I have the cure for Gamer ADD

1. Have financial woes during a economic slowdown. Mix in paying for high school, fixing vehicles, granddaughters and the Harley tax.

2. Continue running your campaign, but use what you already have or rely on free stuff.

3. Realize that you don't need to buy the latest/greatest, that this stuff works as-is, that your game still rocks.

Viola! Your ADD is cured and you can move on to a bright, shiny new world using what you have already - because there is a TON of good ideas and inspiration already there on your shelf.

(It also helps if you are still in that financial crunch and your mindset is starting to go into frugal mode.)

I think my days of just buying it because it's the latest/greatest blogoland flavor are over. I'm not shelling out anymore treasure or gold on RPG products, until I've wrung out all that I can on what I already have. I think I greatly appreciate the Depression-era thinking that my grandparents had.

Has the economy affected how you use your gaming materials? Have you become more frugal?

Civilization forming

You're not an adventurer. You're some poor schmuck whose father had a farm, same farm his grandfather did and so on. You're a guy who toils in the fields, who happened to be on the wrong side of the road when the Lugal came by conscripting those surrounding his city for a little hike over the hill and down to the river valley to face the army of the opposite city. Oh, and he has a job for you that involves raiding the other guy's camp and stealing away the Cup of Indrikal, which they say contains the power that Irrup-sa-gal uses in battle. Good luck there, Sparky! If you manage to take a noble prisoner, well, that ransom money might allow you to do a few upgrades and increase your standing in the world.

You're not an adventurer. You were supposed to be married off to some idiot, but what your father DIDN'T know was that you've been hanging around with the sister of the smith. Yes, the smith, that strange man who knows how to fold and beat the metal that brings strange power to your world. The sister even knows... WRITING! Somehow, that's made a connection in your head, but the dark little being that sits at the foot of your bed hasn't been persuaded yet to tell you, even as he teases you with the promise of power. He started showing up when you started wearing the metal around your neck and Gil-a-kel's voice in your head grew less.

You're not an adventurer. You're sweeping the halls of the Lugal's second home. You know that the fervor of worshiping Ish-ri-kal fills your blood and that you've had a knack for chasing away the flu demons and healing the wounds of battle. You've also smited a few enemies while screaming the cries of your god. The Lugal liked that, especially when he was taking the spoils of battle from you in exchange for giving you a place in Ishrikal's priesthood. But man, sweeping halls suck! But something is going on, because there is a lot of talk of sending people to the Underworld to try and bring back Al-kas-hag's soul back to his body. Strange tales of what lies there... riches and strange rewards. Maybe you'll get lucky... or maybe you'll never come back.

And did I mention that you'll be stretching your timeline from your Father to your sons/daughters and their sons/daughters? There's a civilization to be made... and gods to serve.

What if, when civilization was first forming...

(These are notes that I had compiled a while back when I was foolishly thinking I was good enough to write modules. I had considered publishing an alternative history deal centered around a Black Ziggurat. Ha! Boy was I dumb. So, I'll just muddle around here with it, and maybe get together some players for it someday...)

What if ...

... the god/dess/es were real, and they influenced PCs on a much greater level - similar to a charm person, or to where the player had to make a saving throw versus an attribute to do something against the will of a god inside of the god's city? And what if this was easier at lower levels, because everyone is basically a grunt, and as you grow in levels/importance, you grow in the sight of the god/dess?

... magic users were really sorcerers and your very first "first level" spell wasn't Read Magic but Summon Demon so that you could use the demon to cast spells? And what if the mage had to have a high Charisma as well as high Intelligence? And what if the mage had to make a Charisma save to have the Demon cast the spell (ala, EPT's Spell Fumble roll prior to casting a spell?) And what if instead of sucking up the Demon's HP when the spell is cast, on a failed save, the Demon would still cast the spell but the hp cost came from the Mage?

... only those who wanted to risk disfavor with the Gods could write?

... technology was something that caused the Gods influence/power to be less? So that yes, you could use the higher technologies of refined metals, writing and what-not -- but then those Cleric spells might not work so well?

... everyone had a shot at divine favor/intervention?

... you could move up in levels, but you also had some measure of how happy your God or the city's royalty were with you... and that depended on how much of your "stuff" you gave?

... gp/sp was only a relative "measure" - coins and money was not as prevalent as jewelry, cattle, slaves, property?

... going into the "Underworld" meant you really did go to a place where the rules changed in how things worked?

... Resurrect spells were really opening portals to the deepest parts of the Underworld where you had to battle to regain the souls of your lost comrades.

... the end game was your quest to become a lugal so that you could be equal to a god through technology, control of the people and worship of a god and how the god's influence was spread to other cities, territories?

... Jeff's game of EPT at Winterwar had influenced my view of "Land of 2 Rivers" a lot more than I had realized?