Through The Looking Glass: Reflecting on A Festival of Fae
June 22, 2023
A Festival of Fae has been completed!
Roll Your Destiny has taken its first steps into the Ren Faire world and now we have a game associated with our name. The days since Celtic Fest have been an exciting time for our team, as we’ve reviewed your feedback, discussed future plans for the game, and geared ourselves up for our fall project. We’ll be unveiling our next game shortly, but before we do, we thought we’d take some time to share a bit about the journey leading up to last Saturday.
A lot goes into game creation behind the scenes—we thought we’d fill you in on some of what went on backstage.
Any event planner will tell you, a one-day event will never go the same way twice. That means each time we run a one-day game we’ll have a unique set of challenges, just like each participant will have a unique experience.
In this case, our team was unveiling our first gameplay experience, and there were so many unknowns! From what the weather would be, to the time we’d need for set-up and tear-down, all our plans were dotted with question marks.
In the days leading up to the event, we were hard at work building props and signs, assembling game stations, and coordinating with our volunteers to be sure everything was prepared for our big day! In a lot of ways, it reminded the theatre kids among our number of preparing for a stage play—to create the experience we wanted for our game, we had to coordinate actors, props, and audience experience all at the same time! It was a big ask for five people, but we pulled through (with a lot of help from our families, friends, and volunteers)!
After Celtic Fest, we learned a lot about the steps required to create the type of game we want.
It takes weeks of time and planning, where we create not just the game but all the physical materials that make it special, from props and gameplay booklets, to prizes and our booth accessories. It takes high levels of coordination from a group of five people in three different regions of the continental US, and volunteers from even more places. And it takes a dedication and drive that has to fuel the team through long days and short nights, as we pour our time, energy, and excitement into the quests that you’ll experience, to make them the best they can be.
We have a lot more to learn, and we’re excited for what the future holds.
Next time, we hope to bring a more streamlined experience to a larger audience, and offer multiple levels of difficulty, so our adventurers know more about each challenge’s length and complexity before they set forth on their quest.
As we close out this reflection, our team would like to give two very special thank yous to the other groups that made our first game possible. Throughout A Festival of Fae’s development, we had the support of the Ohio Renaissance Festival team, who helped us coordinate with the other people who made Celtic Fest a reality, and provided us with a booth to run our game from. Not only did they let us share this game with you, they believed in our vision. They wanted to see Roll Your Destiny’s unique brand of magic enhance their festival, and gave us the means to show them our potential.
Without The Ohio Renaissance Festival’s willingness to take a chance, our dream would not have come to life, and we’re very grateful for the opportunity they gave us. We’d also like to give a huge thank our phenomenal volunteers, and give a special shout-out to the Guild of the Fae, who connected us with many of them.
You may not know this (we didn’t know it before this game) but your home state might also have a group of Fae just waiting for you, too! We partnered with Guild of the Fae members from their Ohio and Kentucky chapters, who devoted their day to bringing the Faeries that ran our game to life. Their delightful characters and enthusiasm made our game an unforgettable experience, and we’re so glad we had the chance to spread the joy of the Fae alongside them for our first event. While not all of our volunteers were part of this amazing organization, many of them said they planned to join up afterwards! Joining is free, and the only requirements are a willingness to bring a Fae to life and brighten the lives of others around you.