Axe of the Blood God: An RPG Podcast

Latest Episodes:

The Game Awards Recap and The Best Cold Guys Dec 15, 2025

Show notes

Curl up with a hot cup of coffee (or did I lie and it's actually cold?) and warm up by the agidyne+3 because it's time to discuss our favourite frosty friends in RPGs. From ice-based monsters to wielders of frost magicks, it's the guys (of any gender) that keep things cool. Plus, the Keighleys have come and gone and it's our journalistic duty to cover them. What was announced, who won, and why it's all a frustrating ordeal to think about. It's Cold Guys and Hot Takes here on a very chilly episode of Axe of the Blood God!

Tune in to live recordings of the show every Saturday morning at https://www.twitch.tv/bloodgodpod, subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod and celebrate our 10th Anniversary with new merch at https://shop.bloodgodpod.com

Also in this episode:

Which Shiva scissors the most?
Let's WendiGOOOOOO!
Why we love to hate The Game Awards
Kat Bailey Presents Divinity
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Sweeps

Timestamps:

9:20 - Main Topic - Cold Guys

1:02:32 - Random Tavern Encounters

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Snow Light - [Tales of Symphonia]

Jingle Bells - [Linda^3]

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Octopath Traveler 0 Review w/ Jesse Vitelli Dec 09, 2025

Show notes

With a name like "Wishvale" there's no way that town wasn't going to get torched at the beginning of an RPG.
Does this adaptation of a gacha mobage manage to sell itself as a standalone single-player console RPG? Eric, Nadia, and special guest Jesse Vitelli are here to discuss Octopath Traveler 0 and whether it can come in under the wire as a contender for RPG of the Year. All this and so much more on this episode of Axe of the Blood God!

Also in this episode:

Missed opportunities with character skits
Final Fantasy XIV Patch 7.4
Promise Mascot Agency
Metroid Prime 4

Timestamps:

15:04 - Main Topic - Octopath Traveler 0

1:00:00 - Random Encounters - FFXIV Patch 7.4

1:17:42 - Random Encounters - Promise Mascot Agency

1:24:46 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Battle 1 - [Octopath Traveler 16-Bit Arrangements]

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Sakura Wars - Pantheon of the Blood God Dec 01, 2025

Show notes

Happy American Thanksgiving! We're taking the week off but as a very special treat we're pulling one of our favourite Pantheon episodes out from behind the paywall. To celebrate the upcoming 30th anniversary it's our deep-dive into Sakura Wars for the Sega Saturn! If you can find 3 entire hours to sneak away from your family this Thanksgiving, it's a rollercoaster ride of emotions and packed with history and context for one of Sega's most important franchises. All the original show notes, including the further reading, are included below so please enjoy this blooming episode of Pantheon of the Blood God!
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For our $10-and-up patrons, it's the longest Pantheon episode yet. Sakura Wars never came out in the West but its massive success in Japan in the late 90s and early 2000s gives it an often-unseen influence on RPGs. Can this forgotten SEGA franchise surpass the language barrier and make its way into the Pantheon?

We talk about:

For the last time, it's not a visual novel
The history of western theatre in Japan
Subversions of gender essentialism
The single set of footprints in the sand is when Sakura Wars was carrying the Saturn and also fighting Satan.

Further Reading:
The Origin of Visual Novels - Bowl of Lentils
https://youtu.be/7wOtv-J7tOI?si=tRyGSp0Hzd1Yyc4r
25 Years With an Invisible Elephant in the Room - Tom James
https://freelansations.medium.com/25-years-with-an-invisible-elephant-in-the-room-6e5402c93960
Skies of Arcadia 2019 Developer Interview
https://youtu.be/BPngEZ80xnU?si=jMX2dffTcaR0BaS1
Sakura Wars Retrospective Playlist - Matt B
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLFMXcpj1mOa7AYfYPMZ80LzAwE3zl-ftV
Sakura Wars - Kimimi (not mentioned in the episode but good coverage of the series)
https://kimimithegameeatingshemonster.com/sakura-wars-corner/
Timestamps:

6:56 - Our History with Sakura Wars
18:00 - Development and History
2:08:00 - SPOILERS BEGIN
2:11:00 - SPOILERS END
2:38:48 - Verdict

Music Used in This Episode:

Move Out! - [Sakura Wars]
Geki! Teikoku Kagekidan - [Sakura Wars]
Blooming Maidens - [Sakura Wars]

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Class Conscious: Warriors, Berserkers, & Barbarians w/ John Learned Nov 24, 2025

Show notes

Call us Hamburger Helper because this week we're cooking with beef!
Eric, Nadia, and special guest John Learned are here to discuss only the rawest slabs of DPS meat. What's appealing about the unga bunga and how does it fit into the party composition? Get ready for a list full of himbos and fur bikinis!

Also in this episode:

Lord of the Rings tangents
Steins;Gate
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment
Demonschool

Timestamps:

8:00 Main Topic - The Beefy Boys

28:36 - Surprise Eric Pit

1:17:42 - Random Encounters

1:17:20 - The Tavern - Age of Imprisonment and Demonschool

1:42:56 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Road Taken - [Fire Emblem Fates]

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Card-Based RPGs - PART 1: History and Appeal Nov 17, 2025

Show notes

I'm pulling a Retronauts and calling this "Part One" because we barely even got around to talking about the games themselves; instead, Victor, Eric, and Nadia wax philosophical about the seemingly-universal appeal of card games, the stories that can be told with a deck of cards, and how they fit perfectly into the systems and structure of both tabletop games and video games. Maybe in Part Two we'll talk about actual specific video games. Maybe Part Two will be the upcoming Mega Man Battle Network 2 Pantheon episode! Who can say? Go and get a tarot reading and find out!

Also in this episode:

Corpse Party cancelled
Octopath Traveler 0 Impressions
Canadian Cooking Shows and Human Anatomy

Timestamps:

6:20 Main Topic - Card-Based RPGs

26:44 - History of Decks of Cards

1:17:42 - Random Encounters

1:21:12 - The Tavern - Octopath Traveler 0 Impressions

1:30:40 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

The Valedictory Elegy (for guitar) - [Baten Kaitos Origins]

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Phantasy Star TTRPG Interview w/ Rich Lescouflair Nov 10, 2025

Show notes

May the Falz be with you!
Award-winning creator of the Phantasy Star Tabletop RPG, Rich Lescouflair, joins Victor for an in-depth interview all about adapting a beloved JRPG into tabletop form, the joys of freeing oneself from the shackles of narrative canon, and why Phantasy Staar Online Episode III: CARD Recolution actually kicks ass.
This is one multiplayer Phantasy Star that doesn't require a Hunter's License!
Plus, Nadia, Eric, and Victor address why a 'Good Year For Games' isn't always a good year for the people who make them. All that and more on this episode of Axe of the Blood God!

Skydawn Games:
https://skydawngames.com/

Liz Bushouse's Comparison of Phantasy Star Scripts:
https://lizbushouse.com/phantasy-star-1-script-comparison-sega-ages-gba-part-1/

SkysNotTheLimit Phantasy Star Online Lore Channel:
https://www.youtube.com/feed/subscriptions/UCUKqjgQUXrAGlQ35d4Aqn4Q

Tom's Bluesky Thread About the Importance of Square's Human QA:
https://bsky.app/profile/iiotenki.bsky.social/post/3m4yqll6bdk2h

Also in this episode:

Layoffs at Square Enix and QA being replaced by AI
Happy N7 Day! Mass Effect is definitely still alive!
The Game Awards confirms the Future Class is gone
Exciting updates to Final Fantasy XI
Hyrule Warriors, and Zelda's history of busty villainnesses

Timestamps:

8:56 - Main Topic - Phantasy Star Tabletop RPG Interview w/ Rich Lescouflair

1:16:18 - Random Encounters

1:41:58 - The Tavern - Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment

1:56:00 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Rune - [Phantasy Star IV]

Valentine - [Phantasy Star Online]

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Chaotic Bar - [Phantasy Star Online]

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Dragon Quest I & II Review w/ Lucas White Nov 03, 2025

Show notes

A podcast draws near!
Eric, Nadia, and special guest Lucas White are here to discuss the latest Dragon Quest HD2D remake(s)! Is this collection of the first two entires in the seminal series a must-play or should you puff-puff pass?

Contribute to Jen's Gofundme:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-jen-recover-from-mg-crisis

Nadia's Review:
https://gameinformer.com/review/dragon-quest-i-ii-hd-2d-remake/level-up-and-up

Lucas' Review:
https://www.shacknews.com/article/146558/dragon-quest-1-2-hd-2d-remake-review-score

Also in this episode:

What's the current state of Dragon Quest?
We give Naoki Ikushima his flowers
The Seance of Blake Manor
New episodes of Dispatch
Artis Impact
Simogo Legacy Collection
Final Fantasy House

Timestamps:

8:48 Main Topic - Dragon Quest I&II HD2D

57:44 - Random Encounters

59:12 - The Tavern - Pokemon Hate

1:32:48 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Settings Menu (Intermezzo I) - [Theathrythm Dragon Quest]

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Outer Worlds 2, Enjoying Things For Grown Ups Oct 27, 2025

Show notes

Note: Microsoft and the Xbox brand remain subjects of the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement for their complicity in the ongoing apartheid and genocide of Palestine. In the interest of journalism we've chosen to cover Microsoft but encourage you to visit https://www.bdsmovement.net/microsoft for more information.
Capitalism. In space!
Eric and Nadia have been spending time with Outer Worlds 2, Victor and Nadia have been redistributing the world's supply of umbrellas to themselves, and Triple Triad is bringing cultures together. All this and more on a very special episode of Axe of the Blood God!

Also in this episode:

How to get free umbrellas
Upcoming 'Tales of' Remaster news!
We hope Final Fantasy VII Part 3 doesn't make the same mistakes a Rebirth
The creators we love (and Palworld) who say hell no to genAI
Pokemon's cottage industry of outrage
Eric's Twin Peaks: The Return update!
Dispatch
What games were YOU playing in 1992?
How to solve a slide puzzle

Timestamps:

13:40 Main Topic - Outer Worlds 2

42:24 - Random Encounters

59:12 - The Tavern - Pokemon Hate

1:32:48 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Sunflower Girl 2 - [Lunar Knights]

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Pokemon Z-A, Vampire: The Masquerade Oct 20, 2025

Show notes

During this month of Every Game Finally Coming Out, Victor, Nadia, Eric, and special guest Giovanni Colantonio talk Pokemon Z-A, walkable cities in games, and what makes a good sidequest.
Plus, Eric gives us the (vampire) rundown on Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines and why you probably shouldn't wait 20 years to make a sequel.

Also in this episode:

Dissidia Duellum fashion
Phantasy Star Tabletop Impressions
Where that expensive pokemon coffee comes from

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Lavender Town - [Pokemon Red/Blue]

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The Best GhoOoOosts in RPGs Oct 13, 2025

Show notes

Vampires are so last year.
Call your local Hex Maniac because Victor, Nadia, and Eric are holding a seance to determine the best spectres, phantoms, ghasts, and frights across the history of RPGs. It's time to talk ghosts!
From the cutest to the cultists, from friendly to frightening, it's all ghosts all the time. Just don't mess around with a ouija board while listening to this episode. Or if you do, don't tell Eric.

Also in this episode: