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Episode 253: We Didn't Start This Episode on the Rails
12 Plays38 minutes ago
Hello, Podwalkers, and welcome back to another episode of the Goblin Lore Podcast! It's been a while but we are back! This episode shows what happens when you put three Goblins who got to hang out in person for the first time in 2 years next to a microphone to record about hanging out for the first time in two years
We also finally have a Linktree with all of our discounts/resources
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As promised, we keep Mental Health Links available every episode. But For general Mental Health the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) has great resources for people struggling with mental health concerns as well as their families. We also want to draw attention to this article on stigma from NAMI's site.
If you’re thinking about suicide or just need someone to talk to right now, you can get support from any of the resources below.
- National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988
- Veteran's can Press 1 at anytime to be taken to the Veteran's Line
- Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741-741
- International suicide hotlines: A comprehensive resource list for people outside the US.
- IMAlive: Click Chat Now to access a live online network of volunteers through instant messaging.
- TrevorLifeline, TrevorChat, and TrevorText (LGBTQ+ crisis support): 1-866-488-7386, or text “Trevor” to 1-202-304-1200
- Trans Lifeline (US): (877) 565-8860
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Opening and closing music by Wintergatan (@wintergatan). Logo art by Steven Raffael (@SteveRaffle)
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Transcript
Introduction and Recording Surprise
00:00:00
Speaker
are
00:00:09
Speaker
are are
00:00:29
Speaker
Hello, Podwalkers!
Final Fantasy Cards and Nostalgia
00:00:31
Speaker
but
00:00:35
Speaker
yeah Yeah. That was a very, very goblin start right there. yeah I love this. I didn't realize you'd hit record. That's perfect. Yeah, and then I was like, well, you two can just start the episode. didn yeah. didn't actually say who to do that between the two of you. no I was looking at the pretty Final Fantasy cards, the ones in the ah the yeah guest cards. I was looking at the Sephiroth the Savior version of Atraxa, which looks fantastic.
00:01:06
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. I've been seeing all these cards, and as somebody who knows nothing about Final Fantasy, as we've established... This has gotten me to agree to play one game. Yes.
00:01:18
Speaker
Because of ah the the very adorable Vivi. Yes. Yeah, 9 is my favorite of the non-MMO games. I need to replay it. I haven't played it since it was new, but I still very fondly remember the art style, especially for that game. was It's very unique. It still is compared to all the other Final Fantasies.
00:01:40
Speaker
um Okay. I was going to say, that so like I always joke, my I have played a Final Fantasy game. um And that Final Fantasy game was um something by the name of Final Fantasy... like ah What's the word I'm looking for? Legends?
00:01:59
Speaker
like Legends 1 or something like that on the original Game Boy, which was actually a port... which is actually a port of a saga. Yeah. Yeah. Those games were so hard.
00:02:11
Speaker
Yes. And those were actually a different franchise that was branded as Final Fantasy in the West to try to sell them to people in the West who only knew Final Fantasy and knew Japanese RPGs. was to that is what I have been told.
00:02:24
Speaker
yeah um And and i i did learn this. And um yeah, interestingly enough, that was a...
Branding and Global Perception of Final Fantasy
00:02:30
Speaker
very interesting That was very ah hilarious for me to learn once people told me about this um about this game, because I realized that I had never actually played a real Final Fantasy game, it turns out.
00:02:45
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah, you were also, besides Vivi, you were talking about... ah You're also talking about ah Locke from Final Fantasy VI earlier. um so you you found a Twink card.
00:02:59
Speaker
I did find a Twink card, um just like Oko, as I was very clear to say. um you You were also talking about a c Simic card, but before we talk about that, I'm Alex...
00:03:11
Speaker
Yeah, we should introduce ourselves. It's only four minutes into the episode. Hi, everybody. We haven't seen you in a really long time. Yes. And you can tell by our inability to be normal.
00:03:23
Speaker
That's right. Because we are totally normal when we are recording regularly. Yeah, yeah, course of course. we we have it very and which Which we haven't done enough recently for you to dispute that claim. Yeah.
Highlights and Social Aspects of SCG Con
00:03:38
Speaker
So yeah, you were introducing yourself, Alex, when I interrupted you, goblin style. Yes. um Oh yeah, I was. So i am I am no longer found on social media. i still have, I've spent years yeah having that my Twitter handle in my introduction and it's still hard for me to remove that. So instead I channel it into meandering about how i'm not on Twitter anymore.
00:04:02
Speaker
ah My pronouns are E-him. And ah we are going to talk about some Final Fantasy. We also are going to talk about the SCG Con that happened in Minneapolis recently that we were all in attendance for.
00:04:17
Speaker
And ah so our opening question is going to be about the SCG Con, just but a highlight from that. And I guess because I accidentally decided to go first, um I get to just take the first thing that I thought of um And despite like I played a lot more magic than I have in a long time, but I think that for me, my favorite thing was was easily breakfast Saturday.
00:04:40
Speaker
yeah OK, got a whole group. um We had we had multiple tables and then had to pull in another table because we just we had a nice crowd. That was great.
00:04:51
Speaker
That was, that was so cool. That was definitely for, for, you know, we, we talk about the being about the gathering and that was definitely the biggest, like the gathering moment for me for the weekend.
00:05:04
Speaker
and Okay. I, I, I, you know, I can, I can 100% get behind that. I thought that yeah I think that was a great part of the weekend. So cool.
00:05:15
Speaker
ah Well, Taya, how about you? Um, sure. Who are you? Taya transcends on blue sky. Um, pronouns are she, her, are they, them? And, ah Alex didn't make it to this, but my favorite part of the weekend was the dinner we had Sunday night, uh, which not only was the food delicious, but we had a couple of, uh, wonderful artists out joining us.
00:05:40
Speaker
Uh, Jeff Lumenstein and I'm going to butcher his porn name. Middle of Joe Sarah on, I think. Middle of the, Middle of the, Saran is correct. And I, I, Milav, Milav, he said it. And I was like, yeah i always thought it was Milavog, and it's not.
00:05:57
Speaker
And I was like, that's okay, I'll remember it next time. And now I don't. Yeah, to be fair, we had a lot to eat and drink that night, too. Yes, we did.
Excitement from Final Fantasy Previews
00:06:10
Speaker
Um, but yeah, that was, that was a fantastic dinner. I really enjoyed getting to chat with them and the other people that joined us. Uh, and, um, once again, wish that people, they actually serve cheese curds around this area, because those were delicious and I devoured almost a whole order by myself.
00:06:31
Speaker
Um, but Yeah, that was great. But the whole weekend was good. And we'll talk more about it after we ah finish introductions and finish talking about the topic of the day ah and Magic.
00:06:44
Speaker
Yeah. ah Well, hi, I'm Hobbs Q. I can be found on Twitter at... Oh, not that is a lie. I cannot be found on Twitter. Not for a very long time, actually, either. Alex even just said, remember, you know, talking about it, and yeah you did.
00:07:01
Speaker
Yep, I did. So, no, I can be found on Blue Sky at ah Whatever that is. Hopscue. Yeah, just Hopscue. That's where I can be found. um My favorite part is... It's really funny because Alex, you picked a specific meal and I was just going to say like all of the meals.
00:07:18
Speaker
Yeah. no That was the biggest for me. Just being able to... um go out for that many meals. And, we did at least lunch.
00:07:28
Speaker
I mean like breakfast and dinner almost every single day of the event. And that was just such a huge, for me, that was such an amazing part of it. Like, uh, I love going out with people. I love eating. i love just spending time with friends. And that was such a way for me to just really, I really, really enjoyed getting us getting to do that.
00:07:48
Speaker
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. So, yeah. So I'm going to say that for for me, that was also probably the best part. Yeah. Yeah. And I'm not exaggerating. Like, I genuinely played more Magic to
The Humor and Stories of Ben Starr
00:08:03
Speaker
that weekend than I have probably for the five years previous. Oh, yeah.
00:08:07
Speaker
It wasn't even got so many games in that weekend. I brought five decks thinking I would never get through them. I looped through them twice and replayed a couple of them a third time. Yeah. Yeah. yeah but Yes, it was like it wasn't it wasn't even close. like that that Like, for the amount that I've actually played.
00:08:24
Speaker
Yeah, it was that that part was fun too. Now um I have not been this excited of like, yo, maybe I do want to update this deck. Maybe I need to make some tweaks over here. And speaking of excited, though, you know, we've all been, well, most of us have been, you know, just super thrilled about all the Final Fantasy previews. They started on Saturday at the big ah reveal panel that was like an hour and a half long of videos on YouTube. It's a pretty good watch if you want to hear some of the behind the scenes stuff, especially from the, they had some Square Enix artists on to talk about doing the art for the
00:09:00
Speaker
um series. yeah and i just I find Ben's star to be really entertaining as well. who was he did He was a voice actor for the main character in 16 and has just kind of been around in the game space and he kind of acted as like the host for the whole event. Yeah, which was funny because he didn't actually introduce himself at the week. He introduced everybody else.
00:09:22
Speaker
But I just watched it today and he never introduces himself at the start. Oh, wow. maybe that Maybe it was before the video started, um but the YouTube version at least doesn't have him introducing himself.
00:09:34
Speaker
That could be. See, I didn't notice it. Now, i I was watching it from the stream that day, which is a lot which now is like a nine hour archive stream from PAX. So it's yeah harder to watch it that way. um So maybe he did and that got cut out or maybe he just didn't and I knew who he was and I didn't. Yeah, the only reason I knew who he was is because you had posted in the server about it.
00:09:55
Speaker
ah But otherwise, yeah, i I'm not good at remembering voice actors at all, even for... even for characters that I absolutely love, like Carlack, I know that, I know all the voice actors from Baldur's Gate 3 are pretty famous now, and I can't remember the name of a single one.
00:10:14
Speaker
That's fair. He just happened, for me, it was like multiple things that sort of just
Unique Creatures and Cultural Elements in Final Fantasy
00:10:18
Speaker
stacked up, and now I remember his name. Like, he did, around the end of the year, Square Enix had, or beginning of the year, maybe, Square Enix had a big sale, and so they just hired him to do like a five-minute commercial, and he was just ridiculous. I get posted on the just go two just It was just a fun watch. I'm like i'm not going buy these games, but he just comes out and acts and just hams it up. And it was it was fun.
00:10:39
Speaker
He also um you've heard of the game Palatro, the poker roguelike. Yeah, yeah, yeah. one of one you I've heard of that one, Alex. Apparently, apparently Ben and I have not seen this, but Ben was hired to do like an ad for it.
00:10:53
Speaker
What I have seen is when that game was nominated for the BAFTAs, which is the British Film and Television Awards. but um What? Oh, yeah, it won. What was it? Why was it? What?
00:11:05
Speaker
they They have a video game live video game category. Oh, OK. They have a separate video game category. OK. um but Things I've learned today. The creator of the game is a really private person, has never, his real name is not, has not been released.
00:11:20
Speaker
He is, he is not shown up for interviews like his face and things like he has done some print interviews, but it is all behind anonymity. So he actually hired Ben Starr to go accept the award.
00:11:31
Speaker
And Ben, like, not only did he, like, show up, but he showed up in full, like, fool's regalia. Nice. Modeled after one of the, meet like, main jokers. Yeah, the main joker, yeah, yeah.
00:11:43
Speaker
And for, like, a 90-second acceptance speech. Like, it was it was wild. That was funny. the ah I don't know. It was last year um or the year before. ah I think it was last year when Baldur's Gate 3 won all the awards and the head of Larian showed up in full plate mail to accept.
00:12:00
Speaker
Oh, that's awesome. Yeah. Super flex. We need more stuff like that in the world. Yeah. I have not played that game when I should play that game, but I, I love that. You're done with final fantasy playthrough soon. Yes, you should.
00:12:13
Speaker
Yeah. well And and i will just be starting final fantasy nine. a You not before you watch delicious and dungeon though. You have to do that before you play any more games. Yeah. I know.
00:12:26
Speaker
I was just talking to a friend about that this weekend and he may start watching this show before I do. He has Netflix and I mentioned it. I'm like, yeah, here's my whole list. And he's going down. He's like, can I add things? And I list the whole thing. He's like, nope, you you got the stuff on there. I'd have added for you.
00:12:42
Speaker
But that one he had not heard of. So he actually watched him pull it up and put it on his watch list. But yeah, so, you know, Final Fantasy previews are happening. They're happening fast, too. We don't have a preview card for this set. Sadly, there are no goblins, ah really, in Final Fantasy.
00:13:01
Speaker
That's what I... I was told that there are. there's i mean There are things that are goblin-like. ah And I... Some of the earlier games have enemies that are definitely quote-unquote goblins. I don't know if they're even called goblins. They definitely look like it.
00:13:16
Speaker
They are not common enough by later games or reoccurring enough ah for them to fit in the real estate required. Somebody just definitely told me there was like a goblin. that Somebody tried to convince me.
00:13:30
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, they exist in the game, but they're not. the The creatures they're printing, like the Toneberry or Final Fantasy Inventions. Okay. ah And show
Understanding Final Fantasy's Standalone Stories
00:13:40
Speaker
up a lot, particularly in the later.
00:13:42
Speaker
See, Toneberry, I've been led to believe that Toneberry is basically like Squee. Um, I mean, like a goblin king.
00:13:53
Speaker
That's all I'm saying. He's got a crown. all the The king. Yeah, the king tone very, I guess you could say, but the there a goblin they're not they're not fun little things like goblins are. okay no no, they're they're depressed little creatures that are really slow. And when they catch you, they stab you to death.
00:14:12
Speaker
Yeah, they shoot you. Maybe they're like, I don't know, maybe they could be like Lorwyn goblins. The Bogarts. little bit. Maybe the Bogarts are depressed. This is one, i like, this card is one of the first, I mean, like, there's a lot of cool mechanical things, but I love how they capture the tone parries in this set.
00:14:32
Speaker
Where they're just little guys, they're two ones for one, but they have they come in tapped with a stun counter. now you don't even get to use them for two turns. Nope. And then during your turn only, they have first strike and death touch. So they kill anything they come into contact with.
00:14:48
Speaker
Perfect flavor. Perfect flavor. Yeah. ah The giant cactor was also perfect. yeah yeah See, it's it's you all are just, now now we're getting well beyond what I've even seen or had time to process in my life. yeah so The giant Cactaur is a seven mana creature that gets plus 9,999 power added attacks. Okay, okay. Yeah, what which is, the joke you know, it doesn't, that's max damage in most Final Fantasy games, and it has an ability that does that ah in the game.
00:15:24
Speaker
Yeah, and I did see that. So that is something that I did see when it came out. Yeah, that was previewed like a month or so ago, or even more. I guess that was back in like February, they previewed that first set of cards.
00:15:36
Speaker
Yeah, and and it has an ability called 10,000 Needles, which is what the ability is called in game. Called yeah And as it's 1-7, 9-9 makes it 10,000. 10,000, yeah.
00:15:46
Speaker
So, I'm confused. I thought we were doing a Final Fantasy episode like down the road, but I apparently have activated... This is the only magic news going on right now. this is we went to an event and it's Mental Health Awareness Month! We're going to talk about the event.
00:16:07
Speaker
We didn't even know yet. we're like, i don't even know how far in. And I think that our, our, our, our plan as it was, you know, like last weekend when we saw each other the weekend before was how we were entering mental health awareness month. And I still realized we haven't even mentioned mental health.
00:16:23
Speaker
ah um So far, this set has been really good for my mental health. I was actually, ah I was actually excited today. So the price is not so good for my mental health and the availability isn't.
00:16:41
Speaker
ah But yeah, no, I'm I'm living in maybe the delusion that they're just going to print more and more and more of this and I will eventually get some. That's that's how I'm getting through. Yeah, my. um ah So one of my LGSs put the Commander decks up for sale on ah Saturday evening, and I had it set to email me when they went on sale, and I got the email and checked their website immediately, they were sold out.
00:17:11
Speaker
um Another LGS that is owned by a friend is doing a lottery for all of their Final Fantasy product because they're not getting enough to meet demand.
00:17:22
Speaker
okay ah Yeah. So, yeah, it's... ah And, yeah, the collector decks are selling for, like, three times MSRP on Scryfall. yeah like call a tcg player Yeah. I had heard... um I had heard that the ah the... The collector booster in particular was problematic.
00:17:42
Speaker
Yeah, I'm actually looking forward to Vegas because my ticket comes with three of them, and I think that's the only ones I'm ever going to get. Yeah. That's cool. That's good. they also They also revealed what the special chase card is for this set. It's a one 77 golden Chocobo.
00:18:01
Speaker
Yeah, so some weird looking chicken that's going to be worth like $10,000. ten thousand dollars Yeah, and like a standard mythic in the set. that Yeah, it is a chicken, right? It's a really cool card. yeah I mean, they are they're not really chickens. They're...
00:18:18
Speaker
um they're They're giant birds that people ride around Yeah. So they're giant chickens. Okay. yeah They're more like kiwis crossed with ostriches.
00:18:30
Speaker
maybe a little bit? brightly colored emu? Yeah.
00:18:39
Speaker
Oh, this is not really helpful. Yeah, i don't know. Your cases, y'all. like This is not... I saw that thing. It's a set symbol. It is a chicken. It is the set symbol for the Commander Dex, yeah.
00:18:52
Speaker
Yeah, it it is a chicken. That is how iconic those are for the for the franchise. They are probably the most iconic creature. Yeah, and then the main set symbol has the crystal, which is the other thing that's been around since Final Fantasy 1 that always pops up.
00:19:10
Speaker
Yep. They're always trying to protect the crystals or break the crystals or both at the same time. It's it's a thing. yeah but I am just learning.
00:19:21
Speaker
There's a lot I am learning this week. and We're getting way off just oh any plans that I had for tonight. um i am i What I have realized is I actually thought that um that ah I thought that these
Recurring Elements in Final Fantasy Games
00:19:36
Speaker
things were... um ah Like, ah what's the word I'm looking for?
00:19:42
Speaker
I didn't realize that the each each one was like a different story. Oh, yes. Oh, yeah. They are absolutely standalone. Well, the 1 through 16, the normal ones are standalone, essentially. If you have sequels, but 1 through 16 are all independent of each other.
00:20:00
Speaker
yeah then they have Then they have sequels like there's there's one that's X-2, so 10-2 was a direct sequel. Okay, so there are some direct sequels. Yep.
00:20:11
Speaker
But like I thought that like I did not realize that each number in the franchise was its own storyline with different yeah characters. like My exposure to these characters is like Kingdom Hearts and like Smash Brothers.
00:20:25
Speaker
Yeah. right yes So like the the same characters are showing up in these. And so yeah I just thought that those were like the characters that showed up in every version, basically. ok so it just eleven is Seven is the most iconic, so you tend to if you have crossover characters, a lot of them come from Seven.
00:20:44
Speaker
And i know i know Kingdom Hearts, I want to say Kingdom Hearts had Squall from Eight. like I think there was a few from other places, but it was a lot of characters from Seven. okay so like they They were showing up in like the same game in the same game as in Kingdom Hearts, but they are from different stories, different worlds.
00:21:03
Speaker
yeah yeah I'm learning so much i'm learning so yeah these days. this is It's like almost like that anime episode, except I don't think that you all are lying to me in the same way that I do about anime. The vending machine that walks the dungeon is getting another season soon. Yes.
00:21:22
Speaker
yes Yeah, that that also, Hobbs, is part of why things like the Chocobo are so, are I think, are kind of the iconic thing. Because even though there's, you know, favorite characters that people have, those favorite characters are in like one game.
00:21:36
Speaker
if you're lucky and your game is the one that gets a bunch of sequels, you might see them in a few Then they have some things that do carry forward that are versions of every game. like Almost every game has a Sid character that is an engineer of some sort, and that's why we have the ah Sid card that has 15 different arts in it. be okay He's been in every game but the first one.
00:21:56
Speaker
Okay, so see, that's why I was like, okay, so kid that makes sense. It's a completely different character in every game, but they just have a running thing of having an engineer named Sid somewhere in the game. But it's not the same Sid.
Mental Health Benefits of SCG Con Gatherings
00:22:08
Speaker
It is not. Oh my god.
00:22:10
Speaker
It is absolutely not. And Moogles, Mogles, Mogles? Those are... Are they around lot? They're around a They're around a lot. They're around most of the games. okay They're not as ubiquitous as the Chocobo, but they're probably the next most ubiquitous thing. Okay.
00:22:25
Speaker
ah They're big in 9. You'll see a lot of them in 9. can well it's ah It's a good thing that 9 is available on the Switch. I think the first 10 are all on the Switch. Cool. so i i am I am excited about that.
00:22:40
Speaker
Just as excited as I am about Mental Health Awareness Month. And I'm glad that this is doing well for Taya's mental health. No, it is. i i have not been this excited about a magic set in forever.
00:22:51
Speaker
I don't think I've ever been this more excited. I posted earlier that the only way that they could personally target me more would be if it was a Studio Ghibli or reincarnated as a slime set.
00:23:04
Speaker
Wait, wait. Reincarnated as a slime is different than reincarnated as a vending machine in the base? Yeah. different okay No connection at all between them. A lot of reincarnation being a common theme. Reincarnation is a very common theme. Uh,
00:23:20
Speaker
Sometimes you're reincarnated as a spider. Sometimes it's a sword. That was a good series, too. Neither of those are made up, Hobbs. Those are both actual things. I don't know sword one got an anime.
00:23:32
Speaker
The current season has a show where the main character is reincarnated as a behemoth that looks like a pet cat. Everybody thinks he's really a pet cat when he's actually an S-ranked monster. I've not seen that one either. but Yeah, that's Behe Neko.
00:23:49
Speaker
Okay, cool. Yes, it's a very common. That that is a very common thing. Cool. kcku Cool, cool, cool. Cool, cool, cool. No doubt. Yeah, mental health awareness month.
00:24:01
Speaker
ah Hey, we all went to ah an event that helped. i me that' great I think, I think we all left more excited about magic than we have been. Yes. and Forever. Uh, absolutely. It was definitely a good lead into final fantasy for me because before I was just kind of like, it's going to be cool. Like doctor who or fallout were, but I'm like legit excited now.
00:24:25
Speaker
who Sam. Um, uh, yeah, the event was great. Uh, You know, as you mentioned earlier, we got to play a lot of Magic. I got to play multiple games. I think I played more with the two of you than I have in, you know, all the years I've known you.
00:24:41
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Vegas last year, I got one half game in with Hobbs the whole time we were there. That is correct. Yeah, it was. Right. Yeah. Yeah. yeah We got in like a half a game. Yep.
00:24:54
Speaker
Yeah. That's it. Yeah. I mean, I, I, So it was interesting. So like having seen the difference, I had never been to an SCG con before. So for people listening, I guess ah SCG cons are different than magic cons just because they're a much smaller scale. It's more of a. They felt a lot like the old GP. So there wasn't a lot of other activities going on. There was vendors or artists. And then there was the the main events with free and then free game, but free game, free game. Oh, yeah. Yeah.
00:25:24
Speaker
ah So that's how the GP system used to be, except, well, they used to have a lot less free play space. You had to fight over tables, and you're always likely to get moved by the judges. and Yeah, I was buts only surprised we didn't get kicked all weekend. I think that front section, I don't think they used it at all.
00:25:44
Speaker
No, not for any scheduled events or anything. oh Yeah, I think that was just free setup for everybody. I mean, they had numbers and things if they needed it, but I don't they ever used it No, yeah. we Sunday, we didn't. I think Saturday, too. We didn't move from the spot once we set up.
00:26:00
Speaker
No. you know there There was always some number of people there until we literally just left for the day. Yeah, and I do want to thank our listeners that showed up. because it We had a lot of fun games. Absolutely.
00:26:11
Speaker
I was going to say that was one of things that was awesome about this, right? Was that it was, it was local. Taya came out for it, which was fantastic. My like stayed with me and my family. My daughter asked me again, when is Taya coming back out so she can meet her again?
00:26:25
Speaker
was like, honey, you don't meet people you've already met. That's just called like seeing them and like saying hi. Like there's no, you don't need to worry about that. You're not, but yeah, like my daughter was so excited to meet Taya and they They both of them, but but Taya stayed with us. It was fantastic to have like somebody in our ah have you stay in our home like that was awesome.
00:26:48
Speaker
That was great. And I got to spend a lot of time with your cat. you You did. It was very friendly. I'll say it turns out that my cat is very very popular in general yeah um yeah so uh she was a little too friendly the last night I was there she was on top of my head while I was trying to sleep yes she was but it was very nice uh It was great staying with you and your family. i had a wonderful time visiting.
00:27:20
Speaker
um Next time I visit Minneapolis, I want to try to take a few more days so I can go see some other stuff in the area while I'm there and not just do the convention. um Like one of my one of ah Dylan's favorite ah YouTuber snake discovery has a whole facility there. ah Snake ah zoo and rescue place.
00:27:42
Speaker
ah Oh, I've seen on on their videos before, which would be really cool to visit. yeah. But ah yeah, so ah it was, it was a nice visit. It's not too bad of a flight from here. it's like three and a half hours.
00:27:59
Speaker
um So yeah. So no, that, was I mean, that was, that was, it was awesome. and it And it was, so it was really nice. You were able to come out and then we were able to just have like a large collection of the local people from Minneapolis, be able to to play um and join us for, for meals. ah We had,
00:28:17
Speaker
ah Other people from the Discord that don't live in town, but were here. So I know Davis came, who's a judge and was able to come out with us. Metal Upis, who's from Iowa, that i comes up here ah fair amount that I've seen.
00:28:28
Speaker
um But it was just it was really ah different vibe and in such a way that I did not feel overwhelmed all weekend, which I oftentimes feel at bigger events. Yeah, I know. I i was like, after after that, wishing that you know i was like wishing that I'm going to the Magic Fest Vegas next month and I was wishing it would be more like the SCGCon was and more chill.
00:28:53
Speaker
But it's going to be like a circus, especially since it's the Final Fantasy, yeah which is the main reason I'm going. to i was like, wow, that took a whole like five minutes to get us back to Final Fantasy.
00:29:06
Speaker
Oh, wow. I'm impressed. Yeah, they're supposed to be doing a bunch of special events and having special promos for it there. It's the weekend after it launches. Okay. That's funny. that just But no, no. I mean i know that was like the big reason for you going. and like I was going to try to go originally. i I can't go anyway. But it was making me realize the last couple of years, I've gone to MagicCon games.
00:29:30
Speaker
con Vegas, the MagicCon here was at least, you know, like, then it's it's in my town, so that's always different, because, you know. Yeah, it was more children. The Vegas ones are always overwhelming.
00:29:41
Speaker
Yeah, they just are. That'd be, that's, that's, that's, that is what they are, and that is, you know, I understand kind of that this. It is funny. For years, we've talked about wanting more convention styles, um and it's just seeing how big those have actually gotten, though.
00:29:57
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, it's funny. A few years ago, you know, we would talk about what does a magic, you know, a more convention style magic fan look like. And then this year we're like, yeah, you know, I really like those old style GPs. That's a lot of fun. I did feel kind of like awkward about that. Honestly, it was like, oh, yeah, wow. Like, it's funny. We always advocated for these, um which I still advocate. I'm still glad that we have.
00:30:23
Speaker
very large conventions like i love the giant cosplay competitions and stuff like that love panels you know like that this wasn't any of that but it was a nice change given that we we just don't have as many events as we used to have yeah so it's like the magic cons are you know three three times a year or maybe even have gone down well they went from four to three yeah at least in the U S and then they have one somewhere else in the world. So they're still doing four a year. I thought this year was three, including the one outside the U S Atlanta, Chicago, and Vegas are all happening this year.
00:31:01
Speaker
and then, uh, And then I thought there was one somewhere in Europe. It was just three this year. Yeah, I think it is. Is there no international one this year?
00:31:12
Speaker
Yeah. No, none on their site. Oh yeah. That was part of like, i' so like four felt really disappointing to me. and they're like, you know what? Cancel that international. We'll just do three. We'll go to shock Chicago and Vegas again. Again. Yeah. Boo. i I, don't like Vegas. I hate visiting Vegas. Uh,
00:31:34
Speaker
i ah it's expensive, it's crowded, hot. Especially when you go in the summer. They sell Pepsi everywhere. i don't know. Wait, what?
00:31:45
Speaker
Who wants to drink Pepsi? i I was with you. i was with you until that point. I was like, wait, what? Like, that is just not something that I would have. ah That's not something that I was expecting to hear there. so yeah. Yeah. It's like all the casinos have an exclusive contract with Pepsi. ah yeah I've said for years, it's just another sign that Vegas is hell on earth.
00:32:14
Speaker
Yeah.
00:32:17
Speaker
I mean, I'm not going to argue that point. I routinely avoid drinking Pepsi. A friend of mine, it's a repeated joke for him every time we go to a place and I go, Diet Coke? And like, is Pepsi okay? He knows. My immediate response water will be fine. Yeah.
00:32:35
Speaker
and its Like he's, literally to the point now, he literally starts laughing when they say his Pepsi. Okay. And it's like, it's a little bit rude sometimes. You're like, wow, at least let them get it out. Like, yeah.
00:32:47
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Let me say the punchline before you start laughing. yeah That is amazing. Yeah. I'm, I'm, I'm all in for this. Uh, but yeah, no, um, you know, i do love big conventions. We've said we've wanted that, but it was interesting to see for my mental health right now.
00:33:03
Speaker
And that's, what's funny. I think that, we've talked a lot the last couple of times that we have been able to record that like in general, mental health ain't doing so well right now. Like it's not, we're not, we're not in a great place.
00:33:16
Speaker
Like i I'm not happy about the world as it is. say Yeah. And so, you know, it was just, is you know, you mentioned the the meals, Alex, and it's amazing that like the community of like,
00:33:30
Speaker
eating is actually just huge for me. yeah And so like, that was such a big deal to just go out and eat with friends, like separate from even getting to play the magic.
00:33:40
Speaker
Like it was a big deal to me to just go out and get to eat. And have some good eateries in Minneapolis, I have to say. We do. like i will Yeah, I will say. yeah I completely agree with this. like Yes, we we have very good eating in Minneapolis. And um I think it's not something that we're necessarily... like I mean, we're a ah we're a metro in the Midwest. like that that Everybody's got to
Conventions in Minneapolis
00:34:03
Speaker
gravitate somewhere.
00:34:03
Speaker
um But like the food here is fantastic. And just sitting, as you were saying, the the getting to have a meal with
00:34:15
Speaker
people where they like sat us in a different area for instance yeah oh yeah yeah like gave us like our own area to like sit in um ah i mean they saw us coming and they're just like no we don't want to hear the normal people yeah i get that like i could happen to for That kind of happened twice on Saturday too because that little table they they set us up at at Brits was not entirely isolated. but It was in the back corner of the top floor. It was pretty isolated. No, there was the derby going on, which we did not realize. No, but but also there it was it was perfect because then there was some space for a couple folks who were nearby but weren't grabbing dinner who who could who came by to visit too. and so yeah
00:34:57
Speaker
we had our We had our own little space back there, which was which was really nice. Yeah. but Yeah, the the meals were, I think we all talked about that being like the highlight of our week. We got to hang out with listeners. we got to hang out with artists. Yeah.
00:35:13
Speaker
to see each other we had to see each other right yeah extended periods of time which was fun it turns out i like to actually spend time with you people like yeah and in in a human capacity ah whatever that means but like in a just an actual capacity i think that yeah it was very nice to actually just get to sit and have a meal with my you know with my with my co-hosts um yeah yeah so Yeah, I was saying, you know, even if there's not a con, I need to visit Minneapolis more often, i think.
00:35:46
Speaker
i mean, I think so, but. yeah Yeah. And I'm known for my lack of being biased on these things. yeah I've also been like, you know, i know my good friend Michelle Raff is going to be at Atlanta. So I'm like, can I swing another MagicCon this year? And I'm just like.
00:36:06
Speaker
ah I don't know if I can, but there's people I really want to see. It's like, I don't care about the con at all. I just want to see the people. just I just want to see people. Is that too much to add? I mean, that I have as is someone who spent a lot of time at cons like with groups of friends.
00:36:24
Speaker
There's a reason I think a person who lives in many has lived in Minneapolis in their entire life has ah gone to D.C. for almost a decade. um to go to anime convention out out there because I had friends who went to it. And unfortunately that may not be the case anymore. So I'm trying to figure out what I want to do there. But most of the friends I used to see or doing other things now.
00:36:48
Speaker
But like that was for for years and years I went to that con because it was like, I mean, the actual content of the con was fun. and And before I was going to this anime convention before Crunchyroll existed. So that was also a good way to just find new anime fun to watch.
00:37:04
Speaker
But more and more, like it was to hang out with a group of friends, and that convention was just a convenient excuse for us all to meet up in the same city ah in the same weekend.
00:37:17
Speaker
Yeah, Atlanta's such a long flight for me too, though. Yeah, that would... That would be a long play. That's one nice thing about living smack dab in the middle. Yeah, it does have that convenience.
00:37:29
Speaker
You know, if it wasn't for the snow, I would i could definitely see myself living in Minneapolis, but that's it that's a deal breaker for me. be fair, we have not had measurable snow in like two years.
00:37:41
Speaker
But it still lives at negative 25. This is true. this is true that part maybe no the we is not we still have whimpers of of winter like we had some measurable snow it didn't last the whole winter like yeah but we we had you know a foot of snow here a foot of snow there there was not a foot some point in time there probably was we had six inches as the biggest storm over the last couple of years like Yeah, and it didn't all melt immediately. That's not real... I'm going to revise my statement to winter in general. Okay.
00:38:24
Speaker
I'm the Southern California person defending winter over here, I guess. i don't know. I enjoyed living in Phoenix. I'm that kind of weird. yeah,
00:38:34
Speaker
so yeah i I grew up in an area where it got down into the negative teens during the winter and I'm not a fan of it. ah
00:38:45
Speaker
you know, you have to wonder if your car is actually going to start or not because it's too cold or, um, you have to plug in the radiator on some of those older cars. Uh,
00:38:57
Speaker
that's her i had I had a roommate who fortunately worked across the street from where we lived because his truck needed to be plugged in in the winter. And so he'd plug his truck in at his like at the card store he worked at.
00:39:14
Speaker
he'd wait He'd come home and then he'd be like, oh, it's about closing time. And then he'd drive his truck over and as soon as all the customers left, he'd go in, plug his thing and lock up the store. Yeah. See, Alex, that's the past, man. We're weird dealing with global warming. That was like five years ago. Yeah, and I've lived here that time. We're not at global warming. the you what but People don't listen to Alex, we not who is from here. but it is like as You are not wrong. The winters are not what they used to.
00:39:46
Speaker
I remember 20 some years ago talking to friends who didn't live in Minnesota, who I played World of Warcraft with conversationally being like, yeah, I could tell it was about 15 below today because my breath was freezing in my mustache.
00:39:59
Speaker
yeah Why are humans living in these conditions? It's really funny that you mention that because I've had that discussion with people. um i like had a discussion with um my dad in the past.
00:40:10
Speaker
He was like, once it gets below zero, it's all the same. I'm like, no. It turns out that it actually is way worse. yeah yeah That's when you really need to start managing the wind chill. Yeah, like that is a thing, Dad. I know you don't really fully understand this, but I'm just letting you know, That is a very real difference.
00:40:35
Speaker
like Yeah. that is ah that is ah that is a very real difference um Yeah. yeah but Yeah, so, you know, we've talked about SCGCon, we talked a little bit about Mental HealthCon, maybe it's a good time to plug the stream at the end of the month.
Mental Health Charity Event and NAMI's Advocacy
00:40:50
Speaker
Okay, I thought you were going to say, I think it's a good time to plug, I really thought you were about to say it's a good time to plug Final Fantasy. It's always good time for that. So help me God,
00:41:02
Speaker
like like a i i find you I found a new ever-flowing chalice to go in my cosplay deck. Oh, some of the reprint art is amazing. The the the reprint and the flavor text on Farewell is just... How did we end up here again? You mentioned Final Fantasy.
00:41:24
Speaker
Y'all, that's like a monkey paw wish. I don't even know what I did wrong here. yeah yeah you You were trying to, you're trying to like I don't know, some one-upsmanship or make a joke, and we took you seriously because that was the funniest thing that we could do at the time. Yeah, i i apparently, yeah like, I don't know. This just feels wrong. this feels just cool.
00:41:45
Speaker
this seals just not cool It feels, i feel i feel like Phil, what's the word I'm looking for? Gaslit? Is that a thing? that Is that a real thing?
00:41:59
Speaker
like love Yeah. ah yeah there's There's a lot going on here that just does not seem okay with me. um Yeah. yeah Because all I was going to say was, don't let Alex fool you You should move to the Midwest, everybody.
00:42:13
Speaker
And move to Minneapolis. And your mental health will improve exponentially. Like, guaranteed. Because you will be able to go to cons. ah like SCG con and hang out with awesome people. Like all of the people that came out for our event and just like listeners of the pod and people that hang out in our discord. Cause our discord is awesome.
00:42:34
Speaker
And I wanted to plug our discord again. um Yeah. then Now we can talk about, you know, everything else. There's a mental health event at the end of the month. Did y'all know that? Yeah, there is. I've been waiting patiently, Hobbs, for you to tell me about Yeah, have you? For some reason, they're letting me participate again. ah i mean, but we not we're we are letting you participate, and it doesn't really happen. You also, by your very good um ah ah whats advocacy role, we got Shannon on the show, too, or Shannon involved, too.
00:43:10
Speaker
Yeah, that'll be fun. Yeah. Sean mentioned that she couldn't be in another charity event. Yeah. Like, she wasn't gonna be to be in it. And we're like, ahem, ahem, ahem. yeah.
00:43:22
Speaker
So, you know, there's a lot going on in the world right now that's a good thing. Like, mental health events, Alex. Exactly. What is happening, Hobbs? Yeah. So at the end of this month, there is a mental health charity event. um It's this it's basically the one that we've been running for the last four or five years. The one for the National Alliance on Mental Illness, um the National Alliance on Mental. I never remember if it it's got to be.
00:43:51
Speaker
that That one word always throws me off. Yeah. I'm right. Correct. i think right So people don't know. NAMI ah is an organization that we on the show very strongly believe in. um We've, we've, we've brought them up previously in terms of um just even discussing the fact that they are, they're, they're really known for their um advocacy work in the sense that they, ah the money that you,
00:44:20
Speaker
if you donate to like say the national, the money is going directly into funding like research and advocacy ah effects or, or, or efforts. Like it's going into legislation to help like reduce stigma with mental health.
00:44:33
Speaker
They are running groups. um They are running. I mean, they are running groups like at all of your local NAMI. If you just go look up NAMI, you will be able to find one in your area. yeah um there's There's a national group, but then that they also have all the local statewide groups as well to, uh,
00:44:49
Speaker
To really kind of have people who are who are more in in the neighborhood, in the in the area. Correct. And so, you know, so we have that. It's been just a really awesome thing is been that, you know, like to see them, um to see that group that both on the national level and on the, um on both on the national level and on the, um the like, state level.
00:45:16
Speaker
They are a group that is 100% doing like great work on decreasing stigma around mental health and and around mental advocacy. And I will say too, that that is one of the things that um we've discussed a little bit about when it's come to do with, ah my brain is like fried right now, y'all. I'm sorry. I'm trying to think of what the word I'm looking for is.
00:45:40
Speaker
We put a lot of stuff from their show like in our show notes. So we have like information on them that we've given in the past. There are groups that we have, we've, we definitely have talked about their, um well, like their, their articles, like we share their articles.
00:45:57
Speaker
um We have done these episodes every so many years, every year we try to, in the month of May, do something mental health, very strongly mental health related.
00:46:07
Speaker
um Yeah. And so it is just kind of the, That's where we are right now. we will have the event. It is the final weekend in May. So it's actually the 31st of May and the 1st of June, technically.
00:46:20
Speaker
um We're going to be having details with the pods and more information about who will be playing. Like I said, we've already spoiled that both Taya and I will be be be playing. Both Taya and I will likely be ah responsible for money due to ourselves.
00:46:35
Speaker
Taya by playing K&T. Yeah, yeah i I will play K&T the first game and I will do the same thing I have the last few times and donate based on how many cards I make everybody draw.
00:46:47
Speaker
So Taya does that. Yeah, I was gonna say Taya makes it where where she donates based on the number of cards that she makes people draw in the game. And I can tell you right now, um I played against K&T kind of a lot this weekend and it's a lot of cards.
00:47:02
Speaker
It's a lot of cards. but It ends up being a lot of money. enabled a lot of nonsense this weekend with Queen T. You did. Including my Zada deck in one game, which I appreciate.
00:47:13
Speaker
I never played here. I didn't get to play against you. Oh, was it not you then? No, that was me who enabled you. That's right, Hobbs. Yeah, that was the bean. I just remember somebody gassed that deck up and I managed to run it. that was actually Malcolm and um that was malcolm in Breaches that gassed up Alex that game. That's right. That's where could find an actual win con.
00:47:33
Speaker
ah That's right. by like It's ridiculous. Yeah. Yeah, don't worry, Hobbs. I got it. I drew 17 cards and then realized I could just keep going. And was like, nope. Nope, you've you've got enough creatures. It's fine. You forgot at one point were like, oh I don't know if I'm going to be able to do this. And then your spell made treasure.
00:47:49
Speaker
I made 17 treasures and it was like, nope, nope. Yeah, I can keep going. I forgot about that. Turns out. With like 30 cards in my hand at the time. Yeah, so I'm not playing that deck and paying for all the cards people draw. I wheel way too much in that one, I learned.
00:48:04
Speaker
um No, and then ah I usually have for the weekend, and I will be doing a panel, and I am in a couple of games, I usually have an artist-proof count going.
00:48:15
Speaker
um So I do have a count going, and I do have to pay for every time I say the word artist-proof. And usually the rule is, if I find an artist-proof in my deck... I'm going to say the word artist proof, right? I'm not going to let it go by and not show it.
00:48:29
Speaker
And then last year in the final pod, but But our great friend Beth decided to add a swear jar for just me. yeah um And at some point, Jen was watching up in the room. That might have been for Sheldon event.
00:48:44
Speaker
I don't remember which event it was for. It was for a big event. And my wife literally like um what was messaging me from upstairs with how much of your Lego fund are you eating into for this charity event right now?
00:49:01
Speaker
Um, because it turned out her that story that turns out that I am, I swear, ah people might not know that about me, but I am. I'm a swearer. Yeah, and um ah so we ah definitely blew past whatever might be considered like a PG rating for that, um any of that. But ah ah it raises money for charity.
00:49:21
Speaker
Tay and I, are we we both love it doing this event every year. um Yeah, and like i said, we were able to get Shannon involved. The cast is always supporting it. We wanted to just get the information out this week.
00:49:34
Speaker
Like I said, all the pods will be coming out this week, but the event will be the end of the month. But it's mental a health awareness. Our our plan is to, we're going to, our hope after SCGCon Minneapolis was that, you know, I think all of us is, is is I believe, you know, you were saying earlier, Taya, how um just ah refreshed we all felt.
Future Podcast Themes and Final Fantasy Previews
00:49:58
Speaker
um And I think a big part of that is like us committing to wanting to be, you know, recording, And stuff more again. um And I think that that is, yeah, I think that's just something for us to kind of, you know, to be, to, to realize like that is something that is important to us. And it may is always important to us to try to get in or sorry, to get in as many episodes as we can.
00:50:22
Speaker
Yeah. I took out my word. I took out my try word. We are going to get in as many as we can. um And, and our goal is for them to be mental health themed. So yeah. Yeah.
00:50:35
Speaker
That's all I have. Do we go back to Taki Final Fantasy?
00:50:41
Speaker
I'm just excited to see the rest of the previews in this next week and a half. yeah won't It won't be as many as today. Today they previewed all four commander decks, so there was a lot of new cards to read. i was going to there's yeah okay so it wasn't just me.
00:50:57
Speaker
cool yeah i i don't think they've ever dumped this many cards on the same day because usually they spread out the commander deck previews yeah throughout the period uh and but yeah they dumped all four of them today yep and yeah i'm still and there's like there's like 25 to 30 new cards per deck and like it There's also a bunch of cards with new art. And to be honest, like I'm still not even comprehending the new cards. i'm I'm catching up on the cards with new art because I'm familiar with those cards. But the art is it's really fun to see these references to inexorable tide, which is existing card. But you've got ah
00:51:42
Speaker
Nice little shot of sin going on. See, and I got... Y'all, you all people just really, really messed me up this week too because Esper is green.
00:51:54
Speaker
So I'm guessing I'm guessing Esper... predates the mana color. And it's not strictly green. Esper is is what summons are called in Final Fantasy. Yeah, that way predates the term Esper and magic. asper Esper in like anime and arc t Japanese RPGs just looks like a ah type of spirit creature almost.
00:52:19
Speaker
yeah But the fact is that they chose to make that green, Alex. Yeah. This is because it summons creatures, I guess. So, okay. Well, because this particular scene and guy is green.
00:52:35
Speaker
The Esper who's part of this is a green. this out This sounds made up. The joke, though, is that that the one is green and red on one side, and then it adds the Esper colors on the other side.
00:52:47
Speaker
There's that, too. yeah I think Hobbs is talking about the card Esper Origins, which yeah for flash which is mono green. Yeah, just mono green. it's a And then it it's sorcery that has flashback, and then it flashes back into the summit on the other side.
00:53:01
Speaker
Final Fantasy VI predates all of magic. Okay, that's fine. That's fine. Okay, I'll give you all this one. So this is Wizard's fault yeah for naming the three color color combination Esper.
00:53:16
Speaker
And the from what I understand, I think this is a Japanese culture thing just from seeing it in other places. Like Teya said, like anime, it shows up a lot. Where i I think it comes from like ESP.
00:53:29
Speaker
Oh, somebody told me this today. Okay. Yeah. Where it's it's a lot of times like people with psychic powers are called espers. Sometimes it's more of a lighter magic. Something we would normally call like psionicist um or tell telekinesist or something like that.
00:53:47
Speaker
They might just call esper asus as a general bucket. Sounds good. That's then how it kind of became a a term in at least this one game as a...
00:53:58
Speaker
term for all of the summoned creatures all of the summons of final fantasy 6 are referred to aspers well then i'm i am not going to be upset and instead i'm just going to be excited for you both with final fantasy and y'all getting to do to me what i like it's going to be another anime episode where i'm going to be like oh this thing is so cool and you're like hobbs this is the most heartbreaking moment that's ever happened in a video game only only a horrible sociopath would like this and i'm going to be like No. Okay, cool. I got it. That's what this episode is going to end up being when we finally get around to doing Final Fantasy and Magic the Gathering crossover with Alex and Taya making fun of Hobbs.
00:54:40
Speaker
And I think maybe that'll be the time to finally do the game with you where we list off anime titles that are real or fake and see if you can guess which is which. in the Goblin Lore Podcast.
00:54:50
Speaker
Thank you for listening. We can be found both on Twitter and Blue Sky at GoblinLorePod. Check out our link tree for our Discord and our discounts. We appreciate you listening and welcome feedback via social media or Discord.
00:55:03
Speaker
Until next time, Podwalkers, remember that goblins, like snowflakes, are only dangerous in numbers.