Game Health - Let me hear your opinions!

I'm going to be brief.

There has been a drop of attendence, and I'm sure it's due to real life problems. I know I have my fair share of them going on right now. I would like to take a moment to assess the health of our game, and see where we're at.

I'll start us off. I want to game. It's always been my hobby, and it's something I will always find a way to keep playing or running. I have had my ups and downs, though mostly ups. I know the game needs more players, but this discussion isn't about a headcount. It's about the future.

Do we keep plugging away, until real life settles down and we pick things back up? Or do we switch the Genre of our game to something classically designed for a smaller group?

Do we throw in the towel completely, or call a break for several months?

What about a reset? Or a new setting/npc's but still vampire?

I want to hear your opinions, even if you are someone who isn't an active player at the moment, but happen to read this post. You may state your opinions freely without worry of repercussion/retaliation. Please don't use this as an opportunity to argue with one another.

Once the discussion is complete I will delete this thread. So speak your mind.

Personally, I enjoy LARP quite a bit. I enjoy the story that I'm getting to tell with Vai. I know RL has been rough on people lately -- it happens to most playerbases at some point or another, it's just that ours is more sensitive to the change because there are fewer of us.

If we stuck with LARP, my preference would be against a reset, as my main draw towards the game right now are the stories I'm telling with my character -- and the backup character I have in mind only really works in a city like the one in our game, and if we had it to do over again, it might not turn out the same way.

However, I wouldn't be against moving to tabletop, either. I would miss the character-heavy interaction that you get out of LARP, but I know some of you wouldn't mind a little more focus on damage rolls.

I'd definitely hate to see the towel thrown in.

A long term break seems to penalize the people who do want to keep play (though obviously if all players were like "yay! break!" then that wouldn't apply.)

Back in the day before game expanded, it was plenty fun even with only a handful of people. Although I know it was a lot of work for the ST team because of all the NPCs.

I can't comment on changing games, since I likely wouldn't participate (I'm completely off gaming for the time being) but I think staying with LARP, with or without a restart, makes sense.

As to the restart...Eh. That would obviously have a huge effect on players and their character plans. So, I'd vote against it. If there was to be a reset, that's about the only time I'd think switching games or taking a break for a bit might be a good idea, just to give people time to regroup.

Anyways, those are my $.02.

I just want you guys to know, that I had some alcohol tonight, and I wrote this huge post....Which at the last minute I didn't send it.

I spared you guys from the drunken, rambling, infinitely long post I was going to send.

I did however save it. Tomorrow when i'm sober i'll look at it and send it in a pm to anyone who wants to read my drunken ramblings.

I swear I won't edit it...

I love what we have built in this game. Even with RL things that happen I still enjoy getting together with everyone. I think a short break may be inorder for everyone to regroup if it is neede but I am against a restart. I don't personally feel that is needed. That is just my view on the subject. I remember when I first started in this game. It was very small yet everyone got to be intimently involved and we all seemed to me have a blast. Just a thought but how about everyone throw out ideas for future storylines and see what works and what is useable? I think this game has a lot of life in it. These are just a few of the thoughts going through my head right now.

I have to admit, I am curious as to the drunken ramblings of the ST.

I'm more then willing to look over your drunken rant.

As for the game I think pretty much everyone still enjoys playing with this group, the game genre and setting that has been established. Real life to one extent or another seems to have just gotten in the way for some.

My suggestion is this. While the game is fun enough to play every weekend three to four game sessions per month on top of everyone's work schedules, financial and social hurdles, etc may be a bit much at the current time. What my recommendation would be is cut game down to one or two days a month depending on what the majority feels best with.

As for the game itself I would prefer sticking with vampire LARP with the existing city. If we do, at least temporarily, cut the number of nights we play it would allow to cut the number of necessary storylines to keep things moving and kill off the fluff NPCs to simplify things for the ST crew. Push things a little more on the backs of the PC's to move storylines and with less NPCs the PCs will have to rely on eachother to accomplish things more often. This isn't a Cam or Sabbat city so there are no set "positions" that need to be filled other then the main leader and any seconds/deputies he chooses to appoint.

On a side note, I've just about got things sorted out down here and while I won't be able to make it up that way every weekend I will be able to make the occasional game. I'm downsized to a little 2 seater truck though for a little while so will either be driving myself or riding with J & D.

Oooh! I like Ryan's suggestion! It's a good middle ground.

The problem that I see with playing a couple days a month is that the stuff that has been coming up that keeps us from game is stuff that comes up -- we can't really schedule it for a different weekend. (For example, last weekend, Sam was out of town, and this weekend, we're both sick with the contagion he brought back with him.) So if we only play a couple of days a month, that could very, very easily turn into not playing at all.

That having been said, if that's what y'all want to do, I'm fine with it. Those of us who want to game every Saturday can start up a tabletop game on the off weeks.

Some of the things like my car accident and your guys illness are unexpected and can't be planned for. Some of the other situations that have come up are more regular with some ability to plan around. Not saying cutting back on games is the ideal situation but would make things more forgiving for some people.

Hey guys.

I am a boob. I totally forgot to save the drunken ramblings...

It was just filled with compliments, and memories of fun times. Probably with the goal of enticing folks to reminisce with me while we decide what to do about game. It got pretty long cause I was going one by one and telling a story for each player. It was huge....like damn near manifesto size lol. When I typed the post saying that I had stopped it and saved it...I had actually just copied it to my clipboard....then I never pasted it and shut off my computer to go to bed.


I like Ryan's suggestion as well, but I hear Michelles concern. With less games, there is the chance that real life can hit on one of the few game nights...then a player ends up missing game for like a month.

Here is the compromise. Each...say....thursday we do a headcount. If a minimum number of players is reached we hold game. What about that?

It sounds like it was an awesome ramble.

I like the idea of doing a Thursday headcount. Barring sudden emergencies, it would let everyone know before Saturday hits whether there will be game.

Which makes me ask-with Sam and Michelle sick (hope you guys feel better soon!) is there going to be game today, since there are so few active players this week?

When last i spoke to Jason on Thursday he said yes they will be here today. I think he also said they would be late due to Jason having to do something before game. but i will let him post on that.

i want to see the rant.

So Sam and I went back to the doctor yesterday, and my tonsils scared the shit out of her. (They were really nasty.) She didn't even think twice, just gave us both antibiotics because there was absolutely no virus she knew of that would do that to someone's tonsils. Sure enough, Sam has already turned the corner, and I'm starting to do better. I'm not sure I'll be up for game by Saturday, though. I'm still coughing a lot, and anti-biotics tend to make me pretty sick, too.

Amusing side-note: The doctor was initially so freaked she toyed with the possibility that we might have scarlet fever. (She decided we probably didn't.)

So maybe I'll have a better idea on Thursday about whether to expect us on Saturday.

I once had a case of tonsillitis so bad, I ended up losing 50lbs and the ability to stand for more than a few minutes before getting light-headed. One strong-as-hell penicillin jab got me well in about 3 days. ^_^

Hope you guys get better even faster. XD

Hope you two get better soon.

Sam had been heading down that road.

All the singing I did in high school left me with a lot of control over my various throat muscles, which lets me swallow with a lot less pain, even with really swollen, nastified tonsils.