From even darker places

            Good Evening. While my thoughts are in dark places, I wanted to touch on a grim subject. Truly darker than the grim dark of 40k. Darker than the eternal struggles of Warhammer fantasy. What do you do when the games goes to a bad spot? Let's say you are playing a game with one of your buddies. This is your typical t, beer ( or soda for you under age gamers ) and pretzels, Friday night game. Your dice turn to a bad place, or one perfectly placed ordinance shot wipes out your "killer" unit. What do you do? Your options could include to rage quit. We all have seen this at one point or another. The yelling, red faced, miniature or dice throwing that rears his ugly head when things go terribly wrong. You can laugh about it, but we have, all of us, have seen this creature. Nobody wants to, but this abomination has more sightings than  U.F.O.s  in Nevada. This situation is BAD! This is a horrible situation. The worst part of this is when you are in a tournament of 60 or 100 or even more people. In a room full of people, where everyone has their eye on the first place prize. There is a lot of tension and it is easier to lose your cool.

   How do we diffuse this situation? Here are a couple ways to stop a bad time before it starts. There, of course, is two sides to this story. The first is the carrier's side. This spawn is usually seeded days before the game. Whether your job sucks or your better half didn't want you to to be out or a host of other problems gnawing at you. Put it away, when you get your army on the table. Next is "Bad Dice." Everyone has been a victim. Remember, if it was for the randomness of the dice, we would be able to put the models on the table & declare a winner. That's no fun. Then there is the tragic deployment, or worse yet, the "I forgot to move/ shoot that unit" otherwise known as the "Dumb Ass Move." The only thing to do is get past it. Find a new way to use that unit for the rest of the match, because the worst part of this is you will most likely lose the game over beating yourself up. Not the bad move.

     Now for the awkward side of this. The opponent. Your part in this equation could be absolutely nothing. I don't need to say this, but just be friendly. If the person across from you is starting to have the tell tale tremors, slow down, make sure they understand what is going on. Make sure you are not, purposely or subconsciously, gloating. Ask them what is bothering them. If it is a friendly game, maybe, start over. Offer them a drink. Remember, soda for those underage. That might be just enough for them to collect themselves, or make you seem like less of an ass. Always, I mean always, if things get tough. take a break. Engage them on something other than the game.

     I hope these tips help. Remember this is a social game. If we are not all having fun, Is it really worth putting all the money into it that we do. Let's all have fun. Good night for now.