The Hills Have Nerds

16/08/2024

https://www.twitch.tv/coffeebreaklounge
We're all dungeon crawling on Hammerwatch in Cody's stream tonight. Come watch the nerds delve, dive, and destroy their way to riches and more likely, untimely death.

Let's blaze a path!

14/08/2024

STOP WHAT YOU’RE DOING! IT CAN WAIT!! THERE’S A NEW EPISODE!!!

Man, it was an awesome time to sit and talk to these two. In this episode Lee, Cody, Aaron, and Josh had the fantastic opportunity to sit down with Lynn and Bob Bartels, the owners and operators of The Guardtower - West and Guardtower East in Columbus, Ohio; a massive and welcoming pair of Friendly Local Game Stores.

These two have an impressive amount of history in gaming. From humble beginnings laminating maps for Gygax and Arnisen to now fostering and nurturing a brilliant gaming community in one of the largest cities in Ohio, and also being philanthropists, artists, business minded, and just generally darn good people, there's really not much we think they can't do. We really appreciated getting to hear their experiences and all of the great things they are bringing to their gaming communities, and we think you're going to love it too.

Thank you again Lynn, Bob, James, and everyone else at The Guardtower for having us!

https://open.spotify.com/episode/6ur6BZ9G9Kh3S1BuqfcIxZ?si=OxOkroJFRE2OEPF7BNO2Yw

13/08/2024

Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition (D&D 5E) recently received an updates to the core rules. I personally haven't had the chance to read through all of them, but what I've seen is a whole lot of spell reworks. Many buffs to commonly used spells, such as cure wounds now healing 2d8 + your spellcasting modifier, and reworks to under-used spells to make them more interesting to play, such as Blade Ward now lasting a full minute and all enemies attacking you suffers a loss of 1d4 to their attack roll. There have also been fan favorite spells from expanded source books now being included in the core book, like Toll the Dead from Xanthar's Guide to Everything. There have also been some changes to other classes, but that's what I haven't made it to yet.

What do you think of the changes? I'm still new to D&D as a whole, so I'm unsure as to how they will affect play in the long run or the difficulty balance. But, I'm interested to see how it turns out.

13/08/2024

Another game stream?! Ghost hunting? Josh inevitably cursing from fear? What more could you want?! It's game night and we're playing Phasmophobia!

Its time to get spooky and hunt some haunts! Come hang out as we play the ghost hunting extravaganza of Phasmophobia!

12/08/2024

I didn't know getting randomly YEETED off the map was a feature of Speedrunners....

- Josh

https://youtube.com/clip/UgkxhrActoepbcEEED1_evZ4OpPe0mwPw4AR?si=tH3VjMf8tqPX0kKj

50 seconds · Clipped by The Hills Have Nerds · Original video "The Hills Have Nerds Game Night" by The Hills Have Nerds

12/08/2024

https://youtube.com/live/ISPL7YF_vak?feature=share

We're live on YouTube with another The Hills Have Nerds Game Night! Come hang out and watch Aaron and Josh and other friends ruin each other's good time in Speed Runners! A fast paced platforming game of sabotage and frustration!

Playing Speed Runners and maybe other things! Come watch Aaron and Josh and friends curse and sprint their way to ruining each other's good time!

07/08/2024

Your favorite nerds recently tried out the video game turned board game, Slay the Spire.

The video game is a prime candidate to be a board/card game. As deck building, rogue-like game, Slay the Spire has you adding, removing, and upgrading cards from your deck to advance up the spire. You can also gain potions and relics to help you along the way. All of these mechanics translate easily into a boardgame and have been adjusted to support 4 player co-op play.

With all the pieces and cards, the game can be a little intimidating at first glance, but it is honestly pretty easy to learn. After your initial organization of the game and box, set up isn't too bad either. It's a fun co-op game if you have an hour or more to play.

02/08/2024

Attention Cthulhu and Lovecraft fans! And just any history nerd! A ton of pictures of historical Providence RI, and College Hill.

So this has been long overdue! I completely forgot to post about our historic Lovecraft walk through College Hill and Providence RI when we were on vacation!

It was absolutely phenomenal. We were able to see Lovecraft’s different homes and apartments he’d stayed in, inspirational spots for him, libraries and parks where he would sit and write, and also several homes along the way that featured as inspiration in many of his stories. The Shunned House and The Case of Charles Dexter Ward were of particular note.

I was also able to check an item off my bucket list. We were able to visit HP Lovecraft’s gravesite and (as seemed to be the custom and was encouraged by the groundskeeper) leave something as a token. We chose to leave an ink pen, not an original idea judging by the others near the headstone haha, but felt appropriate. Plus it was a UK pen so it made a mighty journey.

I also want to give a shout out to the wonderful Lovecraft Arts & Sciences Council who have an excellent bookstore filled to the brim with weird fiction, esoteric and occult offering. They do an incredible amount of to promote the weird fiction and art community and preserve the history of Providence’s relationship with the genre. An educational organization as well, they organize events and even are the organizers for NecronomiCon Providence. If you’re in the least bit interested check out their page and website. It’s definitely worth the time.

Lovecraft is a polarizing figure. There is no denying it. He held some deeply troubling views and opinions, even for their time. We by no means endorse that. In fact quite the opposite. It makes calling myself a “fan” very difficult sometimes. But to deny the impact that his writings and his mentorship/collaborations with other authors of his time would also be to ignore the beginnings of some of the most wonderful pieces of fiction I have ever read, and to ignore and bury the origins of some of nerd culture’s most influential forefathers. That being said I completely understand and stand by whatever personal decisions people with regards to their feelings towards Lovecraft. It’s a complicated legacy to say the least.

- Josh

02/08/2024

https://www.twitch.tv/coffeebreaklounge

Hey! Cody is live on Twitch right now streaming Sunblaze, a 2D Puzzle Platformer, in the style of Celeste. Go taunt him mercilessly any time he messes up, it will most certainly be funny.

Let's blaze a path!

01/08/2024

https://www.twitch.tv/pixelbrolee

Your very own Nerd Pixel Bro Lee is live on Twitch playing Magic Knight Rayearth! An awesome retro ARPG for the Sega Saturn. Go chat him up and tell him he's handsome. He feeds on compliments.

Husband. Father. Preacher. Teacher. Friend. Gamer. Busy.

31/07/2024

Hey! Remember when we said to look out for the video of Episode 15 -Digital vs Physical Media? Well it's here! Sorry about the delay, Josh tends to procrastinate and there was Marvel Champions to play.

But its here now! Thanks again to The Guardtower - West for letting us hang out and record and getting this out for us! We have two more episodes coming out in August that will also have videos to go along with them so be ready for that! Now you can actually view in full color the hideous visage of Nerdom that speaks at you from across the air waves. Or you may find us handsome and alluring. Either way, we appreciate you watching and stifling whatever bodily urges you have be they for better or worse!

Let us know what you think, any and all feedback, questions, comments, concerns, or curses are welcome!

Howdy everyone!In this episode the Nerds were recording at The Guardtower West and were joined by special guest, James (the Producer for Guardtower Studios)....

28/07/2024

ATTENTION EVERYONE! NEW EPISODE ALERT!

Howdy everybody!

In this episode the Nerds were recording at The Guardtower - West and were joined by special guest, James (the Producer for Guardtower Studios).

They sat down to discuss the prevalence of digital media in our spaces and the pros and cons of digital downloads versus preserving physical media. Digital video game downloads, digital books, music streaming, movies and tv streaming services, its everywhere! Digital store fronts are vital for indy developers, but there's just something concrete about holding a disc, cartridge, or book in your hands! Join the fellahs as they weigh the pro's and con's of each.

A huge thank you again to The Guardtower - West for having the Nerds down there and being so welcoming! Keep an eye out for the video of the podcast hitting our Youtube soon!

https://open.spotify.com/episode/1QKdit5WvfdcfundqUzpfW?si=1ohJ5mbASdqtsUepvUYTHg

28/07/2024

Well your boys (minus Pixel Bro Lee because he was streeeeeaaammmiinng) just got out of Deadpool and Wolverine. This movie was chaos in the best ways for the most part. If you’ve been a loyal consumer of superhero movies and the MCU there’s an absolutely gratuitous amount of payoff for people like us. The film is filled to the brim with Easter eggs and cameos (both expected and WILDLY unexpected), we won’t spoil any here but it’s worth the watch.

We cannot overstate how hilarious the movie was, with some top tier fight scenes and great cinematography. The plot was a little fast paced and could’ve used a little bit more breathing room but it was still well followable.

We highly suggest checking the movie out and keeping yourself as spoiler free as you can before going in. Welcome to the MCU Deadpool! Glad to have you!

- Josh

26/07/2024

Be thoughtful, fellow nerds! Keep in mind over the next couple weeks maybe not everyone has had the chance to watch the movie. Let’s give it a bit before we really nerd out! Your boys are seeing it Saturday, we’ll do a *spoiler free* review as well! Maximum Effort everyone!

22/07/2024

With the upcoming August 29 release of Emio The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club, Nintendo has broken a new milestone. To our knowledge, this will be the first game developed by Nintendo to receive an M rating. Think back to the first poll we posted, Nintendo's first published game to receive an M rating. Well, now they haven't just paid for the printing of the game, they've actually made it themselves.

While it more than likely just makes the rating and won't have the content of more mature game like God of War, it is a new step for Nintendo. I'm kinda excited to see what this has in store.

20/07/2024

Our fellow Nerd Pixel Bro Lee has a new video that you should check out!

Nintendo and Sega BOTH made some major mistakes that certainly helped the success of the Sony Playstation! I outlined this in my new video! Go check it out :) Link is blow!

17/07/2024

FLGS shout out round two! This time I and the family were in the Witchcraft capital of America, Salem Massachusetts yesterday! (We did Providence today and the Lovecraft tour but those picture will come tomorrow)

First we headed into GameZone, a retro and current video game retailer with an incredible selection. This store was also featured in “Not for Resale”, a documentary about the trend away from physical product in todays gaming (which happens to be the topic of July’s main episode so it’s extra pertinent). While there we got to talk to Neil, the owner, who was an incredible guy with several decades in video game resale. Sorry if I misspelled your name Neil! (If it’s Neal I’ll edit the post!) We had an awesome time, thanks again guys!

Second we went just down the street to a MASSIVE store, Harrison's Comics & Pop Culture. I cannot stress how much amazing nerd stuff this store has. We stayed in there for almost an hour and KEPT FINDING NEW THINGS! While there we picked up some records and pop figurines for the kids. I also had the pleasure of talking to Larry Harrison, the owner the store. I really enjoyed getting to hear the history of the store and his plans for even more space in the building and even got a tour of their basement game room they’re working on getting ready to welcome gamers into. Thanks so much again, Larry!

Guys that’s 5/5 so far on awesome FLGSs. Check out the pictures on the post for images of the shops, and I’m even going to throw in some photos from the Witch Trials/Hauntings tour we took. Salem was amazing, and I cannot suggest visiting it enough. Even if you’re not a history or horror nerd… go check it out for the game stores! GameZone and Harrison’s are worth the trip on their own!

- Josh

16/07/2024

Your nerd is in Providence RI right now doing the HP Lovecraft walking tour! Got a ton of travel and FLGS shout outs coming soon! This place is absolutely incredible. Obviously something for the Lovecraft and Cthulhu nerds but for our American History nerds as well New England has been just awesome.

-Josh

15/07/2024

Howdy everyone! Hope everybody’s enjoying the new episode that came out yesterday with local nerd, Joe Meade! While you’re doing that though I wanted to give a shout out to some not-so local nerds.

I’m in Massachusetts with the family for vacation and me and my son visited some great FLGSs yesterday while running around exploring the towns around where we’re staying.

The first we went to was Metal Goblin Games! The owner, Wayne, was a pleasure to talk to and I learned that Mr. Pibb is a regional soda (who knew?!). While not the largest store I’ve been in by any means, the little shop had a solid selection of games, and probably the best selection of RPG books of the three shops. I picked up Machi Koro 2 and the Achtung! Cthulhu Starter Set. Thanks again Wayne!

The second stop was Legends Comix and Games. This was the largest of the 3 stores and had an awesome selection of board games and comics. I got to speak at length with one of the co-owners, Winston, and had a great conversation about TTRPGs and even a little info about one he’s working on himself which sounded like a blast. Snagged a copy of Boss Monster: Rise of the Minibosses as well! Thanks Winston!

The final stop yesterday was The Lamp & Dragon, which is fighting Metal Goblin Games pretty hard for coolest name of the three. This shop had just a ton of character, man. Immediately when I walked in we could see various groups of fellow nerds gathered at tables playing Dungeons and Dragons or Magic the Gathering. The store felt alive as soon as we opened the door. Here we got to chat with the owner Ethan and got to know the shops history as well be pointed toward a “table-less and dice-less” RPG called Enclave that a local has created. We picked up a copy of that rule book and I’m excited to get in to it! Thanks again Ethan!

If you’re ever in eastern central Massachusetts make sure to give these stores a visit and tell ‘em the Nerds sent ya!

So far 3/3 on awesome FLGSs down here! They definitely all kept the “Friendly” ringing true. The hills have nerds, but everywhere else does too! Keep an eye out on the page for more FLGSs. We’re here all week so I’ll be checking out more places for sure.

- Josh

14/07/2024

NEW EPISODE! NOT A DRILL! ITS HERE!!

Hey everyone!

It’s time for our second Nerds in the Hills Interview! This time Cody and Josh had the pleasure to sit down with Joe Meade, an incredibly talented nerd from here in Eastern Kentucky.

Joe has written, created, and developed his own Table Top RPG, his own board game, and even written a collection of fantasy short stories! The man has talents, people. A veritable renaissance hillbilly in the nerd world!

We had a blast talking to Joe about Mystic Forces, Omens of Destiny, and Troves of Fantasy and we truly believe you’ll love hearing how passionate Joe is about his work!

Check out the episode now, and be sure to spread the word by liking, commenting, and sharing with your fellow Nerds!

Listen to the episode here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5NdicmAIaCeOm6ax9afdbA?si=vfwnMpkSSpOtqCe-KwSzcg

11/07/2024

Game night!

Tonight we’re playing Flamecraft by Lucky Duck Games! An “enchanting” worker placement game where players take turns traveling from shop to shop in a fantasy town gathering resources, putting their adorable dragon friends to work, and spending those resources to enchant the shops to provide even BETTER resources!

Spend the game playing Artisan Dragons and Fancy Dragons, upgrading shops with enchantments, putting new shops in the town, and just generally having a great time.

This is a favorite for us. From the fantastic art to the adorable Dragon names (Stewart, Loaf, Wingnut, and Potato just to give some examples) there’s a lot to love about this game. Add on it being very easy to understand and a fairly quick play with some solid amount of modularity and there’s really something for everyone when it hits the table.

Have any of you guys played Flamecraft? If so what do you think?

10/07/2024

State of the Podcast Update - (Slight Wall of Text)

Well it finally happened! We uploaded "Episode 10 - Cozy Games" to the Youtube!

We apologize to anyone that primarily uses Youtube to listen to the podcast, we've definitely slacked a bit on getting it up to date with new releases as the YT has been on "Episode 9 - Death of the MCU" for a couple months now and we're all the way on Episode 14 on Spotify and the audio streaming services.

However! The good news is ALL of the current episodes are scheduled for release over the next few weeks of July on the channel and going forward current episodes will be available just a couple days after they post on Spotify starting in August! (We figured out YT has an RSS feed integration and it's simplified the process so so much...have a bit of patience with us we're still learning.)

So again, we apologize for the delay but know all the episodes are locked and loaded to drop every Tuesday and Thursday until they're all caught up. No more month long wait for them to hit YT. Also, keep an eye out on the YT for our video episodes we recorded at The Guardtower - West, a fantastic FLGS in Columbus Ohio. (Audio of these will still post as normal on Spotify and everywhere else)

Video Episodes
Episode 15 - Physical v.s. Digital Media featuring James from The Guardtower

What Are We Into? (Media Catch Up Episode for What are we currently playing/watching/reading) - Also included in this episode is our attempt at an intervention for Aaron's sleep apnea

Sit Down Interview with Lynn and Bob Bartels, the owners of The Guardtower, we talked about their history in FLGS', how they got their start, their histories in War Gaming and TTRPG's (Bob's interactions with Gygax and Arnisen), and a ton of other stuff. It was an absolute pleasure to get to talk to these two.

There's a lot of great content coming down the pipeline, (keep an eye out for the Holler Critters Set 2 review coming soon as well!). As always, thank you all so so very much for supporting and listening. This adventure has already become so much more than we ever imagined it would be just a year in and we can't wait to see where else the shows heading. From the bottom of our nerdy hearts thank you and we cherish all of you.

Send a message to learn more

09/07/2024

Dice come in all shapes and sizes now. From your regular sets to this awesome potion set.

When playing a game, do you match your dice to your character, the world setting, yourself, etc? Do you use a new set for every new character you play? Show us your dice sets and how you pick what you roll.

Image is of a set from Dark Elf Dice.

07/07/2024

Walking in to Wesker and Son’s like:

06/07/2024

Some serious gaming is happening at The Gaming Co. - Pikeville tonight. Playing Mosaic by Forbidden Games. A big ole 4X (ish) Civilization building game. Just getting started but cannot stress how excited I am.

- Josh

04/07/2024

We here at The Hills Have Nerds want to wish a very happy 4th of July to all of our listeners and their family and friends here stateside that are celebrating. Have a safe weekend and please come out with the same number of fingers you started the holiday with.

But if you don’t, at least look hella cool when it happens. 🇺🇸🎆😎

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY FROM ALL US NERDS!

04/07/2024

Any late nighters out there? If you’re pulling an all nighter be sure to drop by and check out Pixel Bro Lee’s late stream this evening at 1am. It’s Lee…after dark… All the gaming and double the entendre’s!

STREAM TONIGHT! 1 AM est due to fireworks ♡

Twitch.tv/pixelbrolee

Don't forget to check out my YouTube content! at youtube.com/