PAX East: DM D&D for WotC, get a free badge and/or hotel room!

[DEFCON 1]

I'm signed up all official-like this year. Did a few sessions last year as a fill-in... and decided for this year to go all-in.

 

[Piratecat]

Do you know if he checks his spam folder? AOL doesn't always like Gmail.

I'll ping him.

 

[TheWriterFantastic™]

Hey PirateCat, I shot him an e-mail about it yesterday, haven't heard anything either. Was also from my Gmail, so the spam issue Lucek mentioned might be the issue...

 

[fba827]

a general sort of question to anyone who have done this before....

i've never been to a Con -- would it be overwhelming as my first Con experience to run games _and_ try and take in "the con experience" ?

and based on above comments, it sounds like it is a lower stress sort of crowd than other cons... is that an accurate assessment from your experiences?

i have been to local things, like LFR and even a DMed for a D&D Encounters session before to a bunch of newbies. But I seem to keep running in to the "loud obnoxious gamer' types which really just ruins the fun for me. so trying to decide how big of a gamble i would be making.

if this would derail the thread, feel free to PM me so as to not derail the thread too much.

 

[Nullzone]

Nobody can really make that call for you, as we don't know your limits for sensory or social absorption, but I would say that if you're already accustomed to running 4e in general terms you'd be fine. Judging from the summary of events none of them are particularly complicated, and you'll still get some free time to experience the rest of PAX (or not; your choice, of course).

I can't guarantee that you won't run into the "loud obnoxious gamer" type of person, but the vast, VAST majority of people at PAX are friendly and easy to get along with. I have only ever had issues with two people there in the three shows I've attended, and it wasn't because they were mean or like the type of person you describe, but rather that they just weren't open to being outwardly friendly or conversational.

I can offer with near absolute certainty that you'll have a great time and make some new friends. People at PAX aren't strangers; they're 30,000 friends that you just haven't met yet! Just remember that they're all there because they love gaming as much as you do and it's a breeze

 

[lucek]

a general sort of question to anyone who have done this before....

i've never been to a Con -- would it be overwhelming as my first Con experience to run games _and_ try and take in "the con experience" ?

and based on above comments, it sounds like it is a lower stress sort of crowd than other cons... is that an accurate assessment from your experiences?

i have been to local things, like LFR and even a DMed for a D&D Encounters session before to a bunch of newbies. But I seem to keep running in to the "loud obnoxious gamer' types which really just ruins the fun for me. so trying to decide how big of a gamble i would be making.

if this would derail the thread, feel free to PM me so as to not derail the thread too much.

PAX is a calmer con then others. Oh and con GMing is a bit different then regular Gming. 2 biggest differences are the fact you're on a timetable and the fact you don't know people and never will. You have 2 hours or 30 minutes or whatever the time limit that is implied on you're table to give thees people what they want. If you're an experienced GM then it's like running a first session multiple times a day, if you're not then I wouldn't sign in for the long haul.

If I haven't scared you away with this talk consider going for it.

Edit: I would be negligent if I wasn't to quote the 2010 PAX East keynote, "welcome home".

 

[Willi]

Sorry for the delay in answering a few folks - day job got in the way of the rest of life...

I should be all caught up now, so if you haven't heard back from me AOL SPAM filters got your email. Give me another shout there or let me know here that I missed you.

We still have plenty of 3-day passes a very few room slots.

 

[Willi]

i have been to local things, like LFR and even a DMed for a D&D Encounters session before to a bunch of newbies. But I seem to keep running in to the "loud obnoxious gamer' types which really just ruins the fun for me. so trying to decide how big of a gamble i would be making.

As previous mentioned, PAX East is a very friendly con. We do a lot of "Learn to Play" and the rest of the games are aimed at the more casual player than the typical LFR player. We tend to get very few of the obnoxious folks. The past two years I can only remember one problem player and that's really good for two cons that size.

Everybody is there to have fun. If you want to try it and you're worried and want an easy schedule, let me know and we'll give you "Learn to Play."

 

[Rechan]

I actually sent Willi an email, then looked up PAX and found out that last year's PAX EAST had 70,000 people.

I... that's maybe too many people for me to handle.

On an unrelated question, what happens at PAX? What are the various events? I can't find an actual schedule anywhere that encompasses the whole con.

 

[lucek]

I actually sent Willi an email, then looked up PAX and found out that last year's PAX EAST had 70,000 people.

I... that's maybe too many people for me to handle.

On an unrelated question, what happens at PAX? What are the various events? I can't find an actual schedule anywhere that encompasses the whole con.

I was a little intimidated at the first PAX I went to back in 2010, but that faded when I got in line. The line to get in the door was like a party. And for note the most unpleasant person I met in all the times I've gone now was a guy who had a single gripe about his boss.

That said Pax has panels from major people in the nerd hobby industry. Nerdy concerts and movie showings. And the Omegathon. That's not including the awesome previews and demos they have on upcoming games. Last year I was lucky enough to get a preview of portal 2. Another place to check out is the retro arcade. They had games from Atari to Dreamcast all free to play, some in console some in cabinets. Last but not least there is the table top section. If it's anything like last year wizards will have a dozen or more tables, and there will be dozens more set aside for pickup games and a place to rent games.

All that said PAX is the biggest little con out there. By that I mean there may be 70,000+ people going but it feels like it's a con with 200 close friends.