After running games on Friday, I spent Saturday playing Saga in the morning, a really fun Zombie game in the afternoon and then I ran a Saga demo for Architects of War Saturday night. Alas, I forgot to take any pictures, which may be a blessing for my readers as they may have had images of me!
Overall, I would rate may con experience as a solid "A". Some of the highlights included:
- Playing in the Saga Tournament on Thursday
- Running my Hail Caesar game twice with good very close games both times
- Playing about 11 games of Saga over the course of the con - my Normans got a good work out and need some minor repairs
- Helping Ernie and Barb over at Architects of War - they certainly had a very impressive booth and array of events at the con
- The new site in Fredericksburg is better than either Lancaster or Valley Forge given the convention facility, hotels and dining choices
As with all historical wargamers, this entry wouldn't be complete without some negatives, but lets call them "opportunities for improvement" ohh I feel very politically correct now.
- I need to figure a better way to pack my ancients as they got a bit banged up in transit nothing major but I spent some time in repairs thursday night.
- While the overall facility was top notch there are some areas that could be improved upon, namely adding in some dividers in the main gaming hall to reduce noise build up and adding some additional staff to keep the facilities cleaner
- Attendance seemed to be down from last year but that's hard to gauge without some data
- There wasn't a convient bar location to go and relax in between games. There was a bar at the facility and it was efficient but there wasn't an area to go and relax to chat. Perhaps next year one of the side rooms might be converted into a bit of a lounge area.
I will say the pluses far outweigh the minuses and I'm very much looking forward to next year's Historicon. Hat's off to the HMGS staff for organizing and pulling off a great convention in somewhat difficult circumstances. I suspect the attendance numbers will rebound next year when people realize that a good HMGS-East convention can be had outside of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
You may not hear a lot from me for the next week or so as my wife and I are traveling to celebrate our 25th anniversary. If I pull this off right, I may be able to negotiate rights to make it to Fall-In!
More positives than negatives, you must have been knackered.
ReplyDeleteI really have enjoyed your reports, I hope maybe to sometime make it to a convention. You must feel quite experienced with SAGA.
ReplyDeleteJohn
Thanks John.
ReplyDeleteGoing to the 'cons is a lot of fun but you need to have the right frame of mind - just ignore the handful of people who seem to go just to be able to complain. While the HMGS cons might be a bit far for you, I do recommend making one.
SAGA is a great game - and it's more of a game than historical simulation but that's OK. The big pluses are it's both easy to teach but very hard to master given the interplay of the various battle boards. Another big plus is it's extremely easy to transport. Hauling around my ancients for a 'con game is a bot of a logistical exercise
Miles
I’ll give the Con an overall rating of A- or maybe B+. My only two complaints about the venue were the bathrooms and the noise. I noticed a lot of people having to yell to be heard over the ruckus.
ReplyDeleteAs for the Con itself, did anyone get the feeling that it was actually smaller this year? Maybe because the halls were so much larger, but I kept getting the feeling like there was far less going on in the tournament, gaming, and dealer halls. On the plus side there was great parking, and lots of food to be had in the immediate area.
I’d like to give a big shout out to the Hobby University. Right now I plan on taking an extra day for Fall-In just so I can spend the day with these guys.