On this episode, we review a game that just came to crowdfunding on Backerkit: Portland Oregon Trail! In this game, you take a weird trip from Portland ME to Portland OR on ramshackle vehicle. You're dealing with local cryptids while trying to avoid the Invisible Hand and hold your bladder in time to get PDX before you have to get a real job with health insurance.

Portland Oregon Trail is a GMless RPG probably 3-6 players aged 12 and up. You can learn to play in 5 minutes, and you can complete 1-3 states in a 2 hour session. The game authors are Alex Sprague and Jess Geyer, and the art is by the Sam Brieck. The publisher are the fine folks at 9th Level Games.

We have not received payment for this review — it's just a game that looks great.

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To celebrate the release of the album Days by Mountain Goats, we're releasing the last of our first wave of game reviews for the original Mountain Goats game.

Can you be the king of the hill? If you get knocked down, will you get back up again because your goats can never be kept down? Is this the best small box death metal band from Denton, TX? (Will these comments ever make sense?)

Mountain Goats is a game for 2-4 players or five with the expansion aged 7 and up. You can learn to play in 2 minutes, and each games actually plays in 10-15 minutes.

Disclosure: After recording this episode, Ben T. Barackus was provided with a copy of Mountain Goats Legacy at Gen Con 2026.

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On this episode, Ben and Yonit review the Lord of the Rings 5E Starter Set, made by those wonderful Swedes at Free League!

Is it a 5E game? Most likely.

Is it filled with Tolkien lore? Assuredly.

Does it do what a starter set should do and get you excited to play the full game? Well, you'll have listen in to find out.

Now with bonus history of roleplaying in Middle Earth!

The Lord of the Rings 5E Starter Set is a boxed set for the Lord of the Rings 5E RPG for 1 loremaster and 2-5 player-heroes. The Starter Set includes a dice set, a map, cardboard standees, and the Over Hill, Under Hill starter adventure, which likely takes 4 hours to complete.

Disclosure: the podcast was provided with two copies for review purposes.

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