Adepticon 2015

Adepticon has become a staple in our convention diet. Thousands of folks still flock to the humble halls of suburban Chicago to take part in a long week(end?) of pure gaming satisfaction with a hard focus on miniatures. Thanks goes out to Geek Nation Tours for making my visit so effortless and relaxing.

This year, we took the train. It's an inexpensive and safe way to travel 700 miles in about 14 hours. The Lakeshore Limited is an overnight service, so I generally end up sleeping through most of it.

Miniatures

Throughout the week, I involved myself in a few miniature-related events. The Teladrin Enclave narrative Battlefleet Gothic event was incredibly cool and immersive, including secret missions for all the major factions and a wonderful atmosphere and really cool terrain.

While I did shun big events like the Team Tournament and the GT this year, I couldn't go the entire weekend without partaking in a single competitive event. I decided to take in one of the Combat Patrol tournaments on Saturday with my Orks.

It was a great deal of fun; what a wonderful way to meet a bunch of cool people on the battlefield, play a bunch of games, and do so in a fraction of the time it takes to play a big tournament. That 20-minute warning sure does come quick, though! Also, sometimes you can stupefy your opponent by rolling doubles on your Shokk Attack Gun and obliterating a swath of your own models! Mua ha ha! Take that, you!

But, of course, Adepticon is so much more than miniatures.

Learning

We took in some classes. We learned weathering pigments with Mr.Justin and Object Source Lighting from Victoria Lamb. I bought some pigments, so we'll see what I come up with on a few of my new purchases.

Unbridled Commercialism

Speaking of purchases, I am excited to report that I found a Forge World Kill Bursta tank for $60! Wow! I also got 4x Bloodcrushers and 10x Savage Ork Boar Riders for around $85 to add to my Daemon Ork collection! Woot!

I also picked up a case of KR foam for the Daemon Orks and also a Battlefoam tray for my Tankbustas.

Other Games

I had a rad time with the Freebootaz playing Galaxy Truckers. This has become one of my favorite boardgames of all time. Nathan also showed me Pandemic which was also super fun. We also did
a super fun Dread Battle which has become a staple of Boota Town.

Boardgame night with The D6 Generation was super great as always. I learned how to build Castles in Castles of Mad King Ludwig! I have GOT to buy this game!

Ciaran and I played some Conquest. I quite enjoyed the game and may very well pick it up. I need to check if anyone at the club has been collecting it.

After learning there would be no Star Trek Attack Wing at Adepticon this year, I decided to remedy the situation by running a tournament. It went really well. The players were really friendly and gave me some very positive feedback on my missions and how the tournament was executed. Matt Weeks and his team were extremely helpful in making it a reality; they were extremely patient and attentive
even with all the crazy stuff going on all day.

I also GMed a game of Dark Heresy during the Geek Nation Tours Welcome dinner. This run-through of the game was quite bloody in comparison to the playtest run-through! I think folks had a lovely time and picked up the system pretty quickly.

Booze!

I don't drink a lot but there's another thing one finds creeping about Adepticon which brings me to the depths of debauchery. What's cool is that folks from all over the world bring their perspective on good alcoholic beverages, thus broadening your horizons!

Apparently, I love Cognac. I had no idea.

People

The best thing about Adepticon, however, is friends; hanging out with people you can't see year-round because you're separated by leagues of the earth's surface.

I was humbled to meet a lot of listeners to our podcast and folks who inhabit the Independent Characters forums. Thanks so much to all of you who greeted me so warmly. I hope we can continue to build and shape the community in a positive way.

I had a wonderful team game with Carl, Jon, Snorre, and Jason. This was truly one of the highlights of my convention.

Snorre and I hit it off pretty great. I think these pictures speak for
themselves...

Skip attended the con as well...

Jim was super busy at the Prodos booth, but we had time for a few scandalous photos...

Ciaran loves me. He just won't admit it! In addition to Conquest, Ciaran also introduced me to some British satire, specifically The Day Today, which is magnificent.

It was a real treat to meet Andy Chambers. We had a few conversations throughout the convention. He shared his insights on game design and the history of Games Workshop. I really look forward to his upcoming space battles game for the Dropzone Commander franchise.

Until Next Time

A huge thanks goes out to the folks at Adepticon. You've created a lasting event that everyone is excited for year in and year out. Even if you forget all the awesome different things you can do there, one distinction stands out in my mind: Adepticon is the one and only convention in the world that plays 40k the way it was meant to be played... any way you damned well please.