So I've never been to GenCon, but Smelly Gamers???

[Goddess FallenAngel]

There is always a bright side

Imagine if Gencon would have been held here in Texas, with our 105 degree heat index. The funk would have been intense, the seats would have been soaked with sweat, and your clothes would have wet splotches before you even made it inside door.

2004 GenCon (also held in downtown Indy) it was over 100 degrees outside for at least 2 of the 4 days. And humid, because, well, Indy's always humid. *sigh*

Luckly, you can get to all of the hotels GenCon events were being held at without actually going outside (Indy has a nice skywalk system - granted, you may have to jump through the mall, but it's still air-conditioning).

 

[Arrgh! Mark!]

In my entire experience I've only come across one unhygienic gamer, and he really wasn't too bad.

But then, when you are used to going to renaissance fairs and hanging around with re-enactors you tend to get used to the smell of honest sweat.

There is a difference between rank and excersize smell though. It's kinda odd.

 

[William Ronald]

I was not at Gen Con this year, and I generally have not had many run-ins with smelly gamers. (Of course, my allergies may be a blessing in disguise. ) I have seen a few specifically bad cases, but these have been relatively rare. (In some cases, I think it was because of weird body chemistry.)

Seriously, I think taking people aside can help. I have also attended a few non-gaming conventions over the years, and noticed some people do let hygiene slip.

So, perhaps we can try to help our fellow gamers out. Maybe we can come up with a map of truck stops with showers, as well as help out our fellow gamers who are in need of a place to shower.

It does not take much effort to keep clean. A quick wash can do wonders.

Also, I like to think that when I go to a convention, I am representing more than myself. If I patronize a restarurant as a convention goer, I WANT the staff to think these are good people to show up each year. A good first impression is important.

 

[Darth K'Trava]

Or: "Stinking Cloud is a 3rd level spell, not a lifestyle".

Yup. Ain't that the truth!

 

[Just_Hal]

As a DM I once took a person aside and had a hygiene discussion with them. I had had complaints from the other players and really had no choice. I don't tell people they aren't allowed to stink but I did, that time, have to tell someone they were not allowed to stink to the point that it would drive other players away from the gaming table. If this happened at a convention where the others players had the additional clout of having paid for their right to play in a reasonable environment, I feel I would also, as DM, have no real choice but to take someone aside as necessary, the same as I would with a player displaying any other type of disruptive behavior. It took for a few months and then that particular group split up. I have no idea if that one player continued to wash regularly.

I said sorry....sheesh, hold a grudge why dont ya.

 

[River Tam]

Sometimes the problem isn't not showering -- it's the clothes. If you put on clothes you've already been sweating in, especially in the summer, their smell will neutralize the effects of your shower.

And just putting on a clean T-shirt and washing out your arm pits every day isn't enough. You need to wash your crotch, and put on clean underwear every day, too. I know some people may find what I just said offensive, but it needs to be said.

 

[Angel Tarragon]

I said sorry....sheesh, hold a grudge why dont ya.

Okay. I can hold a grudge like the one that held against Sarah Michelle Gellar!

 

[Bront]

I believe, in the Gencon book itself, there was a note from the staff that said something to the effect of:

Please remember to shower and use those nice little soaps given to you in your hotel room. If you don't, then we won't either.

On a side note, I know I tend to sweat a lot, and there's not much I can do about it (I did it when I was 6'4", 170 lbs, though admittedly I do weigh more now), but usually it's not too bad. My only recomendation for people who do sweat excessively and can't avoid smelling is to bring some extra deoderant with you and use it occasionaly during the occasional bathroom break.

Unfortunately, since most people don't bring deoderant with them, as much as pulling a smelly gamer aside and talking to him, there's not much you can do immediately with one, since there's usually not a shower available in the convention center. So hopefully it will solve the problem in the future, but it may not fix it immediately.

It's times like this though that I'm glad I generaly can't smell much. I didn't notice any particularly rank gamers, but the room I was in most of the time was actualy quite comfortable (unlike last year), and I think that cut down on the sweaty, smelly bodies by quite a bit.

 

[Ysgarran]

Big changes in Diet?

Could some gamers be susceptible to big changes in diet that come along with a big convention?

I thought about Ketosis. It seems that would not happen very often since you have to deprive your body of carbohydrates. It just doesn't fall into the range of the typical gamer diet.

So could a diet of typical bad junk food result in a smelly gamer?

later,
Ysgarran.

 

[Pielorinho]

I didn't encounter any smelly gamers at the convention. Until, that is, the last day, as Spider and I were walking away from our last game and heading to the hotel exit. THere was a gothy-looking guy, a little on the short-and-round side, walking toward us, and from about five feet away I caught an odd odor on the air.

Then he passed in front of us, and then we passed through his wake, and my knees nearly buckled. To be fair, he may have been carrying ten pounds of fermenting goat meat in his backpack; but if he wasn't, then that boy desperately needed some lessons in hygiene.

Daniel