AdamCon 2007
From AdamWiki
See AdamCon for some generic details about this fun little house con!
Contents |
AdamCon 2007 will be at my house in Owings Mills, Maryland on Saturday, July 14. This will be a single long day of marathon gaming and game-related geekery. People are welcome to arrive as early as 10 AM Saturday, spend the night, and stay as late as 2 PM on Sunday.
Who's Invited?
If you know me personally and are on good terms with me, or if you are on my LiveJournal friends list or frequent Story Games or the Forge or Anyway (even if we've never met), you're invited. If you're not sure, ask me. You're probably invited. Basically anyone I feel comfortable letting into my house. Your friends, your spouse, and your kids are invited, too.
If you attend, you're expected to play games. Especially if you're a FiranMUX player, it's tempting to just sit and talk about Firan with Steph all day, but Steph has things to do and this is my birthday party, so I want people gaming with me.
Accommodations
First of all, it's a house, not a hotel, so don't expect a mint on your pillow. That said, crash space is available at the house (we have two futons, two other couches, a double bed, and a blow-up mattress, plus other clean, carpeted floor space). Essentially, we can host about 10 people on couches and stuff if they don't mind getting cozy and we have room for many more on the floor. The Hilton and AmeriSuites are within a couple miles if you want a private room and don't mind paying too much for it.
I'd supply snacks and soda. Everything else is your responsibility. There are a number of good delivery pizza, Chinese, and Italian places, and a fantastic Japanese/sushi carry-out within a short driving distance. There's a Starbuck's and a bagel place and a Dunkin' Donuts down the street.
Bring your own booze, if you're so inclined. I'm sure some people will be drinking.
My house is smoke-free inside (I have a nice deck out back though). I also have two adult cats and two kittens (to annoy allergic people and charm the rest) but our one guest room is a cat-free zone.
Events
At this point, I have no idea what the events are but I can tell you how they'll be organized.
| Slot | Day | Time | Duration | Living Room | Kitchen | Basement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Breakfast | Saturday | 10am - 11am | 2 hours | — | — | — |
| A | Saturday | 11am- 4pm | 5 hours | A1: Extreme D&D | A2: Schism | A3: open |
| Dinner | Saturday | 4pm - 5pm | 1 hour | — | — | — |
| B | Saturday | 5pm - 10pm | 5 hours | B1: Trollbabe | B2: Schizonauts | B3: A&A or Risk |
| C | Saturday | 10pm - 2am | 4 hours | C1: Verge | C2: open | C3: open |
| Breakfast | Sunday | 10am - noon | 2 hours | — | — | — |
| Bye! | Sunday | 2pm | — | — | — | — |
That's one 5-hour slot (three locations) and two 4 hour slots (three locations each), so we can theoretically accommodate 9 games. I suspect it'll be more like 4-5 games.
I'll personally run something during at least two of those slots. Other people will need to commit to running something during other slots. I'd love it if someone ran something that I could play in for a change. If you have a game you want to play or run, let me know. I'd love to try out some indie games, too, but old standards are good: D&D, Shadowrun, whatever!
I don't want to overpack games with people so it'd be nice to have two (even three) games running at a time. And we don't need to fill each slot with RPGs. You can play board games or card games or whatever, too!
Late Night Games
If you want to play in something scheduled for late at night but expect you'll have to leave before then, just say so and we'll try to accommodate an earlier game!
Game Information
Verge
This is a playtest of the latest revision of Adam's post-cyberpunk role-playing game. Create the setting and your character during play. The rules are barely written down but I'll teach you how to play.
| Game Master: | Adam |
| Player Level: | Novice, Rules Taught |
| Duration: | 5-6 hours |
| Participants: | 5 + GM |
| Characters: | Created during game |
Sign-up: Jon the Elder, Daniel, Fred, Anik, Stephanie
Maybes: Dan, Jon the Younger, Brandon
Extreme D&D
Probably a run through a converted "Keep on the Borderlands / Caves of Chaos" adventure. Start at 1st level.
More or less normal low-level D&D 3.5 with a few tweaks to make it even more D&Dlike. Gain 3x normal XP so expect to level many times during play. I draw the map right in front of you and tell you where the traps and secret doors are, and you roll Spot to find them. I tell you what CRs (maybe even what monsters) are in each room and you decide if you can take them or not. Fast action, lots of combat, and tons of leveling.
| Game Master: | Adam |
| Player Level: | Intermediate, some D&D experience expected |
| Duration: | 4-5 hours |
| Participants: | 6-8 + GM |
| Characters: | Created during game |
Sign-up: Jeni, Chris, Dan...
Schism: Life During Wartime
Schism is a dark psychic setting using the Sorcerer system. Characters wield dangerous powers, and play is a constant contest for control. How far can you push yourself before Psychogenesis destroys your body and mind?
What you remember about the war was that it was always very cold, and that you served your country well...
| Game Master: | Daniel Levine |
| Player Level: | Novice, Rules Taught (truth in advertising note: I'm taking AdamCon as an opportunity to try running Schism and Trollbabe for the first time, so it'll be a learning experience for me, too) |
| Duration: | 4-5 hours |
| Participants: | 3-4 + GM |
| Characters: | Pregenerated |
Sign-up: Jon the Younger, Rachael, Anik, Stephanie
Trollbabe: Feast or Famine
Trollbabes - powerful, mysterious, always between worlds and societies, tilting the balance every which way whether they mean to or not. Where do they come from? No one knows. Where are they going? That's for you to decide.
Trollbabe is a rules-light Narrative game in which all characters are troll-human hybrids; players are encouraged to participate in the creation of the world, NPCs, and plot through play.
| Game Master: | Daniel Levine |
| Player Level: | Novice, Rules Taught (truth in advertising note: I'm taking AdamCon as an opportunity to try running Schism and Trollbabe for the first time, so it'll be a learning experience for me, too) |
| Duration: | 4-5 hours |
| Participants: | 3-4 + GM |
| Characters: | Created before play (very easy chargen!) |
Sign-up: Adam
Schizonauts
Philip K. Dick's Cops & Robbers: The RPG. The nation is on the brink of financial ruin. Only you, the schizonauts—government agents on mnemonic drugs designed by a paranoid A.I.—have any chance of finding and stopping the criminals, halting the death of the national economy. But what if the criminals turn out to be you?
This is a playtest of Fred's Game Chef game, whose rules you can read online.
| Game Master: | Fred Hicks |
| Player Level: | Novice, Rules Taught |
| Duration: | 4-5 hours |
| Participants: | 3-4 + GM |
| Characters: | Created before play |
Sign-up: Jon the Younger, Jon the Elder, Anik, Rachael
Axis & Allies or Risk
Some form of conquer-the-world board game, depending on what people are interested in. Choices are:
- Axis & Allies is a WWII simulation. Play as one of the three Allied nations or the two Axis powers, and try to win the war. Many different types of units, each with their own strengths. A step beyond Risk in complexity. (2-5 players)
- Axis & Allies: Europe is quite similar to the base A&A, except it focuses on the european theatre, so the Germans are alone in their fight. Adds some extra rules to the base A&A set, but removes some as well, so no prior knowledge of A&A is needed to learn it. (2-4 players)
- Risk I'm sure everyone knows. (2-6 players)
- Castle Risk - risk-like mechanics, but set only in europe, with some significant rules changes (reinforcements at the end of your turn, for instance). Replaces the set mechanic with cards such as the Admiral and the General that can be played for special bonuses. (2-6 players)
- LotR Risk - risk, set in the LotR world. Can be played as "capture the world within the time limit" risk, or "good vs. evil to destroy/capture the One Ring" teams. Replaces the set mechanic with adventure cards which can be played for specific advantages. (2-4 players)
- Risk 2210 - risk set in the future. Includes undersea domes and the ability to conquer the moon, as well as 5 commanders who are stronger than other pieces and allow you to play command cards (which replace the set mechanic). Includes bidding for turn order. (2-5 players)
- Star Wars Risk, Clone wars edition - risk set in the Star Wars universe, in the time of the first trilogy. Play as either the jedi/republic forces or the sith/Separatist forces. But beware of Order 66, which can cause seemingly loyal republic forces to change sides, drastically changing the course of the game. (2-4 players)
I also may bring Civilization: The board game, which we can play during this timeslot, but it may run over, and unless someone expresses interest, I may leave it behind.
| Organizer: | Dan |
| Player Level: | Novice to Expert, Rules taught for all games |
| Duration: | 4-5 hours (hopefully) |
| Participants: | 2-6, depending on game chosen. |
Sign-up:
Maybes:
Games I'd Like to See There
Here are some examples of the type of games I'd like to see played at AdamCon:
- Traditional RPGs — D&D 3E, Shadowrun*, Cyberpunk 2020, Star Wars
- Indie RPGs — Spirit of the Century, FATE, Primetime Adventures, Sorcerer, Dogs in the Vineyard, The Shab-al-Hiri Roach, Primitive, etc.
- Strategy Games — RISK, Settlers of Catan, Seafarers of Catan, Cities & Knights of Catan, Carcassonne, Samurai Swords, Tigris & Euphrates
- Family Board Games — Clue, Monopoly, Scrabble
- Card Games — Magic: The Gathering, Texas Hold'em, Uno
- Other Games — Once Upon A Time
- * I don't actually own Shadowrun, but I own the rest.
Play Space
The house is a town home with three finished stories.
Here are the areas available for gaming:
- A dining area with a medium-sized table (seats 6-8). The kitchen adjoins and has an island and plenty of counter space for food.
- A main living room (seats 6-8 comfortably) — I have a large conference table I can place here.
- A finished basement (seats 6-8 comfortably) — I am borrowing a large conference table for this area, too. The tv is in the basement with the futon couches. Also contains my gaming library.
- A comfy (but uncovered) outside patio with a table that seats six.
- A little deck off the kitchen with a couple seats, but no table.
RSVP
If you want to come to AdamCon, let me know.
If you're willing to run a game, please let me know and give me some idea what you'd like to run.
