DB

I had a conversation with one of my friends the other day about one of the issues that we both have with our long, on-going campaigns. That is to say, our parties were nothing more than coworkers. They don’t hang out with one another in their downtime, and the only reason that they stick together at all is because they are united in a group made through circumstance to…save the world?

But, when Mount Doom isn’t as an impending threat as it could be–like, the gods are dying, but slowly, and people are dying every day to a cult, but who’s problem is that really–there is a lack of urgency in the mission. The party is a group of coworkers who go on work excursions every now and then, who don’t really talk with one another, hang out with one another, or get to know one another. They are deeply impersonal.

When a group, both in life and in game, have been nothing more than “buddies that you hang out at the bar with” or “the people you save the world with”, it’s hard to pivot to anything else. There are walls of privacy and a lack of intimacy that stay up, and it’s hard to breach them. Beyond actively looking to foster vulnerability in the start of a relationship, how do we grow closer with one another for the relationships that we are deeply steeped in?

Trauma bonding! Nothing brings together people like a crisis, be it a natural disaster, death of a loved one, or a significant change in life circumstances, like losing your home. When drastic change comes for one, or many of the characters, there is an opportunity for someone to provide care and rest for another. When a coworker or a friend seems especially down, we can ask if we can talk with them. When something that traumatic happens, you feel closer when you share your pain and vulnerability with another, right? While it may not be lasting, it can enable that relationship to continue to grow closer when you find that trust with one another.

What happens if nobody comes? If the crisis comes and neither the hurt nor the bystanders reach out to one another, what then? Maybe, and hopefully, they find other people. They lean on people that are not in their immediate circles, or they indulge in vices to feel safer, better, or…to numb and forget.

For our stories, we can heighten and spiral into tragedy to encourage others the opportunity to come in to help.

And gods, like anything else, we can start it as a conversation. We can talk about solutions, and solving things as a single person–player or GM–but that doesn’t speak for everyone on the table. And when it comes down to it, we do it as a group. Stories, and friendship, no matter how close or distant.