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This episode takes listeners deep into our very first full Daggerheart adventure, where character backstories collide with corrupted beasts, mysterious crystals, and the deadliest foe of all: stairs.

We start with introductions and dive into what makes each hero tick — from the albino wizard who fled the Dominion’s forced spellcaster army, to the hyper-positive gym-bro faun named Flex Forigno, to the chill turtle warrior Kombu. The party dynamic quickly proves hilarious and chaotic: front-liners with the most relaxed vibes, a paranoid wizard trying to stay unnoticed, and rogues who might not survive the local jail.

The session itself unfolds in three big beats:

• The Crystal Boar Encounter: A mutated beast straight out of Princess Mononoke, shedding shards that punish anyone reckless enough to fight up close.
• The Hollowed Ones: Crystal-infested zombies aboard a wrecked skyship, showcasing Daggerheart’s flexibility in combat and narrative flavor.
• The Countdown Clock: A clever GM mechanic where glass beads tick away toward the arrival of the dreaded pirate ship The Soggy Biscuit — ratcheting up tension as the crew scrambles to repair and claim the downed vessel.

Highlights include debates over the difference between wizards and sorcerers, illusions as Marvel-style Mysterio tricks, the joy of carving scrimshaw runes into spell-staves, and the ongoing party joke about failing the simplest rolls. (The great enemy of this campaign? Not monsters, not pirates — stairs.)

By the end, the crew is laughing, learning the ropes of the system, and laying the groundwork for bigger battles ahead. It’s part session recap, part system breakdown, and part comedy of errors — exactly what you’d expect when Funkatronic Rex takes on a brand-new RPG.

Takeaway: Daggerheart encourages collaboration, description, and shared world-building — and sometimes reminds you that rolling dice can make stairs scarier than dragons.

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This week we cover a little bit of everything — summer travel, baseball heartbreak, cabin cooking, board games, and the excitement of launching a brand-new RPG campaign.

Chris kicks things off with a blow-by-blow of his son’s baseball trip to Cooperstown — equal parts magical and miserable. From rain delays that pushed games into the early hours of the morning, to “Hunger Games” jokes about single elimination, to facing powerhouse Georgia teams that put up scores like 37–0, it was an unforgettable (and humbling) experience. Still, the kids walked away with a win, a pile of team pins, and memories that will last a lifetime.

Paul counters with his annual cabin gaming trip, where he and his longtime friend Q packed the days with board games and nights with home cooking. The highlight was lots of Marvel Champions (finishing the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. campaign with Magneto and Black Widow), a test run of the massive Dark Souls board game, and racing through Heat, complete with the new Tunnel Vision expansion. The talk turns to food as Paul explains his role as cabin cook — burgers, wings, tacos, and breakfast spreads — while Q washed dishes. Naturally, this spirals into a whole discussion of cooking styles, breakfast-for-dinner rituals, chicken vs. turkey burgers, and family wing recipes passed down from Buffalo.

As if that weren’t enough, the back half of the episode dives into role-playing. With a new Daggerheart campaign on the horizon, the hosts discuss what they’re excited about: hope and fear dice mechanics, player agency, and how the system compares to D&D 5E. There’s talk of improvisation, GM styles, and what makes narrative-heavy systems rewarding for both newcomers and veterans.

It’s a long, winding conversation, but that’s the beauty of it — baseball road trips, cooking adventures, and tabletop games all share the same theme: community, creativity, and finding joy in the chaos.

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This week’s episode takes a lively detour through the chaos of parenting, baseball season, and family dinners before landing squarely in the galaxy far, far away.

We kick things off with stories about kids dodging showers, sneaking bubblegum onto the ballfield, and testing their parents’ OCD triggers with sticky popsicle faces. From sunscreen battles to late-night snack raids, it’s all the highs and lows of raising kids — equal parts exhausting, hilarious, and heartwarming.

That family talk flows into gaming, with reflections on siblings, only-child dynamics, and how growing up with brothers, sisters, or solo shaped the way we play. Food quirks take center stage too: picky eaters versus adventurous ones, kids putting ranch on salmon, and the joys (and horrors) of seafood.

Then it’s time for the stars. We dive into Star Trek movie trivia tangents (yes, the whale one was IV), before shifting to the main event: a thoughtful look at Star Wars Destiny and how it paved the way for Star Wars Unlimited. We dig into what Destiny got right, what made it unsustainable, and how Unlimited refines the formula — making the most of the IP while avoiding past pitfalls.

It’s part parenting confessional, part geek culture roundtable, and part TCG deep-dive — all wrapped in the usual Funkatronic Rex mix of snark, laughter, and community vibes.

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