Just got back from sleep-deprivation

Just got back from sleep-deprivation at Stabcon, a weekend-long gaming convention, held in a hall of residence at Manchester Metropolitan University. First time I've been to this convention, which runs twice a year, but it probably won't be the last. Although next year I'm not going to waste time waiting for the night bus at 3am on the Saturday night which didn't turn up.

Since I don't have a regular Role-Playing group at the moment, one-shot convention games are the only RPGing I get. While you lose the long-term character development and epic story arcs, you do get the chance to play a wide variety of different game systems, and the convention circuit has some wonderful gamesmasters.

I played in these games, which are typical of the types of games you can get at conventions.

"Abnormal for Norfolk", a present-day Call of Cthulhu scenario which started out as investigation into a mysterious fungus-based disease, involved taking blood samples from sheep in the dead of night, and ended up with a fight with fungus-controlled pod-people in a Norfolk village.

"The Agony and the Ecstacy", an In Nomine scenario set in the demon-controlled city of Naples in Italy, run by Mark Baker a.k.a L'Ange. This game contained some very powerful imagery, which I ended up dreaming about that night.

"Grunts", a SF military game using the Blue Planet rules, about a group of soldiers in a far future war on an alien planet trying to get back to base after their transport was shot down behind enemy lines.

Meanwhile, in the news

Office politics wastes an hour a day. Well, I've worked in places where it's been far worse that that :(