The Session Zero Duo sit down with special guest Shareef Jackson from Rivals of Waterdeep to talk about gaming with generation Z. Tune in to learn more about what games have to offer kids and what cool things kids can bring to your table.

The Session Zero duo discuss social distancing during COVID 19 and the impacts of social isolation on emotional well-being. Join us and explore ways to keep connected and supported when we can’t sit around the table.

The Session Zero duo is joined by Porter’s wife Shelby to talk about the experience of GMing with anxiety, the challenges it poses, and some ways to tackle it.

Session Zero brings back out our pretend therapy couch again. Porter is joined by Hee-nod of Carral, a bloodthirsty, clever (and soft!) Flind/Gnoll of the Carral Clan, who would like some help with “being a better gnoll” and with making friends with humans.

The Session Zero duo explore the causes of shyness and social anxiety for roleplayers, and ways that they can not only assist themselves, but their fellow players as well, in easing and conquering it.

The Session Zero duo are joined by Ben Aldred, Assistant Professor and Liaison and Reference Librarian from The University of Illinois at Chicago, to discuss why it can be so difficult to find research on roleplaying and roleplayers in the field of psychology.

Today, Session Zero will be doing something a little different by pulling out our pretend therapy couch. Porter is joined by Spit, seasoned sky pirate from the good ship Uhuru, after Spit has been sent to mandatory therapy by order of his ship’s HR.

Another episode, another special guest! This week, The One Shot Network’s James D’Amato joins the Session Zero duo to talk about the strengths and challenges of being a gamemaster with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. The three of us jump right in and discuss strategies for success, workarounds for common struggles, and how to be kind to yourself.

This week, the Session Zero duo have a Special Guest! Join us while we speak with James Mendez Hodes about colonialism in gaming and its impacts on the worlds we build. In this second part of a two-part Mendez special, we explore what colonialism looks like in traditional fantasy and cyberpunk, and investigate what games to play and what players can do if they want to have a decolonized experience at the table.

This week the Session Zero duo have a Special Guest! Join us while we speak with James Mendez Hodes about colonialism in gaming and its impacts on the worlds we build. In this first part of a two-part Mendez special, we learn broadly about colonialism, as well as its place within the sciences.

The Session Zero duo delve into what the field of psychology thinks rituals are, what purpose they can serve at the table, and explore some of their own tried and true rituals together.

Our characters have taught us all sorts of interesting and useful life skills, like public speaking and picking locks! Come join Porter and Steve while they discuss personal growth through gaming and explore the ways that we support and scaffold each other towards our developmental goals and values.

Escape from your day to day with the the Session Zero duo as we explore the concept of escapism. Learn about how our imaginary journeys can serve in managing psychological distress and emotional wellbeing as well as being a really good time.

The Session Zero duo delve into mental illness and its function in game worlds. Join us in thinking a little deeper about the tropes and traditions of our hobby and how they sometimes mimic people’s lived experience of pain.

The Session Zero duo explore those awkward feelings of concern and fear of judgment that some tabletop and live action roleplaying gamers feel when interacting with non-gamers. We will dive into the concept of stigma and explore what it’s like to experience the stigma of being a gamer.

Porter and Steve discuss privilege and how it can play out in our imaginary worlds as well as the real one. What role does oppression play in our imaginations? Join us in examining the impact of the statuses we hold on the worlds we build and the characters we make.

Porter and Steve explore what types of meaning we can make in our shared, internal, imaginary worlds through the use of symbolic metaphors and analogies. Join us to find out why gaming can be philosophically true even if it isn’t real.

Porter & Steve are joined by game developer and conservationist Emily Care Boss in the second half of a two-part interview where they come together to discuss whether bleed is a good or a bad thing, strategies for addressing and mitigating bleed safety, and some positive takeaways they have experienced from their own experiences of bleed.

Porter & Steve are joined by game developer and conservationist Emily Care Boss in the first of a two-part interview where they come together to discuss the idea of bleed, the different types, how it can manifest, what might be causes of it, and how to go about making characters while taking bleed into consideration.

Porter & Steve discuss what the literature says about what emotions are at their core, what their meaning and value can be in the gaming experience, and some useful ways to consider and manage the emotions of yourself and your fellow roleplayer.

Steve and Porter explore the challenges that come with gaming at the table when you have Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder by exploring what ADHD is, how it can manifest, and what are strategies for working around it.

Steve and Porter explore what it means when things come to an end, be it for a game or a gaming group, and how you can prepare for it.

The Session Zero duo discuss what it might mean to be a player at the table, including player expectations, norms, and styles of play.

The Session Zero duo explore the idea of feedback at the table, how to structure it, and the importance and benefits of active communication for the roleplaying group.