Eclectic adventures in lots of things.
Games/Scenes/Events
After Idly mentioning it
Jul 24th
I seem to have a few people interested in a tabletop campaign. If that is you contact me through the various channels. If that’s not you but are interested, contact me through the various channels. If that’s not you and you aren’t interested, don’t bother.
If you are and you have LJ let me know your handle and I’ll add you to the filter. (or if you are just nosy.)
Fading Dreams Mid-Atlantic Changeling
Jan 6th
M. and I went to the Changeling LARP that occurs once a month in Columbia on Friday. It runs like many other MET games, an amorphous blob of small plots or roleplaying and a few major events that suck in the 20 or so people that are there. Definitely a Make Your Own Gravy situation that could go poorly if you lacked initiative and well if you were capable of chasing plot or making your own.
The Storytellers were very helpful and great at getting us set up and rolling, the players were all very helpful (some of their characters were bastards, but hey.) The fact is that they are out there doing LARP and trying to get people involved which will allow them to gain the experience and contacts to run much larger sized/more complex events in the future. If you are in the DC region and want to get involved (its kind of like the national guard, one weekend a month) you can contact them at their googlegroup: http://groups.google.com/group/mid-atlantic-changeling
Threads of Damocles game 3: Jerusalem (The toss)
Dec 2nd
M and the rest arrived late, so I got up at 530 the next morning and dragged M to breakfast at Arby’s. We got caffeinated and potato caked and went to Reading for supplies.
You see, Celotex is a fine thing. It is almost a universal construction material in that you can build things that are fairly rigid and strong but are about 1/25 the weight of wood. Threads already had a fair supply but I needed a few more pieces to pull off the Tomb of Hiram of Tyre. I picked up 11 sheets of Celotex, 2 gallons of sand colored cover up paint some sparkles and 2 quarts of glazes and other odds and ends.
My Debit card bled, but it was for a good cause.
Threads of Damocles game 3: Jerusalem (The wind up)
Dec 2nd
I’m back from the 4 day workathon that was Jerusalem.
I had initially intended to drive up on Wednesday night after work,but I have been dealing with some allergy issues, a slight cold, and general lack of sleep. I awoke about 0800 Thursday and loaded Ahura(the Mazda) with the needed supplies for the weekend.
The spider web and tarp combo work really good for hauling stuff. I would someday like to upgrade to a small enclosed trailer for runs to Boston and such, but this will do for now. It was time to hit the road, and 
luckily rush hour is almost over at 10am.
Three more days. Wheee.
Dec 2nd
Three days until Threads: Jerusalem. Hope the Tomb knocks their socks off.
Intercon G: The missing report.
Dec 2nd
Arrival at the Intercon G hotel was pretty uneventful, we immediately set the room up for the run of M and Ravenrose’s Gaiman based game, World’s End; (we had gotten a suite for this express purpose.) I wound up playing in that game, which was a cozy story telling experience, with a lot of smoke and mirrors in people’s characters, masking the Character they were based on. (I was an opium dealer based on Dream from Sandman.) The game ran well and people had a good time.
The next morning I played Gordon Olmstead-Dean’s satire of the Build Your Own Character genre, aptly entitled “Now SPIT!” I chose to play King Leonidas, and was definitely screwed to start out. In the end I managed to turn an enemy into an ally (or at least a docile not-enemy,) hired an arms merchant to my cause, and had Benjamin Franklin on a short leash. (It was a great game, all the players were wonderful!)
After SPIT! I hustled off to get my drama together. I ran The Awful Truth for a younger crowd overall that I had at IMA. I am not disappointed, however, I can see distinct differences and correlations regarding median age and play styles. It turned out much the same as the original run, and the majority of players were digging on the groove. There was one or two who I feel lacked the ability to play on the same field as the more serious actors. The space was almost too big for the 25 people we had in the room, however I managed to narrow it down some by using strategic placement of furniture. The elder participants had more confidence and more ability to handle characters that had basic direction but required an effort to portray. In all the majority of the cast were impressive and helped the weaker members through a fairly complex and difficult scenario.
Post Truth, I attempted a nap with middling success, and was somewhat rested for the evening’s game, The Dance and the Dawn, a game centered around dancing and interpersonal interaction. It was a fun game, though I did have to turn of my GM critiquing engine so that I could enjoy someone else’s run style.
Flew the Coop was supposed to run Sunday morning, however I didn’t get my minimum, which reinforces my idea that a decent game can run twice an excellent event can run three times and it’s ok to help another game out when you are way short of what you need at a con.
I spent a fair amount of time smogging and packing Sunday, then we took the long drive home, all the way on a con high.
Dr. Savage’s Travelling Roadshow
Dec 2nd
Last week on Thursday, M and I set out for Intercon G in the oncoming rain. We had all of our props, costuming and other sundry items packed in the back of the truck. We pulled into Danbury in steady cold rain that was starting to feel more like slush. We drug ourselves into the hotel there and she made arrangements for the room while I was looking for a place to park where we wouldn’t get towed or broken into. Lacking a safe place to park, I decided to bring in the items in the back of the truck. (Well there was also the fact that we hadn’t really packed with much joint planning in mind, so we were opening the bins to locate our clothes and other important items like Deodorant.)
As I wheeled the loaded baggage cart into the hotel, dripping water from my jacket and pouring from the bins, I got a disgusted look from the girl at night desk. I thought little of it, since I was exhausted from the cold and wet. We slept soundly on what could only be described as a box spring with sheets. It was the kind of tired you get from being on the road far longer than you expected.
We got up in the morning and started getting ready for the final leg of the trip, I decided to go load the bins in to the truck. I exited the room with the bins, (much drier this time,) and I headed to the cart. Some of the other guests were in the lobby and stared at the growing pile of Bins on the cart as though it was something unpleasant.
The thought kind of hit me out of the blue, as I made a few connections here and there in my sleep refreshed brain.
“We are the next group of Entertainers. We have traded Sterilite Bins for steamer trunks and Automobiles for Pullman Sleepers.”
If you look at it from that perspective, those that write Interactive Theatre and LARP are essentially the Vaudeville and Carnies of our times. We aren’t that big yet, but we are starting to tap into the masses of people who are tearing themselves away from movies and TV for interactions with real people.
Most who participate in our art are of the mind to have experiences that they could not normally have. Slaying the dragon or rescuing one’s friends from certain doom are things that as people, we just don’t get any more. That’s where our art comes in. We use many of the stagecraft and carnival ideas of producing a show for an audience. What’s more, instead of a passive audience, our audience is IN our show. They are flying without a net by not having a script or knowledge that the outcome will be as they expect. And my dear friends, we are giving that to them. Indulging their fantasies by indulging our own as writers and directors, we manage to touch them in ways that less personal entertainment cannot.
Gordon Olmstead-Dean gave me a copy of the Knudepunkt book to read through and honestly, the preface is as far as I have gotten. (More time soon, I’m Sure) But the preface is a small discussion on why they chose the title “Lifelike” for the book. It was pretty insightful and really hit a chord.
Next Update: Intercon G and Awful Truths
