I dedicated last weekend to punching ghosts and shooting robots. Last weekend was Tacticon, one of my favorite local game conventions. While attendance seemed down from previous years, it was great to see the extended gaming family again, and to run some Savage Worlds for players outside my usual gaming group.
I ran Ghost Punchers twice over the weekend. The adventure, “Biting the Hand,” had the players investigating a burned-out dentist office haunted by some truly creepy ghosts. (I had to smile whenever I described some phantasmal horror and the players visibly flinched.) The game went well both times. I think I’ll add it to the slowly-growing collection of one-sheet adventures.
Saturday night, I debuted a new pulp space opera setting: Challengers of the Oblivion Zone. (Think “bubble helmets and rayguns” and you’ll get the genre.) The game was an absolute blast, though that had more to do with the players–who threw themselves into their roles with breathtaking gusto–than anything intrinsic to the setting. Still, the setting helped. I reckon I’ll keep noodling away at it between other projects.
Running games at conventions is energizing. Oh, it’s exhausting too (I spent much of Sunday recovering), but it’s invigorating and inspiring to see your adventure come to life in ways you’d never expected. And I can’t wait to do it again.
