2023 RPG Renaissance

In January, I started running a monthly Dungeons & Dragons game for some friends on the other side of the state. It's a 2 hour drive, but we run for 5-6 hours and share a meal afterwards, so it turns out to be a full day and makes the hours in the car bearable.

I love running the game, building the world, and complicating their story. And they've all been a joy at the table, but getting everyone around the table has been the usual hassle. In 12 months we've missed three sessions and lost one player. Worse, from my point of view, is that outside the game getting input or interaction from them is just an exercise in frustration.

To meditate this I started looking for other games to join locally. Meetup has been very helpful for this. In July I joined an ongoing D&D campaign at the game store. In August I joined another at the bookstore. I found two other groups in September. And while the Delta Green game was short lived, I did join a Traveller game afterward.

As the year wraps up I find myself in five different games, four as a player and the one that I GM. Mostly Dungeons & Dragons, but there is a Traveller game in the mix. It's been great. I'm having fun playing the games that have been such a big part of my life for such a long time. So much so that I'm thinking of adding one more into the mix or maybe running another game.

In 2023 I really committed myself to rolling some dice and pretending to be someone else and it's been great. I'm playing more games than I ever had in the past, meeting new people, and getting out of the house with regularity.

In 2024 I want to continue to expand myself in the gaming community. Play more games. Meet more people. Take more chances. All of which will be great, but what I really want to do is make some connections. The groups I play with now get together for 2-4 hours, but nobody seems to actually know anybody. The social aspect of tabletop gaming seems to be the least part of the equation. Getting together to play games is great, but it should be as much about getting together as it is about the game. I want to nurture that part of it next year.

When I write this post next year, I want to tell you that I know my fellow gamers, that we're friends, and that I've made some real connections. Four months ago I didn't know most of these people, twelve months from now I hope to call them friends. That's my resolution for the new year.