Gen Con Saturday in Pictures

Saturday morning we were knackered and we overslept somewhat, and then got to a late start because, idiot that I am, I misplaced the seminar tickets I had picked up the day before. (It turned out I needn't have worried, as reported online the seminars are basically walk-in affairs and even the popular Paizo seminars could be entered with nary a glance at a ticket. Much ado about nothing.)

After a quick bite we headed off to our first seminar, Paizo's "Writing for Dungeon Magazine" seminar. RPG companies take note, this is how it should be done. Erik Mona, Publisher of Dragon and Dungeon magazines, ran a tight, well-orchestrated event. Moments into the seminar he laid out the plan, telling the attendees exactly what to expect, and then he and his staff went by the numbers, beginning with explanatory stuff for the newbies, giving advice, running through a collaborative workshop exercise, and finally answering questions. It was informative, professsional, and fun.

The next seminar was hit and miss, the subject being tie-in writing. There were some good, experienced writers at the table, but between the tired between-author quips and ego-stroking the point sometimes got lost. These authors were giving their time to teach others, and I really appreciate that, and it shouldn't all be deadly serious, but people are there to learn first and foremost... not be entertained (which most of us were not) by endless joshing among the participants. 'Nuff said.

At this point, after a good 3 hours of seminars, A and I exited the Hyatt and walked down to the Indiana State Museum. It was already hot, and my ever-heavy backpack was thumping against my back in a steady rhythm. We checked out a few sculptures outside the nearby Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art and then walked into the museum proper, following a state-by-state walkway that lead finally to Indiana as you reached the door. The welcome cool air washed across us as we stepped inside. The museum was small by our jaded New York City standards, but it contained a lot of cool items and was heavy with Indian artifacts and Hoosier lore. A history timeline of Indiana started literally with the forming of the Earth and fossil records, so these Indiana folks are thorough, I'll give them that! I marveled at the ancient arrowheads and we got a kick out of a 1980s memorabilia section that included a Mac Plus computer in with the Pop culture tidbits.





After we ducked back into the convention center for another run-through. As we exited the Dealer Room, we stopped by a large display of card houses. A young gal, barely visible behind the towers of cards, invited me in to aid the construction but I declined, fearing that one poorly timed sneeze on my part would cause a disaster.

I discovered later that at a certain time that evening a mob armed with coins would gather, pelt the card constructions until all were flat, and the coins are gathered for a local childrens' charity.

We finally staggered over to The Ram for dinner. The place was mobbed but the atmosphere was there—Return of the King was blasting at full volume from the large sports screens, to the delight of most of the diners. The place was draped with banners from Wizards and Privateer Presss and they even feature a fantasy-themed appetizer menu during the weekend. Props to The Ram for rolling out the red carpet for Gen Con attendees.