Reports from:
Roleplaying
Beginners Track
Tabletop
Young Players
Miniatures
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Role Playing Games:
Hello to all of our readers here at Khannections. Jeffery, George and I want to say we have gone through our own personal “Mines of Moria” as first year KublaCon RPG Coordinators and have lived to tell tall tales about it (which of course grows bigger and more unbelievable with each telling). We learned an awful lot and we promise to make Roleplaying at KublaCon bigger and better then ever.
What is your name?
You say you are interested in running a role playing game at KublaCon? Well you have come to the right place. Give us your name and register as a GM at the below link. If you are already registered as a GM, then shake your tail feathers and get your games submitted as soon as you can! The sooner you do the better chance you will have to get your choice of time to run your game.
Register to be a GM and submit games at KublaCon Here!
What is your Quest?
So what are we looking for? Call of Cthulhu, Hero System, D&D 3rd and 3.5 Edition and other D20 variants are just a few among the many other great game systems we want. This year our focus is on 4 or 6 hour RPG events for 6-8 players in order to offer the widest variety of events for the greatest number of people. Our goal at KublaCon is to get everyone into as many events as possible but if your event requires more time or more players, go ahead and submit your event and we'll do our best to fit it in. If you volunteer to GM for a minimum of 6 hours, you will get free admission to KublaCon! Of course if you're interested in hosting a demo event for your RPG system sometime before your main event, please email us and we will work with you to fit you into a 2 or 4 hour demo timeslot. We are also looking for Roleplaying GM’s to help out in other areas (like the Kids Room and the Beginners Track). So if have an interest in teaching rookies the finer points of hacking and slashing through hordes of orcs and goblins or just want to generally help out in the RPG department, throw us a line and we’ll hook you up.
What is your favorite color?
(blue, no yel… aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!!!!!)
There are so many things to do at KublaCon. As we alluded to above, we hope to have to have a few events that will be teaching people the basics of roleplaying. So be on the lookout for those if you wish to learn about RPG’s. But even if you don’t make sure you put KublaCon 2005 on your calendar now as there will “billions and billions” of things to do at the convention. There will be collectable card games, board games, miniatures, tournaments, special events, demonstrations, prizes galore, a game flea market and an exhibit hall filled with game manufacturers from around the country.
We are looking forward to meeting each and every one of you at KublaCon 2005. But until then, Jeff, George and I hope you all have a great holiday season. Please feel free to give us an email if you have any questions:
David Gabriel RPG Coordinator:
Jeffery Yin RPG Coordinator:
George Rowland RPGA Coordinator:
Comments and cogitations from Tabletop Games
First of all, a big hello to all the Tabletop fans out in cyberspace. David’s done an excellent job putting together this little newsletter, and since, due to a family crisis, I couldn’t contribute personally to last issue, thanks to David, Heather, and Julie for handling the details last time. As a follow-up to last issue’s reflection on Kublacon 2004, we forgot to mention the great time had by all at Monday’s Uberplay-a-thon. As the consistently busiest area for the day, getting new players into the area trying out and enjoying Uberplay’s great line of games ended an already amazing con on a high note.
Prolific game designer Reiner Knizia confirmed as special guest!
Late breaking news... Dr. Reiner Knizia will once again be joining the KublaConians for our annual weekend of fun. Reiner had a great time on his last visit in 2003, and is excited to be joining us again in 2005. Details are still forming, but a KniziaThon hosted by Dr.Knizia is almost a sure bet.
On To Next Year!
As a subscriber to this newsletter, you already have your fingers on the pulse of what’s coming up at Kublacon 2005. However, much of what happens at the con depends on YOU! The tabletop area plans some great and wonderful events, such as another Settlers of Catan Qualifier Tournament and some very special guests, but we also need your help. The search for GMs who can teach and run games must continue and it’s never too early to propose an event. Do you have a favorite game that you haven’t pulled out in awhile? Do you have a new passion for a particular title? Head over to the Kublacon site or send me an email at boardgames@kublacon.com and propose an event. I promise to get back to you quickly - remember, the earlier you get in your proposal, the more likely I can accommodate all of your needs.
Essen, The New Games Heading Our Way, & Geekspeak
As a side note, for those of you less attuned to the gaming world on a daily basis (OK, I admit, I’m obsessed and must run through my daily checklist of sites to visit or things are just not right in my world) the German Game Fair in Essen, Germany just wrapped up in mid-October, promising some wonderful games in our near future. Imagine 100,000+ attendees all scrambling to play games! Here are some highlights (as cobbled together from Rick Thornquist’s Gamewire and other fantastic bloggers who made the journey to Boardgaming Mecca and reported back to those who couldn’t be there) along with some other points of interest:
From Days of Wonder:
- Coming off their German Game of the Year (SdJ) win for Ticket to Ride (one of the favorite games in the Tabletop area during the 2004 con), Days of Wonder has released a small expansion for the game called Mystery Train. This adds new ticket goals, along with other twists and incentives. They’ve also gone live with their online version of Ticket to Ride at their site.
To get your copy of the free Mystery Train Expansion, visit your local retail store. Also, any purchase at the Days of Wonder website will include the free expansion. And finally, you can order the expansion for just the cost of shipping at www.daysofwonder.com
The folks at Days of Wonder are already planning for some very exciting events at KublaCon 2005. A regional Ticket to Ride Qualifier will seed people for the National Championships to be held at GenCon Indy in 2005. And Memoir '44 will get its own DOW sponsored tournaments. And of course, you'll see Giant versions of both games in the (always exciting!) KublaCon Foyer!
From Rio Grande:
Rio Grande has a number of domestic versions of German releases on their schedule for the next few months. Highlights include yet another Carcassonne expansion, as well as a new stand-alone game called Carcassonne: The City; a new version of Mamma Mia called Sole Mio!; Mall World and Shadow of the Emperor, both touted as ‘gamer’s games’ at this point; as well as a new Colovini title called Submarine and the buzz-generating Around the World in 80 Days.
From Warfrog:
Martin Wallace and Warfrog, of Age of Steam and Princes of the Renaissance fame have a new title, Struggle of Empires, which has the lovers of heavier titles salivating.
From Fantasy Flight:
OK, not announced at Essen, but starting to get some good press is the forthcoming 3rd Edition of Twilight Imperium. Anyone up for running this one? The changes to the system seem to make this monster more “German-style” in some ways.
For the Train Gamers:
Russian Rails, due any minute from Mayfair, should be an excellent addition to the Empire Builder System. And, the fact that Jodi Soares, a Bay Area KublaCon attendee, designed it doesn’t hurt either! Congrats to Jodi!
Heroscape anyone?
Given its crossover appeal and variable board set up, this miniatures-based game has had Kublacon staff scurrying around and snatching up their own copies. If you haven’t seen this one, check it out and schedule an event!
Geekspeak & The Games Journal:
Can’t get enough of gaming information and the Khannections newsletter doesn’t arrive often enough? Well, you might want to check out Geekspeak, a new radio show about boardgames. They’ve done seven shows so far, interviewing designers and well-known gamers in a free-wheeling and enjoyable style. Check it out at boardgamegeek.com. Also, Greg Aleknevicus has been compiling a monthly online magazine at thegamesjournal.com that’s informative and always interesting.
Anything mentioned above sound intriguing? Any other titles tickling your fancy? Drop me a line and let’s set up an event!
Doug Garrett
Table Top Games Coordinator
boardgames@kublacon.com
Beginners Track
One of our newest Coordinators gives us an update for her new section, The Beginners Track:
New Beginnings at Kublacon!
We are creating a Beginners Track at Kublacon. Not only will we help people learn more about the different genres of games and to figure out how this whole convention thing works, but we'll also make sure we have games for beginners in each genre. Remember your first gaming con? I'd love to hear from you. Tell me stories about your first time at a gaming con & what helped you to find your answers - or where you would have liked more help.
Here are some questions I've already heard:
- How does RPG registration work?
Why would anyone play a Historical Mini game if everyone already knows the outcome?
If my son plays a chaotic evil human, does that mean he's worshipping the devil?
How will we be answering your questions?
Will it be seminars?
Flyers throughout the con?
A separate section on our website?
Read Khannections for more information!
Alicia "Alix" Hansen
Beginners Track Coordinator
Newbie Leader & Guide to Future Geeks for the Kingdom of Kublacon
Miniatures
This is a call to all of our Historical Miniature Uber GMs. I am focusing on making the Kublacon 2005 War College an immersion event and need your help. I would like about 10 - 12 of you to host medium sized games, 6-10 players, with historical themes and a 4 to 8 hour running time. The period, the rules used, and the scale are not important. I want you to offer up games that are interesting, have a basis in history, and offer nice eye candy. You will need to be flexible in your time as they will be married to the seminars and perhaps other events as well, but you will know your schedule well in advance of the published schedule. The War College presenters and I will select a wide variety of games based on their expertise and current interest. We will be looking for games that cover interesting periods that may be unusual, or have an interesting what-if twist built in. But they must be based on some historical event or period.
I know this sounds early, but it really isn't. Most of you are painfully aware of the hours required to setup games like this. Please email your proposals directly to me and thanks for you help.
Jon Caudill
Historical Miniature Coordinator
CCGs - Collectabe Card Games
The folks in the CCG department are still looking for talented GMs to help run card games at KublaCon, for more information please e-mail ccgs@kublacon.com. We also welcome any input or suggestions on what card games you would like to see represented at Kublacon
Executive Producer
Where's the video?
Over the last couple of months, many people asked, "Where's the highlights video for 2004." The short answer is: we're not doing one. The longer answer is: we're doing an extended/documentary style video instead.
As many of you might know, we've done a highlight video since KublaCon 2001 that includes upbeat, middle eastern style music. They were a lot of fun to make, and emphasized the excitement and activities that help make KublaCon great.
But, for 2004, I wanted to do something different -- something a little more thought provoking and with a little more story. So my goal and vision, is to create a video that not only highlights the fun of KublaCon, but also shows the people, the stories, the work, and the passion that goes into producing the event.
To that end, much of the footage we shot on-site included more of the players, GM's, staff, etc... than it did the actual dice rolling, figure moving, action of the games.
Also, at our recent KublaStaffCon, I taped interviews with most of our staff members -- speaking about all manner of producing a game convention. The interviews came out very nice, and include: favorite con stories, the kind of work involved, working with staff and GMs, having fun.
As the pieces come together for this larger project, the one thing I'm really missing are interviews with attendees and GMs (though I have a few that were done at the con.)
If you'd like to be interviewed, I'm holding the afternoon (1-5pm) of November 21st, a Sunday, for doing interviews at my office in San Francisco. (An alternate date would be Dec. 12th.) If I get enough interest (I'd need to schedule at least 4 people), then the shoot days will happen. Let me know if you're interested and which date(s) work for you! japji@kublacon.com
Server Upgrades in the making -- Geekspeak
About a week before the con this year our database server couldn't handle the load, and we fought with several server crashes going into the convention.The databse server provides much of our web functionality,including: event searching, adding and modifying; dealer listings; FAQs; prize donations; and more.
In an effort to avoid such a problem going into 2005, we're in the process of upgrading the database server. This includes the purchase of a Macintosh G4 Xserve running OSX Server, Filemaker 7 Server Advanced and Filemaker 7. The migration process from the old databases and web files to the new version of Filemaker is rather onerous, so we'll probably be implementing changes slowly.
This really shouldn't affect our web visitor's experience too much... but I wanted to let our fans who are mildly geeky know what we're up to. Our hope is that, once we've made the migration, we'll eventually be able to implement features that will provide for an even better GM and Attendee experience when interacting with our schedule of over 700 events!
And on a personal note...
While creating a great game convention is a lot of fun, it doesn't leave much time for the organizers to play many games. So once a year, the folks who help make KublaCon great get together for a weekend in the Santa Cruz area to play games, eat and have fun (and yes we talked about KublaCon just a wee little bit too!). A good time was had by all... and we all left pumped up about gaming (and yet... completely exhausted from doing so!) Of course, it's our hope that the teamwork, camaraderie, and friendships that get re-enforced at KublaStaffCon translate to a great convention for all of our guests.
Thanks -- Japji
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