Unwritten Earths Symposium

Unwritten Earths Symposium
  • 5.0 (4)
  • GAMES
  • UPDATED BIWEEKLY

Welcome to the Unwritten Earths Symposium! In each episode, tabletop RPG designers Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol try to trick each other into designing a game they wouldn't otherwise make.

  1. FEB 18

    The Mind-Blown Episode

    Nathan and Eppy assigned homework off-mic, to discuss some games that showcase thinking about games in a way we never would have, or that made such an impression on us that we've made them part of our toolkits. We discuss what we mean by our minds being blown, then go over our lists. Then, we assign homework for next episode: to sketch out what one of our works-in-progress would look like, if we used one of our mind-blowing influences as a model! We're still aiming to make new games this season, and this was a really productive conversation to help us both along. Show Notes: Friday the 13th: The Series Everything Everywhere All At Once Avery Alder Central Michigan University Press is republishing The Mountain Witch Art & System: Games for Expanded Play Games Mentioned: The Mountain Witch Teen Witch Still Life via Golden Cobra Remember Tomorrow Bullwinkle & Rocky Role-Playing Party Game 1001 Nights Black Sun Deathcrawl Darkpages (Aschan) Apocalypse World (Read a Sitch, specifically) Urban Jungle And there's more: Unwritten Earths Symposium Our Patreon Join the Discord Nathan's games Eppy's games Music by Will Jobst

    57 min

  2. FEB 4

    The Survey Episode

    In this episode, Nathan and Eppy respond to listener feedback, talk about a recent play experience, and then go through some of the projects we're each working on or thinking about that are not the One Without Master. It's a high-level survey of where we're at, game-design-wise, going into 2026! Check out Soapbox Game Mechanics! It's from All My Friends Are Stories (Patreon), they have some of the games for sale here, and here's the youtube channel. Eppy's episode hasn't been posted at the time of recording, but should be up eventually! Show Notes: At the Edge: Art of the Fantastic (Allentown Art Museum) Bryant Johnson Jennifer Adcock - check out The Price of Coal and Dollhouse D.R.A.M.A. Kenny Omega vs Haruka (age 9) Invisible Man vs. Invisible Stan (TWO invisible wrestlers!) Apple Human Interface Guidelines Games Mentioned: Quest RPG Mork Borg - Bare Bones Edition (the plain text version) Necronautilus Gamma World 7E Prince Valiant Storytelling RPG Five Star Match Plasmodics: mutant freaks in the weird future And there's more: Unwritten Earths Symposium Our Patreon Join the Discord Nathan's games Eppy's games Music by Will Jobst

    53 min

  3. JAN 21

    The Shel Kahn Episode

    In this episode, we sit down with friend, artist, game designer and art director for Swords Without Master Shel Kahn to talk about... all of those things! We touch on the different roles of art in game design, working with abstract imagery, refining your taste as a chooser-of-images even if commissioning original art isn't realistic, and the ways artwork and visual design elements help out the game design endeavor. Art... it's good! Show Notes: The Swords Without Master Kickstarter - funded now, runs through February 13th 2026! Shel's website and webcomics Buy By Crom! The Beguiling Bookstore Elemei (our glyph artist for Swords) Movies: Captain Blood, Don Juan and Troy Games Mentioned: Traveller and GURPS Traveller TORQ Shel’s Pocket Dungeons Wolfspell And there's more: Unwritten Earths Symposium Our Patreon Join the Discord Nathan's games Eppy's games Music by Will Jobst

    1h 14m

  4. 12/17/2025

    The Constraints Episode

    In this episode, Eppy brings a discussion of "technological" creative constraints in game design. We talk about what this means in the context of tabletop, how constraints surface through the design, and how we handle them as designers. This builds on our recent episode about design surfaces, and is ultimately another part of a long-term conversation about, well, game design! We also do our final homework for 2025, bringing some holidays from different projects in our back catalogue to celebrate the season. This is our last episode of the year, and we'll be taking a few weeks off over the holidays. See you in 2026, Scholars! Show Notes: Missile Command Box Cover Yar’s Revenge (and many other similar cover + gameplay images) Sorcerer: An Intense Roleplaying Game by Ron Edwards The Shrike Vampire: the Requiem Trial & Terror: Supernatural Victims Unit (free download!) Fantasy World The City of Fire & Coin And there's more: Unwritten Earths Symposium Our Patreon Join the Discord Nathan's games Eppy's games Music by Will Jobst

    1h 4m

  5. 12/03/2025

    The Reflection Episode

    In this episode, Nathan and Eppy reflect on the first year of this podcast, talk about how things change in the doing, and discuss how creating a community is part of the overall endeavor. This leads into a survey of feedback tools and frameworks that can be used to reflect on your game sessions and playtests. Thanks so much for joining us! With one year of the show in the books, we're excited for the next. Show Notes: Two Hundred a Day (A Rockford Files Podcast) Clojure/Conj2025 Lovecraftesque Wreck This Deck Roses and Thorns Stars and Wishes Brief/Debrief EARS Debrief And there's more: Unwritten Earths Symposium Our Patreon Join the Discord Nathan's games Eppy's games Music by Will Jobst

    1h 2m

  6. 11/19/2025

    The Surfaces Episode

    In this episode, Nathan and Eppy report back on their recent work on PET CRIMES, centering on making digital tools for play. This leads into a discussion of the concept of designing the "surfaces" of your game - what are the things (physical, relational, temporal) that you need to design in order to enable someone to play? This is just the start of this conversation, but it feels like a useful framework as we continue to make games in this season of the podcast! Patrons are getting access to PET CRIMES and it's associated digital tools as we develop them. Join them for just $3/month over at our Patreon! Show Notes: One More Thing online playspace (Google Sheet) Eppy's game Vast and Starlit Jason Morningstar's The Skeletons And there's more: Unwritten Earths Symposium Our Patreon Join the Discord Nathan's games Eppy's games Music by Will Jobst

    1 hr

  7. 11/05/2025

    The Card Concepts Episode

    In this all-homework episode, we each bring an initial sketch of the cards that could drive each of our card-based game concepts. Nathan's "Big Lore" game explores using card decks to reveal things about the game world and guide character progression, while Eppy's "Exploration Legacy" game uses cards to map out geography as well as encounter types for a game that becomes more unique the more its played. This is early-stage concept stuff, so listen in to hear how the vegan sausage is made! Check out our Patreon for a post that includes the images of the cards we describe in this episode (no subscription required!) Games Mentioned: Search for the Emperor's Treasure, by Tom Wham Minion Hunter from GDW Games The Best of Dragon Magazine Games And there's more: Unwritten Earths Symposium Our Patreon Join the Discord Nathan's games Eppy's games Music by Will Jobst

    1h 4m

  8. 10/22/2025

    The Season Two Premiere Episode

    We're moving into the next season of our podcast! In this one, Nathan and Eppy talk about how we're turning from the scholarly side of our project to the instructional side, and how our show homework is changing to match. What this means for our listeners is that you'll be hearing more about new game designs and works in progress, and less research and hunting out arcane gems from other games. Thanks for listening, Scholars! Remember to sign up for the Swords Without Master fixup campaign, coming early 2026. And there's more: Unwritten Earths Symposium Our Patreon Join the Discord Nathan's games Eppy's games Music by Will Jobst

    45 min
See All (32)

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

Welcome to the Unwritten Earths Symposium! In each episode, tabletop RPG designers Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol try to trick each other into designing a game they wouldn't otherwise make.

Information

  • Creator
    Unwritten Earths Symposium
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    32
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Unwritten Earths Symposium, LLC
  • Show Website
    Unwritten Earths Symposium