A CON-tender for My Fave Con: Part One
Alt text: A crowded indie RPG convention hall: attendees with red lanyards chat and work at tables strewn with colorful index cards, while vendor tables of zines sit beneath “Cairn” and “ARCANE” banners.
Photo by Yochai Gal
Thursday
This was my first time at two things: Arcane Con and a con without my better half and boss, Megan. I missed Megan while there and now miss Massachusetts and Arcane Con while I'm here.
It's no secret that we love New England and plan to move there eventually. Northampton set the perfect backdrop for the entire trip. Beautiful tree foliage running the gamut from pear yellow to bright, rustic reds, crisp air that was never too cold, and an oddly soothing coziness that still stays with me.
My flight arrived at Bradley around 4:15 PM. I had a Cairn Press gathering in Easthampton at 5:30 PM, so I reserved an Uber and went directly there The Daily Operation.
My baggage was only a carry-on and a sling GM/messenger bag, but I grew tired of hauling them. I hoped for a quick Sazerac while waiting for the others, but they only had beer and wine, with one exception: Abita Root Beer, made about an hour from my house. It was exactly what I needed.
I was excited to see some of my fave people again: Yochai, whom I first met at Gary Con 2025, and Maxim and Matt, whom I met at Between Two Cons back in June. I also met two new fave people that night: Karly and Kayleigh! Maxim, Matt, Karly, Kayleigh, and I ended Thursday night at the Dirty Truth, a local restaurant and bar that knew how to make PERFECT Sazeracs. It became our go-to spot for socializing at the Con. We ended our gathering, said our goodnights, and went our separate ways until morning, and this brings me to how wonderful it was to walk around Northampton. My hotel was just over half a mile from the venue, but the walk to and from was always comfortable and fascinating. I got to try a few coffee shops, a bike shop, several restaurants and bars, a comic book store, and so much more to explore, no matter the time of day.
I slept soundly, excited to see what Friday would bring.
Friday
It brought rain.
It was never heavy but enough to deter me from walking, so I Ubered there.
It wasn't bad at all. I walked in, and Bryan (who also became one of my fave people!) recognized me from Between Two Cons and handed me my badge.
I had originally thought I wasn't going to make it again this year, but it all worked out, except I was all by my lonesome and didn't really get to sign up for games, except for Traveller '77, which I'll go into glowing detail about later. Arcane Con had an awesome ace up its sleeve: all games had a percentage (I believe it was 25%, but I'm not entirely sure) of seats open, so in-person signups one hour before the game started were allowed.
What a game-changer!
I got to get into some of the games I wistfully looked over since they were all filled online. Big, BIG shout-out to whoever thought of this and to those who implemented it. They also kept some tables open so I got to run a game set in my upcoming Cairn 2e setting, Widdershins Hollow.
With my badge lanyard around my neck, I went to check out the booths, specifically Better Legends and Skullboy (yep, a fave people, y'all know the drill by now)! I had t-shirts made, with Maxim redoing the artwork of an NPC he provided for Widdershins. All Cairn Pressers got one, plus I had two extra in case Skullboy and his wonderful wife were there, and they were! He gave me a physical copy of Dungeon of Sparks in exchange for the shirts, which I said wasn't necessary, but he is incredibly persuasive.
I needed coffee since I didn't stop at a coffee shop. Tunic Coffee, run by the Saviors of the Con Weary themselves, Josh and Dan, provided the sustenance I needed. They provided this service an embarrassingly number of times for me.
9AM was quickly approaching and with it was the first of two games that I signed up for, the original Ravenloft (kind of remastered into a one shot) for Shadowdark, ran by Michael Putlack of Night Noon Games. What a blast!
I played a goblin priest named Gaggog, in the un-divine service of her veiled mistress of midnight, Shune the Vile. Michael ran an amazing one-shot using the OG module and the pacing was on POINT. I can't say enough how enjoyable this was! It rivals this past year's Gary Con where I played Skate Wizards, as my fave Con session.
Until...
"This is Free Trader Beowulf, calling anyone…
Mayday, Mayday… we are under attack… main drive gone… turret number one not responding… Mayday… losing cabin pressure fast… calling anyone… please help…
This is Free Trader Beowulf… Mayday…"
Iconic lines from an iconic game, one reimagined and revised by Carl J. Hess.
I have no words. I have played Traveller '77 before, several times in fact, but what Carl presented that afternoon was a streamlined, engaging and thoroughly enjoyable gaming session, using an original module, Annic Nova. This is the Traveller I want to run and I plan to at my FLGS and a few cons next year.
Speaking with Carl after the session and throughout the Con was insightful and enjoyable; we hit it off, as we were both OG (Original Gamers, Gen-Xers), sharing many tales from our tables, along with perspectives and philosophies on gaming and design.
Time was flying, and I realized I had my own game to run soon. I usually get nervous running games at cons, but I get even more nervous running a game for friends and peers. Matt and I headed to The Dirty Truth for a pep talk and a pep-Sazerac.
Alt text: A game master leans over an illustrated GM screen with arms thrown wide as an excited player reaches back, while the rest of the table laughs amid dice, notebooks, and character sheets.
Photo by Doc Webb
This is the first time I ran A Wick of a Chance, the included adventure in Widdershins Hollow, my witchy setting I've created for Cairn at a con.
Matter of fact, this is the first time I've unveiled Widdershins anywhere publicly and ran Cairn inside this setting outside my usual playing groups.
I had to deliver, especially with the group in front of me.
I needn't have worried. Karly, Kayleigh, Maxim, Kyrie (a player from the Traveller '77 session earlier) and Jamie were immersed immediately and allowed me to loosen up and play off what they presented. We all laughed, and their approach to puzzles and encounters was so much fun! We realized afterward that they avoided combat partly because I handwaved some areas for the sake of time, but some of that was also how they handled the situations they faced.
Easily my favorite session I've run at a con.
I walked back to the hotel, happy, full of amazing con memories and reveling in the joy of meeting new fave people, excited to see what Saturday would bring.
End Part One