Setting the Stage Episode 19 – John and Olnap

Published by

Isaac

June 21, 2023

A special episode with the DM that taught me to play, John! When I was nine he ran us through a campaign he’d designed previously called Olnap. The name for Olnap is derived from the real-world map of OLympic NAtional Park that John used to design the campaign. In the campaign my friends and I rampaged across Olnap defeating monsters and solving problems that had come up due to the physical breaking of the peninsula’s luck into pieces. Of course we succeeded in the end. John is also the father of Will, the cohost of our first episode, Tolkien, WW1, and Shelob’s Farts.

John is in the process of designing and playtesting his own rule set for roleplaying games. The system is called Epic Power. It’s similar to GURPS with a realistic bell curve for action resolution. Additionally, players have a resource called Epic Power which they can use to influence die rolls or perform amazing feats. If you want to learn more about the system or possibly use it yourself you can email John at <epicpower@johnlamping.com> or take a look at the Epic Power store on itch.io.

Olnap’s campaign map is superimposed over a map of the Olympic National Park. Google Maps is just as good as any other image.

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One response to “Setting the Stage Episode 19 – John and Olnap”

Applying TTRPG Customer Profiles to the Setting the Stage Podcast – GoCorral

February 20, 2026

[…] Scraw and Gnomestones, 14 – Nathan and Aenea, 15 – Hayden & Carson and Egress, 19 – John and Onlap, 39 – Jeph and Big Campaign, and 47 – Malcolm and Our […]

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I’m Isaac

Welcome to the GoCorral website! I’m Isaac Shaker and this is a place for me to write about D&D and occasionally other topics. I host a podcast called Setting the Stage that interviews different DMs about their campaigns. I’m currently focused on completing the Cimmeria campaign setting and turning it into a book.

Setting the Stage Podcast

81 – Biopunk 2287 RPG (Seiya and Synesthesia Synthetica) – Setting the Stage, Campaigns for D&D and Other RPGs

Seiya tells us about his TTRPG system and setting, Synesthesia Synthetica (SNS). SNS is a biopunk game adjacent to the cyberpunk and steampunk genres. After an asteroid induced climate disaster, Earth has rebuilt itself using bio-technology instead of the metal based tech that surrounds us in the real world. Genetically modified humans have split into distinct species and mutant horrors prowl the wastes outside civilization. The rich rule from their space stations up above but resistance is growing in the streets below.During the episode we discussed a piece of art that Seiya had made for the game. A picture of that bio-tank is available for you to look at.At the moment, Synesthesia Synthetica is available for free as an early access game on itch.io and DriveThruRPG.If you want to learn more or find a group to play with, you can do that on the Synesthesia Synthetica Discord.Remember to nominate your favorite TTRPG shows/creators/things for the 2026 CRIT Awards!Check out the Setting the Stage website!Want to be on the show? Fill out this survey.Join our Discord!Support Setting the Stageon Patreon! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.