Opinions Wanted! (FGS future)

[alberteqx]

Note: Comments should be directed to the FGS list at- http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/fgs/messages

Reposted from the FGS list-

We currently have enough registered undergraduates that we are not 'currently' in danger of losing our Category III status (which means we

Comments

[tedshubris]

Just for those who would like some history of where this is coming from, and are not necessarily part of the all encompassing LJ ring that seems to be part and parcel of FGS, this discussion exists partially in Egowumpus' past few LJ posts before it got mentioned on the list. And I'm sure it is in other places as well.

[marcus_sez_vote]

> 4) LARPs are not a gateway drug. Games night and
> tabletops are much more so.

Since this was exactly my experience, I 100 percent agree with Ted. In fact if I recall correctly the first tabletop I played at Brown was with various other freshmen of that class and run by jhimm. Games, social events, and even LARPs geared specifically to new folk will help attract and retain new members. These people can be just new to Brown or even new to this "type" of gaming (this could involve the system, the medium, the scale, number of people, etc.)

This discussion is all well and good, but only FGS members in or near the Providence area can have an immediate and constant impact in this regard. Maybe those out of state/region can help with PBEM games (start up that Diplomacy deal again perhaps? Game of Thrones maybe?).

Thanks for your time.

Be well.

[redcrosse]

Sadly, this is kind of the fate of a community that's persisted for a longer time than, say, 4-5 years. My church right now is made up of a bunch of people over the age of 70. They're very nice people, they talk ALL THE TIME about how we need new blood in the church, they scarcely talk to me. They've known each other all their lives, they have their social patterns. They know it's not in the organization's best interest, but each personally has enough social inertia that it doesn't really matter.

I've been de-looped from FGS itself for a while, but it has seemed to me in the past that the undergrad <-> alumnus split has widened continually. There's a sense in which this is just going to happen: as one's concerns become more adult, I can easily see how it becomes increasingly difficult to hang out with a bunch of undergraduates all the time. There are very different schedules, social expectations, and patterns of interaction. It is also a very good thing, for many of those who've moved, that they've done so; to expect alumni to stay

[redcrosse]

It may indeed be that were the alumni to back off slightly, it would actually help FGS. There are some people in FGS who are very good at running games, and have been doing it for many years. It is thus natural to begin to rely on them to run games. And that is good; playing games run by people who are good at running them is how we learn.

Still, the emphasis must be just as much on encouraging new people to run games as encouraging old people to include the young people. If you never start, you can't ever get any better. And if the number of players in the organization grows, but the number of GMs doesn't, well, the math, she does not work.

[redcrosse]

Where is the fgs list these days, anyway?

[alberteqx]

http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/fgs/messages