Episode 35 - Reiterating, Chauvinism is NOT Cool

Greetings, Citizens!

Now, you may have read the title and read  a little snark into it. I'd be lying if I (Jeff) said I didn't intend any, especially with the chosen intro and outro music this episode. That being said, it isn't our intention to downplay or justify the overt (and sometimes not so overt) chauvinism and objectification of women within nerd culture. A Chainmail Bikini is NOT equal to an actual suit of armor!!  Recently, with such projects as The Hawkeye Initiative, this issue has gained a wider audience, but there's still a lot of ground to make up.

The Coalition States have long been held up as the standard for bigotry and inequality. But this podcast is going to make that leap and take a stand against the objectification of women, especially in "nerd culture," where it seems to be so pervasive. Another article you can take a look at is this one on the Artifice. Don't be intimidated by how long it seems--most of the page is made up of comments.

Please comment on this post. I know we didn't ask for any responses on this topic within the recording, but this is an issue that affects each and every one of us in the hobby. Whether you love or hate the scantily-clad images of post-apocalyptic females, your opinion on this matter is one that really can make a difference in the way people see our subculture.

Carry on, citizens.

Episode 22 - The Players of Atrophy

Greetings!

Today, we're back to our standard--just Jeff and Matt on this one, but we actually did a good job of it!



There were a lot of S.D.C. items this week, but the weekly update came out after we recorded, so we weren't able to analyze that. We also address listener mail before launching into the topic of conversation for the week.

The topic this week is simple, but it's one that not a lot of GMs want to discuss: players who aren't causing enough disruption to get themselves kicked out of the game, but enough of a ruckus to slow and stop the game in progress. Matt cites three specific archetypes he's seen, and we discuss the pros and cons of having each kind of player in your game, as well as some actual-play stories we remember from back in the day.

Anyway, that's it for this week. I hope the delay of a couple hours wasn't too onerous for you, fair listener.

Carry on, citizens.

Episode 8 - The Order of the Pants

Hello, citizens!

First of all, let me again apologize profusely for the delays in getting this episode to you. There was a little bit of trouble with a Xiticix hive near our location, but we've naturally got the situation well in hand.



Today's episode features a very special guest: Maddie, from Matt's current campaign. And man, can she kickbox!

We also delve into two different topics for this episode, although we got the normal order confused. First, we get to the Job Fair, where we discuss the Necromancer O.C.C. Apparently, they're not all evil...

And since we have someone of the female persuasion on the podcast, Matt and I were also naturally eager to learn a little more about how to best make gaming accessible to women--and more than that, how to make it enjoyable enough that they will want to continue doing it and make it less and less a "guy thing."

Until next time, keep your dice rolling.

Carry on, citizens.

Episode 6 - Return of the Walrus Girl

Hello again, humans and humanoid-enough subjects!

You've heard about her for a long time. If you listened to the previous episode, you've been expecting this. Now is the time. Ellen, the Walrus Girl herself, is here.

Ellen was great to bear with Matt and I as we bungled through our first guest interview, and was really good-natured about it. She not only was able to provide us with some really great insight into how a woman gets into gaming, but also gives advice about how to make gaming more accessible once the wall is down, as well as how to help make it a good experience.

Many, many thanks go out to Ellen for her time and voice (and I'm sure, the headache that followed) for being our guest on this episode. She will be the first of many, so stay tuned.

Also, a shout-out goes to Mad Norwegian Press and their upcoming book, Chicks Dig Gaming, due for release on November 11. As time goes on, we can put a more comprehensive review of it up.

Question for readers and listeners: Do you want to keep this blog solely dedicated to episode releases, or would you like to see other things as well? For example, on the weeks we don't record, would you want an analysis or discussion of M.D.C. news, or short releases to let you know what's coming up? I'm pretty sure I can create a second page under this one to put that kind of stuff if that's the preferred method.

Here's the embedded episode, but feel free to download the MP3 file, as well.



Have a great day, and carry on, citizens.