And, to be sure, there is gold in this one if you are involved in gaming beyond being a player or a GM. That means any kind of involvement in the production of a game (writing, editing, art, and so on...), or the production of a podcast, or fanzine, or even organising a convention. From where I sat for this one, the nuggets are all about communication with the rest of the gaming diaspora.
At one level, though, the advice was a blend of customer service and ettiquette. Fred has been vocal elsewhere about the need for politeness in the face of negative criticism, and he continues it in this episode. I agree with him that part of the problem is the medium of communication: the distance and anonymity of the internet opens up space for people to behave in ways they wouldn't in a face to face encounter. So in amongst it all is Fred's plea for people to cultivate interest in the reasons for something rather than the reasons against something.
The other good nugget from the show is Chris' process for communicating about the Endgame mini-cons. Having run two mini-cons at a FLGS, I couldn't help but focus on this. Before I run the next one I know I'm going to have to prepare a checklist or something, just to make sure it all happens in the right order and that I don't miss a vital step.
So if you do more with your gaming than play or run games, go engage in the gold panning required for this episode of That's How We Roll.
