Oh yeah, I have a blog...

So I totally forgot this was here after I got back from Gen Con.  I need to write more.  I love to write.  It's usually nonsense but every now and then I come up with something brilliant (at least I think so).  It also gives me an excuse to throw on headphones and use my Digitally Imported premium subscription. 

So, thoughts on Gen Con.  It's been a while, but I think the big take away, for me, was the opportunity to meet some amazing people.  I got to nerd out over meeting one of my favorite designers, I got to meet a couple super-cool people I had only seen via webcam, and I got to spend time with some of my favorite gamers ever.  I met tons of people who do what I would love to do one day.  I don't know what it will be, but working for the boardgaming industry in some capacity is my dream.  I feel like it's a niche I can finally fit into.  Something I'm hyper passionate about and, at the same time, deeply involved with.  Whether it's DFW Nerd Night, my friends who run Gamer Nation Studios (and d20 Radio), or my involvement with Dallas Games Marathon, I'm constantly reminded of how awesome this community is and how much I want to be a bigger part of it. 

The Indianapolis Convention Center - Home of Gen Con

Okay, who did I meet?  Well, the nerd out moment was meeting designer Eric Lang.  What is Eric Lang responsible for?  Everything.  He designed Kaosball, Arcadia Quest, Warhammer 40,000 Conquest, Star Wars: The Card Game, Quarriors (co-desisgned with Mike Elliott), Dice Masters: Marvel vs. X-Men (also with Mike Elliott), Lord of the Rings Dicebuilding Game, Trains & Stations, Chaos in the Old World, Game of Thrones the Card Game (both TCG and LCG), Warhammer: Invasion, and Call of Cthulu: The Card Game (both TCG and LCG).  If you visit his website you will find a massive list of games he's working on (some are already released, I think Codename Horizon is WH40K Conquest but I can't be sure).  He came to the DFW Nerd Night party on Thursday night and sat around for a while talking.  It was awesome just to sit next to him and chat.  I tried my hardest not to fanboy but I bit the bullet and had him sign a copy of Conquest I had bought earlier in the day - both the box and a card (the Space Marine Warlord).

Eric , BeBo, Spencer, and my nostrils.  Enjoy.

Also at the party were Brittanie Boe and Spencer Reeve.  Brittanie is with GTS Distribution, at the time, Spencer worked in marketing for Cool Mini or Not.  Both have been on the Nerd Night YouTube show before and it was really cool to finally meet them in person.  We played a couple games and attempted a game of Sheriff of Nottingham but Eric ended up shuffling cards endlessly and mercilessly mocking Spencer.  It was an amazing time.

 

Glorious, glorious Imperial Assault.

The next few days were something of a blur, at least looking back (I really regret not getting to this sooner).  I spent the vast majority of my time in the exhibit hall perusing games and angling for demos.  One of my top moments was the Fantasy Flight Games In Flight Report.  If you aren't aware of this, every Friday, FFG does a big meeting where they use fancy powerpoints to show off what they have coming up.  Now, I didn't actually attend this meeting, but I did follow all the live tweeting that was going on!  The best thing, to me, is the announcement of Star Wars: Imperial Assault.  This game is two games in one.  The first is a retooled version of Descent based in the Star Wars universe.  Two to four players take on the role of members of the Rebel Alliance and attempt missions pitting them against the Empire.  Playing as the Empire is a fifth player, controlling Storm Troopers, artillery, and various other Imperial troops.  The game is based around campaign play that allows everyone to grow in power.  The second game in the box is a two player skirmish game using a lot of the rules and all the minis from the other game.  It looks to be very, very cool and will fill a void left by Wizards of the Coast when they stopped supporting their Star Wars Miniatures game.  This was the most exciting Gen Con announcement for me.

Well, that's about all I have time for this post.  Next time, I'll talk about the Board with Life event (with after party), True Dungeon, the Weber Grill Restaurant, meeting some amazing writers, and my eternal gratitude.