Polygamerous Podcast Network

Show us how you keep your partner’s interest in gaming if they’ve been brave enough to try! Some of this advice overlaps with our general new gamer advice, but some of it doesn’t — congrats MORE

Show us how you remove combat from a published adventure! Phil and Senda talk how about what to balance, what you made need to consider, and some different approaches depending on why you want less MORE

Show us how you deal with creep in your games! No, not creepy people — scope creep, or slow changes in expectations, or forgetting your session 0 conversations etc. Phil and Senda manage not to MORE

Show us what you do when you thought the campaign was over…but you all want more! Phil and Senda talk extending a campaign from a TV series perspective, and some things to check in on MORE

Show us how you manage your game docs! Phil and Senda talk platforms and information storage so that we can confidently answer the question “Where do you keep your rules of the table?” Bamboo Lounge MORE

Show us how you play to find out! Phil and Senda talk play to find out, where it crystalized for them, and what it means for their style and process of gaming. Bamboo Lounge for MORE

Show us what you do when you’re sitting in a game you’re not enjoying — for whatever reason! Phil and Senda talk sitting down to a game you discover you don’t like, and what we’d MORE

It’s sure been a time! Phil and Senda talk their 2025 gaming, then things to look forward to in 2026. This feels like a good time to reiterate that we have specifically chosen to maintain MORE

Show us how you…do a year end topic round up?? Phil is joined by Ryan, our always intrepid editor, for a quick topic round up to “round off” our recording year. (eh? eh? you see MORE

Show us how you handle a game end when you don’t get to wrap it up, whether that’s for a story or a character! Phil and Senda talk about closure/closing loops, and other ways to MORE

Show us how you form good TTRPG teams! Phil and Senda revisit the Tuckman model of Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing and (wah wah) adjourning when your group changes up — whether that’s people, scheduling, or MORE

Show us how you balance agency vs story structure in table top games! Phil and Senda talk spectrum and (hopefully) nuance of this potentially loaded question. Bamboo Lounge for Patreon backers today! Find these and MORE

Show us how you move from a more traditional game to PbtA for the first time! Phil and Senda talk tips for grocking the major differences in the system whether you’re new to TTRPGs in MORE

Show us how you handle failure in your games! Phil and Senda talk competent failure, incompetent failure, and failure at various story points. Bamboo Lounge for Patreon backers today! Find these and more at http://patreon.com/mmp. Find MORE

Show us how you handle asking your group for more — more role play, more emotional stakes, more shared narrative. Phil and Senda talk about the ways you might approach that conversation and what you MORE

Show us how you use the principles of servant leadership to GM your games! Phil and Senda once again bring their professional training to bear on this gaming topic to discuss servant leadership for GMs. MORE

Show us how you manage your setting/info dump! Phil and Senda talk just in time info and some ways to approach it. Bamboo Lounge for Patreon backers today! Find these and more at http://patreon.com/mmp. Find us MORE

It’s episode 400! Show us how you…do 400 episodes? Phil and Senda reminisce a bit and talk stars and wishes for the podcast, then answer three shorter listener questions. Bamboo Lounge for Patreon backers today! MORE

Show us how you create a culture of collaboration at the table! Or, show us how you make sure that everyone is getting their game needs met in balance at the table! Phil and Senda MORE

Show us how you get useful feedback as a GM or a player! Phil and Senda talk ways to get critique and what needs to be true to make it useful. Also, sometimes the game MORE

Show us how you handle starting a game that’s lost it’s shine…or should you? Phil and Senda talk communication with your players and ways to approach a game that’s lost its shine between when you MORE

Show us how you avoid manipulating your players via NPC/GMPC (GMC)! Phil and Senda talk the actual question from last week: how to avoid unconscious (or conscious) bias in using your NPCs to communicate with MORE

Show us how you try new or risky ideas at the table! Phil and Senda tackle a single question that turns into two parts (so come back next week for the rest of the discussion). MORE

Show us how you handle mid-game check ins! Phil and Senda talk checkins: after session, four sessions in, going into a new arc, going into the end game, and when something goes wrong. Bamboo Lounge MORE

‘Show us how you rebuild your game prep strategy when life throws you a curveball! Phil and Senda talk through Phil’s updated free time reality, how that’s been impacting his gaming, and what his new MORE

Show us what three things are most important for a new GM to learn! Phil and Senda talk through what we think — do you agree? Bamboo Lounge for Patreon backers today! Find these and MORE

Show us what you want from a rulebook! Phil and Senda tackle a question about what we most want to see in a rule book, for running a game or for potentially purchasing a game. MORE

Show us how you create an engaging core loop — as another part of your setting creation! Phil and Senda talk core loops and how they drive investment and character creation, and also how to MORE

Show us how you handle facilitation and collaboration at the table…and specifically, how do you make sure everyone stays involved! Phil and Senda are pretty passionate about this because it’s part of both their hobby MORE

Show us how you manage players missing games! Phil and Senda talk about what you may need to take into consideration, including length of absence, how key that character is to the story, etc. Bamboo MORE

Show us your favorite things to include in your session 0! Phil and Senda are joined by invisible third panda Ryan Boelter (our editor) in celebration of their 100th show with us. Thanks Ryan!! Check MORE

Show us how you bring an iced campaign back from a long hiatus! Phil and Senda both have some experience with this. As usual this is a buffet, so some may be helpful for your MORE

Show us how you manage tech at the table for players and GMs! Phil and Senda talk about everything except the monster in the corner (focus). Bamboo Lounge for Patreon backers today! Find these and MORE

Show us how you manage patterns of behavior at your table! We love games, and games require people, which means that sometimes you will run into a social dynamic that’s just not working. We do MORE

Show us how you prep for play vs. prepping for reading! Phil and Senda talk about the different ways we use prepared adventure materials, and things you may consider to make your prep work for MORE

Show us your tips for new players — and for getting old players back to the table! Phil and Senda talk new players and players returning after a hiatus (for whatever reason). Bamboo Lounge for MORE

Show us ho GMing is manipulation — or not! Or, how to make sure you’re not doing it by accident or for the wrong reasons. Phil and Senda talk when you might be subconsciously manipulating MORE

Show us how you go from GM to player — especially if you’re a forever GM! How do you transition your skills and hand over default leadership gracefully? Phil and Senda talk this and also MORE

Phil and Senda are having a busy *life* moment, so for your listening pleasure we bring you this chit chat! The chit chat is not our normal format of show, for which we’d recommend going MORE

Show us how you handle known characters in known IPs (intellectual properties)! Phil and Senda talk characters, setting, and what kind of characters you might be bringing in. Bamboo Lounge for Patreon backers today! Find MORE

Show us how you take inspiration from the books you’re reading — or really any media? Phil and Senda talk about distilling the experience of reading to various levels of specificity and applying that potential MORE

Show us how you world build — and is it collaborative? Phil and Senda talk worldbuilding in quadrants from not collaborative to all collaborative and do you do it alone or as a group (trust MORE

Show us how you play a one on one game! Phil and Senda talk one on one games and some tips on making them successful. We are back! Bamboo Lounge for Patreon backers today! Find MORE

Show us how project management skills can help you GM — and vice versa! Phil and Senda are both professionals in various project management offices at this point in their careers, and have a conversation MORE

Show us…Gary Gygax’s tenants of GM Mastery! Phil and Senda go back for one more part on the 1987 book Role-Playing Mastery. Do they stand up to the test of time? Our take is…well, mostly. MORE

Show us how Gary Gygax thought you should be a master GM! Phil and Senda continue their conversation about the 1987 title Role-Playing Mastery by Gary Gygax, deciding what they think still holds true, what MORE

Show us what Gygax considered a master player! Do we agree? Do you?! Phil and Senda talk through the first 9 steps to being a Master Player according to Gary Gygax/s 1987 book Role Playing Mastery. MORE

Show us what Gygax considered a master player! Do we agree? Do you?! Phil and Senda talk through the first 9 steps to being a Master Player according to Gary Gygax/s 1987 book Role Playing MORE

Show us how you balance a player that is much much more proactive than the rest of your table! Phil and Senda cover when it’s actually a problem and some ideas on how to address MORE

Show us how you find people…to be new gamers! Phil and Senda talk introducing people to gaming and finding the kind of people who a) would be interested and b) would be interested in the MORE