With a whimper (mini-rant)

[Dannyalcatraz]

An old buddy of mine recently moved back to the area and started up a campaign, which I joined in a heartbeat. My PC, Zjax (aka "Yellow Jack") was a Githzerai Monk who was on the path to become a Bisento-wielding, Unarmed Strike-at-range Monk/PsyWar/Lucid Cenobite...

And tonight, he just told me he's folding up the tents on this one, just a few adventures in.
It always sucks when a campaign dies for non-gaming reasons, but this one hurts more than most- too much drama away from the table has been keeping players from experiencing drama in the game.

The campaign was seemingly cursed from the beginning...players with finals scheduled on (or the day after) game days caused absenses that caused cancellations. Holidays messed with the schedule. A couple of players got a phone call mid-session telling them that one of their friends had died... One has gotten inextricably entangled as an intermediary in a nasty domestic case.

So the campaign ends having gone almost nowhere. The game was shaping up to be fun, with interesting characters and with a few new faces at the table. However, the increasing chaos surrounding the players has destroyed the campaign in a dumfoundingly bizzare way.

I guess its ticking me off because this DM was a bit more expansive in his game than most of the others in the group. Unlike my other game group, he was willing to venture beyond the Core races and classes of D&D for his campaign- the only other DM besides me to do so such since 3Ed debuted...heck, since 2Ed Player's Option was released. It was like having my creativity unshackled.

RATS!

 

[Tinker Gnome]

That sucks man, that is why you need to find players that are nice and sociable, but have no life.

 

[Hijinks]

Why not take it up yourself and run with it? Invite those who can continue to your house instead, and try to salvage it?

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I might except I'm burnt out on fantasy DMing- I've been running rpgs on and off for 25+ years (all genres), but my current group of players is majority straight D&D only. As a result, the past 7 years has been all D&D. My last campaign lasted about a year and a half.

As it died off, I realized I was out of good ideas. My well of creative FRPG adventure ideas has run dry. (Campaign ideas still pop up and I write them down...but my adventure planning right now is simply pedestrian.)

I can't even run my old stuff to flesh things out- one of my fellow gamers has played with me for about 20 years, another about 18 years (he was the DM), and they'd see immediately when I was recycling past material.

Besides, its not as if he or one of the other DMs isn't going to run something else ever again...its just that this new PC was cool & different, in a campaign that was much more expansive than most of the stuff the other guys would be willing to run.

Don't get me wrong- there are other excellent DMs in the group- its just that after 28 years of D&D, its nice to have the opportunity to play something other than a PHB race or PHB class. With most of them, even when we're allowed to use the Complete books, we don't get to use the new base classes, and Psionics is never used. Heck- sometimes, they even excise certain classes (Paladins and Monks, usually) from the options.

Its like eating hamburgers and fries every meal for a month, and then going to a French restaraunt. Even if it sucks, you're going to have a lot of fun just because its different.

 

[Mycanid]

That's a rough one Danny ... I know what you mean about loving for a new wind to be breathed into a group that has been gaming together for some time. But be thankful he pulled the plug so quick. Just think how hard it woulda been if he pulled it several sessions down the road and you had been even more engaged with your character, eh?

Other opportunities may be around the corner.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I know...

In the meantime, I'm expecting more hamburger.

 

[Mycanid]

Hey, you're in SF right? If so, go to a place that sells specialty (i.e. fancy, real expensive) hamburgers for a slight variation on a theme. Maybe that would help? If it were me, I'd be going out for Japanese food (shiro plum wine anyone?) ....

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Actually, I'm in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex.

While our sushi isn't as good as it is on the coast, we can still get some good stuff here. There's some nice places in my neighborhood as a matter of fact- including some of the best in the area.

Y'know, I may just have some real world sushi while waiting for my metaphorical D&D Hamburger.

A little tuna, a little salmon...maybe some octopus. Yesssssss!

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

It just occurred to me there's another reason this campaign's demise is getting me so worked up...

I was getting to use a limited edition mini: a buddy of mine worked on the Myth computer games, and sent me the mini he "earned" for doing so- a muscular, monk-ish guy with a Bisento- it was the inspiration for the PC.

*sigh*

 

[Mycanid]

Well Danny - must admit that Octopus is my FAVORITE Japanese dish, so ... if you do in fact maunch and maunch on some, remember the ole' Cali mushroom, eh?