Wandering DMs

Dan and Paul tackle a deceptively common table problem: the potato player - someone who shows up, sits quietly, and never quite engages. Coined as shorthand for disengaged play, “potatoing” can look the same from the outside but come from very different places on the inside.

In this episode, we break down the difference between intentional potatoes and accidental ones, passive watchers vs bored or overwhelmed players, and why silence at the table is not always disinterest. We offer practical advice for players who want to participate more confidently, as well as concrete tools for DMs to invite engagement without putting anyone on the spot. Whether you fear becoming a potato yourself or want to help your players stay involved, this episode is about agency, table expectations, and how to help everyone show up to the game.

Paul and Dan chat about the history of Rangers in D&D. Inspired directly by Tolkien, they're one of D&D's earliest and most appealing sub-classes! With abilities to surprise, track, cut down giants, and even cast spells, they're not your normal fighter. How has their appearance evolved over the years? Does their presentation really fit the intended purpose? And how do presentations in other game systems fare?

Dan and Paul revisit one of Wandering DMs’ earliest topics - puzzles in tabletop RPGs - this time with special guest Chris M, aka Directsun. Back in Season 1, we wrestled with why puzzles so often fall flat at the table, becoming roadblocks, immersion breakers, or exercises in frustration. In this episode, we return to that question with Chris, the designer behind The Seer’s Sanctum and Aberrant Reflections, two widely praised puzzle dungeons that treat puzzles not as isolated tricks, but as interconnected systems that teach players how the dungeon works.

We discuss how puzzle design differs from riddles, why failure states matter, how to avoid "guess the GM" moments, and what tabletop designers can learn from escape rooms and video games without losing the soul of TTRPG play. We also look ahead to Chris’s upcoming project, A Familiar Tower, an escape-room-style puzzle dungeon crowdfunding during Zine Month 2026.

Dan & Paul chat about the classic 1980's sci-fi RPG, Star Frontiers, from the makers of D&D. We're still running it today for younger players and having a great time. What are the great things about it that still work, and what places have we found for improvements to change with the times? It's a high-frontier, shoot-em-up, percentile-rolling blast from the past!

Dan and Paul kick off Season 8 by diving into one of the most debated ideas in tabletop RPGs: The Rule of Cool. When should a GM stick to the written rules, and when is it better to bend or ignore them because the table is fired up about a particular moment?

We talk about why this principle feels so powerful at the table, how it can elevate dramatic scenes and player creativity, and where it can quietly undermine consistency, fairness, or long-term play if it becomes a crutch. From heroic stunts to narrative twists, we explore how to use the Rule of Cool as a tool rather than an excuse.