Expedition to the Gencon Vendor Hall: What are YOU Shopping for?

Lets look ahead to GenCon and daydream about the cool stuff we hope to find in the Vendor Hall. Added Difficulty: I'm not talking about booth babes.



It's almost time. GenCon Time.

It's almost time.

I'm basically the guy who, like your dog, is waiting by the door, leash in his mouth, hoping that it's time for a walk. Is it time yet? Is it now?

GenCon means a lot of things to me, like most of us who go. I'll be playing with our D&D championship team ("Don't Make This Weird" -- look for us by name), trying to play in some other games I don't get to play at home, running a few sessions (Murder in Baldur's Gate in D&D Next). And I'll be spending a little time in the Ennies booth (Friday 2-4 -- it's your chance to come punch me in the face for writing about things we can't afford).

But the biggest thing I'll be doing is prowling the dealer hall, looking for the thing I absolutely MUST take home. Every year there's something.

What Do We Want?

I'm fascinated by how the evolution of the games we play trickles down to the offerings in the vendor hall. I still have the steel squire spell templates that were perfect for 3rd and 3.5 edition D&D; then spells went square in 4th edition and they stopped being useful. I have the poker chips that had 3rd edition stats for mounts and animal companions on them -- again, not really so very useful after that, either.

Our games tend to have a handful of key needs -- most of which one vendor or another is going to try to offer the perfect solution for

1. Dice - We're always going to be buying new dice. There are varieties of themed dice, dice that are more "scientific", dice in odd shapes and denominations, dice made of stone or metal or wood, and so on. Seriously, if you don't go home with a few new dice, you're doing it wrong. Dice, more than anything else, are the evergreen product in the vendor hall. Treat yourself to the live version of the Game Science discussion of the inaccuracy of most dice. Or check out the last few folks still selling those goofy, ill-fated cylinder dice - I rolled a d20 one of those ten years ago and it's still rolling. Buy a d3 for old time's sake.

2. Minis - The ebb and flow of minis has been interesting to watch. The explosion of pre-painted plastic minis WOTC was producing for years has turned into a pretty serious glut. I'm sure most of us who have been running games for more than a few years have a pretty solid collection of minis. I don't need more generic orcs and goblins and skeletons.

• Newer lines of pre-painted minis have to find space in the market for themselves in ways those WOTC ones didn't. Minis need to stand out (like Paizo's goblins) or fit into niches that have not been covered.
• Meanwhile, there will be a handful of vendors there selling loose minis by the bucketsful -- so if you need one more skeleton archer to replace the one the dog ate, they'll have you covered.
• Having said all that -- recent Kickstarter numbers for things like Reapers big project -- those make it clear that the minis business isn't dead, but it's definitely shifting.
• Pathfinder Pawns -- how awesome are they??

3. Maps - D&D Next is pushing a Theater of the Mind approach that doesn't use battle maps -- but our group still plays with minis and maps most of the time. However, I've got less and less use for physical maps since most of our gaming uses some variation on digital tools for mapping. Still, every once in a while there's a new idea I have to try, and my traveling game kit can always use a little love.

• Nothing will make you wish for a winning lottery ticket so much as all of the amazing 3d terrain available for your gaming tables. Walk around, touch them, dream your dreams.

4. Tracking Conditions & Other Combat Aids - This would include things like range and line-of-sight finding gadgets, spell templates, initiative trackers, and anything else that is useful at the table while you're playing. I'm an addict for these things.

• Initiative tracking is a special topic for me, and I have my favorite solutions for D&D after years of trying out different options -- but now that I'm playing more Savage Worlds, managing initiative is a whole new challenge. So I'll be looking for cool new tools that fit those needs, too.
• Condition Tracking is huge -- and over the years we've seen some terrific products, like the Alea Tools Magnetic Discs and Dark Platypus Flags. Will there be a new contender?

5. Software & Web-based Tools - VTT options are coming out like dandelions these days -- new ones are cropping up all over the place. Meanwhile, free tools like Google Hangouts make it easier than ever to connect and play across distances without those tools. Even venerable products like Fantasy Grounds can't rest on their laurels with new products coming along offering variations on the same services. Our group doesn't do much via VTT, but we do use a TV as our play surface, so I use Map Tools and other products to create and manage digital maps. And one of our games is played in a living room without a table -- using an upright TV displaying map tools to be our map and play surface.

• I'm also very interested in seeing demos of some of the campaign management tools that are coming soon -- like the

6. GeekChiq Tables. I don't have anything to add here. Once you win that lottery, you're going to want one of these tables.


Goofiest Purchase?

If we limit ourselves to gaming purchases -- and not anything you picked up for Cosplay or Furry Fun Time or any of the other things that go on in the halls of Gencon -- what was the thing you bought that -- at least to others -- looks like the goofiest idea imaginable?

For me, it was probably the Battle Top, from Crystal Caste.

View attachment 58300

This is not to say that the battle top was a bad purchase -- I still really like it a lot, and if we were not playing on a TV I might still be using it, even though my players make fun of me for it. It would be especially useful if you're playing on a small table -- it frees up space on the table for characters sheets and red bull cans, while elevating the map.

The Crystal Caste guy who sold it to me made a big deal about how it will "Change the way you look at your game." My players WON'T STOP teasing me with that line. But, there's something to be said for being a lot closer to eye level with your minis, and the owlbears they're facing.


What's The Big Need This Year?

The same energies and opportunities that are making it an exciting time for non-D&D games like FATE and Savage Worlds -- not to mention the D&D spinoffs like 13th age -- and a whole lot more -- there are whole realms of game aids and supplements that might be there. New ways to handle bennies and fate points?

So, here's my question to you: What are you most looking forward to in the Vendor Hall at GenCon? Or, if you're not going, what can I bring back for you?

 

[Morrus]

I plan to pick up a copy of 13th Age. Other than that, nothing particular, though I have no doubt I'll see cool stuff I just must have.

 

[CaptainCoal]

I hope to find these pre-painted minis in abundance as you describe. I try to look for them, but most of the non-rare figures are dumped into plastic bins with no organization whatsoever.

I can shop for everything, or I can spend an entire day going through one booth's bins. And then find out the prices I thought were correct are, in fact, wrong, and everything is $5. Ugh.

 

[Radiating Gnome]

What's always interesting to me is the problems that the gadgets are solving -- what's the big problem the entrepreneurial gamers are solving.

Years ago it was spell areas of effect, then initiative, and then conditions, especially for 4e. If I had to guess, this year seems to be about new games, not new game gadgets. There have always been new games coming out, but this year feels like that's what's ramping up.

That, of course, is my raw, unvarnished opinion, unburdened by facts, research, or science.

Which means I'm finally ready for my run for congress, I guess.