The Lazy RPG Podcast - D&D and RPG News and GM Prep from Sly Flourish · [email protected]

I Played Crows at PAGE 3 – Lazy RPG Talk Show

·1 hr 5 min·4 clips

Mike Shea says Daggerheart's encounter math is "awkward" and that "Solos only count as five."

1. The Lazy RPG Podcast episode centers on Mike Shea's Page 3, the Philadelphia Area Gaming Expo, plus RPG news and GM prep updates. 2. Mike Shea is the host and Sly Flourish creator, and he uses the episode to connect his home games, Patreon work, and convention travel. 3. The episode asks what Page 3, a set of new Kickstarters, and several recent Sly Flourish articles mean for tabletop RPG players and GMs. 4. Shea revisits the Sly Flourish article "Location Moves," which draws on Daggerheart ideas about treating locations as actions during exploration. 5. He also summarizes "the simplest quest model," where an NPC asks characters to go somewhere and do something, with the motivation explained by "why" they are going. 6. The next article, "your own prep framework," focuses on customizing the eight steps from Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master. 7. Shea says Hero Tier subscribers get "readings and reflections" posts, including him reading an article aloud and then adding background commentary. 8. He describes a new large project as a "lazy GM thing" that will likely become a Kickstarter in the middle of the year. 9. The project is being shared in 16 chapters, released in four batches, and routed through comments or email feedback. 10. Shea says the current draft is complete and he is now working through a second draft while collecting advice on what should be cut or added. 11. His Dragonbane game is going well for him as a GM, but he says the adventures have become a little repetitive in plot. 12. Daggerheart is still enjoyable for the group, but Shea says some players miss the crunchier character options they had in big 5e. 13. He gives a long critique of Daggerheart's encounter math, including "10 monster roles," point values, and the formula that uses character count times three plus two. 14. Shea also says Daggerheart's distance bands are too granular, pointing to "very close" as a category that still overlaps with melee. 15. He compares that system to Shadowdark's simpler ranges and says the larger bands are easier for theater-of-the-mind play. 16. Tales of the Valiant is the third game in his rotation, and he says the rules can slow play because of high character power and long turns. 17. On tone, the episode feels like a live working session, with Shea moving between product notes, GM theory, and convention recap. 18. The delivery is conversational and improvisational, with digressions into mechanical examples, shopping advice, and personal travel details. 19. Listeners who follow indie RPG design, GM prep, and convention reports will likely get the most out of it. 20. People wanting a tight review of one product or one system may skip it.

As heard by us

A convention check-in that turns product chatter into useful table-side judgment.

Mike Shea folds a convention report, a product roundup, and a working GM's instincts into one brisk conversation. The Page 3 segment lands best, especially the early look at Crows with James Intercaso, which feels closer to a table report than a polished sales pitch.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

If you want Mike Shea's live Page 3 recap plus the latest Sly Flourish RPG chatter.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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