To continue from last week, as I met again with the participants in my local library’s Dungeons & Dragons program, I asked if any of the participants who had expressed interest in running one-shot games had any narrative ideas for me to review, collecting those present so that I could look over them. Details of what I got, I’ll not give here, both because I do not want the other participants to have a leg up and because the content is not mine to disseminate. Even my own gets glossed here, and I’ll not expose more of the participants’ work than I do my own, not at this point and not with this group. What I will say, however, is that what I received has potential, although there will be some work to develop that potential.

As I have written and continue to write gaming materials for the group (and some is still in flux, matters having changed since the beginning of play), I find that I am running a more complex game than I had originally intended. I suppose this is a good thing; using more mechanics not only pushes me to know more about the game I am administering, but it also exposes the participants (of whom several are playing their first game) to more of the mechanics so that they learn them, as well. I will admit that it does make for some challenges, however; having to come up to speed on things as I draft materials from them takes some doing, and I’ve not done that particular kind of doing in a while.

So much said, doing so puts me back into the tradition of TTRPG play, knowing that many of the early game-runners did so as their players learned alongside them; it was not as if, going back to 1974 or thereabouts, DMs had decades of experience with TTRPGs upon which to rely as they put together materials for their tables. They did well enough, if with some fits and starts along the way, but their work still went ahead, and I take some comfort from that as my own game work goes ahead, in Hanlon and in other games where I play and which I may soon start to run again. After all, one of the effects of gaming is…more gaming, and I look forward to doing some of that more, from both sides of the table.

I still remain pleased to write TTRPG (and other) stuff for you; fill out the form below to get yours started!

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