A couple weeks ago, I wrote about what I thought would work well for running games at a convention. This post is about how it went. I will be looking at the hypothesis proposed in the last post and going over how they really went. If you want to read the first part first you can find it here.
Key notes
- Hypothesis 1- Everything in a Box- Accurate
- Hypothesis 2- Scratch Paper is King- Eh
- Hypothesis 3- Prep For No Reference- Mostly Accurate
- Hypothesis 4- Displays Make Better Convention Games- Very Accurate
Hypothesis 1 Everything in a Box, Yes do this!
Before I go too deep into this, yes I am aware this is not very scientific. Everything I say is anecdotal, but at least you get my perspective so hopefully you find some value in it.
Everything fitting into one box made for easy transport. Setting up took me several minutes. Luckily, when I did not have everything set at game time my players were extra generous. Next time, I would like to have fewer moving parts. Something where I could unfold my box and have the battle scene ready to go. Something akin to what you see in this video about a gaming table in a box. I thought it was really cool and if you have the time to make something like it I think it would help speed up set up time.
Before going to the convention, I took the time to really set up my scene. I got the battlefield ready and this helped out more than I thought. My battle scene had several routes to get to the Spider Queen. Some more obvious, and some that required crashing down ancient dwarvish obilesks. During one game, a player character crashed the obilesk down and killed a couple spider hatchlings in one go! It was epic. Then they climbed the obilesk to the next level.
If you are going to use a big battle scene with lots of terrain, I recommend taking some time before hand setting it up at home. This way you can add interactive elements and create a dynamic environment. I took a picture once I had everything in place, and then used the photo to guide me while I set up at the convention. The photo was a life saver.
Funnily enough, I got a lot of comments on the stalactites. If you want to make some for yourself they are really easy. Just get some hot glue and a toilet paper roll. Here is DM Scotty with the tutorial. Yes, that is the tutorial I followed. I did add XPS foam to the bases instead of chip board. Thanks DM Scotty!
Hypothesis 2 Scratch Paper is King? Maybe not king, but still royalty
Knowing the players names at the table makes such a difference. For Along the Leyline, we use group initiative. This means that I can just go all the way around the table and knowing the name of the players is not as crucial. I also lucked out and played other games with some of the players before they showed up at my table, so remembering their names was easier than if I had just met them for the first time.
Alternatives to scratch paper: I saw a couple of alternate ways of remembering names both were variations of name tents. A name tent is a folded piece of paper (ideally card stock or index card) with your name on it. Two GM used blank index cards, another used special dry erase name tents. You could also give everyone a name tag. I am sure if we sat down and pondered this problem we could come up with a dozen different ways of helping us remember our player’s names. And really that is the important thing. Remembering your player’s names. Scratch paper is just a tool.
I will say, that the scratch paper did help when keeping track of monster’s damage. I always track damage instead of current HP. It makes life so much faster. Have we reached their max HP? No, OK they’re still alive! Once they reach max HP, I kick them off the board. It means only addition and no subtraction. For me, addition is easier. But for many monsters, they have relatively low HP, so I did not need to track them as much as I thought.
In conclusion, I think calling scratch paper king is a bit inflated. I think I could have run the games without it. It would have been clunky, and honestly, I would never try it if I could help it. There were times that I did not have everything on hand and it worked out just fine. So, if you find yourself without scratch paper and pencil, fret not. I am sure it will work out okay.
Hypothesis 3- Prep for No Reference, Don’t forget to bring the reference
***Spoilers for Silk for the Weaver are in this section***
While playing, I had to consult my reference more than I thought I would, and I wrote the adventure! You absolutely want to go in knowing the adventure as much as possible, and at the same time, you absolutely want to go in with a physical copy of the adventure to reference. I forgot monster stats and even an NPC motivation! Albeit, the NPC was a random encounter and it did not affect the game too much, but still I had to improvise when I forgot. Always be prepared to improvise in a roleplaying game.
For the convention, I added a secret room that is not in the written adventure. In Silk for the Weaver the Spider Queen’s lair is not thoroughly described, so I elaborated a bit for the convention. I thought it would be cool for the Spider Queen to nest in an abandoned dwarvish mine. So I added a secret treasure room full of dwarvish weapons and armor. One of my players found an enchanted breastplate that shined bright light. Players had fun plundering the secret room.
Along the Leyline uses a lot of random tables, so make sure you have references for any random stuff. I find it difficult to riff without a prompt, but once I have a prompt, I can go for hours. The random tables are designed to give you the prompts you need to weave a unique story at your table. When adventurers head out to the dungeon they run into a random encounter. Not all of the encounters are combat, in fact most just add flavor! But having different events makes the game world seem more alive and vibrant. In addition, Along the Leyline adventures come with flavor filled loot tables. In Silk for the Weaver, the loot table includes the bodies of the silk harvesters and other spider themed items.
***Spoilers for Silk for the Weaver are in this section***
Hypothesis 4 Table Displays Make Better Convention Games
Eye popping, attention grabbing, people drawing. Nothing does it like an awesome set piece. For tabletop roleplaying that means awesome terrain. I had so many people stop by just to talk to me about the terrain and miniatures. It acted as a lure for the game. Great visuals can draw the crowd. If you are going to be playing at a convention and you want more eyes on your game, bring in something cool to show off. It works wonders.
In the last post, I thought covering it would be a good idea. I was going to buy a sheet and give a big reveal. I am glad I did NOT do that. Had I covered up the terrain I would be hiding half the fun. Everyone who was playing saw where we were going and got amped to get there. It did not spoil it like I thought, instead it built anticipation. Like watching others ride on a rolercoaster. Seeing the ride doesn’t spoil it, in fact it does the opposite. You imagine all the fun you are going to have and when the time comes you are prepared for the ride.
Final Thoughts
Conventions are a blast! If you have the opportunity to go to a local convention, I highly recommend it. You will get to meet lots of other people who enjoy playing TTRPGs and I bet you will even get a few good tips and tricks. I know I did. I had the pleasure of being a player in Warren’s game of B/X D&D with the Nightwick Abby. I got to play the frogling who rolled max damage. It was my best roll of the whole convention. If you want to learn more check out Warren’s blog. He has lots of cool ideas about DMing.
Now go out and play some games with strangers. Safely, at a convention of course.