A visit to…Games `n Dice Düsseldorf e.V.
Last June, I had the pleasure of being a guest at the Games 'n Dice hobby club. This name will not be entirely unfamiliar to some, as the podcast of the same name was created directly by the club members, Gregor and Benni to be precise, with whom I recorded a system introduction to Mortal Gods. Beside that, Dennis visited the club back in 2019 for the Historical Demo Day and covered the visit on here as well.
This was also the reason for an invitation to the clubs Open Sunday in Düsseldorf to play a demo game there too.
Games'n Dice e.V. was originally formed in 2010 from the community of Warmachine and Flames of War players. Of course, the focus was not limited to these two games, but at the time they formed those were the core systems. The basic idea behind founding a club was to have a fixed structure and a legally secure roof for events. The Drachental store has always been the home of Games 'n Dice. In addition to the Open Sunday, which only takes place every other weekend, there is also a hobby meeting every Wednesday evening.
The great strength of Games'n Dice is its great variety and openness to different systems. Club President Benjamin (not our Podcast Benni) answers the question "What do you play?" with "What don't we play?". Even though attention is often paid to current trends, there are also many players who turn to the "classics" from time to time and start a Necromunda campaign or like to meet up for a game of Infinity or FoW V3.
The Drachental store offers some very spacious premises for tabletop and board game enthusiasts. I really liked the store section, as you quickly get the feeling of a general store - you'll find the usual products from major manufacturers, but also some exotic items that aren't in the mainstream spotlight. The selection of board games is also wide enough to offer something for those who are not interested in tabletop games.
FeenCon 2024
Last weekend Dino and I went to the FeenCon, a convention hosted in Bonn, which went through a couple of changes over the last few years - one of them moving from the old location of Bonn Bad Godesberg towards Bonn Beuel, from the town hall to the comprehensive school.
And across the venue, the tabletop area was the smaller gymnasium, with the trade stands and board games and pen & paper in the other areas.
The tabletop area was hosted by three clubs, Bedburger Tabletop Freunde, Privateer Poza Boyz and the Tabletop Community Bonn. You might know the Bedburger Tabletop Freunde from our visit to their club house.
The other side of the Con
The Chaosbunker had a historic moment at CONflict Rheinland, where Dennis and I each gave demo games for the first time. In my case, it was the historical game Mortal Gods.
My first event on the other side of the demo table was a good experience. I think that has to do with the fact that I went into the demo day with a good concept and I want to share it. This article is therefore very text-heavy - you've been warned.
What should be shown?
Before I even actively made the first preparations for the demo, I had a few basic thoughts about the game itself. Every game has a few characteristics that will distinguish it from others and that should be reflected in a qualitative way. I came up with the following points:
- Historical setting, Greece
- Simple mechanics, yet strategic
- Easily accessible and available
Setting
It was clear to me that I had to show a credible historical context in the demo. Mortal Gods is set in the Peloponnesian War, which I solved by painting the armies differently. One side represented the city-state of Thebes (allied with Sparta), the other Plataiai (allied with Athens). This served history well enough.
In general, you can paint ancient Greeks however you like, because there was no uniform back then. In the spirit of the demo, however, I gave both armies a uniform main color.
Internal CONflict Rhineland 2024
The Internal CONflict is actually the first wargaming event I participate in this year. Due to multiple schedule collisions I wasn't able to visit any shows early to this date, as you can see from my event schedule. What does Internal mean regarding the CONflict? Well, it is not an open event, but internal affair and you have to be invited to tag along.
But (!) this is the first time, that I will host a demo table as well and I'm really looking forward to it. And obviously, we wouldn't show up empty handed, so we packed the car with some snacks (make sure those are non-greasy, as you don't want Orange Cheeto Dust on your miniatures) and drinks, as well as gaming materials. I'll go into that later, what my essentials for a convention are.
Regular readers know - no event report without a proper parking lot picture, and as the CONflict is held at the clubhouse of a local rifle club, parking is not an issue. Beside that, the hosts provide us optionally with a full catering, (breakfast, lunch and dinner from Friday afternoon until Sunday morning, along with a broad variety of drinks).
SzenarioCon 2024
My first visit to SzenarioCon in Hackenheim was just a year ago and yet the event has managed to become one of my favorites in a very short time. The reason for this is obvious, the range of gaming tables is very extensive and the gaming clubs really go out of their way to offer something special. Together with Jens, the head honcho of Chefoberboss, I visited Szenario again this year and would like to share my experience a few of the tables that were on display at the con. For a general look and a few more nice impressions, you can also take a look at Jens' YouTube video or directly go to the Szenario Facebook page.
We were there quite early and so I managed to take a snapshot in good time, when the hall wasn't filled to the brim. The number of registered guests and latecomers was between 250 and 300 people.
You can already see here that the many panels only allow a little more space for further exhibits. However, as the con has grown very steadily and, above all, successfully, an additional hall will be opened for exhibits next year.
Event Schedule for 2024
Another year another fresh event schedule we're trying to make possible this year.
List will be updated accordingly and focus around DACH and BeNeLux countries, with minor exceptions for special occasions:
SPIEL 2023 – Recap
After a 5-year pause, we return for the Internationale Spieltage, or how it is more commonly known as SPIEL 2023 in Essen.
And quite a few things have changed since the last time. This is the first show under the new ownership, as the Friedhelm Merz Verlag, who is the organiser of the show, was bought by the Spielwarenmesse eG, who hosts the International Toy Fair Nürnberg. This means, both events, the largest show for consumers and largest show for traders, belong to the same company.
Other things have changed as well. The ticket to the last show I visited in 2018 were 13 EUR, and now you have to pay 22 EUR for a day ticket. And I remember that in the past, you were able to park near the show, but that's off the table if you don't have access to an exhibition parking ticket. You are redirected to a park & ride parking lot, that is handled incredibly inefficient, park your car, stand in line to pay 8 EUR, get a token, that you hand back once you leave the parking lot after the show. Usually, you pay when you enter the parking lot, or when you leave it, without the additional queuing in front of a container. Never the less, the park & ride shuttle was on a good schedule, yet adding further 10-15 minutes each way to your travel.
9th Rhein Main Multiversum 2023
Hessen is calling! The 9th Rhein Main Multiversum was hosted by the Tabletop Club Rhein-Main in Nidderau.
The Multiversum is back, with traders and at a new location. The venue was moved from the Willi-Salzmann Halle to the Kultur- und Sporthalle Heldenbergen within the same city, but different districts. This venue is part of a small shopping park, which meant that not only parking was available abundant, but discounters and drink cash & carry were nearby as well.
Warlord Games – HQ Store & Studio 2023
While were in Nottingham for Bring Out Your Lead, we used the time on our hands to visit the new Warlord Games Headquarter and Store. The moved within Nottingham from the Business Centre (where Northstar and a few other miniature companies have their offices as well) to Lenton, not far from the Warhammer World. And once again, it is impressive to see how much the company has grown and I want to share my impression with you.
You can sign up for a guided studio tour, which is held Fridays at 13:00. You'll need to book the day before by 12:00. Tickets are 15 GBP per person (free entry for children under 15) and you get a goody bag of sample figures. Conor, who runs the Warlord HQ store, is the tour guide and brings you from station to station, to learn more about how the miniatures are crafted and how a miniature company this size operates.
Warhammer World 2023 – Exhibition Centre Part 3
And the third part of our coverage on the 2023 visits to the Warhammer World exhibition, focusing on the 40,000 part of Warhammer, including the gigantic centre piece of the exhibit further below.
Imperial Might
A huge mustering of the Imperial Guard. This has been in the exhibition since 2015, and can be seen in our 2018 and 2020 coverage, but is updated from time to time, to include newer units. For example the tanks in the front rows have been replaced by the Rogal Dorn Tanks. This time I paid more attention to the background and I really like scratch build supply train in the background, as well as the modified Valkyrie using the wings and eagle from the Aquila Strongpoint of the Wall of Martyrs kit (rare kit and OOP).
Like us on Facebook
Follow me on Instagram
Categories
- events (178)
- fantasy (476)
- General (154)
- historical (574)
- Little Big Adventures (4)
- offtopic (5)
- reviews (416)
- science fiction (502)
- showroom (91)
- work-in-progress (350)
