Mayday, Miss Marcy! Shattered Point, Pod People, That Guy, and GM Gripes

Welcome one and all to a very special Friday edition of Mayday, Miss Marcy! in which I still answer your questions and provide you the resolution to your problems that I hope you're looking for! What makes it special? Well, it's the last Friday of February! Congrats, you made it 2 months into 2026. What? You don't think that's special? Have you looked outside recently? Alright, fine, you also get FOUR questions this week. Better?

Anyway, if you're new here, Mayday, Miss Marcy! is an advice column in which reader submitted questions get writer created answers, and we've got a new crop of three questions for you this week. Last week, we had a selection of TTRPG related questions! Of them, one of the questions generated a bit of reader feedback in the comments:

"I think you might just be a little jealous that you aren’t the main character." That's totally fair though, if the issue is that the players aren't the main characters? TTRPGs are (for most games at least) about telling stories where the player characters are the central figures, not the GM's NPCs.

I feel the last fella's issue probably stems from "player characters should be main characters," that is to say the active and protagonistic force in story as well as play. Sitting there watching the GM play with their dollies isn't gameplay, and maybe that compounds the sense that the story isn't really about the PCs. Ludonarrative harmony (negative connotation). That's my guess, anyway.

I actually don't disagree with either of these comments, but the reason I found this response interesting was that it highlights a different issue that sometimes arises in this column: you all don't always give me all of the details I really need! I do agree that in a TTRPG campaign, the players should be the protagonists, but the questioner didn't give me much to work from, and my initial hipfire instinct was to wonder if they are having some other issue. Of course, these suggestions are also good!

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And now, on with the show!

Shattered Heart

First, thank you so much for answering a bunch of my previous questions. You ended up helping a lot when it came to thd video game one in particular, as I started replaying a bunch of old jrpg's and it made me fall in love with the medium again. Vaan is good, yall are just mean.

I recently moved back to my hometown. While I was at my previous city, there was a small but thriving Star Wars Shatterpoint scene. I fell in love with the game; ending up getting a few different of the miniature packs and painted them. But there isnt much of a shatter point scene here, with one of the store owners, I talked to mentioning that they considered it a flop in the region. But in my mind, that was okay, it would just mean that I'd have to be the one to help build the community. I've done that before!

And then Asmodee announced that Shatterpoint would no longer be considered a priority for the company.

I feel like I had my legs cut out from under me. It's going to be hard to get people to play a game that isn't Warhammer in the first place, it's going to be even harder get them to start playing one that is longer going to be receiving much support. It's not like this is a miniature agnostic game; they're at an awkward scale and are blatantly Star Wars characters, so it's hard to slot them into a Stargrave game. There's not a lot I can do with my miniatures for this game, other than play Shatterpoint.

I'm at a loss of what to do, both with the miniatures and with the community I wanted to build. These minis are some of my best painting work and I wanna show them off, and I want to keep playing a game I fell in love with.

From, The Last Jedi

Dear Last Jedi,

You're welcome! Although, I don't know if we're being mean; Vaan just was unfortunately the wrong protagonist for the right game. He's fine! Generally. Kinda.

Anyway, boy. Your question kind of sent me down an interesting memory road, because the miniatures game that I loved the most and was the one I played the most of above all else was Steamforged Games Guild Ball, which met an untimely death. Although the game has somewhat resurfaced, it really never recovered and to this day I've never found a game I loved as much as that one. For that reason alone, I am going to cut off what I expect many people will say or suggest: "Just keep playing Shatterpoint! The community will support it!"

That only happens in the best of circumstances and sometimes requires a very specific local community and interest. And perhaps that could be your community, but in general, games being decommissioned like this really does generally just lead to them dying out in almost all circumstances, and while you certainly can keep, admire, and still play with what you have, it can be really demoralizing to realize there's never going to be anything new on the horizon.

I think Shatterpoint is also an oddball here because as you noted and as others have pointed out, the Shatterpoint scale is odd, so you can't even really roll it into use with something like Legion, and for 'mini agnostic' games, the models are very obviously Star Wars, which makes it still difficult. All of this is to say that there really isn't a lot to be optimistic about here.

But.

You mention you're proud of your minis and show off, and you absolutely should show them off! I still have my Ratcatchers from Guild Ball because I loved painting them so much, and you shouldn't get rid of your minis just because the game died. As for playing it, well, I think if you have the ability to provide people with an army to play, you could certainly keep Shatterpoint alive at a smaller scale in the form of a skirmish board game. Pull it out and play with friends, and you'll never have to worry about not being able to play it again. Of course I know I just said it can be hard or impossible to keep a game alive, but I'm advocating for something a little different from that, which is to ensure you have enough variety in your own collection to play Shatterpoint with a friend or friends every so often; you could sort of liken it to an MTG Cube in that regard, something you curate, play, and enjoy.

I really am sorry to hear that Shatterpoint is likely sundowning, and the team here that worked on the game have been pretty broken up about it as well. I think that you can certainly find ways to keep it alive, and I hope you can find a new game that catches your interest, but also don't rush to do so; when Guildball died, I remember trying so many different games to try and replicate the feeling and never did, and that burnout really did contribute to my overall dip in hobby activity because of it.

Comeback Kid

Dear Marcy,

I was "that guy". You know, the one that everyone groans inwardly when they sit down at the table? It was me. I was whiny, shitty, and grumpy, and while I wasn't actively hostile to people, I let myself get tilted too often and had a poor attitude. I'm not interested in making excuses: I was burnt out by my job, started drinking too much, and let myself become a generally unpleasant person to be around. After years of this I kind of just had the realization I wasn't becoming the person I wanted to be. I got sober, went to therapy, somewhat fixed my work life balance, and then practiced being patient. In part by playing MTG arena and challenging myself to have a good attitude as a training tool.

It's been about a year, and I've mastered the art of staying calm as my lands get destroyed via Liquimetal Karn combo, and I'm thinking about going back to in person play. I am scared that my reputation has lingered and am struggling with how to re-engage. Should I go to my local store, or should I go to a different one, that is about 20 mins away to get a fresh start? How do you rebuild?

That Guy Over There

Dear That Guy,

First, congrats on going sober. That really is worth celebrating and recognizing and I'm happy to hear that you found the sources and also took accountability to fixing your problems; it really isn't easy for people to actually change their behavior and mindsets on things, and often being aware of our emotional flaws and problems doesn't actually mean we're doing anything to fix them.

As to your question, I really just think it comes down to how close you were to your previous shop. If you feel that going back there would be awkward, then don't put yourself in that position. Yes, you might have been unpleasant and difficult to deal with, but you also deserve kindness and you feel like people will treat you poorly, don't do that to yourself. You don't really mention if anyone from that store is more personally acquainted with you either, so if you are able to pick from various locations, maybe just try a new one for a bit and see how it goes.

If you do want to go back to your old store, just do so and give it a trial; worst case, you realize that you don't feel comfortable and relaxed there and that it is time to move on. You don't have to apologize or explain yourself to anyone there, nor should you feel like you need to do so; if someone there asks, and you feel like explaining it, then do so, but otherwise, you're there to play the game and have a good time, and people should be able to judge your behavior over how you are now rather than how you acted. This even assumes that the same people are still around! I once took a few months from my LGS and when I went back I didn't recognize literally anyone. No matter what, focus on having fun and socializing and enjoying yourself and the newfound calm you've discovered for yourself.

Peas Out of a Pod

Dear Marcy,

I'm relatively newish to magic buying alot of the Final fantasy set when it released (btw I love the Goonhammer review of that set and having you talk about all the references) and I've noticed that sometimes that some people nit pick my specific behaviors or question my actions that ruins my enjoyment of the game. Specific examples would be not taping my attackers instantly (I tap them after so I can read any relevant text) and for not specifically attacking players to then hear them nag at me the rest of the game. I feel awkward wanting to swap out to a different pod and just head home instead. Is there a polite way of telling the group that I want to play with other people?

From "Stuck in the pod"

Dear Stuck,

First of all thank you! That was actually one of the last sets I worked with on here and I really did it for a love of the game (Final Fantasy), although the recent TMNT set did draw my attention back to it, if I have to be honest. I hope you've been enjoying your time with the game! I think if what I'm understanding is happening, you're playing with people who are perhaps more seasoned or experienced Magic players, and they are finding your habits troubling or (to them) annoying.

I will say that this may be one of the instances in which I can understand both sides. Particularly, you mention not tapping your attackers instantly, and I think that your opponents are becoming confused (or potentially confused) by the unclear board state. Magic is a fairly strict game of triggers and responses and some players get extremely finicky about the board state. I think there are some options you could pursue here such as being more verbally clear about declaring your attackers, or even pushing the un-tapped cards forward before you then tap them after saying who you are attacking with and being clear about all your triggers and effects. Sometimes this is also because responses to some things require knowing if the card IS or IS NOT tapped.

The other problem... well, that's just the issue of social gaming and one of the particular annoyances of Commander (to me). You shouldn't feel pressured to attack or not attack people, politic or not politic, and instead you should play your deck the way you like and play the game the way you like. If players are complaining you aren't 'attacking evenly', then that's a them problem, not a you problem, and I don't feel like you should feel bad for it.

If you do want to pod, well, just say 'hey, I've really enjoyed this, but I'd like to try playing with other people for a while'. If they want to be offended by it, so be it, but you don't owe them anything nor do you need to expect anything from them. You are there to play Magic on your time with your money and your deck, and so you should play in an environment that you feel welcomed in. There's also no reason to burn a bridge, either, so just be polite but firm, and even amenable to playing with them again in the future. But for now, it sounds like your position as a new player and their desire for you to play "certain ways" isn't meshing very well, and risks you getting annoyed at the game.

GM Unappreciated

Dear Marcy,

I go to a weekly TTRPG club and have been for over a year. Recently we have had an influx of new players and the head of the club who was our GM was desperate for more GMs to welcome people. The club runs on 2 month cycles where after that people can shift games systems and GMs.

I volunteered to give up my seat at the table and run for a cycle or two to help but said eventually I'd need to come back for a break. I may of not been clear enough or assertive with this.

After GMing two games I am incredibly burned out and was hoping to return to my usual group to recover and relax a bit and was told there is no room. I know there are at least two potential GMs in that group who haven't run a game in over a year.

I feel excluded, unwanted and punished for giving up my seat to try and help the club in general.

Am I wrong for feeling this way?

Dear GM:

No.

Okay, longer answer: No. Your group sounds like they're jerks and you are correct in your assumption that you're being disrespected. You gave up your seat at the table to run the game for others, as asked, and now that you would like to play, no one is making space for you. At the very least this means that even the people you GM'd for aren't helping to advocate for you to be a player again, and this is probably a great illustration for why so many gaming groups suffer from GM exhaustion: no one wants to do the "hard" job and then when they do it, feel disrespected or discarded. I think you need to be clearer with your request to be a player, and take it up with whoever is Club leadership that you feel this way. Even if you weren't "aggressive" enough with your demands at first, that doesn't mean you aren't valid in wanting the break and change now. And if no one wants to help you, find yourself a new club of people to play with, because it seems that they are less interested in community building and more interested in hobby fulfillment for themselves.

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