What Would That Look Like?

I find myself stuck between two unsatisfactory notions. On the one hand, I'm very strongly disinclined to run another campaign with the current group, for a number of reasons not all of which I've laid out here. On the other hand, though, I really don't want to accept that this is an end of gaming for me.

I also find myself dissatisfied with the various campaign ideas, adventure notions, and other such things that have sprung to mind. So, in an attempt to make some headway, this post is an exercise in trying to work out what a satisfactory future for me for gaming might look like.

First up, any future campaign would need to be something quite different. I don't actually mean moving away from D&D, or even 5e, in this regard. But recent campaigns have been constrained by a 1-hour time slot and/or by being run online, and in both cases the campaign has therefore been extremely constrained. Essentially, the game has been boiled right down to the core experience and nothing else, with very little by way of social interaction or even exploration. I'd need that to change.

Tied in with that would need to be a change of format. As noted, sessions would necessarily need to be more than an hour in length, and gaming would need to be face-to-face. This creates serious issues, but I'm not going to dwell on those right now.

So...

Some sort of different campaign with a stronger social and exploration aspect than has been the case previously. I think an intent, once again, to run from 1st level up to something a good bit higher - 10th level at a minimum; perhaps more.

That, in turn, suggests either a home base for the campaign, or at least a fairly strong hub to which the PCs return again and again - I'd want them to have a stable core of characters that they regularly interact with. (Or, I suppose, they could take those NPCs with them...)

And I'm, frankly, rather sick of the "BBEG is rising to power, and you have to stop him" campaign structure. Let's have something more positive - the PCs have the opportunity to build something that will make life better, rather than fighting to avoid it becoming worse.

That's what I have so far.