Extra Life at Pegasus Games…

… Or How I Stopped Worrying And Learned To Love The Sleep Deprivation

Pegasus Games opened its doors 37 years ago, and we are still showing up there twice a month to hold Adventurers League events – though back in the late 70’s to early 80’s it was less about organized play, and more about play in our parents basements. Seriously, for people of my generation Stranger Things is more of a documentary. And I bought my first Player’s Handbook from the aforementioned store the first year it was in business down on State Street. (There’s an import store there now.)

And during my 37 years playing Dungeons and Dragons, I have played with a variety of different DMs. While I can honestly say I have never played with one that could do voices the way Matt Mercer can on Critical Role, I have played with those that infuse a crazy amount of history and mythology into their worlds, and I have rolled at a table with DMs that produce a simple, fun, and consistent game. It is all a question of what you’re looking for, and how much everyone at the table buys into it.

Why do I mention this? Well, thank you for asking, hypothetical player in Adventurers League that is wondering about our upcoming charity event. One thing I know I am capable of is providing a marathon game. A true test of fortitude. 24 hours of gaming with only short breaks for food, drink, and restroom breaks. And no, I cannot do this every weekend, or even every month. The last time I attempted this was Extra Life 2014. But we are doing it again, only this time bigger.

November 4th is the Extra Life 24 hour game event. The problem for the Madison folks is that this is also the weekend of Gamehole Con. Which, ironically, is where the Wizards of the Coast Extra Life games are going on. (At least two of them anyhow.) So we are holding our on our normal game day for November on the 11th, the Saturday after the con.

Pegasus Games Extra Life

Our events that day will be putting all the proceeds towards the charity of the day. We will have four to five tables running standard 4 hour sessions of Adventurers League content. You only need an AL legal character to play. There are two simple changes planned to the format for the charity event…

1. Donations Accepted for Play: Your DM will be volunteering their time and the content to play. We are suggesting an optional $5 donation to the table’s “fishbowl” to sit down and play. (We won’t turn away anyone who cannot afford to donate for their seat.)
2. Inspiration Donations: The “fishbowl” will remain with the DM, who will allow players to donate a minimum of a dollar any time they wish to inspire their character, or that of another player. (Limits on these are up to the DM at the table.)

We may have other offerings at the table, but if there are any, they will be included in the morning announcements.

Note: We are beginning seating at 10am that morning, so show up early. Feel free to group up into parties of 7 players before we even open the doors. Seriously, it will help me out.

The Marathon Game

The specifics at the core are we will be playing Tomb of Annihilation from the beginning, attempting to complete it within 24 hours. Characters will be starting at level 1. Death Curse is still in effect, and we will have surrogates available in the event of character death. We will seat people at 10am and we will play until somewhere between 10am and 11am Sunday morning when the playground opens up again for the Sunday games.

Please note we are intending to stream the event, so you may be on video while we play. Additionally, we are reserving one seat for Pegasus Games – meaning one of the two DMs are going to have the chance to torture a PegaMinion in game for 24 hours. (PegaMinion to be announced when confirmed, and yes… I said two DMs, so two tables are being run.)

Procedures for signing up for the marathon event are as follows:

• I will have a meetup set up for the Marathon Tables specifically. This will be in addition to our normal November 11th meetup. It will be set to accept 14 people to it. This will allow for 13 players to sign up, with my RSVP as the organizer to account for the PegaMinion Seat. Waitlist will be allowed for alternate players (in the event of a no-show, emergency, etc.).
• After the waitlist has hit somewhere between 4-7 players, I will close the RSVP and then send out a link to the DM donation pages through email from meetup (which will go to all who RSVP’d including the waitlist).
• There will be a deadline for each player signed up to go to the page and donate $10 to Extra Life under the DM’s name. This will secure your spot. At the end of the deadline, I will check donations, and finalize the list of players.
• Once set, all players (and alternates, if they so choose), will be sent a template of a donation list similar to the ones seen in use by the WotC players in Extra Life. This will include things like donation levels to give a potion, a re-roll, etc. Securing donations for PC benefits is optional, so if you don’t wish to do so, it is not required.
• Show up on the 11th and play…

We will have a number of special offerings for the marathon table. My intention is to make them available as the event progresses, rewarding those that can last the longest. There may even be a special reward for those able to complete the 24 hours of gaming.

The RSVP will open at noon, Sunday October 15th. (It will likely be up there, but will open for RSVPs slightly sooner.

DMs for the Event

Zombie Joe: The last time I organized this (though my home group), we made it to around 22 hours before I had a player fall asleep and could not be woken up. Not only did I still have the juice to keep going, but I didn’t go to sleep for about 4 or so hours after that. So I know I will make it to the end. Can you join me?

Nick “Moonbeam” Alfano: My son, and a player in my original running of this. While he was definitely tired by the end of the event, he wasn’t running it. We are both of the opinion it is more tiring to play for long periods than run for it. Also, he is a devout night owl – one of the things he inherited from me. So we know he will make it through the night. Especially if mocha is provided.