On A Roll

The Podcast that helps you Level Up Your RPG!

About the show

The On A Roll podcast focuses on better storytelling, better playing and better community through the belief that the only way to win an RPG is to have fun, so Ryan, Carie and Jason are sharing their experiences to help you spend more time winning! Join the Curmudgeon, the Legend and the Favorite as they talk about tabletop gaming, LARPing, MUSHing and keeping your investment in check.

Join us on Facebook and let us know your thoughts on the show, gaming and having more fun!

If you like the show, help support our production and keep us going by supporting On A Roll on Patreon.

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Episodes and Blog Entries

  • The Gun Belt Developer's Diary 7: Which Came First, The Dino or the Dice?

    Article  |  August 7th, 2019
    By Ryan - The Curmudgeon
    dice, fate, game developer, game theory, gaming, indie game design, kids on bikes, roleplaying, rpg, star wars, systems, the gun belt, vampire

    Part seven of Ryan's Developer's Diary about the creation of the independent RPG, The Gun Belt, follows the initial design decisions concerning how to balance creating the world with creating the mechanics. Which comes first? Dinos or dice?

  • Episode 227: Maury Brown on New World Magischola

    Episode  |  August 2nd, 2019  |  Season 2  |  1 hr 19 mins
    characters, college of wizardry, dungeons and dragons, experience points, game design, games, geeks, harry potter, larp, magimundi, mush, pathfinder, podcast, roleplaying, rpg, tabletop, world of darkness, xp

    Maury Brown joins the Favorite, the Curmudgeon and the Legend this week to talk about the massively successful New World Magischola larp and the new Magimundi Bestiary currently on Kickstarter. Carie, Jason and Ryan talk about bisonatees, changing the world through larping, whimsical cryptids, destination larp organization and how "transmedia" doesn't really mean anything!

  • The Gun Belt Developer's Diary 6: Tables and Contents

    Article  |  July 29th, 2019
    By Ryan - The Curmudgeon
    beginning, content, game developer, gaming, indie game design, roleplaying, rpg, table of contents, the gun belt

    In the sixth edition of Ryan's Developer's Diary about the creation of his independent RPG, The Gun Belt, he shares the process of figuring out where to begin and figuring out what to put in the book.

  • Episode 226: Dice Dice Baby!

    Episode  |  July 25th, 2019  |  Season 2  |  1 hr 8 mins
    characters, dungeons and dragons, experience points, game design, games, geeks, larp, mush, pathfinder, podcast, roleplaying, rpg, tabletop, world of darkness, xp

    Why do people love dice? Gamers have to have all the dice they can get, so the Favorite, the Curmudgeon and the Legend spend some time with Lucia Versprille of Monstrous Incantations to talk about the little plastic buggers. In the process, Carie, Jason and Ryan learn all about the artisinal crafting and techniques of making your own dice by hand!

  • The Gun Belt Developer's Diary 5: The Name of the Game

    Article  |  July 22nd, 2019
    By Ryan - The Curmudgeon
    game developer, gaming, indie game design, roleplaying, rpg, the gun belt, titles

    Ryan shares more insight into the development of his independent roleplaying game, "The Gun Belt." In this week's diary, he talks about the difficult but important process of deciding what to call your game, and about why the name of your game matters so much.

  • Episode 225: RPG Omnibus

    Episode  |  July 18th, 2019  |  Season 2  |  1 hr 1 min
    characters, dungeons and dragons, experience points, game design, games, geeks, larp, mush, pathfinder, podcast, roleplaying, rpg, tabletop, world of darkness, xp

    It's a round robin extravaganza this week, as the Favorite, the Curmudgeon and the Legend tackle a ton of topics in rapid succession. Carie, Jason and Ryan plow through the first On A Roll RPG Omnibus!

  • The Gun Belt Developer's Diary 4: Four Questions About Your Game

    Article  |  July 15th, 2019
    By Ryan - The Curmudgeon
    game developer, gaming, indie game design, questions, research, roleplaying, rpg, the gun belt

    Ryan's developer's diary continues to probe the behind the scenes world of The Gun Belt. This week, he explores the Three (or Four) Questions about roleplaying games that every designer needs to help guide them through the weeds.

  • Episode 224: Ethics in Gaming

    Episode  |  July 11th, 2019  |  Season 2  |  1 hr 3 mins
    characters, dungeons and dragons, ethics, experience points, game design, games, geeks, larp, mush, pathfinder, podcast, roleplaying, rpg, tabletop, world of darkness, xp

    The Favorite, the Curmudgeon and the Legend tackle the difficult but important topic of ethics in gaming this week. Carie, Jason and Ryan try to figure out just what ethics are and how they affect gaming communities, as well as what gamers can do to help improve things!

  • The Gun Belt Developer's Diary 3: Play Games to Make Games

    Article  |  July 8th, 2019
    By Ryan - The Curmudgeon
    game developer, gaming, indie game design, research, roleplaying, rpg, the gun belt

    Ryan continues his developer diary giving insight into The Gun Belt. This week, he talks about some of the research required as a developer begins to design their game.

  • Episode 223: Anatomy of a Power Gamer

    Episode  |  July 3rd, 2019  |  Season 2  |  1 hr 5 secs
    characters, dungeons and dragons, experience points, game design, games, geeks, larp, mush, pathfinder, player, podcast, power gamers, roleplaying, rpg, tabletop, world of darkness, xp

    Inspired by something said in an interview on last week's show, the Favorite, the Curmudgeon and the Legend do a deep dive into power gaming. Carie, Jason and Ryan look at the reasons power gamers exist, how they affect your game and whether or not they are good or bad!

  • The Gun Belt Developer's Diary 2: Creative Foundations

    Article  |  July 1st, 2019
    By Ryan - The Curmudgeon
    game developer, gaming, indie game design, roleplaying, rpg, the gun belt

    Ryan continues his developer diary giving insight into The Gun Belt. This time, he shares the first thing he did when The Gun Belt came to be and how it helped establish the game's world.

  • Episode 222: Live From Goat Larp

    Episode  |  June 27th, 2019  |  Season 2  |  1 hr 28 mins
    characters, game design, games, geeks, goat larp, larp, mush, pathfinder, podcast, roleplaying, rpg, tabletop, world of darkness, xp

    The Favorite shares his experiences from Goat Larp with the Curmudgeon and the Legend. Was it everything you'd expect from a larp for goats!?! Jason also talks with attendees and the creators of Goat Larp recorded live on location in the middle of the field!

  • The Gun Belt Developer's Diary 1: Vacant Ideas

    Article  |  June 24th, 2019
    By Ryan - The Curmudgeon
    game developer, gaming, indie game design, roleplaying, rpg, the gun belt

    In the first of his indie game developer diaries, Ryan begins sharing the origins of The Gun Belt and how sometimes the game you set out to make isn't the one you thought it would be.

  • Episode 221: Plot Arc Planning

    Episode  |  June 20th, 2019  |  Season 2  |  1 hr 1 min
    characters, dungeons and dragons, experience points, game design, games, geeks, larp, mush, pathfinder, podcast, roleplaying, rpg, tabletop, world of darkness, xp

    Major, long-running plot arcs are the topic this week for the Favorite, the Curmudgeon and the Legend. Carie, Jason and Ryan explore the art of crafting and planning story-driven, character-driven and emotion-driven plot arcs!

  • Episode 220: Playing to What?

    Episode  |  June 13th, 2019  |  Season 2  |  1 hr 5 secs
    characters, dungeons and dragons, experience points, game design, games, geeks, larp, losing, mush, pathfinder, playing, podcast, roleplaying, rpg, tabletop, world of darkness, xp

    This week, the Favorite, the Curmudgeon and the Legend explore the three generally accepted ways for players to play their character. Carie, Jason and Ryan deep dive into playing to win, playing to lift and playing to lose!

  • Episode 219: Marketing Your Game part 2

    Episode  |  June 6th, 2019  |  Season 2  |  56 mins
    advertising, characters, dungeons and dragons, experience points, game design, games, geeks, larp, marketing, mush, pathfinder, podcast, roleplaying, rpg, seo, tabletop, world of darkness, xp

    In the second of our two-part episode deep dive on the topic of advertising your role-playing game, marketing expert Jared Powers joins the Favorite, the Curmudgeon and the Legend. Jared informs Carie, Jason and Ryan on a variety of advertising topics, including Facebook ads, SEO and marketing apps for your phone.