Friday, November 30, 2012

If The Stars Aligned

I'm really pleased that my last post generated some actual discussion. Though it may seem a simple thing to some, its the part of my blog that I really enjoy the most. Don't get me wrong, its always fun standing on my soapbox and shouting madly into the ether but it really feels worthwhile when other voices shout back.

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In a Facebook post I asked my friends who game...

"The stars align and you have the chance to play your favorite RPG tomorrow with the perfect GM and group. What game is it?"



There were 9 separate responses. The range of players covered people who have gamed with me for anywhere between never and 20 years (there were some responses from friends who game who I've never personally played with). None of those who responded are people that I game with currently. Their ages ranged from mid 20s to mid-to-late 40s. Ethnicities varied greatly. All responders were Male.

1 For Call of Cthulhu
2 For Champions
1 For D&D
1 For Marvel Super Heroes (Classic Marvel RPG) or Mutants & Masterminds
1 For Metamorphosis Alpha/Gamma World
1 For Pathfinder
1 For Shadowrun
1 For Star Trek
1 For Star Wars

In total the post received around 30 comments as we discussed the results and other games we would have added to the list as secondary choices, etc.

My own vote would be Star Trek or Traveller, with the caveat that I'd rather run them than play them.

There were a few surprises in the mix.

I expected the guy who voted for Star Wars to vote for Star Trek. That was seriously jarring. He mentioned really, really liking our old Star Wars campaigns and getting his Star Trek fix recently thanks to Star Trek Online. Personally I feel that statement is a mini-blasphemy but I will let it slide 'cause he is one of my oldest friends.

Another surprise was the vote for Pathfinder, which came from an old friend who moved out to the West Coast and came back recently. This fella was big into Champions, Teenagers From Outer Space, Mekton and other 80's RPGs. Never pegged him as a D&D guy, let alone one who would be into its evolutionary descendant.

One thing I wasn't stunned by was that only two of the nine responses would want to play D&D or a D&D-related game. This simply illustrates what I've noted on this blog many times before; Medieval Fantasy as a genre was simply not the most popular subject for game among the RPGers I've known and gamed with.

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Tomorrow begins the month of December, last month of the year and very possibly, the last month for the planet if any of the various doomsayers are correct. Of course, they would have to be correct in their understanding of the often misread and mistranslated Mayan calendar and how it applies to the so-called 'End Times'. See you on the 22nd of December.

Now then, I have a plan to do something most unusual for me this December...talk a lot about Dungeons and Dragons.

Specifically, My D&D, the personal 'variant' that I sometimes refer to as D&D-But-Not and D&D-For-Those-Who-Don't-Like-D&D. My biggest fear is that I won't be able to convey how different it is from 'regular' D&D. I've also never shared the rules or setting in all their glory with so many people before. If it wasn't for the potential for planetary extermination and strange celestial events I don't think I would be crazy enough to try.

Wish me luck.

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Finally, having some thoughts about returning to run something once a month at my FLGS. Not sure what or when or how but the prospect is exciting.

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Next Stop...Aerth.

AD
Barking Alien






4 comments:

  1. Interesting. I would have chosen Vampire: The Masquerade (been playing it since First Edition in 1991).

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  2. I found it interesting that some went with favorites and some went with games they simply haven't played in a really long time.

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  3. That's a nice mix of games, regardless. I think the way you phrased it might have some impact - if I'm playing D&D several times a month I don't really need the stars to align even if it might be my favorite. I'd go with something a little less likely to happen on its own: Lords of Creation, Feng Shui, or Pendragon - something like that. Especially for a one-off.

    If you change it to "and you get to run a mutli-year campaign with them then I'm going with "anything superheroic" because I think that would demand and reward playing with this theoretical A-team the most.

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  4. Perhaps you're right Blacksteel, though for the most part it seems my friends understood the spirit of what I meant (a benefit to knowing each other as long as we have).

    The idea is simple, image the single, perfect game. The right game, the right players and the right GM. Now what game is it?

    Doesn't change for me personally. Star Trek and Traveller remain the two I most want to play as a Player or run as a Gamemaster.

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