Light Omens & The Hope Engine. An interview with Jayden King (Episode 277)

Light Omens & The Hope Engine. An interview with Jayden King (Episode 277)

Author: Tabletop Journeys May 22, 2026 Duration: 1:10:03

What if hope itself was dangerous? 🌑✨ In this incredible episode, Josh and Lewanika sit down with professional Game Master, game designer, and industry coach Jayden King to dive deep into his groundbreaking new TTRPG, Light Omens.


This isn't your average tabletop interview. Light Omens is a techno-fantasy RPG set on an alternate Earth where Eldritch entities called Light Eaters feed on extreme emotion and surviving means learning to suppress the very things that make you human.


Sound familiar? That's entirely the point.


🎲 What you'll hear in this episode:

The jaw-dropping cosmology behind Light Omens

The Light Eaters, monsters that hunt your joy, your passion, your hope

Seekers, the player characters who refuse to give up the light no matter the cost

The Truths mechanic, a revolutionary system rooted in the very real experience of code-switching

Why Light Omens is as much a statement about identity, culture, and systemic oppression as it is a TTRPG

How The Hope Engine can power everything from grim-dark fantasy to procedural detective stories to war games

Jayden's personal mission to open doors for BIPOC and Black creators in the tabletop industry


This episode hit different. Jayden brings an authenticity and depth of vision that left the whole crew genuinely awestruck — and by the end, you'll understand why Lewanika called it one of his favorite interviews ever recorded on this show.


If you love games that have something to say, this one is for you. 🎮🃏🧙‍♂️


And remember:

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🔗 Links & Resources Mentioned in the Episode

🌐 Light Omens — lightomens.com (coming soon!)

📲 Jayden King — @ItsJaydenKing on Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky

🏰 D&D in a Castle — jadenking.com


🗺️ Tabletop Journeys Links:

Patreon: patreon.com/ttjourneys

Bluesky: @ttjourneys.bsky.social

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ttjourneys

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ttjourneys

Website: https://ttjourneys.com/

Email: podcast@ttjourneys.com


#TabletopJourneys #TTRPG #LightOmens #IndieRPG #TabletopRPG #DungeonsAndDragons #HopeEngine #TTRPGCommunity #IndieGames #RolePlayingGames #GameDesign #Hopepunk #Grimdark #TTRPGTwitter #DnD #TableTopGames #TTRPGPodcast #BoardGames #CallYourBoysTTJ


Three longtime friends, with a combined century of experience around the gaming table, invite you into their ongoing conversation. Tabletop Journeys is a podcast born from decades of shared history, not just as gamers but as people who have spent a lifetime thinking deeply about the worlds we create together. You’ll hear the easy, often hilarious dynamic of a group that has played in and run every kind of tabletop and live-action roleplaying game imaginable. Their discussions are the kind that usually happen late at night, after the dice are put away, where ideas get pulled apart, rebuilt, and passionately debated. Each episode feels like pulling up a chair in one of those living rooms, listening in as they dissect everything from game mechanics and storytelling techniques to the unexpected life lessons found in collaborative imagination. It’s less a formal review show and more a chronicle of a lifelong journey through games, packed with the kind of insight and friendly argument that only comes from truly knowing your fellow travelers. Tune into this podcast for a natural, deep, and often very funny exploration of why we play.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 50

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