Reunited at last and it feels so good.
Eric returns to complete the Hydra of the Blood God and before any of our heads can be lopped off we gotta talk about what we've been playing lately. Zero Parades: For Dead Spies, Pokopia, Tokimeki Memorial 2, Final Fantasy XI's anniversary, and so much more on this episode of Axe of the Blood God!

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

• Remembering ball pits

• No kings, yes queens

• Nadia's K-pit

Timestamps:

10:16 - Main Topic - Trails in the Sky

24:24 - Pokopia

35:24 - Tokimeki Memorial 2 EVS Append Discs

42:24 - Zero Parades: For Dead Spies

1:05:20 - Final Fantasy XI 24th Anniversary

1:12:16 - Random Encounters - Destiny 2

1:20:48 - Nadia's Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Axe of the Blood God Theme - [Lena Raine]

Hometown Domina - Jazz Arrange- - [Legend of Mana]

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Something's coming, something good -- a podcast all about musicals, RPGs, musical RPGs, and RPG musicals. Featuring a uniquely qualified guest; director of People of Note, Jason Wishnov! He joins Victor and Nadia as they talk about the parallels of these two "love-it-or-hate-it" mediums and how to transpose the world of musical theatre into digital space. All that and more on this episode of Axe of the Blood God!

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

• The thing that holds up great music AND great RPGs: math!

• What musicals would make great RPGs

• What RPGs would make great musicals

• Eternal Sonata, Rhapsody, Tokyo Mirage Sessions, Final Fantasy X-2, Final Fantasy XIV, and many others

Timestamps:

It's just all interview, man

Music Used in this Episode:

Axe of the Blood God Theme - [Lena Raine]

Whirls Generation - Big Giant Circles - [People of Note]

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We're going to the only place where people can agree on what an RPG is... SPACE!
Victor and Nadia, with a little help from the listeners, discuss their favourite RPGs set in space, RPGs that feature space stages, and RPGs that feature space travel regardless of how much of the game is played in the void of space. Three very important distinctions. All that and pretty much just that on this out-of-this-world episode of Axe of the Blood God. Except we don't discuss the game Out of This World because we all agree, not an RPG. Right?

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

• What does space mean to us?

• The After Years Appreciation

• When does a game NEED to be set in space?

• Live-A-Live's perfect chapter

• We love people from The Moon

• Xenosaga, Bravely Second, Star Ocean, Phantasy Star, the most anyone has discussed Lunar Knights, and so many more games!

Timestamps:

8:48 - Main Topic - RPGs in space!

54:13 - Random Encounters

1:34:16 - Community Mailbag

1:40:20 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Axe of the Blood God Theme - [Lena Raine]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Laplace [Lunar Knights]

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Victor is back from Final Fantasy XIV Fan Fest in Anaheim and he brought a lot of thoughts and even more interviews from listeners, friends of the show, friends of himself, and new friends! Look forward to appearances from Harper Jay, Fusionx, CrystAAHHL, and many more! It's an honourary episode of Sharlayan Dropouts as Victor and Nadia discuss what they're excited about from the announcements of EverCold, and why the Blood God has the best community around. Look, I know the sound on this one might be off in some spots; I made a lot of work for myself. But I hope you can forgive some sound quality for what I think is a wonderful cross-section of our community. I had a wonderful time making this episode and I hope you enjoy listening whether you're a Final Fantasy XIV or XI player or not.

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

• Fusionx and 20 years of podcasting about Final Fantasy MMOs

• EmUnArum and the importance of Final Fantasy XI

• Many, many interviews with wonderful people

• If you never warmed up to XIV's combat, EverCold might have what you want

• We just scratch the surface of new character customization options like Action Skins

Timestamps:

6:08 - Main Topic

11:08 - Harper Jay not quite predicting the expansion title

25:28 - CrystAAHHL being absolutely delightful

32:20 - Fusionx on podcasting for 20 years

1:03:16 - Ash Paulsen on not knowing anything about FFXIV

1:04:58 - Derek Heemsbergen and I busting each other's chops like true friends

1:15:44 - Em on the Importance of Final Fantasy XI

1:31:28 - Sena Bryer being the most charming person on the planet

1:41:12 - Axe of the Blood God / Sharlayan Dropouts Community Meet-Up

And that's it, man. It's aaaall XIV talk today.

Music Used in this Episode:

Axe of the Blood God Theme - [Lena Raine]

Ride the Rhythm - [The Primals - Dark Decades - Final Fantasy XIV]

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Eric is joined by guest Austin Walker on a solo run to discuss Austin's upcoming TTRPG Realis.

Topics include:

• Viewing Realis through the Shonen lens, (or Boss Babying Realis, if you prefer).

• World-building in a tabletop space vs game dev space.

• The art of creating a bunch of freaky little guys for your players to spec into.

Contribute to the Kickstarter for Realis, (up until April 30,) or preorder it here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/crum/realis

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

• An Xbox rebrand of sorts
• Clair Obscur celebrates its one year anniversary with a free haircut update
• Sega promises the return of “many Sega series” in 2026. (Sakura Wars??)
• The Expanse: Osiris previews are out
• The Elden Ring movie confirms some of its cast 
• Final Fantasy XIV Fanfest is underway! Lots to talk about, and we’ll get more in-depth about this later
• Eric's island of freaky little guys and women who are mean 

Timestamps:

9:18 - Main Topic

52:45 Random encounters

1:10:36 The Tavern

Music Used in this Episode:

Axe of the Blood God Theme - [Lena Raine]

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

The Boy in Green (Hunter x Hunter) - [Jack de Quidt]

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It's a very special episode this week as Victor interviews Bradly Halestorm, the founder of LionWing Publishing, a team that specializes in localizing Japanese tabletop RPGs both old and new. We learn all about his history with RPGs and what it's like to license and localize Japanese books from 20+ years ago. It's a real treat and we get into the weeds, especially when we discuss LionWing's upcoming release from their wildly successful Kickstarter campaign, Wares Blade; a fantasy mech tabletop from the 80s. I hope you all enjoy this episode of Axe of the Blood God!

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

• The challenges of working through snail mail

• The future of Shin Megami Tensei: Tokyo Conception

• Finally, another guest that respects 7th Dragon!

Timestamps:

6:08 - Main Topic - Interview w/ Bradly Hale of LionWing

1:10:33 - Wares Blade

Music Used in this Episode:

Axe of the Blood God Theme - [Lena Raine]

VITALITY - [Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne - Incense Disc]

LUCK - [Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne - Incense Disc]

STRENGTH - [Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne - Incense Disc]

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Pokemon Champions is here and we have expert guests Casey DeFreitas and Kallie Plagge to get you up to speed.

We get deep into the tall grass of Pokemon competitive battling, and ask the question: How do the gatcha components of Pokemon Champions affect players new and old? The tension between serving the new player and fulfilling the seasoned player runs high!

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

• Pokopia 
• Slay the Spire 2
• Monster Hunter Stories 3
• The funniest moment of Nadia's life

Timestamps:

00:07:40 - Main Topic

01:02:40 - Random Encounters

01:03:53 - Tavern

1:26:42 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Axe of the Blood God Theme - [Lena Raine]

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Champions Music - [Pokémon Champions]

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Pre-order Nadia's book!
https://retrogamebooks.com/products/from-pixels-to-prose-what-video-games-taught-me-about-storytelling
Once you're done that come back and listen to a nice chill episode on a relaxing slow news week. Victor and Nadia discuss their favourite canine and feline party members in RPG history with plenty of help from our community! All that and so much more on this domesticated episode of Axe of the Blood God! And the name of the KTEH producer I was trying to think of was the late Karen Roberts.

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

• From Pixels to Prose by Nadia Oxford

• Animorphs

• Weird Canadian TV

• Final Fantasy Dissidia Duellum update!

Timestamps:

10:08 - Main Topic - The Best Cats and Dogs in RPGs

54:13 - Random Encounters

59:54 - Tavern - Nadia Wrote a Book!

1:23:00 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Axe of the Blood God Theme - [Lena Raine]

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Break it down - inside the cinema - [Persona Q2]

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Ride on! Victor and Nadia are joined by special guests David Oxford and Ash Paulsen to discuss the new Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection. Is this the best Mega Man collection yet in terms of raw options? Do we recommend jumping into the Mega Man RPGs from the Star Force series? Did we mention you can probably skip Star Force 2? All that plus a very exciting surprise segment, and much more on this cosmic episode of Axe of the Blood God!

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

• The Mega Mandela Effect

• Vector Translations' Xenosaga I&II DS fan-translation

• Blue Reflection: Quartet

• Tomodachi Life

• Dissidia Duellum

• How to play Boktai in 2026

• Kura5

Timestamps:

11:30 - Main Topic - Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection

55:28 - ITS THE RAGTIME MOUSE

1:04:28 - Random Encounters

1:12:22 - Tavern - Tomodachi Life, Dissidia Duellum

1:36:32 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Ragtime Mouse - [Final Fantasy IX]

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Rise as a Hero - [Mega Man Star Force]

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With takes as hot as the desert sands, Eric, Nadia, Victor, and special guest Joseph Bradford discuss March's hottest RPG Crimson Desert. Does it work as a prequel to hit MMO Black Desert Online? Is it greater than the sum of its many many many parts? Does anyone like the main guy? All these questions and more answered on this sandy-but-not-as-sandy-as-you'd-think episode of Axe of the Blood God!

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

• Dread Delusion

• Animal Crossing City Folk

• The Ratline

• Dragon Quest X

• Greiga Master's Mega Man Battle Network: Phantom of Network PC Port

• I promise, I PROMISE, we will do our best to stop talking about how awful AI is but studios need to stop forcing our hand. We want to to be free from this curse.

Timestamps:

13:08 - Main Topic - Crimson Desert

1:22:48 - Random Encounters - AI in Crimson Desert

1:50:08 - The Tavern

02:10:08 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Having Fun - [Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors]

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Probably a good idea to start learning how to salvage a dead civilization and there's no better teacher than Ditto. Pokopia is here and Eric and Nadia have plenty to share about this new Pokemon spin-off from the developers behind the cult-classic Dragon Quest Builders.

Subscribe for bonus episodes and discord access at ⁠https://www.patreon.com/bloodgodpod⁠ and get merch at ⁠https://shop.bloodgodpod.com⁠

Also in this episode:

• It's always been Dragon Slayer

• Slay the Spire 2

• Final Fantasy XIV Dawntrail Patch 7.5 Live Letter

• Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection

Timestamps:

11:12 - Main Topic - Pokopia

49:40 - Random Encounters

54:00 - Sharlayan Dropouts - Final Fantasy XIV Patch 7.5 - Trail to the Heavens

1:15:20 - The Tavern - Monster Hunter Stories 3

1:30:08 - Slay the Spire 2

02:07:26 - Nadia’s Nostalgia Nook

Music Used in this Episode:

Do Your Best - [Breath of Fire III]

Pub - [Lunar Knights]

A Curious Tale - [Secret of Mana]

Celadon City - [Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen]

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