The Sky Bear Games Podcast

Have you got questions about our RPG setting, Dragons of Tirenia? You're not alone! Even our personal friends have said, Hey, what's that thing you're always going on about? So here is a podcast episode that goes into our development of the setting since starting in 2014, all the way up to future plans we have for supplements, adventures, and related media.If you enjoyed this episode, let us know! We might just do a lore episode if this one proves popular.The pictures referenced in the episode can be seen on our blog in this post: https://skybeargames.wordpress.com/2021/12/14/podcast-episode-32-all-about-dragons-of-tirenia/

Omigosh, we're baaaaack! We catch up quickly at the start and then launch into our introduction into Planescape. It's such a huge setting that we're going to do more in-depth episodes in a little while. We end with the Top 5 Recommendations for Planescape books, which, as you might expect, became a Top 11. Speaking of which, here are the links for our recommendations:- Planescape Campaign Setting: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/17267/Planescape-Campaign-Setting-2e- In The Cage: A Guide to Sigil: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/17274/In-the-Cage-A-Guide-to-Sigil-2e- Planes of Law: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/17272/Planes-of-Law-2e- Dead Gods: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/17297/Dead-Gods-2e- Tales from the Infinite Staircase: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/17291/Tales-from-the-Infinite-Staircase-2e- Planes of Conflict: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/17278/Planes-of-Conflict-2e- The Planewalker's Handbook: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/17280/The-Planewalkers-Handbook-2e- Uncaged: Faces of Sigil: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/17285/Uncaged-Faces-of-Sigil-2e- A Guide to the Ethereal Plane: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/17293/A-Guide-to-the-Ethereal-Plane-2e- Planes of Chaos: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/17298/Planes-of-Chaos-2e- The Factol's Manifesto:https://www.dmsguild.com/product/17275/The-Factols-Manifesto-2e

Today we interview the composer of the music for the next Sky Bear Games major release, Her Jentle Hi-ness, who is Michaela Cornelius of mikattemusic.com . We ask her about her background, creative process, favourite game soundtracks, and talk generally about games she enjoys. Also featured are short clips of three of her songs from Her Jentle Hi-ness, in order: Royal, Tavern, and Quiet ambience.

In this episode we discuss a heartfelt defence of D&D 4th Edition, and James gives his Top 10(+) books (see the list below). What do you reckon? Agree/disagree? Hit us up!Books recommended:Heroes of the FeywildThe Planes AboveThe Planes BelowUnderdarkThe Neverwinter Campaign SettingThe Dark Sun Campaign Setting and Creature CatalogueMonster Vault 1 and 2HammerfastVor RukothMadness at Gardmore AbbeyReavers of HarkenwoldDungeon Master's Guide 1 and 2Also mentioned: Hamlet's Hitpoints

Bleh, what a bad title... And that should be a pretty good indicator of how our review goes! Besides the new MtG set, we also take a trip back to the past of terrible D&D card games with Spellfire, Blood Wars and Warlords.The two cards mentioned in the Spellfire section can be seen here: https://skybeargames.wordpress.com/2021/07/27/podcast-episode-28-reviewing-magic-the-gathering-dungeons-and-dragons-adventures-in-the-forgotten-realms/

All the screenshots mentioned in this episode can be found here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1mLnDvc5eQu7WuYlyaGVbfJAR_h6osU8P?usp=sharingOn today's podcast we have as our guest Ben Moore, tech journalist and school friend of Claire's. He asked us if he could come on and talk about the Dragonlance movie which James brought up in an earlier episode. What follows is a wild ride! Stick around in the second half to hear James's hot take on what is actually the move that represents the Dungeons and Dragons experience best.

We look back on the year that was, including looking back on two recent events we attended: a hui at Kura Rēhia and the Auckland Indie Game Showcase.Links for places/people/games mentioned in the episode:Kura Rēhia: https://www.facebook.com/kura.rehia/Indie Game Showcase: https://techweek.co.nz/whats-on/2021/indie-game-showcase-142/Kaupapa: https://speak.maori.nz/products/kaupapaHohi 1816: https://hohi1816.nz/Her Jentle Hi-ness Prototype: https://skybeargames.itch.io/her-jentle-hi-nessFrame of Mind: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1485250/Frame_of_Mind/Ten Thousand Coins: https://www.tenthousandcoins.com/Namtran-105: https://namtran-105.itch.io/Scorpion Engine for Amiga: https://www.facebook.com/scorpionengine/Bundle Buddies: https://twitter.com/bundle_buddies?lang=enPokemon Time Capsule: https://pokemontimecapsule.wordpress.com/

In this fortnight's episode we review Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft, and then put characters from our Dragons of Tirenia setting through the Dark Lord Generator! OooOOOOoooo, SpoooOOOOoooky!Links to the supplements referenced:Ravenloft II: The House on Gryphon Hillhttps://www.dmsguild.com/product/178605/I10-Ravenloft-II-The-House-on-Gryphon-Hill-1e?src=hottest_filtered&filters=100084Howls in the Nighthttps://www.dmsguild.com/product/17508/Howls-in-the-Night-2e?filters=100084Castles Forlornhttps://www.dmsguild.com/product/17476/Castles-Forlorn-2e?filters=100084Night of the Walking Deadhttps://www.dmsguild.com/product/17493/RQ1-Night-of-the-Walking-Dead-2e?src=also_purchased&filters=100084The Nightmare Landshttps://www.dmsguild.com/product/17526/The-Nightmare-Lands-2e?filters=100084Van Richten’s Monster Hunter’s Compendiums (contains the nine Van Richten’s Guides)https://www.dmsguild.com/product/17531/Van-Richtens-Monster-Hunters-Compendium-Vol-1-2e?src=also_purchasedhttps://www.dmsguild.com/product/17532/Van-Richtens-Monster-Hunters-Compendium-Vol-2-2e?src=also_purchasedhttps://www.dmsguild.com/product/17481/Van-Richtens-Monster-Hunters-Compendium-Vol-3-2eCreatures of the Night seriesVampireshttps://www.dmsguild.com/product/110201/Children-of-the-Night-Vampires-2eGhostshttps://www.dmsguild.com/product/17521/Children-of-the-Night-Ghosts-2e?src=also_purchasedWerebeastshttps://www.dmsguild.com/product/110204/Children-of-the-Night-Werebeasts-2e?src=also_purchasedCreatedhttps://www.dmsguild.com/product/202394/Children-of-the-Night-The-Created-2e?src=also_purchasedDemons (unofficial-ish)http://www.kargatane.com/

On today's podcast we quickly review some of the winners and finalists of the NZ Game Awards (aka The Pavs), a list which includes:Best Friend Forever by StarcoltDenari by Astronaut DiariesFloating Floors by Gumboot Games LimitedFrame of Mind by [SAMPLE TEXT] Studios ltdGalilean Moons by Fantasy WorkhouseKeep Driving by Connor, Jesse, Jordon & Sam (Yoobee Colleges)Last Message by JamesGamesLonghaus by Gendly GamesMāoringo by Trent ArcherNeocense by Tired Tortoise TribePico Tanks by Panda ArcadeRadical Relocation by Winglett EntertainmentRoad To Nowhere by 15 Bit GamesSoaring Lions by Imaginary Empire GamesSquiggle Drop by Aaron NeugebauerStarport Delta by Cloudfire StudiosSue's Story by Incendio Software (solo dev)Trigger Witch by RainbiteUmurangi Generation by ORIGAME DIGITALUNDER A STAR CALLED SUN by Cecile RichardUpkeep by Gametime AgainVideo World by Things For HumansWatch This Space by It's AnecdotalWonderland Nights: White Rabbit's Diary by Sky Bear Games

Today we break down Claire's experience at the NZ Games Festival, with all the workshops and talks, and how it felt to win the Pav for Excellence in Narrative!Note: I forgot to say one name in the podcast because I launched too quickly into the content of the talk, which was Tana Tanoi whose talk was Life in Three Dimensions, about spaces being lived in through the actions players could take.Also I refer to Rose as the artist and Dave as the proofreader when I mention them at the Pavs, but to clarify, those were their roles on Wonderland Nights. They are even more talented in their full careers! Rose Northey is an illustrator and poet amongst many other things, and Dave Agnew is an editor as well as being a great roleplayer.

With a new 5th edition Ravenloft book coming out next month, we thought it was high time we did another Ravenloft episode. This time we go deep on the metaplot of Ravenloft during it's main run in 2nd edition, and give our Top 5 adventures/supplements that can still be found on DriveThruRPG, though the Top 5 sort of turns into a Top 20, sorta. SPOILERS, like ALLLLLL the way through the episode! If you think you're going to be a player in any of these 2nd edition metaplot events ever, maybe skip this episode. Also sorry about the recording quality. I really messed up with the recording this time, but with some Audacity magic I was able to make it somewhat listenable. Sorry for it being a bit sub-quality though.

Today we go over our Pokemon origin stories, some thoughts about the real world implications and the ethics of the Pokemon phenomenon, and we battle our top 12 Pokemon to found out who is the very best in a totally "objective" and "scientific" way.

In this episode, we discuss Asian Creativity with Benjamin Teh, in the wake of the Atlanta shootings in March 2021.Please note regarding the list of names: The version of the news story that Ben found and read misspelled the first name of Delaina Yaun. The story also misspelled Xiaojie Tan's last name based on information provided by the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office. The story was also updated to include full and correct names for Yong Ae Yue, Hyun Jung Grant and Soon Chung Park.Here is a charity to donate to to support the Asian American community in Georgia during this difficult time: https://actionnetwork.org/fundraising/support-georgias-asian-american-community/Here is another charity cause to donate to from artist Shaun Yu Yong Jian: https://fortifystr.myshopify.com/products/standard-postcardHere is the Spinoff’s article about Anti-Asian hate in New Zealand: https://thespinoff.co.nz/society/22-03-2021/anti-asian-hate-and-violence-is-not-confined-to-america-it-is-right-here-in-nz-too/ Recommendations made in the episode:Golden Threads can be purchased and downloaded at: https://allanxia.itch.io/golden-threads Jiangshi: Blood in the Banquet Hall is available here: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/338920/Jiangshi-Blood-in-the-Banquet-Hall Asians Represent podcast can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/c/aznsrepresent/featured More info about Ten Thousand Coins can be found here: https://www.tenthousandcoins.com/ The Islands of Sina Una is available here: https://hitpointpress.com/the-islands-of-sina-una-campaign-pdf/ You can find the Dumplings and Dragons podcast, hosted by our friend and guest Benjamin Teh, here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoRRuYeg0Eqbu9vsl2TYfWg

Today we finally bite the bullet and do an episode all about Magic the Gathering, which we have a complex relationship with. We cover its strengths and weaknesses, and our completely subjective Top Five sets.

Today we deep dive into the D&D setting Dark Sun: its history, major details, and our top five favourite monsters!

Today we give you our top tips on how to create greater immersion in your tabletop roleplaying games.

This episode we get to have a conversation with Alex and Eric, the hosts of the Bundle Buddies podcast, a weekly game review podcast focused on the contents of the itch.io bundle for Racial Justice and Equality. They are absolutely crack up and well worth tuning into. Look up Bundle Buddies on I Heart Media, Podbean, and many more podcast distributors. We talk with them on many topics, loosely based around the keyword 'Nostalgia'.Apologies for the issues with the sound from our end. We have learnt a few more lessons of what not to do when recording! We have done our best to tidy it up but there are a few moments where we are not as clear as Alex and Eric are.

In this quick episode we go over our six favourite licensed games: two roleplaying, two board/card, and two electronic games.

This week we have our special guest Lauren Wilson - producer, voice actor, sound engineer, work wife, cheerleader, you name it! - talking with me about the plans Sky Bear Games have in store for 2021. We had a fun conversation, but unfortunately large chunks of it got corrupted through me being terrible at all this recording guff. I've learnt a few lessons, that's for sure! But I have stitched together what I could, so please enjoy!

There have been developments in the story about Dragonlance! Join us for this short episode of James's hot takes and theories.Brought to you by our patrons Dave Agnew and Lauren Wilson. Thank for your support!Hosted by Claire and James Dunning. Music by Brent Ahuriri.