"What to Run at the Local Con? (w/ Poll)" Topic

Looks like I'm skipping Historicon and Fall-in! again this year, so my convention focus will be towards Mepacon this November in beautiful scenic downtown Scranton, PA. mepacon.com

Except I have no idea what to run.

It's an RPG and board-game dominant con, but with their recent move to bigger digs, they've done a fair job expanding their horizons. There have been some well received minis games at the con over the years, and I'm lucky to say some have been mine.

Two curve balls: First, I will probably be volunteering/running things in the kids section. This is an extremely family friendly con with kid events ranging from rpgs to miniature painting to a coloring contest to a kid's LARP. For my six year old daughter, Maja, this will be her third time attending. We skipped the Spring con, so she's been bugging me incessantly.

Second, it's not surprising that the con theme for November is Star Wars. I should at least ponder a SW game, and since I don't own any minis/ships/cards a kid's RPG option should be considered.

While I know you guys might skew things to the wargaming side, I need some input as to what I should run.

link

I have a couple of suggestions, based on kid friendliness and convention theme. (I am including games with rules I've written, because I know they work for younger gamers.) Basically I think you want to go with very small skirmish gamers with four or five figures per player, because this is nice bridge to miniatures from role playing.

1) X-wing. This is probably no epiphany, but the rules are easily learned, and the game is good for younger gamers as well as adults. I wouldn't do a lot of customization. Just put a bunch of ships on the table and let the kids blast away at each other.

2) Run a Star Wars themed game using GASLIGHT. Yes, I know that GASLIGHT was written for VSF, but there is the supplement for pulp games (To Be Continued… by GASLIGHT). Star Wars is more pulp than real science fiction anyway. GASLIGHT is easily earned and works great with younger gamers as well as adults. I have used it for Captain America, VSF, pulp, WWII, etc.

3) Anything with pirates. You could use Blood and Swash or whatever rules you like. Pirates are fun and easy.

Buck Surdu

How about a chariot style race ……… but using star wars ships instead.

Yes, there's always Pod Racing …

Phil

Jamie Davis wrote a set of rules, called Future Race that is EXCELLENT for pod racing. See futureracegames.com

In my opinion the only good thing to come out of Crapisodes I – III was Jamie's game.

Chariot races are popular in the south as are modified versions including cartoon characters.

One children's event had dolls and action figures set up in a school setting. Control of the school social life was the goal.

For miniatures, the use of the Wings of Glory WW1 and X-Wing Star Wars fighters would be easy to set up and run.

For more complicated event, you might try a skirmish game like SAGA or Bolt Action.

Bolt Action is a definite possibility. While Saga is a good game, I think it takes a couple of games to get used to the battle boards. It might not be your best option for a newbie convention game.

Dunking booth with a large circle and the OFM in the hot seat?
Make sure he is wearing a tight white t-shirt. :-)

Grimm

For the RPG side of things, try looking for old Star Frontiers modules/games (they're on the web for free). While not pure SW, it wouldn't be too hard to mod them that way, as they're clearly inspired by it.
Of course, West End Games did have the Star Wars RPG, which shouldn't be too hard to find.
Although if you run an RPG right, you really don't need to worry to much about your base rules, because only you need to know them. As long as you as game master know how the combat and other details work, you're pretty much good to go with the kids only having to bring their imaginations to the table. You can therefore work up your own rules for SW unique bits like the Force and lightsabers and the inexplicable ineffectiveness of stormtrooper armor, or even just wing it with these.