Origins 2011: Day Three Report

You can't believe everything you read on the internet.

While I'm calling this my Day Three report on Origins 2011, it's really the stuff I didn't get to post last night from Day Two. I actually didn't go to the con today due to some scheduling conflicts, but I will be back tomorrow with my daughter in tow. She gets to experience the Origins Children's Program and is very excited at the prospect!

First off, if you are currently at the convention, planning on going either Saturday and/or Sunday or are planning on coming to Origins in the future allow me to point out your best (in my opinion) food option for convention-goers: North Market.

North Market, located a very short block up Vine Street from the convention center, is a veritible food mecca. The Market houses a host of vendors offering everything from fresh produce, deli sandwiches, popcorn, ice cream, organically raised meats, seafood, baked goods, BBQ, and food items from all around the world. It's a short walk and offers considerably better food than the concession outlets or food court within the convention center itself. There really is something for everyone there (and I'm an incredibly picky eater!). Yesterday, I had a fantastic 1/2 rack of ribs from BBQ vendor Holy Smoke. Mmmm. It was good eatin'. There's several good, close food options downtown...but, for my money, North Market is the best option.

Alright, enough about food. Back to the con.

I stopped, briefly, by the Bandai booth. Bandai was busy promoting their new Resident Evil Deck Building game, as well as their Naruto CCG and doing some demos of their upcoming Star Trek Deck Building Game as seen here:



I'm not much for CCGs. I've recently picked up some Redakai to play with my daughter, as well as some cheap starter decks for CCGs like Sonic the Hedgehog and TMNT and Pirates of the Caribbean. The Resident Evil game looks nice but, frankly, I'm pretty burned out on the whole zombie genre as a whole. So RE: The Deck Building Game holds little interest. And, sadly, I gotta say at this point the Star Trek game is not calling out to me either. I'm as big a Trek fan as the next geek, but there's something about cards with stock photos or screen grabs that I find really unappealing. But, I'm willing to give the game a fair shake upon release.


Arguably the largest presence at Origins is Mayfair Games. The Skokie, Illinois-based game company is home to one of the world's most popular games: The Settlers of Catan as well as a cornucopia of primarily Euro-styled boardgames. The Mayfair booth occupies a huge space in the center of the exhibit hall and is always heavily trafficked.

Of course Catan was a huge presence. The NACC (North American Catan Championship) qualifier tournaments were taking place, and even more impressively upon tables made exclusively for playing Catan. How many boardgames can make that claim? You can check out Table of Catan for more information on the tables.


The last bit I want to cover in this entry is a new game from Bryan K. Borgman called Kaiju Kaos. This miniatures game of destructive monster action is designed so that players could use a variety of miniatures and toys they already own. However, Bryan's Baily Records (he's also a musician, having produced several game soundtracks) also offer their own line of metal and resin miniatures for use with the game. Here's a couple of really impressive resin pieces for the game, including the massive Kaos Monster!



That's it for today, folks. I gotta get outside and feed the animals, and get my daughter off to VBS! Thanks for reading!

Origins 2011: Day Two Report

My feet are killing me.

Today was my primary day to cruise the dealers hall, and cruise it I did!

There was considerably more people gathered about this morning than yesterday, and many of them were crowded outside the entrance to the dealers room waiting for the doors to open to Gamer Nirvana.

My first mission was to go straight to the Plaid Hat Games booth and get a copy of the Summoner Wars Master Set. The Master Set comes with six (six!) all new faction decks, a deluxe game board (good buy folded paper board!), an updated rulebook and wound marker tokens. It's fantastic! My desire for the game over-rode the logical part of the game. The Master Set comes in quite the large box which I then had to carry around with me until I wisened up and made a trip back to the parking garage to put it in my car. Anyway, Colby Dauch and the good folk at Plaid Hat were also giving away Mercenary promo cards and custom Summoner Wars dice to customers. Very cool bonus!

Here's Plaid Hat owner (and wearer of said plaid hat), Colby Dauch demoing Summoner Wars to potential new players.



Next I decided to start at one end of the hall and just work my way up and down the aisles without stopping. I just wanted to take it all in. Well, it was a good plan and all until I got stopped in my tracks by Randall Bills of Catalyst Game Labs running demos of their new steampunk Leviathans game that is coming out later this year. This game, about gigantic flying airships in 1910, is several years in the making. I've seen it at Gen Con in various stages for, I think, the past two years now. I think the game looks fantastic.


The game will be released in a giant starter set (think FFG coffin box size) featuring ships from the British and French forces, along with boardgame quality maps, quick start rules, full rulebook, a novella establishing the world of Leviathans, custom polyhedral dice and more.


The ships seen here are not final product. The ship models will come fully assembled and lightly pre-painting (base coat and some minor detailing) and they'll be on stands to convey they are in flight.

Also on display were an amazing large scale model (for promotional purposes, not for sale) of one of the airships (a larger, 4 ft battleship model is expected to arrive tomorrow) and a nice small display of a battle above the white cliffs of Dover.


For more information about Leviathans go to: Monstersinthesky.com

I've got a lot more from today to put up, but it will have to wait until tomorrow! So be sure to come back and check out the latest and greatest from Origins 2011.

Origins 2011: Day One Report

The 2011 Origins Game Fair began today in Columbus, Ohio at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.

Wednesday is, I'd guess, the least busy day of the entire con as it's a bit of a partial opening. The dealers room was not open today. In fact, many of the vendors were still hard at work setting up their booths, getting everything "just so" for the hordes of gamers that will pour through the doors of Exhibit Hall C over the next few days.



I went down this morning for just a few hours to pick up my badge and check things out a bit before jumping in tomorrow for a full day of covering the event, demoing some new games and checking out the various things going on around the con.

Things started out on a bit of a frustrating note. I had pre-registered as press back in April. So, I arrive this morning to pick up my badge and program books. I went to one of the pre-reg booths and asked where press were supposed to check in. The person behind the counter pointed across the way and said I needed to go to the Special Services booth, which I did. There was a bit of a line at said booth, and it didn't seem to be moving. There was a group of 5 or so people at the head of the line, clearly with some issue and a very frazzled looking volunteer behind the booth trying her best to resolve it.

Meanwhile, the line wasn't moving. At all.

Finally, after about a half hour another Origins worker comes by and immediately begins tending to those waiting in line, which was fantastic. When he got to me I said I just needed to pick up my press badge. "Press? Oh..." he said as he began glancing around. He turned to a gentleman manning a nearby booth and said, "Press?". The other gentlemen said something quietly to him. He then looked at me and said, "You need to go to the Show Office". So, all that waiting in line was for nothing.

I've been attending Origins for several years now as press, and every year it seems to be a different process when on-site, and there is never a clearly marked place for press to sign in and get their badge. And, honestly, there's been years when I've neglected to pre-register and have registered on-site in less time than it took me to simply pick up a badge today.

So, yeah, a little frustrating. But, that's why I went down there today: to get the badge out of the way so I can be ready to go tomorrow.

Following my minor badge debacle I immediately noticed that Origins has gotten themselves a spiffy new entryway. It's a slick addition that nicely displays the logos of all the various companies that are sponsoring the con.


While the dealers room was closed today, there was still plenty to do gamewise, and plenty of people doing them. There was a full slate of events scheduled throughout the day. Unfortunately for me, I had to head home around 1pm to be with my daughter while my wife worked at the Delaware Farmers Market. But, tomorrow is another day and a full one. I am excited to get into that dealers room and check out the wares, demo some games, interview some folks and generally get my game on!

I'm aiming to have coverage of Day 2 up sometime late tomorrow night. So, be sure to come back and visit!

Origins is Just Around the Corner!

Convention season is in full swing!

Gamers from all over the country (and some from beyond!) will be descending upon downtown Columbus, Ohio later this week for the Origins Game Fair. This annual gamer mecca is held in the Greater Columbus Convention Center and is the second largest (only to Gen Con) gaming convention in the USA.

I've been attending Origins for the past ten years or so now since moving to Ohio. It's great having a major convention practically in your backyard. Makes for a much more affordable event.

A few things that I'm especially looking forward to this year: Plaid Hat Games will be releasing the Summoner Wars Master Set (which is looking awesome!), Catalyst Game Labs will be showing off thier upcoming miniatures board game Leviathans (which, at the risk of repeating myself, is looking awesome!) and Wizkids is making a return to Origins (which is, say it with me, awesome!). But all that is just the tip of the iceberg.

The Rural Gamer will be covering the show so be sure to check back during the convention for news, commentary and some special interviews, too. It's gonna be a blast! So, stay tuned!

New Pathfinder RPG Books Coming from Paizo

New Pathfinder RPG Hardcovers Offer Monstrous Options for Players and GMs

Paizo Publishing has announced two new hardcover rulebooks for the smash-hit Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Bestiary 3 and the Advanced Race Guide. Bestiary 3, which releases in November 2011, offers more than 300 new monsters for the Pathfinder RPG, with an emphasis on creatures from international myth and the best of Paizo’s Pathfinder Adventure Path series. The Advanced Race Guide, set for an April 2012 release, offers expanded options for player characters using the seven “core” races, as well as brand new information on every single PC-appropriate monster in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game rules. Both books supplement the red-hot Pathfinder Roleplaying Game line, which continues to establish itself as a leading brand in the tabletop roleplaying field.

"Game Masters can never have enough monsters to throw at their player characters," said Paizo Publisher Erik Mona. "And with the Advanced Race Guide, we’ll finally allow the players to get in on the monstrous action, giving them all sorts of options for non-standard creature characters alongside expanded play options for popular PC races like humans, elves, and dwarves. There’s never been a better time to be a monster!"

About Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary 3
PZO1120
320-page full-color hardback
ISBN 978-1-60125-378-1
$39.99/November 2011

Bestiary 3 presents hundreds of new creatures for use in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. Within this collection of creatures you’ll find grave knights and savage cyclopes, kappa and colossal kaiju, clockwork killers, mysterious sphinxes, imperial dragons, and so much more! Yet not all these monsters need to be foes, as fleet-footed sleipnirs, cunning vanaras, whimsical faerie dragons, and more companions from myth and modern fantasy join heroes on the path to legend. In addition, new rules for customizing and advancing monsters and an expanded glossary of creature abilities ensure that you’ll be prepared to challenge your players wherever adventure takes them!

About Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Advanced Race Guide
PZO1121
256-page full-color hardback
ISBN 978-1-60125-390-3
$39.99/April 2012

This definitive sourcebook for the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game provides tons of new character options for all seven “core” player character races, from archetypes that allow elf characters to explore their connection to nature and magic to feats and spells that let a dwarf character carry on the legacy of his multi-generational clan or a gnome explore her connection to the First World or delve deep into her weird obsessions.

Additionally, the Advanced Race Guide offers meaty sections on a dozen “spotlight” races that make interesting and exciting player character options, such as goblins, aasimar, tieflings, dhampyrs, drow, the elemental races from Bestiary 2, and several others.

All PC-appropriate monster races in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, including creatures from all three Bestiaries and The Inner Sea World Guide, receive race options equivalent to those presented for the core races in the Core Rulebook, for the first time allowing players to create and play characters like merfolk, grippli, duergar, stryx, and every other appropriate monster currently in the Pathfinder game.

Lastly, the Advanced Race Guide includes an extensive section that allows players and GMs to build their own custom races, either to emulate more powerful creatures that already exist in the game or to create wholly original characters unique to their campaign. This section will be the focus of Paizo’s next major Open Playtest effort, which will kick off in late fall 2011.

About Paizo Publishing
Paizo Publishing®, LLC is a leading publisher of fantasy roleplaying games, accessories, board games, and novels. Paizo's Pathfinder® Roleplaying Game, the result of the largest open playtest in the history of tabletop gaming, is one of the best-selling tabletop RPGs in today's market. Pathfinder Adventure Path is the most popular and best-selling monthly product in the tabletop RPG industry. Paizo.com is the leading online hobby retail store, offering tens of thousands of products from a variety of publishers to customers all over the world. In the nine years since its founding, Paizo Publishing has received more than 40 major awards and has grown to become one of the most influential companies in the hobby games industry.

My Wizkids Dreamlist

Lately it seems that Wizkids is announcing a new Heroclix license every time you turn around. We've got Halo (mostly the same minis from Halo ActionClix from 2007 with new Heroclix compatible stats), Street Fighter (which I'm super excited about), Gears of War, Lord of the Rings (also very excited) and who knows what could be next.

In the spirit of the grand speculation that is endemic to these interwebs, I thought I would put forth the properties that I would most like to see made as Heroclix-compatible minis.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - The beloved 80s property is poised for a big comeback in 2012. IDW has obtained the license to produce new TMNT comic books as well as reprinting the existing library of classic material from Mirage Publishing, there's a brand-new animated series set to debut on Nicktoons next year and, of course, a new action figure line from Playmates Toys. Now is the time for TMNT Heroclix! They're a natural!

Masters of the Universe - unless your a pretty die-hard action figure collector you might not be aware that there's a new Masters of the Universe toyline out there right now. It's called Masters of the Universe Classics and it's only available online at Mattycollector.com. They release a new 6" highly-articulated action figure each month (which usually sell out in a few hours). The new figures are based on the original 1980s toys but with modern sculpting and articulation. They're really fantastic. The Masters of the Universe property is full of colorful heroes and villains that would make for a rockin' Heroclix set. Plus, 2012 is the properties 30th Anniversary.


Pirates of the Caribbean - I think I've mentioned my hopes for this before. I doubt it'd ever happen, but I'd sure love it if it did (of course, I never imagined there'd be Street Fighter Heroclix so I suppose anything is possible). There's a ton of characters and factions (pirates, Royal Navy, Davy Jones and the Crew of the Flying Dutchman, Blackbeard and his zombie crew from On Stranger Tides and so much more). As I big fan of the Pirates franchise I'd so love to see this happen.

and lastly, Thundercats - like TMNT the Thundercats are on the brink of a big comeback. There's a new animated series (which looks awesome) about to launch on Cartoon Network later this summer and a new toyline coming from the good folk at Bandai. Thundercats Heroclix would be the freakin' cat's meow!

With all these properties I think Wizkids could test the waters with their new Fast Forces concept, and if the response is there go with a second Fast Forces set or a full booster series.

Heroclix is such a great open ended game that there's just so many properties that could work with it.

Speaking of Wizkids, I can't wait to see them back at the Origins Game Fair next week in Columbus, OH!

Battleship Galaxies is Looking Fantastic

For those who haven't heard, Hasbro will soon be releasing their Battleship Galaxies board game. This new game of starship combat has very little to do with the classic Battleship game we all grew up playing outside of the name. This game looks to be a real winner.

Colby Dauch of Plaid Hat Games has done some work for Hasbro in the past on the much beloved and lamented Heroscape game. He was also part of the design team that developed Battleship Galaxies along with lead designer Craig Van Ness. Colby recently posted a detailed first look at the contents of the game on his Heroscapers site.

Check it out: http://www.heroscapers.com/community/blog.php?b=1804