At first I was reluctant to dive into the wonderful world of podcasts. I am not really the type that is able to sit and listen to something without any visuals. It’s too easy for my mind to wander to another topic and then I’m left lost when my thoughts finally managed to stop clogging up my ears. However, my boyfriend was insistent on me giving it a shot so I decided to give it a go while driving around on errands one day. And boy was I taken off guard by how quickly I was sucked into a new obsession.

Now The Adventure Zone, or TAZ as fans affectionately call it, is a Podcast focused around Dungeons & Dragons and games like it. Following complex and interesting story lines created by the Dungeon Master, Griffin McElroy, and the players, his brothers Justin and Travis and his father Clint. Now this family is responsible for a lot of different content out there on the internet, multiple podcasts, YouTube channels and even getting themselves a T.V. show! For those who are interested they can check out the McElroy’s website to look through all the content they create. My point is that their name was familiar to my ears, so going into the podcast I was ready for something that was at the very least unique.

Now I am going to be focused on the currently ongoing arc of TAZ called Amnesty and try to avoid as many spoilers as possible. Amnesty is set in the small West Virginia Town of Kepler. Main characters Aubrey, Duck, and Ned are all pulled together by fate at Amnesty Lodge and join the Pine Guard to fight of threats to the human world which travel through a gate that connects to another world. Now, may I first say, Amnesty Lodge is a kick ass name for a Ski Lodge. The players got themselves into character for a majority of the time, and even did character voices that really brought things to a new level. It was easy for me to tell when it was just the family being goofy or it was Duck genuinely shouting down the hall at Aubrey to not touch his vegan waffles.

I really appreciate how they take these extra little moments to add to character. And Griffin creates so many amazing NPC’s in this world that have their own flare and interesting traits, and all have their contribution to the overall plot. Honestly, listening to this podcast felt like listening to a novel being written and that is crazy considering how the podcast started as filler for another podcast as is told in this article by Jordan White white chronicles the origins of the series. I believe that anyone who enjoys reading/audio-books would be able to appreciate the story that unfolds. Even if they are not experienced with Table Top Gaming.