What a great GenCon. This was the best one yet. This was probably the first year I really felt like I was a part of something bigger than just me, and the first year where I felt like I made an impact. I wrote, ran multiple games, co-GMed games with my crew and avoided the ConCrud (but still took about three days to get back to normal). I think total players for me was at more than 65, counting all the games. I may have even found a new gaming group to play with and and possibly co-GM Shadowrun.
The Travel
The flight out to Indy was great this year and only cost me 25 bucks, mind you. This is the benefit of having a clusterf*ck of flight issues last year which resulted in driving back to DC with my buddy, John. If not for my amazing wife, spamming a certain airline last year on Twitter for their dubious service, the $25 miracle would not have happened.
I had loaded up my iPhone with a number of new podcasts for the flight and the inevitable waiting in the airport. The best one of the crop was Dave's Daredevil podcast. That is a guy who loves Old Hornhead and makes you rethink the character. Give him a listen shout out and say you heard about him from your friends at Darker Hue Studios. Same for my usually standbys: Denzel Washington is the Greatest Actor of All Time, Now Playing, Dusted and Rachel and Miles X-Plain the X-Men. Of course I am also always armed with an arsenal of music (like Sam Cooke and Leon Bridge).
Let the Gaming Begin!
Almost as soon as I touched down it was gaming time. I spent about an hour in the airport reviewing Godlike rules for my game Panthers on the Prowl (that will be a Kickstarter project in a couple of months), and then it was planning meetings with the YTCC gang. During the POTP game, the Panthers slayed, quite literally, as the players died in blaze of flaming glory. It was amazing. They managed to place a Panzer in a Time Fugue for three rounds; if only it had been five!
Over the following days I ran Shadows Descent on the Hurston six times and everyone loved it. The last session was incredible, cinematic and horrific as everything spiraled out of control. One of the most impressive things was watching the scientist create a nitroglycerin grenade and destroy a Mythos horror!
Shadows ran great, but it is time to add my GenCon addendum to the scenario (and Panthers) then put it away. Next year is a new year, so it is time for a new game. Never too early to start planning! Even typing this is making me nearly giddy.
The Good, The Bad, and What's Next
The downside to all of this awesome GMing? I failed my own GM GenCon Rule #3. I missed meeting up with people like Robin, Shane and more. I am currently kicking myself for missing the Arc Dreams and Pelgrane Press conference!
Looks like AcadeCon is right around the corner and their Kickstarter opened the other day. YTCC will be there running amazing games, geek talking and raising the bar. Darker Hue Studios will possibly join (alas, I do have a kid and may not be able to get away again). We are debating which games to run right now. If you have a favorite or something you played and want to play again, just post our on Facebook page: YTCC.
On a more personal note, I felt like I made an impression on a number of people. A number of players said they would buy any product I put out and talked about how they want to see more diversity in gaming. Someone even told me that he did not think black people knew how to game and realized just how wrong he was. While having to prove a PoC can game is depressing, it is also inspiring to hear someone change his mind.
Keep following, reading and striving for change. We can do it together, even if it is one game at a time!