Picture the situation. You have six hungry roleplayers sat around the table, ready for the night’s play. Between them they have brought a banquet. Crisps, dip, biscuits, popcorn, cakes, sweets and plenty of coke based beverages. What happens when they eat all this? First of all there’s a sugar rush. Everyone gets hyper. Gamers on a high are pretty intense, loud and easily distracted. Keeping everyone focused on the game is not easy. What happens next? All that quick energy burns off and the downer starts. Players become crabby and irritated. Soon the squabbling begins and the game descends into chaos. And the worst thing: Everyone’s still hungry!

What food to eat on gaming night is hardly the first thought on the DM’s mind. Players are often expected to bring whatever it is they fancy chowing down on. As noted above, this can be dangerous.

Another thing that can really damage your game is chatting. A gaming group is a group of friends and as such should talk to one another. Often gaming night is the only time some gamers get to see each other. As such they want to chat about things that have happened since they last met. This can be very frustrating when you are trying to run a game.

We at Escapism Foundry think we have found a solution to these problems. Where possible, a game should start with a meal. Everyone sits around, chats about things not related to the game and eats a meal of real food. It doesn’t have to be a three course gourmet affair. All that’s needed is something that fills the players up for the night. That way, by the time gaming begins everyone will be well fed and caught up on what’s been happening in everyone’s lives. The game should then go smoother. The meal may also result in everyone becoming better friends.

Save your game. Eat real food.