ENNIE Award Dream Dates: 2022 Guide

The 2022 ENNIE Awards show returns to Gen Con! Coming August 5th at 8pm in Indianapolis, Indiana, the ceremony reveals the winners of the most prestigious awards in tabletop roleplaying games. If you’re interested in attending the event with some of the best known publishers and personalities in roleplaying, then you can bid for one of the ENNIE Award Dream Dates. The winner gets a seat at a table with the staff of publishers such as Chaosium, Magpie Games, Pelgrane Press, and Beadle & Grimm's (including actor Matthew Lillard). In addition, they pick up some great books and support the ENNIE Awards. After a two year pandemic enforced absence, the publisher Dream Dates are back. I’ll review the options and offers to talk about why publishers and fans should check these out.

What You Get​

The winners get to sit and talk with the publishers, have a front row view of the stage, pick up some great swag, and monetarily support of the awards through their winning bid. That last part is important: These auctions fund the annual ENNIE Awards. The awards and ceremony aren’t free, so this helps to cover their costs of production for the metals and the actual event. Any attendee of the ENNIE Awards ceremony includes a chance to see the best games of the year recognized, get a drink, talk to creators, and/or bid in their silent auction. It’s an outstanding time.

To be clear, winners of the Dream Dates are responsible for travel to Gen Con as well as their badge to get into the convention, costs over and above this auction.

The Auctions​

ENNIE Awards Dream Date with Beadle & Grimm's Team including Matthew Lillard!

• END DATE: Saturday, July 30 at 3:01PM EDT
• 2022 ENNIE AWARD NOMINATION: Complete Wizard Chronicle – Nominated for Best Production Values
• INTERVIEW: I spoke to Matthew Lillard and Paul Shapiro of Beadle & Grimm’s about this project in 2020 (here).
• REWARD(S): You’ll attend the awards ceremony with Beadle & Grimm’s owners including actor and gamer Matthew Lillard (Scooby Doo, Hackers, Dice, Camera, Action, Wing Commander, Scream, and more). Beadle & Grimm’s is a high-end publishing company specializing in luxury RPG products. With contacts at Wizards of the Coast and Paizo, you’ll get to talk with their founders about gaming and book production. In addition, you’ll get a limited edition version of the Complete Wizard Chronicle (this is a special copy of the book that they’re nominated for) autographed by all five founders of Beadle & Grimm's. Despite a strong field of contenders, this appears to be the most sought after seat at the awards show.

ENNIE Awards Dream Date with Magpie Games -with Root Bundle

• END DATE: Saturday, July 30 at 12:00PM EDT
• 2022 ENNIE AWARD NOMINATIONS: Root: The RPG – Nominated for Best Game; Root: The RPG – Nominated for Product of the Year; Root: The RPG: Travelers and Outsiders – Nominated for Best Supplement
• INTERVIEW: I’ve talked with Mark Diaz Truman of Magpie Games about another project (here).
• REWARD(S): To the winner goes the deluxe bundle of Root: The RPG ($250), which is the best version of a fun game (I reviewed it for Knights of the Dinner Table). But, for some, the best reward here is the connections you’ll make. Magpie runs a number of Powered by the Apocalypse design seminars, which makes them a great publisher to discuss design with. For publishers looking to take their promotion to the next level, this auction is the answer. Mark Diaz Truman, the individual John Wick credited with driving the first million dollar RPG Kickstarter (you can hear John credit Mark here), is likely to be on-hand. Mark’s resume is strong including the highest funded RPG Kickstarter to-date, Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying Game. I’ve written about the moves he’s made in RPG (here and here). Publishers, if you want to take your company from a hobby to an industry beast, sit and talk with Mark Diaz Truman and Magpie Games.

ENNIE Awards Dream Date with NerdBurger Games -Good Strong Hands / Capers Bundle

• END DATE: Saturday, July 30 at 12:15PM EDT
• 2022 ENNIE AWARD NOMINATIONS: Good Strong Hands – Nominated for Best Family Game / Product; Good Strong Hands – Nominated for Best Rules
• INTERVIEW: Craig Campbell of Nerdburger Games, who I’ve attended conventions with, talked to me about Good Strong Hands (here).
• REWARD(S): The limited edition, Kickstarter exclusive cover of Good Strong Hands ($60), the CAPERS Deluxe Hardcover ($39.99, which I reviewed here), the CAPERS Noir ($19.99), the CAPERS Covert ($19.99), and the CAPERS Offworld ($22.99). In terms of dollar value, this is a great deal. For publishers looking for advice on their projects, Craig has experience as a freelancer, as a publisher, and as the Secretary for Indie Game Developer Network (IGDN). He knows designing, executing, publishing and selling indie RPGs. If you’re looking for guidance from a one-person-publisher on creating award winning games, this is going to be a good chance to make a connection with a great gamer.

ENNIE Awards Dream Date with HP Lovecraft Historical Society

• END DATE: Saturday, July 30 at 2:46PM EDT
• 2022 ENNIE AWARD NOMINATION: Call of Cthulhu Classic Prop Set – Nominated for Best Aid/Accessory – Non – Digital; Call of Cthulhu Classic Prop Set – Nominated for Best Production Values; Call of Cthulhu Classic Prop Set – Nominated for Product of the Year
• REWARD(S): While the ebay page is vague on what bonus item you’ll receive, there will be “some nifty swag from the HP Lovecraft team.” It’s easy to imagine it’ll be an exquisite set of props like the Call of Cthulhu Classic Gamer Prop Set, which they are hoping to win with. As for who will enjoy this table, Mythos fans and players that enjoy artifacts at the gaming table will have a great time with the HP Lovecraft Historical Society.

ENNIE Awards Dream Date with the Chaosium Team and Pick Your Own Madness!

• END DATE: Saturday, July 30 at 3:16PM EDT
• 2022 ENNIE AWARD NOMINATION: Call of Cthulhu: Cults of Cthulhu – Nominated for Best Supplement
• INTERVIEWS: I’ve spoken with Rick Meints (here) and Michael O’Brien (here, here, and here) about different Chaosium projects.
• REWARD(S): The possibilities are enticing: You get two empty Chaosium slipcases to take to their booth and fill with whatever Chaosium products you’re eager to own, which might include Call of Cthulhu: Cults of Cthulhu. Plus, get a Chaosium black “tuxedo” t-shirt. If you’re a Mythos fan, this is a great table to talk Lovecraft with. In addition, Chaosium is one of the largest international tabletop roleplaying publishers in the world (as seen here and through their popularity in Japan). If you’re a publisher looking for advice on the international market, few know more than The Chaosium Group.

ENNIE Awards Dream Date with the Pelgrane Press Team!

• END DATE: Saturday, July 30 at 3:30PM EDT
• REVIEW: At EN World, Rob Wieland reviews The Swords of the Serpentine (here).
• REWARD(S): The winner will get The Swords of the Serpentine starter collection including the Swords of the Serpentine Corebook ($59.95), an exclusive printed adventure, a limited edition t-shirt, and a printed map of Eversink. At the winner’s discretion, these will be autographed by the game’s creator, Kevin Kulp. Why should you pick Pelgrane Press? There’s a good chance you’ll be sitting with designers like Cat Tobin, Kenneth Hite, Robin D. Laws, and Kevin Kulp, the folks behind GUMSHOE, Night’s Black Agents, The Yellow King, Hillfolk, and TimeWatch, to name a few of their great and award-winning games. This is a who’s who of gaming, all in one company. You’re likely to hear some great stories and get advice on all things tabletop.

In 2017, 2018, and 2019, I covered the Dream Dates, highlighting what’s on offer (and even won one with Cubicle 7 in 2017, that's me above with the team).
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ENNIE Awards Dream Date with the 2022 Judges!

• END DATE: Saturday, July 30 at 3:44PM EDT
• REWARD(S): This is for dice lovers, and creators that want to know what ENNIE Award judges are looking for in an RPG! You’ll get the Elven Poems Book of Dice Box with two dice sets from Q-Workshop, plus another set of dice from Q-Workshop as well as two sets of dice from Infinite Black. Over and above dice, the judges will present you with some curated items, which I’m guessing will come from the many RPGs that they reviewed over the year. Last but not least, you’ll get a “free drink at the ENNIES ceremony.” You’ll be seated with 2022 ENNIE judges Christopher Gath and Salim Hakima. This is a chance to learn more about the judging criteria for the most important awards in tabletop roleplaying. If you’re curious about what makes a winning game and/or love dice, this is worth checking out.

The ENNIE Awards were a part of EN World and EN Publishing. In 2019, EN Publishing divested themselves to make the awards an unaffiliated organization recognizing excellence in tabletop roleplaying games.

Egg Embry participates in the OneBookShelf Affiliate Program, Noble Knight Games’ Affiliate Program, and is an Amazon Associate. These programs provide advertising fees by linking to DriveThruRPG, Noble Knight Games, and Amazon.

 

[Shiv]

I'm happy to hang out with my winner for a while after the ceremony if they want to pick my brain or listen to stories.

Craig Campbell
NerdBurger Games

 

[ENnie Awards]

Thanks for the great review! I can confirm that Mark Diaz Truman and Cat Tobin will be there. Both are also a guest presenters.

 

[Egg Embry]

Everyone is generous with their time! There's a lot of good that comes out of the ENNIES! :-D

 

[Piratecat]

Looking forward to meeting whoever bids on the Pelgrane package!

 

[Eyes of Nine]

The ENNIE Awards were a part of EN World and EN Publishing. In 2019, EN Publishing divested themselves to make the awards an unaffiliated organization recognizing excellence in tabletop roleplaying games.

Huh! I did not know that! (Or forgot, equally likely...)