And now where can I buy DOOM: The Board Game?

So a few weeks ago, FRINAN and I went to Avalon Games, our conveniently located hometown games store, to check out what new Mage supplements they'd got in. I'd already spent something like $80 in the previous week on a stack of books, and FRINAN wanted to look for a few himself.

But when we arrived, we were greeted with sad, sad news -- Avalon Games was closed for business. An apologetic -- yet bitter -- sign hung in the window. WE'RE SORRY FOR OUR LOYAL CUSTOMERS, it read. EVERYONE ELSE CAN GO PLAY THEIR GAMES ON WAL*MART'S TABLES.

We were sad. I mean, we never spent that much time -- or money, really -- at Avalon. We didn't buy that many books, nor did we have use for their tables. (Especially with their NO SWEARING rule -- the fuck?) But when we did buy them, we liked to buy them there. I mean, it was right there!

"Dammit," FRINAN said. "Now we have to go to Horizon Games."

Horizon Games is far away. Horizon Games is staffed by unfriendly people. Horizon Games will offer to order whatever book you want ('cause Horizon Games will never, ever have it in stock), but Horizon Games will never actually order it, and Horizon Games will never actually get the book in. FRINAN doesn't like Horizon Games.

Well, today I saw that FRINAN doesn't have to go to Horizon Games, because Horizon Games is closed, too. No sign in the window, no nothing -- just gone.

I don't know when it happened. I don't know why it happened. But...dammit. Where are all the games stores going?

Now we have to buy directly from White Wolf. Which is convenient and all, yeah, but...dammit, I liked going to the gaming store! Most of the RPG supplements I've ever bought were impulse buys -- "Oooh, that looks cool!" It's a lot harder to do an impulse buy on the internet. Plus, I can't skim through the book over the web. I liked doing that.

Well, at least one thing is good -- I've finally justified buying all those ten-sided dice I've bought over the years. 'Cause I've got nowhere to buy them anymore.

Seriously, I've got, like, fifty.

For real.