Death of the LGS

[Edena_of_Neith]

Hey there, Gamersgambit.
My full support and sympathy. I had heavy support from FLGSs in my area, to help me into the Hobby, and people like you helped me into Dungeons and Dragons.
My cheers and salutations to you, sir!

And yes, I've seen the decline myself in FLGS.
I remember the Gamer's Inn in Troy. Now gone. Hobby House in Garden City, now gone. The Gaming Underground in Ann Arbor, now gone.
Riders in Canton. Another store in western Ann Arbor. A store from long ago in Plymouth. A store in Novi. Other stores throughout Metropolitan Detroit. Gone.

These were great places, and especially they were places where one could find older material. The Gaming Underground was a literal gold mine for the Gaming Collector. As for the places in Plymouth, they enabled the first group I ever played in to come into existence in the first place.

Cheers to them all. I remember them.

Edena_of_Neith

 

[Nadaka]

What local FLGS?

There is a closet on hardy street where you get sneared at by 4 fat guys if you play anything but warhammer.

110 miles away... There was a great gaming shop, but all the punks would stop there to shoplift on their way home from school. She got evicted. The comic/card shop next door took over. And if you have a question about anything but pokemon, they stare at you slack jawed. Technically they have some gaming stuff left over, but thats because they don't have enough cards to fill the storage space.

 

[Zurai]

I'm afraid I can't sympathize either. I do have a FLGS - emphasis on F - and the owner goes out of his way to put that F there. His store is actually two adjacent lots in a strip mall; one is full of merchendise and 9 or so computers that he sells access to by the hour, while the other is a complete gameroom with four minis tables, a dozen standard tables, a bathroom, and a separate "VIP" room for private games.

He sells everything from imported card games, to minis, to every roleplaying game in print (and some out of print), to board games.

He only hires knowledgable, personable staff. His guys know what they're doing, know what's in stock/on order (or at least know how to find out quickly), and are happy to take individual orders and preorders.

He runs weekly demos of random games that he sells. He runs several tournaments every week for a variety of card games, and he has other people run minis tournaments once a month a game or so. He recently recruited a whole slew of DMs to run a store Open D&D campaign where anyone could sign up to play, and gave the DMs that stuck with their games a free 4E DMG (that's how I got mine).

He sells snacks and drinks, but he doesn't prohibit outside food and drink. Hell, there's a chinese food store and a pizza/italian joint within literal spitting distance. Instead of trying to compete with them, he takes advantage of the salty food and makes a killing on sodas and icecream bar type dessert snacks.

In other words, he runs a prototypical Friendly LGS, and he does well by it.

 

[Jack Colby]

Don't look at me. The only RPG stuff I buy online is old out of print stuff.

 

[Teflon Billy]

...I like OD&D, Classic Traveller, a few other odds and ends (maybe some T&T, some CoC, some Encounter Critical)...

You don't like Encounter Critical and you know it

 

[KingCrab]

When I got into gaming, D&D was sold at Toys 'R Us. That's a place where kids (at the time, anyway... I don't know what they're like anymore) used to browse for cool stuff. Or I did anyway. And I got into gaming through my friends of similar age.

I got my first basic set at a Toys 'R Us too, back when my mom still thought D&D was secretly the work of the devil.

Later on as a teen, I also had my experience with an unfriendly local game store, one that has since closed. I also saw some good stores close, and this was all back before 3e. Times were tough back then as well.

 

[Korgoth]

You don't like Encounter Critical and you know it

Robodroid Criminals have been already been hired to liquidate you. I'm sorry but there's no talking your way out of it... unless you're some kind of Vulkin Psi Witch ("I'm not who you droids are looking for") they're going to carry out their contract. Though one of them has a weakness for Planetary Ape Doxies, so you might be able to use that to your advantage. Otherwise, prepare to be terminated.

 

[KingCrab]

I suggest that you put a link to your store in your sig. And put your location in your profile.

At let us look you up while you're posting!

That sounds like a great idea for the OP.

 

[Teflon Billy]

Robodroid Criminals have been already been hired to liquidate you. I'm sorry but there's no talking your way out of it... unless you're some kind of Vulkin Psi Witch ("I'm not who you droids are looking for") they're going to carry out their contract. Though one of them has a weakness for Planetary Ape Doxies, so you might be able to use that to your advantage. Otherwise, prepare to be terminated.

Ha! Fool, my allies amongst the Ape Sultans have already prepared for your Robodroid attack.

My henchman Thrazar even now leads them to the attack.

 

[jinnetics]

The "cradle" or D&D for me was the Kay-Bee toystore that my Red Box came from, and the kitchen table at my cousins' house where I learned to play. I don't get that feeling when I walk into my "F"LGSes. I get blank stares and snobbish answers to basic questions.