Gary Con Day 4: Minotaurs, TPKs, And Driving In The Dark

Well, it's a good thing I decided to leave early. Arrived home around midnight. At 4 a.m., we got sleet and freezing rain that iced up all the roads until around noon -- the time I would have been getting home. So with that bit of "patting myself on the back" out of the way, I'll wrap up my Adventures in Lake Geneva series of posts. (And "Adventures in Lake Geneva" would be a good subtitle for next year's Gary Con!)

• Started my day with a bacon doughnut. Holy hell, was that good eats. With meat and sugar coursing through my veins, I was ready to start my final day!
• Got up bright and early to play in my first game of Mazes and Minotaurs -- an RPG that asks "What if D&D was based on Greek mythology rather than European Medieval tropes?" I played a Priest of Hermes and our merry band of heroes were tasked by The Gods to thwart a Stygian lord terrorizing the countryside. After a stirge attack, we discovered some ancient ruins and proceeded to investigate. We encountered troglodytes and ogres, answered some riddles, and eventually found the Lord and his Stygian Hound. Once the battle ended, we reined victorious. The system runs very cleanly, and for those who grew up on Saturday afternoon "swords and sandals" epics, Hercules movies, or Jason and the Argonauts, you'll love the setting. Plus, the system and all books for it are free!
• After my trip into Ancient Greece, it was time to visit the far-flung future with that ever-genial GM Jim Ward. Jim's adventure was a visit to his Dark Colony where we were space marines investigating why we lost contact with the folks stationed there. Most of you probably know Jim's rep for TPKs -- although, as he explains, the players usually kill each other. And that's what nearly happened here. To summarize: We opened the airlock and five of us were immediately grabbed by fungus tentacles. At the command of the PC Lieutenant, the remaining PCs fired into the mass. (I was shot three times, but somehow survived.) When the other PCs left to investigate, our brave Lieutenant sealed the ship back up, stranding the rest of us on the surface (pissing off several of us). We raced to the nearby dome for protection, just as a huge humanoid started pounding on the ship. The Lieutenant raced to join us, and...well...another player fired at him. Then ANOTHER player fired at THAT player for firing at the Lieutenant. Then a Mexican standoff ensued. Then a giant robot showed up to kill us, just as the Lieutenant ran off with another player chasing him and firing at him while the Lieutenant was dropping C-20 explosive charges behind himself. Yeah, it was THAT kind of Jim Ward game. At 10 minutes until the end of the game, it was just me and another player still alive. Was I actually gonna live through a Jim Ward game? Opened a door and was immediately engulfed by deadly red fungus. Nope, I died. The remaining player turned around to see another killer robot behind him. Game over, man!
• By that time, it was 3 p.m., so I packed my stuff, said goodbyes to everyone, and hit the road back to Ohio.

And this is "not Gary Con related," but gives you some idea of how the rest of my return trip home went:

• During Jim's game, my left eye was a bit itchy. Rubbed it once or twice, and it was watering pretty good. "Lack of sleep," I thought. On the road back, my eye swelled shut and began producing a yellow gunk. I didn't know what was going on, but I drove for 6 hours at night with one eye screwed shut.
• Upon arriving home at midnight, I snuck in as quietly as I could so as not to awaken my wife who had to go to work in the morning. Our new puppy however went on full STRANGER IN THE HOUSE WHOOP WHOOP mode. After getting her quieted down and after she saw who it was, she shifted into full IT'S DADDY I'VE MISSED YOU SO MUCH BOING WHEEEE mode. My wife was ready to kill both of us.
• Went to see the doctor in the morning and found out I had scratched my cornea. So now I have burning drops of "medicinal suck" to put into it for the next week.

So that's it for another year. Sadly, I probably will not attend Gary Con VI as that will be my 20th wedding anniversary. If I wish to see a 21st anniversary, I had better do something glorious for Mrs. Sniderman next year. So thanks for a great time Gary Con Staff, and I hope everyone who was on the other side of my screen had a great time too!

Behold the glory that is the Bacon-Topped Chocolate Doughnut.

And I'll wrap this year with a photo of the Table of Honor. You're missed, Gary.