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I think my favorite part of last year was when they let all those kids demolish that Cthulhu balloon sculpture. I'll only be there two days this year, but I'm excited. I've got a ton of stuff to buy, like Doomtown Reloaded, Shadow of Brimstone, and all the prereleases from FFG.
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May 8, 2014 04:36
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My buddy handles our room reservations and has had good success with calling the lady who handles the wishlist. Might be worth a try, but like I said earlier I think there'll be a lot of movement over the next month or so as people get their plans nailed down.
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May 8, 2014 04:49
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Jonas Albrecht posted:Doomtown Reloaded Gonna be so pissed if this sells out as fast as Netrunner did when it launched.
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May 8, 2014 04:58
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So my seminar was finally confirmed! UnderDiscussion's "So You Want to Start a Podcast" Seminar SEM1456537, 8/15 at 2pm It's in the Crowne Plaza again this year. I asked for a big enough room that hopefully it doesn't sell out and get left out of the convention guide like it did last year.
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May 8, 2014 05:27
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InShaneee posted:Gonna be so pissed if this sells out as fast as Netrunner did when it launched. Well if the last three GenCons have showed me anything, it's that the thing I want most will sell out 30 seconds after the doors open. So make a beeline for AEG.
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May 8, 2014 05:33
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Section 9 posted:Has anyone on the waiting list heard anything at all? This is my first year actually registering for my own housing, and I got screwed out of a JW Marriot spot because the site crashed on me after entering my CC info and dumped me back in queue. I signed up for the waiting list and registered a room "out by the airport" as a placeholder (since that is all that was available at that point.) I've gotten no responses and everything about the waiting list says "don't bother asking, we'll contact you when we get to you", but the lack of any acknowledgement makes me worry. I know it doesn't help for this year, but not every hotel was on the waiting list. There were some that were offering rooms ahead of time, within a mile or two of the convention center. The price might not be quite as good, but I was able to reserve a room that way long before the GenCon booking went live, then had issues and left a lot of people unhappy.
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May 8, 2014 05:33
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Yeah, not to be too negative about the chances of getting off the waitlist, but even if the waitlist worked out by and large in previous years, the ridiculous growth of the convention over the past few years has probably made everything more ridiculous. Brief history lesson for anyone newish to the convention if you are too lazy to check out The Gen-Con Wikipedia Page(tm): In the NEW YORK TIMES ARTICLE THAT MENTIONS GEN-CON WOOO it discussed that the convention attendance once seemed like its absolute ceiling was about 30,000 attendees (as they claimed that many in 1995 and then by 2010 had finally made it back to 30,000 again*) yet it was brushing 50,000 only three years later. And considering every year both VIG badges and hotels sell out much faster than the year before (VIG badges went from a hilariously uninteresting novelty item to an instant-sellout by 2011, the hotel block only finally got to instant-sellout this year after a slower march towards it). *Per the mostly anecdotal suggestions of the "Keeper of Ancient Gen-Con Lore," TSR was openly and significantly padding its attendance numbers in the 1990s before being taken over by Wizards of the Coast, but of course the problem with anecdotes...
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May 8, 2014 05:38
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Quarex posted:Yeah, not to be too negative about the chances of getting off the waitlist, but even if the waitlist worked out by and large in previous years, the ridiculous growth of the convention over the past few years has probably made everything more ridiculous. Yeah, that's sort of what I was wondering. The last two years I was part of a small vendor block, so we had things locked in the year before. This year I'm trying to secure a room for a few random local nerds. If I don't hear anything by June/July about wait list I'm going to just bail cause I don't want to travel in from the airport every day.
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May 8, 2014 05:57
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Section 9 posted:Yeah, that's sort of what I was wondering. The last two years I was part of a small vendor block, so we had things locked in the year before. This year I'm trying to secure a room for a few random local nerds. If I don't hear anything by June/July about wait list I'm going to just bail cause I don't want to travel in from the airport every day. For what it's worth, my group did something akin to that last year. We stayed at a hotel not too far from the airport and basically drove into the con area in the morning to get decent parking and spent the day there until around 10 each day. We did miss sunday, but it was necessary given people needed to be at work on monday and we drove all the way from Florida. We came back with lots of memories though (not all good).
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May 8, 2014 10:46
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Is there a mass amount of deals on Sunday? Leaving that day but not sure whether to leave in the morning or evening.
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May 8, 2014 18:26
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It depends on what you want. Random poo poo goes on sale, for sure - I picked up two big stuffed Meeples for $5 total on Sunday a few years back when they were going for $10 a piece on Friday. Board games I've had a bit less success on. Last year I bought Kemet at the CoolStuffInc booth on Sunday for something like $3 off, which was definitely a savings but probably not worth having to carry it around for an hour or two when I could have just Prime'd it on Amazon. Generally bulk items, dead card games (grabbed two boxes of Overpower for like $15 two years ago!) and trinkets are what go on super sale from what I've seen, stuff like card sleeves and other supplies. It might be different if you're more about RPG books, used items/card singles, or artwork though, I'm not really experienced there.
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May 8, 2014 18:31
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8one6 posted:So my seminar was finally confirmed! My 3 games got confirmed as well: Base Raiders: Transit 2014/08/14 10:00 AM Kerberos Club: The Grandfather Paradox 2014/08/15 10:00 AM Elder Godlike: Operation AUGER 2014/08/16 10:00 AM I also see you're in KC. I'm in Springfield - we should do some RPG podcast thing at some point.
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May 8, 2014 19:27
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clockworkjoe posted:My 3 games got confirmed as well: That would be cool.
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May 8, 2014 21:55
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Mr.Trifecta posted:Is there a mass amount of deals on Sunday? Leaving that day but not sure whether to leave in the morning or evening. So the thing about the Auction (I know this is not specifically relevant to your question but this always comes up): Some people put things in the Auction or the Auction Store at amazing discounts from the get-go, and that means if you get there first thing when it opens you are guaranteed to get an amazing deal. But some people start things at a reasonable price and then have the price drop somewhat on Friday and then to a ridiculous price on Saturday instead (as that is the last day of the Auction), so if you get into the Store early on Saturday you will instead get your amazing deal.
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May 8, 2014 22:40
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Event registration opens soon. This is only my second GenCon (the first was like 100% WarmaHordes tournaments). What are some good events?
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May 9, 2014 03:02
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Ego Trip posted:Event registration opens soon. This is only my second GenCon (the first was like 100% WarmaHordes tournaments). True Dungeon is expensive, but if you have a good group it's fun. Games On Demand, because you should always try out a new RPG and this is the best and easiest way to do it.
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May 9, 2014 04:37
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Ego Trip posted:Event registration opens soon. This is only my second GenCon (the first was like 100% WarmaHordes tournaments). If you can, try and get a FATE event. They're usually fun and it's easy enough to get that you can have a good time with the storytelling aspect without getting too wrapped up in the rules soup. The board game events are always pretty fun too especially if you're checking out a new game.
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May 9, 2014 04:40
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Ego Trip posted:Event registration opens soon. This is only my second GenCon (the first was like 100% WarmaHordes tournaments). One kooky diversion is the puzzles set up throughout the hall. Me and another of my group off ours spent a good chunk of a day just waltzing around and looking at poo poo while working on the puzzles. You have to be a gigantic Turbonerd to do them all I think.
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May 9, 2014 05:49
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Ego Trip posted:Event registration opens soon. This is only my second GenCon (the first was like 100% WarmaHordes tournaments). Battletech pods are good generic ticket dumps if you have downtime. I usually tell people if they feel patient to join at least one old style Wargame a year (games labeled as WW2/Vietnam battles, usually with tanks). They can be fun and at the very least eye opening about how dedicated some gamers are to their craft. RPGA/PF if that is in your interests are usually cheap. 
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May 9, 2014 06:04
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So what side of the cities if the better of the two commute wise from a hotel or are they all about the same?
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May 9, 2014 15:45
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Some pics from GenCon 2013 Balloon Cthulu  Rampage. All set up and ready for my friend (Lower Left) to sweep the game.  Not too far from the Convention Center, there's this monument. At first we didn't know what to think. It's still kinda wtf in context.  Towers of Yu Yu Hakusho TCG cards And then there's the Haunted House puzzles that were dotted around the convention center. I still have the pictures with some of the notes and solutions. Here's an example  Should I post the rest?
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May 10, 2014 00:40
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I do not know if other people are into puzzles, but I know EVERYONE IS INTO EVENT LISTINGS!!!!!! Or if you want to skip right to the good stuff, you would of course use the HighProgrammer searchable event listings site.
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May 10, 2014 03:04
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Saturday night is a Colts preseason game, I wonder how crazy that will be. Their stadium is right next to the con.
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May 10, 2014 16:45
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Is anyone going to be at Trade Day? I wasn't overly impressed by the academic panels two years ago, but there are some interesting-looking panels for educators.
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May 11, 2014 07:20
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Any suggestions for the wishlist? So far, I've got the Q&A with Jim Butcher, one of the True Dungeons, and a Whose Line Is It Anyways thing. Not much else is catching my eye, though it could just be sensory overload. I'm into the Pathfinder Society, I've got a level 4 Magus through that, and I like (or will at least try) pretty much any boardgame or anything with a character sheet. Other than those three things, I just don't know. Should I just buy a stack of General Admission tickets and hope for the best if I decide to find a pickup game?
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May 13, 2014 07:47
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the_steve posted:Any suggestions for the wishlist? Buying some generics would be a good idea. I'll also recommend signing up for at least a session of Games on Demand to try out some new games.
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May 13, 2014 08:22
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The standard advice is also to make sure you do not overcommit yourself, given how often people end up skipping scheduled events for a spontaneous thing going down. This is particularly true for events on Saturday in the afternoon/evening, as no human being in the world should miss T.O.V.A. Personal stake notwithstanding.
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May 13, 2014 17:48
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ritorix posted:Saturday night is a Colts preseason game, I wonder how crazy that will be. Their stadium is right next to the con. Based on the last time (4 years ago I think), it will be nutso. Don't expect to drive anywhere downtown, as traffic will be heavy and roads will be closed. Foot traffic wasn't too bad.
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May 13, 2014 19:43
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Quarex posted:The standard advice is also to make sure you do not overcommit yourself, given how often people end up skipping scheduled events for a spontaneous thing going down. This is particularly true for events on Saturday in the afternoon/evening, as no human being in the world should miss T.O.V.A. Personal stake notwithstanding. TOVA?
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May 13, 2014 20:14
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I think the Motorcycle Grand Prix is that weekend too, in otherwords, if you have a car, leave it outside the city during that weekend.
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May 13, 2014 20:37
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SirFozzie posted:I think the Motorcycle Grand Prix is that weekend too, in otherwords, if you have a car, leave it outside the city during that weekend. Alternatively, come early and don't expect to drive
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May 13, 2014 21:31
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Also be prepared to smell lots of poop while walking around
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May 13, 2014 21:54
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SirFozzie posted:I think the Motorcycle Grand Prix is that weekend too, in otherwords, if you have a car, leave it outside the city during that weekend. MotoGP Indy is a week earlier in 2014.
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May 13, 2014 22:02
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Yes, it is a beautiful thing that we are not sharing with MotoGP this year, even though other than maybe waking up at 2 A.M. they were mostly a non-factor (beyond a possible impact on the hotel reservations, and given it was just as hard to get them this year if not moreso I am thinking they were a complete non-factor).the_steve posted:TOVA?   It stands for Toys, Oddities, Video(/Games), and Art, and is the "catch-all" section of the Auction. It would be worth attending even if that were the extent of its function, as there is always a LOT of interesting stuff thrown in there (most of the one-of-a-kind stuff ends up here, whether prototypes of nerdy toys or animation cels from famous cartoons or original paintings or handmade statues of Demogorgon or whatever*). But the main reason I became a T.O.V.A. addict by about 2005 is the way the entire thing is run; I believe every year I describe it as a kind of hybrid infomercial-religious revival-stand up comedy set. Josh the auctioneer is basically a one-man highlight reel of entertainment, which makes sense given his unique skill set of "incredibly knowledgeable about nerd culture" and "former speech/theater coach." The problem with me hyping it up is that I joined the regular T.O.V.A. auctioneer crew in 2012, but my overall level of excitement was the same before I started. I promise that my goal is to just to make sure I do not detract from the amazement of the main show (as opposed to a lot of previous people who worked with Josh who were somewhat painfully trying to imitate his style while having no business doing so). Anyone else who has actually been to T.O.V.A. with or without me involved, help me out here. I KNOW YOU LIKED IT, even if maybe not as much as I always have. *It is worth noting that the obviously-super-valuable one-of-a-kinds do end up in the Collector's Auction on Friday night, though--like Gary Gygax's briefcase or the Chrysler convertible PAINTED WITH SPAWN CHARACTERS or other similar things.
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May 13, 2014 22:56
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Sounds interesting, I'll have to check that out.
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May 14, 2014 17:57
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We definitely need to get some late night alcohol fueled games going this year. I threw some beers into a trash can with some ice and we had good times playing in one of the JW Marriott game rooms last year.
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May 14, 2014 19:05
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Holy gently caress how do you process all the poo poo that's available on the event calendar? Can you export it to a spreadsheet or something?
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May 14, 2014 22:57
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Crackbone posted:Holy gently caress how do you process all the poo poo that's available on the event calendar? Can you export it to a spreadsheet or something? Quarex posted:I do not know if other people are into puzzles, but I know EVERYONE IS INTO EVENT LISTINGS!!!!!!
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May 15, 2014 00:20
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so I've been for the last like 3 years and it never occurred to me that other goons might also. do you guys regularly have a meet up on one of the nights?
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May 15, 2014 00:34
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Razzled posted:so I've been for the last like 3 years and it never occurred to me that other goons might also. do you guys regularly have a meet up on one of the nights? I will be at the Auction, whether working or just chillaxing, like 8-10 hours a day from Thursday to Saturday, and that is usually all I do other than a one-off game. And my perpetual threat of giving that talk on the problem of fantasy eugenics.
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May 15, 2014 00:38
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