Back From the Ashes?

Hello people! The primary purpose of this post is to announce that this blog is finally back...and I've figured out its new style. I think. See, I've just recently started working fulltime at a software company, which takes a rather massive chunk out of my day. However, I think I can still commit to one post a week, so that's what I'm planning. Nothing too big, just one post. With that being said, then, I figured I'd rattle out some thoughts on coming "back from the ashes", like the mythic bird above.

When Things Go Dead
I've certainly seen this happen before in games. Things slow up, the game which you thought would finish before school begins again...doesn't. Maybe there were tensions in the group, and it took a while to resolve them. Maybe all of the above. It's not a pretty sight when a game goes dead, because of all the could-have-been. Maybe things were ratcheting up to a wild climax, or a character was on the brink of a cool development.

There's a certain nuanced line between "dead" and "lost", though. If you will, that line is more like a divider between "mostly dead" and "all dead". Sometimes, the game is too far gone, or has gone too far with no action, that it can't be saved. On the other hand, it often doesn't hurt to try.

True Resurrection
There's probably a few things you should do before trying to bring back the game. First, it's helpful to get everyone on the same page about a few things. You all want to be crystal-clear that you're willing to invest in the game to finish it (or, at any rate, have a clear objective in mind), and you want to be open about availability, and what you can all commit to. It's good to recognize sometimes that you've all overcommitted, with the intention of fixing the problem through discussion.

Second, you should all take some time to recap the state of the game. Don't just go over the previous events in the game. Go over the state of the world, how PCs have shaped it, and where things might be heading. This is the time for the GM to be a little open about things. Players should also offer thoughts on where they see their characters possibly heading. With all of that data out there, everyone now has tools to put together a continuing game.

How about the rest of you? Any thoughts on this? Has this happened to you?