GenCon 2017

[Mike]

Oh, don't get me wrong. Given the choice of the two Cons, assuming that both of them were the same cost and the same time and distance from me, I would still choose GenCon every time. But Kari and Tory are a cool draw for me.

But also, I don't go to a con for celebrities either. There have been celebs at GenCon, and I've generally avoided them. The idea of waiting in line to see someone doesn't appeal to me. If I can run into someone with even a small amount of fame, I'll certainly eat that up, but I'm not generally seeking it out. So far at least, GenCon for me is about gaming. And since GenCon is THE gaming con...

Of course, it's also my only con, so what do I know?

[TheMaster]

meh. if stan lee walked up to me and i was trying to get somewhere, id just say excuse me and walk away lol

[Mike]

Hey, I'm not a huge Stan Lee fan. But if I had a chance to meet him, I'd certainly take it, and I'd be eager and enthusiastic about it. I wouldn't wait in line (or at least... not a long line), but I wouldn't scoff either.

[Eliahad]

You know what was awesome? Getting to hang out with DMDarcs all day every day. Oh, and Mrs. Darcs... Oh, and that Mike Jones guy. That's the celebrity I need!

[Mrs.Darcs]

So, attempted to book hotels today, apparently it needs to be a year away from ALL the dates you're staying, so looks like I can't book til Saturday and I'm pouting.

Also, Dave is awesome.

Nelly is on my list of celebrities I want to hang out with at Cons, and that's the one where she's guaranteed to be.

[Cazmonster]

Barb really wants to go. We're going to be looking at some way for the four of us to go and maybe expose the boys to it on one day. Maybe not.

We're trying - even a year out, we're trying to get set up.

[Eliahad]

Caz, if you don't mind my asking, and feel free to tell me if I'm overstepping:

Are you and Barb worried about the level of stimulation that would be affecting your kids at a con? I can say that they do have quiet areas set up for things like this, though I don't know how effective that would be. The vendor hall would be a little rough...

Anyway, I would be happy to help out any way I could, including running games for them back in the relative quietness of the hotel rooms so you guys could get some time on your own.

[Cazmonster]

I know the stimulation level will be high for them. Hundreds of voices especially in the vendor hall will be a great deal for them to process. We would have to time things to keep them happy and not overwhelmed.

Also, without proper preparation, the costumes of some folks may well be too much for them. Moreover, they're going to be thirteen and a couple of months and so will have puberty to contend with. Already, we're working a lot to keep them respecting people's boundaries. Perhaps this school year will see them mature past some of the behaviors we're dreading.

I think we could make it work for them and I sincerely appreciate your offer of help. Barb and I will discuss the convention over the year and I think we will be able to do something.

[Mrs.Darcs]

Should I look at three rooms?

Also, Caz, I know your kids don't know me, but I adore children and would also be happy to hang with them to give you guys time, the activity can be a bit much for me sometimes so a break isn't a bad thing for me. Especially if we're within walking distance to the convention center.

[Mike]

Yeah... we're all on board with taking shifts kid-sitting.

[Mike]

And also SB, if you can reserve rooms and have the option of cancelling by a certain date with no repercussions, I actually think you should get 4 rooms total.

There's the four of us who went this year, Caz and family, a few people you talked about who might join us, plus Aidan has expressed interest in coming along with a friend, and now Jacob has said that maybe him and his roommate would go. I anticipate Aidan not actually going, but Jacob probably would. It's possible that between now and January, our list of friends will grow, and likely that half of them will all drop out before we actually set anything in stone. In the end, we may reserve a whole block of rooms and then cancel all but one because it's just the four of us again.

And also, I know you eagerly volunteered for hotel duty, but I don't want you to feel obligated as this all becomes more complicated. I'm more than happy to take back some or all of this. I don't anticipate you'll take me up on that, but I want you to know that the option is available.

[Mrs.Darcs]

Andrew is in if I have to knock him out and load him in the car myself! 4 rooms of 4 is a lot of T-shirts

[Elle]

Wish I could go. If the last two weeks is any indication, there isn't even the slightest hope of my going anywhere this time of year.

[Cazmonster]

Yeah - if you can cancel out a room without losing the whole thing, go for four rooms. With the number of people we're talking about, I'm certain we can keep my guys entertained. Worse comes to worse, we bring the ipads and when we run out of other options, they chill with those.

[Mrs.Darcs]

So I have 4 rooms booked at the LaQuinta Hotel Downtown Indianapolis. I can cancel any and all of these rooms up until the 13th of August next year (the con is the 17-20) We have Wednesday check in, Sunday check out. Assuming 16 people (4 per room) the cost per person is 183 (including tax) this applies for all multiples of 4, any fewer than that and we need to do some math

We also may need to find 3 more AAA cards within our group if they decide to be picky. I will continue to look for better deals, but I feel better knowing we have a definite plan in place.

fun fact: I was gonna check the Westin just to see how much more we'd have to pay for funsies. I can't, It's already sold out. Before 11am, on the first day you can book...

[Mike]

I think all the attached hotels at the convention center have blocks of GenCon specific rooms held back that you can't reserve until GC opens their housing deals after badges go on sale. But good luck getting in fast enough to get any of those either.

[DMDarcs]

I actually really enjoyed the hotel we have booked for 2017. Breakfast was good, rooms were good, and the distance was about that that we had from where we parked this year to the convention hall. Plus, it increases our chances of finding our favorite police officer.

[Mike]

Agreed 100%. La Quinta worked out perfectly. I'm thrilled with that.

[Cazmonster]

Oh awesome. Cheap breakfast will help my guys out a lot. Especially if we get them going a little early to get ahead of the rest of the geeks.

I'm excited and it's a year away.

[Cazmonster]

Talked to Barb about the price and now maybe it will just be me going to the big show. We have time, so I will try to get an answer as soon as I can.