The Vorthos Cast

Latest Episodes:

269 - An Ixalan Refresher Oct 23, 2023

Show notes

The Lost Caverns of Ixalan story is available to read in its entirety! But if you're a bit lost and need a refresh of what Ixalan was like the last time we visited the plane, we're taking this week to give background information through the lens of the four major factions of the plane. Who are the Dusk Legion, the Sun Empire, the Brazen Coalition, and the mysterious River Heralds? And how do their movements and actions influence the surface of this plane? This week, in lieu of supporting us on Patreon, we ask that our listeners donate to the Palestinian relief charity of their choice.

268 - Story Circle: Dreams of the Damned Oct 16, 2023

Show notes

The Story Circle has turned its attention to the first fiction appearance of Ob Nixilis, the planeswalker turned demon turned demonic planeswalker, as he claws his way into the heart of Zendikar searching for a path back to power. Dreams of the Damned is the first of two stories by Nik Davidson that introduces us first to the present and then the past of a fan-favorite character. It's also the first of our Story Circle pieces to slot into a larger, set-spanning story arc. How is Ob's character developed in such a short piece, and how does this story's role as a part of a broader fiction color our reading of it? This episode features a full reading of the story from about 9:30 to 18:47. This story was lost from the Wizards Magic website during a site migration, but it can be found on the Wayback Machine and through the MTGLore website here: https://mtglore.com/web-fiction/dreams-of-the-damned. Remember, preserving media is an integral part of appreciating media. If you enjoy this episode, you can let us know on Twitter at Twitter.com/TheVorthosCast, or you can join our Patreon at Patreon.com/TheVorthosCast and share your thoughts on our patron-only Discord server.

Beyond the Multiverse 5: Doctor Who Oct 10, 2023

Show notes

We're going beyond time and space and into the world of Doctor Who with this special Beyond the Multiverse episode! Friend of the show and long-time Resident Doctor Who Expert on our Discord, Evan (@heavenlyevan on most social media) joined us today to give us a beginner-friendly guide to this 60-year-old British TV show. If you've never seen an episode of Doctor Who and want to know what's up with all these oddly dressed medical professionals with screwdrivers, this is the Beyond the Multiverse for you! If you'd like to be a companion for our show, you can support us on Patreon at Patreon.com/TheVorthosCast, where $1 gives you access to our discord, a small amount of support that gets you into something much bigger on the inside, and you can even use that access to pester Evan with questions about the Doctors and all their companions! For $3 a month, you can listen to us as we record these episodes live. If you want to hear Evan discuss one of his all-time favorite moments from Doctor Who, you can listen to their guest spot on The Moment podcast at https://www.themomentpod.com/1-04-but-you-still-have-to-choose.

267 - Story Circle: Cowardice of the Hero Oct 09, 2023

Show notes

The Story Circle meets once again to discuss one of Magic's heaviest stories, Cowardice of the Hero by Matt Knicl. This story from 2014 tackles incredibly heavy themes of family abuse and trauma, while serving as a preview article for a forgotten rare from a small, middle set of the Theros block. We ask: What does this story want to tell us? Would this story be published today? This episode includes a full reading of the short story, from about 9:09 to 26:07. You can also read the full story on the Magic website at https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/magic-story/cowardice-hero-2014-01-22. Unlike previous Story Circle texts, this story is still available where it was originally posted, but this may not always be the case. Preserving media is an integral part of appreciating media. If you enjoy this episode, you can let us know on Twitter at Twitter.com/TheVorthosCast, or you can join our Patreon at Patreon.com/TheVorthosCast and share your thoughts on our patron-only Discord server.

266 - Story Circle: Eater of the Infinite Oct 02, 2023

Show notes

Our Story Circle continues as we discuss another long-lost piece of Magic web fiction: Eater of the Infinite, from the Encyclopedia Dominia. This piece of web fiction was shared online in 1996 and written by an unknown author. It tells the story of why the Serendib Efreet looks like that, and it stands as an example of some of the earliest worldbuilding done for a Magic setting outside of Dominaria. This episode includes a full reading of the short story, from about 6:45 to 16:01. You can also read the full story archived on the Wayback Machine, or on the MTGLore website at https://mtglore.com/web-fiction/eater-of-the-infinite/. This story was once made available on the Wizards Magic website, but has since been lost. If you enjoy this episode, you can let us know on Twitter at Twitter.com/TheVorthosCast, or you can join our Patreon at Patreon.com/TheVorthosCast and share your thoughts on our patron-only Discord server.

265 - Story Circle: War's Wage Sep 25, 2023

Show notes

This week we're beginning our Story Circle, a series of episodes aimed at reading and discussing pre-Origins Magic fiction, including some pieces of what may be considered lost lore. For our first episode, we read and discuss War's Wage, a piece of web fiction released in the lead-up to Saviors of Kamigawa in 2005, written by famous early Magic author Jeff Grubb. This episode includes a full reading of the short story, from 5:45 to 25:12. You can also read the full story archived on the Wayback Machine, or on the MTGLore website at https://mtglore.com/web-fiction/wars-wage/. This story was once made available on the Wizards Magic website, but has since been lost. If you enjoy this episode, you can let us know on Twitter at Twitter.com/TheVorthosCast, or you can join our Patreon at Patreon.com/TheVorthosCast and share your thoughts on our patron-only Discord server.

264 - The Flavor Gems of Wilds of Eldraine Sep 18, 2023

Show notes

You might be shocked to learn that a set with a strong Food theme has a lot of Flavor Gems! We dive into this bounty of tasty cards and come out stuffed to the gills with gems to share with you. Hopefully you're satiated by this veritable feast of fairy-tale themed cards! If you enjoy our podcast, consider supporting us on Patreon at Patreon.com/TheVorthosCast, where just $1 a month gets you access to our Discord channel where Vorthoses from around the world are reacting to the incredible story unfolding every day. For $3 a month you get access to our live listen, where you can hear the unedited podcast as we record it days before it goes live!

263 - Fairy Tale Origins with Seanan McGuire Sep 11, 2023

Show notes

Seanan McGuire joins us once again, but this time not as (Hugo Award Winning) author of (Hugo Award Nominated) Magic Story, but instead as a subject matter expert on Fairy Tales! Seanan has a degree in fairy tales and herpetology, or as she calls it, a "degree in dragons." We discuss some of the history behind the fairy tales represented in Eldraine, including a short aside about venomous snakes and venomous candies. Thanks to rough internet connections, some audio may be hard to hear or skip a bit. We're sorry, but trying to control the whims of the internet is like trying to court a fae. We're just glad no one was turned into an elk. If you want to support our show, you can contribute to our Patreon at Patreon.com/TheVorthosCast, where $1 a month is an incredible bit of support that we will appreciate so very much, and it also gives you access to our Discord server! For $3 a month, you can listen to us record live, and if Seanan is our guest you're likely to see a cute kitten!

262 - Author Interview: K Arsenault Rivera Returns! Sep 04, 2023

Show notes

We are joined once again by Magic author (and Star Wars author, and novelist, and all around very cool person) K Arsenault Rivera! Fresh off her incredible story for March of the Machine, Arsenault Rivera gave us yet another excellent installment of Magic fiction with Wilds of Eldraine. We discuss what it's like writing such different stories back to back, how she put some of herself into Kellan, and why she named the goose Albiorix. Also, yes, we talk about Star Wars for the first 10 minutes of this podcast. Listen to figure out why! If you want to support our show, you can contribute to our Patreon at Patreon.com/TheVorthosCast, where $1 a month is an incredible bit of support that we will appreciate so very much, and it also gives you access to our Discord server! For $3 a month, you can listen to us record live, where we sometimes spend 20 minutes just talking about The Jersey Shore before recording.

261 - The Story of Wilds of Eldraine, part 2 Aug 28, 2023

Show notes

Kellan must defeat the final two witches in order to save Eldraine from the Wicked Slumber, while Rowan comes face to face with her brother and all the mistakes she's made. The cast discusses the story, the implications of Kellan's birth father's identity, and possibilities for the future of Magic story with this first foray into the new world of Omenpaths. If you like our podcast and would like to support us on our quest to summarize and discuss all things Magic story, you can do that at Patreon.com/TheVorthosCast! But more importantly, you should go read the stories for the set. They're quite good. Episode 4: Ruby and the Frozen Heart - https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/magic-story/episode-4-ruby-and-the-frozen-heart Episode 5: Broken Oaths - https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/magic-story/episode-5-broken-oaths

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