Certain games live and die by the conversation among the players. Diplomacy for instance. It’s nothing without the interactions among the players as support and opposition shift among the nations of Europe. While it’s not a game I’d ever want to play, I love listening to the discussions among the players.

So I’m lucky in that I hang out with three people currently playing in an online game of Diplomacy. I can hear all about how England did something crazy or the perils of being stuck between France and Italy from the perspective of the faintly interested outsider. It makes a fine topic of conversation for a bit while hanging out at the pub or socializing before watching Game of Thrones on Sunday evenings. Seeing the game crop up in other online conversations is a hoot too.

It’s not always a perfect time for out of game Diplomacy chatter, of course. Like, say, when you’re in a game of Doctor Who at the time. The last session of Scions of Time got off to a slow start because France and Germany really got into things.

But that’s all part of playing within a small, steady community of friends. Shared interests and endeavors overlap, and not always neatly. But it helps remind one there’s more going on out there.