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Artwork for Dead Letters

Dead Letters

Dead Letters NYC
OSR
New York City
The Great Pendragon Campaign
Null
Pendragon
Veins Of the Earth
Wolves Upon the Coast
Avatar Legends the Roleplaying Game
The Shrike
Video Games
Blades In the Dark
Apocalypse World
Thousand Year Old Vampire
PBTA
Ennies
Garbage Barge
Goblin GLOG
Immersive Sims
Settlers Of a Dead God
A Perfect Wife

Dead Letters is a podcast about tabletop role playing games. Sam, Misha, and Walid are game designers and academics committed to doing the readings. Rulebooks, adventures, blogposts, articles, and everything in between. Tune in for your weekly dose of RPG discourse every Friday! If you’re interested in being a part of the conversation, Dead Letters holds a book club every bi-monthly at boshi's pla... more

PublishesWeeklyEpisodes24Founded6 months ago
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Latest Episodes

Long time communist Sam brings on two old school revolutionaries, Misha and Walid, to discuss the highly influential Turku School Manifesto (and some other supplementary readings) authored by Mike Pohjola. Listen to the theorists steelman RPG argumen... more

Dog sled racers Misha and Walid hop off their championship crews and join Sam to continue discussing Arthurian myth and legend. Today, they're reading Greg Stafford's 1985 supplement The Great Pendragon Campaign. Join the guys as they breakdown pseud... more

Chess enthusiast Sam invites Grandmasters Walid and Misha to take a step away from the black and white checkered board and discuss the different types of knight moves in Greg Stafford's Pendragon. Join the guys as they break down Arthurian cannon, ho... more

Sentient puppets Walid and Misha (ft. Misha's dog Bandit in the background sometimes) join terrified fan Sam to discuss Amanda Lee Franck's YOU GOT A JOB ON THE GARBAGE BARGE. Join the horrified trio as they discuss the nuance of adventure writing, t... more

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Recent Guests

Misha Favora
Special advisor to President Richard Nixon
Former Nixon administration
Episode: 20: Thief Gold
Misha Favurov
Cosmonaut and game designer/academic
University/space program referenced in show
Episode: 10: Against Procedurality
Walid Rouda
Astronaut and game designer/academic
Academic/space program referenced in show
Episode: 10: Against Procedurality
Misha Favorov
Lottery winner and academic-leaning participant
Episode: 9: Holy Mountain Shaker
Walid Rauda
Fields Medal-winning mathematician, professor
Expert on Gradient Descent (academic)
Episode: 8: Gradient Descent
Mikhail Favorov
Professor, game design educator
Academic in New York
Episode: 8: Gradient Descent

Hosts

Sam Sorensen
Host of Dead Letters and an active designer/academic contributor
Walid Rauda
Co-host with focus on inquisitive design discussions and academic perspectives
Misha Favorov
Co-host and academic contributor with research-oriented approach

Reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars from 7 ratings
  • Very academic

    Four stars because I want y'all to be successful

    but I have my challenges. I hope this will be helpful to the hosts and listeners alike -

    Pros: Diverse and excellent selection of games, depth of knowledge in the field

    As a recovering art school graduate, the discussion has a recognizable fervor of discussing minutiae of the work with the intensity of something really important. It is clear the hosts know a lot about the field, but the format of discussion leads to them debating small issues an... more

    Apple Podcasts
    4
    Beto is a Cop
    United Statesa month ago
  • Excellent

    This podcast does an excellent job of making me shake my head in annoyance (good). I would love it if you had Yochai Gal on here as a guest to round out the curmudgeonly air on this podcast. Seriously though, excellent podcast, you don’t get discussion this good anywhere else. Makes me wish I lived in NYC so I could come to the book club and argue with Sam’s absurd takes.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Seraphel💜
    United States2 months ago
  • cool discussions!

    really interesting discussions on ttrpgs!! I love ttrpgs!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Swagzefqjabws
    United States3 months ago
  • Shrimply Banging

    This podcast is great, and brings a lot of informed discussion! A perfect 5/7

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    An Excess of Beans
    United States6 months ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Guests and topics are diverse, with strong emphasis on the craft of RPG design and critical reading of text.
The show's NYC book club and pedagogy angle make it feel community-oriented and practical beyond theoretical debates.
Listeners value the rigorous, design-focused conversations and appreciate when guests bring additional expertise.

Top Books Podcasts

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Myths and LegendsJason Weiser, Carissa Weiser, Nextpod
The Book Review
The Book ReviewThe New York Times

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

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Household IncomeSocial Media Reach

Frequently Asked Questions About Dead Letters

What is Dead Letters about and what kind of topics does it cover?

A thoughtful RPG-design podcast featuring three hosts who are designers and academics, offering close-readings of rulebooks, adventures, and related writings. Episodes center on deep analyses of game systems, with frequent comparisons acrossOSR, PBTA, and indie design, plus practical running tips and meta-discussions about what makes a module or book valuable. A standout feature is the book club in NYC and a consistent emphasis on pedagogy, design philosophy, and how texts influence play, making it a digestible resource for both aspiring designers and curious players seeking rigorous critique.

Across recent episodes, expect nuanced debates about structure vs. guidance, how prompts and mechanics shape player agency, and the tension between ... more

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Which podcasts are similar to Dead Letters?

These podcasts share a similar audience with Dead Letters:

1. Between Two Cairns
2. Ansible Uplink, a sci-fi ttrpg review podcast
3. Bastionland Podcast - Tabletop Roleplaying Game Design
4. Rascal News
5. Ship of the Dead Podcast

How many episodes of Dead Letters are there?

Dead Letters launched 6 months ago and published 24 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

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What guests have appeared on Dead Letters?

Recent guests on Dead Letters include:

1. Misha Favora
2. Misha Favurov
3. Walid Rouda
4. Misha Favorov
5. Walid Rauda
6. Mikhail Favorov

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

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