System Mastery

Latest Episodes:

Raven Star – System Mastery 46 Jun 23, 2015

Show notes

https://systemmastery.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/system-mastery-46.mp3

Hey, remember the 90s? Do you look back fondly on Rob Liefeld, X-Force, Reboot-style 3D art, and references to monofilament technology? Then hoo boy do we have the game for you! Raven Star is more or less a textbook space heartbreaker, with dwarves, elves … bear men… you get the idea. Settle in to get all cybed up!

Let us know what you thought of Raven Star in the comments! Have a book you’d us to cover? Let us know about that too.

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Noumenon – System Mastery 45 Jun 09, 2015

Show notes

https://systemmastery.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/system-mastery-451.mp3

In this installment we discuss the best soul coffin in the shape of a giant bug that solves fundamental metaphysics mysteries in an impossible mansion simulator we’ve ever read. We cover Noumenon, and the Sarcophoguys that wander the halls of the Silhouette Rouge, which I’m pretty sure is french for “Community College Psychology Class.”

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Supplement Special – System Mastery 44 May 26, 2015

Show notes

https://systemmastery.files.wordpress.com/2015/05/system-mastery-44.mp3

System Mastery 44 – Supplement Special

We’ve received a number of requests since the inception of System Mastery to cover supplementary RPG material and not just core books. While we love supplements, it’s never really clicked for us exactly which ones to cover and how to do it. Well, now we’ve got it figured out. We went back and found a couple supplements to some of the best of our worst. Haven: City of Violence, and Prime Directive, and we tackle both volumes in a single episode!

Let us know what you thought of these books in the comments! Have a supplement book you’d us to cover? Let us know about that too.

Editor’s note: Indeed, a copy of Skyrealms of Jorune: Gire of Sillipus is already on it’s way to our door.

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Top Secret – System Mastery 43 May 12, 2015

Show notes

https://systemmastery.files.wordpress.com/2015/05/system-mastery-43.mp3

System Mastery 43- Top Secret

There’s a story around the internet about how this game is so realistic that it summoned the FBI around to investigate the TSR offices to see if they had some sort of secret intel or intent to kill the president or some such. Having read it now, we can only assume it’s because the FBI literally couldn’t figure out what was in the book at all, and decided to just cover their bases for the purposes of due diligence. It’s a spy RPG that is 100% charts on this week’s System Mastery.

Let us know what you thought of Top Secret in the comments! Have a book you’d us to cover? Let us know about that too.

Editor’s note: It’s true, I deleted the first recording in my mad dash to play a videogame. Never again!

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Space 1889 – System Mastery 42 Apr 28, 2015

Show notes

https://systemmastery.files.wordpress.com/2015/04/system-mastery-42.mp3

System Mastery 42- Space 1889

Craving high adventure in an age of zeppelins, Victoriana, and space fantasy? Keep looking then, because what we have here is boring. This week Jef and Jon take a tour of the Earth if the sun also never set on the British Empire on Venus and Mars. Is the art horrifying? Of course. Is the whole thing vaguely racist? Naturally!

Editor’s note: Proof of horrifying art included. Check out that cartilaginous Robert Smith in a ripped bodice. That’s basically the only female face in this thing. Seriously, every lady in the book is drawn like she forgot to close her eyes when the Arc of the Covenant popped open.

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Heaven & Earth – System Mastery 41 Apr 14, 2015

Show notes

https://systemmastery.files.wordpress.com/2015/04/system-mastery-41.mp3

System Mastery 41 – Heaven & Earth

The apocalypse! Oh, it’s a comin’, just you wait, you sinner you. In the meantime why don’t you hang around in small town America, solving vaguely creepy mysteries and interacting with character-heavy locals. You know, like maybe one of them has a log all the time? That kind of thing. This week we discuss Heaven & Earth, an RPG about atmosphere, angels, and the coming end of days.

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The Official Duckman RPG – System Mastery 40 Apr 01, 2015

Show notes

https://systemmastery.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/system-mastery-40.mp3

System Mastery 40 – Duckman

He’s just one more duck detective, that works with a pig, lives with the twin sister of his dead wife, three sons on two bodies, and a mother-in-law with so much gas, she’s a fire hazard. This week System Mastery is overjoyed to present The Official Duckman RPG, a mixed bag of failure, liquor, nymphos, 90s topical humor, failure again, the American dream, and hijinks. We hope this doesn’t sound grandiose, but tonight we begin our pre-ordained ascent towards the global adulation we so richly deserve.

Let us know what you thought of Duckman in the comments! Have a book you’d us to cover? Let us know about that too.

Editor’s note: April Fools! There was no Duckman RPG as of this podcast, and there still shouldn’t be. However, despite all common sense and advice from our friends, family, and legal counsel, there is a Duckman RPG now. Here, it’s free, take it: Duckman RPG

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Witch Girls Adventures – System Mastery 39 Mar 17, 2015

Show notes

https://systemmastery.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/system-mastery-39.mp3

System Mastery 39 – Witch Girls Adventures

Witches! Rustics! Technomancers! The Ugly One! It’s Witch Girls Adventures, and it’s your chance to step into the stylish shoes of a 13-year old witch and go on way cool adventures, maybe even at the mall. Shopping! This game is aimed a little young, so we try to puzzle out what makes a good game for kids while we’re at it.

Editor’s note: Don’t forget to send in questions for the new show, Afterthought. Let us know anything you want us to talk about at systemmastery@gmail.com! Also, is this actually a fetish game? Have we been fooled? A lot of the internet seems to think so.

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Stormbringer – System Mastery 38 Mar 03, 2015

Show notes

https://systemmastery.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/episode-38-stormbringer.mp3

Episode 38 – Stormbringer

ELRIC! Thy book is a thousand times more execrable than thou! Though I have to admit I had this iconic piece of nerd power fantasy confused for the early part of my young life with the other one, Raistlin, this guy is apparently quite pedigreed. The doomed albino of deficient blood and his evil runesword more or less dominate this book, much to our chagrin. Can you save the ancient world of Melniboné and the young kingdoms? Spoiler alert: no.

Let us know what you thought of Stormbringer in the comments! Have a book you’d us to cover? Let us know about that too.

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Deliria – System Mastery 37 Feb 16, 2015

Show notes

https://systemmastery.files.wordpress.com/2015/02/episode-37-deliria.mp3

System Mastery 37 – Deliria

During the 90s, a lot of the small-market games were about trying to fix one issue that the author had with basement-ready games from the 70s. By 2002 a renaissance was required! No longer were games just for mega-nerds programming Scorched Earth into their graphing calculators! Now the games were for normal people, like baristas, ravers, hackers, and burners. Nothing encapsulates this era of special-snowflake appreciation better than the fairy tale LARP enabler, Deliria. Do you ever get the feeling that you’re special? That there’s magic in the world? That your eyes would really be grey flecked through with shards of gemlike amethyst if you had your way? This is the game for you!

Let us know what you thought of Deliria in the comments! Have a book you’d us to cover? Let us know about that too. If you really love us, show your support over on our Patreon page and help us keep the mics hot!

Editor’s note: Special thanks to Grant at Saving The Game for this book submission. Visit his show at savingthegamepodcast.com!

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