This episode takes listeners deep into our very first full Daggerheart adventure, where character backstories collide with corrupted beasts, mysterious crystals, and the deadliest foe of all: stairs.

We start with introductions and dive into what makes each hero tick — from the albino wizard who fled the Dominion’s forced spellcaster army, to the hyper-positive gym-bro faun named Flex Forigno, to the chill turtle warrior Kombu. The party dynamic quickly proves hilarious and chaotic: front-liners with the most relaxed vibes, a paranoid wizard trying to stay unnoticed, and rogues who might not survive the local jail.

The session itself unfolds in three big beats:

• The Crystal Boar Encounter: A mutated beast straight out of Princess Mononoke, shedding shards that punish anyone reckless enough to fight up close.
• The Hollowed Ones: Crystal-infested zombies aboard a wrecked skyship, showcasing Daggerheart’s flexibility in combat and narrative flavor.
• The Countdown Clock: A clever GM mechanic where glass beads tick away toward the arrival of the dreaded pirate ship The Soggy Biscuit — ratcheting up tension as the crew scrambles to repair and claim the downed vessel.

Highlights include debates over the difference between wizards and sorcerers, illusions as Marvel-style Mysterio tricks, the joy of carving scrimshaw runes into spell-staves, and the ongoing party joke about failing the simplest rolls. (The great enemy of this campaign? Not monsters, not pirates — stairs.)

By the end, the crew is laughing, learning the ropes of the system, and laying the groundwork for bigger battles ahead. It’s part session recap, part system breakdown, and part comedy of errors — exactly what you’d expect when Funkatronic Rex takes on a brand-new RPG.

Takeaway: Daggerheart encourages collaboration, description, and shared world-building — and sometimes reminds you that rolling dice can make stairs scarier than dragons.

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This week’s episode takes a big swing at one of tabletop’s most intimidating roles: the Game Master. Chris and Paul kick things off in true Funkatronic fashion with tangents about YouTube terrariums, turtles, and just how weird (and sometimes terrifying) home ecosystems can get. From there, the conversation rolls naturally into the hobbyist mindset—how deep geeks will dive once they’ve found their niche, whether it’s Star Wars, Magic, or keeping an 80-gallon turtle tank clean.

The heart of the episode digs into GMing and storytelling. Mark shares updates from his ongoing Daggerheart “Beast Feast” campaign, including food-themed monsters like chocolate-covered wolves, salt eels, popcorn rats, and spicy ghost scorpions. Those stories set up a bigger conversation about the balance between combat-oriented and narrative-driven systems. The crew compares Daggerheart to D&D across editions, Shadowrun, and other RPGs—breaking down how different games serve different play styles.

From nostalgia for 3.5 crunch to the flexibility of 5E, the group reflects on what each system does best and what it asks of its GMs. They stress that GMing is a muscle—you don’t need to be Matt Mercer to run a table, you just need to start. Notes from Apocalypse World and Dungeon World highlight the importance of leaving blanks for players to fill in, while tips about session zeros and shared world-building show how to build player buy-in from the start.

The episode closes with practical encouragement for new and aspiring GMs: don’t fear doing it “wrong,” lean on your players, take notes, use tools (yes, even AI) to lighten prep, and above all, be a fan of your players. Because whether your dungeon is full of gelatinous ice cream oozes or mimic treasure chests, the best games are the ones where everyone leaves with a story worth retelling.

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We open this week with classic Funkatronic detours — Mel Brooks nostalgia, Spaceballs sequel rumors, Naked Gun casting debates, and why Blazing Saddles still makes us laugh (and wince) decades later. From Jackie Chan’s The Tuxedo to desert island movie picks, it’s a comedy deep-dive before we even hit the main event.

From there, the conversation shifts to card games and campaigns. We talk about the punishing difficulty of Arkham Horror LCG, what it’s like to run decks across digital platforms, and why some campaigns feel like slow grinds of trauma while others tell brilliant, unforgettable stories. There’s a breakdown of how Arkham compares to Marvel Champions and Lord of the Rings LCG, plus stories about deck-building experiments, support characters, and the thrill of eking out survival against impossible odds.

Finally, we hit the reason for the title: our session zero for Daggerheart. Paul hosted in the garage as we sat down to create characters, build connections, and dip into the narrative-first style that sets this new RPG apart. We dig into background questions, how character bonds form at the table, and why Daggerheart’s emphasis on hope, fear, and storytelling feels so fresh compared to number-crunchy systems. Even Mike (who normally wants to skip straight to the action) came away impressed and excited to see more of it in the store.

It’s part Mel Brooks tribute, part card game clinic, part RPG first date jitters — and all classic Funkatronic Rex chaos.

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This week we cover a little bit of everything — summer travel, baseball heartbreak, cabin cooking, board games, and the excitement of launching a brand-new RPG campaign.

Chris kicks things off with a blow-by-blow of his son’s baseball trip to Cooperstown — equal parts magical and miserable. From rain delays that pushed games into the early hours of the morning, to “Hunger Games” jokes about single elimination, to facing powerhouse Georgia teams that put up scores like 37–0, it was an unforgettable (and humbling) experience. Still, the kids walked away with a win, a pile of team pins, and memories that will last a lifetime.

Paul counters with his annual cabin gaming trip, where he and his longtime friend Q packed the days with board games and nights with home cooking. The highlight was lots of Marvel Champions (finishing the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. campaign with Magneto and Black Widow), a test run of the massive Dark Souls board game, and racing through Heat, complete with the new Tunnel Vision expansion. The talk turns to food as Paul explains his role as cabin cook — burgers, wings, tacos, and breakfast spreads — while Q washed dishes. Naturally, this spirals into a whole discussion of cooking styles, breakfast-for-dinner rituals, chicken vs. turkey burgers, and family wing recipes passed down from Buffalo.

As if that weren’t enough, the back half of the episode dives into role-playing. With a new Daggerheart campaign on the horizon, the hosts discuss what they’re excited about: hope and fear dice mechanics, player agency, and how the system compares to D&D 5E. There’s talk of improvisation, GM styles, and what makes narrative-heavy systems rewarding for both newcomers and veterans.

It’s a long, winding conversation, but that’s the beauty of it — baseball road trips, cooking adventures, and tabletop games all share the same theme: community, creativity, and finding joy in the chaos.

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Buckle up — this week’s episode lives up to its title as Chris and Paul take the scenic route through games, movies, snacks, and all things geek culture.

We kick off with Spider-Man talk: memes, multiverses, and Tom Holland’s adventures both on-screen and (maybe) in Holland. From there, the tangents swing fast — how Spider-Man’s webs could (or couldn’t) work in Phoenix, Costco hot dogs and churros, and why filled versus unfilled churros might just be the debate of the decade.

Eventually, the conversation loops back to the table with a dive into Marvel Champions’ Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. expansion. The guys unpack heroes like Maria Hill and Nick Fury, encounters with villains from Black Widow to Batroc the Leaper, and what it’s like to run Magneto as an omega-level mutant hero. They also swap thoughts on Ant-Man, Thor: Love and Thunder, and how the MCU sometimes lands—and sometimes drifts into camp.

On the home front, the episode meanders through parenting and games: kids rolling hot dice in Yahtzee, afternoon blackjack lessons, and whether luck counts as a superpower. Chess even makes an appearance, along with memories of beat-up family sets, summer camps, and the eternal debate of pulling punches (or not) when playing against kids.

Things wrap up with a thoughtful look at player archetypes and the social contract of gaming. Whether you’re a Timmy smashing with big plays, a Johnny chasing combos, or a Spike sharpening your deck for competition, the crew reminds us that the real goal is fun, shared stories, and those unforgettable moments when a game does exactly what it’s meant to do.

It’s equal parts gaming podcast, comedy show, and food review — but that’s Funkatronic Rex at its finest.

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This week’s episode takes a lively detour through the chaos of parenting, baseball season, and family dinners before landing squarely in the galaxy far, far away.

We kick things off with stories about kids dodging showers, sneaking bubblegum onto the ballfield, and testing their parents’ OCD triggers with sticky popsicle faces. From sunscreen battles to late-night snack raids, it’s all the highs and lows of raising kids — equal parts exhausting, hilarious, and heartwarming.

That family talk flows into gaming, with reflections on siblings, only-child dynamics, and how growing up with brothers, sisters, or solo shaped the way we play. Food quirks take center stage too: picky eaters versus adventurous ones, kids putting ranch on salmon, and the joys (and horrors) of seafood.

Then it’s time for the stars. We dive into Star Trek movie trivia tangents (yes, the whale one was IV), before shifting to the main event: a thoughtful look at Star Wars Destiny and how it paved the way for Star Wars Unlimited. We dig into what Destiny got right, what made it unsustainable, and how Unlimited refines the formula — making the most of the IP while avoiding past pitfalls.

It’s part parenting confessional, part geek culture roundtable, and part TCG deep-dive — all wrapped in the usual Funkatronic Rex mix of snark, laughter, and community vibes.

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We’re back after a short break (and a false alarm mishap at the shop), shaking off the dust and diving straight into the nitty-gritty of hobbying. This time, it’s all about the often-overlooked secret sauce of miniature painting: basing.

We start with the basics: why the ground your minis stand on can make or break the final look. From there, we share plenty of budget-friendly tricks, like raiding the aquarium aisle at the pet store for alien plants and funky colored rocks, grabbing bulk sand or gravel from craft stores, or ordering larger scenic mixes from places like Scenic Express or Geek Gaming Scenics. If you’ve ever wanted to make your Star Wars: Legion troopers feel like they actually came from different planets—or if you’re looking to elevate your Marvel Crisis Protocol heroes beyond their default “tactical rocks”—this episode is packed with easy wins.

We swap stories about painting styles, from simple mud and rubble textures to glowing LED centerpiece models, and even laugh about our mistakes (yes, putting Doctor Strange on the wrong base size really happened). We cover methods for priming and texturing, why you should add tufts last, and how to keep an army looking cohesive without sucking the fun out of personal creativity.

And because it wouldn’t be a Funkatronic Rex podcast without a tangent, the episode spirals into one of our favorite debates: what sodas would the X-Men drink? Expect fiery opinions (Cyclops is definitely a Diet Coke guy, Jubilee is locked on grape soda, Cable raids the timeline for Jolt, Wolverine doesn’t bother with soda at all), a little chaos, and plenty of laughter.

By the end, you’ll not only have a toolbox of ideas for your next basing project, but also a new appreciation for soda-fueled mutant headcanon.

Takeaway: Don’t overlook your bases—whether it’s rubble, tufts, lava, or tactical rocks, they’re an easy way to make your minis truly yours. And remember: have fun, share ideas, and let your creativity spill over onto the tabletop.

Bonus: Patreon updates are coming soon, so keep an eye out!

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Funkatronic Rex Podcast – Season 2, Episode 8: Spirit Island

This week, Paul and Chris take a deep dive into Spirit Island, the critically acclaimed cooperative board game where you play as powerful spirits defending your island from colonizing invaders. We’re talking favorite spirits, combos, expansions, and what makes this game such a standout in the co-op genre. If you love strategy, synergy, and flipping the script on typical board game tropes, this one’s for you. Time to push back the blight and reclaim the land!

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