Shownotes for Dice Chain 1 (Links 1-3)

Theme  Rise of a Hero · Infraction Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6ChLebsTYw

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

FanExpo 2026

 Thanks so much to the Canadian Podcast Awards for once again inviting me to promote TOTM at this year's FanExpo convention. I had a great time and met loads of wonderful folks.

Odok's Sketchbook

 A while back I put out a call for artists to submit pages of Odok's Sketchbook. I knew that only one or two would make their way into the story but I always thought it would be cool to put out the whole collection after the season ended. So here they are. My sincere thanks to all who participated!

By Christine O

By Dave Rollins

By Jon

By Kukka Hanski

By Lost Ranger

By Moses

By Simon W

By Simon W

By Solist Venture

By Steve Brute

By Steve Brute

By Steve Brute

Shownotes for Episode 65 (FINALE) (S3E65)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Part 1a Ivan Duch, Magical Forest https://open.spotify.com/track/4P5a7FVCM7jMkbnwyrg7wn?autoplay_ok=1

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

*The Warden's Song was written and produced by Tale of the Manticore with vocal performance by Sienna J

I Went to GEN CON 2026!

Just got back from Gen Con! 

You know, I went with some reservations, wondering if I would really enjoy myself. But I ended up having a fantastic time. The games were good, the spectacle was big, the DnD celebs were everywhere, and the folks were friendly. 

My only criticism is that the event is so expensive that not everyone who wants to go, can go. I spent about $2000 Canadian, all in. Obviously, costs will vary depending on where you come from, how you travel, your lifestyle, etc, etc, but since badges and games both come with a price tag, I think that even if you lived in Indianapolis, you'd still be looking at 4-500 bucks to do all 4 days.

That said, I would definitely recommend going to anyone who can afford it.  It was a very, very good time.  

Here's my top 12 pics from the experience.

At the airport.

Inside Lucasoil Stadium.

Meeting Luke Gygax.

Meeting James Raggi.

Cardhalla!

Meeting Professor Dungeon Master.

Meeting Questing Beast.

Meeting Skid from the GCN.

Hanging with Coop from Myth & Moon.

Meeting Troy Lavallee.

Meeting Trevor Devall.

Winning a copy of Daggerheart!

Shownotes for Episode 64 (S3E64)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

My GenCon Schedule

 Hey friends!

For anyone heading to GenCon, if you'd like to hook up and play some games, here's where I'll be:

Shownotes for Episode 63 (S3E63)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Part 1b Odin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XddzQIaRIU

Part 1e SoundImage.org Misty Bog https://soundimage.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Misty-Bog_remixed.mp3  

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

Shownotes for Episode 62 (S3E62)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Dramatis         RPG SOUNDS #1506 “Realization”

Part 2a Odin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XddzQIaRIU

Part2c Tense Cinematic Instrumental Ambient Music by Argsound

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTz6Qp7QE_c

Part 3 Fearless Final Boss Battle - Alehandro Vodnik

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

Shownotes for Episode 61 (S3E61)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

I Went To A Renfaire

Last Sunday I attended my first ever Renfaire. It was at Black Creek in Toronto on June 20th.

I was first struck by just how many of the attendees were in cosplay (about half); how many costumes had nothing to do with the Renaissance (about three quarters); and the sheer number of folks sporting those plastic Temu elf ears (like… a lot).

The day started with a joust in which the MC belabored the point that the sport was completely real and very dangerous. Within about 2 minutes, one of the knights was launched from his (massive) warhorse, and landed hard on the ground. 

He laid there, unmoving, for quite some time while the smiles in the audience began to droop.

Sir David had dislocated a shoulder and the joust was over.

I think I can speak for the audience when I say we all felt a bit crappy about having paid to see an exciting bloodsport in which someone actually got hurt.

The rest of the faire (the extra e matters) was good - it included pizza cones, lemonade, taking in a few shows (Men in Tights - a pantomime style audience participation show, Midwife Crisis - a straight up stand up comedy routine, and a sword-balancing belly dancer) which were all very well done. We finished with a walk about in the shopping tents.

Here's a few photos:

The joust's MC.

Notice the Temu elf ears?

There's a wizard by the knight. Sure, why not?

The lance was solid wood... and it bent!

Sir David goes down. And stays down.

Shownotes for Episode 60 (S3E60)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

Shownotes for Episode 59 (S3E59)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Part 1c      Odin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XddzQIaRIU

Part 1e Tense Cinematic Instrumental Ambient Music by Argsound

     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTz6Qp7QE_c

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

Shownotes for Episode 58 (s3E58)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

Shownotes for Episode 57 (S3E57)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Part 1c          Odin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XddzQIaRIU

Combat  Miguel Johnson Good Day to Die https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_k-RQA7lBE

Some  FX  https://www.zapsplat.com

Three Things That Drive Me Nuts in Actualplays

 It's been ages since I did a clickbait, hot-take, rant.  

Lately, I've been listening to even more APs than usual. Most are wonderful, entertaining and inspiring but it turns out I am a picky listener and certain things I hear just ejector-seat me right out of the fiction whenever I come across them.  I've already talked about tieflings and pun names and edgelords. That's not what I'm going to complain about today. Today I want to talk about 3 Anachronisms that somehow manage to become the pimple-on-the-face of whatever I'm listening to.  In order from bad to worst, they are:

1: GLASS WINDOWS:

A quasi-fantasy world should not have glass windows for the same reason they shouldn't have mechanical pencils... these things just weren't around in the actual middle ages (upon which most fantasy I listen to is based). Yes there was leaded glass - windows of this material existed, but were small and rare. The other exception is the stained glass window. Those certainly existed but were so expensive as to only really be found in churches. Because this technology sort of existed in the medieval world, I'll designate this offensive anachronism as "least bad".

2: "OK"

Characters should not say "OK". I was writing script the other day, and I wanted to write that an NPC had "lost what was left of their cool" but I stopped and went back and changed it to "lost what was left of their composure". The idiom of "losing one's cool" was just too modern. It would've sounded weird.  To be honest, if you scratch the surface, there are a lot of words and phrases that should be avoided because they were coined in modernity, but at some point we have to just accept the inconsistencies and even hypocrisies of fantasy. Still, "OK" ... is not OK.

3: THE RAPIER

I don't know why this one bugs me the most. It is anachronistic - rapiers did not appear historically until the late fifteenth century. But you know, it's not the anachronism that bothers me... I think it's a correlation I feel exists between "characters with rapiers" and "players with 'Main Character Syndrome'" ... is it just me? Maybe. But the character with a rapier is very likely, I feel, to be either an edgelord or a joke character who speaks with loud blustering bravado and possible wears a floppy crushed velvet cap.

"OK". Rant over. And it feels good to get it out. 

So, what bugs you? What are some things that you can't stand in APs?

A quick Note About Monster v Monster Encounters

 Without spoiling, the latest episode requires the use of a ruling to allow monsters who can only be hit by magical weapons to face off against other monsters. I used the rule from AD&D that says in the case of monsters, sufficient Hit Dice enable them to attack immune creatures as if they were fighting with magical weapons. 

Table 48 lists various numbers of Hit Dice and their magical weapon equivalents.

Shownotes for Episode 56 (S3E56)

Theme      Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome      148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO              Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Combat     Miguel Johnson Good Day to Die https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_k-RQA7lBE

Some  FX    https://www.zapsplat.com

Shownotes for Episode 55 (S3E55)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Part 3b  Lunar Years, Event Horizon https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music/track/event-horizon-epic-cinematic

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

Shownotes for Episode 54 (S3E54)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

There's a New OSitD-Inspired Game in Town

 This one is "rules-extra-crispy" but the basis of the engine is OSitD, with freeform mapping and the like.  If you like Shadowrun and have ever wondered, "could Shadowrun OSitD?" then give this game a try:

Hangin' Out With Brian From Swords vs Madness

Yesterday I got to spend the afternoon talking all things pod and rpg with the creator of Swords vs Madness. Brian has a lot of irons in the fire, including building and managing the SRPN website (that's the Solo Roleplayers Network) that we launched a year ago. 

Was Not Expecting This...

 Well, this is a surprise! Number 1 for the week!

Goodpods Top 100 Leisure Indie Podcasts Listen now to Tale of The Manticore, a Dark Fantasy Du
ngeons & Dragons Audiodrama podcast

Shownotes for Episode 53 (S3E53)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Dramatis         RPG SOUNDS #1506 “Realization”

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

Fantastic New Listener Art!

 These are by Jay Bills, and I just love the vibrant, joyful energy.  That first picture of Achillea practically leaps off the page.  SO GOOD!

See more of Jay's work right here.

Shownotes for Episode 52 (S3E52)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

Shownotes for S3E51b Interview With Tana Pigeon

Theme   Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

Shownotes for Episode 51 (S3E51)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

Inspirations for Mirror Lake

 It was in June of 2025 that I went to Calgary to attend AardCon. While there, I took a side trip to Banff to visit the iconic Lake Louise. One look and I knew it had to go into the show, but couldn't call it 'Lake Louise'.... so I used the name of a second, smaller lake I hiked to: Mirror Lake. The place in the story is basically an amalgamation of the two spots.

Shownotes for Episode 50 (S3E50)

Theme  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO          Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Some  FX https://www.zapsplat.com

*The vocalist for Aiyamee's song is the incredible Sienna J.

Listen to Sienna J on TikTok

Introducing: Corporate Saboteur

 There's a new solo game in town.  Brought to you by Crit Dreggae, Corporate Saboteur is a solo journaling RPG about workplace revenge, moral limits, and controlled chaos. Through prompts and dice rolls, players chronicle small acts of rebellion inside a fictional corporate machine, exploring the blurry line between survival, sabotage, and conscience.

I can honestly say I have never seen anything like it before - and it gives me Office Space vibes in the best way. If you'd like to check it out, you can get a copy right here.

Shownotes for 'The Wretched' & Episode 49 (S3E49)

Bonus Episode 'The Wretched'

Theme         Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

49

Theme         Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome     148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO             Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Some FX     https://www.zapsplat.com

I'm off-grid for the next 4 weeks

 Well, not really off-grid, but I will not be checking email or socials regularly as I travel in South America for the next month or so.  Episodes are automated to release on my altered schedule: Feb 15th & March 1rst.  When I get back I will resume the usual 3/month schedule.

Hasta luego,

Jon

Discussing Dispel Magic

 A little while back, Achillea acquired the 3rd level Magic User spell, Dispel Magic during a level up segment.  She got it through a random roll, but the implications of this turn of fate were immediately significant.  Could she just... dispel the magic on Aldvay and reverse his petrifaction?  If so, the story would be more or less over.  I'm sure I choked on my coffee a bit when this occurred to me, but after a moment's consideration, I understood that no, this is not something this spell could do. Story saved.

But let's talk a bit about why this is so, without getting into 'angels on the head of a pin' territory.  The Expert rules say the spell removes 'spell effects' cast by a magic user.  So, a definition of 'effects' is in order.  If a Disintegrate spell kills a villager, the effect might be that the villager is dead - clearly Dispel Magic will not bring Farmer Joe back to life.

I think the crux of any argument has to be: is the magic still there? And here's where it gets tricky. A Wall of Fire? Can be dispelled.  An active Levitation spell? Can be dispelled. Petrifaction? Well, we have to know if the newly created stone is magical or not. I would argue it is not. A quick look online shows that the community is split on this and I learned that in 5e, there's a window of opportunity in which a Dispel Magic will work, but after a minute or so, the effect is considered permanent.

So for me, Achillea's choice not to risk ending her quest to go home and risk failure is justified (she would have failed). It's a bonus that it didn't ruin the plot, but I do think the ruling is sound. 

Do you have thoughts? Share in the comments below :) 

ONE MILLION DOWNLOADS!!

 

It finally happened: TOTM has been downloaded more than one million times. It's such a big number that my brain cannot fully comprehend the size, but I can tell you one thing: it feels great! Considering the recent disaster with my SSD, this is just what I needed to pick myself up off the ground and get to work restoring the lost episodes.

Thanks to everyone who helped make this dream come true!

Shownotes for Episode 48

Theme         Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome     148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

LTO             Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCz

Dramatis     RPG SOUNDS #1506 “Realization”

Some FX     https://www.zapsplat.com

Critical Hit: I Am Down to 1 Hit Point

 Extreme bad luck struck this month when my SSD hard drive suddenly died.  My backup was fairly recent but did not save very much.  Luckily, all scripts and music - the irreplaceable stuff - was saved.  All told, I lost about 100-120 hours of work, including four completed, yet-to-be-released episodes and another 8 partials.  I'm currently in rebuild mode but the amount lost means I will not be able to keep my normal release schedule.  I'll try to get episode 48 out on time, but then I will have to release some bonus content as a stop-gap. I'll do that on Feb 15. On March 1 I will try to resume my usual schedule with episode 49.  It has been a difficult thing to come to terms with, but quitting is not an option, so it's time to roll up my sleaves and get to work.

(There's also some good news coming - but I'll save that for now, and announce it in episode 48.)