Starting to hate the spotlight, a Minor Rant

[Herobizkit]

So our group has been playing 4e together for the better part of three years, and our current campaign has been ongoing for two of the same. We have all recently reached 18th level and the campaign is on its final 'arc'. My character is tasked with being the Empire's Grand Inquisitor and running interference in other enemy countries while our Emperor tries to drive out his main enemy from their lands.

Thing is, I'm growing weary of this campaign. If anything, it feels like a lazy season 5 of a series: tacked on because folks wanna see it but doesn't have the same energy or direction as everything leading up to it. I'm still playing diplomat, following-the-bouncing-ABC-plot and it just seems like an endless string of tasks to keep the story going.

Now, I love story. I also happen to be 'the star' of the story, in that I'm the driving force which keeps the other two players and our cast of NPCs together. In essence, *I* am the plot. One of other players has his own side-plot going in a relationship with an NPC and we're gearing up to make said player the ruler of one of the enemy-allied Nations; the other player is a "do what I'm told" born-again assassin/champion of Justice who actively avoids any plot lines thrown at him.... In short, without me, there is no 'main' story, and I'm tired of the main story.

There's been a tease of starting over in 5e playing as children of our current character and I'm far far more interested in this than continuing what's on the table now. I also DM my own 5e game that we play every other week which is kind of the same; a Kingmaker sandbox "make your own plot" game that has no real story going on yet.

I don't want to bow out of the game; our DM has worked incredibly hard on materials and world lore to support our interests and the parts that have been great were spectacular.

I guess there's no real solution. The DM and players are aware of my "flakiness" when it comes to the passion for the game but we all grin and bear it.

Part of the flakiness comes from working backshift 5 nights a week. When my first day off comes on Sunday, we're either playing right after work at 9-10 am (and I'm a sleepytime zombie) or right at 6-7pm (when I'm normally dead asleep and now up super-early on my 'day' off).

*sigh*

Anyhow, thanks for reading, those that have, if any.

 

[JamesonCourage]

Might I suggest a private talk to the GM letting him know how you feel? And that you'd love to see it wrapped up so that it's dramatically satisfying for everyone involved, including him, because you don't want to see all his hard work (which you appreciate) gone to waste? Let him know that you love the idea being kicked around of continuing with the children (and obviously don't hate his world)?

It might go better than you think.

 

[fba827]

Aye, even if the other players are aware,my hey may not be aware of the extent.

Sometimes a tv show is better served going out with a bang rather than fizzling on too long.... Don't want your memories of an awesome campaign to be about how it dragged on on life support rather than all the cool stuff that happened until then.

Playing for the sake of playing to get to some arbitrary level cap/end point is murder on a campaign's momentum and really should culminate more when story momentum dictates it.

And if it's changing systems that is causing people to best irate then don't change systems, stick with the current system for your next campaign

If wanting to play higher level is part of the hesitation, maybe simply do a fast forward that the kids start at paragon their and are coming together from their separate lives to resolve something's that their parents had uncovered.

Anyway those are my random thoughts based on what you wrote here. Obviously player relationship dynamics and what not are also factors, yada yada yada

 

[Tony Vargas]

Campaign burnout is usual the DM, but a pivotal player can be the culprit, too. Burnout's not your fault, especially when you have outside stress like you do.

One trick I did in a long campaign was to take the central PC completely out of play for an extended period - he was kidnapped by the bad guys (though 'bad buys' radically under-sells lovecraftian horrors accidentally trapped in the universe at the moment of Creation trying to destroy the world in order to escape). For a while, the campaign became about trying to find and rescue him. The player of said character had a very different backup PC and enjoyed the the temporary change.

Talk to your DM. Something like that might help. Create an alternate character (even a companion character) or take over an NPC you particularly like, while your main character gets taken off screen - kidnapped, tested by higher powers, on a journey of self-discovery, called away by affairs of state, etc, etc. The tone of the campaign could temporarily shift, too. The haitus could set up your epic destiny, since you're getting close to a new tier. Maybe by 21st, you could have all the current realpolitik lines tied off and head out to grander challenges?