I think it’s time we blow this scene. Get everybody and the stuff together… On a ship named Progressive, three bounty hunters down on their luck jump at the chance to score big at the House of Dice casino, in orbit over the Jovian moon Europa. Rather than rolling the dice at the tables, though, they’ll be gambling on whether or not they can track down a culprit who is already in the system…
Four friends who drifted apart came back to play a game together for old times’ sake, only to find themselves becoming their characters. Jay the gamemaster has vanished, leaving Fitz, Evelyn, and Max wondering exactly what is going on. When they track Jay down will the game continue, or come to a final end? Find out as the Cannibal Halflings find one another in the Fields of the Lost in the conclusion to our actual play trilogy of Now Playing: DIE the RPG!
Last time, we learned about the lives of Jay, Fitz, Evelyn, and Max – who they were in high school, the gaming group they formed together, how their lives didn’t exactly go according to plan since. As the gamemaster kicks things off the players find themselves wondering: what the hell is going on here? Find out as the Cannibal Halflings pick up their dice in Now Playing: DIE the RPG Part 2.
Starring:
Editor Aaron as Jay/the GM
Aki as Fitz
Geni as Evelyn
Seamus as Max
Based on the comic DIE, the first issue of which can be read for free here, DIE: The Roleplaying Game can be purchased in PDF form on DriveThruRPG and from Rowan, Rook, and Decard. Physical copies can be pre-ordered through BackerKit.
You can follow us on Twitter @HungryHalfling for article and show updates! You can also drop by the Tavern of our Discord to chat with us, or reach out to us via email at cannibalhalflinggaming@gmail.com.
If you like what we’re doing with CHR, give us a hand and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Spotify! You can also support us on Patreon.
You can follow us on Twitter @HungryHalfling for article and show updates! You can also drop by the Tavern of our Discord to chat with us, or reach out to us via email at cannibalhalflinggaming@gmail.com.
If you like what we’re doing with CHR, give us a hand and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Spotify! You can also support us on Patreon.
Jay, Fitz, Max, and Evelyn gather together for their high school reunion, and to revisit the tabletop roleplaying game that they played together so many years ago. There’s going to be quite a bit more emotional bleed than they expected… but first, who are they? What are their discarded dreams and deep-seated problems? Why should they have never come back together… and why do they absolutely have to? Find out as the Cannibal Halflings don their Personas in Now Playing: DIE the RPG Part 1.
The game master rules, but what rules them? How do many games leave the one running the game out in the cold, what kind of rules do other games assign to them, and what is gained in the process? Seamus and Aaron try to figure it out!
The Cannibal Halflings wrap up their tour of duty with the Band of Blades! Blood soaks the ground in the forest outside Plainswood – but the Heavy, Sniper, Medic, and what’s left of the Silver Stags squad of the mercenary Legion press on in their assault against the undead (and turned) forces of the Cinder King. When they earn the personal attention of an enemy leader, however, they’ll have to depend on their luck to survive – and they’re not the only members of the Legion at risk.
They’ve found themselves Dead in the Water and having to deal with Friends Like These. They’ve known there’s Trouble Brewing and tracked down the Mask of the Pirate Queen. They’re trying to find balance in the Force and working their way through the Chronicles of the Gatekeeper. Ever looked at a published adventure for Fantasy Flight Games’ Star Wars Roleplaying and wondered what kind of stories they could tell? Well this crew decided to find out for you, and no matter what cantina you drop into or freighter captain you talk with there’s a decent chance you’ll hear Why You Should Listen to Heroes of the Hydian Way.
The Cannibal Halflings join the Legion as it flees east towards Skydagger Keep, the undead forces of the Cinder King and his Broken generals hot on their heels. Having reached the village of Plainswood, the command staff have issued orders and squads are on the march to strike back and clear the path. Faced with twisted undead and even more twisted people, however, it’s going to be desperate going for this bloody Band of Blades!
It’s no secret I enjoy Masks: A New Generation. In particular, I enjoy the podcasts that have spanned outwards from the system. From the schooltime days of Unlabelled to the messy and oftentimes heavy narratives of Young Vanguard to the absurdist but potent style of Critical Bits. Masks has spawned a universe of podcasts that interconnect into different facets of the superhero genre.
But we’re not here today to talk about universes. We are here to talk about multiverses. The Big Two comic companies have ingrained the idea of parallel universes and spiderwebs of different realities into comic book canon. The idea that there isn’t just one Batman, but a whole cacophony of them. That in one universe Spiderman is your friendly neighborhood superhero. But in another he has become a flesh-eating zombie. It’s the concept of a multiverse that has allowed writers to explore radically different stories for their characters without throwing a gigantic wrench into canon.
And while podcasts such as Protean City have touched upon the multiverse premise (And believe me, the Why You Should Listen To Protean City is coming) none of them have made it THE premise for the storyline taking place.
That is, until May 27th, 2020. When a group of different teen heroes, some from the local reality, some from ones far off in nature and domain, met in a graveyard and begun journeying together to ask the question:
What if someone told you there isn’t just one world. That your world isn’t the only one…
I’ve recommended a few Masks: A New Generation actual plays at this point. From the amazing school days of Unlabelled. To the always entertaining and oft-times bizarre Critical Bits. And these stories, for all their hilarity, are no strangers to dark moments. However, today we are going to be talking about an actual play that began as something quite light only to transition to a very real dark side. And did it oh-so-well.
Today, we are going to be talking about Rollout Podcast. In particular, we are going to be talking about their longest running and, in my opinion, the most beautifully painful series: The Young Vanguard.
Cannibal Halfling Gaming 