May the Power Protect You: A Temporary Leave of Absence

 

I've been dreading writing this post. I've known for awhile that I needed to write it, but I kept thinking that maybe, just maybe, I wouldn't. But I must. So here I am. May the Power Protect You is going on an indefinite hiatus. There's two major reasons: bad roll-out plan and losing my main group. We'll handle both of these, in order.

So when I first wrote this thing I thought having two posts a month would give me plenty of time. I had about four or so months of playing MMPR1 under my belt and felt pretty good about things at that rate. What I didn't understand was that the way I wanted to write about these characters that I've come to love so much was that it took me months to develop an appreciation for them on a mechanical level, as well as having different anecdotal stuff about them. The depth of experience I wanted to write from requires... well... time! And I didn't respect that. Each character has had less time devoted to it, and after NEENJOR! I found I just couldn't do that anymore. It just doesn't feel honest to me. That may not sit right with some, but what I loved about writing about these characters became impossible. For now.

Which brings me to my next point: my board gaming group has mostly collapsed in the face of Covid-19. That's no one's fault, but I've found that one of the things that I enjoyed about this game the most has to do with conversations it enables. I think the mechanics are perfectly suited to that. Because of this I've always found playing solo... odd. Those conversations aren't just a nice add-on to the game, they are essential. Absolutely essential, to me. A lot of what I wrote came from those conversations when we were all laughing and cheering or gripping the table for a dice roll or groaning as we screwed the game up or when we got it exactly right or clapping each other on the shoulder for a job well done. These posts were just as much as celebration of my friends as they were about the characters themselves. And without that core I simply cannot bring the joy that is so essential to this series.

So, for the moment this series is on hiatus. I do not know when it will be returning. I hope it's sooner than later, because this was one of the first regular columns I wrote, and the HotG community has been a huge part of this blog. But I cannot control the fates. No man can. Know that when it happens I'll be coming back, locked and loaded, with more love and joy for a game that has changed so much for me. 

Thank you so much to the folks who have read this column. It has meant the world to me.