2019 at the Christian Gamers Guild Reviewed

Last December we published Thirteen Months in Review, in which I attempted to index everything that had been posted to the site in the previous thirteen months–the time from when our previous index, Overview of the Articles on the New Christian Gamers Guild Website, had been published.  I am now attempting once again to summarize, this time a calendar year of material, for those who missed something or want to find something they remember.

The year started right off with Faith in Play:

  1. #14:  Wickedness January 1, 2019, picking up the thoughts on how alignment was the true religion in the original role playing game, and why most people are actually evil.
  2. #15:  Gamism February 5, 2019 begins a Christian consideration of creative agenda.
  3. #16:  Mourning March 5, 2019 asks why our characters never attend funerals.
  4. #17:  Narrativism April 2, 2019 considers the benefits and problems of the second creative agenda.
  5. #18:  Order May 7, 2019 considers what the alignment called lawful is fundamentally about.
  6. #19:  Simulationism June 4, 2019 looks at the last of the three creative agendas.
  7. #20:  The Problem with Protests July 2, 2019 reacts to a petition against a television series about angels, demons, and preventing armageddon.
  8. #21:  Villainy August 6, 2019 responds to a criticism that people who always play the villains might be expressing their true nature.
  9. #22:  Individualism September 3, 2019 identifies the core values of the Chaos alignment as the series continues.
  10. #23:  Kralc’s Law October 1, 2019 declares that any sufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from technology.
  11. #24:  The Christian Veneer November 5, 2019 discusses whether a game designed to appeal to Christians is necessarily a Christian game.
  12. #25:  Impact December 3, 2019, uses the example of the Christian Gamers Guild to suggest how to find what God wants you to do.

The RPG-ology series also continued:

  1. #14:  Shock January 15, 2019 tells the story of shooting Skinner’s Falls at flood stage, and the reality of freezing in the face of fear.
  2. #15:  Vivid February 19, 2019 recounts the underground chasm crossing story as an example of a memory as vivid as if it were real.
  3. #16:  Creatures March 19, 2019 republishes Game Ideas Unlimited:  Empiricism, about describing fantastic creatures.
  4. #17:  With the Odds April 16, 2019 talks about working out probabilities of success in play.
  5. #18:  Waterways May 21, 2019 presents how rivers, lakes, and other bodies of water work on a map.
  6. #19:  Treasure Auction June 18, 2019 recounts a method of treasure division that aims at fairness and works toward in-game logic.
  7. #20:  Pay Attention July 16, 2019 reproduces an edited version of the sixth Game Ideas Unlimited article on keeping notes about the world around you.
  8. #21:  Living In the Past August 20, 2019 reproduces an edited version of the seventh Game Ideas Unlimited article on learning about your family history.
  9. #22:  Snow Day September 17, 2019 reproduces an edited version of the eighth Game Ideas Unlimited article, about describing a scene by putting yourself in it.
  10. #23:  Non-random Thought October 15, 2019 discusses designing fortune mechanics to reflect real probabilities.
  11. #24:  An Amusing Dungeon 191119 presents an example of lateral creative thinking in a dungeon adventure design.
  12. #25:  Transmats December 17, 2019 discusses matter transmission technology.

Michael Garcia continued to enthrall us with recountings of adventures in his games, including:

  • The Investigation Falters, by Michael Garcia, January 8, 2019, in which members of the Beckett family party struggle to learn what is happening in and around Lakesend.
  • Trial by Combat, by Michael Garcia, February 12, 2019, in which the Becketts attend a feast which leads to a duel.
  • The Battle of Heinrich’s Horn, by Michael Garcia, March 12, 2019, in which the Beckett Family assaults well-defended brigands and robber knights atop a hill.
  • Treasure Division: A Case Study From Northumbria by Michael Garcia, April 23, 2019, which is a collection of comments about treasure division from characters in the Beckett party.
  • Tracks on a Moonless Night by Michael Garcia, May 14, 2019, returning to the Winchester family as they travel through a seemingly haunted forest.
  • Battle Among the Hill Ruins by Michael Garcia, June 11, 2019, in which members of the Winchester clan rescue their kidnapped companions.

…and also notes on his world and his special rules, such as:

…and he gave us a wonderful look at his game room, with ideas we can all use to improve our own:

We had a few insights and administrative matters from Bryan Ray, including:

There was a bit of April Fool’s Day nonsense provided by Eric Van Denhende:

I also wrote An Invitation to Contribute to the CGG Site, published April 30, 2019, inviting fans and readers to become contributing authors.  This led to several articles from special guests.  The first of these was Stephen Taylor, founder of Games-for-All, a games ministry connected to the Anglican church in Great Britain, who gave us:

This also led to articles from long-time Christian gamer Osye E. Pritchet III with a series entitled Christ and the Dice:

  1. #1: Introduction, May 28, 2019, introducing the author.
  2. #2: My Current Game (a brief overview) , June 25, 2019, explains the characters and setting of an ongoing campaign which will probably be discussed in future articles.

Then there was Matthew Butler, who gave us:

  1. Scrabble, Risk and Why I Haven’t a Clue, July 9, 2019, recalling the impact of board games on his family and upbringing.
  2. Tales of a D&Degenerate: Volume 1, July 23, 2019, a pun-filled introduction to his introduction to role playing games.

Then I wrapped up the year with Christmas, on Christmas Eve.

—M. J. Young

Chaplain, Christian Gamers Guild