Speaker 1: 0:06

Hello and welcome to Jo's in Fandom Podcast, episode nine.

Speaker 2: 0:11

We're back again. It's almost double fingers, it's all the same.

Speaker 1: 0:16

What 10? Oh, of course, the 10. Sorry, 10, 10. Now let's start with the Doctor who numbering system for the next hour we're going to discuss how 10 isn't? Really 10.

Speaker 2: 0:26

He's got nine. Oh God, no, Don't do it to me.

Speaker 1: 0:30

Yeah, and then he's also 5th, 14th, 16th, and anyway, yes, no, we're not going to do that, we'll do that next time. But yes, we are nearly at double figures, ladies and gentlemen, so that's quite cool.

Speaker 2: 0:40

Yeah, did you tell me it was our like eight year or 12 year anniversary 11th anniversary last weekend. Podcast.

Speaker 1: 0:52

Yes, so that's when we first released our first episode last time round. So that's quite good. I think 11 years, 11 years, yeah, a lot happened in 11 years. We were younger and less jaded. The world is a very different place.

Speaker 2: 1:10

Oh yes. Talking of oh yes, Did you watch a trailer for the specials, Did that?

Speaker 1: 1:18

happen since our last. I was thinking about that. Yes, I think the trailer did happen.

Speaker 2: 1:23

The big trailer.

Speaker 1: 1:25

Yes, well, I've got news, but I didn't have that one because I wasn't sure if we'd seen it or we hadn't seen it, so we won't watch it. But yes, let's jump into news. So the trailer was out whatever day it was, didn't? Interestingly, the only big thing that I gleaned from it was they actually admitted that Neil Patrick Harris is playing the celestial toy maker, but it wasn't in the trailer, it was on the website afterwards.

Speaker 2: 1:49

I think from the trailer it was. If it wasn't, they've done something completely insane, because you just go. Yeah, this has got to be him.

Speaker 1: 1:57

Yeah, because they didn't physically say it. But again there's they haven't released much more other than Donna is going to be featured in the whatever's happening, but we still got the same scenes, the same shots, the same interactions. Okay, we've got a few more stuff like tenant doing whatever tenant does best, shouting and stuff like that, an angst thing, but again nothing new, nothing we haven't already seen in one show for another. Which is interesting, and do I the best thing?

Speaker 2: 2:33

It makes me really happy to know that we're done.

Speaker 1: 2:35

Yes, because I'm excited because we're going to do the preview episode next after this one. We're going to record that one. Yeah, I don't know what we're going to talk about because nothing is out there. So it's all going to be speculation, which is great.

Speaker 2: 2:48

Yeah, yeah, I'm going to have to watch the trailer again. He goes I can speculate, and I was talking for this two minute trailer. I've got this, yeah, so it's bizarre.

Speaker 1: 2:57

It's really good and Miriam Margolais is playing the voice of beep. That's the only thing that came out after again, after the trailer. It wasn't during the trailer or anything like that.

Speaker 2: 3:08

I think it's nice that the trailer hasn't given away the entire episode. You just go. Yeah, we've got limited information, we know what we already know and I'm excited about November.

Speaker 1: 3:20

Yeah, it's going to be good. What?

Speaker 2: 3:22

five weeks out, now Six weeks.

Speaker 1: 3:24

Yeah, so it's October the 14th, so it's not that long to go.

Speaker 2: 3:29

I'm excited Tim, I'm excited, well, doctor who for so long news time.

Speaker 1: 3:35

Have you heard the new theme tune that came out this week? It was repeating the new Doctor who theme for, for I assume it's for the next series as well. It was released bizarrely on like Tik Tok and Facebook, but it hasn't come onto YouTube, although people have ripped it. But I haven't. Yeah, so it's so. Yes, without further ado, here is the Doctor who theme, which will not appear on the YouTube channel because we will get copyright struck, but it will appear in the podcast. Right again, not as we have done this three times already Three, two, one no-transcript got the original.

Speaker 1: 5:24

So like the nine, 10, you get definitely you can hear Matt Smith's one in there, yeah, and now that I listen to it on headphones you can kind of get capaldes in there as well. It's all three of. Sorry, jodie, but it's it's definitely the first two. Yeah you can definitely hear both of them. I think that's really good yeah.

Speaker 2: 5:47

That's the thing. It's new but familiar. And you go yeah, I can live, I like this yeah.

Speaker 1: 5:51

Yeah, that's a good. That's the tagline for this whole thing. It's new, but it's familiar.

Speaker 2: 5:57

Yes, yeah, and I think, like you said, I think that's going to be the tagline for for Russell's return, isn't it? New, familiar, yeah, new who we've familiar doctor companions.

Speaker 1: 6:10

Yeah, it's interesting. There's also been some Doctor who magazine came out two days ago, so the usual beat the meat thing in their eye, yeah. And Russell's thrown around dates, so we just have a look at this. So this first thing is to know dodged all the adverts on here.

Speaker 1: 6:33

three dates November the first, november the 17th and November 23rd. Now Eagle Eye fans have said that November the first is they're releasing all who onto iPlayer, so everything. So I don't know how long that's going to be for, because I'm brickbox at the moment, isn't it? But that's all going to be out on iPlayer. 17th is children in need, so there's obviously going to be the traditional Russell T Davis children in need and then obviously, 23rd is 23rd. They still haven't released the, the dates of filming, but so that one's still out there. But you also just scroll down, where is it? He also said that he had a random idea and filmed something else. Oh, there we go. In July just came up with a further idea and filmed it in six days. So again, he's not saying anything, but he's, they're still doing stuff for it behind the scenes.

Speaker 2: 7:35

Yeah, I think it's good that they're just drip feeding stuff and just saying there's stuff coming, there's stuff coming.

Speaker 1: 7:40

Yeah.

Speaker 2: 7:41

But not saying what it is not saying. Card and fast, when it is not even saying what it is, just there is stuff coming and again the excitement builds and you get all good, it's gonna be good, please please, yeah.

Speaker 1: 7:57

So there we go. That's the Doctor who Doctor who news. As always, this all unused thing seems to be that's kind of I don't mind that, because we're building up to Doctor who aren't we so exactly?

Speaker 2: 8:07

This is true, this is true? So what we're talking about today, then, I believe we're going to talk about the wonderful world of Dungeons and Dragons.

Speaker 1: 8:18

Yes, because Dungeons and Dragons has, over the last what five years more than that, exploded in fandom, hasn't it?

Speaker 2: 8:26

And yeah, it's had a. It's living a Renaissance, isn't it? Because obviously it started it. Christ on the 70s, 70s, 80s yeah, I can't remember, it was T S, r and all sorts it's. It's been owned by so many people and now, like Stranger Things, with D&D movie and with Baldur's Gate, that is eating all of my free time. I say all of my free time. The hour, a day of free time I have is now allocated to playing Baldur's Gate.

Speaker 1: 8:58

Yes, yeah, no D&D. I'm relatively new to D&D so I start on you off. It don't get me wrong, but we only played it, oh, just after lockdown 2021 started, so still a newbie to all of it. But obviously its influences like you say, baldur's Gate, but all the games that have come before that in that genre have been influenced by D&D in some shape or another.

Speaker 2: 9:26

Yeah, yeah, and that's the thing I think it's one of those games that's been around for so long that it's kind of it's the big one, everybody borrows from it, a load of third parties right for it, which we'll talk about later and it's just just a really, really solid system and actually it's been around for so long. It's all. It's part of cultures. Like you say D&D and everyone goes, oh, you know what that is. That's that Even that they can't tell you what it is, they go oh, I've heard of D&D. Dungeons. Dragons is a thing, yeah, yeah, like Doctor.

Speaker 2: 9:58

Who. We just go Doctor who and they go. Yeah, I've heard of that.

Speaker 1: 10:01

Yeah, that's it. Yeah, it's a cultural reference point. Yeah, it's culture. Yeah, if you played it, you know of it or you know people that have played it.

Speaker 2: 10:09

Yes, yeah, because I confess I started when I was a young man, many, many, many years ago. I was what all must have been in my mid twenties. So what, 15, 16 years ago? I'm not that old, don't give me that look.

Speaker 1: 10:34

Yes, that would be joking. Yeah, yeah, so just before the podcast, if we look at the 11 years, but yeah, it's pen and paper. The whole concept of that has been around since, like say since year dot, and people have been playing it for such a long time.

Speaker 2: 10:51

Yeah, so the important, the main question is, tim, do you have a favorite character? Slash class, slash race, slash when you play D&D, what do you be?

Speaker 1: 11:01

What are you? Well, I'm actually. I'm the Dungeon Master or the GM Games Master, so I haven't yet been a character, if that's the game we've played. I've been the DM for every game You've been Dungeon, Daddy have you. I'm yet to be released. I have a pantheon of characters lined up ready for that day that they released me from my duties, but I've not actually been. Yeah, I've been in charge rather than so.

Speaker 2: 11:35

Of your pantheon of characters, have you got one that you're really keen to try first?

Speaker 1: 11:39

Yeah, it's got to be a dwarf, it's got to be the stereotypical grumpy dwarf, yeah, and I've got a particularly good one lined up. But magic is also something that kind of appeals to me, because I did have an NPC that I forced on people and wouldn't let them get rid of him, and he was quite, quite a comedy wizard and I would actually have to just a wizard with really useless powers that I just have no clue to.

Speaker 2: 12:06

Because I created him.

Speaker 1: 12:08

I used D&D Beyond and I just auto created a character and didn't look at the powers and they were all rubbish. So I just kept this guy just doing random stuff and it was just winding him up, but it was great.

Speaker 2: 12:21

So yes.

Speaker 1: 12:21

I have not been released into the wilds. I suppose if we flip it and I'm playing like Dragon Age or something like that, I'm normally a berserker kind of barbarian type. That's my video gaming style, although I had been persuaded to be a wizard, which is actually quite good because you can step back and do the what's the word? Kind of fighting from a distance. But now I think you'll end up being something with a big sword or a big axe.

Speaker 2: 12:48

Oh, I love it, I love it.

Speaker 1: 12:51

So what about you? What's?

Speaker 2: 12:52

your I'm the worst person in the world because my I play the same character every D&D session. In fact, every role play game I played, pretty much the same character appears when you. When you said about forcing an NPC on players, the current D&D session I'm DMing for we're doing Icewind Dale, my go to character has appeared in an NPC and she is causing absolute chaos. So normally I play a human Paladin. Paladins are quite good. Yeah, she's not. No, she's strict rulebook. Oh, she's. She's the classic lawful stupid.

Speaker 1: 13:39

Oh stupid, oh right.

Speaker 2: 13:41

Yeah, yeah. So basically thinking Middle Earth Barbie, oh my lord, yeah, I've got ideas.

Speaker 1: 13:49

now I've got ideas.

Speaker 2: 13:50

She imagine an adventurer who will not sleep in the rough. She brings her own tent. She brings her own it long to router people. She has like a full, like support staff to go adventuring with oh, that's, that is awesome.

Speaker 1: 14:07

That is such a good idea.

Speaker 2: 14:08

And she is the absolute worst. She never has any money because wherever she gets your spends on fancy clothes she looks amazing doing it, but she's absolutely useless. Oh, that's brilliant.

Speaker 1: 14:21

That is really good, and she's properly the worst. That is a really good. What's her name? Mira? Oh yeah, there you go. That's good, I like that.

Speaker 2: 14:32

Yeah, she is just, she is just the worst and she's she sent so like, she has custom made armor and obviously, as you know, one of my favorite current characters is a certain Kryptonian.

Speaker 1: 14:46

Yeah, I can just about see it.

Speaker 2: 14:48

Yeah, so, yeah. So Mira has the same armor style. Yeah, so her plate may have has a boom window which is going if you're adventuring, why would you make a target here? Why? And again, everyone's going. But tell me that effects, we're gonna fancy armor. It just works. So, yeah, she, she was, she walk around, so she got like bright blue hair, complete target. Yeah, and she's just going yeah.

Speaker 2: 15:20

I'm not stealthy in any way, shape or form. I will wave at people, talk to anyone, want to be everyone's friend, even like the bad guys, and she's just a problem. She won't steal from people. She won't loot corpses. She spends every penny she ever finds on just random stuff. You go, please make us stop.

Speaker 1: 15:42

Oh, that's good, that's good.

Speaker 2: 15:43

Yeah, I do feel sorry for my D&D party and for because obviously she's joined them and she's just there causing chaos. Please just make her go away. Can we kill her?

Speaker 1: 15:52

please. Oh, that is good, that is good.

Speaker 2: 15:56

Yeah, so she is a problem, but we love her for it.

Speaker 1: 16:01

Brilliant, I think that's the D&D. If you because people often speak to people they go oh, how is the role playing? Oh, you get into it. But actually you don't have to be like an actor or voice actor to see on, as long as you can like become the character or you understand the character enough to know what their motivations are. That's all you need. You don't need anything special.

Speaker 2: 16:23

And I think, like if your character has a personality and you behave using that personality, that's, that's half right. You haven't got to do a voice or anything like that. You should go. Actually this character will approach a situation like this Me as Matt would do one thing, but actually me or Paladin will do something completely different.

Speaker 2: 16:44

And as long as you are honest with that approach to it, then you're you're going to be fine. I think, like you said, that is one of the nice things about D&D you just get to have a bit of a release and be someone completely random.

Speaker 1: 16:56

Yeah, I know.

Speaker 2: 16:58

I know, like Jackson, some of my friends who play a lot more D&D than I do, they're sort of saying, oh yeah, I've got loads of character ideas in every campaign. I want to be something different. And I'm thinking I thought that to me is, I can't do that, I can't be, I can't have 50 characters. So when I DM I'm going, yeah, fine, I know what I'm doing. Yeah, just lots of different player characters. I'm thinking I need to have a full, the full personality for them. The full yeah, creating someone from scratch that I'm then gonna have to live with for the next how many months, years, sessions, whatever. I'm thinking oh no, which is why I always use the same character in any role-play game. Could I can get? Yeah, I know what she does, so I can implant her into any story and just help drive the story along, because there's nothing worse than when a story just stalls because the character going we don't know what to do.

Speaker 1: 17:50

Yes, yeah, yeah, that's good way looking at it, isn't it? Because there are some people who just like Change, they like to do something different. But then, yeah, if you, if you like a character so much and you can just go right, I'm just gonna be that character all the time and just gonna keep doing it.

Speaker 2: 18:04

Yeah, that would work.

Speaker 1: 18:06

Yeah, that's got food for thought. I might have to go back to the drawing board because I am after this game we're playing, we're doing curse of strad and oh I. Don't know how far we are through it because they keep, they keep going get sidetracked to about 20% Possibly. So I'm thinking probably another six months we might finish it, but I'm gonna swap after that and I'm gonna get to do the character things. Actually quite looking forward to that Anyway.

Speaker 2: 18:33

I love curse of strad.

Speaker 1: 18:35

It's my favorite such a good story because I've never played it.

Speaker 2: 18:38

I've DM'd it like twice and I love it.

Speaker 1: 18:41

I think strad's fantastic it's the going from we did. The first one we did was the Dragon of ice Ice peak. Dragon ice fire peak. No, what's it? Ice by a peak, that's it.

Speaker 2: 18:57

Yeah, which is like.

Speaker 1: 18:59

Yeah, and that was. That was easy. But we found that quite I was adding extra bits into it because it was getting quite boring. But this one I haven't added anything to it because there's so much going on and as a DM, as you'll attest to, you can't just rock up to a session and just go. I just wing it. You have to know what's going on, because they could go Well, maybe it's just me they could go left or they could go right, and it's like, if they go right, so what happens next? I've got, I've got to be two steps ahead.

Speaker 2: 19:28

Yeah, have you? Have you heard the joke? There are two types of DM. No, go ahead, there is. There is one which will do no research, no planning, and literally they'll read the book on the day. They're like we can go cool with it today. And there's the other type that will spend the entire week prepping, have meticulous notes for everything and just be fully Committed. They will know every single millimeter of this place and there's nowhere in between your Eva case, it yeah cool, look, does that? That's fine, or you're so?

Speaker 1: 19:58

many notes? I don't know. I don't do notes anymore and I'll tell you why in a minute. I think I'm probably the first one now, because when I started I was so and then we did a one for family, for Birthday, so it was one I created myself. So it's theater of the mind and I created this intricate.

Speaker 1: 20:16

It was quite a simple premise but it had an intricate storyline that wove its round its way around. It had a really intricate trap. I thought this is brilliant, I've got this set up on them and they completely sidetracked the trap. It was all to do with weight of bodies on stepping stones and they had to have so much weight. So by carrying one of them the Mini bosses round as a dead hand puppet, they managed to circumcise, short circuit the weight on the trap, which immediately turned it off, and then the whole boss fight at the end, which was a big golden ball. They managed to circumvent that by climbing through, event that I left I kind of described. They kind of like embellished this vent and the whole borders rent and destroyed the other half of the building, which was all the other people that I'd hold create a whole backstory to. So ever since then, I think I've just gone. No, I just not gonna plan and just just gonna walk.

Speaker 1: 21:09

I kind of know what's going on. Yeah and I know that. Okay, I know we strad. I kind of direct them because they have to go and pick up the different Items they have to pick up. Yeah, defeat him so they kind of know where they're going. But I've given up planning because it's just not worth it, especially when you do plan and they just mess it up.

Speaker 2: 21:29

Have you had straw? Just come along the buff a few times yet.

Speaker 1: 21:33

I've had a battle in the street which was brilliant because they were really they're quite not not a high level, but they were doing quite well and then he brought two vampires and just absolutely laid waste to them and the vampires were interested because it took them ages to realize that the vampires kept regenerating and they was wouldn't die. Yeah, every so often he just Interjected the fight and just like literally poke them and just walk away and I thought I can't keep doing this. I'm gonna have to disengage all this because we're gonna be here all night and yeah, so yes, that's so much fun.

Speaker 1: 22:08

We do it on roll 20. I think I mentioned it previous podcast which is challenging at this type of story. The first one was quite easy because it's all quite. There's not many characters, there's not many monsters, but with that there's so many things on the screen and you just gotta be like I've got kind of like two and a mini screen kind of set and it's like it's so many windows open and it's. That is a bit of a. I've never done it face-to-face, so that's the thing. I've never done it, so I don't know what it's like, but I imagine it's a little bit easier doing it face-to-face.

Speaker 2: 22:38

I've never done D&D online. I've only ever done face-to-face, because when I first started doing it the internet did not exist. It was not a thing. So the fault of doing D&D online was just completely alien, whereas even like D&D beyond I've never used. It's not bad, I'm old-school. Yeah, yep, api character sheet lovely, the full time is country online.

Speaker 1: 23:06

Yeah, the stuff like that. But yeah, it's always been online, so just it is what it is. Well, 20s, all right, it's a bit. Yeah, can be a bit temperamental, but it works.

Speaker 2: 23:18

So talking of D&D, because that's today said that's today's podcast. So when you first started what we had you seen anything online or read anything, or oh, we like critical role or anything like that.

Speaker 1: 23:34

Yeah, so we mainly watched over lockdown, the outside Xbox. I folks doing oh, name escape, see the, the. Oh, it's gonna really annoy me. Now I'm gonna have to the D&D stuff they were doing over lockdown. I'm just gonna look online because it's really gonna annoy me. Could have done loads since the. Oh, there we go, there we go. So that's what kind of piqued our interest? Because it was like, okay, we've watched this. It's one of these bucket list things we wanna do. Let's put a shout out, see who's interested. And then we just gathered some people together. So this was January 2021. So we were still technically in lockdown, weren't we? And then we just started doing it online. So that's kind of how we did it.

Speaker 1: 24:24

So, yeah, I, I don't even watch. I knew of Critical Role, but I not watched any of them. To be honest, I've not watched any at all, not something that's ever interesting to me. Outside exports was good because it was quirky and it was British and it wasn't slick like, yeah, critical Role is, and it was just funny. I prefer not watching that recently. To be honest, I know they've done loads since then, but that's, that was how we started.

Speaker 2: 24:50

Basically, my point I'm slowly trying to get to is do you think that, like the online, like podcast, critical Role versions of D&D are good or bad for D&D? Because, like, I'm split in my thinking here because obviously they're really good because people know of them and they go yeah, this is a thing. I understand it and it's again, it's mainstream. But actually if you then go to play the game yourself, the poor sod who's going to beat a DM, who's going right, how do I do this? And I'm not Matt Mercer.

Speaker 2: 25:32

So, actually how, as a new BDM, you go oh, of course it's going to be like this. You go, actually, it's kind of not, especially if you're going from watching where they've got like Dwarven Forge Terrain and fully painted models and a studio to I've got a dining room table and a piece of paper. Boys, it's fine, we got this.

Speaker 1: 25:53

Yeah, that is interesting Because I can't remember the time reading articles or listening to people talking about it. And they did say that actually Critical Role can be bad for newbies because A your expectations are so high.

Speaker 2: 26:09

Yes.

Speaker 1: 26:11

But also the nervousness about, oh, I've got to be a voice actor and I've got to do all these voices. I think that's where OX Venture thing was very good, because they did assess, they did think and it timed it really well. Where the DM and I can't again, can't remember his name, I can't remember his name, he was really good did a session with one of the players where he taught him how to be a DM and it was in a YouTube video and kind of just worked. They just bounced ideas off each other and for a DM who's never done it before, that was really good. Because I sat down and said, okay, are they going to watch this? They don't really do voices and stuff like that, they just act like the characters.

Speaker 1: 26:45

And I thought yeah yeah, I can live with that. So I think Critical Role has its place, but I think, yeah, it can scare people off because it's really high quality. So if people aren't going out and looking for other stuff, then that's all they're going to see. But, expectation wise, obviously I'd never done the model stuff or any of the stuff on the table, so I suppose, doing it online it was different to what you saw on TV, on YouTube, so it didn't matter because it was different. Yeah, it's interesting genuinely. It's 50, 50, isn't it?

Speaker 2: 27:23

Yeah, because I know, like for me, even now, having played for too many years, I will fit between speaking as a character and then actually describing what they're going to say or do, because, depending on what mood I'm in, if I'm feeling flamboyant or not, so you just go. Well, actually, you're just going to know, actually my character's going to do this and she's going to say it in its way, or sometimes I go out, well, I'm just going to be her for a bit and just get into that back and forth conversation. And I think that's the nice thing about D&D is there is no right way to do it and, however, there are wrong ways to do it. Did you hear about was it GenCon or Games Expo or one of them, where they had?

Speaker 1: 28:16

some like.

Speaker 2: 28:18

I think, it was either UK or America it was one of them. Yeah, and they had some open D&D sessions and they didn't vet their DMs properly.

Speaker 1: 28:28

Oh.

Speaker 2: 28:29

And the first encounter was a problem and basically the internet exploded and the person was asked to leave and never darkened the doors again. You go oh yep, yes, yeah, he's going. Oh yeah, but it's fine, it's fine, you're going. Yeah, but this is a public game, mate. This is not the one. What you can do with your friends, and probably your own home, compared to what you can do at a convention are two very different things.

Speaker 1: 28:52

I suppose that's it as well because, like, gms in general have different styles. Yes, so it all depends, because, like, when we were doing it we were all new to it anyway, except for one person who'd played before, and we were kind of feeling away along and I think now I just kind of let it slide. I'm not. I know some GMs are really stickly, you must have. They're like they take account of every little bit of money everyone's got and what they've got in their provisions. I don't bother with that, we don't bother with money, we don't really use money. It just happens they just collect gold coins and that's it really. But then also stickler with like, oh, movement and stuff like that. I'm kind of like, well, yeah, they can see around the corner. If it, I always look at it. If it progresses the story, then I'm happy with it. But if it's a little bit too, or if I don't want it to happen, then I'm like, no, you're not doing that.

Speaker 2: 29:46

But I know.

Speaker 1: 29:48

I suppose it takes a while. I suppose even in a session where you don't know, or even if you know people but you don't know how they play it, just it will take a while, and especially I know for us, because obviously I do in a, in a store environment it's you have to have that that session zero, as it's known as basic.

Speaker 2: 30:07

When you go around you go okay, where are your red lines? So actually in this, in this campaign, these are the topics we're going to cover. Are any of these a problem? That's quite a good way of doing it, because actually, like Strard, he's a problem. Strard, he's going yep cool, I decided I'm going to have that woman and no, it's not an answer.

Speaker 2: 30:33

And when I was, when I was DMing Strard and I'm going to get probably abused with my friends, when I used to tell the story we I kept saying the phrase dominated consent is still a consent. And they're going no, it's not, it's not allowed. No, no, no, no, no, no, it's okay. Yep, strard is a problem. I'm sorry.

Speaker 1: 30:55

Whereas by Strard talks like the count from Sesame Street. Oh, I love him. Hello, oh, good Lord, yeah, and some people are very serious, very, and if you mess about or if you, you make light of any of the things, people get very offended. It's not like any fandom, isn't it? People get very offended very quickly If you, if you.

Speaker 2: 31:21

Well, it's like in Icewind Delta at the moment all my soldiers or all my town guard all sound the same as becoming a running joke, when they've all got like a similar surname, like Thompson or Johnson or Jenkins or Stevens, and they all sound like sort of very sort of sort of a eight and a half hot mum, kind of yeah, yes, yes, what, what?

Speaker 1: 31:48

Yes, my, any of my actions always end up like a boo from the Simpsons. So when when someone says, oh yeah that person, he's Welsh, and I end up tough to do Welsh accent.

Speaker 2: 31:58

And it's like you bastard, I can't do Welsh. Yeah, it ends up just like it's just ends up being the same accent for all the characters. Again, I can't do Welsh because again I come, I become a boo from the Simpsons, but I wobble my head and it's a problem. We go no, I can't do that In the case of there are no Welsh characters anymore. They're banned.

Speaker 1: 32:17

Oh Lord. Well, some ways it's good. Voice actors are. It's a skill in itself to be a voice actor, and there's a niche there that they found because they played the game and they made it their own, so you can't fault that. And even look at all the other famous Hollywood-y type people that do D&D. If nothing else, has risen the game from stereotypical geek kids in basements to mainstream and we were talking about it before the start of this, weren't we? About what else has now had a way to do it and I think the big one for me is the Stranger Things has really pushed it.

Speaker 1: 32:58

Yeah, because I was late to the party for Stranger Things. I only finished watching it Last year, this year, last year. Oh man, you've got to see is really good. It's one of those things that I'd heard about it. I went to LFCC last year, last summer.

Speaker 1: 33:17

Yeah and everybody was wearing hellfire club t-shirts and I was like what's that? And no concept of what it was. And I was quickly educated that a couple of the main actors were there for the signings. I was like, oh. So I got home that night and I started watching it and, yes, good, it really is good. The first is really good. Seconds been near third, one kicks it back in. I think they're waiting on one Final series now. I think it is. He's worth a watch. But yeah, that's all based around D&D the whole.

Speaker 2: 33:47

Yeah. So again, when stranger things came out, the amount people coming to who I want to try D&D because I've seen it. Yeah, I'm trying your things. Yeah, which is actually released, a stranger things D&D start set, which had a Demi-Gorgon model in it. Yeah, yeah, yeah, which I thought was a was was quite cool, did you? I mean, this is old news now. Did you ever hear the controversy about how wizards kind of messed up D&D slightly?

Speaker 1: 34:21

Didn't I saw people shouting about it? Yeah, I mean so we're really what happened.

Speaker 2: 34:27

Basically, long story short Third parties can create content for D&D using an open source license and Wizards said oh, we're gonna update it to like version 1.1 and in that change we're going to basically say that if you generate an income, we want some of it, and If you have an idea when you use our stuff, we can use it freely and do what we like with it. And you go how about no? So basically, the collective internet lost their minds, and rightly so, because suddenly all these people whose livelihoods are Built around providing third-party content, content for D&D suddenly went Uh no, so they sell that third-party content through shops, or is it all online?

Speaker 1: 35:16

Yeah, so basically, yeah, like I'm placing, like Parazzo, cobble Press, loads of places.

Speaker 2: 35:24

Um, you could, because there's an open license for it. You can create D&D fifth edition compatible material and publish. Yeah, so there's loads of games that use D&D core rules for their own game system. So I'll do like here's my characters, here's my monsters, here's my classes, here's my backgrounds. But we're using the core D&D mechanics to make it work, because if it ain't broken, don't fix it. But yeah. So when was it's turned around and said oh yeah, if you do that, if you generate an income of over so many thousands, we'd like like 25% of it and you go no, so you've got like big companies is going. Um, how about? We don't do that, but even like small content creators going. But if I create something and then you steal it and publish it as yourselves You're saying you're that's fine to do that because it's yours, never is going. No, this is not the one. Oh dear, yeah. So, uh, was it the coast or?

Speaker 1: 36:25

hasbro.

Speaker 2: 36:27

May as like faux par there and basically they backtracked them it took longer than needed to.

Speaker 2: 36:35

A lot longer. So someone to be other players created their own like open source License. Some companies said, well, we ain't gonna touch D&D again then and goodwill was burned. I think it's the key one. But even like, when it was ending, um, they'd like released a statement sort of saying oh yeah, some voices will say that they've won, but actually we think we have as well and they're going. No guys, you took an absolute shooing. This was not a contest, you lost, just accept it. Yes, the um. I think the problem was hasbro. Who owned was the coast. Basically, their view of dnd is is undermanitized, hence why there's films and Other product trying to ring every penny out of the dnd brand because they're going oh, it's, it's money. Can we have some order please?

Speaker 2: 37:28

Yeah yeah, suddenly they go well all these third, all these third parties are using our product to make money. Why can't we have some? And you're going. Well, the reason your product is so popular is because third parties can use it and promote it. So everyone knows what dnd is. Because everyone know, everyone uses dnd is their their core, yeah, so I think it was a very tone deaf misunderstanding of their audience and everyone's went no, guys, this is not gonna work for you. Oh.

Speaker 1: 38:00

Dear how all comes back to me.

Speaker 2: 38:02

Yeah, I've never seen the internet or will wholeheartedly agree on one thing at once, and went oh no, you've you made a mistake.

Speaker 1: 38:12

You touched on the film. I have now seen the film and it is really good. I really enjoyed it. I thought it was really good. I thought, yeah, it didn't take yourself too seriously, which I thought that was that's about the characters really well done and yeah, I really liked it. So, couldn't. There was not much that could grumble out, to be honest.

Speaker 2: 38:33

No, I think it was good quality classic Just action fantasy film, wasn't it? Yeah, but again, like there was nods to Like in jokes in dnd there was references to the old dnd cartoon.

Speaker 1: 38:50

Oh, yeah, that was great, wasn't it?

Speaker 2: 38:53

Yes, I think that's the thing where you go. Oh yeah, this is ticking all the boxes so you can sort of see well, actually, that's how that would work, and oh yeah, this is yeah it was just good, it felt like, because it wasn't a linear adventure, because I kept things kept going wrong, and that's exactly what the indians about. Yeah, yeah, yeah, how are you? We're gonna go from point a to point b. We've gone by point cdfj.

Speaker 1: 39:16

Yeah, no, it's good it was. It was. I was wet in, was a bit like I'm not really sure about this and actually no, it was spot on. Come fault it.

Speaker 2: 39:28

Oh, I'm now trying to think as well, since they've been Recently, because obviously we've talked about critical role. Have you seen the critical role cartoon? That's on Amazon?

Speaker 1: 39:42

Amazon. Is that whether it's their actual characters?

Speaker 2: 39:47

yes, it's Vox Machina oh.

Speaker 1: 39:51

I've seen it advertised but again not really had any concept, in all honesty watch it.

Speaker 2: 39:56

It's really good. It's there. It's their D&D campaign Cut up into two seasons of good, fun animation.

Speaker 1: 40:06

That's all right, yeah, cuz it's something.

Speaker 2: 40:08

it's always been there, but yeah, it's actually well worth a watch because again I've, I've, I've seen critical roll stuff but I couldn't see myself sitting down for a four-hour session To watch, to watch it. I'm just going, I can do it.

Speaker 1: 40:25

The Oxfordshire. Things were too something, and we used to just watch them continuously and, yeah, over a couple of days, but yeah, four hours.

Speaker 2: 40:35

Yeah.

Speaker 1: 40:39

So I say people watch them and they can be stayed, they can recite Beats and they know when things happen is like four hours. Yeah, I thought I can't. I just can't.

Speaker 2: 40:51

Just can't. It's I was going, yeah, it's just, it's too long for me, but I think that's because I just don't have any time anymore. It would take me, for it would take me a week to watch four hours of trigger roll.

Speaker 1: 41:03

Yeah, yeah, I could say the same.

Speaker 2: 41:04

Yeah, I'll have to. I pretty much have to watch them at some point. But no, actually, if you can sit down and watch the the volt Mackinac series is cool, it is well worth a watch. Well, no?

Speaker 1: 41:17

like yeah, because I've seen it on the top of Amazon and not really understood what it was.

Speaker 2: 41:21

But yeah, I expect a review and an expect to you.

Speaker 1: 41:25

Oh god, I've got homework now, fans, I Got that to do.

Speaker 2: 41:29

Yes.

Speaker 1: 41:29

Yeah, I'll look and likewise watch some of the Elks venture stuff from the start, because yeah, they're actually quite funny and it's British.

Speaker 2: 41:40

Oh, it's not good then, because, yeah, and I think obviously the other thing we've deemed in a moment, the, the big one is, but we'll just get three.

Speaker 1: 41:49

Yeah, no idea, I've got it, I bought a computer game, tim I.

Speaker 2: 41:55

Actually sat, I bought a computer game. I haven't bought one in years. What for a PC? Yes, I downloaded it from steam oh, get you, I Know right. And I've now been playing it in my spare time. I have like literally like one hour a day and most Right, the headphones go on. I've got now I can do this Design. So once again, my long suffering DD character had been recreated in digital format.

Speaker 1: 42:26

She now exists in a boulders gate cool I've heard of it and you mentioned the the bear incidents which I now remember from Twitter. But I have. I have to get it if it sounds good enough.

Speaker 2: 42:43

In all honesty, go on to YouTube. Look up Amelia Taylor, who is the narrator in boulders gates three. I Love her look.

Speaker 1: 42:54

I just need to get it up there.

Speaker 2: 42:56

Yeah, and it's D&D boulders gate narrator outtakes. There's like five of them at a moment and just when you have like a couple of minutes, just listen to her outtakes from when she's been recording the voice lines for the greater. They are some of the funniest things I've ever heard. It's just genius.

Speaker 1: 43:14

Okay, no, what she's done? Oh yeah, she's done loads of. Yes computer games. I guess that's her.

Speaker 2: 43:21

Yeah, she's great, but no if you, if you just get five minutes, listen to somebody outtakes and they are just hilarious, and for listening to your take over when I need to play this game. I need to hear more of her voice and I need to play this game.

Speaker 1: 43:41

Yeah, it's cool. Yeah, I might have to get it because yeah, play Dragon Age, played all the other awesome. I got Diablo 4 earlier this year. Yeah, yeah, it's boring and I can't put my finger on why. I think it's quite repetitive, whereas proper in-depth, like fantasy games, yeah, I prefer them to the kind of spamming, click-in, killing.

Speaker 2: 44:11

This is, this is proper D&D, so it's all. Initiative exists. You have to make skill check rolling at each one. Oh, awesome, you, yeah, you have all the bonuses for your stats. There's like three different levels. There's like story driven average combat and I just want to kill things today. That's interesting and and, in all honesty, it's a really good story.

Speaker 1: 44:33

Well, that's it. If I, if I get a good story in a game, I'm yeah, I'm hooked. And Diablo Dragon Age is really good because the story was really good. Things like mass effect again, the role-playing in space, but the story was just amazing.

Speaker 2: 44:50

So as long as it's got a good story, I'm hooked on yeah, and again, the character creation is really good so you can pick exactly what, what race you want to be, what class, what background, everything is.

Speaker 1: 45:04

Character creation. As I'm always used to get to the piss off at home, I have to spend a day doing it. I'm so a minute comes to and it always really annoyed me. I create it and then it goes into the game. You see the first live action kind of video with your character. It always looks really nice. I have to start again until I get it right.

Speaker 2: 45:22

Yeah, drives me up the wall the worst thing I got. I got mirror, perfect. When, yeah, this is, this is her, this is perfect. I then listen to the first voice thing that she says when I picked your own voice.

Speaker 1: 45:41

I'm forever sat there tweaking the nose or tweaking the eyes and stuff like that.

Speaker 2: 45:45

Yeah, well, I wasn't prepared for. You can select your genitalia. What there's options.

Speaker 1: 45:54

What like? Obviously with clothes on. So you, but it looks like we close on or just like it's no, no, really there, yeah.

Speaker 2: 46:02

Yeah, I was not expecting it, I was not prepared. I.

Speaker 1: 46:07

Betrayed, now even more yeah.

Speaker 2: 46:10

Yes, because obviously boulders gate a D&D, you can have sex with things.

Speaker 1: 46:16

So obviously the bears.

Speaker 2: 46:18

And they will comment on how you look.

Speaker 1: 46:24

Okay, I didn't realize it was that in depth.

Speaker 2: 46:28

I.

Speaker 1: 46:31

Will have to, not because I want to customize my own genitalia, but I might have to Still play in Hogwarts legacy, which is awesome and that has a really good character creation thing. Actually, I have to mix one of the better ones I've seen, but I'm nearly finished that now, so it's like I need something else to fill that gap.

Speaker 2: 46:53

Yeah, in all, all joking aside, boulders gate really really good.

Speaker 1: 47:04

Lord cool. Yes, I will have to invest in that. I think it sounds quite good because, again, it's yeah something that you can just pick up and play and get a little bit further, or completely go sideways and do something else. I like that.

Speaker 2: 47:16

Yeah, I think it's also. You will get killed a lot. It's like as a as a paladin. I was quite happily chatting to someone. I've misclicked the wrong conversation and it says boy, you've broken your oath. You're now this. I went. No, no, no, no. Edit, undo restart. Well, the thing is, I was like into my hour play of playtime. I was like 55 minutes in and went. I've not saved all night. Oh no, tonight has been wasted Thanks to one miss. Click for a conversation option.

Speaker 2: 47:48

Oh yeah and the thing is, I wasn't expecting it. I said it went, that's really good and that's what would happen, but oh no, oh no. I'm really enjoying it, so would highly recommend. Yes, I might have to invest, so our homework sees. I've got to watch stranger things and um expenditure, yeah, you've got to play both as gates three and listen to rate the rate your outtakes and Watch volk back.

Speaker 1: 48:28

Enough there we go All before. Yeah, next time we record, anyway, uh, yes, so dnd Comments on dnd folks, leave us comment, post us a comment, whatever you want to do about your thoughts on dnd and what you like we don't like, have you?

Speaker 2: 48:43

ever tried, your favorite character, your favorite encounter, what do you think? What?

Speaker 1: 48:51

have you ever customized your genitalia? Stick it in, put it in there and actually that's a really bad phrase stick your genitalia in.

Speaker 2: 49:02

Send us a picture. Oh, what have you done? It's just gonna be dick pics from here on in. I'm not ready, I'm not ready.

Speaker 1: 49:15

Oh right, oh yeah, I think we'll end it there.

Speaker 2: 49:18

Yeah, oh, there's gonna be comments. What have we?

Speaker 1: 49:22

done Until next time, cheerio.

Speaker 2: 49:27

Bye, bye.