Re: OOC, Deux
Holy Jesus, let me just tell you that being forced to read this and not be able to respond (mostly due to network restrictions at work/working 19 hours a day) really, really, -really- sucks.
Whew...that's done with, now my 2 cents.
I'm going to take a heap of the blame on this one. My disappearances over the years has really put a halt on progression of this story of ours. I made Elec vice-president in charge of keeping crap going because I knew that there would be times that things would get muddy for me, and I needed someone who was able to keep with the feel and keep things moving. For falling from my position of control and leaving it all on you, Hawk, all this time, I am infinitely sorry.
Folks, maybe we have hit a wall with this story. From responses, it certainly seems as much. I for one would like to point out that I'm just as happy with how far we have come from the day we started. And I still see our little rag-tag party. Granted, our newer members might feel about shouldered, but you're all a part of this great big mess of a world.
I still see that pair of rogues; one who ran from his past only to smack face-first right back into it. And did he hide from it? No. He realized he needed to step into those shoes, to be the leader more so than the guide, and he didn't flinch as he did. He faced the changes of life as one would; he found new love and came upon a lost one. He was faced with the decisions a man makes in that position, and he still wrestles with it all.
I still see the paladin; knightly and just, pure in purpose and true in course, making her personal sacrifice to see the world saved. She was faced with some of the hardest choices of her life, and she saw that some of her hard-girded laws wear down. She found love in the strangest of places, she embraced that love and even when she lost it; even when it pushed her to her breaking point, she embraced it once again. She became herself more so than her position, she wasn't just there but was there for everyone, herself most of all.
I still see that outcast who broke the social barriers, became a great warrior and even still, becomes greater as time passes. He too put his beliefs, his strict moral codes to the test and saw that maybe they shouldn't cloud his judgement, but guide it. He took to the unsavory types he was forced to travel with and found in them great companions that he would gladly lay down his life for.
I still see the quiet, oft troubled priestess, so much more than just a stranger in a land full of old hatreds. She was a light that would shine, maybe not to lead, but most definitely to shine. But she had to find that light, and she was looking for it. She was changing to find it, getting beyond the grip of her old life and walking into the arms of her new one.
I still see that brash kid; the one who made bad decisions more often than good ones. He burned as brightly as a bonfire, and it was infectious to those around him. He escaped a life of slavery and torture, died at the hands of his slavers, returned as a doppelganger to one of the greatest heroes alive, was forced into a life he never wanted and never deigned to have; but he did it, for the better of those around him and for his family. He fell in love, something he swore never to do, and found that it completed him.
And, I see that bard, smiling brightly; her mind a cloud of possibility and ambition, imagination entwined around possibility. Her words, her songs, her happy way of thinking, her carefree persona was able to clear the clouds from the sky. She wanted nothing more than that one great story; the one that would set all the other tales on their heels. She happily dove into the darkness with her friends, her family, and did it without the slightest complaint -- because, hell; who knows what's down there!
Yeah, things have changed, but things are still the same. Almost 9 years and our band of players has changed, grown, and evolved. If we were to end it now...well, I'd be lying if I said I wouldn't be sad at the notion. As you might recall, I started this story -- shooting from the hip -- because my last game left me with a profound sense of loss. I very much enjoy writing with and for you all. You've been a great joy, a wonderful privilege to create with over these years. I would gladly continue playing out Eladrin until it's conclusion. I would also be happy creating new ones, working within our world and creating a new tale.
But, as always before, I leave it to you. You're the reason I never let go, and I still say that God, Allah, whomever...truly blessed me with you all; my band of brothers and sisters. I'd heard so many horror stories of online tabletop gaming and some of it's less than savory players...and you all proved those stories wrong. Intelligent, inventive, able to weave a tale not just play a sheet of paper and dice. So, whatever decision is made, I stand behind it one-hundred fold.
Cheers.
Oh, and before I forget...
Hi, my name is Brian. It's lovely to meet you all.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:58, Wed 08 May 2013.