Hi Procyon,
Just like to say it been a wonderful read, I had not check out the fiction that was in starfire, but I glad I have. Its a great story your written and your family sounds a little like mine. Devious <smile>
Thank you. I'm pleased that you like it.
Sorry about the slow turn around on the next post, but fall is busy on a farm.
Starfire sounds like a great family game, I got one question. How did you introduce your wife to it, was she always into these style of games or was it a slow process. Just curious cause later as my kids get older it would be great to introduce the kids to a good old fashion games night. (without the puters) <smile>
Really, I tried and failed early on. She just wasn't into games like this.
But we have had family game night once a week for a long time. With both my wife and I working as hospital nurses we have rather busy and inconsistent schedules. With six kids there were also a lot of activities going on that we had to work in. It was getting so that the family wasn't together as a group very often. So we instituted family game night to make sure we all saw each other and interacted in a fun way (most of the time).
It was the oldest boy who was rumaging through some of my old games and found my old 'baggy' copies of Starfire. He wanted to try it and asked me to help him. After a few battles he was hooked. When the other kids saw us playing, they wanted in. In just a few days the kids were playing it amongst themselves. I dug out my old 3rd Ed. of Starfire and started a small campaign for the oldest boy and girl to learn 3rd Ed on - and see if they would like it. A few days later the middle boy joined them. It hadn't made the family game night yet but they were both very interested. After a short time they began pestering my wife to have a Starfire family game night once. With three of the oldest kids pestering her she gave in.
Now the youngest members of the family got paired up with older folks for this night, as the two youngest (18m/o and 4y/o) weren't up to the game. My wife is also very competitive. She didn't enjoy the idea of the older kids and I knowing this game and her not having an idea of what was going on. The 10 pages of rules in the 1st Ed set wasn't a huge problem so she read them and we played. And then we played another battle. And another.
A few days later she was digging at the 3rd Ed rules and wanted to know if I could work her into the campaign the older kids were playing. That game was the beginning of our 'Empires' Campaign - now the 'New Empires' Campaign.
That was nearly six or seven years ago. Now she likes playing this, along with several of the role playing games the kids have dug out. We still play other games (cards, board games, dominos, etc.) but they have taken a back seat to Starfire and the RPG's. It is wonderful to have a captive audience for the games as it were, and to see them working on them. It is also painful when the oldest have moved off and left a void. But such is the lot of a parent. Our job is to make ourselves unnecessary.
Not sure if that is the answer you were looking for but my advice would be to start a family game night, whatever the game. Get everyone in the habit of setting down together to spend some time with each other - even if it is just candy land, chutes and ladders, or go-fish. Between my time in the Army and working in a hospital, I have seen the price of taking your family for granted. If you hope to get a game like starfire up and running, get the kids interested first. They will be the ones that will get mom to cave in and try it. Then perhaps, with a little luck, she will get hooked also.
I wish you the best of luck.
