I finally lost patience with my regular pool of potential role players and have reached out to the local community. Ottawa is quite bustling, it turns out, and I've discovered the yearly CanGames event.

I've decided to attend, as a player, and sit at as many tables as possible. I'm hoping that I'll discover some great games and do some substantial networking.

Alright cutting to the chase:

I haven't played with strangers in a while, and never at a convention.

Is there anything that I should know or prepare for in advance?

Should I bring supplies? Pre-print character sheets for the games that I know? Bring my own dice?

Also, socially, anything I should anticipate? I'm socially competent but if there are any taboos or "faux pas" at these types of events? There isn't much on the CanGames website other than general stuff about being courteous and not leaving a game until it's over.

Thanks in advance and comedy suggestions (ie- insults at my naïvety) are welcome as long as they're balanced with equal amounts of actual advice.

Relax, have fun, and don't be a dicknozzle.  That really should just about cover it.

Having your own dice, paper, pencils is a nice courtesy.

Try to play as many different systems as you can.

If you really like a system/setting then play those games as well.

Dice are good, some people don't like it when people ask to borrow dice, I don't mind but have seen people get quite upset at the idea. Similarly, bring pens/pencils.

GMs normally bring their own character sheets for players, so I wouldn't worry about those so much. Printing out pregens if you have been sent them is OK, but I normally end up with duplicates.

In games, don't have a strop when things don't go well, don't slag off the GM at the table, don't sulk in games. I've seen all those at conventions and it doesn't work at all well.

Above all, be friendly and, as Gronan of Simmerya says, relax, have fun, and don't be a dicknozzle.

1. Shower regularly.

2. Be ready for other people not to shower regularly, especially after the first day or two.

3. And yes - bring everything that you need to play.

Be nice, be bathed, wear clean clothes. You won't need pre-printed character sheets.

never pay the listed price for anything at a dealer table.

Having done alot of cons.

Some things to consider.

A: Plan ahead the logistics. Travel to and from, lodging, entry fees, event fees, dealer room spending.

B: Bring your own dice. but dont be offended if someone asks you to use what they brought themselves.
Bring the bare minimum needed to play the game. Or at least know the system well enough. Players handbook, basic printout of the basic rule points, etc. Moot point if its not a published system.

C: Dont go in with any preconceived notions of whats right or wrong. You are sitting down with a bunch of strangers and probably all have had different experiences or styles. But you may run into some foulmouths or worse. Feel free to ask them to tone it down. If the con has a gaming roster listed for events then glance at it well as sometimes it can clue you in to whats expected. But more often you tend to just have to guess and go with what sounds interesting and hope its not a waste of 2+ hours.

So you could get a railroady DM, bossy players, freeform, modules, NPC focus, random encounter focus, dungeons, wilderness. and many many more styles. This is where glancing at the event pitch can help a little in deciding.

D: dont get irate or depressed if a session doesnt go well. Its to be expected. Consider yourself fortunate if you make it all the way through without a single hitch to any event you attended.

E: Expect to possibly do ALOT of walking.

F: Expect to end up lost in the dealers room for at least a day.

Have tremendous fun!!

Cons are a great place to try out stuff you've never played before. Some cons have details about the individual events posted in advance (description of the adventure, level, kill rate, maturity level, system mastery expected, etc). If so, read up on those. Some GMs are looking for players new to the game to convert with a demo, other GMs are looking for people who know the system/setting.

The BIG faux pas at cons are the asshats who pre-reg for game events and then don't show. Its cool to change your mind, but take your name off the pre-reg list as far in advance as possible so other people can take your empty seat. It really sucks for GMs when half their players don't show up and afterwards they learn people who wanted to play saw the full table sheet and walked away.

Bring extra dice, extra pencils, extra scrap paper. So many players show up with the clothes on their back and nothing else. Having a couple extra D20s at the table is a boon to keep the game moving.

Get some exercise between events. There is a lot of sitting at cons.

I suggest green tea instead of sugar soda. I bring 3 of these per day to cons. I usually run 2 events per day and play in 1.

Bring some real food with you. Con food is 90% junk.

Are you a GM at home? If so, I suggest bringing a light RPG that you know well, 6 pregen characters and an adventure suitable for 4 hours (or 6 hours if that's the slot size at CanGames). I can't tell you the number of times a GM was a no-show and a full table of players just sat there looking at each other. In those moments, I've pulled out my In Case of Emergency game. The joke is that some of those emergency sessions turned out to be some of my favorites.

Years ago, I posted a bunch of info on making con going cheaper and others chipped in some good ideas. It was for the Palladium Open House, but the tips work for most any event.
http://palladium-megaverse.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=50&t=100873

Wonderful advice folks, thanks.

For perspective, I'll be spending all of my time at tables, playing games. While I prefer to GM, I'm eager to learn new games and to observe how others do it behind the screen.

Heh yeah I shower regularly: I'm more wary of other peoples' hygiene skills ('had a few negative experiences with socially awkward catpissmen)..

EDIT (followup question)

Say you're halfway through a game session and you realize that things are going badly. Perhaps the GM is just awful, the social dynamics are awkward or perhaps the play-style just isn't working out for you. To put it bluntly, you're not having any fun for whatever reason.

Now the rules of the convention are clear: don't leave until the session is over. Also, like most socially-adept people, I don't want to make a scene at the table or start up a debate with the GM. I'm there to learn, experience and to make friends, not  to be a douche.

What do you do? Any tips on just going with a shit train of a game? Any methods to constructively make the best of bad session? I'm not the passive-aggressive sulking type.

Quote from: Necrozius;957376...
EDIT (followup question)

Say you're halfway through a game session and you realize that things are going badly. Perhaps the GM is just awful, the social dynamics are awkward or perhaps the play-style just isn't working out for you. To put it bluntly, you're not having any fun for whatever reason.

Now the rules of the convention are clear: don't leave until the session is over. Also, like most socially-adept people, I don't want to make a scene at the table or start up a debate with the GM. I'm there to learn, experience and to make friends, not  to be a douche.

What do you do? Any tips on just going with a shit train of a game? Any methods to constructively make the best of bad session? I'm not the passive-aggressive sulking type.

Players can often lead by example, especially if the problem is an inexperienced or inhibited GM. For example, by getting into the game in ways that the GM, players, and/or game system haven't taken into account, but which are natural fun extensions. A GM may respond by taking on and responding/riffing off a player's inspirations.

Problem players can also often be dealt with by other players reacting appropriately. There are several flavors of this. (Of course, different players have different ideas of what problems and solutions are.)

Quote from: Necrozius;957376Wonderful advice folks, thanks.

For perspective, I'll be spending all of my time at tables, playing games. While I prefer to GM, I'm eager to learn new games and to observe how others do it behind the screen.

Heh yeah I shower regularly: I'm more wary of other peoples' hygiene skills ('had a few negative experiences with socially awkward catpissmen)..

EDIT (followup question)

Say you're halfway through a game session and you realize that things are going badly. Perhaps the GM is just awful, the social dynamics are awkward or perhaps the play-style just isn't working out for you. To put it bluntly, you're not having any fun for whatever reason.

Now the rules of the convention are clear: don't leave until the session is over. Also, like most socially-adept people, I don't want to make a scene at the table or start up a debate with the GM. I'm there to learn, experience and to make friends, not  to be a douche.

What do you do? Any tips on just going with a shit train of a game? Any methods to constructively make the best of bad session? I'm not the passive-aggressive sulking type.

I always try to stick it out and try to nudge things in the righ direction as a player.

However, even bad games are useful as they tell you, as a GM, how not to GM a game.

Quote from: Necrozius;957376What do you do? Any tips on just going with a shit train of a game? Any methods to constructively make the best of bad session? I'm not the passive-aggressive sulking type.

Try to turn the game. If the GM is bad, engage with the other players. Have fun despite the circumstances.

If things get really, really bad, I switch to "anthropology mode". I continue to play, but I focus on watching the other players and the GM. What are they doing? Why are they doing it? Do they have fun? Can I guess their emotions and motivations?

If the referee is floundering (as opposed to being an asshole), play supportively.  Ask for clarifications, ask for clarifications in a very leading way ("Did you mean that you want us to...").

Once again, fantastic suggestions. You guys and gals rock.

You're welcome.

And if worst comes to absolute worst, hell, it's only a couple of hours.  You can ALWAYS claim that three days of greezy meat has gotten to you and spend the last two hours in the can.