@hellstrommikael.bsky.social
Ph.D. political science. Outschool Teacher. Pro GM. Game-based learning. Opinions are my own.
Milestone achieved!
25.11.2025 19:33 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0Autism doesn’t limit my perception — it expands it. I notice the systems within systems. The way rules shape action. That’s where understanding starts.
06.11.2025 14:56 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0Gamified learning—quests instead of assignments, badges instead of grades—can make education feel like an adventure. I’m team XP over bell curve grades any day.
16.09.2025 17:56 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0We don’t yet know what motivated the person who shot and killed Charlie Kirk, but this kind of despicable violence has no place in our democracy. Michelle and I will be praying for Charlie’s family tonight, especially his wife Erika and their two young children.
10.09.2025 21:26 — 👍 35208 🔁 5677 💬 2618 📌 742Ever noticed how GM-ing a game session feels like facilitating a town hall? Same skills—narrative, agency, empathy.
11.09.2025 14:37 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
Everyone! Want to find like-minded people to talk about how to write better player characters or NPCs and make better stories together at the role-playing table?
I just opened a community for that! We can share resources and pick each others' brains! See you there!
www.skool.com/role-playing...
If you're interested in learning more about how politics work through the lens of political science- I'm here for you!
www.skool.com/hellstroms-p...
We're the organizers! Yay!
12.08.2025 22:25 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0The way players handle moral dilemmas in Delta Green says a lot about how they see authority, security, and humanity.
I’ve had better political debates at the table than in some seminars.
🌕 LIVE NOW: When the Wolfsbane Bloom 🌕
Tonight, the pack is sent on a grim errand—to track down Graveseeker, a missing Theurge whose mind may be shattered... or worse. 🔴 Tune in now on Twitch.tv/MythMachin3
#WerewolfTheApocalypse #TTRPG #ActualPlay #WorldOfDarkness #W5
XCOM Ironman mode feels like being a political decision-maker during a national emergency.
Public trust. Limited resources. Every death matters.
Also, aliens.
I've wanted to turn into a classroom simulation for some time.
As someone autistic, I’ve found TTRPGs offer structured social engagement with creative freedom.
It’s part system, part story.
Feels like home. Anyone else find this kind of play uniquely comfortable?
One reason I love Vampire and Delta Green: they’re emotional simulations and political ones.
You don’t just manage power—you navigate fear, loyalty, and corruption.
A political scientist’s dream sandbox.
🧛♀️ We're LIVE! 🧛♂️
Vampire: the Masquerade – Paper Chase Part 10 starts NOW!
The hunters made their move.
The Coterie struck back.
Blood was spilled. Secrets exposed.
Now the city holds its breath.
📺 twitch.tv/mythmachin3
#VampireTheMasquerade #TTRPG #ActualPlay #WorldOfDarkness #ChicagoByNight #V5
I’ve seen players develop real emotional awareness through roleplay.
Games aren’t just stories—they’re social labs.
Anyone else see emotional growth at the table?
Have you ever brought something from a game table (like facilitation, empathy, or scenario planning) into your professional life? I ended up turning my classroom into a live-action role-play.
14.06.2025 16:54 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0👾 XCOM nerds, humor me:
Design a new alien.
What’s it called? What’s the worst thing it can do to you?
Bonus points if it’s even more irritating than a Sectopod.
🛸 The Resistance Needs You — XCOM 2 Live Now! 🛸
Join me on the frontlines as humanity fights back against the alien occupation! 💥
📍 Tune in now: www.twitch.tv/mythmachin3
#XCOM2 #TacticalGaming #TwitchStream #TurnBasedStrategy #MythMachineLive #SaveHumanity
You came to do a job. Instead, you lit the fuse on prophecy, politics, and powers older than the Empire itself. Oops.
Play the most epic fantasy campaign you never heard of!
startplaying.games/adventure/cm...
Cosmic horror fans:
You need to read this.
“In the Hands of the Unknown” by A.E. Hellstorm is one of the most chilling, well-written horror books I’ve read in a long time.
Incredible atmosphere. Terrifying slow burn. Characters that stick with you.
www.amazon.ca/Hands-Field-...
I don’t “mask” when I GM, I'm in the zone!
With empathy, and obsession-level prep, the world comes to life.
And my tables are better for it.
The best lesson plans? Half-designed, half-improvised.
Just like a good campaign arc.
Clan power structures. Bureaucratic inertia.
Different stories, same gears turning.
That’s why I GM and teach policy—it’s all systems within systems.
🔥 Time to suit up, Soldiers!
🎯 XCOM2: Tactical Chaos & Hard Choices
🎥 LIVE now on Twitch → www.twitch.tv/mythmachin3
High-stakes missions. Brutal decisions. 95% misses.
Let’s lose soldiers together.
#XCOM2 #TurnBasedStrategy #TwitchStreamer #TacticalGaming
Who told the street gang to follow the Coterie anyway?
youtu.be/HI5uFbFX8dY
🟢 Delta Green Twitch Announcement – “The Briefing” Begins
A mansion in St. Louis blows up.
Delta Green now has to clean up.
🧬 Delta Green: The Briefing – LIVE in 5
🎥 Z Cell is on the scene.
🔴 www.twitch.tv/mythmachin3
#DeltaGreen #TTRPG #CosmicHorror #ActualPlay #MythMachin3
RPGs need mechanics that cater to all 4 of Bartle's player types: Killers (physical combat), Achievers (Using that Intelligence stat), Socializers (social combat), Explorers (mechanics for foraging in the wild).
Propose your own weird mechanics.
Trust is the soil. Growth is what happens when it’s there.
That’s true in classrooms, campaigns, and anywhere else people meet.
🩸 Vampire: the Masquerade
The masquerade cracked.
Tony barely survived the Succubus Club.
Charlie lost control in public.
🧛♂️ Chicago by Night – Forged in Steel: Paper Chase p5
🎥 LIVE in 20 on Twitch → www.twitch.tv/mythmachin3
#VampireTheMasquerade #VTM #TTRPG #ActualPlay #ChicagoByNight
“Why would anyone agree to this?”
— The core question of both good policy and good GMing.
Story matters.
