The Hobbies + Happiness Podcast: A Disney Lorcana Podcast · hobbies + happiness, LLC

Ep. 117 - To Be King...or Kingmaker?

·1 hr 14 min·4 clips

Dan argues the real choice is often “stop player A or the next person.”

Dan and Jim start the episode the way they often do, with a little warm-up banter. They joke about the Haunted Mansion hoodie and the YouTube setup, then move into the actual topic: the multiplayer Lorcana problem of king or kingmaker. That question comes up over and over. A lot of the conversation comes back to the same pressure point: in a multiplayer game, the turn rarely feels like a huge menu of choices. More often, it feels like deciding whether to stop the next player or let the threat roll forward. They use Multiplayer Madness 13 as the clearest example. That game gives them a concrete way to talk about kingmaker dynamics, especially the moment when Jim felt pushed into that role and hated it. Dan makes the case that it helps to think about the turn as, “I just need everyone else to not win.” That framing makes the decision feel smaller and less loaded. He contrasts that with treating the turn as if you have a wide-open set of options, which can make the situation feel heavier than it really is. The discussion circles back on itself a few times, but that seems to fit the subject. They are trying to show how multiplayer games actually feel at the table, with repeated checks, restatements, and the sense that the same problem keeps coming around. From there, they shift to trust. If you want to bargain or coordinate, you need some trust that the table will remember what people have done. They bring in Teddy as the example and revisit a deal that depended on that trust. That leads them back to the main point. A lot of multiplayer frustration comes from imagining a perfectly open set of options when the real decision is much narrower. They treat that narrower decision as a practical skill, not just a theory point. The episode keeps its friendly, hobby-table feel throughout. There are side comments, second-guessing, and a few loops through the same example, but the pace stays easy and conversational. By the end, they have turned one recurring multiplayer annoyance into a clearer way to read future games. They close by inviting reviews, thanking listeners, and promising to see everyone next week.

As heard by us

A multiplayer Lorcana discussion about kingmaking, table trust, and the pressure of choosing who to stop.

The episode turns on the king-or-kingmaker problem in multiplayer, with Dan and Jim using Multiplayer Madness 13 and a trust-at-the-table story to show how table politics shape who gets targeted.

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Why you'd press play

When the table starts politicizing every turn, this one helps you see the real choice.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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