Welcome to August, it’s hot outside. Time, it’s all about time. Scot over at of Dice and Dragons is hosting this month’s Blog Carnival. He takes the time to ask about time, Roll for Initative… Next Tuesday at 7pm?
Time in any table-top RPG is fluid enough to make Einstein’s theories look like the scribblings of my granddaughter. A thirty second encounter can take a session or two to resolve while a six week journey can be dismissed with a DM’s handwave or die roll.
“People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint—it’s more like a big ball of wibbly-wobbly… time-y wimey… stuff.” – The Tenth Doctor
It’s an accepted part of the game. The intricacies and vagaries have been the subject of numerous articles and blogposts.
Instead, I’m going to look at each of the long term games I’ve been a part of. Why they lasted as long as they did and what eventually caused the collapse.
Game #1 – High School: As I look back 40+ years I realize that we played the “same game” nearly every weekend. The game wasn’t D&D. It wasn’t a set simulation, wargame or TTRPG. The game was Improv Comedy. Sometimes it started with a TTRPG, sometimes it started with a rental from Blockbuster. Sometimes it erupted spontaneously while out in public. We could drop into a character quickly and riff on the TTRPG of the day, the absurdity of a comic book plot, or just to disrupt life at the mall.
What kept us going? We were five (more or less) social misfits who had a shared affection for the same genre of movies, comic books, Star Trek and social awkwardness around anyone other than our core group. None of us went out for sports. Homework didn’t occupy much of our time as we were all of the type who could normally finish the assignment in class before the teacher finished explaining it. We had overlapping free time that generally coincided. Actually it wasn’t until I started this article, that I realized that whatever it was we were doing on a given weekend, we still played the same game regardless of location or activity
What brought out the end? Graduation. The Summer of ’85 was our last hurrah. The Saturday before college started was the last time we hung out as group. I don’t remember what we did that day.
Game #2 – The Quest for the Staff of Genesis: 14 people every weekend gathered around an extended dining room table with buffet snacks that kept us running from late morning until dark. The game started when my daughter was invited to a small D&D game that the DM was running for his son, son’s girlfriend and girlfriend’s two best friends (one of which was my daughter). At our peak at was the DM, his wife and two boys, Me, my wife and three kids, a mutual friend of both families, the now ex-girlfriend and her current boyfriend, and the other aforementioned other best friend.
What kept us going? We had a quorum of players regardless of whether or not one teenager had to miss that week. The mutual family friend was on disability and on the way for my family to pick her up each weekend. Because we played on the weekend all five adults had available time. The three younger kids didn’t have quite as hectic a schedule as a the High School juniors and seniors. It was a set in stone gathering of two families and assorted friends.
What brought out the end? The death of my first wife and the subsequent seismic shift in our lives. One of which was my move from Central Iowa to Southern Missouri. It’s kinda hard to keep up a weekend game with an 8-hour drive separating the core families.
Game #3 – Savage Worlds Necessary Evil: This is a game I ran for my youngest son and six of his friends their junior and senior year of High School.
What kept us going? The fact that I was A) willing to host seven teenage boys every Saturday afternoon and provide snacks and B) there wasn’t a lot of competition for their attention in a town of just under 700 people.
What brought out the end? Graduation. Two of them got married, my youngest went to Basic Training and one of them moved to Phoenix.
Game #4 – Heroes of Hope: A D&D game with seven men; four adults, two college age and one high schooler (the son of one of the adults).
What kept us going? Our schedules miraculously meshed for the better part of two years.
What brought about the end? Suddenly our schedules weren’t meshing anymore.
Game #5 – Heroes of Honalee: A D&D game that ran nine people at its height. A family of five, myself (wife says it gives her a few of peace when I’m gone), a father and son, and a good friend of the family. We’re down to seven now.
What kept us going? The family of five schedules it as family time. I’m self employed and my schedule is flexible. The family friend is self-employed as well and has a schedule almost as flexible as mine.
What brought about the end? Technically as of the date of this writing we haven’t ended (though it has been a month and half since our last session). What has been the overwhelming reason for missing? Health. Sickness and doctor appointments have prevented us from getting together.
What is the overwhelming factor in the longevity of each game? When the wibbly-wobbly… time-y wimey… stuff lines up for for all involved. Each game fell apart when the universe sent the players on different trajectories. Enjoy your game while you can. Time plays no favorites, at some point paths will diverge and schedules will no longer align.
Melting Clock image is courtesy Adobe Stock Image #2107136205
Cause to Effect poster is (c)2017 Alien Graphics
Vulcan Stev's Database 