Darlo rolls double sixes. The oops table opens. From there, things only get worse.

Moth picks a fight with an owl.

A staircase mural of beaked figures, serrated keys, and a horde of screaming demons. Two knowledge rolls. Both fail. The party concludes everything is fine. Spoiler: it is not.

Darlo bonds with his new roommates the only way he can: by demanding the most inedible pickled vegetable on the menu and sharing it with them.

A door-wizard with disastrous luck, a death-priest who'd rather be elsewhere, and a swamp-mystic with a mission walk into a hotel. It's the only room left. They're sharing it.

In this episode of the Jaunty Mantis, we poke, prod, and lovingly scream about MOTHERSHIP, the sci-fi horror RPG from Tuesday Knight Games.

Strange behavior. Failing systems. Missing time. And when one crew member disappears without explanation, paranoia has begun to set in.

This episode is al all about danger and death in ttrpgs

Should you really never split the party?

Ending a tabletop RPG session can feel awkward, rushed, or flat—even when the rest of the game was great.

Why do we play tabletop roleplaying games? In this episode of Jaunty Mantis, we dive deep into the philosophy of RPGs—exploring power fantasy, collaborative storytelling, violence as conversation, rules vs. narrative, and why dice-driven games feel so different from novels, improv, or video games.

What happens when a player can’t make it—and the story needs them? In this episode of Jaunty Mantis, Jesse, Matty, and Chris tackle one of tabletop gaming’s most frustrating problems: last-minute absences. From running flashbacks and side games to stealing scenes, leaning into OSR one-shots, and even letting story beats happen without the missing player, the crew shares hard-earned advice, devilish ideas, and genuinely practical GM techniques.

Can a tabletop RPG ever be fully serious — or is humor baked into the DNA of playing with your friends?

Cybernetic heartbreak, social disasters, noble nepo babies, improvised space romance, mishaps that should have been fatal, and the wild joy of letting dice determine your fate. The Jaunty Mantis crew spirals into utter chaos building Traveller RPG characters. Buckle up — it gets weird

Can an open table completely change the way you run RPGs? The Jaunty Mantis crew dives into The Alexandrian’s Open Table Manifesto to explore how it reshapes campaigns, players, and prep.

Jaunty Mantis here — and today we’re tackling a massive 96 oz steak of an RPG. We read the entire Draw Steel book so you don’t have to. Is it genius? Is it too much? Let’s find out.