"Fall In 2015 dates?" Topic

Anyone know the dates for Fall In 2015? Thanks,
JD

Check the Hmgs website. Should have the dates.

Rotundo: That is the problem, the site does not have the Fall In 2015 dates listed.

The paper I got from the Host, to reserve a room for next year, lists 11/5- 11/8 .
It's up to you to decide if you can trust the Host for accuracy.

OK, thanks for the info.

Oh, crap… that info is at home on my contracts.. they shoudl be located on the HMGS main page. I will make sure to get them up ASAP… that is, if any of you actually want to go back to F-I! after my last post…. in another section.

Ok, dang it… all I have at the moment are the dates for 2016 & 2017.

I will get the 2015 posted ASAP!

The show will be the first weekend in November for 16 & 17.

Thursday, November 3, 2016 to Sunday, November 6, 2016
Thursday, November 2, 2017 to Sunday, November 5, 2017

Dan,

On hmgs.org I normally pull the new dates out of the program, but I didn't see theme for Fall In this year. When you get the 2015 dates, could you also provide a theme as well (for 16 and 17 if you have them).

Thanks, Colonel Bill

ageofeagles.com

I feel like Capt. Obvious is mocking me quietly somewhere.

"Thursday, November 3, 2016 to Sunday, November 6, 2016
Thursday, November 2, 2017 to Sunday, November 5, 2017"

Dan:

I am curious why these early dates in '16 and '17? Did you realize that if you went a week later on both years you'd coincide with Veteran's Day and perhaps get more attendees with the federal holiday?

Was this a BOD, CD or Host decision? Seems like you'd want to capitalize on the federal holiday to maximize attendance.

Have they sent the dealer packets out yet? Dang! I didn't get one.

Still no comment why the out years aren't capitalizing on the holiday? This does not seem like good con planning to me.

The dates were decided by the BoD when they did contracts. It could be that the Host was already booked or something, I do not know for sure. I was not in on the decision.

Bill, I was really sick recently.. I'll em,ail you the dates and get them posted for 2015.. as for the theme… I was thinking strictly "Waterloo" as it is one of my favorite battles, but that as a theme is very limiting….

I'll get you the info soon.

Please do and thank you.

And I wouldn't rule out Waterloo per se, but it might be nice to highlight the entire 1815 campaign. There were other battles fought outside the Quatre Bras/Ligny/Wavre/Waterloo quad. Right now, for example I am writing an article and providing an AOE scenario for Wargames Illustrated on the 28 June 1815 battle of la Souffel near Strassbourg. Here General Rapp's V Corps spanked the Austro/Wurttemburg/Hessian III Korps under the Crown Prince of Wurttemburg, the last French pitched battle victory of the war.

Also, since we do know the composition of the Allied armies invading France and the French forces delaying them, there are some great what ifs to consider had Napoleon won Waterloo and then turned east to facxe the Austrians, Russians and other Germans. Its really the only time and place where exotic units such as Bavarian lancers, Kurassiers and guard grenadiers should ever be on the table.

Give it some thought.

Colonel Bill
ageofeagles.com

Bill,
That is a great idea; make the theme the Waterloo Campaign and all the battles within it.

Superb idea.

Dan:

Hope you are on the mend. Seemed to be something going around this holiday.

I'm not sure what to say about the BOD fumbling these dates. It would seem to me if HMGS really wanted to maximize attendance, those would be the dates they would have insisted on to get the most out of the holiday. The Host should be down on their knees thanking us for renting out their rapidly deteriorating facility twice a year.

This is another reason we need more places so HMGS is not lashed to the Host.

If any con can move it is FI, given its size.

Perhaps those years would be the time to do so. That is if HMGS is really serious about getting the biggest bang for its buck.

A good name for the theme might be "The Hundred Days" as that would encompass the entire campaign across all of France and Belgium. La Souffel, remember, was fought near Strassbourg.

And then of course, there are battles in Italy during the same time pitting Austrian forces against Prince Murat's Neapolitan army.

Good stuff.

Ciao, Colonel Bill
ageofeagles.com

Bill,

For some reason when I posted this a while back it never took and I never checked it….

F-I! 2015 will be Nov. 6-8th.

Sorry for the delay!!!

Got it, East Cons and Future Events pages updated on hmgs.org. Thanks.

BTW, any word on the theme for the convention?

Colonel Bill
ageofeagles.com

I am still waffeling on: 1815 "The end of an Era" Waterloo.
I am open to suggestions….

And artwork chices.. remeber, they have to be afordable.

If someone suggests something and I use it… I'll buy you a beer at the show…. not guaranteed ot be a $20 USD beer…. but somehting I would drink…

I have lots of ideas… but it doesn't mean mine are the best.

At my first show… I had plenty of left over tee-shirts… the following 2 shows sold out…. I want to keep the trend going!

As you guys also know.. I am very much open to suggestions to make the show better…. I cannot promise anything, but I will listen and if doable… well, try to do it!

Also.. theme will be decided within the week as Ads for CW book are due by the end of Jan.

Dan,

First of all, I'm glad to hear that you are feeling better. That's the most important thing.

As far as themes for Fall In 2015 are concerned, allow me to make the anti-Napoleonic case. An 1815 theme is fine, but most, if not all, of the anniversary events will be over by the time we get to November 2015. I predict that "Waterloo fatigue" will have set in by then for many.

Second, the theme for Historicon 2015 is "End of Empires" which I'm sure will have plenty of games that cover 1815 in general and The Hundred Days campaign in particular. Fall In doesn't want to cover the same ground as Historicon.

If you want to include 1815, I'd suggest something like 1815-1915 ("Hundred Days/Hundred Years"). That allows you to cover Waterloo, but also build on the 1914 theme of Fall In 2014. You get Gallipoli plus Napoleon.

If you want to expand even further to cover the present day, you can go with "1815-2015" or even "1715-2015." There are plenty of combinations to run off of 2015. Not to knock the Nap crowd, but if you go back to the list of games for Fall In 2014, you'll see that Napoleonic games were not in the top five when it came to number of games. (Check the "Fall In 2014 thread and update" topic for a list of games by period.) Like the Old Guard, they are a dedicated bunch but they don't have the numbers they used to, at least when it comes to games.

Looking to the future, I strongly suggest that 2017 be a "Over There/The Yanks Are Coming" theme for WWI. 2018 should focus on the end of The Great War.

Finally, another way to go for themes is to focus on one individual. I've always thought that "Winston's Wars" would make a good convention theme. That would cover Colonials (India and Africa) plus both World Wars. (Churchill did go into the trenches after Gallipoli. "Warlord" by Carlo D'Este is a great reference for a convention with a Churchill theme.) Maybe that would work for 2016.

Good luck with your decision. Hope to see you at Cold Wars.

Good evening Dan

Nice to see you're feeling better. If I can make a suggestion – how about Seven Years War? That involved most, if not all, nations and expanded into the New World.

Guys, thak you very much for the insight!

I want to say first up…. yes, if I am still allowed to be CD for Fall-In! in 2017… the theme will be all about the Yanks… The shirt will be the actual US recruitment poster that says "Fall-in!" It will be perfect…

I have no problem doing the "Seven Years War" at all either.. it is just out of my realm of knowledge. I don't game it so I don't know a lot about it. It will be put to consideration!

I was leaning toward the Napoleonic theme as I am an "old Guard" type.. I personally own a very huge collection of French, Russian and Polish Napoleonics and am working for Borodino in 1:40 company level… insane, right?

Anyway… all options will be taken into consideration as will artwork selections if affordable! This is about "us" not me. I knwo everyoen is gearing up for CW, but I am working hard on Fall-In! already… I must have th etheme and artwork hammered out by the 21st of this month!

So thank you all for any input!