A few days ago, I found myself complaining to my mother about my digital stopwatch. I can’t deactivate its hourly chime, and I lost the instructions. All I want is the stopwatch feature, I explained. I don’t need it to display the time, act as an alarm clock, or beep every hour. My mother asked me why I need a stopwatch in the first place, and I responded that a stopwatch is very handy for timing one’s breaks at work, which is true, but it isn’t the reason I bought it.
The real reason I bought a digital stopwatch, I confessed, was that it was necessary for playing a particular role-playing game designed to be played whilst on the move or in situations where dice or other randomizers are inconvenient. Then I found myself explaining to her the task resolution rules of Sherpa, which made perfect sense to her and seemed to pique her interest.
I foresee a possible future column coming of this: My Mother the Gamer, or True Sherpa Stories…
[To learn more about Sherpa, visit Steffan O'Sullivan's Sherpa site, which, incidentally, was updated on 18 December 2008.]
Post a Comment