Episodes
Fresh from doomscrolling, Frank and Tormsen log in to a discussion of the occult underground in the social media landscape, from WitchTok to LinkedIn Alchemy. Like and subscribe and don't forget to ring that bell, it tolls for thee.
Published 05/19/24
Published 05/19/24
Frank and Tormsen get up to some weird science and construct themselves a bit of artificial life. While hard at work in the kitchen, they discuss the reasons to make life, go over examples from world folklore and mythology, and give a few tips and tricks for spicing up your next homunculus or unspeakable servant.
Published 05/03/24
Frank and Tormsen visit Shelbyville with friends of the show Ben and Zomner to discuss the Simpsons, its occult legacy, and applicability to Unknown Armies. The Stonecutters managed to intercept the live broadcast, so enjoy an additional twenty minutes or so of almost Frank Tormsen free discussion. The Swedish cartoon referenced in the episode can be found here: https://www.messynessychic.com/2012/10/20/was-homer-simpson-stolen-from-this-vintage-cartoon-ca-1949/ The Simpsons is Real Footage...
Published 04/03/24
Frank and Tormsen vibrate at lower frequencies and expose the hidden masters behind the Reptilian Hunting Society. On their way out of the matrix, they go over David Icke, the pulp fiction origins of lizard people, and uncover the real conspiracy of reptilian humanoids that has infiltrated the halls of power.
Published 03/20/24
In this exclusive scenario written and run by Valiant for Unknown Armies, Frank, Tormsen, and CJ are nuns with secrets. Can the sisters get to the bottom of the strange happenings at their abbey, or will they be consumed by an outside threat? For overview and character sheets, see here: https://strange.domains/ua3e-scenario-cloister/
Published 02/19/24
Frank and Tormsen answer some more questions out of their mailbag. Between procrastinating on episode topics and content creation, they give some brief takes on the Avatar Underground, James Ellroy, and the occulted implications of Gregg's sausage roll.
Published 02/02/24
Frank and Tormsen ring in the new year with a trip to the mailbox, responding to some submissions from their Blessed Century. By popular demand, they give their piece on forgotten GMCs, D.B. Cooper, UA campaigns of the past and future, and more. Mellonbread's blog: https://bellenmred.blogspot.com/
Published 01/11/24
While enjoying a festive cookout, Frank and Tormsen encounter CJ and succumb to a detailed discussion on the history and tropes of antisemitism, how they have affected conspiracy theory, and what all this means for your Unknown Armies game.
Published 12/13/23
Frank and Tormsen check out and give their takes on the submissions for the hopefully first annual Unknown Armies Halloween Jam. List of jam entries: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Gk7SCn3oA94yii2l4krKvIDwn2Doo_XOwDOI_ECiHDU/ Mellonbread's reviews: https://bellenmred.blogspot.com/2023/11/2023-unknown-armies-halloween-jam.html
Published 12/02/23
Armchair philosopher hacks Frank and Tormsen discuss the Unidentified Foreign Ontology group, detailed in the Unknown Armies splatbook Postmodern Magick, and come to grips with what is and what what is.
Published 11/02/23
Frank and Tormsen wrap up their look at Unknown Armies 3rd Edition's Campaign Starter Kits. They give their takes on The Violence Inherent in the System, Raiders of the Lost Mart, and The Wasteland from Oddities and Endlings, then they close things out with opinions and advice on how to tackle Campaign Starter Kits.
Published 10/21/23
After a fortuitous find during an All Mart trip, Frank and Tormsen discuss the Campaign Starter Kits of Unknown Armies 3rd Edition. In this part, our heroes delve into Heroin Highway, Derby Girls Destroy DC, The Young Practicals, and Sacred Pharma. Spoilers abound.
Published 09/28/23
Frank and Tormsen finally talk about what they know, discussing the Fool and the Trickster archetypes across Unknown Armies editions, and the provocative variations lurking in between.
Published 09/07/23
Taking refuge in Henry Kissinger's bathroom, Frank and Tormsen get iconoclastic on Iconomancy. Seeing their only opening, they meditate upon the school's origins, go over potential alterations to its game write-up, and talk about some new types of Iconomancers they've seen in the wild.
Published 08/03/23
Avid consumers Frank and Tormsen discuss the Swap Meet and the people who run the event, how to incorporate it into your Unknown Armies campaign, and what other events for avatars are out there for you to gatecrash.
Published 06/23/23
With the station's broadcasting equipment on the fritz, your hosts end up giving airtime to a variety of their alternate universe counterparts.
Published 06/13/23
After their first episode idea ends up a wash, Frank and Tormsen go with their backup and do an episode on the sundry conspiracies surrounding former president Barack Obama. Follow them on a journey that takes them to Hawaii, Chicago, Mars, and the boardroom of Alex Abel as they try to squeeze a bit of gameable content out of this.
Published 05/14/23
While raiding the fridges at an abandoned medical research facility, Frank and Tormsen discuss the Abnormal Pathogen Research Group and its recent exploits. Content Warning for discussions of and riffing on medical conspiracy theories within the Unknown Armies universe. The APRG is detailed on pages 11-12 of Unknown Armies 3rd Edition's Book Three: REVEAL.
Published 04/27/23
Frank and Tormsen talk shop on magickal artifacts, getting into where they come from, how you make them, some shortcuts for coming up with interesting ones, and techniques for deploying them in your game.
Published 04/15/23
Frank and Tormsen return to the northern hemisphere to investigate another country's occult landscape. Friend of the show Toasty accommodates us with stories of sacrificial cults, KGB psychics, and some homemade Russian conspiracy theory.
Published 04/01/23
Frank and Tormsen get stuck in a pit (again!) and are set upon, verbally and conceptually, but returning friend of the show Mellonbread. A discussion on dungeon crawls in Unknown Armies ensues, along with tangents on heists and Objectives. The Temple of the Crying Buddha, a one shot scenario by Mellonbread, can be found here: https://bellenmred.blogspot.com/2023/02/temple-of-crying-buddha-masterpost.html
Published 03/17/23
Frank and Tormsen go crawling through Atlas Games' dungeons in search of treasure, only to discover a far stranger artifact. From the strata of the OGL's primordial days walks The Ascension of the Magdalene, a dungeon crawl for Unknown Armies 2e and Dungeons and Dragons 3e.
Published 03/02/23
Alarmed by a sudden growth, Frank and Tormsen discuss two of UA's warped animal spirits and how they can be used in your Unknown Armies campaign. Information on Familiars can be found on pages 88-90 and 112-120 of the Break Today sourcebook, while Lycanthropes are described on pages 303-304 of Unknown Armies 2nd Edition.
Published 02/17/23
What does it mean to "Wake the Tiger"? What really is "the Unnatural"? What makes people freak out when they witness the occult? Your two hosts get into the weeds on some common assumptions and received wisdom in the Occult Underground, looking for bugs.
Published 02/02/23