It's Been Such a Long Time
For obvious reasons, as I sit here to write a new blog post, the first in well over a year, I'm reminded of that classic rock song by the amazing band Boston
It has been a long time, and a lot has been happening, some of it even worth writing about (at least I think so).
The biggest event of the year was my regular visit to GenCon. As usual, the "Best Four Days in Gaming" did not fail to disappoint.
As had happened before, this time I was on my own for the convention. Typically, when I go with friends, we usually try to play some games together, meet up for meals, and congregate for late night gaming. With none of that on hand this time, I took advantage of all the freedom to do a few new things.
One was to play a new game. This time I was able to get into a session of the teenage superhero game Masks. I had never played it before, but relied on my comic book knowledge, especially of the teen groups like Teen Titans, Young Justice, and Gen13 to help me along. This session was unique in that it leveraged one of the new Mask settings, Spiderweb, where the heroes are more street-level in power, and everything is corrupted. I really enjoyed my character, a kind of teen cross between Batman (minus all the gadgets and money) and Captain America (minus all the steroids). The GM did a great job describing things in comic book terms (splash pages, panels, etc) and keeping everything tense and fun. When a "close friend"-NPC accidentally died at my hands, the role-playing went up to 11. Truly, one of the best RP sessions I've ever been part of.
One thing I typically do each year is sign up to run D&D. This year was no different, but since I had extra time, I signed up for double the amount of sessions I typically do -- 4. This allowed me to earn a free badge to the convention, which I appreciated, since admission now tops over $100 just to walk in the door, not including game fees.
I ran the D&D intro module, and if you've never played any of them, they can be really a lot of fun. First, they very short, typically about 90 min to 2 hrs, have a quick set up and get you right in to the action, either investigation or combat (usually both). They are also typically for level 1-2 characters, so if you're new to the game, or just want to jump in, it's really easy. The conventions also provide free pre-made characters so you can grab and play with no pre-work required. By the end of the con, I had seen so many people playing the same characters, I automatically knew what spells and abilities those characters had and any particulars about using them.
Another thing I did was attend some of the D&D DM functions that happen at the con, including drinks and stories with all the other DMs. It was a nice way to start winding down (party night is Saturday around 10 pm).
That Sunday, I wrapped up the Con with a final walk through the dealers room, including a bit of last minute shopping for me and my young son, and headed out.
Needless to say, I had a great time, and can't wait to do it again!
It has been a long time, and a lot has been happening, some of it even worth writing about (at least I think so).
The biggest event of the year was my regular visit to GenCon. As usual, the "Best Four Days in Gaming" did not fail to disappoint.
As had happened before, this time I was on my own for the convention. Typically, when I go with friends, we usually try to play some games together, meet up for meals, and congregate for late night gaming. With none of that on hand this time, I took advantage of all the freedom to do a few new things.
For past GenCon reports, check out these previous postsOne of things I do to make GenCon fun and unique for me each year is to mix up what I do, and this year was no different. I did this in a couple of ways.
One thing I typically do each year is sign up to run D&D. This year was no different, but since I had extra time, I signed up for double the amount of sessions I typically do -- 4. This allowed me to earn a free badge to the convention, which I appreciated, since admission now tops over $100 just to walk in the door, not including game fees.
I ran the D&D intro module, and if you've never played any of them, they can be really a lot of fun. First, they very short, typically about 90 min to 2 hrs, have a quick set up and get you right in to the action, either investigation or combat (usually both). They are also typically for level 1-2 characters, so if you're new to the game, or just want to jump in, it's really easy. The conventions also provide free pre-made characters so you can grab and play with no pre-work required. By the end of the con, I had seen so many people playing the same characters, I automatically knew what spells and abilities those characters had and any particulars about using them.
Another thing I did was attend some of the D&D DM functions that happen at the con, including drinks and stories with all the other DMs. It was a nice way to start winding down (party night is Saturday around 10 pm).
That Sunday, I wrapped up the Con with a final walk through the dealers room, including a bit of last minute shopping for me and my young son, and headed out.
Needless to say, I had a great time, and can't wait to do it again!
