Wednesday 20 November 2013

Monthly Update: 11/13

Greetings, all!

A couple of things of note this month, starting with the most important news: we are officially moving to Weston-Super-Mare on December 18th!  (Well, assuming we pass our referencing checks).  What this means for all of you is that we're a step closer to the shop, and all we need is the money to start.  It also means we'll be looking for players for a gaming group soon, playing either D&D or Pokemon Tabletop Adventures- if you're interested in joining then let me know.

In other news, Rooksburgs Realm now has a Twitter account, where you can be updated on new blog posts as well as other random gaming things I come across.  The Twitter handle, as you can probably guess, is @RooksburgsRealm.  I promise it won't be filled with irrelevant things like what sandwiches I'm eating, it will be entirely gaming related- the most mundane thing there will be what games I'm playing, and I'd be grateful if anyone wants to drop me a comment along the lines of 'you should totally have this for the shop' or something similar.  Likewise, if you come across something I might find interesting like a new game then don't hesitate to let me know.

Now then, I also promised I would elaborate a little more on my long-term plans this month.  Let's do this role-play style:

You are in the city of Bristol.  A city known across the country for being a busy cultural centre; a reputation well-deserved and a matter of pride to the Bristolian people.  As you explore, one shop in particular catches your eye: 'Rooksburg's Realm'.  There are a couple of posters up in the window- one reads 'Currently seeking party of five level 6 adventurers for slaying a dragon and looting ancient temples: D&D 3.5, Wednesday nights, apply within'.  The other reads 'Do you want to be the very best? Like no-one ever was?  Then take part in this Saturday's Pokémon League and take home the title of Champion!'.
Hesitantly, you enter- from previous experience with gaming shops, any newcomers are met with stares that say 'you're not local, are you?'.  You breathe a sigh of relief as that doesn't happen here.  On one side of the room are shelves of games and miniatures, some of which you are familiar with but many you've never seen outside of ebay.  On the other side is a small seating area, with a group of five people- 3 guys and 2 girls- chatting whilst eating their lunch of homemade sandwiches and milkshake.  There are two others, sat opposite ends of a small table with biscuits held above cups of tea, staring at each other intently.  On the wall there is a rather ornate sword hanging, with a small note next to it.
'Good day sir, can I be of assistance?' says a man in smart shirt and hat, presumably the owner of the shop.
'I'm fine, just browsing' you say.
'No problem.  If you find something you like the look of, we can try it out if you want.  You see we offer a 'try before you buy' service, just pick a game and we can have a practise before you buy.  If you decide you don't like it then all we ask is a small fee for the trial- much cheaper than buying the game and finding out later that you don't like it.'
'Sounds great', you say, 'but my group has to like the game too'.
'Well then bring them here and you can all try it out together.  Even if you do like it but not enough to buy then you can 'rent' the game for a few hours.'
'I shall bear that in mind!  Also... what's with the sword?'
Rooksburg smiles.
'You saw the sign in the window, the D&D request?  That sword is the +3 Keen Rapier used to defeat the Devil-King of Dinosaur Island.  The party fought hard for that.'
'But that's a real sword.'
'Yes.'
'From a fictional game.'
'Yes,' Rooksburg beams, 'and you can buy it for £250.'
'Wait... are you saying that you sell the items your gamers find in their games?'
'That's right.  And if you look at the note next to it you'll see a photo of the group that found it as well as their characters' names and classes.'
'...Where do I sign up?', you say.


Well I hope that's explained a little of what things will be like, and didn't sound too much like a text-based promotional video.  (Who am I kidding, I hope when it comes to tv advertising I have something exactly like this with the corniest actors it's possible to find!).  There are bigger plans, but they are much, much further down the line...

So until next month, assuming I have internet access after moving and I'm not too busy with Christmas, so long!

Rooksburg



...also sorry for the blatant Order of the Stick reference

3 comments:

  1. Hi, I'd just like to point out that this:

    "any newcomers are met with stares that say 'you're not local, are you?"

    does not (at least to my knowledge, happen in any gaming store in Bristol, every single group I've attended as a newcomer I've been made to feel very welcome.

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  2. This may well be true, but this is still a legitimate concern people have had in other areas. Thankfully you don't hear so many cases now, but a few years ago there were many stories of gaming shops being cliquey that put off newcomers- especially when it comes to women or if you don't fit the stereotype for gamers.

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