What goal do you have for your gaming group? Whether it’s simply to have a regular time and place to play games, or its to foster friendships that can withstand bacterial infestation, starting with an “end-game” objective in mind can help make it stronger.

And that’s when I was hit with a realization that completely turned my mood around. The gaming group I’d started had grown to the point where it was independent of my constant intervention. This may sound narcissistic, and that’s because I’m a complete narcissist, but I realized that, even though those people wouldn’t be gaming together if it weren’t for me, they weren’t dependent on my presence anymore to do so. I had achieved a goal for my gaming group that I wasn’t even aware that I had.

But then, something unexpected happened. Afterwards, I received reports of how successful the event was. The regular members were there, plus several new people. There was laughter, pizza, and lots and lots of games played.

I’d spent months nurturing my gaming group, spreading the word, introducing and teaching games, trying to make people feel welcome, only to miss out on the first big event? But I took it in stride. That’s a lie, I was a little depressed and may have shed a few pink tears.

But then, the night before the event, my wife mentioned that my eyes looked a little bloodshot and teary. The next morning, mere hours before my board game bonanza began, I found myself at the doctor’s office, receiving prescription eye drops to cure the pink eye that had decided to infest my face. So, instead of enjoying my day-long gaming event, I sat home, quarantined with my contagious contamination keeping me company.

Hello, Chaz Marler from the Pair Of Dice Paradise board game podcast, with another installment in my series on running a game group. Today’s question: what’s your endgame? For example, I recently I set up a micro-mini-convention, a day-long event of gaming goodness with my group. I’d worked my way towards this for months, and I was super excited to finally see it happen.