Hello and Happy Friday,

With the weekend apporaching fast and many good games to be played, let's do our best to make the communities we are part of to be better. X-Wing is such an amazing game let's really step it up be encouraging and welcoming. You never know who might need to hear that.

Wave 3 next month.

🙂

Or as the first lady would say...

I want to make a shout out to my local game store in Fresno aka Hobbytown for being amazing and accepting! We normally play 40k/AoS but there is also a strong Xwing game (I play all three because I do not value my free time =P). I have recently come out as transgender and have been attending our regular night game night for the last month as myself (I'm not out to family/work yet) and the people at our store have just been AMAZING. They accept me as a woman and work hard to remember my name and pronouns. Ive had nothing but love from an incredibly diverse group of people who have no reason to be so nice to me. Friday nights are my night to be myself and to be comfortable being who I am and they have gone out of their way to make it happen. I couldn't ask for a better gaming group. I was worried at first based on our communities.......record on diversity but I have been pleasantly surprised at every turn!

Additionally I baked them all cookies for tonight to thank them for being so great!

Im kinda sad, no one else has any feel good stories? Or is everyone at LVO?

The group at my game store is pretty cool as well. I've been dealing with some tough stuff, and sometimes it's hard to feel like playing X-Wing, but I remind myself that I always feel better after I go. Everyone's really chill there, and actually chill. Not, 'we're actually really nasty to outsiders but we like each other so we think we're chill' chill, but actually chill. It was kinda strange to me last time I was down there and I was reminded that they play competitively when they were talking about their last tournament, because of the horrible experiences I've had with tournament players in other games recently.

14 minutes ago, Jokubas said:

The group at my game store is pretty cool as well. I've been dealing with some tough stuff, and sometimes it's hard to feel like playing X-Wing, but I remind myself that I always feel better after I go. Everyone's really chill there, and actually chill. Not, 'we're actually really nasty to outsiders but we like each other so we think we're chill' chill, but actually chill. It was kinda strange to me last time I was down there and I was reminded that they play competitively when they were talking about their last tournament, because of the horrible experiences I've had with tournament players in other games recently.

I get you 100%. I haven't been doing much gaming at all for the last 6 months but I do find myself still going on fridays, watching people play, and just socializing. Its been a huge boon to me to have such amazing people around when it feels like everything else could be falling apart. Now that im feeling altogether these days im back at the table and enjoying myself

I don’t have anything as dramatic. But I recently moved across country for work, my wife and kids still back home. I’ve hooked in with the local X-wing community and it has been great. People who I know well by this point, are friendly, and whom I spend time with outside of league nights.

For being several months away from all my family and friends, this has kept me grounded and from completely withdrawing socially, as I would have otherwise.

Since this thread needs a better picture than the one above:

meanwhile (at least for my location).