Monday 27 September 2004

  • In college my term paper for the Witchcraft and Magic anthropology course I took was on different dice superstitions within the gamer subculture.  If only this Web site had been around so I could have put photos in my paper....

     

    So, let's see.  I have about a month's worth of catching up to do, so I'll try to be brief. 

     

    On the 4th we had Steve's campaign.  One of these days I'll do a recap of all of those game sessions I haven't had the time to do yet.

     

    On the 9th I had to work the morning shift, then rush to CopperCon XXIV immediately afterward.  The mystery panel was for all participants at-con on Thursday and was about dragons, the convention's theme.  However, just like the mystery panel, dragons being the theme of the convention wasn't readily apparent to anyone attending for the weekend.  The panel ended up only having some of the participants show up, and no attendees.  So Alan Dean Foster decided to invite us all to Pappadeaux for dinner.  I had to decline, as I was scheduled for another panel in the next hour.  It sounded like it would be awesome.

     

    The next panel was LARP systems.  I was alone on the panel, and the only attendee was Sean.  Because he's planning a BESM LARP for AniZona, we used the panel to discuss that, and what of my experiences working on Pokemon Live Action, Harry Potter Live Action, and Diagon Alley Live would be of help for him. 

     

    My final panel of the evening was name generation in gaming.  I actually had three attendees show up, but the other participant on the panel didn't show until the panel was over.  She had gone with the others to Pappadeaux.  Rather irresponsible, but not surprising.  This is the same woman who currently has a gentlemen she met over the internet sending her money, doing her laundry when she mails it crosscountry to him, and other insanely abusive things.  I truely pray that this doesn't all come back at her in the end. 

     

    The panel was great anyway.  One of the attendees recounted a book (decades out of print) which was a comprehensive tome of names for just about any fantasy setting.  The way he described it sounded awesome.  Another attendee just depended on what popped into his head.  I showed them all several books, magazines, and even character sheets for the various methods that can be used for naming characters and places in RPGs.  I think everyone enjoyed the panel.

     

    Vicki turned down help on Thursday, saying that she had things covered in Program Ops between her and Sue who was going Participant Green Room.  

     

    I attended Chris and Ken's first panel on Friday, Characater Creation in Gaming.  While we waited for it to begin, Ken and I played some Shadowfist.  During the actual panel, their fellow panelist K Mark Hoover wanted to take control of the conversation at points, so Ken had to be assertive to allow Chris a chance in the dialogue. 

     

    Friday when help was offered to Vicki in Program Ops, she took me up on placing some program signs up.  Easily done, and I didn't mind doing that. 

     

    Friday was also the day that Shane (who was doing the Anime Room) brough Joe by the convention so we could catch up.  Joe introduced me to his wife and five year old child.  It's amazing how much time must have gone by for that to have happened!  Otherwise, he still seemed the same.  They invited me and Monte to return to gaming with them, explaining that the problem people were now gone from the gaming group.  Considering how it was Shane's lack of communication to us that was the last straw, I think they're in denial. 

     

    I tried to enjoy Meet the Pros for a change, as I didn't have any duties, but Wayne kept expecting me to ignore the convention and play a four to six hour game with him.  I can see him anytime, I don't get to see a lot of these people except at conventions.  It was hard to get him to understand that.  Eventually I compromised and played Bang! with him, Ken, and some others.  Unfortunately, the game lasted longer than it should have and I missed out on other things I had wanted to do.  So I rushed to the Chill Party, only to arrive for the end of it. 

     

    Saturday morning I attended the Filk Concert until it was time for me to sit on my last panel.  Leslie Fish didn't perform the best Filk Concert I've attended, but she wasn't the worst.  She was entertaining enough that I only left out of responsibilty, which means that she was doing her job. The air conditioning was set so incredibly low that I actually pulled my windbreaker out of my backpack and rubbed my arms with my hands to stay warm during the concert.  Something was seriously wrong with that considering how warm it was outside during the Phoenix summer.

     

    When I had that last panel it was a workshop for kids to write their own fantasy tales.  I was on the panel with Don Markstein, Allison Mitchell, and DF Sanders.  We had one child show up, whose mother dropped her off like it was daycare and promised to come back when it was over.  This is why I fight these conventions labeling the panels as KID instead of FAM for family. 

     

    The panel was interesting.  DF Sanders seemed to take the lead, while the rest of us offered the young girl some suggestions.  The air conditioning was cold in this room too, so I only took my jacket off when it appeared that Allison Mitchell needed it more than I did.  She seemed worried that it would smell of patchouli, but she was already coming down with a cold she thought and the chill of the room wasn't making it any better.  I tried explaining my poor sense of smell, and she at first draped it over her until I could convince her that it was ok to actually wear it.  Which reminds me, I do need to wash it before the next time I need to wear it.  I'm going to go put it in the laundry now and return to this afterwards.