Intercon K report

Friday night I played Clockwork Cafe. It took me a while to get into it, as my brain was still stuck on my GMing concerns, but once I did I really enjoyed it. I sort of have to make my own direction for a lot of it, but there was enough plot that would be interesting to Madame Xuan to give me enough to do. The highlight of the game was getting to interact with electric_d_monk*, who I always love larping with, who played another third of the unique little trio in black, white, and gray. I wore the gray Chinese dress I ordered from eBay (which fits me just perfectly, I cannot gain an ounce or it's out of the question), my silver pashmina, and absolutely the wrong shoes. The total lack of arch support started my feet off on an uncomfortable state of affairs that unfortunately lasted the whole weekend. As soon as Intercon was over, I threw them straight away. :-P This was also the only fun costume I got to wear for the weekend, as street clothes were appropriate for everything else.

Saturday morning was Snaf University. I signed up for this one because it's a Brandeis classic that I'd never played before, so I thought it was time. I actually really enjoyed the particular challenge of my character, solving a mystery with limitations on my ability to get information from other players. It helped my way of thinking that the mechanic for validating your progress is based on sharing your reasoning with the GMs, and when you're on the right track your capabilities progress. I am proud to say I have now joined captainecchi* as the only other person to get all the way through this character's plot. :-) I like mysteries and information puzzles in larps. The one major complaint I had with the game is the name badges. Most only had numbers on them, and since I had limited ability to ask other players their names and didn't have much of a Who You Know sheet, it was maddeningly difficult to keep track of certain characters. Other than that, though, an interesting and solid game. I'm glad to have finally played, though I am sorry I missed my other choice for that slot, Never, Never Again, based on all the good things I heard about it.

And finally, on Saturday afternoon came The Stand. This was was what I'd been working and waiting for. And I am happy to say it ran very, very well. It seemed like there was more than enough plot for every single character in the game (my primary personal measure of what makes a strong larp) that kept everyone engaged and interacting with each other. (If my observation on that front was incorrect, somebody please tell me which character needs me so I can fix them.) To my pleasure, all but one or two of the dramatic secrets came out as I planned them to in game, and when one didn't the player released it in an appropriate manner. Still, I plan to tweak things to make sure everything comes out naturally like they're supposed to. The map, the thing I was most worried about, mostly worked, with the exception of the travel mechanic. My fear was that players would just systematically check every square on the map if they didn't have any limitations on their interaction with it, so I stupidly imposed time investments necessary to every exploration. That took people out of the game too much. Instead, I think am going by the suggestion made by several players and make it so you can explore a set number of squares every X minutes, not exactly sure how many, but something like that. Hopefully that will expedite the process without taking people out of the game quite so much. Also, it is clear that the map needs a full-time GM, so I'm glad I assigned Bernie to that. It runs well enough with only just one floor GM, but another certainly could not hurt, so I am glad Jared will be helping to run come Festival. All in all, I am quite proud of the game and pleased that so many people enjoyed it. Players, your feedback is much appreciated, so feel free to tell me your impressions or ask any questions you may have.

Saturday night was Resonance, the other thing I was anxious about. The structure worked, and most of the players enjoyed it, but the majority of them interpreted the scenario differently than we expected them to. A few I think never really got the concept. It was pointed out that the game is kind of a backwards larp-- where most give you a fixed beginning and the players decide how it ends, in Resonance you are given a fixed ending, and it is player choice that figures out where it begins. That, I think, is a useful way for players to think about it to understand how it's going to work. I think we could stand to make it explicit that the game is pretty much a railroad the point of which is to watch unfold and understand the truth of and react to, so people shouldn't expecting to change the ending trajectory, and that it is intended mostly as an emotional exercise rather than as an opportunity for players to expend agency. Still, most of the players really had fun, and I do believe it to be a very good game. I think we just need to prepare players for the game a little more directly so that they understand what sort of thing they're getting into. Especially looking at the cast list for Festival, I have a feeling that the next run is going to work just fine.

In regards to the hotel, which I didn't stay at and did not end up spending a dime at, I was fine with it. The only things I experienced were the positives, such as the close location that enabled me to drive in and the beautiful and useful function space, or the minor negatives, such as the slightly decentralized social space. One thing I have to say is while, yes, the hotel's concessions prices were absolutely absurd, I don't know why anyone was surprised by them. That's pretty standard for a hotel of that caliber. It certainly wasn't any worse than what I was expecting, which is while I packed food for the weekend. Needless to say, I am very pleased with that decision. Especially if things don't improve on the cost front, next year, I plan to do the same for L.

And that was my Intercon. Don't think it's necessary to detail how I spent Sunday, which was in a pit of blackness brought on by my own inability to be a human being lately. The con itself was good.