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Yeah, will call line is seriously NBD. Food and FFG lines however...
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May 31, 2017 15:40
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Oh god, the bathrooms are some of the worst things I have experienced in my life. I don't know how all the toilet paper is gone by 8am every day but it just is and replaced with a combination of the spells grease and stinking cloud. edit: Bathrooms are the underrated luxury of having a downtown hotel room. You have no choice of where to go when your hotel is 10 miles away!
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May 31, 2017 15:49
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Derek, that posted that, is one of the data guys for Gen Con and I am sure he pulled those stats from what everyone tried to register for last Sunday.
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Jun 1, 2017 02:20
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8one6 posted:Is there any way to see a list of the pre-reg'ed store items before the Con? That would be amazing, but even if it happened I don't think it would matter. They seem to cycle the store stock fairly regularly not to mention add in stuff that doesn't sell in the auction but marked to go to the store if that happens.
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Jun 2, 2017 15:09
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I need to do at least one more interview for this Gen Con project and I need someone who has been going for a few years mainly for cosplay type stuff. I was hoping to interview Mudcrab Merchant for this (and still totally will if she can) but I know she's been really busy and scheduling hasn't worked very well. Any of you here know someone suitable or know of someone in the general Gen Con community I should reach out to that might be good for this?
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Jun 5, 2017 15:24
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If any of you are interested in Gen Con/Gaming history you could totally do a related goon meet at my panel. I know it's sold out but I would be amazed if they are taking tickets for a free seminar event. https://www.gencon.com/events/116874
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Jun 7, 2017 14:21
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Dr. Quarex posted:
I just remade it: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1jNHe8oYKYbffaelCoeTtf_0RXbnC1_e12K-cWTFs2sA/edit?usp=sharing The groupme is better while at Gen Con, but for planning purposes I think the spreadsheet is way better. Go add your info Gen-Goons!
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Jun 7, 2017 18:05
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Woot! Thank you hotel script, just got a room at the Hilton Garden Inn. Was really hoping for the Westin or something attached but I'll take it.
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Jun 8, 2017 16:27
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Like official Gen Con swag or...?
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Jun 8, 2017 16:54
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Dr. Quarex posted:And also why they cut Educators from being able to use the Exhibition Hall on Trade Day this year. Which is a drat shame, as it would have been one of the most tangible uses thus far of the Dr. part of my name. Even though I don't have an educators badge this year it pissed me off. I mean the educator part of trade day already kind of sucks, and now for the same price you get less badge value. They should at least drop the cost or something since the educators are mostly non-profit folk coming.
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Jun 8, 2017 19:38
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If any of you need a downtown room there is one at the Hilton Garden Inn just sitting there on the housing portal, has been for a bit it looks like.
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Jun 9, 2017 14:50
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I am off to Origins as well! Curious to see what I think of it this year compared to last.
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Jun 14, 2017 13:24
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For origins or gen con? If the former not sure, its just my second year here.
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Jun 14, 2017 18:53
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Dr. Quarex posted:I knew I should have installed the Awful App(tm)  Origins Trip Report So Origins was less exciting than last year for me, which shouldn't be a surprise since last year was my first year there. It really does feel so much different than Gen Con, and not just because of the size. I dunno, I'll probably go back again next year if its mostly free again for DMing but it is no Gen Con. First day I went to Barley's for some pre game beers and to get their Origins pint glass and some annoying guy sat next to me and just wouldn't stop talking for the entire time I was there. Made me super grumpy and wishing I was just at Gen Con. Next day I ran my morning game then checked out the dealer hall for about 90 minutes and picked up a few things but nothing much jumped out at me. Really wanted some of the forge world LotR stuff but holy crap was some of it expensive. Why on earth do they use a 1.6 USD to GPD rate at shows when the current exchange rate is 1.27 to 1? Screw that. Anyway, that also made me grumpy and wish I was at Gen Con. Friday was much the same as Thursday except I got to play a free game of True Dungeon so that was cool. Saturday was the D&D open which is both fun and a slog. My table got an award for me being the first DM to kill a player in the open so that was entertaining. Bottom line, Origins feels like a much larger local con. I can best compare it to Gen Con in Milwaukee in the mid-90s pre CCG days. They apparently had 17000 unique badges which was fewer than I expected them to have, so you can see its like 1/4 the size of Gen Con. Its not bad to get your Con feet wet or get you excited for Gen Con but it is no substitute.
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Jun 20, 2017 15:40
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nesbit37 posted:I need to do at least one more interview for this Gen Con project and I need someone who has been going for a few years mainly for cosplay type stuff. I was hoping to interview Mudcrab Merchant for this (and still totally will if she can) but I know she's been really busy and scheduling hasn't worked very well. Any of you here know someone suitable or know of someone in the general Gen Con community I should reach out to that might be good for this? Haystack posted:Try contacting folks from And Sewing is Half the Battle. It's the most active cosplay group in the region, as far as I know. Little slow on this, but anyone have contact info for them? Their web page seems to be down. Also would be happy for other suggestions on individuals or groups that mainly go to Gen Con to cosplay, or of course definitely still happy to talk to Mudcrab Merchant if she has any time.
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Jun 20, 2017 18:44
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Speaking of Gen Con advice videos, any good ones to watch this year? I mean, this is like my 20th Gen Con so I should know most of it by now but anything to keep the hype going for me is appreciated.
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Jun 21, 2017 14:01
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Dr. Quarex posted:
The Gen Con vomit treat at the end is making me rage internally about everything I hate about gamers. I can't tell if thats a joke food or they are seriously suggesting people eat that thing but I wouldn't put it past several people to do so.
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Jun 21, 2017 20:30
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Mudcrab Merchant posted:I got pulled into doing a HUGE industry presentation thing, and will not be free until after July 5th. If that's still good, please feel free to PM me or email me again! Thats still good! Will pm you and sit tight till July, thanks!
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Jun 22, 2017 15:07
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So... Gen Con may sell out now? That is both awesome and terrifying. I also don't know what that means, like they are about to hit fire code max for the convention center and stadium and there will be no onsite badge sales or just that pre-show badge sales will need to stop.
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Jun 23, 2017 18:26
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I don't know why but I am having a paranoid moment about housing. Does anyone knows what happens if they try to charge your credit card on august 1 for the 1 night room deposit and the card is declined? For some reason I keep freaking out that is going to happen (there is no reason it should) and that they will just cancel the reservation if that happens.
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Jun 26, 2017 16:11
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You leave or stay if there isn't anything else at that table after. Sounds like someone screwed up on that one though.
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Jun 27, 2017 18:03
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I remember two years ago when the Big Bang Theory mentioned Gary Con in the show and everyone at the con started freaking out that attendance might swell to some ridiculous sum. Everyone was quasi-panicking online in both good and bad ways. They even had a life size standee of Sheldon made up and put a Gary Con shirt on him. Con came along and sure, attendance was up, but no more so than was really expected for a growing convention in its 8th year. Still all you could hear in the hall was the sound of some grognards blaming the growth of the show and how they couldn't get tickets to Ernie Gygax's game because of the Big Bang Theory. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9fADIP_6eM nesbit37 fucked around with this message at 14:33 on Jul 3, 2017 |
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Jul 3, 2017 14:29
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So Gen Con (sort of) sold out...
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Jul 6, 2017 18:22
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Klungar posted:Can anyone direct me to where I might sell this? Pulled it last time we did True Dungeon but don't intend to really ever play it again. Sell it at the below forum. Any TD token that is purple and in print usually has a value around $100. http://truedungeon.com/forum?view=category&catid=61
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Jul 10, 2017 18:24
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Dr. Quarex posted:I realize those True Dungeon tokens that are worth that much have to be pretty uncommon, but I love now picturing someone farming True Dungeon sessions for tokens by buying slots in like ten different sessions, getting treasure, and not playing through the session People do this, only they buy all the tickets and just run the dungeon solo. It's called ghosting. http://www.truedungeon.com/forum?view=topic&catid=5&id=244721&limitstart=0
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Jul 11, 2017 01:48
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I enjoy True Dungeon, and will be taking my mother through it this year (would be taking my father too but we couldn't get 3 tickets to the same run). Its a nice extravagent novelty, personally. I couldn't see sinking the thousands of dollars into it some people do but then again thats true of a lot of hobbies. Still cheaper than anything people with an automotive or boating hobby blow through.
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Jul 11, 2017 15:09
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If you are overwhelmed by the event database, definitely start by looking for things you would like to play. After that, pick at least one new game (new to you, not necessarily new to the world) that you are curious about or think you might be interested and find an open slot for it. Repeat until you feel your schedule is full enough.
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Jul 17, 2017 15:51
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More Gen Con videos from last year to get you excited (not like you need it) Day 0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuLCIckUjiY Day 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ej2MJMLILU Day 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NBrrKKYMXs Day 3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CaoKTzE1-QI Day 4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VV01BbfHWkk
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Jul 18, 2017 16:28
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First time selling out. I suspect there was always a cap, it just wasn't an issue until this year. I mean, at the bare minimum there had to be some sort of cap for fire code.
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Jul 18, 2017 18:18
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Probably, but no one really knows for sure.
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Jul 19, 2017 17:40
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Dr. Quarex posted:And that said--I agree with you, of the incredibly few not-good experiences I have had at Gen-Con, most of them are related to the people running random tabletop games in far-flung rooms of outside hotels. I will never forget either the gamemaster at the next table who was so loud that we could not hear our own gamemaster, or the gamemaster at our own table who was so quiet that we could not really hear even if there was virtually no other noise in the room. And if that is as bad as it gets... There are definitely bad experiences to be had at Gen Con, though in my personal experience they tend to be fairly minor. My worst was about 5 years ago when a friend I was with really wanted us to play in an all night (12 hour long) D&D homebrew game he found. We went, and it became clear within the first 30 minutes the guy running it was just trying to get in as many player hours as possible so he could get a free room. He didn't follow the rules at all, just let people narrate everything including dice rolls, didn't care what anyone did, had about 20 players, and let 3 of the guys there run with their idea of using their dicks as their casting implements for their fire magic. I didn't last more than an hour before going back to the hotel, I don't know how my one friend did it but he made it till midnight before finally saying screw it. There is also one sure fire way to have a bad Gen Con and that is the Hobocon way. Those guys had such a bad time that at the end of the film they packed up and left the second the sun was up on Sunday.
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Jul 20, 2017 14:10
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Dr. Quarex posted:I am growing increasingly desirous of organizing some sort of tradition to watch this at the start of every Gen-Con. Though I suppose I would have to figure out how to watch it at all for that to work. The webpage was down (was it ever truly up?) and the only source listed in the single review of Hobocon that actually has it available is Noble Knight Games, which has a copy of the DVD for $18. Am I really committed enough to this joke to spend actual money on it? Sometimes I am. Do it, you know you want to. It's just $18, and those are probably the last copies of that movie that anyone will ever have for sale. It's where I picked up my copy.
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Jul 20, 2017 16:04
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Dr. Quarex posted:Yeah I imagine hitting 10,000 attendees by the late 1980s was even more shocking back then than the probably-like-70,000-this-year is to us now. It really would be interesting to know (if such a thing were knowable) whether a complete and utter lack of outreach by the convention was responsible for some significant part of the frosty reception. Though I would be interested to hear whether anyone who was attending in the early years of Milwaukee remembers it being any more welcoming (I do not think we have any such person here though). There are people on record saying Milwaukee was much better in early years and that Gen Con pretty much wore out its welcome as far as a lot of the city was concerned. See Robin Laws 2007 book 40 Years of Gen Con.
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Jul 20, 2017 21:21
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The Gen Con 50 years of event history project is done and up! (well technically we had a loading problem with 1998 that will be fixed by tomorrow morning, but you can see it now). I am very glad we were able to put this together and now have a great data set to work with on this stuff. I'll just paste the blurb I sent out below as well as our about page. Go bathe in the nostalgia! "The Temple University Digital Scholarship Center is happy to announce that the online database of events for all 50 years of the Gen Con gaming convention is now live! You can access the site at http://best50yearsingaming.com/ On this site you can explore the events of Gen Con's present and past, take a historical tour of the locations that have held Gen Con, listen to or read interviews with Gen Con attendees, and learn about the types of research that is conducted using this event information. Be sure to catch Matt Shoemaker's presentation on this project and Gen Con's event history during his retrospective panel." About Welcome to the Best 50 Years in Gaming! This project aims to explore the evolution of gaming and popular culture by examining the history of scheduled events at the Gen Con gaming convention. Gen Con officially began in 1968 and provides a rich sample of gaming events through its physical and digital programs. By taking the event data from fifty years of programs and putting it into an easily accessible and standardized digital form we vastly increase the usefulness of the data to scholars, enthusiasts, and anyone interested in Gen Con's past. We at Temple University's Digital Scholarship Center aim to use the data in statistical and textual analysis to learn about changes in gaming and popular culture over time as reflected by Gen Con. We encourage others to do the same, as well as to simply explore the Gen Con event dataset for any research, historical, or nostalgic purposes. You can access an online version of the data set (hosted via Blacklight) here, and you can download your own CSV copy of the dataset here. We have created a companion site for this project In addition to the data set. This site, hosted on the Omeka platform, aims to provide some historical background on Gen Con as well as showcase findings from work with the dataset. If you have any questions about the history of Gen Con or other information you would like to see beyond our timeline of the event and oral histories please let us know at digitalscholarship@temple.edu or tweet us @templedsc. This project is ongoing, with the initial work to digitize and organize the data taking place during 2016-2017. Normalization of the data (doing things like making sure machines understand that "D&D 2nd ed" and "Dungeons and Dragons 2nd Edition" are really the same thing) is ongoing as of summer of 2017. Analysis and use of the data by Digital Scholarship Center staff, as well as public release of the data set, began in July of 2017. A special thanks goes to Peter Adkison, Mike Carr, Scott Griffin, Allan Grohe, Jon Peterson and Randall Porter for providing physical and digital copies of several of the programs for our use in this project. Additionally, we would like to thank Gen Con, LLC., without which this project could not have occurred. Staff at the Digital Scholarship Center who worked on this project are: Program digitization and data clean-up: Jillian Benedict, Luling Huang, Kaelin Jewell, Emily Logan, Ritomaitree Sarkar, Gary Scales, Matt Shoemaker, Crystal Tatis Blacklight and Omeka systems work: Chad Nelson, Steven Ng Web design: Rachel Cox, Chris Doyle, Matt Shoemaker Omeka exhibitions: Matt Shoemaker Principal Investigator: Matt Shoemaker About the Dataset The dataset was created from the event sections of the physical and digital versions of official Gen Con programs, pre-registration programs, The Spartan zine and the International Federation of Wargaming Monthly zine. Years 2003-2017 were all pulled (with permission) from gencon.com where snapshots of the event database were hosted. Data from 2002 and earlier is from physical programs that were scanned and had their data entered into our database by hand or were OCRed with ABBY Fine Reader software, with the resulting text cleaned by DSC staff. We have made minimal changes to the data and other than normalization do not plan to further manipulate information from the programs. We conducted minimal correction from OCR, fixing obvious mistakes when found but in general the scan quality was high enough (400dpi) that OCR errors were minimal. There are exceptions for some years that have information in or near the gutter of their physical counterparts. Additionally, virtually every year has events that run multiple times. Some programs listed these events under the same entry and others spread them out based on when they were running. We neither separated these entries out nor did we collapse them, but left them as they were presented in each particular program. This is important as it may skew some text analysis you perform with the data set. A small number of programs had their digital counterparts created from pre-registration booklets rather than the official program guide. This was done either because the official program book was not available for digitization, or, in one case, the official program had SOLD OUT printed over so many events it made the majority of the event section impossible to read. The year 1973 is omitted from this dataset because we could not locate a copy of event information from that year. If one exists and we can get a copy of it then we will add that event data to the dataset and update this section. We are actively seeking any event information from that year. If you have a program please contact us at digitalscholarship@temple.edu so we can add 1973 data to our database. As of July 2017, the process of data normalization is ongoing. Normalization is the process of clarifying what information in specific fields means. For example, programs from 1990 may have games listed under the system "D&D Advanced", while in programs from 2000 the same system may be listed as "Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 1st edition." This information must be normalized to reduce confusion, particularly for machine analysis of the information. When this process is complete this section will be updated. Gen Con® mark is a registered trademark of Gen Con LLC, used by permission. Images, artwork, and events listings Copyright © Gen Con LLC. All rights reserved.
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Jul 20, 2017 22:46
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Ive never seen a whiteboard there. Doesn't mean they dont have them, I just havent seen it. Ive had projectors and such, I just adked gen con and they got it for me, but be aware all of my seminars were covered by gen con (as in I was doing them for them and they covered my badge) so if there were any conference center fees they must have covered them for me. I would ask about it asap, I was talking to Peter Adkison about my tech needs for this years seminar I am giving and it took a couple weeks to get it taken care of.
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Jul 24, 2017 12:50
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Speaking of seminars, Quarex, since I know you'll be there let me know if you have any questions on the event history or general history of Gen Con I can answer through my seminar. I am starting to work on the 90 minute presentation this week so there is plenty of time to cover stuff. Now that the event history project is up, there should be plenty of potential question fodder for people.
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Jul 24, 2017 14:09
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Dr. Quarex posted:Here is my question, WHY CAN I ONLY SEARCH BY TITLE That is getting taken care of for field specific search, and if you do the all fields search you can also search by, well, all fields. Dr. Quarex posted:No if I have any real questions already they would include "will I spoil any of the presentation by obsessively reading everything on this webpage?" and "is the overall gaming cultural shift from wargames -> rpgs -> collectible card games as obvious in the aggregate as it seemed and what other microshifts were there?" but I suspect the latter large question is already the crux of your presentation. You would probably spoil some bits by reading everything on the web page, but you know you can't wait so just do it! As for your second question there, you can get a preview of that answer here Dr. Quarex posted:Unrelated I also wonder "will I regret signing up for the 1975 D&D Tournament recreation event since it partially overlaps the Crème de la Crème Auction?" Stupid need to experience history This event, right? I played in that at Gary Con this year. It's interesting in a historical sense, but its not really a fun dungeon. Its 1975 style D&D by Rob Kuntz, so be ready for lots of rooms with random crap going on in them that probably offers no benefit to your characters.
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Jul 24, 2017 17:55
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I'm actually worried about the auction this year just because I have a feeling it is going to be far more crowded than normal this year. I've seen a lot more people on the official forums and facebook group asking about it, and while it on one hand is great that more people are experiencing it I always want everyone to stay away from my sweet gaming dealz!
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Jul 28, 2017 15:19
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A new Gen Con preview podcast is up. Anyone else seen other audio or video cropping up in the wild yet? http://www.dicetower.com/news/tdt-516-gen-con-2017-preview-jamie-keagy
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Aug 1, 2017 19:51
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Well I've pretty much finished my presentation for Gen Con (I can't decide if 75 nearly wordless slides are too many or too few), and now I am just going nuts waiting for Gen Con. At least I'll be at a conference for work all of next week, should make the time seem to go by faster than just being at my desk for another week.
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Aug 3, 2017 19:32
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