Plans for the next Open House

[MrTwist]

Well, I'm still not sure if I'm even going to the next Open House. This one wasn't very fun, with the exception of a few hours in Chris Perrin's HU2 game(The Gr8ness League). I did get to meet Subjugator, and a lot of people seemed to like my shirt. It's possible I met some other people from here, but didn't know them offhand. I only knew who Subjugator was because his nametag had 'Subbie' on it.

For anyone who I may have met, you're likely to remember my t-shirt. I was wearing the black tee with "So You're A Feminist. How Cute" on the front and "Team XY Strategic Chauvinism" on the back.

Beyond that, I felt out of place and awkward because I came alone, didn't know anyone, and noticed that most of the games were full. I was actually kind of bored and wished there were other diversions. So I decided that unless I can get to next years OH right when it opens I'm not going to go. I say that because then I can sign up for enough games to last me the day and make the trip worth it.


But, anyways, I do have some ideas for next year. There should be some kind of diversion for people who can't get into a game, like some tables set up where people could join some kind of makeshift Rifts CCG tourney. Maybe even a few tables set aside for pick-up games. I know it's not a giant con like GenCon, and I'm very thankful for Kevin and crew for giving us fans this opportunity. I just think there could be something else tacked on.

I'm going to try to see if I can come up with some short sessions to run for next OH. Whether or not that does work out, I do have an idea that might help people who are in the same situation I was in today before I decided cutting my lawn was a better use of my time.

I think I'm going to run a gigantic Dead Reign game. I'll create a hundred or so disposable characters for people to play and run a day long survival session that involves thousands and thousands of zombies, Death Cultists, and threats by competing groups of survivors. I might even set it up so it's possible players will be fighting players.

This will be a game that will have no sign up sheet and no limit to the number of players. It'll be a day long thing broken up a little bit to separate different events. Plus I want to eat at some point. People will be able to join and leave whenever they want. I'll post more about it in the Dead Reign forum, but I was wondering if anyone had other ideas on ways to occupy errant gamers at the next OH.

[rat_bastard]

[rat_bastard]

well, honestly, I for one took one look at your shirt and said to myself "wow, what a contemptible jack***" and went back to my game.

I can get your point about signing up, it is unfairly scaled towards the VIP night people, I really think it should be a combination of first come first served and raffles for certain writer's games.

[MrTwist]

well, honestly, I for one took one look at your shirt and said to myself "wow, what a contemptible jack***" and went back to my game.

I can get your point about signing up, it is unfairly scaled towards the VIP night people, I really think it should be a combination of first come first served and raffles for certain writer's games.

Not a bad idea in regards to the raffle thing. Something I did notice, and wasn't too sure how much I liked, was the sign-ups for Saturday and Sunday were already laying out. I'm really glad work gave me Friday off. If I showed up Saturday instead I would've been annoyed because all the games would've been filled for a day already. What would be the point?



And the reason I wear that shirt is because it gets a reaction out of people. Most people laugh because(I hope) they realize it's a joke. I've had reactions that have run the entire spectrum. I've actually had a few women who claimed to be feminists(I'm not their biographer, so I have to take them at their word) laugh at it. And some who came up with some very interesting names for me. I find it funny, so I'm cool with it.

[Anthar]

That's why I like conventions that are held at a hotel or coliseum. If things turn out to be lame or boring alcohol always helps. That and karaoke, a bunch of my buds and I were at such a convention where a gm was being a regular-large d--k so we headed to the bar, sang and the bar ended up buying us drinks for about four hours cause we just kept on attracting people to the bar to watch our horridly hillarious singing. Then we returned for a drunken uninhibited gaming experience, good times.

[erc1971]

Your concerns were brought to Kevin's attention. Saturday morning he made a public announcement and asked the game masters to allow a few extra people at their table if at all possible, and if you still felt like there wasn't any room for you anywhere to mention it to one of the staff and they would find a game for you.

I know that my friends who arrived on Saturday were all able to find games for both the morning and evening without having to spend more than 10-15 minutes of effort, so hopefully things were in better shape for you by then.

I can tell you that from my perspective things were MUCH better organized this year than compared to the past. Kevin and crew are getting better at managing the open house, and I am sure this will be a primary concern for them when planning next years.

Eric Campion

[MrTwist]

Your concerns were brought to Kevin's attention. Saturday morning he made a public announcement and asked the game masters to allow a few extra people at their table if at all possible, and if you still felt like there wasn't any room for you anywhere to mention it to one of the staff and they would find a game for you.

I know that my friends who arrived on Saturday were all able to find games for both the morning and evening without having to spend more than 10-15 minutes of effort, so hopefully things were in better shape for you by then.

I can tell you that from my perspective things were MUCH better organized this year than compared to the past. Kevin and crew are getting better at managing the open house, and I am sure this will be a primary concern for them when planning next years.

Eric Campion

Well that's good they were able to find games. When I had left at around 4pm or so it seemed like most everything for all three days were full. Of course, I didn't get to see every sign-up sheet because some were still on the tables while people gamed. It's entirely possible I missed out on the some good opportunities because I didn't want to disturb people.

I was wondering if it would've been better leaving out only the Friday sheets on Friday. That way people who couldn't make it until Saturday wouldn't have had to worry about things being over-full.

I think games being full is more of a testament to how much the fans love the Open House idea and want to come out to game there.

[Killer Cyborg]

I don't remember seeing you there.
My reaction to the shirt would probably be a mental eye-roll; it's the kind of thing that's funny to think or, but kind of obnoxious to wear. It wouldn't have kept me from talking to you, though.

Pedro came from Spain, didn't know a soul there, didn't game at all as far as I know, and he had a blast.
You're in a warehouse full of people that have at least one thing in common with you, and there's no need to be shy.
Just strike up conversations with random people and make new friends.

I believe that there was a lounge area with couches where people not in games often hung out.
If you had the cards, that might have been a good place.
When I wasn't in a game, I walked around and talked to the artists, or other gamers, or scouted for forum people (quite a few of us had our names on our name-tags), or shopped for books I didn't have, or took photos of stuff.

[Killer Cyborg]

Well that's good they were able to find games. When I had left at around 4pm or so it seemed like most everything for all three days were full.

That's pretty true. Most games I played in were not only full, but over-full. I even skipped one game because I was tired of playing with a dozen other people all in one party.

Of course, I didn't get to see every sign-up sheet because some were still on the tables while people gamed. It's entirely possible I missed out on the some good opportunities because I didn't want to disturb people.

Yeah, I just looked on the table until I found them, which usually didn't take long.
Nobody seemed to mind.

I was wondering if it would've been better leaving out only the Friday sheets on Friday. That way people who couldn't make it until Saturday wouldn't have had to worry about things being over-full.

I'd just rather they put out a few extra tables so people could just make their own games if there were a bunch of people at loose ends.
I like the first-come, first-serve method, even when I lose out because of it.

I do like the idea of some games (Kevin's) should probably be raffled or something.
On the other hand, that would make it hard for people to come up with their schedules, because they wouldn't know whether or not they were in a game until the raffle was over.

[Braden Campbell]

Just you know, Kevin ran eight two-hour-long games on Saturday alone. That's 16 hours of Game Mastering. And he did it so that as many people as possible could have a chance to have him as their GM.

[Brian Manning]

Well, the freelancers table is always a fun place to hang out...right?

I had a blast there (as with every other year). The biggest difference was I actually found the time and strength to join in a game (the one that Kevin talked about Saturday morning where Carmen blew half of us up. Mumah finished off one of the other survivors by rolling 100 on his first aid attempt, and Allen left the rest to die because he was driving the getaway vehicle). The rest of the time I hung out doing sketches all weekend and talking to a lot of fans (Pedro from Spain, Daniel and the "Eating Machine" from Germany, and a TON of other fans that we just sat around chatting with). I think we got the overflow of the fans waiting to talk to Kevin (and Amy Ashbaugh ). I was flat out run down and had a hard time getting sleep, but even after the exhausting weekend, I was really sad that the weekend was over.

Nick Bradshaw was the star of the show, finally selling some of his originals. He made the rest of us look bad because he was doodling in everyone's book before signing it, and nailed all his poses for every photo. The rest of us were scrubs compared to that kind of Diva status. It's a shame that Chuck Walton wasn't able to make it for the whole weekend, but man his new stuff almost made me stop drawing for a couple of hours. Ridiculously awesome!! Dudley, like a force of nature, showed up and just really boosted the energy at the tables. Ashbaugh had to show up with buttons, matted prints and killer art to make us look bad, and Mumah (like Allen and I) showed up unprepared and wasn't able to dazzle the crowd with his multi-media extravaganza and had to instead rely on his artwork (which of course brought quite a few people over to our table...The great thing was his Zembak commission piece got just as much attention as his Rifter swimsuit piece of the woman holding the katana).

The time just FLEW by and at first it didn't seem to bother me, but the later it got in the weekend, the more I realized that it was going to end much sooner.

[Jason Richards]

I was bummed to have to cancel my last game. As you know, we submit our games and times sorta fall as they may, and after failing to find a way to work it out with my travel schedule, I had to cancel it.

I snapped a picture of the names on the signup sheet, so if you were scheduled, or even if you wanted to try and sit in, please email or PM me and we'll work out some sort of consolation prize or something. Maybe we could set up a game in the chat room or a short-term pbem or something. I'm open to suggestion.

[Augur]

I for one had a blast even though I pretty much only got to GM.

That being said, I had only four of the six available slots in my HU2 game filled on Friday night. No one even bugged to come join--their loss!

For my Dead Reign game earlier in the day I had 4-6 slots as well...and TWELVE sign-ups. Even as such only 8 people showed and two of those showed up late.

To help things out next time, I think I'll open my games up to 8-10 players.

My suggestion isn't so much to the Palladium Staff who, though not without failure, did better this time than last.
My suggestion is for the gamers themselves: be responsible!

As awesome as Open House continues to be...it would be INCREDIBLE if GMs showed up prepared and ready for every game they signed up to host.

Likewise, PLAYERS...show up if you sign-up! Be prepared to get your game on! Have a sober head, be rested (at least be functional!), and have your gear (dice & writing instruments) ready!

Only had a few HYGIENE ISSUES this time so, much improved people! You stinky punks...you saw me walk away from your games...you know who you are! Wash your butts!

And the reason I wear that shirt is because it gets a reaction out of people. Most people laugh because(I hope) they realize it's a joke. I've had reactions that have run the entire spectrum. I've actually had a few women who claimed to be feminists(I'm not their biographer, so I have to take them at their word) laugh at it. And some who came up with some very interesting names for me. I find it funny, so I'm cool with it.

I frakkin' loved the shirt and told you as much. SCREW the politically correct.
FYI: If I'm willing to talk to you or send a compliment/comment your way, I'd probably love to GAME with you.

Hopefully by next year I'll have something published in the Rifter so my name tag can say "Writer"

On a last note, the only person you're allowed to be nervous or shy around is Amy Ashbaugh

<--Has same ambition.

Amy IS a little intimidating for some reason, huh? Weird isn't it? Anyway, it's easy enough to get over, buy something from her. The law of psychological reciprocity dictates that she has to be nice to you then.

I snapped a picture of the names on the signup sheet, so if you were scheduled, or even if you wanted to try and sit in, please email or PM me and we'll work out some sort of consolation prize or something. Maybe we could set up a game in the chat room or a short-term pbem or something. I'm open to suggestion.

Pfft...that's a cover. You just wanted to remember my wife's (LISA HAYES!) name for some nefarious scheme! I heard of your crush and flirtations! The Zentraedi Grand Fleet is on alert, you have been warned!

[Killer Cyborg]

I was bummed to have to cancel my last game. As you know, we submit our games and times sorta fall as they may, and after failing to find a way to work it out with my travel schedule, I had to cancel it.

...
-Run Away before KC can play your game
...

P.S. When you run away, we all run away.
We are all Jason Richards.

[Greg Diaczyk]

I actually had the opposite response?

I took care signing up for games VIP nights so I could get some gaming with Kevin and Julius, was mindful of when my games were so I wasn't double booked and picked a couple games to tryout (had never really had a "real" game of BtS before -> Thanks Steve for the intro!)

I found that I didn't have enough free time to grab meals, talk to the artist, talk to other freelancers and to talk to the staff. I had to cancel a BtS game with Julius as I finally got some Q & A time with Kevin Sunday afternoon. Now I was up 2:00 am most nights, ran down for breakfast at 8:30 am and went back to bed until 10:00am and back to P.B. for 11:00 most days. (purposely didn't take any morning games as I knew I would need the break/sleep).

My Rifts Lemuria game was packed and I even had a couple other people who just stat in for a bit. My Heroes Unlimited game had 2 people off sick (they did eventually make it back/start feeling better about 2/3 of the way through the night) and two others no show...?

As for other activities: I thought it was good that Kevin planed to have the auction/costume contest/awards take up all slots at the time, but I wish there were a little bit more breathing room between some of the games. As for an impromptu table/other actives could have been a nice addition for those who were not interesting in a short term game.

I was also a little disappointed that we gamed into the wee-hours on VIP night as a bunch of people said they were going to check out X-Man Origins: Wolverine and I was either missed on the "we're going now" or the whole thing was cancelled...

But all around it was an amazing experience and quite fun for me!

[Brian Manning]

Greg, I gotta know...did you and Kevin plan out what you were going to do and say for the costume contest before stepping up to the dot? You guys nailed it and the costume was spot on.

[Mierin]

Greg,
Hey, at least there was someone else from Ottawa there! It was very cool meeting someone from my city!

[Augur]

Greg,
Hey, at least there was someone else from Ottawa there! It was very cool meeting someone from my city!

Y'all should start an IRL gaming group! And don't forget to recruit him for EU!

[Mierin]

Greg,
Hey, at least there was someone else from Ottawa there! It was very cool meeting someone from my city!

Y'all should start an IRL gaming group! And don't forget to recruit him for EU!

That's YOUR job, you digital pimp!

We did talk about an RL group he has. I'm just waiting for the information. *cough*hint,hint*cough*

[Nowhere65]

I too had a blast.

I tend to be a bit stand off-ish when it comes to meeting new people. Lulls in conversation make me feel a bit awkward. But, after gaming on Explorers Unlimited for the last couple years, I did have a group of people that I knew. Even though we had never met in person, it made me feel a more comfortable, as I could at least talk about the games I am playing in there.

That being said, almost everyone there was personable and friendly. Hell, if you just stood next to the writer/artists table you were likely to be drawn into a conversation.
Jason Marker told stories about dealing with Harmony Gold and tossed out some ideas he has for possible new Robotech books. If Harmony Gold doesn't let him do them, they're crazy, as the books sound great.
Mark Dudley stepped right up when I was looking at his portfolio and talked about his art and things he's currently working on. Lets hope he gets his comic book deal, because the test art he had out looked wicked.
Nick Bradshaw, who seemed intimidating when I first saw him, is a great guy and went above and beyond with the "doodles" he signed his name with. Though I did refrain from going and giving him a hug as Mark Oberle suggested.
Amy Ashbaugh was all smiles and talked freely about her work and up coming projects, even though I had a complete mental lapse from sleep deprivation when I was talking to her about scifi art. Also, she had some great work for sale. I picked up a cool color piece of a PA mechanic, that she went ahead and signed.
I also caught a glimpse of the cover of Nightbane Survival Guide and happened to be standing in the right place at the right time when Kevin gave a short tour of the offices.

As it is I'm ready to go back next year. For those who don't think they can afford it, its well worth it, so start saving now.

[Greg Diaczyk]

Jaguar Wong wrote:

Greg, I gotta know...did you and Kevin plan out what you were going to do and say for the costume contest before stepping up to the dot? You guys nailed it and the costume was spot on.

To be honest (and completely unfair to all the other guys who put hours, weeks, months? of work into thier costumes ) I did not bring a costume (though I had a couple in mind, but not enough time to execut them...). I was trimming my beard in the mirror to look all nice and pretty for you folks when I notced I bore a striking resemblance to Wayne Smith. Cosulting with Prince Artemis/Matt Daye our resident filographer/photograher (and my roommate) we took a closer look at Wayne from recent photoes the night before and I made some cosmetic changes (must have rolled like 01 for Disguise or something? ) and "aquire" a appropreately looking name tag.

I dropped into Kevin's game (much like Wayne did the night before), playing in character, though Kevin knew it wasn't Wayne took a long hard look before he realized it was me and burst out laughing! I then talked to Wayne and got a "What the?" look from him...

I then had at least two people come up to me spill their story about how they submitted a Rifter article and were wondering what the status of it was... I then promptly told them I hadn't a clue (which seemed to scare them ) and informed them that I was going as Wayne for my costume.

When the costume contest came around, I knew I didn't stand a chance against all the other contenders who put alot of effort into their costumes so I had to put some of my finely tuned Role-Playing skills to work, grabbed a box of books and entered the contester preview "between" the Fantasy and Horror/Modern group with my now classic line "Kev, can I have 5 minutes to watch the costume constest?" Which Kev graciously played along with "No!" and off I trooded "back to work" and the rest I'm sure you know...