Wyrm’s Turn: “It’s been a while…”

So, wow it’s been a few months. Sorry to any of you who are regular readers for the lack of contact. Ironically my writing stopped around the same time as my gaming did. I don’t know if it’s a regular occurrence, or just the way things work down here in the Keys. But when October rolls around and the holiday season is looming the free time my group has for gaming goes out the window. Here in the Keys the excuse is Fantasy Fest, a month long season of parties, fund-raisers, and soirees that culminate in a week of city wide debauchery and a fantastic parade. Much like Carnival or Mardi Gras, it’s our big tourist draw and a time to let loose, get drunk, and wear little or nothing at all in public and get away with it. Needless to say, ever since high school this has been when my group has started to fade. I’ve had nine-month long campaigns, intricately plotted, with highly anticipated weekly adventures, and amazingly engaging storylines fall completely apart in the last three months of the year. Because after Fantasy Fest, there’s Thanksgiving, and then Christmas, and then New Years. You try and get anything but a party together and people will say that they have better things to do than game.

It’s hard enough to set time aside for games as you get older. Work, kids, school and sundry other obligations make it impossible to have the sort of weekend long all-nighters that so many of us had when we were younger. Now I’m lucky if I can get a game together once a month, let alone once a week. I’ve had a Star Wars game in limbo since some time last August, but that’s life. So how do you get your group back together after a long hiatus. How do you recapture the lightning in a bottle, when your party’s Jedi has night school, and the groups shifty Toydarian noble is in L.A. working on the next big Super Bowl commercial? In this article I hope to share some secrets of how to get your game on during the slow season, what to do when you can’t game, and how to pick that game back up when the stars finally do align.

First things first, take notes, copious notes, detailed notes. The worst thing you can do after a 3 month break is forget where you left off. I know, I know with your schedule sometimes it’s hard enough remembering what you had for breakfast yesterday let alone what was said when the party last talked to Motta the Hutt. Taking notes during the game doesn’t even have to be your job. As GM sometimes you can assign this onerous duty to one of your players, offering an in-game incentive doesn’t hurt either. A few extra XP, a bonus Bennie or force point, any of these things can be useful in getting your players more involved. One of my favorite methods of doing this is blue-booking. This is where the players keep in-character diaries or journals of the game events. If you use sites like Obsidian Portal, you can even allow your players to add their notes or journals to the Campaigns wiki. Another way you can keep track without getting bogged down in homework after the game is by recording the game session. Most laptops and computers come equipped with microphones and cameras that you can use to record your games as they go. Watching it later to take down a few important notes can be a great way to remember that NPC name you just made up, or a clever line one of the players used. You can also use it to improve your game just like any professional athlete might watch their last game to figure out where they can improve. Lastly, and this is most important, don’t forget to label your notes and put them somewhere you can easily find them. I can’t tell you how frustrating and mood-breaking it is to be flipping through a pile of notebooks to find out the stats on your big bad before the climactic battle you’ve been waiting weeks to play out.

Next thing you can do is to continue to dip your toes in the material from time to time while you’re waiting for the game to get back up and running. I like to keep my game books near me while I’m running a game. I’ll throw the rulebook in my computer bag and flip through it when I’m on break on a work day. I’ll flip through them when I’m in the john, fair warning, most of my game books have been in the bathroom, but I have a pretty stringent policy about not letting them become “tainted”. By refreshing your knowledge of the game, and fishing for hooks in the text sometimes you can come up with great new storylines, NPCs, subplots you may not have had time to flesh out with a weekly game. The temptation to go too far with this is there though; I can’t tell you how many games I’ve had that went way out into left field because I had too much time to come up with stories. Just dip into it to keep yourself fresh. Reread your notes, keep up with your NPCs, and make sure the story stays fresh in your mind because you might have to refresh your player’s memories when the time comes.

While you’re waiting to get back into the game, try something else. If only a few players can make it, make up a side game with those that can attend. One offs, dungeon crawls, convention games and the like are great ways to pass the time. I personally love doing a zombie apocalypse game around Halloween every year. Give the players a few pre-generated characters, grab a module off the net or from your local game store and give it a whirl. Try something new that you haven’t had a chance to play before. This is the perfect time to try games you normally wouldn’t, beer and pretzel games that don’t require any deep thinking or in-depth rule knowledge. Always wanted to play Bunnies and Burrows? Go for it! Never had a chance to play Champions, try it out. This is your time to stretch your creativity and game life in new and different ways. Be adventurous.

While we’re on the subject, how about let somebody else run a game for a little while? I can’t tell you what a relief it is to get out from behind the GM Screen and let somebody else take the wheel. With that smaller group, or alternate group you’ve got on the side, encourage one of the players to run something. Keep in mind you will just be a player, and try not to step on the new GM’s toes just because you’re used to being in charge. Offer help if they ask for it, but don’t butt in. This is your time to relax and cleave some orcs for a change. Talk to your group and find out if you have any aspiring GMs, a short game is a great way for them to get their feet wet without having to worry about starting some epic new story. Maybe like me you’re in one or two groups that already have experienced GMs. If you can get that group together let your buddy take the reins and see where it takes you, maybe you’ll like their game better. I always enjoy a good break as a player; it helps me get back in touch with what my players want, and what’s fun for them. Sometimes as GM you get so caught up in telling your own story, that you lose sight of what’s actually fun for the players.

Lastly you can indulge in some of your other hobbies. It’s a great time to get back into that video game you didn’t get to finish, or buy that new one you’d been looking forward to. Try card or board games, I love to unwind every once in a while with a good game of Settlers of Catan or Galaxy Trucker. If you’ve got one, enjoy some extra time with your significant other. Go to the movies or out to dinner. You could also spend some time exploring your city or area, finding new activities and sightseeing in your home town can be a lot of fun, and it’s one of the things us homebodies tend to over look.

I’ll usually throw a party or two, if you’ve got a Wii, Xbox Kinect or a PS3 Move have some friends over for some Dance Central or the like. Don’t look at it as losing your game time, look at it as gaining more time to explore your other interests and spend some much needed time with friends and family. I look forward to getting back into the swing of things this year, bringing you new insights on gaming, some great product reviews, and hopefully some more laughs from my gaming table. Until then keep rolling those dice.

About Stygian Jim

Stygian Jim was born in Missouri, but his family later settled in the Florida Keys. It is there that our benighted correspondent spent his formative years, and it is there he lives to this day. A consummate gamer geek he whiles away his life planning dramatic stories and plots for people and places that do not exist, and besting his compatriots at games of strategy.

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