Abdul

Summary

Abdul is a player in this Dungeon World campaign, playing the character Sucks Benedict. Abdul demonstrates active engagement in both gameplay and out-of-character discussions, participating in conversations about recording logistics, previous sessions, and personal anecdotes. During Session 3, Abdul discusses health topics including collagen powder consumption and mentions plans for a bike ride after recording. In Session 5, Abdul is recognized within the group, along with Brad, for mathematical aptitude. In Session 6, Abdul reveals having lived in Victoria in 2014 and frequented the board game cafe on Johnson/Yates Street. In Session 7, Abdul handles practical coordination outside gameplay—sending snacks to other participants and discussing a "coupon book" project with Colin involving a revenue share arrangement. Abdul shares the playing space with Brad and Dayna based on food delivery logistics discussed during Session 8. In Session 9, Abdul reveals that he manages LMG, a comedy gallery on Main Street in Vancouver that is scheduled to be torn down. In Session 10, Abdul reveals he is in a relationship with fellow player Erin, and that he had pneumonia during the first ten sessions of the show, which affected how he sounded in those early recordings.

Abdul shows strong familiarity with the Dungeon World rules system, stating "I have always known the rules" when Shawn notes how quickly Abdul learned them. Abdul actively assists other players with rules clarifications, explaining dice mechanics and move resolution during gameplay. Abdul also engages actively with game mechanics, as seen in Session 6 when successfully negotiating for +1 armor from wearing multiple sweaters in exchange for accepting a strength debility. Abdul is familiar with the campaign's continuity, having participated in earlier sessions where Sucks Benedict left a threatening note from The Sniff Lord in Louise Guzman's apartment. Outside the campaign, Abdul participates in the Fable and Folly Network, having been cast in a horror-comedy series after being recommended by the Alba Salix producer.

Abdul is characterized by drinking large amounts of black coffee, which Erin describes as "pure black Texan tar." Abdul frequents a local Starbucks where the staff "tend to add extra stuff to our order." Shawn notes that Abdul "obsessively watched every season" of shows "like, seasons long shows that nobody watched." Erin describes Abdul as "very utilitarian about food" and notes that Abdul "would choose to go to the shittiest sushi place if it was all you can eat." Abdul follows a keto diet and drinks kombucha, claiming it gives him "a tiny buzz."

Playing Style

Abdul brings crude humor and physical comedy to the table, using Sucks as a vehicle for absurdist moments even during tense situations. Abdul has Sucks compliment Vasso's physique in increasingly ridiculous ways while the party faces mortal danger, incorporating physical comedy elements like finger guns and sound effects ("pow, pow, pow"). Abdul creates memorable improvised phrases such as "what's going on in the junk that's in your truck" and uses props like imaginary cheese pocket squares for comedic effect.

Abdul engages enthusiastically with the aid mechanic, frequently volunteering to help other players and asking "Can I aid" during key moments. Abdul attempts to create dramatic moments with one-liners, though acknowledges when these attempts fall flat. During combat encounters in Session 3, Abdul experiences notably poor dice luck, rolling catastrophic double ones when attempting to use Tricks of the Trade, and rolling only 1 damage on a bow attack.

Abdul participates actively in collaborative storytelling and rules discussions, including detailed conversations with Shawn about Sucks's Poisoner move and serpent's tears poison mechanics. Abdul also contributes tangential anecdotes to table conversation, such as a story about a man in fantasy Norway who was attacked by geese that broke both his arms and died because he couldn't paddle his canoe.

Abdul demonstrates consequence-aware decision-making, accepting mechanical penalties—such as taking damage from Monster—in service of comedic character moments and group dynamics.
Abdul commits fully to absurdist scenarios, often escalating bits beyond their initial premise, such as the elaborate chair-spinning setup during the Pine Cone Man encounter.
Abdul layers physical comedy and creative details onto tactical gameplay, combining Dungeon World mechanical engagement with character-driven absurdism.
Self-aware comedic timing: Abdul blends genuine confusion with humor, as when questioning whether Cat was "trying to set me up with her or sell me to her," maintaining both in-character awkwardness and out-of-character awareness simultaneously.
Mechanical integration: Abdul incorporates dice results directly into roleplay, turning his charisma check of 11 into the line "I rolled 11 and sucks says that he's been on 11 days," seamlessly blending game mechanics with character voice.
Commitment to physical comedy: Abdul hunches over with the dust hat, performs an old man voice, and creates what he describes as a "violent diarrhea performance" when Sucks Benedict attempts to disguise himself as an old man.
Doubling down on chaos: Rather than retreat from failed plans, Abdul asks "Can I put more goo in there? See if that works" and proposes increasingly bizarre attachment points for the ever-living branch, including his character's crotch and butt.
Balancing comedy with concern: Abdul expresses worry that the goo might be "caustic or causing harm to Sucks" and reacts with visible disgust ("Gross," "Ew," "I don't like that") when the branch fuses to Sucks's body.
Comedic Performance: Abdul demonstrates elaborate comedic skills through improvised one-man show material, rapidly switching between multiple character voices and perspectives in extended bits that can last 45 minutes or more.
Meta-Awareness: Abdul actively engages in the group's tradition of ordering expensive food deliveries during sessions, noting: "This is the only RPG group I've ever been a part of, especially online RPG where we all just agree that we're gonna blow a hundred dollars every couple weeks." He is described by Shawn as one of the straightest-edge members of the group along with Brad.
Critical Engagement: Abdul calls out other players' character choices, such as questioning Cat's player: "You were going to murder Nick Silver for no reason and now in this situation, you're exercising restraint?"
Tactical creativity: Abdul proposes unconventional solutions to challenges, such as using expired silly string as a weapon during combat instead of standard attacks, and suggests infiltration strategies like the disguise plan using guard uniforms.
Character voice commitment: Abdul maintains character-appropriate decision-making even when it creates complications, such as having Sucks attempt accents despite mechanical uncertainty, and roleplaying social awkwardness in unfamiliar environments while noting out-of-character observations about the character's usual confidence.

History

Session 3

Abdul participates in extensive out-of-character conversation before gameplay begins, discussing health supplements, coffee drinking habits, and life insurance policies with Dayna and other players at the table. Abdul leaves briefly to retrieve dinner coffee, explaining the collagen addition: "It's, like, completely tasteless. Yeah. It makes your skin better and also your hair and your nail."

During gameplay, Abdul helps Erin and other players with rules clarifications, explaining "And then roll it again. So that's nine" and "It's 2d6 plus your dexterity." When Abdul attempts to aid Safia, Abdul suggests "What if I try and distract them or infuriate them so that they reveal more information?" but Shawn reminds Abdul that the other characters don't know Safia can shapeshift, requiring Abdul to withdraw the offer.

Abdul maintains Sucks's crude comedic voice throughout the session, having the character make increasingly absurd compliments to Vasso: "I go, vaso, your fucking buns are crazy right now. I don't know if you've been doing squats, but like between the big chest and these buns, you look like you could, you know, up a sniff Lord." Abdul adds physical comedy by describing Sucks doing finger guns pointing at each of Vasso's butt cheeks while stating "You're older than me, so that's why this isn't weird."

When Sucks attempts to use Tricks of the Trade to unlock a portcullis, Abdul rolls double ones, resulting in a catastrophic failure. Abdul discusses Sucks's poison selection with Shawn, choosing serpent's tears "because there's a Kate Bush song with the same name." Abdul struggles with combat rolls throughout the session, at one point calling out "I've been minus one, so that's back down to six. I need help. Someone help me."

Abdul reveals Sucks's bond with Safia to the table: "Here's the thing is like Safiya knows a super fucked up thing about me. I knew she was a shape shifter beforehand and she. She made me not tell you guys because she knows the super incriminating, fucked up thing about me that no one else. That no one else knows." Abdul then has Sucks declare "okay, I'm gonna help you by telling you everything I know in non sequential order."

During the end-of-session mechanics discussion, Abdul evaluates whether Sucks fulfilled the chaotic alignment of leaping into danger without a plan, citing examples: "I ran into that room with a bunch of geese. Didn't have a plan" and entering the dark cavern behind the tree. Abdul resolves the bond with Safia since "everyone knows it now, so it feels like it's not a bond anymore" and creates a new bond acknowledging that Safia outsmarted Sucks by revealing information. Abdul notes that both Sucks and Monster are weak, commenting "And sex is weak of mind and of body."

Episode: "Session 4"

Abdul begins the session with practical concerns about recording permissions, asking Shawn "are you cool with it with the sessions being recorded so Brad can transcribe them?" Abdul participates in casual conversation about apartment numbering systems and mentions listening to recent episodes. Abdul shares an anecdote about interviewing Paul Bay, which led to an awkward situation involving a potential podcast guest (Terry Miles from The Black Tapes).

During the negotiation with Louise Guzman, Abdul actively pushes for better compensation, repeatedly referencing escort costs to argue the party deserves higher pay. Abdul demonstrates his character's chaotic approach by proposing unconventional solutions, at one point suggesting "What if we just pay to have Louise killed?" When Sucks invents credentials during negotiations, Abdul has the character claim "I got my PhD in goo" and describe a "negotiating hood" as "the kind that you remember those hoodies that the face zipped all the way up."

Abdul leans heavily into creative speculation during the frozen area investigation, proposing the "ice monkey theory" with deliberately broad win conditions: "If it's a monkey that is aware of ice, I win. If it's a monkey named ice, I win. If it's a monkey that was owned by or is listening to Vanilla Ice." Abdul coordinates tactics with other players, checking with Cat before throwing Popcorn and suggesting they use Sucks's Walkman to play "Running Up That Hill" by Kate Bush at various volumes.

During end-of-session mechanics, Abdul identifies that Sucks fulfilled the chaotic alignment by "leapt into danger without a plan" when running into the woods. Abdul participates in experience questions, noting the party learned about "WI-Fi connector blobs" and suggesting they overcame both The Frozen Blob and Guzman. When other players question Sucks's earlier treatment of geese, Abdul defends the character: "I would say those geese had it coming." For leveling, Abdul selects the move Shoe and deliberately increases Sucks's dexterity from minus-one to zero to shore up a weak stat.

Episode: "Session 5"

Abdul actively participates in pre-session conversation, sharing personal anecdotes about memories from the Middle East, including seeing a child eating sugar directly from a large bag in a furniture store. Abdul discusses Egyptian tea culture and diabetes rates with the group. Abdul attempts to arrange food delivery for Shawn, searching unsuccessfully for Standard pizza and a Greek restaurant called Athena's on Uber Eats.

During the pumpkin field encounter, Abdul makes tactical decisions about deploying Goober versus using nets. Abdul requests to roll spout lore to determine the nutritional quality of Goober's output, achieving a total of 10. Abdul provides creative backstory for Sucks, including the cow-befriending story and the "Ice France" anecdote. In combat against the Gordian, Abdul describes how Sucks's equipment setup works in battle: wearing a very tight headband to hold headphones in place, tucking the mini disc player into underwear briefs, and attaching headphones to braces during fights. Abdul attempts to aid Brad's attack by having Sucks spray silly string on the Gordian, but fails the roll and takes 5 damage.

Abdul reveals during Session 5 that they have been cast in a new show on the Fable and Folly Network, a horror-comedy about nightmare creatures integrating into society. Abdul explains that the Alba Salix producer, a former university theatre colleague, recommended them for the main cast after not knowing about Abdul until the Alba Salix creator mentioned "Abdulloh from Spoutlore." Abdul describes the show as straight improv, noting, "I don't think I'm a good improviser like you are, though. I know. I've never been allowed to just, like, improvise freeform." Abdul considers requesting advertising partnership opportunities with the network, which reportedly receives 10 million downloads annually. Abdul also handles technical troubleshooting during the session, helping Erin resolve audio connectivity issues.

Episode: "Session 6"

Abdul begins the session participating in out-of-character conversation about popcorn sizes and asks Brad to provide the recap of the previous session. Abdul engages in extended discussion about topics ranging from Stephen King's writing to economics and debt, revealing that Abdul lived in Victoria in 2014 and frequented the board game cafe on Johnson/Yates Street.

During the early roleplay, Abdul leads an extended scene where Sucks attempts to teach Vasso about lying through demonstration. Abdul orchestrates Sucks and Cat staging a collision, followed by an elaborate fake attack scene where Sucks pretends to work for "Count Duke Johnson" and threatens Cat with a stick as a pretend knife. Abdul has Sucks and Cat take a theatrical bow afterward. Abdul participates enthusiastically in the party's plan to create pumpkin decoys, immediately having Sucks on board with the scheme and roleplaying Sucks dumping pumpkin slop on Goober while chanting "subsume, subsume, subsume."

The session's major comedic setpiece comes when Abdul has Sucks attempt to wear eleven sweaters simultaneously, describing how Sucks is "just fucking ramming them on as hard as he can." Abdul engages multiple other players (Brad, Dayna, Erin) in attempting to help, suggesting "It would be really funny if Safiya and Vaso tried to get us out of the sweaters and then they both also failed and then we were all stuck in." Abdul successfully negotiates with Shawn for +1 armor while accepting a strength debility, then commits to roleplaying the increasingly dire situation as Sucks becomes delirious from heat, describing how "the inner two layers of sweaters are pretty wet, and it's not all sweat," before having the character pass out.

During the confrontation with Nick Silver, Abdul demonstrates strong moral reactions by opposing Cat's violent approach, stating "We're not gonna kill this guy. Psycho. We could potentially kill him. We can't just shoot him in the head." Abdul attempts to interfere with the attack by describing Sucks attempting "a dramatic dolphin dive to grab Nick's staff" but rolls a 4, resulting in what Abdul describes as a humiliating failure with detailed physical comedy including "scorpion landing" and "involuntary urination." Throughout the encounter, Abdul persistently asks for the result of an earlier parley, mentioning the Hillary Duff poster multiple times and suggesting Safia try to hack Nick Silver's staff after the party is frozen. Abdul also provides character backstory naturally during play, explaining that Sucks' wealthy parents sold microwaves and lost money on bad investments.

Episode: "Session 7"

Abdul begins the session handling logistical coordination outside the game, confirming that snack deliveries have been sent—bubble tea to Brad and Dayna, pizza to Shawn. Abdul also discusses a meeting with Colin about a "coupon book" project, noting the arrangement: "He's gonna produce it for us and he's down to take a rev share instead of let's pay him hourly."

During gameplay, Abdul demonstrates tactical thinking when using the Trap Expert class move to survey The Dried-Up Canal entrance, identifying infiltration routes and mechanical opportunities. [Abdul has Sucks Benedict feed Goober by slicing a pitcher plant and dunking the familiar "in it like he's a spoon,"](timestamp://7bc7cc3d-4c57-45f8-a703-bb7b97509d80/45:23) then carries Goober in a Bjorn-style carrier with "marinara sauce covered spaghetti." When the group needs someone to distract guards, Abdul commits to consequence-aware roleplay: Sucks volunteers to hold Monster the kitten despite knowing the cat will attack. Abdul delivers a comedic farewell speech listing companions "in order of importance"—"First it's first it's Goober. Then for Gerald the pig, then..."—before rolling poorly on Defy Danger and taking 2 damage as Monster goes "absolutely feral."

Abdul fully commits to absurdist bits throughout the session. During the Pine Cone Man confrontation, rather than following orders to return to "the hole," Abdul has Sucks enter a tent, sit facing the wall, and prepare to "spin around in the chair" dramatically while wearing a stolen ghillie suit. Abdul insists Sucks "stay perfectly still" during the subsequent guard investigation and delivers a pronunciation correction: "It's pronounced ruse, you ruse." Abdul also participates in extended improvised exchanges, including playing one of the guards who makes increasingly awkward comments about a bird's appearance, defending with "it just had a juicy ass" and claiming "My therapist said I had to draw everything I had a dream about."

Abdul reveals character backstory through roleplay, explaining that Sucks "gave Vasso his mini disc player loaded with My Chemical Romance's 'Welcome to the Black Parade,'" contributing to Vasso's emo transformation. During a musical moment in the sewers, Abdul has Sucks encourage group singing: "And then every once in a while, you'll hear, sucks. Just be like, cat, sing with us. Uber needs to know that you believe in him for him to get up there." Abdul portrays Sucks's attempt at emotional support for Vasso with teenage masculine awkwardness, having Sucks explain: "Yeah. And then Sucks is like, you're the fuck. Like, your ability to, like, talk to God and, like, trick it into doing stuff for you is fucking dope. It's like I can barely convince, like, anyone to do anything. I just got fucked up by a cat. You can get God to, like, I don't know, make you glow and shit." The interaction culminates in Sucks punching Vasso in the shoulder instead of offering a comforting touch.

Episode: "Session 8"

Abdul opened the session discussing real-world logistics and work schedules, noting that Brad "is worse than all of us because he's working London and Vancouver hours." Abdul revealed he was also working both London and Vancouver hours during this session and follows a keto diet. He sent kombucha drinks to other players, including jasmine green tea cheese foam and tarot flavored varieties, commenting that kombucha gives him "a tiny buzz" though acknowledging it "might have been a placebo effect."

During market sequences, Abdul participated in comedic roleplay as Sucks Benedict got scammed by a hammock merchant, later describing his character as "elbow deep in a pile of hammocks." Abdul expressed growing frustration at the party's inefficiency: "Holy shit. Just fucking buy something. We're so close to the market closing." He questioned Cat's intentions when a date was arranged: "Wait, I don't understand the context of this. Are you trying to set me up with her or sell me to her?"

The session's centerpiece for Abdul was roleplaying Sucks Benedict's first date with Greta, a salvager woman. Abdul navigated the awkwardness both in and out of character, rolling an 11 on a charisma check and incorporating it into dialogue: "I rolled 11 and sucks says that he's been on 11 days." He had his character reference a previous failed romantic attempt: "And believe me, I have tried to use it. I went on a date with this girl named Annie and I played that one song." Abdul committed to continuing the relationship, ending with "Yeah. So next time, dance next time?" After the encounter, Abdul reflected on the party's narrative role: "I feel like in the movie of whatever story that we're playing a part in, we are actually the background characters and those guys are the main players."

Episode: "Session 9"

Abdul plays Sucks Benedict through the aftermath of a transformative goo accident and the discovery of the ever-living branch's properties. Abdul commits fully to Sucks's disguise attempt, hunching over and performing an old man voice while his character fakes violent diarrhea to deceive guards, describing the performance as creating what he calls "a violent diarrhea performance." Throughout the session, Abdul pursues increasingly experimental uses of the purple goo despite repeated mechanical failures, rolling a series of low results (7, 11, 5, 4, 4) that lead to increasingly disastrous outcomes. After the branch fuses to Sucks's arm, Abdul explores various attachment points, asking "If I put it on my butt, I could kind of have a tail. And then that would help with climbing." When attachment to Sucks's crotch proves unsuccessful, Abdul has his character observe, "Weird that it doesn't work on my crotch. Can't get it to stick there?"

Abdul participates extensively in out-of-character conversation about television and web projects. When the group discusses television, Abdul demonstrates detailed knowledge of the show True Calling, explaining "She worked at a morgue and then the person who is dead would come back to life and look at her and say, help me. And then she would wake up at the beginning of the day that they died. And then she'd have to stop them from dying." Abdul shares that "Zach Alifanakis, he was on that show during his stint of living in Vancouver. Because he lived here for like three or four years in the early 2000s. And apparently at like Laugh Gallery, the show that Gram Rant runs, he Graham would just roast Zach by having clips of like True Calling and just making fun of how terrible a show it was." Abdul reveals continuity about the group's viewing habits: "We did that already with the comics, remember? We watched all five Twilight movies" along with "all Harry Potter and 50 Shades films." Abdul coordinates the group's food delivery tradition, sending "poutine from one place and bubble tea from a different place" through Uber Eats while accommodating his keto diet, expressing frustration when an order is canceled: "I use Uber Eats to give a billionaire my money. I don't do it twice."

Abdul reveals that he manages LMG, a comedy gallery on Main Street in Vancouver that is scheduled to be torn down. Abdul actively tracks campaign continuity, reminding the group "I mean, yeah, we did do that, but then immediately after you tried to kill Nick Silver" and "Yeah, with an arrow in his neck." Abdul corrects misunderstandings about past incidents, explaining to Erin: "Well, no, that's not what happened. She asked me to load the truck and she put her computer in a nondescript black bag that looked like it had clothes" after accidentally damaging Erin's keyboard by throwing items over a fence. Abdul was wearing a T-shirt that says "no fear" on the front during this session.

Episode: "Session 10"

In Session 10, Abdul participates primarily in out-of-character discussion rather than gameplay. He performs an elaborate improvised one-man show bit during the pre-session conversation, describing material he had worked on for 45 minutes at Granville Island Market before hosting a fringe comedy show with Shawn the previous night. The bit involves multiple characters (Mr. Jenkins the news agent, Mr. McGillicuddy the greengrocer) in an absurd scenario, with Abdul rapidly switching between character voices and perspectives. Despite the audience being "the sleepiest crowd," Abdul notes they "enjoyed everything we did" and "liked us more than anyone else that they saw," specifically more than the French performers.

Abdul discusses his workplace experiences, revealing he works with Brad and noting their job is less enjoyable than Dayna's former workplace: "Brad, our job sucks. All of our pranks are perpetrated on us by our CEO." He shares receiving a "bro-oriented" business book from his CEO written by someone named Alex (Book Author) who made his fortune in personal training, describing problematic elements like urban dictionary definitions in the acknowledgments. Abdul also discusses his former practice of maintaining a "prank budget" where he set aside money monthly for elaborate pranks, once using it to send Katie Ellen multiple limousines.

Abdul reveals details about his relationship with Erin, mentioning that when they met he was 23 and Erin was 36, though they didn't start dating until he was 25. He shows some concern about the session's extended out-of-character conversation, asking "Should we play?" and later "Are we not going to play?" while acknowledging they are "mostly just hanging out, but also recording." Abdul participates in discussions about Lord of the Rings lore, Star Wars, professional GMing opportunities, and the Dungeon World controversy involving Adam Koebel, but does not engage in any in-character gameplay in the recorded portions of this session. He expresses concern about maintaining awareness of what's said about him, noting: "Brad's going to transcribe this and at some point I'm going to read that transcribe transcription and it's gonna be a problem then."

Episode: "Session 11"

Abdul controlled Sucks during the infiltration of the Thunderhog hideout. After the party subdued a guard, Abdul created comedic imagery by having Sucks search the guard's pockets while still wearing the bear costume, remarking out-of-character that "It looks like the bear's trying to mug this guy." Abdul actively examined the discovered map, asking detailed questions about landmarks and theorizing about what different notations might represent, including suggesting "Yeah, it could be a map of a cemetery" about the 'TYR' marking.

Abdul proposed the disguise strategy that became central to the infiltration attempt, suggesting the party take the guards' clothes and impersonate them. Abdul claimed Sucks possessed accent abilities from a "thief crew," insisting "I can do accents. I'm so good" and "No, no, I can do Irish" despite skepticism from other players. During the infiltration, Abdul consistently expressed desire to access the main chamber where the Thunderhogs gathered, stating "God, I want to go to that room" and "Yeah, we gotta get moving. I've wanted to go into that room this whole time."

Abdul roleplayed Sucks's social awkwardness in the unfamiliar criminal environment, observing out-of-character that "This is a new experience for sex. Usually he's the coolest person in the room" as Sucks ate alone at a table. When the disguise began to fail, Abdul played Sucks's attempt to casually leave, complicated by his mini disc player suddenly playing Kate Bush loudly. Abdul attempted creative solutions during combat, such as shooting expired silly string at the guard's face instead of a standard arrow attack.

Throughout the session, Abdul maintained out-of-character humor, including references to drinking "only coffee and had no water or food" and participating in banter about character visualization, such as imagining "this cockroach smoking a cigarette in a reclined position."