This week, one of our gamers informed me as we were packing up to leave that one of his LARPs was looking to reschedule…and they wanted the night we were gaming with said friend.  Ordinarily, we’ll shift nights if someone has a work, school, or travel commitment — it’s no big deal — but to be told “Hey, I want to play in this game…can all of your guy rearrange your scedules for me?” left me a bit miffed.  Still, we were able to work it out.

But for a day or two, I found myself slightly angry and depressed over the possibility of losing a good gamer due to the scheduling issue.  That got me thinking about an earlier posting about managing no shows.  In essence, I needed to heed my own advice:  Don’t take it personally, try to accommodate the most number of the group, and press on.

It also brought up an interesting issue for gamers:  all gaming groups break up.  you might not lose everyone, but sooner or later, someone moves away, has a new schedule, gets divorced, gets a job, has a kid…and you lose a gamer or more.  It’s especially traumatic if the one leaving is the GM — the guy/gal that has been telling your stories for months or years.  The story ends (often unfinished, in my experience…)

It shouldn’t be a big deal; after all, it’s just a game.  But it’s not always the case.  Like that movie or TV series you love to watch, or that book series that you buy every volume of, the storylines of your game can get into your psyche and become something you are viscerally connected to.  (Think of how many people were upset at the cancelling of Firefly, or were truly honked off because The Sopranos or Lost, or Battlestar Galactica didn’t end like they thought it should.)  Stories enrich your life and give you something to talk about other than politics or who’s doing what with whom, or what the weather is like —  especially as the characters and plot are something you are directly involved in, not a passive observer.

It hurts when a character you truly enjoyed is lost, but if you lost the whole universe, as well — right in the middle of the story — there can be a sense of loss, of things left undone.  Yes, it’s kind of stupid — it’s a game.  But it happens nonetheless.  Also, there’s the need to find another gaming group (or another hobby…), and that can be jarring if one particular day is set aside for a certain thing, be it a favorite show, a game, working out, girls’ night out.  A change can throw everything into a tailspin.

But as Solonon was told (or King Attar, if you buy into the saying being a Persian one): This too shall pass.