Tales From the Shelf

"Ludonarrative dissonance" is a term from game-design commentary, describing a moment when the game mechanics pull in one direction but the game story pulls in another, creating dissonance. The ‘Ludonarrative Dissidents’ are three game designers, reviewers and commentators, veterans in the field of ludic narrative, who have come together to discuss the art, science and craft of RPG design by vivisecting game systems and seeing what makes them run.  Your hosts are Ross Payton, Greg Stolze and James Wallis. Ethos Every episode of Ludonarrative Dissidents is built around four pillars: What does this game do? How does it do that? How do people play it? Why do they play it that way? (and how well does it succeed?) We examine games from all angles: mechanical, ludic, narrativist, historical, cultural, structural, whether or not it’s fun, and Greg complains about its use of the future-conditional tense. We look at its influences and pedigree, its narrative engine, its world-building, its book-design, and James reveals that he dated the designer’s sister, or something like that. In season 2 we have added episodes that look at specific aspects of RPGs, such as initiative systems, metacurrencies and diceless games. Origins The idea behind Ludonarrative Dissidents came from a Twitter discussion in early 2021. Someone was looking for RPG designers to work on a project, someone else suggested Greg and James, and after the two of them politely declined, a third person opined that a podcast with the two talking about games and game design would be quite a thing. Greg and James exchanged a virtual glance across the Atlantic, Greg mentioned the idea to Ross, the three of them filled a Google document with ideas, and the project was born.

Geek Native is an independent news site and community for tabletop roleplaying games, board games, anime, and geek culture. It covers tabletop mechanics, industry news, and reviews with a critical but welcoming tone. Whether you’re a player, a Game Master, or somewhere in between, it’s a solid place to find content that actually holds up. It also publishes practical tools for session prep and world-building -  things like spaceship name generators and lists of oddly unsettling phrases to throw at your players. Alongside those, there are columns on the psychology of gameplay and table dynamics. It’s been around long enough to build a genuine community, and it shows. Links geeknative.com - Website

RPG advice and discussion. Let's talk gaming! Actual play channel with multiple campaigns on Bandit's Keep Actual Play. Links youtube.com - Youtube channel discord.gg - Discord server patreon.com - Patreon page

Hi! My name is Cheto See, and I’m a Concept Artist/Illustrator. I make artwork for TTRPG Sourcebooks and even more fun, commissions of players’ characters. My specialty is designing characters, and helping people visually build their characters, sometimes in ways they couldn’t even imagine. I have a background in costume design, I continuously research historical clothing and equipment, and supernatural lore from many different cultures, and I even practice historical archery, and have dabbled in HEMA. When it comes to visually building fantasy characters, I know my stuff! /images/general-media/1779283367_8UhQmszY.jpg I can draw: - Full Body Character Artwork (with a plain background) - Half Body Character Artwork (with a simple background) - Character Reference Sheets (with Front and Back views and costume and prop callouts) - Even simple colored sketches just to help you visualize your character! You can check out my work at: https://artstation.com/chetosee https://www.instagram.com/chetosee.art/ /images/general-media/1779283386_tbVsjI61.jpg For rates and details, you can reach me at: chetosee@gmail.com Or place orders at: https://vgen.co/chetosee Thank you!

VVD is a visually driven world-building and campaign management platform launched in 2024. Created by an independent developer, it positions itself as a streamlined, "distraction-free" alternative to complex wikis like World Anvil. In 2025, the platform gained massive popularity on social media for its "clean UI" and its strict No-AI pledge, promising that all art and assets on the platform are created by human artists.  Description VVD is built for the "sparks of inspiration." It uses a card-based system to organize NPCs, locations, and magic items, allowing users to connect them visually through an interactive graph. Unlike traditional folder-heavy organizers, VVD feels like a digital corkboard or a personalized Wikipedia that prioritizes aesthetics and ease of use. It is a web-based tool, meaning it requires an internet connection, but it is highly optimized for mobile devices, making it a favorite for GMs who need to jot down world-building notes on the go.

DC20 Forge is a fan-made digital companion platform built specifically around The Dungeon Coach's DC20 tabletop RPG, offering character sheets, campaign management, and a growing suite of GM-facing tools. It isn't officially affiliated with The Dungeon Coach LLC - the site explicitly describes itself as an independent platform - and it runs on a tiered subscription model: a free Apprentice tier covers basic character creation, with three paid tiers (Adventurer, Forgemaster, Dragonforged, ranging $5-$25/month) unlocking higher character and campaign limits plus extra features like audio transcription.