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The Lazy RPG Talk Show and the Lazy GM Prep show. D&D news, commentary, spotlights, Q&A, and lazy GM prep with Mike Shea of Sly Flourish.
Episodes
24 minutes ago
24 minutes ago
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:01:10 Sly Flourish News: Play Solo RPGs, Experiences Running a 1 to 20 3x5e Game, Secret Project News
- 00:07:51 Kickstarter Spotlight: Druskara for Shadowdark
- 00:12:21 Kickstarter Spotlight: Creating Villains and Lairs by Jeff Stevens
- 00:15:27 Commentary: Onboard Players with Cheap or Free Player Guides
- 00:37:20 DM Tip: Who Summarizes Your Last Session
- 00:45:56 Patreon Question: Announcing Non-Betraying NPCs in Session Zero
- 00:51:39 Patreon Question: Is Procedural Prep and Play Good?
- 00:59:07 Patreon Question: Building Situations
Links
- Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
- Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
- Buy Sly Flourish Books:
- Play Solo RPGs
- Experiences Running a 20th Level Multi-5e Game
- Druskara: A Brutal Fantasy World Setting for Shadowdark RPG
- Game Master Tools: Creating Villains & Lairs
- Daggerheart character playbooks
- Dragonbane's cheat sheet by Rocketpunch
- Dragonbane Quick Start Riddermound
- Dragonbane Quick Start Sinking Tower
- Dolmenwood's online rules reference
- character generator
- Cairn's Kettlewright
- Index Card Free Quickstart
- Index Card $5 print Player Book
- Shadowdark Quickstart
- Pirate Borg Player's Guide ($25)
- Daggerheart Quickstart
- The Delian Tomb for Draw Steel
- Build Single Encounter Situations
4 days ago
4 days ago
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Mar 09, 2026
Monday Mar 09, 2026
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:01:16 Sly Flourish News: Eight Steps and Other RPGs, Play Solo RPGs, Secret Project
- 00:04:42 Sly Flourish News: Mike on Ship of the Dead Podcast
- 00:06:30 D&D & RPG News: Dolmenwood PDFs On Sale
- 00:13:39 D&D & RPG News: D&D Ravenloft the Horrors Within
- 00:19:48 D&D & RPG News: Arcana Unleashed
- 00:23:58 D&D & RPG News: Arcana Unleashed Deadfall
- 00:26:37 D&D & RPG News: New D&D Web Site
- 00:38:16 D&D & RPG News: D&D 5.5?
- 00:45:30 Commentary: Things I Love About Daggerheart
- 01:12:38 Patreon Question: 5e Threats of Death
Links
- Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
- Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
- Buy Sly Flourish Books:
- Do the Eight Steps Work for Other RPGs?
- Play Solo RPGs
- Mike on Ship of the Dead
- Dolmenwood sale
- Kobold Press Southlands Fanatical Bundle
- 1d4 Con
- Ravenloft the Horror Within
- Arcana Unleashed
- Arcana Unleashed: Deadfall
- New Dungeons & Dragons Web Page
- D&D Seasonal Play and D&D Encounters
- Mysterious Season of Champions
- State of the Game on Nerd Immersion
- D&D Beyond Staff on Mastering Dungeons
- D&D Beyond Staff on Eldritch Lorecast
- D&D 5.5
Friday Mar 06, 2026
Friday Mar 06, 2026
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Mar 02, 2026
Monday Mar 02, 2026
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:00:54 Sly Flourish News: Greed, Heroism, and Wonder; Do the Eight Steps work for other RPGs?; new secret project packet next week
- 00:04:12 Patreon Question: Character Creation During Session Zeros for Traveler Online
- 00:06:51 Kickstarter Spotlight: Stoneshatter Tomb
- 00:08:38 Commentary: More Dragonbane Thoughts
- 00:22:15 Commentary: Daggerheart Review Article and Thoughts
- 00:37:15 Commentary: Discord Enshittification
- 00:46:41 DM Tip: Move Steps Forward
- 00:54:07 Patreon Question: What Makes You Play 5e?
- 01:00:03 Patreon Question: Character Creation During Session Zeros for Traveler Online
- 01:02:49 Patreon Question: Managing Challenge with Sidekicks
Links
Friday Feb 27, 2026
Friday Feb 27, 2026
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Feb 23, 2026
Monday Feb 23, 2026
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:01:01 Sly Flourish News: Slashes and Xs; Greed, Heroism, and Wonder; Secret Project Packet 2
- 00:04:41 Kickstarter Spotlight: Dragonbane Trudvang
- 00:08:45 Commentary: A Tale of Two Solos
- 00:33:30 DM Tip: Survive and Thrive at Gaming Conventions
- 00:53:14 Patreon Question: When to Choose Three Villains For Your Campaign
- 00:57:09 Patreon Question: Revealing Villain Quests Through Secrets
- 00:59:31 Patreon Question: Running Campaigns About Revolution
- 01:01:49 Patreon Question: Famous NPC Cameos in Adventures and Campaigns
Links
Friday Feb 20, 2026
Friday Feb 20, 2026
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Feb 16, 2026
Monday Feb 16, 2026
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:01:02 Sly Flourish News: Many RPG Hobbies, X and Slash to Track Damage, Secret Project Batch 2
- 00:04:15 Kickstarter Spotlight: Rock and Roar Monsters for OSE and Shadowdark
- 00:05:40 Kickstarter Spotlight: Under the Shadow of Helfast Spire for Shadowdark
- 00:07:37 Kickstarter Spotlight: Blades 68
- 00:08:59 Kickstarter Spotlight: Nimble Reprint
- 00:11:20 Kickstarter Spotlight: Numenera for Cypher
- 00:18:04 Commentary: We All Won – Three Years since the OGL Crisis
- 00:47:51 DM Tip: Because of X, You Know Y
- 00:54:40 Patreon Question: Running Two Groups Thorugh the Same Campaign
- 00:58:03 Patreon Question: Pausing Personal Quests
- 01:01:12 Patreon Question: Adding 5e Rules to D&D 2024
Links
- Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
- Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
- Buy Sly Flourish Books:
- The Many TTRPG Hobbies
- Use Slashes and Xs to Track Damage
- Rock & Roar Kickstarter
- Under the Shadow of Helfast Spire by Bob World Builder
- Blades '68
- Nimble 5e
- Numenera Cypher BackerKit Campaign
- History of the OGL
Friday Feb 13, 2026
Friday Feb 13, 2026
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Feb 09, 2026
Monday Feb 09, 2026
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:01:11 Sly Flourish News: Lazy Campaign Checklist, Many RPG Hobbies
- 00:10:00 Patreon Spotlight: Dwarven Forge VTT Backdrops
- 00:15:57 D&D & RPG News: Baldur's Gate TV Show
- 00:21:27 DM Tip: Feedback and Ideas for Scene Target Numbers
- 00:31:31 Product Spotlight: Down Among the Dead for Pirate Borg
- 00:45:58 DM Tip: Case Study Solution for Betraying Quest NPCs
- 01:00:36 Patreon Question: Involving Players in Collaborative Worldbuilding
- 01:05:19 Patreon Question: Planning Final Sessions of Long Campaign and One Year Later
Links
Friday Feb 06, 2026
Friday Feb 06, 2026
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Feb 02, 2026
Monday Feb 02, 2026
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:01:16 Sly Flourish News: Your Own Prep Framework, Lazy Campaign Building Checklist, New Project Test Chapters Released
- 00:09:48 Commentary: More Thoughts on Dragonbane
- 00:33:09 DM Tip: Single Target Number for a Scene
- 00:42:22 Commentary: Not Like This
- 00:52:54 Patreon Question: Dreadful Blessings for Legendary Actions
- 01:00:05 Patreon Question: Cult of the False Hydra
Links
Friday Jan 30, 2026
Friday Jan 30, 2026
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Jan 26, 2026
Monday Jan 26, 2026
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:01:03 Sly Flourish News: Location Moves, Simplest Quest Model, Your Own Prep Framework
- 00:03:47 Patreon Question: Missing Players with Strong Story Connections
- 00:06:38 Sly Flourish News: Dragonbane, Daggerheart, Tales of the Valiant Games
- 00:15:00 Kickstarter Spotlight: Nighthunters by Tales of the Valiant
- 00:19:00 Kickstarter Spotlight: Savage Arctic For Shadowdark by Jeff Stevens
- 00:21:37 Kickstarter Spotlight: Dungeons Inc by Merry Mushman
- 00:24:04 D&D & RPG News: Halls of Arden Vul Bundle of Holding
- 00:26:15 Product Spotlight: Index Card RPG GM's Guide and Player's Guide
- 00:30:37 D&D & RPG News: Dungeon Masterpiece on Four Indie RPGs
- 00:47:35 Commentary: Crows Playtest with James Introcaso
- 00:52:54 Patreon Question: Antagonistic Relationships with Warlock Patrons
- 00:56:20 Patreon Question: Roles for Players to Help Run the Game
- 00:58:52 Patreon Question: Missing Players with Current Connections
- 01:01:00 Patreon Question: Ninth Step for Larger World Ideas
Links
- Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
- Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
- Buy Sly Flourish Books:
- Location Moves
- The Simplest Quest Model
- Your Own Prep Framework
- Tales of the Valiant Night Hunters Kickstarter
- Savage Arctic by Jeff Stevens Kickstarter
- Dungeon Inc Kickstarter
- Halls of Arden Vul Bundle of Holding
- New ICRPG Books
- ICRPG Video
- Dungeon Masterpiece on Five Indie RPGs
Friday Jan 16, 2026
Friday Jan 16, 2026
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Jan 12, 2026
Monday Jan 12, 2026
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:00:44 Sly Flourish News: Single-Encounter Situations, Location Moves, Tower of Kartan, PAGE 3
- 00:05:57 Sly Flourish News: ToV, Dragonbane, Daggerheart Thoughts
- 00:16:50 D&D & RPG News: BackerKit Hack
- 00:18:21 D&D & RPG News: Kansas City Chiefs Play D&D
- 00:23:13 D&D & RPG News: Stranger Things Boxed Set Sells Out
- 00:27:09 Product Spotlight: Dolmenwood
- 00:52:47 DM Tip: High-Value RPG Tricks
- 01:04:46 Patreon Question: Taking Notes During the Game
Links
- Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
- Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
- Buy Sly Flourish Books:
- Build Single-Encounter Situations
- Location Moves
- D&D with Kansas City Chiefs
- Dolmenwood
- Welcome to Dolmenwood
- Dolmenwood Online Rules Reference
- Dolmenwood Generators
- Ending Campaigns
- Making Great Handouts
Friday Jan 09, 2026
Friday Jan 09, 2026
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Jan 05, 2026
Monday Jan 05, 2026
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:00:53 Sly Flourish News: 5e Crafting, Single-Encounter Situations, 5eADB Dark Mode, Tower of Kartan
- 00:05:42 Sly Flourish News: Top Ten Articles of 2025
- 00:13:38 D&D & RPG News: Tim Kask Passes Away
- 00:14:37 D&D & RPG News: James Haeck Joins WOTC
- 00:15:13 D&D & RPG News: Shannon Appelcline on RPG Business in 2025
- 00:16:09 Commentary: Stranger Things Series Finale & D&D
- 00:29:31 DM Tip: On Puzzles
- 00:50:54 Patreon Question: Prepping Cities the Lazy Way
- 00:54:37 Patreon Question: Taking Notes During a Game
Links
- Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
- Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
- Buy Sly Flourish Books:
- How to Get Your Group to Play Other RPGs
- The Secret of the Eight Steps of Lazy Game Prep
- Mashing Up the Eight Steps
- Build a Campaign-Unique Faction List
- Shadowdark House Rules
- Build Characters Quickly in D&D 2024
- Lazy Map Annotation
- Avoid Removing Player Agency
- Lazy World Building
- Two Different 5e Games at the Same Table
- Tim Kask passed away
- James Haeck joins WOTC as a senior game designer
- Shannon Appelcline's Year-end Review
Friday Jan 02, 2026
Friday Jan 02, 2026
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Dec 29, 2025
Monday Dec 29, 2025
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:04:14 Commentary: A Look Back at 2025
- 00:05:31 Sly Flourish News: Sly Flourish Stuff That Happened in 2025
- 00:11:41 Commentary: Awesome New RPGs in 2025
- 00:20:52 Commentary: Lots of Open Licensed Games in 2025
- 00:25:35 DM Tip: My Favorite 5e Trick of 2025 – Doom Points
- 00:29:01 Commentary: Big D&D Products of 2025
- 00:34:02 Commentary: Daggerheart's Big Splash in 2025
- 00:39:41 Commentary: Brennan Lee Mulligan Runs Critical Role Season 4 with D&D 2024
- 00:40:32 Commentary: Project Sigil Shuts Down, One D&D Ends
- 00:44:14 Commentary: 2026 Predictions
Links
Friday Dec 26, 2025
Friday Dec 26, 2025
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Dec 22, 2025
Monday Dec 22, 2025
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:01:12 Sly Flourish News: Crap in my Tackle Box, Timing Sessions
- 00:03:38 D&D & RPG News:Traveller Bundle of Holding
- 00:06:13 D&D & RPG News: Tales of the Valiant Bundle of Holding
- 00:09:05 D&D & RPG News: Panhandle PBS on RPG Culture
- 00:10:46 D&D & RPG News: Vote on Anticipated RPGs of 2026
- 00:13:33 Commentary: Save Dungeontube!
- 00:25:52 DM Tip: Modifying Published Adventures
- 00:56:23 Patreon Question: Character Motivations for New Players
- 01:00:10 Patreon Question: Hurrying and Speeding Up Players
Links
- Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
- Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
- Buy Sly Flourish Books:
- Crap I Keep in my Tackle Box
- Tips and Tools for Timing Sessions
- Traveller Bundle of Holding
- Tales of the Valiant Bundle of Holding
- RPG Documentary from Panhandle PBS
- RPG Documentary Trailer from Panhandle PBS
- Vote for your most anticipated RPG of 2026
- RPG Blogs
Friday Dec 19, 2025
Friday Dec 19, 2025
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Dec 15, 2025
Monday Dec 15, 2025
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:00:59 Sly Flourish News: Last Days of Sly Flourish Book Sale!
- 00:03:48 Sly Flourish News: Adventure Prompts, Crap in my Tackle Box
- 00:06:24 D&D & RPG News: JP Coovert Gift Guide
- 00:07:51 Kickstarter Spotlight: Crack the Sun for Draw Steel
- 00:11:50 Product Spotlight: Dread Dungeonomicon by Raging Swan
- 00:16:54 D&D & RPG News: D&D Beyond Developer AMA
- 00:31:42 D&D & RPG News: 5.2.1 SRD Released in Four Languages
- 00:36:52 DM Tip: Prep Through Villains
- 00:50:53 Patreon Question: Convincing Players to Play Folk-Heroic RPGs
- 00:57:49 Patreon Question: Players Drawing Maps on GM Descriptions
- 01:00:25 Patreon Question: GM Notes and Campaign Continuity and Consistency
Links
- Last days Sly Flourish Book Sale!
- Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
- Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
- Seek Adventure Prompts
- Crap I Keep in my Tackle Box
- JP Coovert’s Gift Guide of Indie RPGs
- Crack the Sun Crowdfunding Campaign
- Dread Dungeononomicon
- D&D Beyond Producer Post
- D&D Beyond Producer AMA
- Maps Updates and Feedback Post
- 5.2.1 SRD in Five Languages
Friday Dec 12, 2025
Friday Dec 12, 2025
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Dec 08, 2025
Monday Dec 08, 2025
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:00:59 Sly Flourish News: 20% Off Books and Free Shipping in US and UK on $50 or More
- 00:02:30 Sly Flourish News: Running Scarlet Minotaur, Seek Adventure Prompts, Monastery of Astarion
- 00:05:42 Sly Flourish News: Mike on the Games with Dave Stream
- 00:06:29 D&D & RPG News: Forge of the Artificer Articles on EN World
- 00:09:39 D&D & RPG News: EN World 2026 Anticipated RPG Nominations
- 00:16:14 Commentary: A Tale of Two Session Zeros
- 00:50:54 DM Tip: Campaign Prep Part 2 – Post Session Zero
- 01:03:02 Patreon Question: Types of Secrets
Links
- A20% off Sly Flourish Books with Free Shipping in US and UK for $50 or More
- Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
- Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
- Running Shadowdark's Scarlet Minotaur as a One-Shot Game
- Seek Adventure Prompts
- Appearance on Games with Dave
- Forge of the Artificer first impressions on EN World
- Forge of the Artificer Deep Dive on EN World
- EN World’s Most Anticipated RPGs of 2026 Nominations
- Dragonbane Cheat Sheet
- Types of Secrets
Friday Dec 05, 2025
Friday Dec 05, 2025
Mike prepares the next session of his Tales of the Valiant Dragon Empire campaign.
Monday Dec 01, 2025
Monday Dec 01, 2025
D&D and RPG news and commentary by Mike Shea of https://slyflourish.com
Contents
- 00:00:00 Show Start
- 00:00:43 Sly Flourish News: Sly Flourish Books 20% off with Free Shipping
- 00:02:11 Sly Flourish News: Favorite 2025 Products, Running Shadowdark's Scarlet Minotaur, Patron Obsidian Vaults
- 00:05:16 Kickstarter Spotlight: Beast RPG for 5e
- 00:09:08 D&D & RPG News: Shadowrun 5e Bundle of Holding
- 00:12:09 D&D & RPG News: Dyson Commerical Maps of 2025
- 00:13:43 Commentary: RPGs of 2026
- 00:30:48 DM Tip: Prepping New Campaigns
- 00:46:48 Patreon Question: Roll Dice in the Open
- 00:49:24 Patreon Question: Is Shadowdark Still the Best D&D Starter Set?
- 00:53:02 Patreon Question: Improvising Failing Forward
- 00:57:26 Patreon Question: Trends in RPGs Post OGL
- 01:01:53 Patreon Question: Playing RPGs is Boring
Links
- A20% off Sly Flourish Books with Free Shipping!
- Subscribe to the Sly Flourish Newsletter
- Support Sly Flourish on Patreon
- Favorite RPG Products of 2025
- Running Shadowdark's Scarlet Minotaur as a One-Shot
- Beast Kickstarter
- Shadowrun Bundle of Holding 5e Essentials
- Universe Mega
- Dyson 2024 Commercial Map Pack
Friday Nov 28, 2025