-political issues into your campaigns •TTRPG news, and beyond. 🧙‍♂️Passive (Aggressive) Perception investigates any and all games/systems including D&D, Pathfinder, Savage Worlds, Call of Cthulhu, Star Wars, Vampire the Masquerade, and anything else they can get their hands on. If it can be played it's fair game. 📚The conversation is never limited by any one game, but all of the topics, tips, and core principles easily apply to Dungeons & Dragons or whatever else you happen to be playing at the time. 💻icastspells.com & anywhere you get podcasts.
Episodes
63 episodes
So Long and Thanks For All The Crits (Final Episode)
I won't bore you with an overly-verbose description for this one. I'll only use this opportunity to say THANK YOU for accompanying us on this grand journey, and we hope that your next session is the best one yet.-Ivan & Steve...
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Season 1
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Episode 62
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18:16
Ep 61 - Bright Lights, Big City (Playing In City Settings)
Do your players (or yourself as a player) behave differently when your PCs enter a city, village, or township? Today we're discussing some of the unique challenges of playing in a city setting.We go in-depth on how specific game times a...
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Season 1
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Episode 61
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56:19
Ep 60 - Campaign Length (and Knowing When To Quit)
To have the problem of finishing a campaign milestone and have your players still wanting more, even though the story is over, is a much better problem to have than your players being bored because there is no end in sight.How many camp...
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Season 1
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Episode 60
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48:43
Ep 59 - No-Combat Sessions
Do you ever run entire sessions without a combat encounter? This week we analyze how varying level of combat work in your TTRPG games. We discuss engaging the players in a way that simulates the thrill of combat but in social and exploration en...
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Season 1
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Episode 59
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47:18
Ep 58 - Alex Clippinger: Game Design & Adapting 5e
The incredible and prolific TTRPG designer, Alex Clippinger has joined us this week to give us an inside look into Cubicle 7's new project, Broken Weave, drop some game design knowledge, and talk through some of the benefits and pitfalls of ada...
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Season 1
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Episode 58
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55:38
Ep 57 - Factions, Guilds, & Other Affiliations
Is your TTRPG character affiliated with anything larger than themselves or the party they roll with (heheh puns)? This week we cover TTRPG factions, guilds, and other big-picture affiliations. We discuss how they can provide scope, inform chara...
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Season 1
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Episode 57
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36:51
Ep 56 - GM Fiat (And Deus Ex Machina)
What would you do if your GM said "because I said so" during a session? Talking about when GMs flex their table authority 'just because.' There are two sides of the GM using unilateral decision making, and we investigate both the positive and t...
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Season 1
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Episode 56
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45:49
Ep 55 - Storybuilding Vs Storytelling
This week we talk about the ancient and honored tradition of human storytelling, its base components, what defines a great storyteller, and how all of this applies to the TTRPG experience. We discuss how examining this discipline can improve ou...
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Season 1
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Episode 55
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48:43
Ep 54 - SPECIAL #RPGaDAY2022 Pt. 2
Part two of our special 2-part series where we give our answers (and encourage you to give yours) to the questions presented from #RPGaDay2022, an annual celebration of tabletop roleplaying games conceptualized by
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Season 1
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Episode 54
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41:24
Ep 53 - SPECIAL #RPGaDAY2022 Pt. 1
A special 2-part series where we give our answers (and encourage you to give yours) to the questions presented from #RPGaDay2022, an annual celebration of tabletop roleplaying games conceptualized by @au...
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Season 1
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Episode 53
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1:11:15
Ep 52 - Taverns (and Other TTRPG Waypoints)
Discussing everyone's favorite stomping ground, tabletop roleplaying game taverns. We cover a lot of ground ranging from tips and advice on how to keep your players on their toes, to how we think adding extra flavor to a tavern setting can prev...
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Season 1
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Episode 52
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1:10:53
Ep 51 - Lore
This week we cover the importance of a tabletop roleplaying game's setting lore. We discuss why we think it's sometimes neglected and cover the potential risks of not being wholly acquainted with your in-game world. We touch on topics such as s...
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Season 1
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Episode 51
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55:07
Ep 50 - Ask A GM (Getting To Know Us: Redux)
At the behest of several listeners, we're finally doing a general "Getting To Know Us" episode. In this episode we talk briefly about our roots, who we are, and what led us to gaming. The majority of the episode is comprised of individual quest...
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Season 1
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Episode 50
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1:40:06
Ep 49 - Diseases, Curses, and Other Afflictions in TTRPG
This week we cover incorporating diseases, curses, maladies, and other general afflictions into your tabletop roleplaying games. We analyze why we think this aspect of gaming doesn't get as much love as it should and talk about some interesting...
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Season 1
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Episode 49
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1:05:10
Ep 48 - Life Skills Gained From TTRPGs
Having a meaningful discussion about how skills and experiences at the tabletop roleplaying game table can apply to one's 'real life.' We cover career impacts, its influence on self-improvement and self-exploration, how it can aid in developing...
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Season 1
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Episode 48
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1:00:03
Ep 47 - TTRPG Travel (Making It Meaningful)
In this episode we're asking important questions about traveling in tabletop roleplaying games. We go in-depth into the handwaving paradigm, why we think that is, and methods you can employ to make it a more meaningful part of your table experi...
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Season 1
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Episode 47
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51:36
Ep 46 - Resuscitating A Campaign (After Time Off)
We talk about getting your campaign back on track after a layoff, whether that be a week, a month, a year, or beyond. We address some of the challenges of getting players re-bought in , how to set the table for the best possible return experien...
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Season 1
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Episode 46
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42:51
Ep 45 - Splitting The Party
In this episode we cover some of the strategies behind, and the implications of, splitting your TTRPG party. We discuss how it can help expedite the action, but also increase work load and slow down your pacing. We go in-depth with several pers...
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Season 1
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Episode 45
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56:01
Ep 44 - Session Length (What's Ideal)
NEW COVER ARTThis week we're talking about what makes for an ideal session length? What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of shorter vs longer sessions. Do we still have it in us to run marathon sessions that last the whole w...
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Season 1
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Episode 44
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40:59
Ep 43 - Bringing Roleplay To Non-TTRPG Activities
We cover bringing elements and tools from your TTRPG kit into other activities like board games, video games, fantasy sports, sex, and much more. We cover some of the tenets of how ascribing meaning through narrative and roleplay can help you b...
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Season 1
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Episode 43
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49:50
Ep 42 - To BBEG or not to BBEG?
This week we cover the story significance of adding a Big Bad Evil Guy (BBEG) to your campaign. We also discuss the non-literal interpretation of the concept, goal-oriented play, and providing context and significance to your in-game actions.&n...
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Season 1
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Episode 42
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50:58
Ep 41 - House Rules
Discussing some of the more interesting house rules we know about, why we believe rules tweaking can benefit your games, and how sometimes customizing rules can be for all the wrong reasons. || Twitter:
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Season 1
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Episode 41
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47:18
Ep 40 - Playing To Lose & Failing Forward
This episode is about redefining how we view personal failure in our TTPRG sessions, and how reframing the concept can open up whole new worlds of opportunity for the players at your table. Also, listener feedback, and TTRPG news. || &nbs...
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Season 1
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Episode 40
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46:56
Ep 39 - Fudging & Rolling In The Open
Clickity clack! When dice attack! This week we talk about the very contentious topic of fudging rolls. We also cover some alternative ways to use dice at your table and their impacts, including rolling in the open vs behind a screen, and player...
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Season 1
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Episode 39
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53:25