Kevin Rohrer - Jul 3, 2006 11:09 pm (#14446 Total: 14721) The 2006-07 President of the NGA (aka The Cleveland Mafia) has issued an Executive Order for you to attend the Buckeye Game Fest in Columbus, Ohio: Sept. 28~Oct 1 Origins AAR On The Table this past weekend was Origins, the National Gaming Fair (nee Origins Wargaming Convention). Origins was held in its usual spot at the Columbus Convention Center, June 28~July 2. The attendance appeared normal, which in past years was slightly more than 12k people. Fortunately, the Convention Center and its rooms are large so there was no crowding, even in the Dealer Room. I have been going to Origins since it moved to Columbus back in 1996. Prior to that the only time I attended it was when the con was held in Dearborn, Michigan in 1978. Back then it was strictly board wargames and military miniatures. No CCG, no RPG, no LARP. Sadly, wargaming and miniatures have been shoved aside to a certain extent. GAMA has seen fit to shove these genres into corners of the convention center in favor of the more lucrative CCGs and RPGs. Fortunately, grognards have fought against GAMA's profit-above-all-else bean counters and board wargaming now has its own room, thanks to the CABS' leadership. The trip from northeast Ohio was a quick 1.5 hours and Columbus traffic was light when we arrived at 1100. For the past several years, the War Room has been situated at the very edge of the Center, but this weakness was also its strength, as I was able to park right outside the doors leading to the Room and quickly unloaded my games, a feat that in past years has taken up to 2-hours to perform when making the Long March from the hotel parking deck. When GAMA gives you lemons, make lemonade. And speaking of GAMA, they did their usual poor job of getting events into their program guide. I had anticipated this and decided not to play their game this year (pun intended). Instead, I invested in a white board and brought it to the con. On it was my schedule of multiplayer games I wanted to play. I setup in a corner near the front door to the War Room, and happily gamed the entire weekend without any noticeable downtime. In fact, I was so busy that I didn't make it to any War Colleges, play in anything outside the War Room, or even play my favorite minis: Battletech. When my daughter and I arrived in the War Room, someone was already there setting up Europa. Talk about dedication! During the next four and a half days, I played twelve games a total of eighteen times. What I played: Atlantic Storm by AH: For those who have never played this table-talk champion, you have missed a great gaming opportunity. Copies can be had on Ebay, but buy early as it is not ever slated to be republished * Wellington by GMT (2): Excellent 4-player game that for no logical reason, has not sold well. Although it uses the same game system as The Napoleonic Wars, Wellington is easier to play due to the lack of a naval subsystem or TNW's diplomacy rules. I like it better than TNW because there is more player interaction. However, it has sold well enough that we may see a deluxe map. Pacific Typhoon by GMT: In playtest, this WW2 Pacific War game uses the Atlantic Storm rules. Twilight Struggle by GMT (5): Political influence game about the Cold War. Get a copy if you can find this one, otherwise, wait till September for the reprint. Mare Nostrum w/ the Mythical Expansion by Eurogames: 6-player game about conquering the ancient Mediterranean basin. The Mythic expansion adds the 6th player (Atlantis) along with a board extension that has the island on it. Some setup cards are changed to balance the game better by giving Greece more of a chance to stay alive. The expansion also adds a new phase (rent a god). Although the new phase is minimal, adding Atlantis entirely changes the game and improves it immensely. Lock & Load: Band of Heroes * Viking Fury by Ragnar Brothers: 5-player "racing" game about Viking long ships that compete with each other to raid, settle, and trade with different settlements. Shifting Sands by MMP (2): Uses the Paths of Glory system. It plays faster than POG as there are less units. Battlegroup by Lost Battalion Games: Card game of WW2 ship-to-ship combat. Galactic ? by Lost Battalion Games: Card game that uses the Battlegroup system. Fredrich by Histogames: Unusual 4-player game of the 7-years war that uses playing cards for combat. Manifest Destiny by GMT: Another 5-player game that is much better than what some say. All "combat" is economic in nature. During the weekend I taught a half dozen people how to play GMT's sleeper, power-politics game, Twilight Struggle. This game is so popular that GMT went thru their 3000 copy print run in four months. Happily, a second print run is currently being made and should be available by September. As for what others were playing, if it was a wargame, it was there. I saw everything from AH's Battle of the Bulge and Victory Games' Civil War to SPI's Invasion America and Clash of Arms' L'Armee du Nord. Even though the con didn't start until Thursday morning, the War Room had at least thirty gamers in it Wednesday, and by Thursday evening (the first official day of the con) it was full. My inside source says that 193-War Room badges were sold, and I saw lots of wargames being played on the War Veranda and the Breezeway. Who says wargaming is dead? War Room Trivia First game played: Europa (<1100-hours on Wednesday) Most played game: Twilight Struggle Second most played game: Shifting Sands Third most played game: Here I Stand by GMT Fourth most played game: Shifting Sands Game played the longest period of time: Europa Game played the most man-hours: Here I Stand Last war game played: Shifting Sands (ended at 1745-hours on Sunday) There was a noticeable increase in women There was also a noticeable increase in gamers' waistlines (except for mine) Youngest attendee: Kevin Devine's 7-week old son Oldest attendee: Not me Game that got the most "oohs" and "ahs": Twilight Struggle Game most stolen borrowed from me to play: a tie between Twilight Struggle and Atlantic Storm Gaming accessory that got the most "oohs" and "ahs": The acetate sheet used by myself and others to cover/protect maps during play Gaming accessory most stolen borrowed from me: acetate sheet Most useful gaming accessory (after the acetate and my dice tower): The white board I advertised the multiplayer games I wanted to run. With this I was never without an opponent. I plan on making this a permanent addition to all the stuff I drag around to cons. Second most useful gaming accessory: Plastic card holder by innovatium (www.innovatiumin.com). I used it to hold Mare Nostrum's 14-decks (!) of cards and Wellington's four decks. It will also work well with Fredrich's 5-decks or any other multideck game. The company had a booth at the show and I got to talk to the owner. They are working on a similar item that will hold all the little chits we see in games. I also suggested that he come up with a personal card holder that was smaller but would hold 10-cards and set in front of players. Most interesting computer wargame seen: Matrix's Operational Art of War 3: This is a great program for playing board games on the computer. There are hundreds of scenarios, many of which started life as board wargames. You can play against a reasonably competent AI or by PBEM. Most interesting future computer wargame: Matrix's Forge of Freedom (American Civil War at the operational level). It looked REAL Good and will be out around November. Favorite soda seen: Pepsi Free Favorite Pepsi Free product seen: Guinness Loudest laugh: tie between Mike Galangiuk and myself Fast food most likely to cause gastro-intestinal stress: Quiznos Most interesting game I wanted to play but couldn't find the time: Combat Commander by GMT Friendliest wargame company staff: tie between L2, GMT, Lost Battalion Games, MMP, Clash of Arms, Matrix, and Columbia Games. Most unfriendly game company staff: Decision Games aka Derisive Games (also won this title last year and will probably win next year). Organization whose membership fee provides you with more "bang to the buck" than any other gaming club in the world: CABS Organization most likely to squeeze every cent out of gamers without providing any additional service: GAMA For those of you who couldn't attend, or who did but have an insatiable urge to wargame, CABS' Buckeye Game Fest will be held in Columbus from September 28~October 1. For a measly $35, you will be able to game to your heart's content from Thursday noon till Sunday night, twenty four hours a day. I fully expect to see more than 150 attendees at the con. Contact CABS at their website: www.buckeyeboardgamers.org for an application and more info. I will be there with my white board. George Sauer III - Jul 19, 2006 6:59 pm (#2822 Total: 2872) Columbus Area Boardgaming Society - http://www.buckeyeboardgamers.org From the Origins Website ... We were one of the highlights Origins 2006 saw a lot of successes, but it also left a few challenges in its wake. Here’s an overview of how things looked at this year’s show: # The majority of exhibitors reported significantly stronger sales over last year. # RPGA event attendance rose tremendously. This year's show saw the largest RPGA turnout in Origins history. --------------------------------- # The first-ever Origins Board Room was a rousing success, selling well over 200 ribbons within the first two days of the show. --------------------------------- # The show’s attendance numbers were down by about 2,900 people from last year’s record high of 15,000. We're still nailing down the final numbers, and should have them by the end of July. The decrease in attendance is particularly ironic given the marked successes in the exhibit hall and the overflowing events in many areas of the game halls. # GAMA’s new on-site systems ran smoothly, which kept people moving fast. # For the first time ever, attendees could purchase badges and event tickets online during the night, and then pick up their purchases the next morning. Many attendees took advantage of this new perk, with plenty of positive comments. # Response to the first-ever Sunday “Family Day” badge package looks good. The program provided admission for a family of up to four related people for $25 total, including a $5 voucher good at participating vendors in the Expo Hall. The program received promotion on several Columbus radio and TV stations immediately before the show. # Customer service issues were down tremendously compared to previous years, thanks largely to the new systems. # In speaking with attendees, we heard that the attendance was affected by the way that the July 4 holiday fell (people taking Monday off instead of Friday), severe weather on the East Coast (which also prevented a number of our volunteers from arriving), and the absence of Wizards of the Coast and Upper Deck. Thanks to everybody who made Origins 2006 a success. Watch this space for information about Origins 2007, coming soon!