Level Up Your Gaming: Tabletop RPG Podcast · Aaron and Josh

Let's Make A One Shot: Dungeons And Dine

·43 min·4 clips

Aaron and Josh kick off by revealing they're creating a one-shot called Dungeons and Dine, sparking interest in its unique concept.

This episode of Level Up Your Gaming features hosts Aaron and Josh collaboratively designing a tabletop roleplaying game one-shot adventure. The hosts are experienced gamers who regularly create and discuss RPG content for their audience. They focus on building a complete, playable scenario from a single thematic idea. The episode's central concept is "Dungeons and Dine," a restaurant-themed adventure. Josh proposed the idea, which was chosen over an alternative called "The Last Supper Club." They debate whether supper clubs, a dining establishment style, are primarily a regional phenomenon of the Midwest like Wisconsin and Northern Illinois. The adventure's premise involves player characters being hired to investigate a fantastical restaurant with a suspiciously perfect reputation. The party would discover the establishment is a front for a cult that serves monstrous cuisine to an unwitting high-society clientele. A key story beat involves the chef being a powerful fiend or aberration who uses forbidden magic in the kitchen. The hosts suggest the restaurant's signature dish could be a "Beholder Bourguignon" or something similarly monstrous. They outline a potential social encounter where players must blend in with the elite patrons during a multi-course tasting menu. The adventure would include skill challenges related to discerning ingredients, sabotaging kitchen operations, and a final confrontation in the larder or wine cellar. One interesting twist is the possibility of the characters needing to participate in the dinner service to maintain their cover. Josh speculates that the cult's goal might be to subtly corrupt the city's nobility through these enchanted meals. Aaron suggests the restaurant could have a hidden, extra-dimensional pantry stocked with rare and dangerous creatures. A memorable idea involves a rival food critic NPC who could be a red herring or an unexpected ally for the players. The conversation is informal, collaborative, and filled with humorous brainstorming. The tone is lighthearted and creative, focusing on practical game-mastering advice wrapped in a fun premise. Listeners who enjoy DIY game design and hearing the creative process behind RPG scenarios will love this episode. Gamers seeking deep rules analysis or a pre-written adventure module might find the episode too speculative.

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