The Road to GenCon is Paved with Good Intentions
Posted by Mark on Mar 25, 2010 in Uncategorized |
Number of Views :716It is official: Bridget and I have both got our media passes to GenCon!
However, due to neither of us having been to GenCon before, we don’t know what the next step is. Do we begin signing up for games? Do we just wait with eager anticipation? What are your GenCon plans?
We’ll probably be coming in Friday afternoon and will be there the whole weekend.
See lots of you all there!
I am pretty much in the same situation. I got my press badge quite a while ago, but currently I am still waiting for my new passport and then I will have to book a flight to Indianapolis. Before that is done, I am forced to wait.
My main reason for attending GenCon is to meet people and write about the greatest event in gaming for my blog. I am not entirely sure my spoken English is good enough to join a gaming session there. I think I will just go there and find out!
.-= Stargazer´s last blog ..Ask the Readers: Where do you buy your RPG products? =-.
My first Gencon was last year’s, I went with most of my gaming group. We had an Iphone app with a list of games and events we found most helpful, and pre-registered for games we knew we were playing for sure.
You can buy tickets for events at the con, but you’ll stand in a line, so maybe go over the list of games and buy them ahead of time to save yourself the line, although the lines weren’t that crazy. Also, bring spending money, as the vendor hall is huge, and you will spend money there, guaranteed.
I also got a press pass, and plan on doing video blogs for people who have never been to Gencon. I had a great time last year, hope for the same this year. I even stayed at a Hotel far from the convention center, but it wasn’t an issue with our rental car. You’ll have a great time.
.-= newbiedm´s last blog ..D&D Encounters Twitter Effects =-.
I can’t make it to Origins this year, so I’m doing GenCon instead. It will be my first time there, but it seems very similar to Origins. I’m hoping there will be an RPGBloggers get-together like there was last year!
.-= DeadGod´s last blog ..Game Mechanics for Personality (for any edition of D&D) =-.
If you haven’t already booked a place to stay, then I’d get your name on the GenCon Housing waiting list right away.
.-= Ameron´s last blog ..D&D Encounters (Week 2) =-.
I’ve been to several Gencons and the more I go to the less gaming I do and the more meetups and seminars I attend. Unless there is a -specific- game or seminar you want to play/see, don’t bother signing up in advance. Alot of the random games you can get in line for (lines for badges are slow, but the game ticket lines move faster if you do your homework) are just as fun. And really, when I go there I want to play games I never play at home.
Coming in Friday afternoon caught my eye too, you’ll miss half the con! Saturday however is when the bulk of the fun happens. The costume contest is quite popular and the exhibition hall will eat half your time though but that’s a good thing.
If there is a game you are really interested in playing, pre-reg for that game. In years past I would just pick up some generics and try to drop into games, but after a streak of bad luck my group decided to organize and actually sign-up and it worked out well.
With your limited time, keep in mind that the Exhibit Hall is only open 10-6 Thu, Fri and Sat, and 10-4 on Sunday. If you want to watch the costume contest get there early. Real early.
Also don’t forget to allow for meal breaks. The restaurants get swamped right after the X Hall closes, so keep that in mind.
.-= Oz´s last blog ..D&D A Deal-breaker? =-.
Until the Gencon Registration system has you have a pass, you are not going to be able to sign up for games until then. If it’s anything like last year, it will not be until late spring/early summer. My advices is decide who you might be hanging out with and see what they might be doing. Don’t over plan what you are doing. Plan to be flexible.
If it is at all possible to arrive on Wednesday night – you should try and do that instead. “All weekend” at Gencon is a bit of a misnomer. The Con significantly tails off about 1:00 p.m. on Sunday. Sunday is, for the most part, pack your bags, do a last once over of the dealer hall and drive home day.
Wednesday and Thursday are the two big announcement/hype days – with Saturday being the busiest single day in terms of turnstile attendance.
You should sign up for at least two events ahead of time. Pick a game you know and play – and a game you sort of know (a little) but almost never play if you are there in Indy for three days.
Convention games are very different and knowledge of the rules in most RPGs at least almost never matters. Any rules you will need are almost always on the character sheet. The rest is role-playing or puzzles not based on much, if any, game specific knowledge. One shot convention gaming is measured by a very different yardstick.
I’m running Pathfinder for Paizo almost the entire convention – and there are lots of other Pathfinder and 4E DMs similarly running sessions for WotC or Paizo. Pick a session and just do it. The strength of picking a session which is DM’d by a WotC or Paizo sponsored DM is that we’ll be sure to actually show up for it. Often, say – 20% of the time? The DM for other sessions are no shows for whatever reason (hungover, can’t find the place, ended up not going to Gencon after all – the list of excuses is endless). This means that if you only register for one event, there is a significant chance that event may not even proceed.
So try to plan around that if this is your first Gencon and you want to avoid that happening.
I’d also suggest picking something odd or quite suited to convention gaming you don’t often play (Call of Cthulhu, say?). Whatever draws your eye. A board game is also a good idea. If you really mean it and you will only arrive there on Friday afternoon, perhaps one formal scheduled event on Saturday afternoon would be enough for you.
The last thing you want to do is a mad scramble to find a session once you are there. It’s trouble enough finding WHERE the game is supposed to be held, without having to register for the game too or rely upon Generic tickets and not have enough players show up to the event.
Stuff to do: The Dealer Room Main Exhibit Hall. This is a biggie and you should figure on burning off at least 4-8 hours there.
The Gencon Auction Hall – this goes on all Thursday/Friday and Saturday with the special and high end collectibles trotted out on Saturday night. The anecdotes told by Frank Mentzer as auctioneer are really extremely entertaining on their own. Worth attending the auction just for those – even if you don’t buy a single thing.
There is also a special auction this year where a lot of memorabilia and personal effects and games of the late Gary Gygax are being sold at auction by his wife. Want to see an ordinary D20 go for $100+? Or Gary’s favourite Hawaiian print shirt he used to wear while gaming go for an insane amount of money? Books, games and manuscript notes from Gary in his own handwriting. It is, literally, a special and one of a kind auction.
My personal fave: A pickup game of Werewolves of Miller’s Hollow, after midnight in the main convention centre lounge. Just look for groups of 15-20 people sitting in a circle. At any other place but Gencon, it’s an iffy game. But at something like Gencon? Played with people you don’t know? That’s where it works best. It is an AMAZING time! You’ll be still there playing at 5:00 a.m. before you even know it. Utterly brilliant. Best. Game. Ever.
Have fun. It really is the Best Four Days in Gaming.