Weekly gaming meetups offer brain breaks during the workday

Abducting ducks, weaponizing robots and battling with mutant monsters are just a few of the ways some Sandians are spending their lunchtime.

While the work at Sandia is all about the mission, a few workforce members use lunch breaks to focus on different mission objectives — all achieved within the confines of a board game.

“We enjoy a chance to take a break from work to use our brains in a different way, to meet new people and have a change of pace,” engineer Steven Paradise said. “I love playing board games, and it’s nice to have a semi-regular opportunity to do that. And I’ve met people at Sandia who I wouldn’t have interfaced with otherwise.”

An avid board gamer, Steven helped found the Sandia League of United Gamers — also known as SLUGs — in 2011. The group meets weekly on Mondays at 11:30 a.m. by the 915 café.

“We select games that we’ll play within an hour,” he said, adding they leave time for teaching that week’s game to anyone who hasn’t played it. “Most weeks, at least one person is learning a new game.”

The group has seen membership ebb and flow through the years, especially during the pandemic when they didn’t restart games in person until mid-2022. Currently, about eight people are SLUGs regulars, and those regulars say they encourage new people to join.

“Everybody’s really caring and helpful,” engineer Tess Kummerer said. “We like trying to point things out for other people because it’s more about the fun of the game than trying to win the game.”

Engineer Ryan Flynn agreed the group is friendly to new players. He joined after the group started up again in 2022.

“It’s great to be able to have some opportunities to network outside of your job responsibilities,” said Ryan, who especially enjoys deck-building games. “When we play at lunch, every so often I’ll find a game to add to my own collection.”

Salmon, sushi and robots

In addition to deck-building games, the group enjoys trick-taking games, drafting games and cooperative games. But you won’t typically find them playing more mainstream games such as Monopoly, Sorry! or The Game of Life — and certainly no gambling.

“Generally, what we play are more modern board games,” said Steven, who was introduced to the modern game style when he played Settlers of Catan — typically considered the starter game for the modern era.

Newer group members Emma Oti and Kevin Warren said they started using the board gaming sessions as an opportunity to recharge from their work during lunch.

“Growing up, we all played board games. It reminds me of childhood,” said Kevin, who happened upon the group one day and joined in. “The opportunity brought me to the table, and the people are keeping me here. It’s good and important to unplug and give the mind a break from work.”

Emma called herself “terrible” at board games, so she’s using the sessions to up her game.

“I thought this could be an excellent thing to do at lunch,” Emma said. “I didn’t realize there are so many different types of board games. My mind is boggled — I love it.”

Some of the board games players enjoy include Typewriter, Paperback, Salmon Run, Dixit, Sushi Go, King of Tokyo, Abducktion and Robot Quest Arena. But that’s just scratching the surface for board gamers who have bookshelves lined with games.

“I pretty much like all games except for long, competitive games where you’re spending half a day playing,” said Tess, who recalled getting board games for the holidays and her birthday every year growing up. “I would prefer a game be cooperative because when it finishes, I’d like everyone to be happy together or sad together.”

Steven agreed the cooperative games where the players work together are great for the SLUGs meetups.

“We don’t have anybody who’s in your face, ‘I’m going to destroy you all’ competitive,” Steven said. “I like working as a team to defeat the game together.”

Breaking for board games

The game group has a SLUGs webpage with a sign-up sheet where prospective players can RSVP for that week’s game session and list games they’ve played or are interested in playing.

“Ideally, people put their name on the list so we know to expect them. But if they just show up about the time the game is starting, we’ll work people in,” Steven said. “Signing up is helpful but not required.”

The weekly SLUGs meetups at Sandia allow gamers to practice their hobby during the workday, especially when it can be hard to find time outside of work.

“I like having a regularly scheduled and conveniently close place to go play games with coworkers who have become friends,” Tess said. “In the outside world, scheduling can sometimes be a problem. It’s also a nice midday mental break as well as forced exercise to walk to building 915.”

When joining sessions, people are welcome to bring games or just bring themselves. In addition to players bringing games each week, a cabinet in the 915 lobby is stashed with games to choose from.

And while the variety of games may seem overwhelming, the message the game group wants to get across to potential new players is to not be intimidated.

“Just come, and we’ll get to know you a little bit and see what kind of games you’ve enjoyed in the past and build from there,” Steven said. “It’s unlikely you’ll be the only one playing a new game for the first time. And we’ve got people who are great at teaching. I enjoy doing it because board games bring me a lot of fun, and I like to be able to share that with other people.”

For more information or to be added to a recurring Outlook invitation, contact Steven Paradise.