"More Ladies at Historicon?" Topic

Having not gone, I can only see Historicon by the wonderful pictures people have graciously posted. Thanks for that, by the way!

It seems from looking at the pictures I've seen thus far that there were far more ladies at Historicon than I recall from years past. For those who attended, would you say that is accurate, or just a fluke of the pictures posted.

Let me be clear that if there are more ladies at Historicon, I think that's a great thing and welcome them heartily.

More Ladies have been attending and playing in all of the Cons I have of late.

Good trend I think.
Clif

I did see quite a few girls there myself. And a lot were easy on the eyes…

Really? I'm sorry, but does that need to be voiced?
Which may well be an argument for them not to attend in future.
These are people interested in gaming not hooking up with gamers. More people and more diversity is good for (most) groups.

I thought the topic was Lardies (as in Too Fat Lardies) and was a little perplexed at first.

From the pics there are a lot of younger players and women from the look of things – both of which are good for the hobby in the long run.

The previous 2 years they changed one of the Ladies rooms to be another Mens room. This year they did not. Not sure if that is an indicator or not, though.

They actually did change a Ladies room to a Mens room for a short time but quickly changed it back.

brucka- I do Not think that it sexist or demeaning to say that the increased presence of women make the con a nicer place to be, especially since their contribution to the hobby far outstrips their numbers.

I agree fully, but "…a lot were easy on the eyes" isn't? I'll own perhaps the fault is in my perception of that statement.

Geez people, I'm married. I'm not looking to "hook up". I meant that as a positive. I don't really care. I'm ugly. They are not. Is there something wrong with a pretty girl?

I guess nuance and context difficult in the written word. As I know nothing about you, it would be wrong to draw many inferences from what you wrote.
I just thought that particular phrase somewhat off-putting – I work in a field that is 90% female- just can't see that phrase being viewed as a welcome\welcoming one. Sure not your intent.

There's something wrong with mentioning with the implication that you wouldn't want them there if they weren't attractive. Whether you meant that or not, that's how it reads.

Of course, I just finished reading about harassment at astronomy conferences, so I may be picking up on this more than most. Having read about outright assault at some cons (walking up and grabbing a breast), the gaming community needs to be conscious of what sort of language signals girls and women that they're not welcome at events, or might simply not be safe. What signals are sent is not the same as the plain text. "Gosh, they're attractive signals that you're judging them on attractiveness, not knowledge or ability.

Simple test: would you routinely how good looking a male miniatures player is? How his clothes flatter flatter his body?

Is it OK to talk with your friends about a beautiful (or even mildly attractive) woman? Sure. Women do the same thing. But injecting a blanket commentary into a discussion of women's participation in the hobby on an open forum is inappropriate. Worse, it is counter-productive.

Yeah, I've said, "That's a good lookin dude". Or "Man that's a cool looking guy", many times. The girls that I'm speaking of knew it & didn't mind you knowing it. How many Russian sailors do you know that wear hot pants? I guess you think now I'm saying they wanted to be raped. I know what I mean even if you don't. I have girls that play in my games at home & at H-Con. I welcome them all. I'm not racist, sexist, or any other ist. Unlike one of our Presidential nominees. I vote for Women's Rights. Do you? So chill the hell out.

Swerving back to topic, does anyone have any idea of the kinds of games that appealed to the ladies?

If we are looking to grow attendance, then we need to know what it was about the games being run that made ladies want to play them. There were to younger girls playing (maybe running) an Steam Punk game that was well liked. There was a very friendly group in the HAWKS room Saturday that had female players having a good old time.

What are these GMs doing right or differently? Or, is it the other players that make the game more open and inviting?

I ran a WW2 game 4 years ago & had 2 girls in that. WW1 air this year. No girls. I'm gonna run a WW1 ground game in 2017 & I'll let ya know.

Some of the comments here are why there aren't as many women as there should be.

It was the same as when I used to attend lots of tournaments.

"Nice to see a girl player who isn't a total troll"

Gee, thanks….Leo.

wakenny:

The HAWKs have had many women and girls in our games over the years. In the past I would have said that the ones we've seen have gravitated toward fantasy, VSF, Dr. Who, and pulp games. While that may be still true, we had a number of women in the HAWKs room playing French and Indian Wars, WWI, and WWII. We had a pair come into the HAWKs room who looked like they were looking for a game. I ran down the list of games that were starting in our room, and they stopped me when I got to "WWII skirmish."

I think the women at the cons are just like everyone else -- they are looking for a fun game run by an organized GM with a solid set of rules. I posted some pictures on TMP link about HAWKs room games at Historicon. You will see women playing in a wide variety of games. I don't think there is a category of "women friendly" games like there is of "kid friendly" games.

My only generalization, I guess, is that many of the women seem to be relatively new to the hobby. You need to reach out to them, let them know that it's okay they don't already know the rules, and draw them into the game. Once in, they tend to do a better job of focusing on the scenario objective than many of the men who just want to throw dice and kill stuff.

Buck

"I think the women at the cons are just like everyone else -- they are looking for a fun game run by an organized GM with a solid set of rules. I posted some pictures on TMP link about HAWKs room games at Historicon. You will see women playing in a wide variety of games. I don't think there is a category of "women friendly" games like there is of 'kid friendly' games."

+1 surdu2005

One game at Little Wars 2016, I was frustrated enough with my teammates unrelentingly telling me what to do that I almost got up to leave the game. I was being commanded from the left and right side of me -- I did not ask them for their opinions. The funny thing is, I know Bolt Action and have the rulebooks and armies myself so I am familiar with Bolt Action.

It was a very frustrating situation that I ended up loudly asking people to stop commanding me to do what they want. If they would rather field the units I have, come and take it over.

Lesson. If you want me to keep playing, please mind your manners and think twice about being a jerk. Also, I am tempted to even wear a T-Shirt to the next convention that says, "Asking for an undo/do over is soooo not right!"

[Impetus does have "Mulligans" on some die rolls which you can purchase in your Army list]. Maybe you could ammend shirt with an *?

TMP Reader2:

Looking forward to seeing you in the HAWKs room at Fall In. I don't think you'll see a lot of that in our room, but a GM can only control the players so much. :)

Buck

Always happy to see kids, women, families showing up at the cons. And seeing the kids and the women playing is even better.

And brucka, while ceterman's phrase might be somewhat offensive at first hearing, may I direct your attention to envisioning a throng of stereotypical basement-living wargamers, myself included except for the basement part. Warthogs would conceivably be "easier on the eyes" in many instances.

And, to make the atmosphere more conducive to a broader range of gamers, perhaps GMs could assign negative modifiers to the oft-described odorous gamers of legend, until they cleaned up their act, literally and figuratively.

Buck, you and the HAWKS have always put on games that I've enjoyed; and the laughter and joyful noise produced at your club's tables does indeed reflect the games' successes.

Surdu2005, I will not be at Fall In 2016 Host site. I have read many good reviews of games hosted by the HAWKs and will join some in the future.

I had hoped to attend Historicon this year, but was too slow to grab a hotel room nearby -- 2 months prior was apparently too slow. No room(s) opened up either as the convention neared it start date. Not even regular price or any price. Booked solid. Oh well.

Historicon 2017 it will have to be.

TMP Reader 2…There is always Barrage…a great HAWKs production…2 day event this year, right Buck?