Gen Con 2012 was a mixed bag for me. I'm always so overexcited the week before that I'm relatively sure it never lives up to my internal hype, so my experience may not be everyone's.
Thursday started well (unlike last year, I didn't brave the Wednesday crowd at the brewpubs), with a 2E game by Darkness Remembered that utterly rocked! I love me some old-fashioned 2E goodness, and the GM and group didn't disappoint. Great stuff. And then me and my Trophy Wife™ went through the marketplace and managed to meet up with a few vendors-- including my personal faves, the gang from TLG-- and still not spend a dime. How that happened is still beyond me. Drove home for dinner (hint: perk of being local) and then back downtown to run my first Gen Con C&C game!
That probably could have gone better. I was pleasantly surprised to see that four of the players were people who had played in the 2E session I'd played in earlier. That boded well, and the first two hours were spectacular. Lots of orc-killing, great rolls and fun. We took five minutes, and shortly after that, there was a squabble among the four players from the earlier session over an artifact found in the tomb of a saint (the fighter wanted to get money out of it, the cleric was aghast that they would pilfer from a sacred tomb) that led quickly to an in-party fight that left three party members dead. I offered a do-over, but there was some sore feelings between them, and although a couple hung around to ask about the game system, the game ended an hour or so earlier than planned. That really sucked, not just for the people who got hosed out of a full four hours of game, but because I was so caffeinated for the last half that I barely pulled 2 hours of sleep that night.
That probably hampered me Friday morning for another 2E game. The GM was well-prepared and much like me was running his own adventure. It was well-planned and well-thought-out, and it was a six-hour session, but I was already very groggy, mentally flat and operating largely by means of the local Starbucks by hour four. After that, my Trophy Wife™ and I went to the marketplace, and made up for not buying a thing Thursday by spending a cool three hundred on various things. TLG was the big winner of my wallet, as I knew they would be-- I grabbed a full color PHB, HC Classic Monsters, landscape CK screens (which f*****g ROCK, you guys!), a couple modules and totally could not miss out on a couple sets of C&C dice-- one for me and one for my Trophy Wife™. I had no game that night, and the kids got home from school a little early, so we cut ourselves short, especially because we knew we had an early morning the next day.
The next morning was one I'd been looking forward to. Finally, I would get to play My Personal Choice of RPG, C&C in the Society Open. I was stoked. It was going to be an awesome day-- C&C in the AM, some time in the marketplace, a new civil war wargame tutorial in the afternoon, and running my own C&C game at night.
Unfortunately, this turned out to be the day Gen Con 2012 totally broke for me. Our C&C GM didn't show, and since I knew we'd be hitting the marketplace after and didn't want to be burdened down with a crapload of extra gear, my own adventure and prefab PC sheets were three blocks away in the trunk of the car, so I couldn't even GM anything. Undaunted, my Trophy Wife™ and I went to the marketplace, and then she headed home while I hung out with a friend to learn how to play Test of Fire.... and our instructor didn't show... A friendly Mayfair employee dropped off an instruction booklet at our table, and that was about what we got. Bummed, we hung out in the marketplace until about 5 and went to Champions to grab some grub pre-game. Champions, you freaking owe me for Friday night... that was in no way a $17 burger and chips, and I defy you to show me how you came up with a price like that with a straight face. If I'd thought better, I'd've just ran over to Circle Center and Taco Bell. Anyway, we went to the Mariott for game, knowing beyond knowledge that the GM would be there
this time, because
I was the GM. And he did...
....but we only had two players out of six show. We tried pulling from the Savage Worlds crowd that showed for Savage Saturday, hoping that maybe some of them were looking for open tables and just weren't finding any, but it was a no-go. I gave them refunds. Saturday quite unfortunately became the giant turd in my otherwise Tasty Gen Con Soup.
Sunday was better, at least, although it was only a couple hours long for me. I messaged Omote and met-and-gret with him at the TLG booth, and laughed it up. I got to meet Snoring Rock, Christina Stiles, and learned the inherent dangers of the word "KA-DOOOOSH." It left a much better taste in my mouth and makes me pretty sure that I'll be running C&C games again next year (and hot dammit, I'll
play in one, too!) at Gen Con 2013. And since I'll have a six month old daughter at that time, you can bet your ass I'm gonna teach her early what game system is the bestest.
) I still do plan on running my C&C events next year-- maybe even adding one!-- even if it means I have to confab with people on the boards here and get a group together under the table, so if you are in town, I will definitely be happy to count you in!
I shall switch <SNOOTY_COATAL_ATTITUDE> to SOMETIMES.
Ha ha.. What a hoot! it's the little things that stick in the minds of the players and make it fun.