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Yay Gen Con! Somehow I failed my search roll when looking for this thread a few weeks ago but here on event registration day it has made itself known. Looking forward to another great year. Been attending since the early 90s, though I took several years off when it left to Milwaukee. Went by myself last year and this year 4 from my local gaming group are coming along as well.
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May 18, 2014 23:41
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Yup, also last year we hung out a bit on the Wednesday goon meet and some at after TOVA and other general auction stuff as well. Btw, The guy who's name you can't recall (from your pic of Peterson and Elliot) is Bill Meinhart though I am probably misspelling his last name.
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May 19, 2014 01:09
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Quarex posted:Anyone here reaching the "Gen-Con sucks now and I am done after this year" point? Apparently this is becoming a thing due to the constantly-increasing size and difficulty in reserving hotels/getting the events you want. I forget how fickle people can be sometimes until I look at official forms for large game conventions. The hotel costs and room shortages are the suckiest part, especially as someone who flies in and doesn't want to rent a car just to drive back and forth from the hotel daily. There is so much to do otherwise I don't think I could ever hate it. Unless perhaps everyday was like Saturday. That is just too packed for me most of the time. Hopefully they don't put trash cans in the middle of interactions again so poor crowd swimming neophytes don't get stuck on them again like so much garbage on rocks in a river.
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May 20, 2014 01:43
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Mr.Trifecta posted:Can you buy generic tickets there or do you have to buy them online? I am not sure how many are "enough". You can buy them online or there. Don't worry about getting too many, you can return them for a very small loss.
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May 20, 2014 05:00
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There was a lot more hallway play when Gen Con was in Milwaukee. It was pretty difficult not to trip over someone sleeping or going through their loot or playing games along the walls and few sky tunnels there. Especially on the way to the old Mecca. More people just camping out in vans for the 4 days around downtown Milwaukee as well. I am sure we are not far from all of that at Indianapolis now with the current hotel situation.
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May 29, 2014 12:01
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I don't think most attendees care about the stars too much. Maybe it would be different if more stars were actually there, though. I know Gen Con tried for a little bit in the 90s. The biggest year was 1995 or 1994, when they had Mark Hamill, some other Star Wars and Star Trek people, some of the main cast for the Highlander TV show (which I was pretty amped about at the time), and I am sure others I am forgetting. I never saw such a high powered tv/film fantasy/sci-fi actors group brought in a gain. I also think some of those guests were not brought in by Gen Con, but by several of the companies jumping full force into the Magic Wave trying to use star power to promote their brand new licensed card game. I haven't attended a largeish comic convention in a while since the last couple of times it seemed all you could do was get people's autographs or sift through back issues at the comic vendors. If there is more (I know panels exist, but bleh, personally), but that might have more to do with it. There just seems to be much more variety for attendees to do than spend big bucks on big names for signings. How does it compare to conventions like Pax Prime or Pax East? I have never attended but from what I understand it is more like the comic conventions, where you just do a lot of waiting to try something out or do some other relatively short lived exercise. Confirm/deny?
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May 29, 2014 15:44
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Depends on what you mean by oldsters. I started going regularly in 1992 though I have memory of my dad taking me once when I was under 10 which would have put it in the late 80s. Not that any advice about attending a game convention gained from my 8 year old self would do anyone any good. Really, being in Indianapolis makes it a whole new thing in many ways. TSR is neither around nor running the show. Central Midwestern city is fairly different than northern Midwestern. Card games completely changing things in 1993, it's a whole new animal. The only thing to me that feels pretty close to the past cons in the olden days is the auction. Other than being in a different room in a different city it feels pretty much the same as always.
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Jun 3, 2014 16:37
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I wonder if you are missing something on there as I returned several tickets days after I bought them. You have to do it through "My Transactions" and hit return tickets there within the sale you originally purchased (or claimed for the free ones). If that doesn't work I think something else must be going on.
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Jun 11, 2014 21:10
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I put up a spread sheet for goons to coordinate meeting up if they found themselves with downtime that worked pretty well. I just recreated it, took out the old data and shared it so if you are going and have a schedule go ahead and add yourself. If you have the link you can edit/view but it isn't searchable on the web: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AqiGU-iR_59KdDR3Z0V0OHlNWjIweUEtNDhCQ0tCOGc&usp=drive_web#gid=0 There was another mobile app thing a different goon set up that some people liked but not all (including myself). It didn't jive well with my aging phone and others had similar problems so this worked for us crappy phone/bad data plan people at a traditional games convention.
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Jun 12, 2014 18:23
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Any messenger or other bag will work as long as it is of a good size. Just don't bring a rolling bag and drag it around in the dealer hall or you will be suffocated to death in a bulk dice bin.
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Jun 14, 2014 12:53
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For those of you that are interested we are going to have a panel discussion and 10 minutes of footage to show for the dungeons and dragons documentary we have been working on. It is nice to be able to show a piece of what we have been working on with the public, so if you have an hour free when this is running come check it out: https://www.gencon.com/events/66470
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Jun 28, 2014 04:42
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Trustworthy posted:edit: We were using GroupMe in addition to IRC, since it keeps messages around and viewable even if the app is closed or you're logged out (without having to rely on hacky IRC push notifications). Good for planning meet-up logistics, as you can just occasionally check in when convenient and not miss anything important. I think things like the groupme and other ways to know what goons are at the con will start to get pushed out a bit more now that we are closer (less than 30 days!) to the con. Another one for those that don't like or can't use groupme or to plan out ahead of time based on similar interests/schedule or whatever else is this spreadsheet that we used last year: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AqiGU-iR_59KdDR3Z0V0OHlNWjIweUEtNDhCQ0tCOGc&usp=drive_web#gid=0 Getting things like these in the OP if they are not there already should help as well.
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Jul 14, 2014 15:32
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Being in walking distance does really improve things. Even being on the shuttle route last year, which worked, changed things. It's much better if you can just hop over back and forth from your room, especially when carrying things and if you like to check out the local bars and things for a bit in the evenings.
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Jul 24, 2014 02:41
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Shuttle info is here: http://genconshuttle.com/ . It was good, I felt, though my hotel was pretty close (~3 miles from the convention center) and it picked me up right in front of it. Only some minor issues, though it was somewhat expected since last year was the first time the shuttle ran. The 4 day pass also cost as much as my cab ride from the airport to my hotel so I definitely think the pricing was fair. I think I posted about this earlier in this thread but we are doing a more formal push now for the below event. If you have an hour free on Saturday afternoon during this 2pm slot stop by the Westin to check out a 12 minute screener of the Dungeons & Dragons: A Documentary we have been working on followed by a panel with some of us that are on the crew. I'm the archivist and a co-producer for the project and we have definitely been getting good stuff for it and it is pulling together well. ~~~ If you're into roleplaying or tabletop gaming then you've maybe, just maybe, heard about a game called Dungeons & Dragons. And if you've followed our Kickstarter then you've heard about a film called Dungeons & Dragons: A Documentary. A film about the godfather of contemporary gaming and even entertainment; everything from True Dungeon to League of Legends. We've been in production for our documentary that explores the origins of the game, the story of its founders, and how it continues to influence so many aspects of today's culture. From how we interact at live events like Gen Con, to how we are helping educate our children and even mental health. According to one of our interviews, if you're on Facebook, then you're roleplaying. Some exciting news for us -- we will be hosting a panel at GenCon where we will screen a 12-minute clip of the film and do a Q&A with the filmmakers. We're currently at a crucial point in the edit of the film and therefore will welcome your support. Why does Dungeons & Dragons speak to you? What aspects of our screener would you like to see more of? If you're at Gen Con, our panel will be on Saturday, August 16th, at 2pm, at the Westin: Capitol I. More info at https://gencon.com/events/66470. If you come by please know that your time and your support will be graciously appreciated. We want to get to know you and understand why Dungeons & Dragons has gained your curiosity! To learn more about our film, please visit our website. Come by and visit! If you can't, please feel free to email us at: a20sidedstory@gmail.com Thanks so much! Anthony Savini and The Dungeons & Dragons: A Documentary team
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Jul 24, 2014 11:43
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Megabus is spotty. It will get you there, but no guarantee it will be on time (either leaving or arrival). It is known for being hours late and breaking down. If you haven't bought tickets yet, price check with Greyhound first. This close to the travel date it should be a comparable cost and Greyhound is known to be much more reliable.
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Jul 28, 2014 17:59
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Len posted:How spotty we talking? http://www.dailydot.com/opinion/megabus-high-cost-low-price/ edit: obviously you shouldn't take greyhound if the price is greatly different and the schedule doesn't work. It doesn't hurt to look into companies with better track records though. nesbit37 fucked around with this message at 21:01 on Jul 28, 2014 |
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Jul 28, 2014 20:54
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CellBlock posted:It's $540, and I think it usually isn't, but it depends on how you value stuff like the early access to the dealer hall (although you can't buy anything in that period) and the separate housing block. You can buy stuff at early access, I have in the past. You can also get that by going to Trade Day. Much cheaper and it doesn't run out like VIG though you need to meet the requirements. This is the first year in a little while that I haven't been given a free trade day badge for running a trade session. The hotel block seems like the best benefit to the VIG. I have a feeling it might be better for those who need to or like to take a lot of breaks as well. I just don't see myself using the lounge, and I don't know what is in that swag bag but can it really be worth it? I dunno, maybe you need to experience VIG once to really know. Not that it matters unless they start really bumping up the number of slots offered for it, especially with previous VIGs getting priority over new ones.
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Jul 30, 2014 23:14
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WhiteHowler posted:I get a press badge every year. The down side is that I can't pick it up until Thursday morning and then have to brave the lines to get my event tickets. Can't you pick it up on Wednesday? I ask because I know I have seen press badges at Trade Day before because they have been in my events and asked questions for blogs and such afterwards.
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Jul 31, 2014 14:57
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I can't make the beer tour, but would love to know what local beers that are available (preferably on tap) within walking distance are worth seeking out. Last year I went to the RAM most days for late lunch/early dinner and tried everything they had. I didn't go looking for much better beer since it seemed you needed a car/cab to get to the worth while breweries and I was in town to game far more than try tasty local offerings. edit: Just to be clear, the above list is appreciated for sure but I am looking more for info about good single beers, though if everything a place makes is delicious well then that is great as well.
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Jul 31, 2014 17:48
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Backno posted:* The GroupMe app is a really good way to keep in touch with us and find open spots to check out some games or to just grab food with people, because eating alone sucks. Eating alone is awesome  . No wait even in the most crowded of places, quicker service at the bar, and you can either decompress on your own while eating and having a beer or talk about the con with the total strangers on either side of you who are likely also Gen Con attendees
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Jul 31, 2014 20:12
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The main part of Gen Con starts a week from today! Go add your name and contact info to this spreadsheet if you have not done so already and want goons to check in with you on things. Between this and group me we should be able to organize things spur of the moment pretty well while there(they both worked well last year): https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AqiGU-iR_59KdDR3Z0V0OHlNWjIweUEtNDhCQ0tCOGc&usp=drive_web#gid=0
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Aug 7, 2014 12:19
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I haven't had a chance to look around much, any exclusives or new releases you are particularly excited about picking up or seeing?
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Aug 7, 2014 18:33
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Weirdo posted:Goons! Any last minute ideas for panels and talks to attend and the like? Come to our panel on the D&D documentary! Saturday at 2 in the westin. We just made the panel members public: Director, Anthony Savini; Producer, Cecily Tyler; Co-Producer, Matt Shoemaker; Executive Producer and author, Jon Peterson; and writer, Tim Kask. If you are only interested in writing fantasy it might not be much use to you but writing and laying out a narrative for history (text or film) is certainly a complex thing.
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Aug 8, 2014 12:19
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Sarx posted:I forgot about that trivia. We will have to hit that up again since I can't imagine Trade Day being that exciting late into the evening. Trade day is dead after lunch. It's sad, really, I think a lot of the attendees for it use it to get a badge free from work or justify the vacation or something because most of the trade day panels have been lightly populated after lunch. When I do a panel there I definitely try to get slotted in the morning because of it. I wouldn't bother going to the trade day evening demos unless you are curious and want to just check it out for five minutes. The businesses there in the past clearly only care if you are a retailer and they want you to stock their game and despite promises of freebies I haven't seen anything more than a game card given out in the past.
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Aug 9, 2014 14:05
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Trynant posted:Alright so here's an almost final list of (more or less) the games I'm going to bring: I can never decide if it is a wonderful or terrible thing that I fly to Gen Con since it means it is impossible for me to bring pretty much any games with me.
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Aug 10, 2014 01:35
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Quarex posted:Welcome, Pez and Sieje!!! ENJOY THE BEST ~FOUR DAYS I am so bad with auction timing, largely because it isn't fixed each year (understandably). TOVA is usually what, 4-6pm Saturday?
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Aug 11, 2014 16:06
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Since we have a resident auction expert here, Quarex, can you place an absentee proxy bid on items? I am thinking for items in the showcase that are held for late Friday night. I have seen it done before but am pretty sure it was just for for auction staff who wanted something but knew they couldn't be there whenever it actually went on the block.
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Aug 11, 2014 22:34
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It's a long shot, but if any of you coming backed the Dog Eat Dog Kickstarter from 2012 and are willing to sell the physical copy of Ascocena that came with it let me know. The creator of the game seems to have dropped off the face of the planet after finishing it and has never gotten back to my inquiries on it.
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Aug 12, 2014 14:31
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It is most likely going to be in general rpg I think. Collectibles are largely for the rare and old such as 1st ed. Chain mail and brown box OD&D.
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Aug 15, 2014 21:32
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Junkie Disease posted:I think just from guesstimating from what I saw at previous cons much less bronys and Homestuck people. Tf2 characters almost endangered animal levels. The internet cultural biodiversity is changing! The male:female ratio seemed to be way up this year as well.
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Aug 18, 2014 16:49
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ritorix posted:GW had a booth? I didn't even notice one. The Forge World one maybe? Otherwise there wasn't a GW presence in the vendor hall beyond re-sellers with plastic mans.
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Aug 18, 2014 18:40
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 Awesome year all around. Great con, games, people and haul. All access pass was great, the monster manual and 5e module are signed by all of their respective developers and I was able to get Mike Mearls to sign the PHB. The crown jewel though is that orange B3. Can't believe that I found one at gen con, it wasn't in the collectible a section of the auction, and the vendor that had it listed it for less than 50% of its current going value. That module is the first adventure from TSR written by a woman and it ruined her career. Had some questionable content, such as some art of one of the other TSR employees wives tied up and waiting to have terrible things done to her. The day it came from the printers and the executives saw it they threw all of them away and the only ones that survived are the ones a few employees pulled out of the trash. Thing is crazy stupid rare, one of the rarest published RPG items people care about that there is. Thanks for coming to the screener for the documentary Quarex! Cecily said you must have been entertained because you were giggling the entire time it was running. If any of the rest of you were there as well I would love to hear your feedback. I didn't get to due much with goons this year because of the film and my D&D schedule but hopefully I can squeeze in more goon time next year!
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Aug 19, 2014 00:31
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pakman posted:Are you the guy that was at the Lawyer Lobbing Magic Cards seminar and opened a Garruk? The of Dice and Men docu? Nope, not me. Isn't the of Dice and Men movie a filmed (or converted from a) play and not a documentary?
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Aug 19, 2014 03:41
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RocknRollaAyatollah posted:A copy of that sold for $300 at the Gencon auction in what I'm guessing is similar condition. Like new condition bagged and shrink wrapped versions sell in the $1,000's. How much did you pay for that? $300 when? It wasn't this year or last year unless somehow it didn't make it to the collectible section which would be crazy. Two sold on ebay this year, one for 1800 and another for 2200, the second in similar condition to this one. One sold at the auction at gen con 2008 for 3000. I paid 800. nesbit37 fucked around with this message at 12:41 on Aug 19, 2014 |
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Aug 19, 2014 12:35
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ThaShaneTrain posted:Okay, best and worst game event you did at the con? This is really a tough one. Though I had events that were not as good as others this year I didn't have a single bad event this year and a couple great ones. Best single event was playing Metamorphosis Alpha (1st ed.) with Michael Curtis as GM. He did a great job as always and most of the players really got into it. The mutant gorilla and weasel interactions in our group were the best. The weasel player talked as sort of an ignorant star struck mickey mouse that played well with the gorilla. Favorite part was when the two of them were swinging around the edges of a large open sewer trying to tie off a rope so the rest of us could safely climb down. A flat worm rises from the filth and grabbed onto the weasel and the gorilla starts to slowly heat it with pyrokinesis. All of our characters sitting in the duct started to wonder what the gorilla could possibly be doing to the weasel when all we could hear were the screams of a weasel, the Gorilla shouting "Kong burn worm!" and the slowly rising smell of poo poo cooking. Scat humor is the best humor. D&D All Access pass was a great experience as well. Doubly so since our GM was blind which is something I had not played through before. The first day was a little rough because his laptop ran out of power and the ICC was taking their sweet time to open an outlet for us so he couldn't read through the adventure on his braille keyboard. After that it went quite well, though one of our group was mildly annoyed that it meant there was no chance of us using miniatures for any of the sessions. If there was any bad it would have to be drinking too much Wednesday night. Though fun I had too much too early and is pretty much why I missed the goon get together at trivia and a couple of other minor group things I had planned for the night.
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Aug 20, 2014 21:25
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The guy who runs True Dungeon quit his other job a couple weeks ago of being president of Dwarven Forge so he could concentrate on True Dungeon more. That could either mean fixing things and making them better for what it costs now or blowing things up and making them insane so no one who isn't addicted will never do it. Artemis at Gen Con seems to be going through similar growing pains. Last year it was like $18 which is pricey but bearable. This year they blew it up to an insane $42 and other than offering GM run games for the first time I have no idea why they inflated it so much unless they just thought people would pay it no matter what. I am really curious as to how well they did or did not do this year because of that.
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Aug 21, 2014 03:31
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There are other gaming focused cons that are good but Gen Con is the only large one in the states that pulls it off without turning into Comicon light*. I know several people after this year and last year are worried about that changing, though. Honestly, if you avoid that stuff then Saturday is the only day that seems closer to fandom than gamerdom to me and even that is somewhat of a stretch. Garycon is wonderful, particularly if you are into the history of roleplaying and like games in either the OSR or 1st edition period or older (not necessarily TSR). That includes old wargames and boardgames up to the modern day. I've been to it twice now and the games are great, meeting and playing with people from the beginning of the industry is great, and getting beer served to you at your game tables is great. It was also a wonderful experience to play both OD&D and a sandtable game of Chainmail in the house Gygax typed D&D up in. It is certainly smaller, however, at 1% the size of Gen Con, but it is no less fun with 500+ people if what you want to do is play games as the major part of your con. I have heard similar things about North Texas RPG Con, just a smidge smaller in attendance than Garycon, but I haven't been able to make it out to that one yet. I have had mix success with local cons in the Philadelphia area. I don't regret going to them, but with the exception of Historicon they have all felt more like a bigger in-store gaming experience. *=I have not attended Comicon, Dragon Con or any of the PAX's so this is all from second hand descriptions of them. That said, from the descriptions I have had of them and why people who love them go they don't sound like my cup of tea at all.
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Aug 26, 2014 14:27
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Quarex posted:LESS TALKING, MORE PICTURE-POSTING I am taking the lazy way out and not selecting individual images. Rather here is a link to all of the photos I took at Gen Con this year: https://plus.google.com/photos/107246940752848843822/albums/6049089079338174273?authkey=CO6ymdTR6Obu3QE
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Aug 26, 2014 21:59
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ThaShaneTrain posted:Kobold guide to board game design is my new game design bible. It was the thing that let me know I was on the right track. When my game survived all of the tests that book put it through I knew I was ready to seek out publishers. I liked the other design book and hope this is as good or better. Glad to hear it was useful for you. We'll see when I actually have time to put it into practice.
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Aug 27, 2014 16:20
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| # ¿ May 14, 2024 16:11 |
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Complete KOBOLD Guide to Game Design , which is there three other design books combined. The board game design book is the 4th one they put out and not included in this compilation.
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Aug 27, 2014 16:46
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