Star Wars Wednesday - MidAmeriCon II Worldcon 74

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It's not every year that the world's most prestigious literary science fiction convention comes to town, so Worldcon was definitely not an event to miss. Then I found out there was a gaming area, so I knew I had to try and participate. Then they announced they were having a Star Wars Day, and I definitely wanted to be involved in some capacity. I went in for pretty much the full Worldcon experience, buying a membership early on and getting in on the Hugo award voting process. 

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Star Wars Wednesday - KCCC Rolling into MidAmericCon II / Worldcon

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Kansas City Comic Con last weekend, and now MidAmeriCon II / 74th Worldcon starts today. Same venue, but two very different events. I'm excited to see how Worldcon compares, though some differences are already apparent. With three conventions in three weeks (and two world class), it's definitely been the busiest con season I've had for a while. It definitely helps having two of them in town, and even better that both had good Star Wars connections. 

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Star Wars Wednesday - Gen Con 2016

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Star Wars Wednesday - Gen Con 2016

Last week brought another successful Gen Con, with around 60,000 gamers packing the convention center and surrounding hotels in downtown Indianapolis. The dealer hall expanded yet again, and the show extended all the way into Lucas Oil Stadium. Despite some early concerns, I got through without straining an Achilles tendon, though I did cut down on the walking some. Fantasy Flight Games that several major Star Wars boardgame and card game announcements. My product Age of Rebellion Forged in Battle was released at the show, and should be available in stores soon if not already.

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MidAmeriCon II / Worldcon 74 - Panel & Games

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This year, the 74th annual World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon) is being held in Kansas City as MidAmeriCon II, August 17-21, 2016. Among the events, such as the noted Hugo awards, is Star Wars Day. The original MidAmeriCon hosted Worldcon in 1976, and featured a promotional panel of an upcoming sci-fi movie called Star Wars. Mark Hamill, Charles Lippincott and producer Gary Kurtz attended. This year's convention is welcoming back Lippincott and Kurtz for a return visit, along with novelist Alan Dean Foster.

There will be a number of other events for Star Wars Day. I will be part of the Star Wars Tie In panel, discussing novels, games, and other elements beyond the movies. Stephen Saffel (past Del Rey editorial director for the Essential Guides, etc.) will be the moderator, and the other panelists are Kevin J Anderson (Jedi Academy Trilogy, etc.), Rebecca Moesta (Young Jedi Knights series), and William Dietz (Dark Forces trilogy).

I will also be running Star Wars RPG games and demos. The demos will feature the just-released Star Wars the Force Awakens Beginner Game RPG. The full 4-hour games will feature the main RPG lines. I am also running one session of Dungeons & Dragons (5e).

My full schedule is here.

Sign up for games ahead of time on Warhorn. My events are not yet listed, but hopefully will appear soon. My games are listed on my full schedule (link above).

Now available: DM Combat Tabs on Dungeon Masters Guild

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DM Combat Tabs is my new product now available at the Dungeon Masters Guild.  

Track initiative, conditions, and more on any DM screen.

The kit includes 37 tab types:

  • Player Character, Monster (2 types), NPC, Ally, Your Turn
  • Blinded, Charmed, Deafened, Frightened, Grappled, Incapacitated, Invisible, Paralyzed, Petrified, Poisoned, Prone, Restrained, Stunned, Turned, Unconscious
  • Death Save (Fail), Death Save (Success), Stable, Dead
  • Concentration, Inspiration, Reaction Used, Ready Action, Other
  • Lair Action Active, Legend Used, Recharge
  • Advantage, Disadvantage, Spell Effect, Roll to End Effect
  • "More Problems" tab extension for those unfortunate monsters suffering many effects at once.

DM side.

Fill the PC and Monster tabs out by hand after printing, or use the PDF form fillable options before printing. Forms can be saved for reuse.

Customize tabs for your game. Do you want to track different conditions, spell effects, or other information not provided in the kit? Do you run the same adventure often and want to create tabs for the specific monsters used? Use the customizable tabs to add your own text to the front and/or back of the tabs. Add images to the front of the PC and Monster tabs.

5 fully customizable tab types:

An example of a customized tab page.

  • Player Character (Front and back: character name, class, level, race, faction, player Name. Front only: image. Back only: AC, HP, Passive Perception, Vision type and distance)
  • Monster (2 types)/NPC/Ally, (Front and back: Name. Front only: Image. Back only: AC, HP, minimal notes)
  • Condition tabs: Long and short.

Tabletop Tab Rack.

Keep organized and find the right tab quickly during the game using one of two rack types:
DM Screen Tab Rack: This pair of racks hangs right on the DM's screen to minimize loss of table space. It works with the official standard D&D screens or most any other screen type.
Tabletop Tab Rack: A simpler rack folded into a sawtooth shape to hold the tabs. It sits on the table top. 

Storage options: Assemble the included custom box to store the DM Screen Tab Racks with the tabs still in place. Other storage suggestions are also included.

DM Screen Tab Racks and Storage Box.

Also use on table tents and minis.

Printing on cardstock is highly recommended, but thick or regular paper can be used. Cutting and folding is required to use the tabs and the racks. Assembly of the optional storage box requires glue or tape.

Formatted for US letter sized paper. 

Player side view.

DM side view

Storage box.

Star Wars Wednesday - Shows and Cons

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Time flies when you're too busy and traveling too much to post. Also, you know your flights are going to have some issues when your ultimate destination's airport evacuates for a tornado warning. No serious issue in the end, just some inconvenience. Among the items taking up time was one of many summer cons I'll be attending in some fashion...and it had a new Star Wars guest...

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Star Wars Wednesday - Rogue One Rolls Out

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Last week was new trailer week, with Rogue One's teaser trailer making a smash debut across seemingly all media outlets. One aspect I hadn't thought much about was the music, which features a composer other than John Williams. It will be interesting to see where that leads, and the how that influences Star Wars movie storytelling. I enjoyed the trailer, especially the appearance of the Death Star.

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Star Wars Wednesday - GamerNation Con 2016

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This past weekend brought GamerNation Con 2016, hosted in Dallas, Texas by d20 radio and the Order66 podcast. I had a good time last year and found a way to get a bit of time to return this year. The con is relatively small, but has a very dedicated Star Wars RPG fan base, and it hosts a wide variety of board games, RPGs, and...lip sync battle. GamerNation clearly extends well beyond the US and some attendees come from around the world - Germany, Australia, Scotland, Canada, Norway, and probably others I'm overlooking at the moment. It was fun to see those who returned from last year, plus those who I've met elsewhere, like GenCon or Star Wars Celebration. The guests of honor were Rodney Thompson (formerly of Wizards of the Coast, Star Wars Saga Edition and D&D 5e fame, now with Bungie working on Destiny) and Christopher West (Maps of Mastery).

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