The Gen Con 2024 Report

 

When I said I was going on vacation, I failed to mention that I was going to Gen Con as part of it.  You see, I hadn’t planned on attending the annual gaming Mecca this year (or any other year) because I felt it was no longer the kind of convention I wanted to go to. 

The last time I was at Gen Con was 17 years ago, in 2007.  Hold on a minute while I’m wracked by the demons of mid-life crisis…

I've led a strange and fascinating life.

I first attended Gen Con in 2006, where I had fantastic time: got to play lots of D&D (third edition at the time) and other games, drooled at the impressive displays, and got to be starstruck by more than a few table-top roleplaying game (RPG) industry luminaries, which included D&D co-creator Dave Arneson.  Still riding that high when I returned, I immediately made plans to attend in 2007, where I also had a great time, and got to meet Gary Gygax to boot!  I count myself fortunate to have been able to meet both D&D co-creators before they left the Prime Material to explore the Upper Planes.

We were so young and...err...full of life back then.

I didn’t make Gen Con a regular thing after that due to the pressures of a busy schedule, the overall expense, and the fact that I didn’t want it to lose its “magic.”  However, a lot of things changed for both Gen Con and myself in those 17 years.  I (of course,) had a change of heart regarding mainstream D&D as I gravitated towards what is today known as the Old School Renaissance (OSR) in both tastes and playstyle ethos (a side-effect of contracting grogcanthropy.)  As for Gen Con, it has only grown in both size and popularity with the explosion of the board games industry as well as 5th Edition D&D (5e.)  The 2020 mass hysteria pandemic didn’t really slow it down at all.  What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and all that.

This wasn't the 2020 we were promised!

So when Mrs. Weregrognard, having become a huge board games fan in recent years, asked if I wanted to go to Gen Con, I wasn’t all that sure.  Was there anything at the convention for me anymore?  But I just couldn’t strangle her child-like enthusiasm in the crib.  Plus, she went the extra mile and managed to get a job at one of her favorite board games publishers’ booth, getting free attendance plus salary board game money.  So we purchased a four-day pass for myself, booked accommodations, and packed up the family truckster to head for Indy.

We might have taken a wrong turn at Albuquerque.

I have to say that I am happy to have been mostly wrong about Gen Con.  The missus and I had a great time, and I’m happy to say that table-top RPG gaming, though overshadowed a bit by board games and others, is still alive and well at the convention.  We’re both gleefully exhausted.

Before I get into the meat of this report, here’s a disclaimer: I am terrible at taking pictures.  When I remember to take pictures at all, they tend to be off-center or even blurry (in at least one case.)  In the near future, when we all have Neuralink in our skulls, all our memories will be conveniently stored in an SD card in 4K quality to share (and incriminate us,) but until then, you’ll have to bear with my photographic incompetence (or find other pics and videos to complete the picture of the con.)

And speaking of technological dystopias, I still hold on to quaint notions of some privacy in the hyper-connected, 21st century, so the parts of yours truly and the missus will be played by none other than Mr. Murder Hobo (as you saw above,) who informs me that he is a triple threat: actor/impersonator, tap dancer, and rich baritone.

Also an amateur director, apparently.

The Con

Please file in an orderly fashion.  You have 15 seconds to comply.

Apparently, this was the biggest Gen Con in history.  The con was completely sold out before the first day.  In other words, if you didn’t get your pass beforehand, you were out of luck – no weekend con tourists, though I heard there might have been some pass scalping going on.  My understanding is that over 70,000 people attended.  On the ground, it certainly looked, felt, and even smelled that way (esp. after the first day.)  It was a feast for the senses!  I’m glad I got my passes mailed, and the missus got hers straight from her employer, so there was no standing at that horrendous Will Call line for us.  However, I did not have exhibitor privileges, so I had to stand along with the unwashed masses salivating for those doors to open.

Trailing behind the crowd on the first day.

The crowds were equally large on subsequent days.

DCC banner below the D&D museum display.

The cosplays were top-notch.  I didn't take the flayer on his offer, though.  I know better!

Exhibits, Events, Meets, and Hauls

They say failing to plan is planning to fail, and I certainly failed in that department.  Whereas I meticulously planned my schedule back in 2006-2007, I played it pretty much by ear this time.  Besides, most events were sold out by the time I got my passes (only a few months prior.)  

I also worked around the missus’ schedule of noon to five: she got to go schmooze and make purchases in the exhibitor hall at 9am (I'm jelly,) and I would meet her at 10 when the doors opened.  We would then walk around the con or play a game before sitting down to lunch, and I would see her off to her shift before going to do my own thing.   I picked her up after her shift ended, and we would escape back to our accommodations together for dinner and much-needed rest (we’re boring old farts that way, plus the doggo needed us.)

Lamentations of the Flame Princess (LoTFP)

One of the first places I hit at the con was the LoTFP booth, where I got to meet OSR “shock rocker” James Raggi IV as well as author Ezra Claverie (A True Revelation of the Great Virginia Disastrum.)  Mr. Raggi seemed a little uncomfortable, perhaps at the sight of a real-life, RPG grogcanthrope, but he (and Mr. Claverie) were friendly enough.  I picked up a copy of Don’t F**k the Priest, The Lair of the Brain Eaters, and got some equally-inappropriate freebies with my purchase: a d40 with an accompanying magic item card (the Golden Chicken of King Koraz,) which included a random table of effects to roll the die on, the 2022 adventure Orgasm, whose disturbing image will be familiar to anybody raised on 80’s horror flicks, and a 2024 LoTFP catalog that is also an adventure module (The Night Fortress by Zak Smith); all packaged in an appropriately-named Bag of Holding Problematic Things.  Happy with my loot, I wished them well, and went on my problematic way.  (Note: at the time, I had not heard about his announcement.  Good for them!  Generally speaking, cancel culture is sh*t culture.)

*guitar shredding sounds*

Arcane Library (Shadowdark)

I swung by the Arcane Library booth to get myself a copy of Shadowdark and finally see what all the hubbub is about.  Unfortunately, author Kelsey Dionne wasn’t at the booth (probably too busy enjoying her well-deserved Ennie award.)  YouTuber Baron de Ropp of Dungeon Masterpiece was apparently around, but I didn’t realize it until later, so I failed to get a pic (highly recommend his fantasy geopolitics videos.)  I did get that copy of Shadowdark along with the Solo Dark supplement.

Speaking of solo play and YouTubers, I also ran into Trevor Devall (Me, Myself, and Die!) and got a (blurry) pic with him.  His channel is pretty cool, making RPG onanism look downright fun.  I’m not too proud to admit I’ve done a little solo RPGing with the likes of Mythic plus my favorite RPGs from time to time.  It’s not the same as IRL table play, but it can be fun way to spend an afternoon once in a while.  I noticed that solo play is becoming a trend with board games as well.  On one hand, it speaks to the sad, disconnected state of our society, but not everyone lives in an area with enough people that share their interests for frequent play, and/or doesn't care for digital play, so there's that.

We, ourselves, and dice?

 

Goodman Games

I got to meet Joe Goodman and author Marzio Muscedere (Star Wound of Abbadon) at the Goodman Games booth, and pestered them for a pic.  Alas, they had already run out of the Dungeon Crawl Classics (DCC) version of Jennell Jaquays' Dark Tower rerelease at the booth, which I was hoping to get, but I did take advantage of an outstanding deal from the Gen Con Coupon Book: a soft-cover DCC core rulebook for $10 USD along with an adventure for $1 USD.  Can’t beat that!   I already have a copy of DCC, but the softcover makes for a good table copy.

Mr. Murder Hobo has the uncanny ability to shrink his head when necessary.  It's kind of disturbing, actually.

Troll Lord Games

I’ve mentioned before that Castles & Crusades was kind of my gateway drug back to old school (A)D&D and it’s a game I still enjoy, and purchase stuff for, every now and then (since it’s so highly compatible with everything.)  I also supported their Castle Zagyg kickstarter recently.  I stopped by the Troll Lords booth to see what’s up, but like with the Arcane Library booth, neither of the Chenault bros. were there when I arrived.  I did recognize Stephen while waiting for the AD&D 2nd Edition seminar and ambushed him for a pic, to which he was thankfully accommodating.  Trollzah!

"Weregrognard vs.Troll Lord" has a kaiju movie ring to it, doesn't it?

AD&D 2nd Edition (2e) Seminar and Jon Peterson

AD&D 2e seminar?  In 2024?!  Yes!  As part of D&D’s 50-year anniversary, Gen Con had seminars for every edition from the Original (0e) to 5e.  Sadly, I didn’t make it to the Original and AD&D First Edition (1e) seminars, but I joined the standby folks and managed to get in for the 2e seminar with David “Zeb” Cook and Steve Winter, hosted by RPG historian Jon Peterson of Playing at the World fame.

Left to right: Steve Winter, Jon Peterson, and David "Zeb" Cook at the 2e seminar.

AD&D 2e was “my” D&D during my high school years, and I still have a lot of love for it.  It was fun to hear the behind the scenes stories behind its creation and TSR at the time.  I know 2e caches flak in the OSR sphere as the the middle, red-headed stepchild between Old and New School as the first, post-Gygax D&D, but hearing the stories of the authors showed (at least to me) the love and care they put into the game, even if the end result didn’t appeal 100% to everyone.  Not that I cared!  The 2e scene/market always seemed vibrant from my point of view at the time (probably the glut of shiny books and boxed settings.)  It was only later that I learned about how TSR was sadly rotting from within by the 1990's.

I was able to meet Mr. Cook afterward and got a pic, but I had just missed Mr. Winter (or maybe he rolled hide in shadows/move silently.)  Shame, because not only did I want to get both gentlemen in the pic, I also wanted to thank Mr. Winter for the blog post that inspired the Level 7 map of the Temple of the Snake Cult, my Dungeon23 project that started this blog.  I got to shake Mr. Cook’s hand, and like I did with both Misters Arneson and Gygax in 2006-2007, I thanked him for the many years of entertainment (A)D&D (2e in this case,) has provided for me.

2E 4 LIFE

While wandering the exhibition hall later or the day after (my memory is already getting foggy,) I saw that Jon Peterson was doing a signing for the second edition of Playing at the World, so I stuck around and waited to get myself a signed copy.  “Zeb” Cook showed up and Mr. Peterson had him sign my copy of the book as well

OMG indeed!

R. Talsorian and Palladium

If AD&D 2e was like my wholesome, high school sweetheart, then there are two games that were like awkward, but hot flings behind the bleachers: Cyberpunk 2020 and RIFTS.  My friends and I discovered these two RPGs not long after discovering D&D, which blew our little minds, and much whacky fun was had, but I won’t bore you with those sordid details (another time, perhaps.)

I hit the R. Talsorian booth, wanting to get a copy of the Cyberpunk Edgerunners Mission Kit that is both a Cyberpunk RED starter and sourcebox for the 2077 era of the video game and Netflix miniseries (both good!)  I was also hoping to meet Cyberpunk RPG creator Mike Pondsmith (aka Maximum Mike,) but I didn’t catch him at the booth, and his son Cody was busy with a demo, but I succeeded in the first goal and got me a shiny new Edgerunners box along with an Arasaka ribbon for my badge.  I was also able to do some R. Talsorian gaming later (see below.)

RIFTS and Palladium games in general are a guilty pleasure of mine, though I haven’t had a chance to play them in several years.  I meandered to the Palladium booth to check out their latest and got to chat with Kevin Siembieda and company for a bit.  I also bought a copy of the RIFTS 30th Anniversary Edition hardcover, which he doodled on and signed, as he graciously listened to the story of how I once wrote a letter to Palladium (that's how we contacted companies back then, kids,) asking how I could get a hold of any Wormwood comics, since I (mistakenly) thought the Dimension Book was based on a comic book series because of the interior comic art.  The excitement of hearing back from them was only dampened by the disappointment of finding out that Wormwood comics didn’t exist.  Regardless, it was like was 1992 all over again at the Palladium booth!  Say what you will about the company or the Palladium system, you gotta respect their consistency and uncanny ability to stick it out, doing things their way after other RPG publishers (and their games) have changed drastically or disappeared.   They’re even re-releasing their Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles RPG!  I just might shell out the cash for it.

Leonardo insisted on being in the pic.

WotC Booth D&D Museum

Although I eventually made it to the Wizards of the Coast (WotC) booth out of curiosity, it was almost an afterthought.  I heard they were offering an early release of the new Player’s Handbook, but the enthusiasm to pick up a copy just wasn’t there on my part.  I passed by with nary a look behind, tear in my eye, or dramatic reaching out with my hand before pulling it back.  WotC has to go its own way with D&D, and I have to go mine.  Irreconcilable differences, you see.

My time was better spent checking out the little D&D 50th anniversary museum exhibit they had made for the con.  It was really cool to see stuff from all the D&D eras on display, including mine, which was a little surreal.  Dagnabbit!  My imprinted culture is not ready to be a museum display yet!

...and yet it is.

 

Other Booths and More Con Loot

I’m typically a pretty frugal (read: tightwad) kind of guy, but the slavering, consumerist spirit of the con dug its claws into me and what I thought were going to be one or two purchases quickly reached the limits of my encumbrance capacity more than once, I'm somewhat ashamed to say.  I’m not going to go through everything I saw, but here are some highlights and honorable mentions.

I’m a sucker for starter sets.  I like the combination of condensed rules, dice, an adventure or two, and goodies like minis, standups, tokens, and/or poster maps in one, typically affordable package.  In addition to the Cyberpunk Edgerunners box I mentioned above, I picked up the Fallout RPG starter and core rulebook at the Modiphius booth.  Even though I’ve been doing my own D6-based fan adaptation and campaign, it’s still interesting to see how the designers at Modiphius went about adapting the property themselves.  Plus, I might want to play the official game at some point if I get the chance.  To reach the amount needed for a bonus gift, I also purchased Five Parsecs from Home, a solo sci-fi miniatures game I’ve heard good things about.  The bonus was getting to pick a miniature from a bin, but instead of a Fallout one, I picked up a limited edition Dragonborn mini (from the video game Skyrim, not the nu-D&D character race.)

Similarly, I picked up both the G.I. Joe RPG starter and core rulebook at the Renegade booth.  I loved G.I. Joe as a kid, and it's possible it influenced me subconsciously when I decided to enlist and become a G.I. myself for a not-so-insubstantial amount of time.

Why'd it have to be Shipwreck, tho?

I'm not sure the property is all that popular these days (unlike say, Transformers) with anyone but us old farts.  Plus, anything with a whiff of patriotism is apparently a no-no these days, if the internet is to be believed (it isn’t.)  If my comment about the pandemic doesn’t get me cancelled, maybe this one will.  Still, I believe the concept was always a good one to translate to an RPG, and I'm surprised that it didn't happen sooner.

Yo Joe...

At the Catalyst booth, I snagged a copy of the first edition Shadowrun hardcover reprint, and managed to roll a 20 to convince the clerk to honor my $5 off coupon even though it didn’t technically apply (#winbaby.)  I had a short love affair with Shadowrun in late high school or early college, plus I enjoyed the SNES and Sega Genesis video game adaptations of the property back in the day.  I swear my RPG history is like a greatest hits gallery of the late 80s and 90s (I don’t talk much about my White Wolf phase though, for...err...cringe reasons.)

*sexy vampire hiss*

I tried looking for a Mythmere or Frog God booth, but either they didn’t attend, or my aging eyes are failing me (one difference between gaming in 06-07 and now is that I have to use My First Reading Glasses.  I finally understand why old grogs complain about small print sizes.)  Similarly, while I saw many, many fantastic and talented artists in the exhibit hall, there were little to none that I recognized (or was looking for,) such as the Holy TSR Trinity of Caldwell,  Easly, and Elmore.  I was hoping to get a signed print or two for the gaming man cave.

Speaking of disappointments, I checked out other vendors to see if I could get my hands on any retro or classic gaming deals, but alas, they all pretty much command collector’s prices (at least the ones I was interested in.)  I don't blame the market, and it was fun to sift through old books, but I came out empty-handed.

One thing that didn’t disappoint was finding copies of the Modiphius’ RPGs Conan (which they no longer produce) and John Carter of Mars (which they still have copies of) for 75% off (#winbaby2!)  I admit I’ll pretty much pick up anything Conan or Appendix N-related in general, sight unseen.

As for other games, I found myself intrigued by Rumbleslam, a pro wrestling-themed miniatures game by TTCombat.  Probably because the demonstrator did a very convincing sports announcer bit, complete with microphone. 

"LET'S GET READY TO RUMBLE...SLAM!!!"

Although I didn’t pick up a copy at the time due to my encumbrance limit, Rumbleslam might go on my wish list at some point.  I think the game would be fun to play with M.U.S.C.L.E. figures (do they make those anymore?)  If I ever get the game, I would like to procure some of those plus find/make a Carlitos Colón-like mini.  That would be freakin' awesome!

It'd be kind of painstaking to carve the forehead scars in such a tiny size, though.

I didn’t really pick up any board games (the missus had that angle well-covered,) save for the Escape From New York board game by EN Pendragon Game Studio.   I checked out a demo, slept on it, and just had to come back and pick it up later:

"Call me Snake..."

I'm not he biggest fan of movie remakes/late sequels, but this is a property that's about ripe for (another) one, even with an older Kurt Russel (same goes for Big Trouble in Little China.)  I would go see it, if was done right!

 

Gaming!

What’s a gaming convention without gaming?  Well, gawking, shopping, and pestering celebrities or semi-celebrities, as you saw above.  Despite the lack of planning, I did get to do a little bit of gaming.

At the R. Talsorian game room, I participated in a demo for their new RPG, Shadow Scar by Cody Pondsmith.  In a nutshell, it’s about ninja operatives taking on Japanese-style demons in a shadow war across an alternate reality multiverse.  I received a fast-play copy of the game, Eyes in the Darkness with my Edgerunners box purchase, so I decided to go check the demo out.  I had a fun time, and although Shadow Scar might be a little too niche for my collection, it still might be worth checking out for fans of the game’s themes.

Ninjas & Demons

I went back to the R. Talsorian game room a different time to check out an Edgerunners demo, but decided to try my luck on standby for a longer RPG session.  I was fortunate enough to get a seat for the Karaoke Night con adventure/DLC.  Despite being strangers, our group worked really well together and came up with creative solutions to the scenario, almost like we were professional edgerunners ourselves.  There was the occasional hiccup, such bombing a roll trying to flip over a car with my nomad's Gorilla Arms.  The front bumper just ripped off and went flying, barely missing my burly nomad on the way back down later.  (I did get a chance to attempt it later, with better success.)  Still, we successfully completed the mission, got paid some bonus eddies, and earned some rep, (plus corpo enemies.)  Not bad for a night’s work, choom!

Running the streets of Night City since 2020.

At the card, board, and minis play area, I spent quite some time gawking at the Star Wars miniature games, as well as a table with Gaslands (a post-apocalyptic death-race style game I like,) using Mario Cart minis instead.

*Pew! Pew!*

Wonder how much damage the banana peel does?

The missus and I also got to try out a fun, wholesome, Christmas-themed board game she had kickstarted, Santa's Workshop, where you get to direct elves making toys for the big day.  We were even graced by a visit from the game’s designer, Keith Ferguseon!

Many thanks to out fellow players (left,) Mr. Ferguseon (third from the left,) and our game facilitator (who helped us with the rules and took the pic.)

End of the Con

The missus worked her last shift on Sunday, and I stayed back at the accommodations to take care of a few things, the doggo, and pack our stuff (which included our considerable hauls,) for the return trip home.

Like Disneyland, it’s impossible to do everything at Gen Con in a day, or even a few days.  I missed the whole stadium area, for example, and didn’t really get to do any D&D/OSR gaming, but that’s OK.  I still had fun.  Would I go back?  Probably not in the foreseeable future.  Likewise, the missus considers this item on her bucket list checked, but doesn’t completely discount the possibility of working the con again or just going as a “tourist” at some point.  I’ll support her in whatever she decides.

If I had to do it over again, I probably would have planned better; attended more seminars and games, maybe brought a small kit with B/X or Swords & Wizardry and got the word out to run some Dungeon23 content with any interested parties.  Heck!  Maybe I should have made some Mr. Murder Hobo t-shirts to wear or give out to my handful of readers that aren’t Singaporean bots (with apologies to my one, true reader in Singapore,) in case I happened to run into any.

As with other cons I’ve been to, I’ve come back tired, yet energized for future gaming.  Maybe we need to make plans for Gary Con, North Texas RPG Con, or *gasp* even Venger Con next time.

This should totally be our Christmas card this year.