Every week, Now You Know recaps the Know Direction content of the past week, previews the Know Direction content of the week to come, and shares the thoughts on the state of the network from the director of operations, Ryan Costello.
As you probably saw, there’s a new episode of Valiant in your feed!
I’m a big fan of Luis Loza’s original Pathfinder 2e campaign. He put a lot of thought into the format. The way he breaks up the narrative with his GM segments not only gives great advice from an experienced GM, but also gives us a window into his thoughts and experience with this campaign. When he told us about how the players talk themselves into thinking they could only ask one question of the oracular skeleton they met (shout out to Qarnoz!), not only was it hilarious, but it added a layer of situational irony to the episode. I appreciate how much space he gives his players to explore, and I love how well this talented group of players and actual play cast members fills the space they’re give.
It’s not the only podcast content returning to the Know Direction Network.
Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but I’ve been busy with an Essence20 assignment from Renegade. In fact, this weekend while my wife and kids visited my family’s trailer in exotic Plattsburgh, New York, I stayed home so I could beat a fast approaching deadline. Then, Renegade extended my deadline. I didn’t even ask them to, I just got two more weeks added to finish an assignment that is now nearly done. So 1. Woo! And 2. That frees me up for more network work.
We have another arc of Young and Adventurous recorded that’s just waiting for me to edit it. It’s scheduled for tomorrow, but I’ll probably only get it out in two weeks. I’ve gotten good at editing Adventurous quickly, but the first episode of a recording takes the longest.
But that’s not all! As discussed in Digital Divination 062 – More Changes at Paizo, Jason Keeley recently left the Starchamber and joined the, uh… Essence Station? He’s joined Renegade Game Studios as an Essence20 developer! And he’s joining me for an Upshift revival.
Upshift debuted as the Know Direction Network’s Essence20 news, previews, and interviews podcast in January, and had a rocky road from the start. With production and shipping delays causing the books to release late, Perram and I struggled for topics to fill the void. Then Perram left the network. I soloed a couple of episodes, one of which went so badly that I didn’t finish it and the show went on hiatus.
The Essence20 landscape changed. The first volley of core rulebooks released (with Transformers only available as a PDF at the moment, but available nontheless!). Production’s moving forward on My Little Pony and the follow-up releases of the first three settings. And Jason’s on board!
We’ll be changing the format of Upshift. Instead of being the Essence20 version of Know Direction, it’ll be the Essence20 version of Digital Divination. Every two weeks, we’ll release a 30-minute, single topic episode of use to Essence20 players and GMs, as well as those interested in writing game content and getting into the game industry. The first new episode could be available as early as next Friday.
Speaking of Know Direction Network Content, here’s a recap of the Know Direction Network content from last week:
Recap of August 8th to August 12th
What happened last week on knowdirectionpodcast.com and twitch.tv/knowdirection?
Monday, August 8th
Twitch
Know Direction 282 Live – GenCon 2022 and Rage of Elements
24 hours after the end of Gen Con 2022, Vanessa and guest co-host Alex Augunas cover all the news from the event, including the biggest news item, the already underway kineticist playtest!
Podcast
Intrepid Heroes 092 – Quantum Conundrum
If you like when Starfinder gets smart but weird, this episode of time displaced clones is sci-fi shenanigans at its finest!
Article
Now You Know – Gen Con Recovery
By Ryan Costello
I let everyone know to expect reduced content releases as the staff recovers from Gen Con, only for the majority of the staff to get their stuff out on schedule.
Tuesday, August 9th
Podcast
Game Design Unboxed 43: FRIEND or FAUX
Chrissy Fagerholt tells Danielle the classic tale of friends coming up with a game together, and her journey learning the industry and getting that game -FRIEND or FAUX from her company EAP Toy & Games- to market.
Article
Eldritch Excursion – Housecreeping
By Nate Wright
Clever mechanics excite me, especially when they work without an existing framework. Nate’s headquarters-as-a-shared-archetype articles blew me away with the creativity of the concept and how soundly he made the mechanics work. If you’re interested in designing for Pathfinder 2e, read these articles. They expanded the limits of 2e design in my mind.
Wednesday, August 10th
Podcast
Know Direction 282 – GenCon 2022 and Rage of Elements
Vee and Alex give the kineticist a solid breakdown. It’s an anticipated update to a robust 1e class, and Paizo took the 2e playtest version in unexpected directions. Having a kineticist expert like Vanessa* and a huge fan of the playtest version of the class like Alex** not only made the class clear, it made for an exciting listen.
*If “Vanessa Hoskins” is synonymous with one thing, it’s “Pathfinder kineticist”. If she’s synonymous with two things, it’s “Pathfinder kineticist and PFS airship”.
**In the KD staff chat, Alex dropped so many excited swears when discussing the playtest kineticist, I was worried he’d hurt our all ages rating if we had him on the pod.
Thursday, August 11th
Podcast
Digital Divination 063 – News From Gen Con
Friday, August 12th
Article
HeroForge Fridays 004 – Kitsune Sword Saint 2
By Alex Auguna
I have a confession: When I read the title, I thought “wait, this is Alex’s second Kitsune Sword Saint? Somehow I missed that he includes the creature level in the title of his HeroForge Friday builds.
Preview of August 15th to August 19th
This is back to Block 2 of our 2-block schedule.
Monday, August 15th
Podcast
Valiant Episode 35: In Which They Open All The Doors
Our Valiant Heroes start pushing buttons!
Article
Now You Know – Content Comeback
By Ryan Costello
Classic Know Direction podcast content returns: Valiant this week! Upshift next week, maybe! Young And Adventurous two weeks from now or maybe tomorrow!
Tuesday, August 16th
Podcast
Young and Adventurous 009
Scott D Young runs the Adventurous crew through an original adventure, following up on the modified version of Pathfinder Society Scenario #2-17: Lost Maid of Anactoria that he previously ran.
Article
Fox’s Cunning
By Dustin Knight
Dustin offers expert insight and helpful tools to enhance your game.
Wednesday, August 17th
Podcast
Presenting: Carlos Cabrera
John Godek chats with designer Carlos Cabrera about having an exciting game he worked on delayed, and how satisfying it is to finally announce it.
Thursday, August 18th
Podcast
Legend Lore 49 – Summoner
Luis and Loren tackle the class that brings its own party to the party in the latest class feature.
Article
Investing In
By Rob Pontious
Rob shares what he loves about the RPGs he’s been playing lately, and why you should check them out.
Friday, August 19th
Article
Hero Forge Fridays
By Alex Auguna
Iconic Designs meets Hero Forge Fridays as Alex Augunas creates a mini and stat block every week.
Now you know,
Ryan Costello
