Gaming Conventions and OwlCon 2015

As a general rule, I don't really like conventions. I've only been to handful of these mass gatherings of humanity, and most of my experiences haven't been all that positive. For one example, I went to a Star Trek convention once and hated it. It cost $25 to get in the door--in 1991! And, once you were in, there was nothing to do except walk around, buy stuff, gawk at the weirdos, and marvel at Jonathan Frakes' aplomb when answering crazy questions from the audience. (Query: How does Geordie see through his visor? Frakes:  Well, when LeVar doesn't have a closeup shot, he uses a see-through version that sort of fits over his face. But that won't work for closeups because his eyes would get into the shot... Query: No. I mean how does Geordie the character see through the visor. Frakes: Umm. Uh. I think it has something to do with light particles. It's just "tech" in the script....)

In other words, that convention sucked.

While unique in its awfulness, that long-ago Star Trek brouhaha was pretty much par-for-the-course as far as my experiences at conventions went. They just weren't all that fun. The fact that I've lived in Houston since 2002 and have never attended the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo should tell you something about my general attitude toward conventions.

However, I don't feel the same way about gaming conventions. Maybe it's because games are a hobby of mine. Or maybe it's because, at a gaming convention, you're actually there to DO something besides buy a bunch of junk in the exhibition hall and watch celebrities make a quick buck. Or, maybe I've just had good experiences so far. In any case, I've always enjoyed the (admittedly) rather limited number of gaming conventions I've attended. Indeed, my experience at GenCon in 2011 was a catalyst for my renewed interest in role-playing games in general.

One convention where I always have a good time is right here in Houston: OwlCon. OwlCon is held every year in February at Rice University. I really like it. It's big enough to have many different gaming options, but small enough that the attendees don't get lost in the shuffle. I've been going since 2013. This year, I signed up to GM two role-playing sessions--one on Friday, February 6, and the other on Saturday, February 7. I ran an AD&D 1e/OSRIC mini-adventure for six characters of levels 5 through 7. I had an outstanding time. I won't go into too much detail here about the actual sessions because I intend to reuse some of the encounters in the OwlCon adventure later on in my own campaign. Recycling isn't just a good idea for empty milk cartons and newspapers, after all.

I will say this, though. I loved watching the two groups of players devise different strategies for the same set of problems while, at the same time, responding to the inevitable randomness generated by the dice. For instance, on Friday night, I had a full complement of six players. They were a fun-loving, fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants group that spent only a little time scouting out the situation before they barreled in. They managed to accomplish about two-thirds of the adventure's goals, but had a great time doing it. In one encounter, a vampire boss managed to charm one of the PCs after he missed his saving throw. That unfortunate result led to a hilarious situation in which the vampire ordered the charmed PC to give his neighbor a big, sloppy hug and otherwise get in his way during the ensuing battle. Everyone had a good laugh at that one.

By contrast, the Saturday night group was smaller--only four players--and far more methodical. They laid out a strategy ahead of time, executed it, and completed the entire adventure and all its goals by the end of the evening. They planned the work and worked the plan, as you might say. As a smaller group, they weren't as animated as the players on Friday, but they still seemed to enjoy themselves. I particularly liked the fact that one of the players on Saturday, though an experienced role-player, had never played 1st Edition before. I found it gratifying to introduce a game to someone who (I suspect) was probably born around the same time that 1st Edition AD&D reached the zenith of its popularity in the early 1980s.

In all, it was a great experience. I really enjoyed the OwlCon sessions. It was a real change of pace, and I think the experience--especially learning how to run a game for people other than my usual group--will make me a better GM.

I'd now like to know what everyone else thinks. Have you ever attended a gaming convention? How was the experience? What did you like? What did you not like? Would you ever go again? Leave a comment.