Taking a Break

I stepped down from GMing with my group last session. I needed a break. I've been GMing for a long time now. Most of the group seems pretty happy about my GMing, but I got to the point where I was not. I felt like it was poor quality stuff (regardless if it was good or not). I was burned out basically.

Nothing recharges my GM batteries like being a player. It, almost magically, reignites my imagination, creativity, and drive. One session (and mostly character creation session) and I was already thinking new things. I have numerous theories why being a player (even for just a few hours) has this effect, I imagine more than one is correct while the others are just psychological bat-shit.

Regardless, the session was (for a character creation session) fun. Not much happened, and having two GMs is weird but oddly effective. It's just mind-boggling cool to watch Joel and Ali seamlessly co-GM without so much as a hiccup. I was never confused who was actively GMing and what was going on. I seriously doubt I could co-GM as a general thing and sure as hell could not do it that smoothly.

We're using Savage Worlds for a fantasy setting (loosely) based on the Game of Thrones setting. Regardless of my opinion of that book, I think the setting is interesting and Joel and Ali's liberal interpretation is likely to make for a good game. I suspected it to be largely story-driven, but it seems they intend for it to be more episodic and disconnected than that. I applaud that plan as I doubt our group is truly capable of a solid story-drive epic-plot sort of game.

yeah...it's not a bear, but it will do.

And frankly, I am glad of it. I've grown a great deal away from the mega-plot games and want to deal more with episodic, sandbox-style games. They tend toward my world-building side, my general disinterest in any story a GM gives me (I'd rather make my own by Rocking the pants off whatever setting my character is in). I tried to get the GM to let me have a lion or a bear companion (either I could ride) but (as per a completely fair and very cool GM decision) I rolled up a dire wolf (which in SW is too damn small to ride). Still, dire wolf. Then we did a PvP beat fest that took the rest of the session and ended with most of us on the ground. I went down first because I didn't do a damn think with my character that made them particularly combat effective.

Still, I think you can grasp from my writing was I enthused about the session. I'm looking forward to actually getting my wolf into play and kicking some...whatever the bad guys in GoT are. I know there is a big ass Ice Wall to ward off something nasty, no real idea what they are. I don't plan on exploring their motivations or tactics much either. I suspect it will largely break down to me shooting arrows into whatever the hell my wolf is gnawing on.