Science Fiction

Stories set in space, the distant future, or other distant locales.

22
May
2025

454 – Catch Me If You Can with Mike Rugnetta

Mike is a longtime writer, host, producer and sound designer, who has been working in digital media since 2007. Currently, he hosts Never Post, a member-supported, employee-owned podcast about and for the internet, and GMs Fun City Ventures, a fully sound designed cyberpunk narrative play RPG podcast set in a post climate catastrophe New York City, in the year 2102. We sat down to engage in the cat and mouse drama of a criminal and investigator in Catch Me If You Can, to try and answer the question:

What is a criminal, if not a mirror-image of a detective? And what is a crime, if not the setup for its investigation?

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Posted by Admin in Actual Play
19
May
2025

SPECIAL EPISODE: Galactic with Ify Nwadiwe, Nala J. Wu, Dusty Hill, and Catrina Dennis [Episode 1 – Worldbuilding]

INTRODUCING: A bonus two-part series (with a full group!) to coincide with the crowdfund campaign for Galactic and Going Rogue! I sat down with an incredible table of performers, including Ify Nwadiwe, Nala J. Wu, Dusty Hill, and Catrina Dennis to weave a story of rebellion and relationships in space. In part one, we make our characters and build our galaxy–stay tuned for part 2 on 6/2 where we see our heroes dive into action!

You can find the Galactic & Going Rogue crowdfunder here on Kickstarter, going live May 20th: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/galacticgoingrogue/galactic-and-going-rogue-two-ttrpgs-of-war-among-the-stars?ref=8lwj2g

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Posted by Admin in Actual Play
15
May
2025

453 – Orbital Blues with Austin Walker

Austin is the game master for Friends at the Table, an actual play podcast about critical worldbuilding, smart characterization, and fun interaction between good friends. He’s also the designer of Realis, a science fantasy RPG powered by sentences published by Possible Worlds Games. We sat down to play Orbital Blues, a lo-fi space western roleplaying game about freelancers chasing down the intergalactic dream of freedom and success. It’s Springsteen in space, you’re going to love it.

We also discuss the Super Bowl 59 champion Philadelphia Eagles. Go Birds.

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Posted by Admin in Actual Play
16
Apr
2025

449 – It Takes Two to Tango with Mark Vertlib

It Takes Two to Tango is a 2-player, rules-lite, GM-less tabletop RPG about rival spies sent on a mission together. Two rival spies. Two rival agencies. One major job. And unfortunately, one way through the door: Pretending to be a married couple.

I sat down with the game’s designer, Mark Vertlib, for a superheroic espionage-filled game to see how it all works.

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Posted by Admin in Actual Play
27
Mar
2025

SPECIAL EPISODE: Party of One Says Go Birds – 001 – The Dark Sentencer with Dillin Apelyan (LIVE)

SPECIAL EPISODE! As we take a week to rest and recover from a busy schedule, enjoy this special live recording–the first in our monthly live showcase at Unity Java in Philadelphia, PA.

GO BIRDS! For our first ever installement of Party of One Says GO BIRDS, I sat down with my dear friend and certified Coheed & Cambria superfan Dillin Apelyan (ONE SHOT, Patchwork Productions) for a game of The Dark Sentencer by Marn Lastname.

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Posted by Admin in Actual Play
13
Mar
2025

445 – Blister City with Malcolm Critcher

Malcolm is the Creative Director at BRINK Media, and co-creator of This Is Propaganda, a narrative nonfiction podcast that breaks down the hidden influence of propaganda in our modern lives, and how propaganda (or as it would come to be known, Public Relations) have shaped our entire culture today. We sat down to play Blister City, a game about the bloody realities of Martian revolution, and about taking back the world from the fascists who control it.

The folks who ruined Mars have names and addresses. You have a crowbar, and a dream. Make them pay.

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Posted by Admin in Actual Play
04
Mar
2025

SPECIAL EPISODE: Party of One (Plus One) Ep. 2 – Pale Dot with Devin Nelson

BONUS EPISODE! Enjoy this special feed drop of our Patreon-exclusive side series, Party of One (Plus One), focused on sequel episodes, returning guests, and deeper dives into the games we feature on the show.

Devin is the designer of Pale Dot, a collaborative storytelling game for 2-5 players about a crew of non-human cosmonauts leaving their planet to explore a strange solar system, finding threads to unravel the unknown along the way. He takes us through a session of the game, and we get real weird real quick.

For more Party of One (Plus One), check out the Patreon at www.patreon.com/jeffstormer

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Posted by Admin in Actual Play
28
Feb
2025

443 – HOME with Nick Gralewicz

HOME is a mapmaking RPG of Kaiju vs. Mecha, in which pilots step into the shoes of colossal war machines to do battle with invading monsters. Can they survive the battle, or will the Kaiju tear their home to pieces?

I sit down with the game’s creator Nick Gralewicz to find out.

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Posted by Admin in Actual Play
06
Feb
2025

440 – Demonic Deals with Morgan Eilish

Demonic Deals is a two-player TTRPG about a summoner, a demon, and a contract. You want something. The demon wants your soul.

I sat down with the game’s designer, Morgan Eilish, to get a taste of the game in action.

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Posted by Admin in Actual Play