Fan Expo happened, and while there was the usual snafus with badges and stuff it was the best run one I've been at, which isn't saying all that much. While I love the man who runs the gaming section, the convention as a whole has frequently left me feeling that this is the Red Headed Stepchild of the convention. Yeah, sure you're there and yeah it might be a draw but whatever really.
That being said, there was still plenty of good times to be had. The RPG room was full and always jumping. The Board game area didn't have a moment that I looked in where it wasn't full of people doing stuff. It's good to see it growing.
I did some awesome panels, which I'll probably steal a page out of Malcolm's book and do them one at a time. I did a panel on doing your own game, the state of the industry, and board game design with some awesome people.
However, the games.
I ran one game of Critical!: Go Westerly and another of Geasa.
Geasa was amazing, I was a little nervous because there were some younger players who first asked me, "Okay, so like what level do we start at" which is usually the sign of death. Not that they can't be great players, but when you fall asleep at the table during the creation part of the game ... usually that's a giant flashing neon sign that just says, "Oh shit."
The game set up ended up being a space exploration unit. The explorer, the captain, the medic, the engineer and the science officer all go down to this planet, after some hiccups on the way which caused the explorer to yell at the rest of the crew, putting him on the wrong foot. Eventually they hit the surface of the planet and after one crew member dies exploring a lake they find this fish. With some Fae shenanigans in the way they end up plugging the fish into their engine, which powers the entire ship better than what was already there. Of course, this meant that they needed to control the fish because the captain saw it as his way to owning his ship and being filthy rich, the scientist saw it as her ultimate discovery, the explorer saw fame and fortune, the engineer saw it as an opportunity, and the doctor had a mission to discover some new life. They killed many people to secure the fish, to the point where they couldn't really trust each other and were waiting for everyone else to make their move to eliminate the competition.
After all, those who control the fish ... controls the universe.
Critical! was our adventure You All Meet In a Tavern and it's always funny to see how different players react to playing this game.
No one killed any kobolds, though the wizard was chomping at the bit to do so.
Angelique managed to kill two Fairies with one blow by throwing them into each other, which then covered the Dwarf with Fairy dust ... so he began to float. They tied a piece of rope around his foot while he was screaming "Nobody drags the dwarf!" at them.
We even had a musical number ... or two. I got the player playing Mabel to write them down because sharing really is caring.
Mutiny
When the first mate
Throws you overboard
To the sharks. (Oh Lord!)
That's caaaaaaalled a mutiny.
When the bilge rats
Try to tie you down,
When you've run aground
That's aaaaaalso a mutiny.
If you hate your crew
And they hate you too
They might hatch a plan
And try to M-U-erder you!
But if you take the time,
To keep your crew in line
With a keelhaul now and then,
You ... will ... be ... fiiiiiiiiin!
Needless to say he convinced Ailee that she needed to take her skeletons, her organ, and her story to the theatres of Westerly. It took some convincing, but it ended up being hilariously awesome. So, after poking the dwarf balloon a couple of times she made her way, with Mabel, to begin discussing plans for the musical.
Fun times had by all really.
That being said, there was still plenty of good times to be had. The RPG room was full and always jumping. The Board game area didn't have a moment that I looked in where it wasn't full of people doing stuff. It's good to see it growing.
I did some awesome panels, which I'll probably steal a page out of Malcolm's book and do them one at a time. I did a panel on doing your own game, the state of the industry, and board game design with some awesome people.
However, the games.
I ran one game of Critical!: Go Westerly and another of Geasa.
Geasa was amazing, I was a little nervous because there were some younger players who first asked me, "Okay, so like what level do we start at" which is usually the sign of death. Not that they can't be great players, but when you fall asleep at the table during the creation part of the game ... usually that's a giant flashing neon sign that just says, "Oh shit."
The game set up ended up being a space exploration unit. The explorer, the captain, the medic, the engineer and the science officer all go down to this planet, after some hiccups on the way which caused the explorer to yell at the rest of the crew, putting him on the wrong foot. Eventually they hit the surface of the planet and after one crew member dies exploring a lake they find this fish. With some Fae shenanigans in the way they end up plugging the fish into their engine, which powers the entire ship better than what was already there. Of course, this meant that they needed to control the fish because the captain saw it as his way to owning his ship and being filthy rich, the scientist saw it as her ultimate discovery, the explorer saw fame and fortune, the engineer saw it as an opportunity, and the doctor had a mission to discover some new life. They killed many people to secure the fish, to the point where they couldn't really trust each other and were waiting for everyone else to make their move to eliminate the competition.
After all, those who control the fish ... controls the universe.
Critical! was our adventure You All Meet In a Tavern and it's always funny to see how different players react to playing this game.
No one killed any kobolds, though the wizard was chomping at the bit to do so.
Angelique managed to kill two Fairies with one blow by throwing them into each other, which then covered the Dwarf with Fairy dust ... so he began to float. They tied a piece of rope around his foot while he was screaming "Nobody drags the dwarf!" at them.
We even had a musical number ... or two. I got the player playing Mabel to write them down because sharing really is caring.
Mutiny
When the first mate
Throws you overboard
To the sharks. (Oh Lord!)
That's caaaaaaalled a mutiny.
When the bilge rats
Try to tie you down,
When you've run aground
That's aaaaaalso a mutiny.
If you hate your crew
And they hate you too
They might hatch a plan
And try to M-U-erder you!
But if you take the time,
To keep your crew in line
With a keelhaul now and then,
You ... will ... be ... fiiiiiiiiin!
Needless to say he convinced Ailee that she needed to take her skeletons, her organ, and her story to the theatres of Westerly. It took some convincing, but it ended up being hilariously awesome. So, after poking the dwarf balloon a couple of times she made her way, with Mabel, to begin discussing plans for the musical.
Fun times had by all really.
INDIE PRESS REVOLUTION
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